Archimides Essay Research Paper Archimedes 287212 BC

Archimides Essay, Research Paper

Archimedes (287-212 BC), preeminent Greek

mathematician and inventor, who wrote important works

on plane and solid geometry, arithmetic, and mechanics.

Archimedes was born in Syracuse, Sicily, and educated in

Alexandria, Egypt. In pure mathematics he anticipated

many of the discoveries of modern science, such as the

integral calculus, through his studies of the areas and

volumes of curved solid figures and the areas of plane

figures. He also proved that the volume of a sphere is

two-thirds the volume of a cylinder that circumscribes the

sphere. In mechanics, Archimedes defined the principle of

the lever and is credited with inventing the compound

pulley. During his stay in Egypt he invented the hydraulic

screw for raising water from a lower to a higher level. He is

best known for discovering the law of hydrostatics, often

called Archimedes’ principle, which states that a body

immersed in fluid loses weight equal to the weight of the

amount of fluid it displaces. This discovery is said to have

been made as Archimedes stepped into his bath and

perceived the displaced water overflowing, and after