| Galileo | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Gender | Male |
| Animal | Bear |
| Hair color | Gray |
| Residence | Italy |
| Cartoon debut | "Ants in Arthur's Pants" |
Galileo was an Italian inventor and scientist. He is credited with being the father of modern science, particularly physics.
Biography[]
Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei was born February 15th 1564 in Pisa, Italy, the son of a famous musician. After considering becoming a priest or a physician, he studied the natural sciences and became a professor in 1589.
He invented, among other things, a hydrostatic balance and a forerunner to the modern thermometer.
He greatly improved the design of telescopes, introducing the first astronomical telescope in 1609. This made observational astronomy possible.
Thanks to his telescope, he was able to prove the heliocentric model of the solar system[1] by studying the phases of Venus. He also discovered the four large Jupiter moons[2][3], the first moons (other than Earth's) to be discovered.
He stated the basic principle of relativity, on which both Newton’s laws of motion and Einstein’s special theory of relativity are based.
His book “The Assayer” championed the scientific method.
According to his student, he once dropped lead balls off the Leaning Tower of Pisa to prove that they fell with the same speed, regardless of their mass[4]. Many scientist believe, that this was a thought experiment and not actually carried out.
Between 1610 and 1633, Galileo repeatedly had to defend his heliocentric model in front of the Roman Catholic Inquisition, who believed that this contradicted the bible. Eventually, Galileo was sentenced to house arrest until his death in 1642.
On Arthur[]
In the introduction to "Dad's Dessert Dilemma", David Read mentions Galileo as an example of a misunderstood scientist.
Also in "Dad's Dessert Dilemma", Mr. Ratburn teaches the class about Galileo and the class has a birthday party in Galileo's honor. Mr. Read bakes a cake shaped like the Leaning Tower of Pisa.[1]
In the introduction to "Arthur's Treasure Hunt", Arthur imagines Galileo being told by his dad to go to bed instead of discovering more moons of Jupiter.[2]
Arthur as Galileo
In "Ants in Arthur's Pants", the class watches The Virtues of Science,[4] which shows the Leaning Tower Experiment. Arthur imagines himself as Galileo's assistant.
In the introduction to "Falafelosophy", Arthur imagines himself as Galileo, who tells the duchess D.W. that everything revolves around the sun. She orders the Tibbles to arrest him, because everything revolves around her.
In "Buster the Lounge Lizard", Arthur imagines Mr. Ratburn acting out Galileo's trial using confiscated action figures.
Galileo's name is on one of the eggs in "Brain's Brain".
In “Binky’s ‘A’ Game”, Binky becomes interested in Galileo after learning that he loved music. He manages to ace a test which asked for Galileo’s birthplace, three of his inventions, the names of the moons he discovered, the difference between Galileo’s and Kepler’s idea of orbits (circular vs. elliptical) and Galileo’s time period.
In "Muffy Misses Out", Muffy mentions the Leaning Tower Experiment and claims that nobody believed Galileo. In fact, while the idea of objects falling independent of their mass contradicted Aristotle, it had been suggested by others before Galileo.
Appearances[]
Arthur[]
- 0307b. "Dad's Dessert Dilemma" (Mentioned)
- 0309a. "Arthur's Treasure Hunt" (Fantasy)
- 0703a. "Ants in Arthur's Pants" (Pictured)
- 1404a. "Falafelosophy" (Fantasy)
- 1504b. "Buster the Lounge Lizard" (Mentioned)
- 1901a. "Brain's Brain" (mentioned)
- 2101a. "Binky's 'A' Game" (Fantasy)
- 2104a. "Muffy Misses Out" (mentioned)
External links[]
- Galileo on Wikipedia
References[]