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Thales (Θαλ? Thales, lived about 585 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, one of the Seven Sages of Ancient Greece, and the founder of the Milesian School. Born in Miletus, a prosperous port city in Greece, he is said to have traveled to Egypt and other places, measured the height of the pyramids, and successfully predicted a solar eclipse.

Thales believed that all things are composed of water, and water is the source of all things. This view may have been formed by seeing the process of evaporation of sea water. According to legend, his motto was: "Water is the best." Thales also declared that "God is present in everything." Thales had an important influence on Greek philosophy. Anaximander is said to have been his student. There are also legends that Pythagoras also visited Thales in his early years and followed his advice to conduct research in Egypt.

Heraclitus (about 540 BC to 480 BC), ancient Greek philosopher and founder of the Ephesians. Born into a noble family in Ephesus. His articles are obscure and full of metaphors. Heraclitus' theory was based on the teachings of Pythagoras. He borrowed the Pythagorean concept of "harmony" and believed that there was a certain degree of harmony behind opposition and conflict, but coordination itself was not eye-catching. He believed that conflict animates the world. Heraclitus also believed that fire is the origin of all things, "everything is replaced by fire, and fire is replaced by everything." Heraclitus also believed that everything is flowing and everything is constantly changing. His famous saying is: "One cannot step into the same river twice, because both the river and the person are different. ." Socrates therefore called Heraclitus "the wanderer." Heraclitus' theory of opposites points out that things in the world are relative, and it is impossible to understand good without understanding evil. Heraclitus believed that God was something that encompassed the entire world. But he often uses the word logos (reason) instead of God. He believed that there was a "universal reason" in the world that guided everything that happened in nature.

Pythagoras (Greek ∏υθαγ?ρα?, about 580 BC - 500 BC), ancient Greek philosopher, mathematician and music theorist. Born in Samos, he traveled to Egypt in his early years, and later settled in Croton, a city in southern Italy, where he established his own society. Due to the rebellion of the opposition in 510 BC, Pythagoras moved to Metapention where he remained until his death. Pythagoras's philosophical thought was influenced by Orpheus and had some elements of mysticism. He believes that there are three types of people in society, and that the soul is the result of reincarnation. But at the same time, beginning with Pythagoras, Greek philosophy began to produce a mathematical tradition. Pythagoras used mathematics to study musical rhythm, and the resulting concept of "harmony" also had a significant influence on later ancient Greek philosophers. Pythagoras was also the first person in the West to discover the Pythagorean Theorem (also known as Pythagoras' Theorem in the West).

In terms of cosmology, Pythagoras combined the Milesian school with his own theory of numbers. He believed that there were many but limited worlds and insisted that the earth was round, but he abandoned the geocentric theory of the Milesian school. Pythagoras's research on mathematics also produced the later Theory of Ideas and Physics Theory. That is, there is a distinction between intelligible things and perceptible things. Intelligible things are perfect and eternal, while perceptible things are defective. This idea was carried forward by Plato and has dominated philosophical and theological thought ever since.

Socrates (Greek: ∑ωκρ?τη? (469 BC - 399 BC)) was a famous ancient Greek philosopher. One of his students was Plato and Plato’s student Aris Stotle is also known as the "Three Sages of Greece". He was born in the golden age of Athens under the rule of Pericles and died in the period of decline of Athens (the period after the collapse of the Thirty Tyrants after the Peloponnesian War). Born into poverty, his father was a sculptor and his mother was a midwife. Socrates was a legendary historical figure with a distinctive personality and received mixed reviews. Socrates was Plato's teacher. He never wrote anything in his life. The words and thoughts are mostly found in the works of Plato and Xenophon, such as "Memoirs of Socrates' Words and Actions". In the end, Socrates was accused of corrupting the minds of young people because he violated the interests of the powerful at that time and was forced to drink poisonous jelly.

