2 Sound in Early Scientific Experiments: Galileo Galilei

Galileo Galilei provided the first and frequently cited example of a test arrangement that comes very close to today’s concept of sonification. This is an experiment involving an inclined plane used to demonstrate the law of free fall. In order to establish the acceleration of a rolling sphere, Galileo positioned small bells^[4] along the plane which enabled him to take time measurements whenever they were hit by a sphere.^[5] What is remarkable about this experiment is that the acoustic signal was employed directly during measuring and therefore linked empiricism with theory. The integration of sound into the scientific cognitive process in Galileo’s day is also to be viewed in relation with the septem artes liberales and their four collectively taught disciplines of astronomy, music, arithmetic, and geometry.^[6]