Sure the Greeks may be more popularly known for the Olympics, or, more recently, the Battle of Thermopylae. But if you ask me their contribution to natural philosophy was far greater. Before the Greeks, sages explained the workings of every facet of the world through mysticism — a god of lightning, the seas, and so forth.
It was only after the Greeks that some scholars began seeking natural explanations, began seeing the world as round, and began trying to take its measure.
With that in mind, I thought it might be fun to discuss who among these original scientists was the greatest of all. Here’s my top five, alphabetically:
Archimedes: Brilliant mathematician, physicist and engineer of Eureka! fame. In addition to making discoveries in the fields of mathematics and geometry, he is credited with designing machines that were well ahead of their time.
Aristarchus of Samos: He was the first person to present an explicit argument for a heliocentric model of the solar system, placing the Sun, not the Earth, at the center of the known universe.
Aristotle: Many believe Aristotle’s system of thought remains the most influential one ever put together by any single mind. According to historian Will Durant, no other philosopher has contributed so much to the enlightenment of the world. He single-handedly founded the sciences of Logic, Biology and Psychology.
Eratosthenes: He is noted for devising a system of latitude and longitude, and for being the first known to have calculated the circumference of the Earth. Read more about his remarkable experiment here, and how close he came to the actual result.
Eratosthenes’ map of the world, circa 220 B.C.
Thales: Before Thales, the Greeks explained the origin and nature of the world through myths of anthropomorphic gods and heroes. Thales attempted to find naturalistic explanations of the world. He explained earthquakes by hypothesizing that the Earth floats on water, and that earthquakes occur when the Earth is rocked by waves. Arguably the world’s first scientist.
So who is your pick? Did I botch the top five list?