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This book is intended as a historical and critical study on the origin of the equations of motion as established in Newton's Principia. The central question that it aims to answer is whether it is indeed correct to ascribe to Galileo the inertia principle and the law of falling bodies. In order to accomplish this task, the study begins by considering theories on the motion of bodies from classical antiquity, and especially those of Aristotle. The theories developed during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance are then reviewed, with careful analysis of the contributions of, for example, the Merton and Parisian Schools and Galileo’s immediate predecessors, Tartaglia and Benedetti. Finally, Galileo’s work is examined in detail, starting from the early writings.  Excerpts from individual works are presented, to allow the texts to speak for themselves, and then commented upon. The book provides historical evidence both for Galileo's dependence on his forerunners and for the major breakthroughs that he achieved. It will satisfy the curiosity of all who wish to know when and why certain laws have been credited to Galileo.

Dynamics. --- Galilei, Galileo, -- 1564-1642. --- Motion. --- Applied Mathematics --- Applied Physics --- Engineering & Applied Sciences --- Galilei, Galileo, --- Dynamical systems --- Kinetics --- Galileo Galilei --- Galilée --- Mathematics --- Mechanics, Analytic --- Force and energy --- Mechanics --- Physics --- Statics --- Dynamics --- Kinematics --- Mechanics. --- History. --- Classical Mechanics. --- History and Philosophical Foundations of Physics. --- Astronomy, Observations and Techniques. --- History of Science. --- Mathematical Applications in the Physical Sciences. --- Annals --- Auxiliary sciences of history --- Classical mechanics --- Newtonian mechanics --- Quantum theory --- Physics. --- Observations, Astronomical. --- Astronomy—Observations. --- Mathematical physics. --- Physical mathematics --- Astronomical observations --- Observations, Astronomical --- Natural philosophy --- Philosophy, Natural --- Physical sciences

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This book addresses an emblematic case of a potential faith-reason, or faith-science, conflict that never arose, even though the biblical passage in question runs counter to simple common sense. Within the context of Western culture, when one speaks of a faith-science conflict one is referring to cases in which a “new” scientific theory or the results of empirical research call into question what the Bible states on the same subject. Well-known examples include the Copernican theory of planetary motion and the Darwinian theory of evolution. The passage considered in this book, concerning the “waters above the firmament” in the description of the creation in the first book of Genesis, represents a uniquely enlightening case. The author traces the interpretations of this passage from the early centuries of the Christian era to the late Renaissance, and discusses them within their historical context. In the process, he also clarifies the underlying cosmogonic model. Throughout this period, only exegetes belonging to various religious orders discussed the passage’s meaning. The fact that it was never debated within the lay culture explains its non-emergence as a faith-reason conflict. A fascinating and highly accessible work, this book will appeal to a broad readership.

Bible and science. --- Science and the Bible --- Science --- History. --- Medieval philosophy. --- Bible—Theology. --- Physics. --- History of Science. --- Medieval Philosophy. --- Biblical Studies. --- History and Philosophical Foundations of Physics. --- Natural philosophy --- Philosophy, Natural --- Physical sciences --- Dynamics --- Medieval philosophy --- Scholasticism --- Annals --- Auxiliary sciences of history --- Philosophy, Medieval.

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This book describes in detail the various theories on the shape of the Earth from classical antiquity to the present day and examines how measurements of its form and dimensions have evolved throughout this period. The origins of the notion of the sphericity of the Earth are explained, dating back to Eratosthenes and beyond, and detailed attention is paid to the struggle to establish key discoveries as part of the cultural heritage of humanity. In this context, the roles played by the Catholic Church and the philosophers of the Middle Ages are scrutinized. Later contributions by such luminaries as Richer, Newton, Clairaut, Maupertuis, and Delambre are thoroughly reviewed, with exploration of the importance of mathematics in their geodetic enterprises. The culmination of progress in scientific research is the recognition that the reference figure is not a sphere but rather a geoid and that the earth’s shape is oblate. Today, satellite geodesy permits the solution of geodetic problems by means of precise measurements. Narrating this fascinating story from the very beginning not only casts light on our emerging understanding of the figure of the Earth but also offers profound insights into the broader evolution of human thought.

Philosophy of science --- Pure sciences. Natural sciences (general) --- Mathematics --- Solar system --- History of physics --- Geophysics --- Physical geography --- History --- wetenschapsgeschiedenis --- geschiedenis --- katholicisme --- katholieke kerk --- wetenschapsfilosofie --- wiskunde --- fysica --- fysische geografie --- aarde (astronomie) --- geofysica

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Theory of Orbits treats celestial mechanics as well as stellar dynamics from the common point of view of orbit theory, making use of concepts and techniques from modern geometric mechanics. It starts with elementary Newtonian mechanics and ends with the dynamics of chaotic motion. The two volumes are meant for students in astronomy and physics alike. Prerequisite is a physicist's knowledge of calculus and differential geometry. The first three chapters of this second volume are devoted to the theory of perturbations, starting from classical problems and arriving at the KAM theory, and to the introduction of the use of the Lie transform. A whole chapter treats the theory of adiabatic invariants and its applications in celestial mechanics and stellar dynamics. Also the theory of resonances is illustrated and applications in both fields are shown. Classical and modern problems connected to periodic solutions are reviewed. The description of modern developments of the theory of chaos in conservative systems is the subject of a chapter in which an introduction is given to what happens in both near-integrable and non-integrable systems. The invaluable help provided by computers in the exploration of the long-time behaviour of dynamical systems is acknowledged in a final chapter, where some numerical algorithms and their applications both to systems with few degrees of freedom and to large N-body systems are illustrated.

Orbits. --- Orbites --- 521.1 --- Kepler's equation --- Orbital mechanics --- Celestial mechanics. General principles of dynamical astronomy --- 521.1 Celestial mechanics. General principles of dynamical astronomy --- Orbits --- Astrophysics. --- Observations, Astronomical. --- Astronomy—Observations. --- Statistical physics. --- Dynamical systems. --- Space sciences. --- Geophysics. --- Astrophysics and Astroparticles. --- Astronomy, Observations and Techniques. --- Complex Systems. --- Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics, Space Exploration and Astronautics). --- Geophysics/Geodesy. --- Statistical Physics and Dynamical Systems. --- Geological physics --- Terrestrial physics --- Earth sciences --- Physics --- Science and space --- Space research --- Cosmology --- Science --- Astronomy --- Dynamical systems --- Kinetics --- Mathematics --- Mechanics, Analytic --- Force and energy --- Mechanics --- Statics --- Mathematical statistics --- Astronomical observations --- Observations, Astronomical --- Astronomical physics --- Cosmic physics --- Statistical methods

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Philosophy --- Bible --- Christian theology --- Physics --- History --- theologie --- filosofie --- geschiedenis --- bijbel --- fysica --- middeleeuwen