New light on the composition and publication of the Sidereus Nuncius / David Wootton.
Abstract:
Galileo began work on the Sidereus Nuncius on 15 January 1610, and finished on 12 March. This article reconstructs the revisions to his manuscript during this period, and explains some anomalous features of the printed text (two unnumbered folios and an extra half sheet in gathering D) as the result of the addition of four pages as the book went through the press. It is argued that these pages can be identified, and represent Galileo's response to his first critics. Moreover, it is shown that Galileo's first draft of the book did not include any commitment to Copernicanism: the three Copernican passages were added after Galileo became convinced that he would receive Medici patronage. Finally, this article explores Galileo's scientific language, in particular his use of the words for 'fact' and 'experiment'. Advancing beyond previous scholarship, this is a new account of the composition and publication of the Sidereus Nuncius.
Galilaeana A. 6 (2009), p. 123-140