Eratosthenes

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pages: 404 words: 131,034

Cosmos by Carl Sagan

Albert Einstein, Alfred Russel Wallace, Apollo 11, Arthur Eddington, clockwork universe, dark pattern, dematerialisation, double helix, Drosophila, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, germ theory of disease, global pandemic, invention of movable type, invention of the telescope, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, Lao Tzu, Louis Pasteur, luminiferous ether, Magellanic Cloud, Mars Rover, Menlo Park, music of the spheres, pattern recognition, planetary scale, Plato's cave, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, spice trade, Suez canal 1869, Thales and the olive presses, Thales of Miletus, time dilation, Tunguska event

The discovery that the Earth is a little world was made, as so many important human discoveries were, in the ancient Near East, in a time some humans call the third century B.C., in the greatest metropolis of the age, the Egyptian city of Alexandria. Here there lived a man named Eratosthenes. One of his envious contemporaries called him “Beta,” the second letter of the Greek alphabet, because, he said, Eratosthenes was second best in the world in everything. But it seems clear that in almost everything Eratosthenes was “Alpha.” He was an astronomer, historian, geographer, philosopher, poet, theater critic and mathematician. The titles of the books he wrote range from Astronomy to On Freedom from Pain.

It was an observation that someone else might easily have ignored. Sticks, shadows, reflections in wells, the position of the Sun—of what possible importance could such simple everyday matters be? But Eratosthenes was a scientist, and his musings on these commonplaces changed the world; in a way, they made the world. Eratosthenes had the presence of mind to do an experiment, actually to observe whether in Alexandria vertical sticks cast shadows near noon on June 21. And, he discovered, sticks do. Eratosthenes asked himself how, at the same moment, a stick in Syene could cast no shadow and a stick in Alexandria, far to the north, could cast a pronounced shadow.

Columbus’ first voyage is connected in the most straightforward way with the calculations of Eratosthenes. Columbus was fascinated by what he called “the Enterprise of the Indies,” a project to reach Japan, China and India not by following the coastline of Africa and sailing East but rather by plunging boldly into the unknown Western ocean—or, as Eratosthenes had said with startling prescience, “to pass by sea from Iberia to India.” Columbus had been an itinerant peddler of old maps and an assiduous reader of the books by and about the ancient geographers, including Eratosthenes, Strabo and Ptolemy. But for the Enterprise of the Indies to work, for ships and crews to survive the long voyage, the Earth had to be smaller than Eratosthenes had said.


pages: 532 words: 133,143

To Explain the World: The Discovery of Modern Science by Steven Weinberg

Albert Einstein, Alfred Russel Wallace, Astronomia nova, Brownian motion, Commentariolus, cosmological constant, dark matter, Dava Sobel, double helix, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, fudge factor, invention of movable type, Isaac Newton, James Watt: steam engine, Johannes Kepler, music of the spheres, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, Pierre-Simon Laplace, probability theory / Blaise Pascal / Pierre de Fermat, retrograde motion, Thomas Kuhn: the structure of scientific revolutions

We don’t know the length of the stadion as used by Eratosthenes, and Cleomedes probably didn’t know it either, since (unlike our mile or kilometer) it had never been given a standard definition. But without knowing the length of the stadion, we can judge the accuracy of Eratosthenes’ use of astronomy. The Earth’s circumference is actually 47.9 times the distance from Alexandria to Syene (modern Aswan), so the conclusion of Eratosthenes that the Earth’s circumference is 50 times the distance from Alexandria to Syene was actually quite accurate, whatever the length of the stadion.* In his use of astronomy, if not of geography, Eratosthenes had done quite well. 8 The Problem of the Planets The Sun and Moon are not alone in moving from west to east through the zodiac while they share the quicker daily revolution of the stars from east to west around the north celestial pole.

His main works—On the Measurement of the Earth, Geographic Memoirs, and Hermes—have all unfortunately disappeared, but were widely quoted in antiquity. The measurement of the size of the Earth by Eratosthenes was described by the Stoic philosopher Cleomedes in On the Heavens,16 sometime after 50 BC. Eratosthenes started with the observations that at noon at the summer solstice the Sun is directly overhead at Syene, an Egyptian city that Eratosthenes supposed to be due south of Alexandria, while measurements with a gnomon at Alexandria showed the noon Sun at the solstice to be one-fiftieth of a full circle, or 7.2°, away from the vertical.

Polaris has not moved relative to the other stars, but in ancient times the Earth’s axis did not point at Polaris as it does now, and in the future Polaris will again not be at the north celestial pole.) Returning now to celestial measurement, all of the estimates by Aristarchus and Hipparchus expressed the size and distances of the Moon and Sun as multiples of the size of the Earth. The size of the Earth was measured a few decades after the work of Aristarchus by Eratosthenes. Eratosthenes was born in 273 BC at Cyrene, a Greek city on the Mediterranean coast of today’s Libya, founded around 630 BC, that had become part of the kingdom of the Ptolemies. He was educated in Athens, partly at the Lyceum, and then around 245 BC was called by Ptolemy III to Alexandria, where he became a fellow of the Museum and tutor to the future Ptolemy IV.


pages: 492 words: 149,259

Big Bang by Simon Singh

Albert Einstein, Albert Michelson, All science is either physics or stamp collecting, Andrew Wiles, anthropic principle, Arthur Eddington, Astronomia nova, Bletchley Park, Boeing 747, Brownian motion, carbon-based life, Cepheid variable, Chance favours the prepared mind, Charles Babbage, Commentariolus, Copley Medal, cosmic abundance, cosmic microwave background, cosmological constant, cosmological principle, dark matter, Dava Sobel, Defenestration of Prague, discovery of penicillin, Dmitri Mendeleev, Eddington experiment, Edmond Halley, Edward Charles Pickering, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, Erwin Freundlich, Fellow of the Royal Society, Ford Model T, fudge factor, Hans Lippershey, Harlow Shapley and Heber Curtis, Harvard Computers: women astronomers, heat death of the universe, Henri Poincaré, horn antenna, if you see hoof prints, think horses—not zebras, Index librorum prohibitorum, information security, invention of the telescope, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, John von Neumann, Karl Jansky, Kickstarter, Louis Daguerre, Louis Pasteur, luminiferous ether, Magellanic Cloud, Murray Gell-Mann, music of the spheres, Olbers’ paradox, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, Paul Erdős, retrograde motion, Richard Feynman, scientific mainstream, Simon Singh, Stephen Hawking, Strategic Defense Initiative, the scientific method, Thomas Kuhn: the structure of scientific revolutions, time dilation, unbiased observer, Wilhelm Olbers, William of Occam

Hence, the Greeks would be held on the ground by this force, as would everybody else on the globe, even if they lived down under. The feat of measuring the size of the Earth was first accomplished by Eratosthenes, born in about 276 BC in Cyrene, in modern-day Libya. Even when he was a little boy it was clear that Eratosthenes had a brilliant mind, one that he could turn to any discipline, from poetry to geography. He was even nicknamed Pentathlos, meaning an athlete who participates in the five events of the pentathlon, hinting at the breadth of his talents. Eratosthenes spent many years as the chief librarian at Alexandria, arguably the most prestigious academic post in the ancient world.

In other words, couple an intellect with some experimental apparatus and almost anything seems achievable. It was now possible for Eratosthenes to deduce the size of the Moon and the Sun, and their distances from the Earth. Much of the groundwork had already been laid by earlier natural philosophers, but their calculations were incomplete until the size of the Earth had been established, and now Eratosthenes had the missing value. For example, by comparing the size of the Earth’s shadow cast upon the Moon during a lunar eclipse, as shown in Figure 2, it was possible to deduce that the Moon’s diameter was about one-quarter of the Earth’s. Once Eratosthenes had shown that the Earth’s circumference was 40,000 km, then its diameter was roughly (40,000 ÷ π) km, which is roughly 12,700 km.

Forget any notion of strait-laced librarians stamping books and whispering to each other, because this was a vibrant and exciting place, full of inspiring scholars and dazzling students. While at the library, Eratosthenes learned of a well with remarkable properties, situated near the town of Syene in southern Egypt, near modern-day Aswan. At noon on 21 June each year, the day of the summer solstice, the Sun shone directly into the well and illuminated it all the way to the bottom. Eratosthenes realised that on that particular day the Sun must be directly overhead, something that never happened in Alexandria, which was several hundred kilometres north of Syene.


Prime Obsession:: Bernhard Riemann and the Greatest Unsolved Problem in Mathematics by John Derbyshire

Albert Einstein, Andrew Wiles, Bletchley Park, Charles Babbage, Colonization of Mars, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, four colour theorem, Georg Cantor, Henri Poincaré, Isaac Newton, John Conway, John von Neumann, Paul Erdős, Richard Feynman, Turing machine, Turing test

In this chapter I aim to answer that question—to show you the Golden Key. Then I shall begin preparations for turning the Golden Key by offering an improved version of the PNT. 99 PRIME OBSESSION 100 II. It begins with the “sieve of Eratosthenes.” The Golden Key is, in fact, just a way that Leonhard Euler found to express the sieve of Eratosthenes in the language of analysis.34 Eratosthenes of Cyrene (nowadays the little town of Shahhat in Libya) was one of the librarians at the great library of Alexandria. Around 230 B.C.E.—70 years or so after Euclid—he developed his famous sieve method for finding prime numbers.

