In his own lifetime（一生）, Galileo was the center of violent controversy（论争）. But the scientific dust has long since settled（安排）. And today, we can see even his famous clash（冲突） with the Inquisition in something like its proper perspective（透视画法）. But in contrast, it is only in modern times that Galileo has become a problem child for historians（历史学家） of science. The old view of Galileo was delightfully uncomplicated. He was, above all, a man who experimented, who despised（鄙视） the prejudices（偏见） and book-learning of the Aristotelians, who put his questions to nature instead of to the ancients, and who drew his conclusions fearlessly.

  He had been the first to turn his telescope to the sky, and he had seen there evidence enough to overthrow（推翻） Aristotle and Tolemy together. He was the man who climbed the leading tower of Pisa and dropped various weights from the top, who rolled balls down inclined（倾向于...的） planes, and then generalized（概括） the results of his many experiments into the famous law of free fall.