Finocchiaro's new and revised translations have done what the Inquisition could not: they have captured an exceptional range of Galileo's career while also letting him speak--in clear English. No other volume offers more convenient or more reliable access to Galileo's own words, whether on the telescope, the Dialogue, the trial, or the mature theory of motion. --Michael H. Shank, Professor of the History of Science, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Galileo's 1632 book, Dialogue on the Two Chief World Systems, Ptolemaic and Copernican, comes alive for twentieth-century readers thanks to Maurice Finocchiaro's brilliant new translation and presentation. Condemned by the Inquisition for its heretical proposition that the earth revolves around the sun, Galileo's masterpiece takes the form of a debate, divided into four "days," among three highly articulate gentlemen. Finocchiaro sets the stage with his introduction, which not only provides the human and historical framework for the Dialogue but also admits the reader gracefully into the basic non-Copernican understanding of the universe that would have been shared by Galileo's original audience. The translation of the Dialogue is abridged in order to highlight its essential content, and Finocchiaro gives titles to the various parts of the debate as a guide to the principal topics. By explicating his own critical reading of this text that is itself an exercise in critical reasoning on a gripping real-life controversy, he illuminates those universal, perennial activities of the human mind that make Galileo's book a living document. This is a concrete, hands-on introduction to critical thinking. The translation has been made from the Italian text provided in volume 7 of the Critical National Edition of Galileo's complete works edited by Antonio Favaro. The translator has also consulted the 1632 edition, as well as the other previous English translations, including California's 1967 version. Galileo on the World Systems is a remarkably nuanced interpretation of a classic work and will give readers the tools to understand and evaluate for themselves one of the most influential scientific books in Western civilization.
Directing his polemics against the pedantry of his time, Galileo, as his own popularizer, addressed his writings to contemporary laymen. His support of Copernican cosmology, against the Church's strong opposition, his development of a telescope, and his unorthodox opinions as a philosopher of science were the central concerns of his career and the subjects of four of his most important writings. Drake's introductory essay place them in their biographical and historical context.
Sidereus Nuncius (usually Sidereal Messenger, also Starry Messenger or Sidereal Message) is a short astronomical treatise (or pamphlet) published in New Latin by Galileo Galilei in March 1610. It was the first published scientific work based on observations made through a telescope, and it contains the results of Galileo's early observations of the imperfect and mountainous Moon, the hundreds of stars that were unable to be seen in either the Milky Way or certain constellations with the naked eye, and the Medicean Stars that appeared to be circling Jupiter.[1] The Latin word nuncius was typically used during this time period to denote messenger; however, albeit less frequently, it was also interpreted as message. While the title Sidereus Nuncius is usually translated into English as Sidereal Messenger, many of Galileo's early drafts of the book and later related writings indicate that the intended purpose of the book was "simply to report the news about recent developments in astronomy, not to pass himself off solemnly as an ambassador from heaven."[2] Therefore, the correct English translation of the title is Sidereal Message (or often, Starry Message)."--Wikiped, Nov/2014.
Galileo’s Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, published in Florence in 1632, was the most proximate cause of his being brought to trial before the Inquisition. Using the dialogue form, a genre common in classical philosophical works, Galileo masterfully demonstrates the truth of the Copernican system over the Ptolemaic one, proving, for the first time, that the earth revolves around the sun. Its influence is incalculable. The Dialogue is not only one of the most important scientific treatises ever written, but a work of supreme clarity and accessibility, remaining as readable now as when it was first published. This edition uses the definitive text established by the University of California Press, in Stillman Drake’s translation, and includes a Foreword by Albert Einstein and a new Introduction by J. L. Heilbron.
Galileo’s telescopic discoveries, and especially his observation of sunspots, caused great debate in an age when the heavens were thought to be perfect and unchanging. Christoph Scheiner, a Jesuit mathematician, argued that sunspots were planets or moons crossing in front of the Sun. Galileo, on the other hand, countered that the spots were on or near the surface of the Sun itself, and he supported his position with a series of meticulous observations and mathematical demonstrations that eventually convinced even his rival. On Sunspots collects the correspondence that constituted the public debate, including the first English translation of Scheiner’s two tracts as well as Galileo’s three letters, which have previously appeared only in abridged form. In addition, Albert Van Helden and Eileen Reeves have supplemented the correspondence with lengthy introductions, extensive notes, and a bibliography. The result will become the standard work on the subject, essential for students and historians of astronomy, the telescope, and early modern Catholicism.
Galileo's groundbreaking dialogues are a summation of three decades of scientific work he had undertaken in the fledgling field of physics. This edition includes the diagrams crucial for understanding the text. Writing these dialogues in 1638, the elderly Galileo had a life of achievements behind him. Despite attempts at suppression of his writings by the Roman Inquisition, his ideas were successfully communicated across Europe. The motion of objects and resistance to such motion, the concept of velocity, and the laws of gravity are merely a few of the topics covered in these detailed dialogues. At the outset, we are introduced to the three conversation partners: Salviati, Sagredo and Simplicio. These three Venetians embark on a scientific discussion, hoping to explain the curiosities of things such as speed and movement. Over the course of four days, their meetings grow in complexity and scope as they strive to explain physical phenomena.
This is the last, and perhaps most important, work by the man Einstein called "the father of modern science". Confined to house arrest in the final years of his life after his heresy trial, Galileo Galilei composed his "Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems" in 1638 as a sort of magnum opus to a life devoted to scientific experimentation. The book outlines his investigations into physics and astronomy, and includes such topics as the law of free fall, the science of mechanics, the essential nature of matter, the acceleration of falling bodies, the principles of local motion, and the force of percussion. Published without a license from the Roman Inquisition, the work was an entirely uncensored compilation of theories and experiments 30 years in the making. It remains today as one of the most important books in the study of physics, as well as the history of science itself. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.
Philosophy is written in this great book which is continually open before our eyes - I mean the universe...' Galileo's astronomical discoveries changed the way we look at the world, and our place in the universe. Threatened by the Inquisition for daring to contradict the literal truth of the Bible, Galileo ignited a scientific revolution when he asserted that the Earth moves. This generous selection from his writings contains all the essential texts for a reader to appreciate his lasting significance. Mark Davie's new translation renders Galileo's vigorous Italian prose into clear modern English, while William R. Shea's version of the Latin Sidereal Message makes accessible the book that created a sensation in 1610 with its account of Galileo's observations using the newly invented telescope. All Galileo's contributions to the debate on science and religion are included, as well as key documents from his trial before the Inquisition in 1633. A lively introduction and clear notes give an overview of Galileo's career and explain the scientific and philosophical background to the texts. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
This 1967 edition of the Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems is a revision of a 1953 edition. It includes a foreword by Albert Einstein, which is presented in en face German and English versions. The translation itself is based on the definitive National Edition prepared under the direction of Antonio Favaro and published at Florence in 1897. The material specifically added to the text by Galileo himself after publication of the first edition (1632) has been included as well. In addition, the margins of the book include translations of Galileo's own postils (running notes), placed as nearly as possible beside their textual references.
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This 1967 edition of the Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems is a revision of a 1953 edition. It includes a foreword by Albert Einstein, which is presented in en face German and English versions. The translation itself is based on the definitive National Edition prepared under the direction of Antonio Favaro and published at Florence in 1897. The material specifically added to the text by Galileo himself after publication of the first edition (1632) has been included as well. In addition, the margins of the book include translations of Galileo's own postils (running notes), placed as nearly as possible beside their textual references.
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