The first number left unscathed after 7 would then be 11, and so on. If you keep doing this for ever, the numbers you are left with are all the primes. That is the sieve of Eratosthenes. If you stop just before processing prime p—that is, just before removing every pth number that wasn’t already removed—you have all the primes less than p2. Since I stopped before processing 7, I have all the primes up to 72, which is 49. After that you see some numbers, like 77, that are not prime. PRIME OBSESSION 102 III. The sieve of Eratosthenes is pretty straightforward, and 2,230 years old. How does it get us into the middle of the nineteenth century, and deep results in function theory?

This time, however, I’m going to apply it to Riemann’s zeta function, which I defined at the end of Chapter 5. Here is the zeta function for some number s bigger than 1. 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 + s + s + s + s + s + s + s + s + s +K s 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Note that writing it in this way involves writing out all the positive whole numbers—which is how we started off the sieve of Eratosthenes (except that this time I included 1). What I’m going to do is multiply both sides of the equals sign by 1 2s . This gives me ζ (s ) = 1 + 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ζ (s ) = s + s + s + s + s + s + s + s + s + K s 2 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 because of Power Rule 7 (which, for example, makes 2s times 7s equal to 14s).


pages: 467 words: 114,570

Pathfinders: The Golden Age of Arabic Science by Jim Al-Khalili

agricultural Revolution, Albert Einstein, Andrew Wiles, Book of Ingenious Devices, colonial rule, Commentariolus, Dmitri Mendeleev, Eratosthenes, Henri Poincaré, invention of the printing press, invention of the telescope, invention of the wheel, Isaac Newton, Islamic Golden Age, Johannes Kepler, Joseph Schumpeter, Kickstarter, Large Hadron Collider, liberation theology, retrograde motion, scientific worldview, Silicon Valley, Simon Singh, stem cell, Stephen Hawking, the scientific method, Thomas Malthus, time dilation, trade route, William of Occam

In any case, the fact that the number of paces came to exactly 5,000 stadia is suspicious and most modern historians do not believe Eratosthenes ever did have the distance measured in this way but had unwittingly used instead a value for the distance that itself had been calculated from an even earlier estimate of the earth’s circumference;10 a sort of circular logic whereby an estimate of the earth’s circumference is used to deduce a distance that is then itself used to recalculate the circumference. And so we move forward in time a thousand years to Abbāsid Baghdad and the band of astronomers working for al-Ma’mūn. They knew about Eratosthenes’ method from the writings of Ptolemy. In fact, Ptolemy quoted a later, revised but incorrect value for the circumference of the earth of just 180,000 stadia by another Greek astronomer, by the name of Posidonius.11 Ten years after his arrival in Baghdad, al-Ma’mūn wished to know what all this meant: exactly how long was one Greek stadion?

Even Plato, whom I do not regard as having been as good a scientist as either Aristotle or Archimedes, provides a remarkable description of our planet as a large sphere floating in space: ‘First of all the true earth, if one views it from above, is said to look like those twelve-piece leather balls, variegated, a patchwork of colours, of which our colours here are, as it were, samples that painters use.’9 Not only did Plato know that the earth was spherical but his description of its surface as having a ‘patchwork of colours’ evokes the images we are so familiar with today of our planet viewed from space with its weather patterns swirling above seas, deserts and snow-capped mountains. As for its size, another Greek scholar decided he could go one better than educated guesswork. He believed he could actually measure it. His name was Eratosthenes (c. 275–195 BCE) and he was the chief librarian of Alexandria, as well as being a brilliant astronomer and mathematician. His method for working out the size of the world was, like so many great ideas in science, beautifully simple: if he could measure the distance along the surface of the earth corresponding to just one of the 360 degrees around its circumference, then all he would have to do is multiply this distance by 360.

The distance reported back to him was precisely 5,000 stadia (about 500 miles). This gave a value of 250,000 stadia, or 25,000 miles, for the circumference of the world – a value so close to the modern measurement of 24,900 miles that it would seem churlish and pedantic to find any fault with it. But the truth is that Eratosthenes was very lucky to have got so close. There were a number of serious errors, inaccuracies and crude guesses involved in his method that conspired by chance to give an answer close to the correct one. While the midday sun at the summer solstice is indeed directly overhead at the Tropic of Cancer, the city of Syene was not on the tropic but about 22 miles north; nor was it exactly due south of Alexandria.


pages: 197 words: 35,256

NumPy Cookbook by Ivan Idris

business intelligence, cloud computing, computer vision, data science, Debian, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, mandelbrot fractal, p-value, power law, sorting algorithm, statistical model, transaction costs, web application

See also The Installing Matplotlib recipe in Chapter 1, Winding Along with IPython Sieving integers with the Sieve of Erasthothenes The Sieve of Eratosthenes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sieve_of_Eratosthenes) is an algorithm that filters out prime numbers. It iteratively identifies multiples of found primes. This sieve is efficient for primes smaller than 10 million. Let's now try to find the 10001st prime number. How to do it... The first mandatory step is to create a list of natural numbers. Create a list of consecutive integers.NumPy has the arange function for that: a = numpy.arange(i, i + LIM, 2) Sieve out multiples of p.We are not sure if this is what Eratosthenes wanted us to do, but it works.

Get to Grips with Commonly Used Functions In this chapter, we will cover a number of commonly used functions: sqrt, log, arange, astype, and sum ceil, modf, where, ravel, and take sort and outer diff, sign, eig histogram and polyfit compress and randint We will be discussing these functions through the following recipes: Summing Fibonacci numbers Finding prime factors Finding palindromic numbers The steady state vector determination Discovering a power law Trading periodically on dips Simulating trading at random Sieving integers with the Sieve of Eratosthenes Introduction This chapter is about the commonly used functions. These are the functions that you will be using on a daily basis. Obviously, the usage may differ for you. There are so many NumPy functions that it is virtually impossible to know all of them, but the functions in this chapter will be the bare minimum with which we must be familiar.


pages: 295 words: 92,670

1494: How a Family Feud in Medieval Spain Divided the World in Half by Stephen R. Bown

Atahualpa, Bartolomé de las Casas, British Empire, charter city, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, Francisco Pizarro, Hernando de Soto, Peace of Westphalia, proprietary trading, spice trade, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, trade route, two and twenty, UNCLOS

The most accurate estimate of the earth’s circumference came from the Hellenic-Egyptian scholar Eratosthenes, using a simple method of calculating the angle of the shadows produced by a wooden pole of a specific height at midday in two locations. Although his equation was considerably more sophisticated than this brief description, his premise was clear and simple and his accuracy quite remarkable: he calculated that the earth was about 25,000 miles in circumference. The correct figure is about 24,862 miles, so Eratosthenes was only off by a mere 200 miles or so. But although he was accurate, his reasoning was not accepted by his peers.

But Ptolemy’s conceptualization of the world contained a major and fundamental error, an error that was introduced into the European world view of the fifteenth century. Regarding the size of the earth, Ptolemy preferred the erroneous calculations of one of Eratosthenes’s near-contemporaries, Posidonius, who argued that the earth was only about eighteen thousand miles in circumference—two-thirds of the distance propounded by Eratosthenes. Ptolemy relied exclusively on this smaller figure when he produced the coordinates of his famous atlas, a work that came to define the known world for centuries. The rediscovery of Ptolemy’s ancient global atlas in the mid-fifteenth century, complete with its erroneous depiction of the continents and its vastly smaller estimation of the circumference of the earth, had initially given the idea to cosmographers and cartographers that on a spherical world you could reach the east by sailing west—it was basic common sense.

From this knowledge base, he required only a few further “adjustments” to produce an astonishing and fanciful picture of the geography of the world, a picture that completely supported his ambitious scheme. By choosing the erroneous calculations of an Islamic geographer named Alfragan, Columbus then presented the distance of a degree of longitude, theoretically one-360th of the circumference of the earth, a full 25 per cent less than Eratosthenes had calculated, and 10 per cent less than Ptolemy. He then adjusted Alfragan’s calculations by claiming that the speculative geographer had used the shorter Italian mile for his calculations and that therefore the distance was even less because the miles then accepted in Portugal were slightly longer.


pages: 434 words: 135,226

The Music of the Primes by Marcus Du Sautoy

Ada Lovelace, Andrew Wiles, Arthur Eddington, Augustin-Louis Cauchy, Bletchley Park, Charles Babbage, computer age, Computing Machinery and Intelligence, Dava Sobel, Dmitri Mendeleev, Eddington experiment, Eratosthenes, Erdős number, Georg Cantor, German hyperinflation, global village, Henri Poincaré, Isaac Newton, Jacquard loom, lateral thinking, Leo Hollis, music of the spheres, Neal Stephenson, New Journalism, P = NP, Paul Erdős, Richard Feynman, Rubik’s Cube, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, seminal paper, Simon Singh, Stephen Hawking, Turing machine, William of Occam, Wolfskehl Prize, Y2K

Since these were all divisible by 3, they weren’t prime either. He kept doing this, just picking up the next number which hadn’t already been struck from the list and striking off all the numbers divisible by the new prime. By this systematic process he produced tables of primes. The procedure was later christened the sieve of Eratosthenes. Each new prime creates a ‘sieve’ which Eratosthenes uses to eliminate non-primes. The size of the sieve changes at each stage, but by the time he reaches 1,000 the only numbers to have made it through all the sieves are prime numbers. When Gauss was a young boy he was given a present – a book containing a list of the first several thousand prime numbers which had probably been constructed using these ancient number sieves.

Solving one of Clay’s problems may earn you a million dollars, but that is nothing compared with carving your name on civilisation’s intellectual map. The Riemann Hypothesis, Fermat’s Last Theorem, Goldbach’s Conjecture, Hilbert space, the Ramanujan tau function, Euclid’s algorithm, the Hardy—Littlewood Circle Method, Fourier series, Gödel numbering, a Siegel zero, the Selberg trace formula, the sieve of Eratosthenes, Mersenne primes, the Euler product, Gaussian integers – these discoveries have all immortalised the mathematicians who have been responsible for unearthing these treasures in our exploration of the primes. Those names will live on long after we have forgotten the likes of Aeschylus, Goethe and Shakespeare.

In contrast to the Greeks’ head start in identifying the building blocks of arithmetic, mathematicians are still floundering in their attempts to understand their own table of prime numbers. The librarian of the great ancient Greek research institute in Alexandria was the first person we know of to have produced tables of primes. Like some ancient mathematical Mendeleev, Eratosthenes in the third century BC discovered a reasonably painless procedure for determining which numbers are prime in a list of, say, the first 1,000 numbers. He began by writing out all the numbers from 1 to 1,000. He then took the first prime, 2, and struck off every second number in the list. Since all these numbers were divisible by 2, they weren’t prime.


The Haskell Road to Logic, Maths and Programming by Kees Doets, Jan van Eijck, Jan Eijck

Albert Einstein, Charles Babbage, Eratosthenes, functional programming, Georg Cantor, P = NP, Russell's paradox

.(−1)n+1 : COR> take 20 (pr theFibs) [-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1,-1,1] The definition of the sieve of Eratosthenes (page 106) also uses corecursion: sieve :: [Integer] -> [Integer] sieve (0 : xs) = sieve xs sieve (n : xs) = n : sieve (mark xs 1 n) where mark (y:ys) k m | k == m = 0 : (mark ys 1 m) | otherwise = y : (mark ys (k+1) m) What these definitions have in common is that they generate infinite objects, and that they look like recursive definitions, except for the fact that there is no base case. Here is a faster way to implement the Sieve of Eratosthenes. This time, we actually remove multiples of x from the list on encountering x in the sieve.

Thanks to Johan van Benthem, Jan Bergstra, Jacob Brunekreef, Thierry Coquand (who found the lecture notes on the internet and sent us his comments), Tim van Erven, Wan Fokkink, Evan Goris, Robbert de Haan, Sandor Heman, Eva Hoogland, Rosalie Iemhoff, Dick de Jongh, Anne Kaldewaij, Breanndán Ó Nualláin, Alban Ponse, Vincent van Oostrom, Piet Rodenburg, Jan Rutten, Marco Swaen, Jan Terlouw, John Tromp, Yde Venema, Albert Visser and Stephanie Wehner for suggestions and criticisms. The beautiful implementation of the sieve of Eratosthenes in Section 3.7 was suggested to us by Fer-Jan de Vries. The course on which this book is based was developed at ILLC (the Institute of Logic, Language and Computation of the University of Amsterdam) with financial support from the Spinoza Logic in Action initiative of Johan van Benthem, which is herewith gratefully acknowledged.

Next, we use ^ for exponentiation to make a new Mersenne guess, as follows: TUOLP> prime 5 True TUOLP> prime (2^5-1) True TUOLP> 2^5-1 31 TUOLP> prime (2^31-1) True TUOLP> 2^31-1 2147483647 TUOLP> It may interest you to know that the fact that 231 − 1 is a prime was discovered by Euler in 1750. Using a computer, this fact is a bit easier to check. We have already seen how to generate prime numbers in Haskell (Examples 1.22 and 1.23). We will now present an elegant alternative: a lazy list implementation of the Sieve of Eratosthenes. The idea of the sieve is this. Start with the list of all natural numbers > 2: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, . . . In the first round, mark 2 (the first number in the list) as prime, and mark all multiples of 2 for removal in the remainder of the list (marking for removal indicated by over-lining): 2 , 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, . . .


pages: 310 words: 89,653

The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission by Jim Bell

Albert Einstein, Apollo 11, crowdsourcing, dark matter, Edmond Halley, Edward Charles Pickering, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, gravity well, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, Kuiper Belt, Mars Rover, Neil Armstrong, Pierre-Simon Laplace, planetary scale, Pluto: dwarf planet, polynesian navigation, Ronald Reagan, Saturday Night Live, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, Stephen Hawking, Virgin Galactic

It would take more than 250 years, however, for another famous Greek mathematician and astronomer, Eratosthenes, to prove it and to accurately estimate our planet’s size. He performed one of the most simple and famous scientific experiments of all time, and one that is easy for schoolkids to reproduce today, using just two sticks and a sunny day. One stick was in the southern Egyptian city of Syene (modern-day Aswan), on a day when, at noon, the sun was directly overhead and that stick did not cast a shadow. The other stick was in his own northern Egyptian city of Alexandria (Eratosthenes was the head of the Library of Alexandria, an amazing collection of all of the then-known books of the world—the equivalent of the Internet on Planet Earth in the third century BCE), where, on the same day, a stick would indeed cast a short shadow at noon.

The idea was to be able to calibrate the cameras using swatches of colored and gray-scale materials, but the bigger-picture idea was also to help teach kids about timekeeping and understanding our place in space using only sticks and shadows—much like the third-century BCE Greek mathematician and astronomer Eratosthenes had done to accurately estimate the size of our planet. We figured, apparently as Carl Sagan did for the Voyager Golden Record, let’s keep this under the radar, lest it get killed by committee. The Voyager’s two-sided gold-anodized copper LP contains an hour and a half of music (27 pieces in all), 116 digitized photographs, and a catalogue of terrestrial sounds (such as the chirping of crickets) and voices (such as short greetings in fifty-five languages, including a “hello from the children of Planet Earth” in English from Carl Sagan’s six-year-old son, Nick).

He knew that the angle between the sticks was the result of being at different places on a sphere, so he had an assistant (a graduate student, no doubt) walk off and measure the distance between Alexandria and Syene. His predecessors Plato and Archimedes, not mathematical slouches, to be sure, used their best reasoning to estimate the diameter of the Earth as 14,000 and 11,000 miles, respectively. Eratosthenes, armed with data from his simple measurements, came up with around 9,000 miles, or within about 15 percent of the correct modern answer (7,918 miles). Not bad for sticks and shadows. Fast-forward almost 2,200 years and we’ve entered an era when we can, in fact, just leave our planet, turn around, and take a look.


pages: 486 words: 139,713

Land: How the Hunger for Ownership Shaped the Modern World by Simon Winchester

agricultural Revolution, British Empire, Cape to Cairo, climate change refugee, colonial rule, Donald Trump, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, Fellow of the Royal Society, Garrett Hardin, glass ceiling, Haight Ashbury, invention of the steam engine, Isaac Newton, James Watt: steam engine, Jeff Bezos, Jones Act, Khyber Pass, land reform, land tenure, land value tax, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, oil shale / tar sands, Ralph Nader, rewilding, Right to Buy, Ronald Reagan, Scramble for Africa, sovereign wealth fund, stakhanovite, Tragedy of the Commons, white flight, white picket fence

It was one of two surviving relics in Latvia of what since 2005 has been designated a United Nations World Heritage Site, as illustrating one of the first and most important attempts to establish with great accuracy the size and shape of Planet Earth. It was the Greek librarian-scholar-astronomer Eratosthenes who famously first computed the circumference of our planet, some 2200 years ago. He did so by comparing the angle at which the sun’s noontime rays fell onto the water wells in Alexandria, his Egyptian hometown, on the same day that they fell vertically on, and thus illuminated the very bottom of similar wells in Aswan, some 524 miles upriver along the Nile. The shafts of sunlight in Alexandria were slightly off vertical, and Eratosthenes suspected that this was entirely due to the curvature of the Earth, if indeed the Earth was the enormous ball-shaped planet that many since Pythagoras, Plato, and Aristotle had suspected it to be.

It followed, he reasoned, that if 524 miles was a fiftieth of the total, then the circumference of the sphere would be some 24,000 miles, nearly 39,000 kilometers—not too far from the roughly 40,007 kilometers that satellites, lasers, and GPS devices declare it to be today. For this hugely significant and pioneering realization, Eratosthenes of Cyrene, equipped only with a fine and logical mind, a protractor, a set square, and a plumb line, now occupies a deservedly permanent place in history. But fast-forward two thousand years, and to the more rigidly scientific minds of the early nineteenth century. A number of scientists of the time—notably many of them French, with names like Picard, Bouguer, La Condamine, Delambre—grappled with the knotty problem of ascertaining the Earth’s size and shape: Was it a sphere or a spheroid, oblate or prolate?