He has relied on education for a long time. Socrates' teaching method is unique, and he often uses inspiration and debate to educate. Socrates is the founder of Plato's philosophical line. Socrates attached great importance to ethics. He was the first person in ancient Greece to propose using reason and thinking to find universal morality. He was the founder of moral philosophy. He emphasized that morality is guided by reason, so "virtue is knowledge." It is believed that good comes from knowledge and evil comes from ignorance. In the history of European philosophy, the teleology of idealism was first proposed, believing that everything is created and arranged by God and embodies God's wisdom and purpose. He put forward the proposition of "self-knowledge of ignorance" and believed that only those who give up the pursuit of nature (because it is the domain of God) and admit their ignorance are smart people. The most knowledgeable is God, knowledge ultimately comes from God, and true knowledge is to obey God. In terms of logic, Aristotle believed that Socrates proposed inductive arguments, found definite arguments from specific facts, paid attention to general definition methods, and gave precise explanations of concepts. Socrates' philosophical thought mainly believes that there are standards for right and wrong. Legend has it that Socrates had an unfortunate family life and his wife was a shrew.

Plato (Greek: ∏λ?των, English: Plato, about 427 BC - 347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher. His main philosophical thought was the theory of ideals, and he had a strong influence on Western philosophical thought. It has a significant and far-reaching impact. His original name was Aristoklēs, and he was the fourth child in his family. Plato was the nickname given to him by his physical education teacher. He was a student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle. "The Republic" is his most important work. Plato was born into an Athenian aristocracy and received a good aristocratic education. When he was about twenty years old, he began to follow Socrates. In 399 BC, Socrates was tried and sentenced to death, and Plato fled to Megara for refuge. Later he traveled to various places, including Sicily, southern Italy, Egypt and other places. Plato returned to Athens in 387 BC and founded the Academy (or "Academy"). The name of the academy is related to the address of the academy. The location of the academy is related to the legendary Greek hero Academus, so it was named after him. The academy is the earliest teaching institution in the West and the predecessor of the universities that developed in the West during the Middle Ages. The academy existed for more than 900 years until it was closed by Emperor Justinian in 529 AD. The academy was greatly influenced by Pythagoras, and its curriculum was similar to the traditional topics of the Pythagoreans, including arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and acoustics. In 367 BC, Plato traveled again. At this time, the Academy had been established for more than 20 years. He arrived in Syracuse and put his ideas into practice, but was forcibly exiled. He returned to Athens in 360 BC and continued to lecture and write in the academy. Plato's main philosophical thoughts are recorded in the form of dialogues. In Plato's dialogues, there are many conversations in the name of Socrates, so it is difficult for people to distinguish which are Socrates' thoughts and which are Plato's thoughts.

Aristotle (Greek: Αριστοτ?λη?, approximately 384 BC - 322 BC) was a famous philosopher, scientist and educator in ancient Greece. He was a student of Plato and a teacher of Alexander the Great. He summarized the results of the development of ancient Greek philosophy since Thales, distinguished philosophy from other sciences for the first time, and initiated independent research in logic, ethics, politics, biology and other disciplines. His academic thoughts had a huge impact on the development of Western culture and science. Aristotle divided science into: (1) theoretical science (mathematics, natural science and the first philosophy later called metaphysics); (2) practical science (ethics, politics, economics, strategy science and decoration); (3) the science of creation, that is, poetics.

Introduction

When we talk about ancient Greek philosophy, there are three coherent figures that we have to mention: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Together, the three of them founded today's Western philosophical thought. Although Aristotle was a student of Plato, his views differed in many ways from Plato's. Plato was an idealist and rationalist. Plato believed that our material world is actually an imperfect world, and behind it there is a perfect "world of ideas." Aristotle believed that our understanding of the world comes from our senses. Therefore, Aristotle's philosophy actually created the subsequent scientific method.

Aristotle's writings still exist today. Most of them are textbook-style documents, and many are even notes by Aristotle's students. In the early Middle Ages, due to the popularity of Neoplatonism, Aristotle's works were not translated. But in the 12th century, Aristotelianism began to rise, and his works were translated into various European texts, forming the scholastic philosophy of the late Middle Ages. This philosophy later became the target of criticism by early modern philosophers such as Galileo and Descartes.

