Chapter 6, Archimedes and Astronomy Summary and Analysis

Astronomy preceded the Greeks but it was mostly practical. They could predict eclipses, tides, floods and so on. But the Greeks pursued astronomy for more abstract reasons; the starts and their motion were beautiful and disciplined, reflecting their values. Even their word for the heavens, 'cosmos' means 'orderly and harmonious arrangement'.

The Greeks knew that the light of the moon came from the reflection of the sun. Aristotle deduced the shape of the earth from the shadow it made on the moon. From an early age, Archimedes was interested in astronomy but they had few tools, not even telescopes. They had patients, curiosity and intellect, along with mathematics, sundials and a few compasses. They thought the sun revolved around the earth and thought the earth was the center of the universe. The stars were 'fixed'...