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Pythagoras of Samos
(lived roughly 580-500 BC)
Pythagoras was born on the Greek island of Samos, which made
him a Samian.
By the way, another bright man born on this island was
Aristarchus of Samos. But we are 200 years ahead of ourselves.
Back to Pythagoras.
Pythagoras' strong suit was mathematics and philosophy. He went to
Crotone in southern Italy and started his own learning center.
And here you can find Crotone, Italy, on
the Google map (see red marker).
What is the Theorem of Pythagoras?
The Pythagorean theorem goes as follows
a2 + b2 = c2
In other words, the sum of the squares
on the legs of a right triangle is equal to the square of the hypotenuse. Algebra is
our friend.
Euclid agreed and proofed the
theorem right by means of his windmill, you know it as Euclid's
Windmill.
What is
Pythagoreanism?
First of all, pythagoreanism is a
wonderful word. Try to weave it into your conversation today.
Secondly, it was the big P's spiritual
inheritance; so much more than algebraic formulae, but rather a form
of religion. Transmigration of the soul, astronomy, mathematics in
music, numbers in everything, vegetarianism, and much more were covered in
the teacher's outline.
And of course there were disciples, the
Pythagoreans.
What else?
There was another Pythagoras, a
sculptor, who was born roughly around the time of the death of the
philosopher Pythagoras of Samos.
See also
About the Ancient
Greeks
More History
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