Life

Aristotle was born in Stagira, Thrace. His father was the physician to the king of Macedon. In 366 BC Aristotle was sent to study at Plato's Academy in Athens. Aristotle lived in the Academy for the next 20 years until the death of his teacher Plato. After Plato's death, Aristotle could not bear the fact that the new head of the Academy was more sympathetic to the mathematical tendencies in Plato's philosophy, so he left Athens. However, it can be seen from Aristotle's writings that although Aristotle did not agree with the views of the new leaders of the academy such as Posippus, he still maintained good relations with them. After leaving the academy, Aristotle first accepted the invitation of his former schoolmate Hermias to visit Asia Minor. Hermias was the ruler of Mysia on the coast of Asia Minor. There Aristotle also married the niece of Hermias. But in 344 BC, Hermias was murdered in a riot, and Aristotle had to leave Asia Minor and go to Mytilene with his family. Three years later, Aristotle was summoned to his hometown by King Philip II of Macedonia and became the teacher of Alexander the Great, who was only 13 years old at the time. According to the famous ancient Greek biographer Plutarch, Aristotle instilled a moral, political and philosophical education in the future world leader. We also have reason to believe that Aristotle also used his influence and played an important role in the formation of Alexander the Great's thoughts. It was under the influence of Aristotle that Alexander the Great was always very concerned about science and respected knowledge. However, Aristotle and Alexander the Great may not have had exactly the same political views. The political outlook of the former was based on the Greek city-states that were about to decline, while the centralized empire later established by Alexander the Great was nothing more than a barbarian invention to the Greeks. After Philip died in 335 BC, Aristotle returned to Athens and established his own school there. The name of the academy (Lyceum) is named after the wolf-slayer (Lyceus) near the Temple of Apollo. During this period, Aristotle lectured and wrote many philosophical works. Aristotle had a habit of walking in the corridors and gardens while lecturing. Because of this, the philosophy of the Academy is called "the philosophy of leisure" or "the philosophy of wandering". Aristotle also wrote many works during this period, mainly about natural science and philosophy about nature and physics, and the language he used was much more obscure than Plato's "Dialogues". Many of his works are based on lecture notes, and some are even class notes of his students. Therefore, some people regard Aristotle as the author of the first textbook in the West. After Alexander's death, the Athenians began to rise up against Macedonian rule. Because of his relationship with Alexander, Aristotle had to flee to Chalcis for refuge after being accused of impiety. His academy was placed in the charge of Theophrastus. A year later, in 322 BC, Aristotle died. The cause of his death was an illness that had accumulated for many years. Rumors that he was poisoned or committed suicide by jumping into the sea due to unexplained tidal phenomena are completely unfounded.

Philosophical Views

Although Aristotle was a student of Plato, he was the first to publicly criticize Plato. He was particularly opposed to the mathematical aspects of Plato's philosophy. Some people think that although Aristotle was familiar with the mathematics of his time, he never understood Plato's mathematics. In addition, Aristotle also criticized Plato's theory of phases. Although he agrees that the "form" of a thing is eternal, he believes that the "form" itself does not exist, but is a concept formed by people after feeling the physical object. Therefore, he believes that "form" is actually the characteristic of the thing itself. He pointed out that any thought or concept we have enters our consciousness through our senses. But Aristotle does not deny that people have reason. It is with reason that people can distinguish different sensory impressions.

But he also pointed out that before the human senses experience anything, reason is a complete vacuum. Aristotle believed that there is a causal relationship in nature. He believes that there are four different causes in nature. The ancient Greeks' concept of "cause" is different from the modern concept of "causality". "Cause" corresponds to "why" and does not correspond to "result". That is, "final cause", "material cause", "efficient cause" and "formal cause". Aristotle proposed the so-called syllogism in logic. His theory remained the only accepted form of argument in the West for the next two thousand years. In terms of ethics, Aristotle emphasized the so-called "golden mean." This may be similar to the concept of "harmony" of Greek natural philosophers. He believes that people should not gravitate towards any extreme. Only with balance can people live a happy and harmonious life. Aristotle believed that humans are inherently political animals and that humans are not real humans if they do not live in society. He also proposed three good political systems: monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy (which he called "Polity").