Each quarter meridian, Struve’s teams declared in a massive tract that he published that summer, was worked out as being exactly 10,002,174 meters long. Its circumference was thus four times that, or 40,008,696 meters. It was staggeringly accurate. By comparison: the latest figure put out by NASA, based on satellite measurements, shows the planet coming in at 40,007,017 meters round. Eratosthenes, two thousand years before, had calculated the circumference as being, in today’s units, 38,624,000 meters. Herr Struve’s globe was larger than both, but not by much. With the world’s size now so carefully worked out—and a clutch of the world’s senior surveyors met in Paris in 1883, to begin the measuring of another nearby meridian that would head even farther south, all the way from Cairo, through the jungles of east Africa to the Cape of Good Hope, to make the calculations more perfect still—the team left for other work.


pages: 184 words: 13,957

Programming in Haskell by Graham Hutton

Eratosthenes, functional programming, higher-order functions, John Conway, Simon Singh, type inference

Returning to list comprehensions, using prime we can now define a function that produces the list of all prime numbers up to a given limit: primes :: primes n = Int → [Int ] [x | x ← [2 . . n ], prime x ] For example: > primes 40 [2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37] In chapter 12 we will present a more efficient program to generate prime numbers using the famous “sieve of Eratosthenes”, which has a particularly clear and concise implementation in Haskell. As a final example concerning guards, suppose that we represent a lookup table by a list of pairs comprising keys and values. Then for any type of keys that is an equality type, a function find that returns the list of all values that are associated with a given key in a table can be defined as follows: find :: find k t = Eq a ⇒ a → [(a, b)] → [b ] [v | (k , v ) ← t, k == k ] For example: > find ’b’ [(’a’, 1), (’b’, 2), (’c’, 3), (’b’, 4)] [2, 4] 5.3 The zip function The library function zip produces a new list by pairing successive elements from two existing lists until either or both are exhausted.

In this manner, we can imagine the initial sequence of numbers falling downwards, with cer- 133 134 L A Z Y E VA L UAT I O N tain numbers being sieved out at each stage by the underlining, and the bold numbers forming the infinite sequence of primes: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, · · · The above procedure for generating prime numbers is known as the sieve of Eratosthenes, after the Greek mathematician who first described it. This procedure can be translated directly into Haskell: primes primes :: [Int ] = sieve [2 . .] sieve :: [Int ] → [Int ] sieve (p : xs) = p : sieve [x | x ← xs, x ‘mod ‘ p = 0] That is, starting with the infinite list [2 . .] (step one), we apply the function sieve that retains the first number p as being prime (step two), and then calls itself recursively with a new list obtained by filtering all multiples of p from this list (steps three and four).

assignment, 3, 125 associativity, 11, 66, 140 for addition, 67, 82, 139, 143 for append, 146 for application, 22 for composition, 68 for cons, 33 for function types, 22 for multiplication, 82 binary trees, 103 Bool, 17, 18, 157 case, 76 category theory, 114 Char , 18, 158 characters, see Char chr , 43, 158 class, 111 classes, 24, 111, 156 constraints, 23, 111 default definitions, 111 derived instances, 112 instances, 24, 111 methods, 24 clearing the screen, 91 comments, 15 commutativity, 122 for addition, 122, 154 for multiplication, 122, 139 composition, see ◦ comprehensions list, 4, 38 set, 38, 46 string, 42 concat, 39, 163 concatenation, see concat conditions, 31 conjunction, see ∧, and cons, see : const, 35, 164 control characters, 19, 91 curry, 164 cursor, 91 dangling else, 31 data, 100 deriving, 112 digitToInt, 158 disjunction, see ∨, or distributivity, 139, 146, 152 div , 10, 14, 27, 71, 157 division, see div , / do, 77, 89, 114 domain-specific languages, 5, 62 domino effect, 143 Dr Seuss, 75 drop, 11, 53, 56, 162 dropWhile, 64, 162 elem, 160 Eq, 24, 40, 156 equality, see == equational reasoning, 5, 139 error , 84, 165 error messages, 12, see error evaluation, 10, 17, 84, 117, 124 call-by-name, 127, 128 call-by-value, 126, 128 innermost, 126 lazy, 5, 20, 32, 40, 70, 130 outermost, 126 top-level, 134 even, 30, 53, 159 examples 170 INDEX abstract machine, 109 base conversion, 70 Caesar cipher, 42 calculator, 91 chi-square, 45 compiler, 150 countdown, 116 expression parser, 82 factorial, 14, 48 fast reverse, 147 Fibonacci sequence, 53, 137 game of life, 94 insertion sort, 52 permutations, 118 prime numbers, 40, 133 quicksort, 7, 53 sieve of Eratosthenes, 134 string transmitter, 69 subsequences, 118 tautology checker, 105 exception handling, 97 exponentiation, see ↑ expressions, 1 arithmetic, 82, 109, 116, 150 conditional, see if impure, 89 lambda, see λ logical, 105 pure, 89 reducible, 125 False, 17, 18 file handling, 97 filter , 63, 161 Float, 19, 44, 159 foldl, 56, 67, 136, 162 foldl1 , 162 foldr , 56, 64, 72, 162 foldr1 , 162 FP, 6 Fractional, 28, 157 fromInt, 44 fst, 33, 160 functions, 1, 12, 21, 164 combinatorial, 118 composite, see ◦ constant, see const constructor, 101 curried, 22, 35, 61, 127, 135 higher-order, 5, 62 identity, see id nameless, see λ overloaded, 4, 24 polymorphic, 4, 23, 42, 62 recursive, 7, 48 strict, 127, 134 total, 21 generators, see ← getCh, 90 getChar , 88, 90, 165 getLine, 90, 165 GHC, 10, 120 grammars, 82 ambiguous, 84 guards, 5, 31, 39, 58 head, 11, 34, 161 Hugs, 10, 13 commands, 14 id, 69, 164 identifiers, 14, 80 identities, 122 for addition, 7 for append, 147 for composition, 68 for division, 122 for multiplication, 49, 55, 122 if, 18, 31 indentation, 4, see layout rule induction, 5, 142 hypothesis, 142 on expressions, 151 on lists, 145 on numbers, 142, 144 on trees, 149 inequality, see = infinity, 128, 142 infix notation, 14 init, 58, 162 input/output, see IO instance, 111 Int, 19, 159 Integer , 19, 137, 159 Integral, 27, 57, 157 intToDigit, 159 IO, 88, 164 isAlpha, 78, 158 isAlphaNum, 78, 158 isDigit, 30, 78, 158 isLower , 78, 158 isSpace, 80, 158 isUpper , 78, 158 ISWIM, 6 iterate, 70, 163 keywords, 4, 15 lambda calculus, 6, 36 layout rule, 15, 77 length, 12, 39, 50, 65, 67, 163 lexicographic ordering, 25 Lisp, 6 lists, 4, 6, 11, 20, 38, 160 elements, 20, 33 empty, see [ ] indexing, see !!


pages: 329 words: 102,469

Free World: America, Europe, and the Surprising Future of the West by Timothy Garton Ash

"World Economic Forum" Davos, Albert Einstein, battle of ideas, Berlin Wall, BRICs, British Empire, call centre, centre right, clean water, Columbine, continuation of politics by other means, cuban missile crisis, demographic transition, Deng Xiaoping, Doha Development Round, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, failed state, Fall of the Berlin Wall, Francis Fukuyama: the end of history, illegal immigration, income inequality, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), James Watt: steam engine, Kickstarter, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nelson Mandela, Peace of Westphalia, postnationalism / post nation state, Project for a New American Century, purchasing power parity, reserve currency, Ronald Reagan, shareholder value, Silicon Valley, Suez crisis 1956, Thomas Malthus, trade liberalization, Washington Consensus, working poor, working-age population, World Values Survey

In a sense, Europeans are now face-to-face with Eratosthenes, the Greek geographer who in about 220 bce drew Europe on a map, covering roughly the area we still know as Europe today.17 This purely geographical delineation, though arbitrary, has at least the sanction of great antiquity. Yet according to Eratosthenes, Europe stopped at the Bosporus. In the Roman and Byzantine periods, what is now western Turkey was part of a single Mediterranean world; but when Europeans started to draw proper maps again, in the fifteenth century, they followed Eratosthenes and drew the frontier on the Bosporus. Now, partly as a result of promises made during the Cold War, the European Union has crossed even that ancient line, explicitly recognizing Turkey as a European country.

The preamble, drafted by Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, refers only to “the cultural, religious and humanist inheritance of Europe,” see Draft Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe (Brussels: European Convention, 2003), p. 5. 16. Estimates from The Economist, March 6, 2004. 17. See the reconstruction of his map in John Goss, The Mapmaker’s Art: An Illustrated History of Cartography (New York: Rand McNally, 1993), p. 24. Eratosthenes appears to have placed the eastern frontier of Europe on the Don River. Only in the eighteenth century did the Urals come to be accepted as the conventional eastern frontier of the geographer’s Europe. 18. Quoted by Giuliano Amato in Mark Leonard (ed.), The Future Shape of Europe (London: Foreign Policy Centre, 2000), p. 32. 19.


Programming in Haskell by Graham Hutton

domain-specific language, Eratosthenes, first-past-the-post, functional programming, higher-order functions, type inference

Returning to list comprehensions, using prime we can now define a function that produces the list of all prime numbers up to a given limit: primes :: Int -> [Int] primes n = [x | x <- [2..n], prime x] For example: > primes 40 [2,3,5,7,11,13,17,19,23,29,31,37] In chapter 15 we will present a more efficient program to generate prime numbers using the famous sieve of Eratosthenes, which has a particularly clear and concise implementation in Haskell using the idea of lazy evaluation. As a final example concerning guards, suppose that we represent a lookup table by a list of pairs of keys and values. Then for any type of keys that supports equality, a function find that returns the list of all values that are associated with a given key in a table can be defined as follows: find :: Eq a => a -> [(a,b)] -> [b] find k t = [v | (k’,v) <- t, k == k’] For example: > find ’b’ [(’a’,1),(’b’,2),(’c’,3),(’b’,4)] [2,4] 5.3The zip function The library function zip produces a new list by pairing successive elements from two existing lists until either or both lists are exhausted.

