Galileo Galilei

1564-1642 Galilei, Galileo

Made fundamental contributions to the sciences of motion, astronomy, and strength of materials and to development of the scientific method. His formulation of inertia, the law of falling bodies, and parabolic trajectories marked the beginning of a fundamental change in the study of motion. Finally, his discoveries with the telescope revolutionized astronomy and paved the way for the acceptance of the Copernican heliocentric system, but his advocacy of that system eventually resulted in an Inquisition process against him.