In a startling reinterpretation of Galileo's trial, Stillman Drake advances the hypothesis that Galileo's prosecution
and condemnation by the Inquisition was caused not by his defiance of the Church but by the hostility of contemporary
philosophers. Galileo's own beautifully lucid arguments are used in this volume to show how his scientific method
was utterly divorced from the Aristotelian approach to physics; it was based on a search not for causes but for
laws. Galileo's methods had an overwhelming significance for the development of modern physics, and they led to
a final parting of the ways between science and philosophy. Now, in this extraordinary and concise introduction,
Drake provides a stimulating view of Galileo's life and works, providing a fresh perspective on Galileo's methodology
and his final incrimination.