In this manner, we can imagine the initial sequence of numbers falling downwards, with certain numbers being sieved out at each stage by the underlining, and the circled numbers forming the infinite sequence of primes: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, ... The above procedure for generating prime numbers is known as the sieve of Eratosthenes, after the Greek mathematician who first described it. This procedure can be translated directly into Haskell: primes :: [Int] primes = sieve [2..] sieve :: [Int] -> [Int] sieve (p:xs) = p : sieve [x | x <- xs, x ‘mod‘ p /= 0] That is, starting with the infinite list [2..] (step one), we apply the function sieve that retains the first number p as being prime (step two), and then calls itself recursively with a new list obtained by filtering all multiples of p from this list (steps three and four).

comprehensions list, 7, 47 set, 47, 56 string, 51 concat, 48, 206, 296 concatenation, see concat conjunction, see &&, and cons, see : const, 43, 287 continuation-passing style, 252 control characters, 24, 134 Control.Applicative, 179, 290 Control.Monad, 172, 183, 291 crush operators, 210 curry, 284 data, 93 Data.Char, 132, 140, 179, 282 Data.Foldable, 200, 205, 225, 294 Data.List, 35, 87, 140 Data.Monoid, 197, 292 defunctionalisation, 254 deriving, 100 digitToInt, 132, 282 disjunction, see ||, or distributivity, 156, 228, 243 contravariant, 235 div, 18, 35, 84, 281 division, see div, / do, 126, 166, 181 domain-specific languages, 7, 74 Double, 25, 283 Dr Seuss, 178 drop, 16, 64, 68, 286 dropWhile, 76, 286 effects, 7, 124, 162 elem, 202, 294 empty, 181, 291 Eq, 31, 49, 280 equality, see == equational reasoning, 8, 228, 257 error, 90, 190, 288 Euclid’s algorithm, 71 evaluation, 15, 22, 113, 212 call-by-name, 215, 216 call-by-value, 214, 216 innermost, 214 lazy, 7, 26, 40, 49, 51, 148, 150, 219 outermost, 214 top-level, 223 even, 38, 65, 283 examples abstract machine, 106, 261 base conversion, 83 binary string transmitter, 82 Caesar cipher, 52 calculator, 191 compiler, 241, 249 countdown problem, 111 expression parser, 187 fast reverse, 238 Fibonacci sequence, 64, 226 game of life, 133 game of nim, 129 hangman, 128 insertion sort, 63 Newton’s method, 227 prime numbers, 49, 222 quicksort, 10, 65 sieve of Eratosthenes, 222 tautology checker, 101 tic-tac-toe, 139 tree relabelling, 171 virtual machine, 256 voting algorithms, 86 exceptions, 160, 261 exponentiation, see ^ expressions, 3 arithmetic, 106, 111, 187, 241 conditional, see if impure, 125 lambda, see \ logical, 101 pure, 125 reducible, 213 False, 22, 24 filter, 75, 211, 285 filterM, 173 flip, 287 Float, 24, 54, 283 fmap, 154, 288 fold, 200, 294 Foldable, 200, 294 foldables, 7, 200 Maybe, 210 Tree, 202, 210 list, 201, 295 foldl, 68, 80, 200, 225, 294 foldl’, 225 foldl1, 203, 294 foldMap, 200, 294 foldr, 68, 77, 89, 200, 294 foldr1, 143, 203, 294 FP, 8 Fractional, 35, 281 fromIntegral, 54 fst, 41, 284 functions, 3, 16, 27, 287 combinator, 254 combinatorial, 114 composite, see .


pages: 407 words: 116,726

Infinite Powers: How Calculus Reveals the Secrets of the Universe by Steven Strogatz

Albert Einstein, Asperger Syndrome, Astronomia nova, Bernie Sanders, clockwork universe, complexity theory, cosmological principle, Dava Sobel, deep learning, DeepMind, double helix, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, four colour theorem, fudge factor, Henri Poincaré, invention of the telescope, Isaac Newton, Islamic Golden Age, Johannes Kepler, John Harrison: Longitude, Khan Academy, Laplace demon, lone genius, music of the spheres, pattern recognition, Paul Erdős, Pierre-Simon Laplace, precision agriculture, retrograde motion, Richard Feynman, Socratic dialogue, Steve Jobs, the rule of 72, the scientific method

He shares his private intuition, a vulnerable, soft-bellied thing, and says he hopes that future mathematicians will use it to solve problems that eluded him. Today this secret is known as the Method. I never heard of it in calculus class. We don’t teach it anymore. But I found the story of it and the idea behind it enthralling and astounding. He writes about it in a letter to his friend Eratosthenes, the librarian at Alexandria and the only mathematician of his era who could understand him. He confesses that even though his Method “does not furnish an actual demonstration” of the results he’s interested in, it helps him figure out what’s true. It gives him intuition. As he says, “It is easier to supply the proof when we have previously acquired, by the method, some knowledge of the questions than it is to find it without any previous knowledge.”

Likewise he describes the parabolic segment as being “made up of all the parallel lines drawn inside the curve.” Dallying with completed infinity lowers the status of this reasoning, in his estimation, to a heuristic—a means of finding an answer, not a proof of its correctness. In his letter to Eratosthenes, he downplays the Method as giving nothing more than “a sort of indication” that the conclusion is true. Whatever its logical status, Archimedes’s Method has an e pluribus unum quality to it. This Latin phrase, the motto of the United States, means “out of many, one.” Out of the infinitely many straight lines making up the parabola, one area emerges.

Although we are told that the past is a foreign country, it may not be foreign in every respect. People we read about in Homer and the Bible seem a lot like us. And the same appears to be true of ancient mathematicians, or at least of Archimedes, the only one who let us into his heart. Twenty-two centuries ago, Archimedes wrote a letter to his friend Eratosthenes, the librarian at Alexandria, essentially sending him a mathematical message in a bottle that virtually no one could appreciate but that he hoped might somehow sail safely across the seas of time. He had shared his private intuition, his Method, in the wish that it might enable future generations of mathematicians “to find other theorems which have not yet fallen to our share.”


pages: 893 words: 199,542

Structure and interpretation of computer programs by Harold Abelson, Gerald Jay Sussman, Julie Sussman

Andrew Wiles, conceptual framework, Donald Knuth, Douglas Hofstadter, Eratosthenes, Fermat's Last Theorem, functional programming, Gödel, Escher, Bach, higher-order functions, industrial robot, information retrieval, iterative process, Ivan Sutherland, Johannes Kepler, loose coupling, machine translation, Multics, probability theory / Blaise Pascal / Pierre de Fermat, Richard Stallman, Turing machine

Part of the power of stream processing is that it lets us ignore the order in which events actually happen in our programs. Unfortunately, this is precisely what we cannot afford to do in the presence of assignment, which forces us to be concerned with time and change. 60 Eratosthenes, a third-century B.C. Alexandrian Greek philosopher, is famous for giving the first accurate estimate of the circumference of the Earth, which he computed by observing shadows cast at noon on the day of the summer solstice. Eratosthenes's sieve method, although ancient, has formed the basis for special-purpose hardware “sieves” that, until recently, were the most powerful tools in existence for locating large primes.

When we evaluate this delayed (fibgen 1 1), it will produce a pair whose car is 1 and whose cdr is a promise to evaluate (fibgen 1 2), and so on. For a look at a more exciting infinite stream, we can generalize the no-sevens example to construct the infinite stream of prime numbers, using a method known as the sieve of Eratosthenes.60 We start with the integers beginning with 2, which is the first prime. To get the rest of the primes, we start by filtering the multiples of 2 from the rest of the integers. This leaves a stream beginning with 3, which is the next prime. Now we filter the multiples of 3 from the rest of this stream.

(primitive procedure) for arbitrary objects as equality of pointers, [2] implementation for symbols numerical equality and equ? (generic predicate) equal-rat? equal? equality in generic arithmetic system of lists of numbers, [2], [3] referential transparency and of symbols equation, solving, see half-interval method; Newton's method; solve Eratosthenes error (primitive procedure) error handling in compiled code in explicit-control evaluator, [2] Escher, Maurits Cornelis estimate-integral estimate-pi, [2] Euclid's Algorithm, [2], see also greatest common divisor order of growth for polynomials Euclid's Elements Euclid's proof of infinite number of primes Euclidean ring Euler, Leonhard proof of Fermat's Little Theorem series accelerator euler-transform ev-application ev-assignment ev-begin ev-definition ev-if ev-lambda ev-quoted ev-self-eval ev-sequence with tail recursion without tail recursion ev-variable eval (lazy) eval (metacircular), [2] analyzing version data-directed primitive eval vs.


pages: 304 words: 82,395

Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think by Viktor Mayer-Schonberger, Kenneth Cukier

23andMe, Affordable Care Act / Obamacare, airport security, Apollo 11, barriers to entry, Berlin Wall, big data - Walmart - Pop Tarts, Black Swan, book scanning, book value, business intelligence, business process, call centre, cloud computing, computer age, correlation does not imply causation, dark matter, data science, double entry bookkeeping, Eratosthenes, Erik Brynjolfsson, game design, hype cycle, IBM and the Holocaust, index card, informal economy, intangible asset, Internet of things, invention of the printing press, Jeff Bezos, Joi Ito, lifelogging, Louis Pasteur, machine readable, machine translation, Marc Benioff, Mark Zuckerberg, Max Levchin, Menlo Park, Moneyball by Michael Lewis explains big data, Nate Silver, natural language processing, Netflix Prize, Network effects, obamacare, optical character recognition, PageRank, paypal mafia, performance metric, Peter Thiel, Plato's cave, post-materialism, random walk, recommendation engine, Salesforce, self-driving car, sentiment analysis, Silicon Valley, Silicon Valley startup, smart grid, smart meter, social graph, sparse data, speech recognition, Steve Jobs, Steven Levy, systematic bias, the scientific method, The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Thomas Davenport, Turing test, vertical integration, Watson beat the top human players on Jeopardy!

