Dr. Livio discusses his newest book Galileo and the Science Deniers (2020), a timely account of Galileo's struggle for recognition that the planets orbit the Sun. His proof conflicted with Church’s Aristotelian doctrine, which maintained that the Earth was the center of the universe. Galileo was condemned and severely punished by the Inquisition. Dr. Livio considers the similarity between the resistance to scientific facts in Galileo’s era and anti-science today --a very timely discussion.
Mario Livio was an internationally recognized astrophysicist at the Hubble Space Telescope for more than two decades. With more than 500 scientific articles, he has made significant theoretical contributions to topics ranging from cosmology, supernova explosions, and black holes to extrasolar planets and the emergence of life in the universe. He has received numerous awards for his research. Dr. Livio is also the author of seven popular science books. His bestselling book _The Golden Ratio_ won the Peano Prize in 2003 and the International Pythagoras Prize in 2004, as the best popular book on mathematics. His book _Is God A Mathematician?_ inspired the NOVA program “_The Great Math Mystery_,” which was nominated for an EMMY in 2016. His book _Brilliant Blunders_ was selected by The Washington Post as one of the Notable Books of 2013. His book _Galileo and the Science Deniers_ (2020) was one of the finalists for the Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science. Dr. Livio appears frequently in the media, including “The Daily Show,” “60 Minutes,” and multiple NOVA programs, as well as numerous radio programs such as “_Science Friday_,” “_All Things Considered_,” “_On Being_”, and “_Studio 360_."