ARCHIMEDES (ca. 287-212 B.C.)

In antiquity, Archimedes' reputation rested upon his remarkable engineering abilities. He is credited with inventing, among other things, a screwlike device to raise water and the compound pulley. It is, however, his extraordinary mathematical discoveries that will forever assure him a place among the great mathematicians of all time. Achievements include his calculations on the area of the surface of a sphere, geometrical analysis of statical and hydrostatical problems and the use of statics in geometry.

It was not until fifteenth-century Europe, however, that the work of Archimedes began to be more widely known. Various versions of individual texts were published but it was not until a Latin translation was made that a much wider audience was reached.

Bequest of Melva B. Guthrie