We need a standardized way to note the measurements. We need an instrument to monitor and record the data. Quantification, standardization, collection. Only then can we store and analyze location not as place per se, but as data. In the West, quantification of location began with the Greeks. Around 200 B.C. Eratosthenes invented a system of grid lines to demarcate location, akin to latitude and longitude. But like so many good ideas from antiquity, the practice faded away over time. A millennium and a half later, around 1400 A.D., a copy of Ptolemy’s Geographia arrived in Florence from Constantinople just as the Renaissance and the shipping trade were igniting interest in science and in know-how from the ancients.

Accurate to one meter, GPS marked the moment when a method to measure location, the dream of navigators, mapmakers, and mathematicians since antiquity, was finally fused with the technical means to achieve it quickly, (relatively) cheaply, and without requiring any specialized knowledge. Yet the information must actually be generated. There was nothing to prevent Eratosthenes and Mercator from estimating their whereabouts every minute of the day, had they cared to. While feasible, that was impractical. Likewise, early GPS receivers were complex and costly, suitable for a submarine but not for everyone at all times. But this would change, thanks to the ubiquity of inexpensive chips embedded in digital gadgets.

See also books Amazon and, [>]–[>] and datafication, [>]–[>] and data-reuse, [>]–[>], [>]–[>] e-commerce: big data in, [>]–[>] economic development: big data in, [>]–[>] education: misuse of data in, [>] online, [>] edX, [>] Eisenstein, Elizabeth, [>] Elbaz, Gil, [>] election of 2008: data-gathering in, [>] electrical meters: data-gathering by, [>]–[>] energy: data compared to, [>] Equifax, [>], [>], [>] Eratosthenes, [>], [>] ergonomic data: Koshimizu analyzes, [>], [>], [>], [>]–[>] ethics: of big data, [>]–[>] Etzioni, Oren, [>], [>], [>], [>] analyzes airline fare pricing patterns, [>]–[>], [>], [>], [>], [>], [>], [>], [>], [>] Euclid, [>] European Union: open data in, [>] Evans, Philip, [>] exactitude.


Shady Characters: The Secret Life of Punctuation, Symbols, and Other Typographical Marks by Keith Houston

Albert Einstein, anti-communist, Boeing 747, Charles Babbage, classic study, computer age, cuban missile crisis, Donald Knuth, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, invention of movable type, invention of the printing press, Isaac Newton, John Markoff, Joseph-Marie Jacquard, Kickstarter, means of production, Multics, packet switching, pre–internet, QWERTY keyboard, trade route, wikimedia commons

Founded in the fourth century BC and encompassed by a larger institution called the Mouseion (literally, “temple of the Muses”; the modern word “museum” comes from the same root), the library was the heart of an ancient university whose scholars studied literature, mathematics, anatomy, astronomy, botany, and zoology.4 The Mouseion was the Bell Labs of its era: It was there, in the third century BC, that the astronomer Aristarchus of Samos first posited that the Earth orbited the sun, and where the institution’s third librarian Eratosthenes calculated the diameter of the Earth to within fifty miles.* It was at Alexandria that Euclid wrote Elements, his seminal treatise on mathematics, and where Archimedes invented the screw-shaped pump later given his name.6 Punctuation itself got its start here,* as did the practice of accenting letters to alter their pronunciation—both innovations attributed to the fourth librarian, Aristophanes—and the asterisk and dagger were soon to follow.7 The first librarian at Alexandria was the grammarian Zenodotus of Ephesus, appointed in the third century BC by the Alexandrian king Ptolemy II and was assigned the task of revising Homer’s epic poetry.8 Legend has it that in times past, Homer’s works had been lost to some unnamed disaster, and, endeavoring to make a name for himself by reconstituting these fabled texts, an Athenian official named Peisistratus offered to pay by the line anyone who could bring some Homeric verse to him.9 Many crafty supplicants used Peisistratus’s scheme to enrich themselves, and the resultant text was a distended shadow of the original, sprinkled with many spurious lines and verses.

Named for the Greek obelos, or “roasting spit,” the striking image of the obelus transfixing erroneous text was echoed later by Isidore of Seville, who said of the mark that “like an arrow, it slays the superfluous and pierces the false.”11 Zenodotus’s invention of the obelus and his textual criticism of Homer’s works were expanded on by later Alexandrian scholars, and it was one of his successors who first paired the obelus with a new mark called the asterisk. Succeeding Eratosthenes and then Aristophanes as librarian, Aristarchus of Samothrace* sought to update Zenodotus’s pioneering work.12 Finding the obelus necessary but not sufficient to the task at hand, Aristarchus introduced an array of additional symbols to aid his work. The most basic of these was the diple, a simple angle (>) used to indicate any one of a number of noteworthy features in the text, with the related diple periestigmene, or dotted diple () used to mark passages where Aristarchus disagreed with Zenodotus’s changes.

.), 153–54 of proper names, 155–57, 159, 160 e-mail, 82–86, 94 em dash (—), 145, 150–51, 161, 162, 164, 202, 246 double hyphen as substitute for, 162–63, 163, 164 emoticons, 233–38 em quad (“mutton”), 150n Encounter, 226n Encyclopedia of the Book (Glaister), 172–73 en dash (–), 145, 151, 161, 164, 246 endnotes, 114 English Civil War, 107n English Our English: And How to Sing It (Waterhouse), 225 en quad (“nut”), 150n Epiphanius, 102 epistolary novels, 156 Erasmus, Desiderius, 171–72, 214–15, 217, 245 Eratosthenes, 98 Esperanto, 213 Essai sur l’origine des langues (Rousseau), 217 Essay on Typography, An (Gill), ix, x, 17–19, 20, 21, 143n Essay Towards a Real Character and a Philosophical Language (Wilkins), 212–15 Estienne, Robert, 110 et, 63–64, 66 Tironian, 63–64, 67, 71, 71, 72, 73, 74, 74, 75, 75, 128, 129, 131, 173 Etymologies (Isidore of Seville), 11, 73–74, 191 Euclid, 98 Eusebius, 100 exclamation mark (!)


pages: 566 words: 122,184

Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software by Charles Petzold

Bill Gates: Altair 8800, Charles Babbage, Claude Shannon: information theory, computer age, Dennis Ritchie, digital divide, Donald Knuth, Douglas Engelbart, Douglas Engelbart, Dynabook, Eratosthenes, Fairchild Semiconductor, Free Software Foundation, Gary Kildall, Grace Hopper, invention of the telegraph, Isaac Newton, Ivan Sutherland, Jacquard loom, James Watt: steam engine, John von Neumann, Joseph-Marie Jacquard, Ken Thompson, Louis Daguerre, millennium bug, Multics, Norbert Wiener, optical character recognition, popular electronics, Richard Feynman, Richard Stallman, Silicon Valley, Steve Jobs, Turing machine, Turing test, Vannevar Bush, Von Neumann architecture

I make use of a Boolean array (and almost every other feature we've learned about so far) in the final program of this chapter—a program that implements a famous algorithm for finding prime numbers called the Sieve of Eratosthenes. Eratosthenes (circa 276–196 BCE) was the librarian of the legendary library at Alexandria and is best remembered today for accurately calculating the circumference of the earth. Prime numbers are those whole numbers that are divisible without a remainder only by themselves and 1. The first prime number is 2 (the only even prime number), and the primes continue with 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, and so forth. Eratosthenes' technique begins with a list of the positive whole numbers beginning with 2. Because 2 is a prime number, cross out all the numbers that are multiples of 2.

"Rather," wrote physicist Richard Feynman, "computer science is like engineering—it is all about getting something to do something." If you ask 100 different people to write a program that prints out prime numbers, you'll get 100 different solutions. Even those programmers who use the Sieve of Eratosthenes won't implement it in precisely the same way that I did. If programming truly were a science, there wouldn't be so many possible solutions, and incorrect solutions would be more obvious. Occasionally, a programming problem incites flashes of creativity and insight, and that's the "art" part. But programming is mostly a designing and building process not unlike erecting a bridge.


pages: 202 words: 58,823

Willful: How We Choose What We Do by Richard Robb

activist fund / activist shareholder / activist investor, Alvin Roth, Asian financial crisis, asset-backed security, Bear Stearns, behavioural economics, Bernie Madoff, Brexit referendum, capital asset pricing model, cognitive bias, collapse of Lehman Brothers, Daniel Kahneman / Amos Tversky, David Ricardo: comparative advantage, delayed gratification, diversification, diversified portfolio, effective altruism, endowment effect, Eratosthenes, experimental subject, family office, George Akerlof, index fund, information asymmetry, job satisfaction, John Maynard Keynes: Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren, lake wobegon effect, loss aversion, market bubble, market clearing, money market fund, Paradox of Choice, Pareto efficiency, Paul Samuelson, Peter Singer: altruism, Philippa Foot, principal–agent problem, profit maximization, profit motive, Richard Thaler, search costs, Silicon Valley, sovereign wealth fund, survivorship bias, the scientific method, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus, Thorstein Veblen, transaction costs, trolley problem, ultimatum game

If science were enough, dynamic economies would have sprung up at various points in the ancient world. The Greeks, for instance, achieved little by way of business or commercial innovation in spite of their astonishing scientific achievements. Not only did they know that the earth is round, around 240 BCE Eratosthenes calculated its circumference within a few thousand miles. They understood the causes of lunar and solar eclipses and accurately predicted when they would occur. Anaximander, born two hundred years before Aristotle, speculated that life first formed in water. Ancient Romans surmised that disease is caused by invisible little animals—an idea that could have made the Middle Ages considerably more pleasant, if only they had run with it.23 But unfortunately, most of this science never made it to the shop room floor.24 Having examined when commercial activity thrives and when it does not, Phelps concludes in Mass Flourishing, daringly for an economist, that values play a central role.

See also mercy ambiguity effect, 24 American Work-Sports (Zarnowski), 191 Anaximander, 190 anchoring, 168 angel investors, 212–213n1 “animal spirits,” 169 Antipater of Tarsus, 134–135, 137 “anxious vigilance,” 73, 82 arbitrage, 70, 78 Aristotle, 200, 220n24 Asian financial crisis (1997–1998), 13 asset-backed securities, 93–95 asset classes, 75 astrology, 67 asymmetric information, 96, 210n2 authenticity, 32–37, 114 of challenges, 176–179 autism, 58, 59 auto safety, 139 Bank of New York Mellon, 61 Battle of Waterloo, 71, 205 Bear Stearns, 85 Becker, Gary, 33, 108–109 behavioral economics, 4, 10, 198–199 assumptions underlying, 24 insights of, 24–25 rational choice complemented by, 6 Belgium, 191 beliefs: attachment to, 51 defined, 50 evidence inconsistent with, 54, 57–58 formation of, 53, 92 persistence of, 26–28, 54 transmissibility of, 92–93, 95–96 Bentham, Jeremy, 127, 197–198 “black swans,” 62–64 blame aversion, 57, 72 brain hemispheres, 161 Brexit, 181–185 “bull markets,” 78 capital asset pricing model, 64 care altruism, 38, 104, 108–114, 115, 120, 135, 201 Casablanca (film), 120, 125 The Cask of Amontillado (Poe), 126–127 challenges, 202–203 authenticity of, 176–179 staying in the game linked to, 179–181 changes of mind, 147–164 charity, 40, 45–46, 119, 128 choice: abundance of, 172–174 intertemporal, 149–158, 166 purposeful vs. rational, 22–23 Christofferson, Johan, 83, 86, 87, 88 Cicero, 133–134 Clark, John Bates, 167 cognitive bias, 6, 23, 51, 147–148, 167, 198–199 confirmation bias, 200 experimental evidence of, 10–11, 24 for-itself behavior disguised as, 200–201 gain-loss asymmetry, 10–11 hostile attribution bias, 59 hyperbolic discounting as, 158 lawn-mowing paradox and, 33–34 obstinacy linked to, 57 omission bias, 200 rational choice disguised as, 10–11, 33–34, 199–200 salience and, 29, 147 survivor bias, 180 zero risk bias, 24 Colbert, Claudette, 7 Columbia University, 17 commitment devices, 149–151 commodities, 80, 86, 89 commuting, 26, 38–39 competitiveness, 11, 31, 41, 149, 189 complementary skills, 71–72 compound interest, 79 confirmation bias, 57, 200 conspicuous consumption, 31 consumption planning, 151–159 contrarian strategy, 78 cooperation, 104, 105 coordination, 216n15 corner solutions, 214n8 cost-benefit analysis: disregard of, in military campaigns, 117 of human life, 138–143 credit risk, 11 crime, 208 Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank (DKB), 12–14, 15, 17, 87, 192–193 Darwin, Charles, 62–63 depression, psychological, 62 de Waal, Frans, 118 Diogenes of Seleucia, 134–135, 137 discounting of the future, 10, 162–164 hyperbolic, 158, 201 disjunction effect, 174–176 diversification, 64–65 divestment, 65–66 Dostoevsky, Fyodor, 18 drowning husband problem, 6–7, 110, 116, 123–125 effective altruism, 110–112, 126, 130, 135–136 efficient market hypothesis, 69–74, 81–82, 96 Empire State Building, 211–212n12 endowment effect, 4 endowments, of universities, 74 entrepreneurism, 27, 90, 91–92 Eratosthenes, 190 ethics, 6, 104, 106–108, 116, 125 European Union, 181–182 experiential knowledge, 59–61 expert opinion, 27–28, 53, 54, 56–57 extreme unexpected events, 61–64 fairness, 108, 179 family offices, 94 Fear and Trembling (Kierkegaard), 53–54 “felicific calculus,” 197–198 financial crisis of 2007–2009, 61, 76, 85, 93–94, 95 firemen’s muster, 191 flow, and well-being, 201–202 Foot, Philippa, 133–134, 135 for-itself behavior, 6–7, 19, 21, 27, 36, 116, 133–134, 204–205, 207–208 acting in character as, 51–53, 55–56, 94–95, 203 acting out of character as, 69, 72 analyzing, 20 authenticity and, 33–35 charity as, 39–40, 45–46 comparison and ranking lacking from, 19, 24, 181 consequences of, 55–64 constituents of, 26–31 defined, 23–24 difficulty of modeling, 204 expert opinion and, 57 extreme unexpected events and, 63–64 flow of time and, 30 free choice linked to, 169–172 in groups, 91–100 incommensurability of, 140–143 in individual investing, 77–78 in institutional investing, 76 intertemporal choice and, 168, 175, 176 job satisfaction as, 189 mercy as, 114 misclassification of, 42, 44, 200–201 out-of-character trading as, 68–69 purposeful choice commingled with, 40–43, 129, 171 rationalizations for, 194–195 in trolley problem, 137 unemployment and, 186 France, 191 Fuji Bank, 14 futures, 80–81 gain-loss asymmetry, 10–11 Galperti, Simone, 217n1 gambler’s fallacy, 199 gamifying, 177 Garber, Peter, 212n1 Germany, 191 global equity, 75 Good Samaritan (biblical figure), 103, 129–130, 206 governance, of institutional investors, 74 Great Britain, 191 Great Depression, 94 Greek antiquity, 190 guilt, 127 habituation, 201 happiness research (positive psychology), 25–26, 201–202 Hayek, Friedrich, 61, 70 hedge funds, 15–17, 65, 75, 78–79, 93, 95 herd mentality, 96 heroism, 6–7, 19–20 hindsight effect, 199 holding, of investments, 79–80 home country bias, 64–65 Homer, 149 Homo ludens, 167–168 hostile attribution bias, 59 housing market, 94 Huizinga, Johan, 167–168 human life, valuation of, 138–143 Hume, David, 62, 209n5 hyperbolic discounting, 158, 201 illiquid markets, 74, 94 index funds, 75 individual investing, 76–82 Industrial Bank of Japan, 14 information asymmetry, 96, 210n2 innovation, 190 institutional investing, 74–76, 82, 93–95, 205 intergenerational transfers, 217n1, 218n4 interlocking utility, 108 intertemporal choice, 149–159, 166 investing: personal beliefs and, 52–53 in start-ups, 27 Joseph (biblical figure), 97–99 Kahneman, Daniel, 168 Kantianism, 135–136 Keynes, John Maynard, 12, 58, 167, 169, 188–189 Kierkegaard, Søren, 30, 53, 65, 88 Knight, Frank, 145, 187 Kranton, Rachel E., 210–211n2 labor supply, 185–189 Lake Wobegon effect, 4 lawn-mowing paradox, 33–34, 206 Lehman Brothers, 61, 86, 89, 184 leisure, 14, 17, 41, 154, 187 Libet, Benjamin, 161 life, valuation of, 138–143 Life of Alexander (Plutarch), 180–181 Locher, Roger, 117, 124 long-term vs. short-term planning, 148–149 loss aversion, 70, 199 lottery: as rational choice, 199–200 Winner’s Curse, 34–36 love altruism, 104, 116, 123–125, 126, 203 lying, vs. omitting, 134 Macbeth (Shakespeare), 63 MacFarquhar, Larissa, 214n6 Madoff, Bernard, 170 malevolence, 125–127 Malthus, Thomas, 212n2 manners, in social interactions, 104, 106, 107, 116, 125 market equilibrium, 33 Markowitz, Harry, 65 Marshall, Alfred, 41, 167 Mass Flourishing (Phelps), 189–191 materialism, 5 merchant’s choice, 133–134, 137–138 mercy, 104, 114–116, 203 examples of, 116–120 inexplicable, 45–46, 120–122 uniqueness of, 119, 129 mergers and acquisitions, 192 “money pump,” 159 monks’ parable, 114, 124 Montaigne, Michel de, 114, 118 mortgage-backed securities, 93 Nagel, Thomas, 161 Napoleon I, emperor of the French, 71 neoclassical economics, 8, 10, 11, 22, 33 Nietzsche, Friedrich, 21, 43, 209n5 norms, 104, 106–108, 123 Norway, 66 Nozick, Robert, 162 observed care altruism, 108–112 Odyssey (Homer), 149–150 omission bias, 200 On the Fourfold Root of the Principle of Sufficient Reason (Schopenhauer), 209n5 “on the spot” knowledge, 61, 70, 80, 94, 205 Orico, 13 overconfidence, 57, 200 “overearning,” 44–45 The Palm Beach Story (film), 7 The Paradox of Choice (Schwartz), 172 parenting, 108, 141, 170–171 Pareto efficiency, 132–133, 136, 139–140 Peirce, Charles Sanders, 53–54, 67, 94 pension funds, 66, 74–75, 93, 95 permanent income hypothesis, 179 Pharaoh (biblical figure), 97–99 Phelps, Edmund, 17, 189–191 Philip II, king of Macedonia, 181 planning, 149–151 for consumption, 154–157 long-term vs. short-term, 148–149 rational choice applied to, 152–158, 162 play, 44–45, 167, 202 pleasure-pain principle, 18 Plutarch, 180–181 Poe, Edgar Allan, 126 pollution, 132–133 Popeye the Sailor Man, 19 portfolio theory, 64–65 positive psychology (happiness research), 25–26, 201–202 preferences, 18–19, 198 aggregating, 38–39, 132, 164 altruism and, 28, 38, 45, 104, 110, 111, 116 in behavioral economics, 24, 168 beliefs’ feedback into, 51, 55 defined, 23 intransitive, 158–159 in purposeful behavior, 25, 36 risk aversion and, 51 stability of, 33, 115, 147, 207, 208 “time-inconsistent,” 158, 159, 166, 203 present value, 7, 139 principal-agent problem, 72 Principles of Economics (Marshall), 41 prisoner’s dilemma, 105 private equity, 75 procrastination, 3, 4, 19, 177–178 prospect theory, 168 protectionism, 185–187 Prussia, 191 public equities, 75 punishment, 109 purposeful choice, 22–26, 27, 34, 36, 56, 133–134, 204–205 altruism compatible with, 104, 113–114, 115–116 commensurability and, 153–154 as default rule, 43–46 expert opinion and, 57 extreme unexpected events and, 62–63 flow of time and, 30 for-itself behavior commingled with, 40–43, 129, 171 mechanistic quality of, 68 in merchant’s choice, 135, 137–138 Pareto efficiency linked to, 132 rational choice distinguished from, 22–23 regret linked to, 128 social relations linked to, 28 stable preferences linked to, 33 in trolley problem, 135–136 vaccination and, 58–59 wage increases and, 187.