Scientific View

Aristotle marked a turning point in the history of ancient Greek science because he was the last person to propose an entire world system and the first to engage in extensive A person who examines experience. In astronomy, Aristotle founded the theory that moving celestial bodies are material entities. In physics, Aristotle believed that objects can only maintain motion if they are in direct contact with a constantly acting mover. According to Aristotle, a "vacuum" cannot exist because space must be filled with matter. This allows physical effects to be transmitted through direct contact. Newton, a later physicist, pointed out the fallacy of Aristotle's conclusion and pointed out that "force is not the direct cause of keeping an object in motion. Force can only change the motion state of an object." It can be said that in Newton's classical mechanics system Before the building was built, the entire Western world was ruled by Aristotle's physics.

Artistic View

In terms of drama, Aristotle's "Poetics" is the first concluding work that discusses the tragedy art of ancient Greece. He proposed the famous "mimesis theory" in the book, arguing that tragedy "describes serious events and is an imitation of actions of a certain length; the purpose is to arouse pity and fear and lead to the purification of these emotions; the protagonist often appears Unexpected misfortunes turn into tragedies, so the conflict of tragedy becomes a conflict between man and destiny." This was the first time in the history of art that the nature of drama was discussed, and it also created the Aristotelian poetic tradition. His views were later developed by Horace of ancient Rome in "The Art of Poetry", thus indirectly influencing the entire history of Western art.

Archimedes (287 BC - 212 BC), a great ancient Greek philosopher, mathematician, and physicist. Born in Syracuse, Sicily. Archimedes visited Alexandria, and it is said that he invented the Archimedes-style water lifter while he was living in Alexandria, which is still in use in Egypt today. During the Second Punic War, the Roman army besieged Syracuse, and Archimedes died at the hands of Roman soldiers.

Scientific Achievements

Archimedes developed a goniometer for astronomical measurements and made an instrument for measuring the angle of the sun to the earth. His most famous discovery is the principle of buoyancy and relative density, that is, the apparent weight of an object reduced in a liquid is equal to the weight of the liquid displaced, which later became known as Archimedes' principle. In geometry, he created a method of finding pi, which is the relationship between the circumference of a circle and its diameter. Mead famously said: "Give me a fulcrum and I can move the earth." He devoted his life to studying scientific problems of volume and buoyancy. There is an interesting story that at that time the king asked the goldsmith to make a crown of pure gold. Because the king suspected that the goldsmith had added impurities to the crown, he asked Archimedes to identify it. Archimedes had been thinking about how to identify it. When he walked into the bathtub to take a bath and saw the water flowing out, After realizing how to use buoyancy to measure the volume of irregular objects, he happily ran out of the bathroom and shouted: "I found it!" Forgetting that he was naked. In addition, Archimedes also had mathematical achievements in geometry. Archimedes was the first scientific engineer. In his research, he used Euclidean methods, first assuming, and then using rigorous logical deduction to obtain results. He constantly sought general principles for use in on special projects. His work always combined mathematics and physics, and Archimedes became the father of physics.

His application of the principle of leverage in warfare and his defense of Silas is well known. He also used the same principle to derive the volume of partial spheres and the volume of revolutions (ellipsoids, paraboloids of revolution, hyperboloids of revolution). In addition, he also discussed the Archimedean spiral (for example: a fly rotates at a constant speed from the center of a turntable The trajectory left by walking outward), the related principles of circles, spheres, and cylinders, and their achievements. Archimedes effectively used the concept of approximation proposed by Euclid. He proposed polygons inscribed in circles and polygons circumscribed by similar circles. When the number of sides is large enough, the perimeters of the two polygons will increase from one to the other. One approaches the circumference of the circle from below. He first used hexagons, and then doubled the number of sides one by one. When he got to ninety-six polygons, he found that the estimated value of π was between 3.14163 and 3.14286. In addition, he calculated that the surface area of ??the ball is four times the area of ??the largest circle it inscribes. And he derived that the volume of a sphere inscribed in a cylinder is two-thirds of the volume of the cylinder. This theorem is engraved on his tombstone.

