He proved that the ratio of a circle's perimeter to its diameter is the same as the ratio of the circle's area to the square of the radius. To what extent he actually had a correct version of integral calculus is debatable. He devised a heuristic method based on statistics to do private calculation that we would classify today as integral calculus, but then presented rigorous geometric proofs for his results. In a civilization with an awkward numeral system and a language in which "a myriad" (literally "ten thousand") meant "infinity", he invented a positional numeral system and used it to write numbers up to 10 64. In creativity and insight, he exceeded any other mathematician prior to the European renaissance. After a number of experiments, whereby the hosts of the program tried burning a model wooden ship with a variety of mirrors, they concluded that the enemy ships would have had to be virtually motionless and very close to shore for them to ignite, an unlikely scenario during a battle.Īrchimedes was killed in Syracuse by a Roman soldier in 212 BC. This popular legend was tested on the Discovery Channel's Mythbusters program. It is said that he prevented one Roman attack on Syracuse by using a large array of mirrors (speculated to have been highly polished shields) to reflect sunlight onto the attacking ships causing them to catch fire. One of his inventions used for military defense of Syracuse against the invading Romans was the claw of Archimedes. He has also been credited with the possible invention of the odometer during the First Punic War. He is reputed to have held the Romans at bay with war machines of his own design to have been able to move a full-size ship complete with crew and cargo by pulling a single rope to have discovered the principles of density and buoyancy, also known as Archimedes' principle, while taking a bath (thereupon taking to the streets naked calling " eureka" - "I have found it!") and to have invented the irrigation device known as Archimedes' screw. Archimedes Image provided by Classroom Clip Art ( )Archimedes became a popular figure as a result of his involvement in the defense of Syracuse against the Roman siege in the First and Second Punic Wars.
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