The Complete History of Science

Latest Episodes:

A New Science [Galileo - Part 3] Nov 07, 2026

Show notes

In 1592, Galileo moved to the University of Padua for a much better salary. Protected by the power of Venice, Padua welcomed new ideas, and he soon found friends who shared his doubts about Aristotle.

In this episode we follow his years there as he worked to fix his theory of motion and found a whole new science.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Contact: thecompletehistoryofscience@gmail.com
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/gethinrichards.bsky.social
Music Credit: Folk Round Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

De Motu [Galileo - Part 2] Oct 24, 2026

Show notes

At twenty-five, Galileo was back in Pisa, this time as its Professor of Mathematics. The salary was roughly that of a good stonemason, and the university was firmly in the hands of the Aristotelians, some of whom had once been his teachers. In this episode we look at Aristotle’s ideas on motion, and why even his most devoted followers couldn’t agree on what they meant. Galileo had little patience for any of it. Instead he turned to Archimedes and to a new generation of Italian mathematicians who were asking the same questions. Encouraged by his friends, he made his first real attempt at a theory of his own. Not very originally, he called it De Motu. Whether it actually worked was another matter.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

I Follow Archimedes [Galileo - Part 1] Oct 10, 2026

Show notes

In 1583, Galileo Galilei was eighteen years old and enrolled as a medical student at the University of Pisa. On the surface, life was good. There was, however, one problem: he couldn't stand medicine. We begin with his early years, from his musician father and difficult mother to the monks who very nearly kept him for good. Nicknamed The Wrangler for arguing with his professors, Galileo slipped uninvited into a lecture on geometry and was captivated. Mathematics was poorly paid and held in low regard, but in Archimedes he had found his master. Abandoning a safe career was a gamble, and the road to a university post was not a smooth one.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Special: The History of Reproductive Science with Prof. Michael Carroll Mar 22, 2026

Show notes

Michael, an Associate Professor in Reproductive Science, joins us for a wide-ranging dive into the history of reproductive science. From ancient Galenic theories and Leonardo da Vinci's anatomical drawings, through the gradual unravelling of how sperm and eggs work, to the breakthroughs that ultimately made IVF possible.

We trace the key milestones: sperm capacitation, early animal studies, and the pioneering work of Edwards, Steptoe, and Purdy that led to the birth of Louise Brown in 1978, and the 12 million IVF babies who have followed since.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

The Harmony of Johannes Kepler [Kepler - Part 4] Jan 25, 2026

Show notes

In 1610 reports reached Prague that Galileo had discovered new planets, and Kepler felt compelled to find out for himself what had actually been seen. Reading Starry Messenger and later observing through a borrowed telescope, he became one of Galileo’s earliest and most important defenders. Kepler not only confirmed the existence of Jupiter’s moons but also argued publicly for the reliability of telescopic observations, and went further by explaining, for the first time, how the telescope worked in theory through his optical treatise Dioptrice.

Alongside this defence of new instruments, the episode follows Kepler’s search for harmony in the structure of the cosmos, culminating in the discovery of his third law of planetary motion. It then traces his long and difficult effort to complete the Rudolphine Tables, based on Tycho Brahe’s observations. Published in 1627, the tables proved vastly more accurate than anything before them and made possible the successful prediction of planetary transits. Though Kepler did not live to see their full impact, the tables ensured that his astronomy could no longer be ignored.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Christmas Special 2025 - Q and A Dec 24, 2025

Show notes

Merry Christmas!

Answering listener questions as well as some long standing FAQs. Enjoy!

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

The New Astronomy [Kepler - Part 3] Nov 14, 2025

Show notes

After years of struggle, Johannes Kepler finally had the tools and data to wage what he called his “War with Mars.” Rejecting ancient assumptions he used Tycho Brahe’s observations to discover his first two laws of planetary motion. His New Astronomy not only redefined celestial mechanics but transformed astronomy from a geometric art into a true physical science.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Let Me Not Seem to Have Lived in Vain [Kepler - Part 2] Nov 10, 2025

Show notes

In 1600, Johannes Kepler arrived at Tycho Brahe’s castle hoping to escape religious persecution and gain access to the most precise astronomical data in Europe. Their relationship was strained by clashing temperaments — Tycho’s secrecy and pride meeting Kepler’s impatience and ambition — yet their collaboration began to bear fruit as Kepler tackled problems of planetary motion and optical theory. Despite constant uncertainty, Kepler’s time at Benátky marked the beginning of a partnership that would reshape astronomy and set him on the path toward his greatest discoveries.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Secrets of the Universe [Kepler - Part 1] Sep 28, 2025

Show notes

Johannes Kepler rose from a difficult childhood to become a brilliant but unconventional student, deeply influenced by his Lutheran faith, Copernican astronomy, and a belief in divine harmony within the cosmos. In Graz he developed his bold first theory, published in Mysterium Cosmographicum, which linked the orbits of the planets to the five Platonic solids and made him one of the earliest open defenders of heliocentrism. Facing religious persecution and desperate for accurate data, Kepler set out to join Tycho Brahe in Prague, convinced that Tycho’s observations were the key to uncovering the universe’s hidden order.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Tycho's World System [Tycho Brahe - Part 3] Jun 20, 2025

Show notes

Tycho Brahe’s observations of the Great Comet of 1577 and his discovery of atmospheric refraction led him to reject solid celestial spheres and reassess the structure of the cosmos. Seeking an alternative to both the Ptolemaic and Copernican systems, he developed a geo-heliocentric model in which the Sun orbited the Earth while the planets orbited the Sun, a theory he supported with years of precise measurements, including a (mistaken) parallax for Mars. Though he failed to find definitive proof, Tycho’s tireless pursuit of accuracy and his revolutionary instruments laid the groundwork for the astronomical breakthroughs that would follow.

Support the show

Support the show and get episodes early: https://www.patreon.com/TheCompleteHistoryofScience

Website: https://thecompletehistoryofscience.com/

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

The Complete History of Science

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected