[Phys-L] Re: Empedocles

[Jack Uretsky <jlu@HEP.ANL.GOV>]

1.  "The past is a foreign country.  They do things differently there."
2. "Empedocles, fragments of whose poem 'On Nature' are still extant, was
philosopher and mystic, scientist and physician."
        -Sambursky, <The Physical World of the Greeks> (Princeton 1956
-original in Hebrew).


        Other than the poem, about all we know about these guys is from
Aristotle's notes;  we dib't really know haw reliable these are - to say
nothing of translation difficulties.
                                        Regards,
                                                Jack




On Tue, 14 Jun 2005, Jim Green wrote:

> I have read much of what I have found on the web re the beginnings of
> physics.  It looks as if it boils down to Empedocles as the instigator --
> with his earth, water, fire, and air scheme.   But reading these philosophy
> authors gives me indigestion -- it is like reading fog -- just too many
> words without any substance.
>
> Maybe someone here can translate:
>
> What is "earth"?  The stuff out in my garden?
>
> What is "water"?  The stuff in the creek?
>
> What is "air"?  It is hard to fathom this, but it would appear that he
> didn't even know there was the stuff of wind.
>
> And of course "fire" -- What was in his mind?  Certainly not a Boy Scout
> camp ground.
>
> Maybe if we were to analyze the Greek words.  Anyone speak ancient Greek?
>
> Jim
>
>
>
> Jim Green
> mailto:JMGreen@sisna.com
> http://users.sisna.com/jmgreen

--
"Trust me.  I have a lot of experience at this."
                General Custer's unremembered message to his men,
                just before leading them into the Little Big Horn Valley
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