Archimedes and the Door of Science

Most of the things you know about science would have dazzled and bewildered Archimedes. But many of the things you know about science began with him. The curious, logical, wonderful, exploring mind of Archimedes founded several branches of science, discovered many scientific laws and principles, and so very much more.

As an inventor, he created the Archimedes screw to drain and irrigate fields, a machine that showed eclipses of the sun and moon, and designed war machines to defend his city of Syracuse from the Romans. In spite of all these achievements, Archimedes considered inventing an amusement, and mathematics his real work. He wrote brilliant proofs and theories on almost every mathematical subject.

Jeanne Bendick introduces Archimedes through humorous yet easy-to-understand explanations of his inventions and contributions—and that the door to modern science opened through the mind of Archimedes.

An extra chapter has been added giving more details to, and the translation of, Archimedes' Cattle Problem. We've corrected some of the numbers in the chapter Archimedes and Numbers.