Galileo Galilei and the centers of gravity of solids: a reconstruction based on a newly discovered version of the conical frustum contained in manuscript UCLA 170/624 (Q2162113)

In the late 16th century, finding the centers of gravity of solids of revolution (cone, paraboloid, hyperboloid, and frusta cut out of such shapes) was a hot topic since it was a natural continuation of the work of Archimedes. Galileo was one of several Italian mathematicians who worked on these problems in the late 1580s, as a means of establishing a name for himself as a mathematician and obtain an academic position. Galileo's work earned him the respect of Guidobaldo dal Monte, but others, such a Clavius, were less impressed. Galileo's attempts to get his work published did not succeed, and instead his contemporary Luca Valerio published a rather definitive treatment of the subject. Decades later, Galileo included the findings from his youth in his \textit{Two new sciences} (1638). The authors consider these matters based on a manuscript that has not previously been taken into account: notes by Guidobaldo which contains Galileo's proof of the center of gravity of the conical frustum. ``At first sight, this manuscript does not seem to add anything significant to our knowledge of Galileo's theory of centers of gravity: although it differs in some passages from the [published treatise of 1638], the differences are not very significant. It can however shed light on some features of the young Galileo's research.''