Biographies > Disciples
Evangelista Torricelli
(1608-1647)
After two years of study "under the
discipline of the Jesuit Fathers," Torricelli became a pupil of Benedetto Castelli (1578-1643) at
eighteen. Not much is known of the young Torricelli's life between 1632 and
1641. He joined the staff of Giovanni Ciampoli
(1589-1643), a friend and admirer of Galileo (1564-1642), sent to the Marche as Governor. During this period, Torricelli
conducted a thorough study of Galileo's theory of motion. He returned to Rome
in early 1641 but left for Florence in early October to assist Galileo in the
last months of his life. After Galileo's death, Ferdinand II de' Medici
(1610-1670) appointed Torricelli Granducal
Mathematician and lecturer in mathematics at the University of Pisa. In
Florence, he undertook research in geometry. In particular, he perfected
Bonaventura Cavalieri's (1598-1647) method of
indivisibles, for example by introducing curved indivisibles. In 1644,
Torricelli published Opera Geometrica. In the same year, he performed the
celebrated experiment demonstrating the effects of atmospheric pressure. He
also developed a consummate skill in grinding telescope lenses. His lenses were
of excellent quality and avidly sought after. Struck by a grave illness while
still young, he died in Florence in the night of October 24-25, 1647. After
his death, a painstaking but fruitless search was carried out to discover the
"secret of the spectacles," i.e., Torricelli's methods for producing
lenses of unmatched perfection.