Galileo and prior philosophy

Galileo claimed inconsistency in the Aristotelian dogma concerning failing bodies and stated that all bodies must fall at the same rate. However, there is an empirical situation where the speeds of falling bodies are proportional to their weights; and even in vacuo all bodies do not fall at the same rate under terrestrial conditions. The reason for the deficiency of Galileo's reasoning is analyzed, and various physical scenarios are described in which Aristotle's claim is closer to the truth than is Galileo's. The purpose is not to reinstate Aristotelian physics at the expense of Galileo and Newton, but rather to provide evidence in support of the verdict that empirical knowledge does not come from prior philosophy. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.