Preview

Deductive reasoning

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
550 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Deductive reasoning
Deductive Reasoning

1.The ancient Greeks used Deductive reasoning to solve many things. They learned theses things form the Egyptians and the Babylonians. They learned how to solve geometric constructions like circles, squares, and pyramids, they also learned how to determine they lengths of objects from the Babylonians by using Pythagorean theorem. Building upon what they learned from the Egyptians and Babylonians they found fundamental truths in geometry, and from these truths they mad propositions called axioms, through deductive reasoning the Greeks would use these axioms to find new theorems that could be proven. These theorems would be used to find solutions of both practical and abstract nature.

2. Thales: Thales of Miletus born in 624 B.C., was the first known Greek philosopher, scientist, and mathematician. After studying in Egypt, Thales was the first philosopher to introduce geometry to the Greeks. Thales discovered how to determine the height of a pyramid through indirect measurement. Thales was also credited with being the first to discover that a circle is bisected by its diameter, and the angle formed by the two radii that makes up the diameter is 180 degrees. But we have little evidence that he proved these axioms.

3. Pythagoras Pythagoras was born on the island of the Samos in the Aegean Sea, and was a well-known Greek philosopher and mathematician, however most of his life remains a mystery. Pythagoras has been credited with many advances in mathematics and geometry, but was not sure which theroms were actually his. Pythagoras was the founder of the Pythagorean brotherhood; the brotherhood was a school and secret society. The brotherhood was rooted in philosophical and religious beliefs. Pythagoras believed that everything in nature could be expressed numerically; he also defined many properties in the numbers.

4. Plato Plato was one of the greatest Greek philosophers. He placed a tremendous emphasis on the study of

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    DBQ 2 Ancient Greece

    • 395 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Ancient Greeks made many influential contributions to western civilization such as in the areas of philosophy, art and architecture, and math and science.…

    • 395 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hummanities 3991

    • 2100 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Thales of Miletus (c. 624 BC – c. 546 BC) was said to be the first known scientific thinker. Thales was both important and extremely influential. He wanted an explanation without turning to supernatural powers. Thales attempted to explain natural phenomena without reference to mythology. Other philosophers admired his way of thinking and followed him in attempting to explain substance change, and the existence of the world. Thales had two strong beliefs. They were that that “nature must be understood without the supernatural and that humans are capable of discovering nature’s truths through observation and reason” (Adler 33). He was credited to be the first to bring geometry and astronomy to Greece from Egypt. He was best known for his supposed prediction of a solar eclipse that marked the end of the war. “He was able to change the course of a river so an army could cross it” (Adler 31). He claimed that the earth was a flat disk and that an earthquake was caused by a wave in the water. He identified water as the basis of the universe. Thales set a trend for fundamental…

    • 2100 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Geometry, a cornerstone in modern civilization, also had its beginnings in Ancient Greece. Euclid, a mathematician, formed many geometric proofs and theories [Document 5]. He also came to one of the most significant discoveries of math, Pi. This number showed the ratio between the diameter and circumference of a circle.…

    • 357 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The name of our mathematician is Aristotle, he was born in 384 BCE at Stagirus, a Greek colony that is now extinct near the seaport on the coast of Thrace. He was the son of Phaestis and Nichomachus, who was a court physician to the King Amyntas of Macedonia. Many people claim this is where Aristotle got influenced to become part of the Macedamian Court system, although is has not yet been proving plenty of experts agree this is where it all began. While he was around the age of 7 his father and mother died and he became under the care of Proxenus of Arteneus, this was his sisters husband.…

    • 1206 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Hum Project

    • 872 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Ancient Greeks have helped us to understand topics ranging from art, astronomy, mathematics and philosophy in a deeper way. One of the many names residing from Ancient Greece was Pythagoras a mathematical philosopher, who changed our present day apprehension of geometry with his astonishing creation of the theorem named after his name. The Pythagoras Theorem What is Philosophy in Mathematics? Mathematical philosophy is linked with the philosophical foundations and assumptions of mathematics. E.g. was calculus invented or rather discovered, how are theories justified.…

