Study of movement in ancient Greece and its philosophers
Summary
In ancient Greece there were several philosophers who carried out several studies of the movement of the bodies, and analyzed the causes that originated the natural phenomena, however, some of their approaches contained conjecture errors, when attributing to divine characteristics, instead of trying to try toDevelop experimental laws supported by mathematical elements.
Keywords: Movement, Greece, Philosophers
History of Physics in Ancient Greece
Approximately 500 years ago before Christ, characters such as Aristotle, Thales de Mileto, Anaxágoras, etc. They studied and formulated universe models in relation to the phenomena of our environment, based on logical, aesthetic and ethical reasoning. In ancient times, the study of the laws of nature were not their priority, his concern was to remain alive. His science consisted of agriculture, and over time incorporating elements and knowledge of engineering, in order to expand his domain by sea, earth and with a view to heaven, reason of his astronomical studies.
Mathematics developed first in the Middle East, without specifying their origin, science used for commercial and government records. Egypt Develop basic geometry, due to the need to define the agricultural territory after the annual floods of the Nile River, subsequently finding applications in astronomy.
When there was some economic stability, an intellectual aristocracy, Leucipipo and his Democritus student proclaimed that every event had a natural cause, defining the concept that all matter is composed of particles so small that they could not break, called atoms, thatIt comes from the Greek ἄτομον ("atomon"), union of two words: α (a), which means ‘without’, and τομον (tomon), ‘division’ that is ‘indivisible’.
Aristotle philosophers, Leucipo and Democritus promoted the concept that the observation of physical phenomena could ultimately lead to the discovery of natural laws that govern these phenomena. However, Aristotle believed that these natural laws came from a divine nature, their precepts were based on mere observation, without performing experimentation, which is why he has been questioned about his negligence and lack of rigor, for example, he came to affirm thatMen have more teeth than women, which is not true.
The movements of objects
Aristotle questioned: “Why does a rock fall while smoke rises?, Why does the water flow down while the flames dance in the air?, Why do planets move through heaven?", Proposing that matter is composed of: fire, earth, air, water and ether, the latter consisted of a" divine substance of heaven ", also mentioned that each of these elements had natural kingdoms, for example, the kingdomFrom Earth is the one under our feet, the Kingdom of Air is what is around us, the objects are in balance, with the elements that composed them.
The movement of objects, for Aristotle, was an attempt to achieve their natural state. A rock falls, because the kingdom of the earth is fallen. Water flows down because it belongs to the kingdom of the earth. The smoke rises because it is composed of air and fire, therefore, it tries to reach the real fire kingdom.
Aristotle did not try to describe the reality he observed, he considered that mathematics was not related to the natural world, he considered that mathematics dealt with immutable objects that lacked reality, while their natural philosophy (which science represents todayof physics), gave objects their own reality. He conducted numerous studies such as:
- Classified animals by gender, according to their characteristics.
- He studied meteorological patterns, geology and natural history.
- Contributed to the mathematical logical system.
- Works on nature, man’s relationship with the divine and ethical aspects.
The philosophers such as Aristotle, such as Miletus or Democritus, were the first to try to find an explanation to the phenomena of their surroundings, despite the fact that their descriptive theories of the universe were wrong, almost two thousand years were valid, thanks to the acceptance ofThe Catholic Church in several of its precepts related to divinity.
1.- Heraclitus (c.540-C. 475 a.C)
Greek philosopher, argued that fire was the fundamental origin in the matter and that the world was constantly changing.
two.- Leukipo (c.450-370 a.C)
Greek philosopher, creator of atomic theory.
3.- Democritus (c.460 a.C – 370 A.C)
Greek philosopher, developed the atomic theory of the universe.
4.- Samos Aristarco (310 – 230 A.C)
Greek astronomer said that the earth revolved around the sun.
5.- Archimedes (287 – 212 A.C)
Archimedes said the law of the lever, known for his famous phrase ‘give me a support point and move the earth’, it is the inventor of the compound pulley, he discovered the law of hydrostatic, called “Archimedes principle”, describes that everythingbody submerged in a fluid experiences weight loss equal to the weight of the fluid volume that expels.
6.- Tales of Miletus.
It was the first Greek philosopher who tried to raise a physical explanation of the universe.
7.- Aristotle.
Considered that all bodies fell at different times due to the weight they had.
Conclusions
The most recognized Greek philosophers such as Aristotle, Thales of Miletus or Democritus, were the ones who gave the first guidelines for the study of the movement of the bodies, when questioning the phenomena that occurred around them, these premises laid the foundations for countlessof characters develop fundamental theories and laws of movement through the process of observation and experimentation, despite errors in their conjectures, for the time they were represented a great contribution.
References
- Fernández Nieto, F., (Coord.), Ancient history of Greece and Rome, Valencia, ed. Tirant lo Blanch, 2005.
- Lane Fox, R., The classic world: the epic of Greece and Rome, Barcelona, 2005.
- Martínez-Pinna, J., Montero Herrero, S. and Gómez Pantoja, J., Dictionary of Greek and Roman historical characters, Madrid, 1998.
- Plácido, d., Folch, d. and Ucelay, and., Classical Antiquity, Barcelona, Ed. Planet, 1993.
- Rodríguez Neila, J. F., Classical Antiquity, Barcelona, Gallach Library and Edition Institute, 1991.
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