Science in the Ancient World: An Encyclopedia

Ancient science strove to understand the originsand workings of nature and humanity.Science has encompassed many methods andvaried disciplines over time, occupyinghuman thought for millennia. The questionsthat scientists ask tend to remain constanteven as the answers differ according to timeand culture.The strange and sometimes simpleexplanations that the ancient Greeks andRomans gave for natural phenomena appearless absurd to us when we consider that theanswers of today may appear ridiculous toobservers a thousand years from now.Amongancient scientists—from Mesopotamia,Persia, India, China, Egypt, Greece, andRome—the Greeks were by far the leaders inscientific inquiry because they asked the mostpenetrating questions, many of which stillelude complete answers. (See GREEK ARCHAICAGE; GREEK CLASSICAL AGE; GREEK HELLENISTICAGE; PHILOSOPHY.)