    • 872 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Plato was a famous Greek philosopher and mathematician from Athens that is now well known throughout the world. He lived from 427 B.C.E. to 347 B.C.E. He’s famously known for being Socrates’ student and the teacher of Aristotle. He has many writings that explored justice, beauty, and equality as well as containing discussions in aesthetics, political philosophy, theology, cosmology, epistemology, and the philosophy of language. His writings were highly influenced by Socrates as he would convey and expand on the ideas and techniques of his teacher. Plato founded the Academy which was the first institution of higher learning in the Western World and offered subjects like astronomy, biology, mathematics, political theory, and philosophy. Plato…

    • 925 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The ancient Greek mathematician Euclid influenced mathematics in a large way after developing the Pythagorean theorem. His theorem (written around 300 B.C.) stated that “If two straight lines cut one another, the vertical, or opposite, angles shall be the same” (Doc. 5). Euclid wrote this theorem to set a base rule to help find the sum of the angles of a triangle. The Pythagorean theorem is still used today in mathematics thanks to Euclid’s contribution to society.…

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Hypatia

    • 367 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Archimedes is universally acknowledged to be the greatest of ancient mathematicians. He studied at Euclid's school (probably after Euclid's death), but his work far surpassed the works of Euclid. His achievements are particularly impressive given the lack of good mathematical notation in his day. His proofs are noted not only for brilliance but for unequalled clarity, with a modern biographer (Heath) describing Archimedes' treatises as "without exception monuments of mathematical exposition. Archimedes made advances in number theory, algebra, and analysis, but is most renowned for his many theorems of plane and solid geometry. He was first to prove Heron's formula for the area of a triangle.…

    • 367 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greeks such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle created mathematics and geometry. These discoveries are incorporated in almost everything we use today for example, how something is made or how we cook.…

    • 1628 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greece was without a doubt one of the most advanced societies of the Ancient World. As a result of that, they had numerous accomplishments. However, what were said accomplishments? Ancient Greece made significant achievements in the area of Philosophy, Mathematics, Science, Art, and Architecture. So, throughout this essay I will further elaborate on the nature of these accomplishments and how these accomplishments impact our society even today!…

    • 1123 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A Priori: Knowledge that has not been supported by an experience or an actual fact.…

    • 264 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Deductive Argument

    • 402 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Premise 1: People should be cognizant of his or her surroundings while shopping at local malls.…

    • 402 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Later came the Pythagoreans who followed Pythagoras, the Father of Numbers. He said that the basis for everything was numbers. His idea was that everything could be broken down into numbers. If a volcano were to explode or a fire was to destroy a town Pythagoras believed that it was because of numbers. His idea is still being used today by scientists, mathematicians, and even higher level algebra students as he later created the Pythagoras theorem.…

    • 1728 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The thing that Pythagoras is probably the most famous for is the Pythagorean Theorem. The Pythagorean Theorem is used in the field of mathematics and it states the following: the square of the hypotenuse of a right triangle is equal to the sum of the squares of the two other sides. This means that if one makes a square (with all sides equal in length) out of a triangle with a right angle, the areas of the squares made from the two shorter sides, when added together, equal the area of the square made from the long side. Another geometrical discovery made by Pythagoras is that the diagonal of a square is not a rational multiple of its side. The latter discovery proved the existence of irrational numbers and therefore changed the entire Greek mathematical belief that whole numbers and their ratios could account for geometrical properties. He also discovered a formula to find out how many degrees there are in a polygon. Pythagoras came up with (n-2)180°= the number of degrees in a polygon, where (n) represents the number of sides in the polygon. For example, a triangle has three sides, 3-2=1, 1x180=180, which is the total sum of all the inner angles of a triangle. Along with that he found out that the sum of all the outer angles of a polygon is always equal to three hundred sixty degrees. This is true for every single polygon, regardless of the number of the sides.…

    • 750 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Pythagoras

    • 543 Words
    • 2 Pages

    At age 52, while living in Croton, Italy, Pythagoras established the Pythagorean society. It was through this society and his positions in local government that Pythagoras recruited men and women in order to lead them to the pure life with his spiritual and mathematical teachings. Pythagoras believed that number was limiting and gave shape to all matter and he impressed this upon his followers (Gale, 1998). During his time leading the Pythagoreans, Pythagoras not only proved the Pythagorean Theorem, but also made other mathematical contributions. One of those contributions was that a number is an abstract entity, separable from all specifics. He also discovered that the sum of the angles in a triangle is equal to two right angles. While Pythagoras himself provided the world with mathematical insight, his followers also helped to advance mathematics. One follower in particular, Hippasus,…

    • 543 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays