Preview

Who Was Galileo's Audience For This Letter

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
299 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Who Was Galileo's Audience For This Letter
1. Who was Galileo's audience for this letter? What was his goal in writing?
a. Galileo’s audience for the letter is a fellow scholar and astronomer Mark Welser. His goal in writing the letter is to prove that he is certain that the sun isn’t perfect. He wants to show that there are sunspots on the sun, and how they got there. This goes against what was being said at the time, that the cosmos was perfectly made by the Creator.
2. What theories does Galileo offer here? Based on what evidence?
a. One theory that Galileo makes is that the sunspots are similar to clouds like smoke. “The black spot thus impressed on the iron, there will arise a black smoke that will disperse in strange and changing shapes. Thus we see wood, straw, paper, candlewicks,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) was a believer of Copernicus's heliocentric theory. His discovery of the telescope (1609) allowed him to confirm the theory and his own beliefs. Galileo was first criticized by Friar Lorini. The Friar said that Copernicus's theory violated the scripture. Galileo responded with the Letter to Castelli, hoping it will give back some hope and trust in science. However, it did the opposite, and Lorini, sent a copy of the letter to the Inquisition (1615). On February 1616, Galileo was warned by Cardinal Bellarmine to keep quiet of his ideas or else stronger measures would be taken.…

    • 635 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A galaxy is a group of billions of stars and planets. Some galaxies are the whirlpool galaxy, the milky way galaxy and the black eye galaxy. Our Galaxy is the milky way galaxy, it was found by Galileo Galilei when he pointed his basic telescope at the Milky Way in 1610.…

    • 86 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I am writing this letter because I believe that galileo’s heliocentric model is correct. And I am asking you to pardon galileo for his scientific writing on the heliocentric model of the solar system. I believe that the geocentric model is not right because the earth is not the center of the universe, but the heliocentric is because the sun is the center of the universe and I know that because I have been collecting shreds of evidence. Those pieces of evidence are the Copernican Revolution, Galileo’s evidence and that the sunspots the moon craters.…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    When Galileo first turned his telescope to the moon, he had no idea that he was about to see something that would cast doubt upon centuries-old beliefs. At the time of Galileo, science was based upon the teachings of Aristotle. According to Aristotle, the Earth was the center of the universe. All heavenly bodies, including the moon, were perfect spheres that moved around the Earth with circular motions or combinations of circular motions, and the Earth was the only source of imperfection in the universe. According to the moon truther, there are two reasons why he describes the moon as a hologram. The first piece of evidence of why he thinks the moon…

    • 858 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    He states that God has provided man “with senses, language, and intellect” which should be applied to acquire knowledge about this earth. Galileo recognizes that a small section of the text addresses astronomy, but not “the names of all the planets.” This incomplete set of information instigates man to further exploration and gain more knowledge. Additionally, these discoveries need to be backed by facts and experiments. However, Galileo states that doctrines surrounding faith and salvation “are firm enough that there is no danger of any valid and effective doctrine ever rising against…

    • 443 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    ASTRO 102 Extra Credit

    • 464 Words
    • 2 Pages

    He saw the four largest moons of Jupiter in orbit around the planet, proving that the Ptolemaic system was not simple, that the solar system was not geocentric, meaning that the planets and the sun did not orbit around the Earth. He stated that there were sunspots on the surface of the sun, that the sunspots changed their shapes, and that both originated and dissolved on that sphere, concluding that the sun was not a perfect sphere, which was in direct contradiction to the views of the Church. Galileo saw that Venus display phases similar to our moon. According to the Ptolemaic system, Venus could only display a crescent phase because its epicycle always placed it between Earth and the sun, and the Copernican system put everything rotating around the sun, which explained the phases of Venus. At the time, most…

    • 464 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Copernican Theory is a theory that was developed by Nicolaus Copernicus that stated that the Sun was positioned near the center of the Universe and that the planets rotated around it. Supporting the Copernican Theory, Galileo wrote a letter to a student that went to the university that he once had taught at, stating that the Copernican theory did not go against the passages in the bible. The letter to the student was made public, and the Catholic church saw it. In 1616, the church demanded that Galileo would not be allowed to “hold, teach or defend the Copernican theory in any matter”. Galileo ended up obeying the church and did not touch or teach about the theory for seven…

    • 443 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Galileo supported his research through a a minor teaching position. He study objects in motion and published The Little Balance, and produced his manuscript Du Motu. He provided evidence to the Copernican theory, he wrote letters to students ecplaining the Copernican theory and held lectures regrading how the motion of the earth applied to Copernican. For seven years Galileo obeyed order to make life easier and because he was a devoted Catholic, but Galileo know that the Copernican theory did not contridict the bible. So, Galileo did not publish to many contraversial text for fear the reaction of the…

    • 1440 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Galileo Accomplishments

    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages

    He was motivated by Copernicus's idea of the sun being the center of the universe which many astronomy acumens didn't agree with. Through his telescope, Galileo observed that planets existed on their own right. He was also able to observe the moon which he said was formed by Moon Mountains and craters. Although Galileo did not come into full agreement with Copernicus's initial idea of the sun being at the center of the universe, at least he agreed that there are some bodies in the universe which revolve around the sun (Dreyer, 1906). This means that Copernicus' idea was not far from the truth as confirmed by Galilei…

