Archimedes (287-212 BC)

Archimedes was a famous mathematician and engineer who dedicated his entire life in research and invention. It was his experiments that gave the modern world many machines that are used still today in heavy industries, as well as scientific discoveries and methods for solving complicated mathematical problems.

He was born in Syracuse Sicily, in 287 BC, when Sicily was still a Greek colony. He spent most of his life in his hometown, except when he went to Alexandria Egypt to study. In Egypt, he devised a new technique of drawing water from lower levels to the land surface. This method was given the term "hydraulic screw“.

When Archimedes came back to Sicily, he spent his entire time experimenting and researching. We don't know if he ever got married or had children, but we do know that his mind was continuously buzzing with so many ideas and theories. All his life, he was passionately and totally involved in his work. Many of his discoveries were the result of problems that were given to him by the ruler of Sicily that time, King Hiero II.

One solution to a problem came unexpectedly one day while Archimedes was taking his bath. It is said that Archimedes was so overjoyed to find out the solution that he ran out on the streets naked to tell the king about his discovery. On his way, he was crying “Eureka!”, which in ancient Greek means I have found it!

It is a real shame that such a brilliant man had such an unfortunate end. Archimedes was killed by a Roman soldier in 212 BC, during the Second Punic War. At that time, Archimedes was at his home trying to solve a maths problem. When the Roman soldier got into the house and raised his sword to kill him, the last words of Archimedes were “Do not disturb my circles!” referring to the circles in the mathematical drawing he had made.

Archimedes was buried in Syracuse and, at his request, a sphere and a cylinder were placed on his tomb. Although in the ancient times, he was not very famous, in later years his writings were translated and attracted a lot of attention from mathematicians and scientists all over the world.