John Freely

Flame of Miletus

The Birth of Science in Ancient Greece (and How It Changed the World)

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

Discover how ancient Greek science shaped the modern world in this captivating journey through philosophy, astronomy, medicine, and the cross-cultural legacy of knowledge.

Miletus: one of the wealthiest and most important towns in ancient Greece. It was here, on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor, in the 6th century BC, that the great traditions of Greek science and philosophy sparked into life, setting in motion a chain of knowledge that would change the world, forever. This is the extraordinary story of Greek science from its earliest beginnings through its development in classical Athens and Hellenistic Alexandria and its subsequent diffusion to the wider world.

Most histories of Greek science end with the collapse of the Graeco-Roman world in late antiquity and the closing of all classical schools of 'pagan' philosophy in A.D. 529. But acclaimed historian John Freely here continues the story to tell of how the elements of Greek scientific and philosophical learning were adopted by the Islamic world and the transmission of Graeco-Islamic science to western Europe, as well as the preservation of Hellenic culture in Byzantium and its profound influence on the European renaissance and our modern world.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: I.B.Tauris
• Artikelnr. des Verlages: 431545
• Seitenzahl: 256
• Erscheinungstermin: 30. August 2018
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 227mm x 156mm x 22mm
• Gewicht: 338g
• ISBN-13: 9781788312455
• ISBN-10: 1788312457
• Artikelnr.: 48809070

Autorenporträt

John Freely (1926-2017) was born in New York in 1926 and joined the US Navy at the age of 17, serving during the last two years of World War II. He achieved a PhD in physics from New York University and did postdoctoral studies in the history of science at Oxford. He was Professor of Physics at Bosphorus University in Istanbul, where he taught physics and the history of science for more than fifty years. He also taught in New York, Boston, London and Athens. Freely wrote more than 40 books, including works in the history of science and travel. His books include Storm on Horseback, The Cyclades, The Ionian Islands (all I.B.Tauris), Crete and the bestselling Strolling Through Istanbul (both Tauris Parke).

Rezensionen

This is a magnificent book, covering an extraordinary range of topics and a vast sweep of time. John Freely has lived, written, and taught in Greece, Turkey, and Italy for a lifetime, and this experience has given him the rare ability to tell complex stories in a lucid and engaging manner. This is a book everyone should have. John Camp, Professor of Archaeology