Books

"Methodology"

"On Floating Bodies"

This book discusses the buoyancy of objects and studies the buoyancy of rotating projectiles in fluids Stability in

"On Sphere and Cylinder"

This book starts from several definitions and axioms and derives more than 50 propositions about the area and volume of spheres and cylinders

"The Balance of Plane Figures or Its Center of Gravity"

This book starts from several basic assumptions, demonstrates the principles of mechanics through strict geometric methods, and calculates the center of gravity of several planar figures

"The Sand Counter"

This book mainly talks about designing a method that can represent any large number

"On Lever"

"On Splitting" "Cones and Spheres"

"Square of Parabolas"

"On Spirals"

Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712) June 28, 1778 - July 2, 1778) was a Swiss and French philosopher, writer, and political theorist. Rousseau was born in a family of watchmakers in Geneva, Switzerland. His ancestors were exiled from France to Switzerland. Due to his poor family background, he did not receive a systematic education. He has worked as an apprentice, handyman, family secretary, teacher, wandering musician, etc. He was later wanted and exiled abroad. Finally, Ermenonville, northeast of Paris. His mother died after he was born, and his father left him when he was very young. Rousseau proposed that in the state of nature (the state of animals and the state before the emergence of human civilization and society), humans are essentially good and are "noble savages". Good people are tortured and corroded by their social experiences. The development of society has led to the continuation of human misfortune. Rousseau's "Discourse on the Arts and Sciences" (1750) emphasized that progress in art and science did not bring benefits to mankind. He believed that the accumulation of knowledge strengthened government rule and suppressed individual freedom. He concluded that the development of material civilization actually destroyed true friendship and replaced it with jealousy, fear and suspicion. "The Social Contract", which describes the relationship between man and society, is perhaps Rousseau's most important work. It begins with "Man is born free, but he is everywhere in chains." Published in 1762, the book was little read at the time but has since become one of the most influential works reflecting traditional Western political thought. Contrary to his earlier works, Rousseau believed that the state of nature was a state of bestiality without law and morality, and that good people only existed because of the emergence of society. In the state of nature, people often compete with each other. People can face more threats by joining forces with others, so everyone is willing to join forces. People unite together and exist as a collective, which forms a society. A social contract is an agreement between people regarding the social status of their members. In "Discourse on Inequality"), Rousseau tried to explain the emergence of government as a contract between the rulers and the ruled. The only reason people are willing to give up their personal freedoms and be ruled by others is that they see that their individual rights, happiness, and property are better protected in a society with formal government than in an anarchic, every-man-for-himself society. . However, Rousseau pointed out that the original contract had obvious flaws.

The wealthiest and most powerful people in society "cheat" the masses, making inequality a permanent feature of human society. He mentioned in "The Social Contract" that the contract between the rulers and the ruled should be rethought. The government should not protect the wealth and rights of a few, but should focus on the rights and equality of everyone. Any form of government that is not responsible for the rights, freedoms, and equality of every individual violates the social contract that is the foundation of political power. This idea was fundamental to the French and American revolutions. In fact, it is no exaggeration to say that the French and American revolutions were a direct result of Rousseau's abstract theory of the social contract. Rousseau was one of the first modern writers to attack the private property system, so he is also considered one of the ancestors of modern socialism and communism (see Marx). At the same time, he questioned whether the will of the majority was necessarily correct. He pointed out that the government should exclude the influence of the will of the majority (see democracy) and defend freedom, equality and justice. The main principle in Rousseau's political philosophy is that politics should not be separated from morality. When a country cannot convince people with virtue, it cannot perform its functions normally and cannot establish authority over individuals. The second important principle is freedom, and defending freedom is one of the purposes for which the country was founded. Rousseau's ideas on education have deeply influenced modern educational theory. He downgraded the importance of written knowledge and recommended that children's emotional education preceded their rational education. He placed a strong emphasis on learning through personal experience.

“Let us return to nature”

In his early works, he described nature as the primitive state of primitive man. Later, criticized by Voltaire, he described nature as the spontaneity of man's process of establishing his own personality and personal world. Therefore, nature means inner state, complete personality and spiritual freedom. Contrast this with the incarceration and enslavement that society engages in under the guise of civilization. Therefore, returning to nature is to enable people to restore the power of this natural process and break away from the various oppressions of outside society and the prejudices of civilization. The autobiography "Confession" published in 1782 is one of the earliest and most influential works of self-exposure. The book does not conceal personal scandals and has a profound impact on future generations. The Chinese writer Yu Dafu was deeply influenced by Rousseau's self-exposure style.

Rousseau was buried in the Panthéon in Paris