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Galileo's Lens

2003; American Association of Physics Teachers; Volume: 41; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1119/1.1571283

1943-4928

Harry Manos,

History and Developments in Astronomy

Most visitors to Florence, Italy, know about the Galleria dell'Accademia, housing Michelangelo's famous statue of David, or the Galleria degli Uffizi with the famous Medici collection. Few visitors know that only two blocks from the Uffizi on the Arno River is one of the world's finest museums featuring historic scientific instruments, the Museo di Storia della Scienza. In the February issue of TPT, Nickell states that the Museo di Storia della Scienza “is perhaps the best museum on the history of science in the world.”1 This fact is likely true, and the museum is a must for physics teachers visiting Florence. It features a vast collection of authentic “cutting-edge” scientific instruments, including one of Galileo's lenses in a magnificent ebony and ivory frame. One of the tragedies is that this museum goes unmarked on many tourist maps and unmentioned in many guidebooks.