Archimedes was a very important man in Greek history. He is considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians in the world. He was an ingenious inventor, and invented many useful things.
He was born in about 287 B.C. He was born on the island of Sicily . This island was an important center of Hellenistic culture. His inventions were vital to the development of Greece and to the world.
While he was in Alexandria , he designed a complex mechanical device that would raise water from a lower level to a higher level. This he called the Archimedes' Screw. A cylindrical shaft would rotate and water could be carried up the threads of the screw. This method is still used today.
Archimedes returned to Syracuse , continuing his studies of math and science. A war started when the Romans attacked this city. Archimedes would again save the day. He designed several effective war machines and weapons. The catapult could launch a series of rocks, arrows, or other objects at the enemy. Next, he developed a system of reflecting mirrors to concentrate the sun's powerful rays to burn enemy supplies. He was so absorbed in this work that he did not notice a Roman soldier sneaking up behind him. The Roman soldier had asked his a question, but Archimedes did not answer. It was because of this that he met his death. The Roman soldier has gotten angry and killed him. Since the Romans knew of Archimedes great work, then allowed him to be buried honorably. He had even made his own tomb, a sphere contained within a cylinder, to demonstrate that a sphere takes up 2/3 of the space inside a cylinder.
However, Archimedes' work was not forgotten. He had made plenty of other inventions that would be used again and again. Some of these included a compound pulley, calculated the value of pi, and determined how to calculate areas and volumes of complex figures.
Many of these formulas and mathematical calculations are used today. If you wanted to learn about circles, you would use pi. Archimedes work will always be remembered and always implemented. This is why Archimedes is important today.