    • 600 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Letter of the Grand Duchess Christina of Tuscany was written by Galileo in response to hearing that the Grand Duchess of Christina criticized the heliocentric theory that was created by Copernicus. This theory was created, in attempt, to bring different perspective on pre-existing theories involving the universe. Copernicus wanted people to become interested in finding truths and new discoveries regarding science. Galileo wrote the letter firing back at such criticism.…

    • 753 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    The trail was held in the year 1633, science and religion clashed. (Linder). When Galileo published his works, he had great interest in the works of Copernicus and in later years he said the Copernicus got it right. ( Linder). When Galileo got his hands on a telescope he viewed the stars and details on the moon. He published a book with all of his findings. Skeptics did not agree with him so he addressed the general public by publishing the Sidereus Nuncius which was met with more backlash. (Linder). In his letter to the Grand Duchess of Tuscany, Galileo says, "Showing a greater fondness for their own opinions than for truth they sought to deny and disprove the new things" (Galilei). He says that his fellow scholars do not care for the truth but instead what they already believe. He did not expect backlash from his findings but he was surprised. After much dispute between him and the Church, He was to stand before ten cardinals on trial for heresy. Four days later he surrendered and was put on house arrest for the rest of his life, he died in 1642.…

    • 1243 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ruby Bridges Thesis

    • 752 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Galileo was a very smart man. He created and discovered many amazing things, not all of which were accepted by the beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church. He created a telescope that magnified up to 20 times and began studying space in 1609, (“Galileo”). The telescope allowed him to see many things not visible to the human eye, such as the texture of the moon and Jupiter's four moons. Through the study of his findings Galileo discovered that Venus and Mercury revolve around the sun, and that confirmed his belief that the Sun was the center of the Universe.…

    • 752 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Galileo Paper

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Galileo would come to invent a thermoscope, which was the predecessor to the thermometer. He also published The Little Balance, which is what brought him to the attention of the scholarly world. Galileo furthered mankind's understanding of astronomy, applied science, as well as making significant improvements to the telescope. He pointed his telescope toward the night sky and discovered 4 moons around Jupiter that are now called the Galilean Moons. He would also use his understanding of ocean tides to make an argument for the fact that the earth moves around the sun, not the opposite, which was what was commonly accepted. The Catholic Church ordered that publishing's of Galileo could not contain references to ocean tides. Galileo was a large supporter of heliocentrism, which caused large amounts of controversy in the Catholic Church because the belief at the time was that the earth was the center of the universe. Galileo went to Rome to defend the scientific position on the issue, but "In 1616, an Inquisitional commission unanimously declared heliocentrism to be "foolish and absurd in philosophy, and formally heretical since it explicitly contradicts in many places the sense of Holy Scripture."(Wiki). As a result of Galileo's trial in 1633, he was ordered to spend…

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He applied mathematics to his experiments and also used a telescope to make astronomical observations. He discovered mountains on the moon, spots on the sun, and also the four moons of Jupiter; observations that contradicted traditional beliefs that the heavens were perfect. {EXT.} In a letter to Galileo, an Italian monk named Giovanni Campioli tells Galileo, “remove the possibility of malignant rumors by repeatedly showing your willingness to defer to the authority of those who have jurisdiction over the human intellect in matters of the interpretation of Scriptures.” (Doc. 6) This document may be biased because Campioli was a monk, a religious figure, and only considered the universe a religious subject and that, therefore, he thought would make him a more reliable source than Galileo. He wrote this letter perhaps to try and withhold his authority over religious persons and suppress Galileo by insinuating it was in everyone’s best interest. [POV] Galileo was eventually brought before the Italian Inquisition for his theories. The traditional religious beliefs obviously affected his work in a similar way as Copernicus as he had to be careful who he talked to for fear of being found out by the church. Both scientists were limited in what they could do because of the fact that they were contradicting what the church…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Galileo Observation

    • 1291 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The obvious assumptions that I held before reading the piece included that I would just be reading the step-by-step development of the telescope; I assumed that the test would be the standard stuff about how Galileo had always had such a fascination with lenses and how that lead to everything that followed happening. I also held belief that Galileo lived a fairly simple life. These are obviously false after doing the reading, and now thinking about it, are just very stupid assumptions to hold in general. Galileo, instead of this simplistic, two dimensional character, is someone who did indeed live a very real life. Another assumption that I held before reading the texts on Galileo was that fairly soon after he released the information that he had discovered, the discoveries would at least be put up open to a decently honest discussion. I was extremely surprised to find that the work he released met with such serious backlash from so many. Reading about the politics surrounding what I would now consider to be such a simple change as accepting the Copernican system and that the moon was indeed not a perfect sphere was extremely surprising to me. The rapid change in the role of the Catholic church, the development of the protestant movement, and the change in ruler after Cosimo died was very interesting as it breathed life and fluidity into a time that I had previously held to be relatively…

    • 1291 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays