The culture of Ancient Greece is rich in the works of many philosophers, among whom Claudius Ptolemy occupies a special place. He is the author of many scientific papers. During his life, Claudius Ptolemy was engaged in geography, astronomy, mathematics. He was a philosopher, theologian and astrologer. Claudius Ptolemy created a scientific picture of the universe
Biography of Claudius Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy is a scientist, astrologer, geographer and philosopher. His name is associated with the creation of the geocentric system of the world. However, practically nothing is known about the early years of his life. There is also no exact date of birth and death. His contemporaries never mentioned the name of Claudius Ptolemy in their writings. This was due to the fact that in ancient times everyone was guided by a religious worldview, and it was practically forbidden to have your own scientifically grounded opinion. Since the writings of Ptolemy could shake the established opinion about the formation of the world, practically nothing was said about him.
Historians are of the opinion that Ptolemy came from a family of crowned heads. However, this point of view has not been confirmed. From the works of the scientist-physicist Philip Ball it is known that Claudius lived for a long time in Alexandria on the territory of Egypt. The year of birth of Ptolemy is considered to be approximately 68-70 years. The exact date of birth is unknown. Also, there is no data on the education or the family of the scientist. However, his name - Claudius - indicates the Roman origin of the scientist, and small biographical data indicate his connection with Greece. Therefore, it is not possible to establish accurate information about his nationality.
The main value is represented by the works of the scientist, which for a long time were considered the main materials on geography, physics and the system of the universe. True, at the present time these works cannot be compared with the modern scientific picture of the world. Due to the fact that nothing was known about Claudius for a long time, no records of his appearance and family relations have been preserved.
The book of the philosopher Olympiador mentions the time of the life of Claudius in the Alexandrian city of Canopa. And also according to the information of the "Almagest", Ptolemy conducted his astronomical research in about 127-151 years. This helps to establish the approximate years of the scientist's life. It should be noted that after the "Almagest" two more books were published, the work on which took the scientist another 10 years.
The Work and Works of Claudius Ptolemy
Due to the specific features of that time, only a few works of the great scientist have survived to us. The geocentric picture of the world created by Ptolemy caused a lot of negative responses from the authorities and religion, so his works were not published for a long time. A contemporary of the scientist mentioned his name in their works, so there is little information about the work of Ptolemy.
His most important works are considered "Geography" and "Almagest". For a long time these books were a teaching aid for many future scientists. Their reliability has not been questioned for several centuries. In the book "Geography" Claudius gave the coordinates of various places, territories and states. Also, the work contained the first geographical maps.
Claudius worked in Egypt for about 40 years. Ptolemy was the author of many scientific books and treatises that played a significant role in the development of Islamic and European science.
Claudius Ptolemy conducted many scientific observations and experiments. He ordered his first notes to be carved on stones in Canopic. This information, called the "Canopic Inscription", has survived to this day. The composition "Almagest", in which Claudius reliably substantiated the existence of a geocentric picture of the world, compiled a catalog of the starry sky, and also recorded astronomical knowledge from Ancient Greece and Babylon, acquired special significance. These data remained immutable until the presentation of the ideas of Nicolaus Copernicus. However, it was the "Almagest" that made Ptolemy a famous scientist.
Claudius Ptolemy's contribution to other sciences
Not only the development of astronomy and geography is associated with the name of Claudius Ptolemy, but also work in the field of optics, physics, and music theory. In five books "Optics" the theory and the nature of vision, the refraction of rays are set forth. The material of the book contains information about mirrors, the properties of light and visual deception.
The scientist's work "Phases of fixed stars" was the first attempt to create a weather forecast, studying the movement of celestial bodies and physical phenomena on the planet. In the same book, the results of the study of climatic zones and geographical zones of the planet were presented. Ptolemy became famous as a scientist - demographer, having written the treatise "The Four Books", based on Claudius's study of human life expectancy, as well as different ages.
In his work on the theory of the motion of celestial bodies and their influence on human life, Ptolemy relies on the works of only one scientist - Aristotle. It was his work that he considered truly true, so he used them as evidence of his observations. Claudius assumed that the date of his birth, the location of the stars and planets at that moment influenced the development of a person. The scientist sincerely believed that astrological conclusions can be used in life.
Claudius Ptolemy is the author of many different reference books. The most famous are his reference books on geography, in which he was able to summarize the knowledge of many scientists and his observations. He created the first geographic atlas, which included maps of Europe, Asia and the continents.
However, the work of Ptolemy at the present time cannot be considered reliable. He was wrong about the size of the continents, the location of cities and territory. This was due to incorrect data obtained by other scientists, as well as the existing picture of the world at that time.
His works are valuable because they bring together the works of many ancient Greek and Roman scholars. Claudius Ptolemy did not put his authorship on the treatises.
