The aim of this book is to explore and understand the activities undertaken by the Florentine Accademia del Cimento, one of Europe's first scientific societies. The Cimento operated for ten years, between 1657 and 1667, and during that time performed many experiments and observations in physics and astronomy, rivalling the achievements of the Royal Society of London and the Parisian Academie Royale des Sciences. This book will attempt to sift through the ava- able primary evidence, as well as secondary accounts of the Cimento's activities, in order to examine the intellectual concerns that...