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In this episode, we’re diving into the untold story of one of science’s greatest icons: Galileo Galilei. You might know him as the father of modern astronomy—the man with the telescope who challenged the universe. But forget the dusty textbook legend. This episode peels back the curtain to reveal Galileo as a cunning innovator, unapologetic monopolist, and the original scientific entrepreneur.

Settle in for a journey through ambition, ingenuity, and the eternal tension between genius and fallibility. This is Galileo as you’ve never seen him before!

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Key Takeaways:

00:00 Galileo: Science, Success, and Bias

05:23 Galileo's Race Against Time

07:49 Kepler's Unfulfilled Telescope Wish

11:06 Galileo: Scientist and Businessman

16:13 "Balancing Passion and Scientific Objectivity"

19:19 Technological Lock-In and Tunnel Vision

23:10 Incentives and Scientific Discoveries

24:13 "Galileo: Discovery and Intellectual Humility"

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Resources:

Mario Biagioli's Books:

📚 Galileo, Courtier: The Practice of Science in the Culture of Absolutism - https://books.google.com.ph/books/about/Galileo_Courtier.html?id=P-KJeS6ocsoC&redir_esc=y

📚 Galileo's Instruments of Credit - https://books.apple.com/us/book/galileos-instruments-of-credit/id6503622255

Brian Keating's Book:

📚 Losing the Nobel Prize - http://amzn.to/2sa5UpA

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The Scientists is a documentary-style podcast series hosted by astrophysicist Brian Keating. Each episode explores the untold stories behind history’s greatest minds—from Nobel laureates to visionary misfits—revealing the personal struggles, intellectual triumphs, and paradigm-shifting ideas that changed the world. Each week, I dive into the life and legacy of a legendary scientist—experimentalists, theorists, and observers alike—and uncover insights you can apply to your own work and worldview. Science didn’t appear fully formed; it was built by real people solving real problems under pressure. Their ideas still shape our future. We’ll examine not just what they discovered, but who they were—from their obsessions and honors to their most spectacular ideas, brilliant blunders, and beautifully human flaws.

New episodes weekly. Learn more at BrianKeating.com.

🎙️ Subscribe for compelling science storytelling.

📚 Listen to our companion series Into the Impossible for interviews with living legends.

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Galileo, Courtier

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