Other great scientists, including Newton, became embroiled in bitter polemics. But these were peripheral to their work, skirmishes around a solidly established position. The particular tragedy of Galileo was that his two major works were only published after his seventieth year. Up to then, his output consisted in pamphlets, tracts, manuscripts circulated privately, and oral persuasion – all of it (except the Star Messenger) polemical, ironically aggressive, spiced with arguments ad hominem. The best part of his life was spent in these skirmishes. Until the end he had no fortress in the form
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