pages: 462 words: 172,671

Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship by Robert C. Martin

business logic, continuous integration, database schema, disinformation, domain-specific language, don't repeat yourself, Donald Knuth, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, finite state, G4S, Ignaz Semmelweis: hand washing, iterative process, place-making, Rubik’s Cube, web application

What I find fascinating about this module is that there was a time when many of us would have considered it “well documented.” Now we see it as a small mess. See how many different comment problems you can find. Listing 4-7 GeneratePrimes.java /** * This class Generates prime numbers up to a user specified * maximum. The algorithm used is the Sieve of Eratosthenes. * <p> * Eratosthenes of Cyrene, b. c. 276 BC, Cyrene, Libya -- * d. c. 194, Alexandria. The first man to calculate the * circumference of the Earth. Also known for working on * calendars with leap years and ran the library at Alexandria. * <p> * The algorithm is quite simple. Given an array of integers * starting at 2.

Note that the use of comments is significantly restrained. There are just two comments in the whole module. Both comments are explanatory in nature. Listing 4-8 PrimeGenerator.java (refactored) /** * This class Generates prime numbers up to a user specified * maximum. The algorithm used is the Sieve of Eratosthenes. * Given an array of integers starting at 2: * Find the first uncrossed integer, and cross out all its * multiples. Repeat until there are no more multiples * in the array. */ public class PrimeGenerator { private static boolean[] crossedOut; private static int[] result; public static int[] generatePrimes(int maxValue) { if (maxValue < 2) return new int[0]; else { uncrossIntegersUpTo(maxValue); crossOutMultiples(); putUncrossedIntegersIntoResult(); return result; } } private static void uncrossIntegersUpTo(int maxValue) { crossedOut = new boolean[maxValue + 1]; for (int i = 2; i < crossedOut.length; i++) crossedOut[i] = false; } private static void crossOutMultiples() { int limit = determineIterationLimit(); for (int i = 2; i <= limit; i++) if (notCrossed(i)) crossOutMultiplesOf(i); } private static int determineIterationLimit() { // Every multiple in the array has a prime factor that // is less than or equal to the root of the array size, // so we don’t have to cross out multiples of numbers // larger than that root.


pages: 745 words: 207,187

Accessory to War: The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military by Neil Degrasse Tyson, Avis Lang

active measures, Admiral Zheng, airport security, anti-communist, Apollo 11, Arthur Eddington, Benoit Mandelbrot, Berlin Wall, British Empire, Buckminster Fuller, Carrington event, Charles Lindbergh, collapse of Lehman Brothers, Colonization of Mars, commoditize, corporate governance, cosmic microwave background, credit crunch, cuban missile crisis, dark matter, Dava Sobel, disinformation, Donald Trump, Doomsday Clock, Dr. Strangelove, dual-use technology, Eddington experiment, Edward Snowden, energy security, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, fake news, Fellow of the Royal Society, Ford Model T, global value chain, Google Earth, GPS: selective availability, Great Leap Forward, Herman Kahn, Higgs boson, invention of movable type, invention of the printing press, invention of the telescope, Isaac Newton, James Webb Space Telescope, Johannes Kepler, John Harrison: Longitude, Karl Jansky, Kuiper Belt, Large Hadron Collider, Late Heavy Bombardment, Laura Poitras, Lewis Mumford, lone genius, low earth orbit, mandelbrot fractal, Maui Hawaii, Mercator projection, Mikhail Gorbachev, military-industrial complex, mutually assured destruction, Neil Armstrong, New Journalism, Northpointe / Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions, operation paperclip, pattern recognition, Pierre-Simon Laplace, precision agriculture, prediction markets, profit motive, Project Plowshare, purchasing power parity, quantum entanglement, RAND corporation, Ronald Reagan, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, skunkworks, South China Sea, space junk, Stephen Hawking, Strategic Defense Initiative, subprime mortgage crisis, the long tail, time dilation, trade route, War on Poverty, wikimedia commons, zero-sum game

A sophisticated navigator might know how to calculate his craft’s geometric relation to the sky’s salient inhabitants, but to note a position in such a way as to be unambiguously and automatically understood, he needed a standard point of reference—two, in fact. He needed coordinates, a grid, a graticule with both an equator and a prime meridian at right angles to it. With its main parallel and its prime meridian crossing at the Aegean island of Rhodes, Eratosthenes’s ancient world map had a grid that Hipparchus found arbitrary. Ptolemy’s map, with its prime meridian passing through the westernmost known islands in the Atlantic, had a more astronomically inspired grid. The maps of Columbus’s day—made for scholars and kings, and treated as classified information—had something of a grid, while the marine charts—made for sailors—had none.

there is no end of different numbers. Nevertheless, Pytheas was certainly on the right track compared with contemporaries of his, such as the disbelieving Strabo. 20.Roseman, Pytheas, 7–20, writes that eighteen known ancient writers referred to Pytheas by name between 300 BC and AD 550, notably Eratosthenes, Hipparkhos, Polybius, Strabo, and Pliny the Elder. Two more—Poseidonios and Diodoros—likely used his information but did not name him in their extant works. For a discussion of reasons not to credit Pytheas with this voyage, see Moreno, “Atlantic Seafaring and the Iberian Peninsula.” 21.Taylor, Haven-Finding Art, 44; Casson, Ancient Mariners, 124; Cunliffe, Extraordinary Voyage, 99–100; Hawkes, Eighth Myres Lecture, 27–28, 30, 35–37. 22.Roseman, Pytheas, 117ff. 23.There is much doubt as to whether the Necho expedition was completed, though no doubt that it was undertaken.

See also “Privileges and Prerogatives Granted by Their Catholic Majesties to Christopher Columbus: 1492,” Avalon Project, Yale Law School, avalon.law.yale.edu/15th_century/colum.asp (accessed Apr. 8, 2017). 47.Parry, Age of Reconnaissance, 69–70; Williams, Sails to Satellites, 9, 16, 18; Randles, “Evaluation of Columbus’ ‘India’ Project,” 54–55. Seventeen centuries earlier, Eratosthenes had raised the idea of heading west from Lisbon to reach China. For Mandeville, see C. W. R. D. Moseley, “Behaim’s Globe and ‘Mandeville’s Travels,’ ” Imago Mundi 33 (1981), 89–91. The e-book of The Travels of Sir John Mandeville is available at www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/782 (accessed Apr. 8, 2017).


pages: 551 words: 174,280

The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World by David Deutsch

agricultural Revolution, Albert Michelson, anthropic principle, Apollo 13, artificial general intelligence, Bonfire of the Vanities, Charles Babbage, Computing Machinery and Intelligence, conceptual framework, cosmological principle, dark matter, David Attenborough, discovery of DNA, Douglas Hofstadter, Easter island, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, first-past-the-post, Georg Cantor, global pandemic, Gödel, Escher, Bach, illegal immigration, invention of movable type, Isaac Newton, Islamic Golden Age, Jacquard loom, Johannes Kepler, John Conway, John von Neumann, Joseph-Marie Jacquard, Kenneth Arrow, Loebner Prize, Louis Pasteur, mirror neurons, Nick Bostrom, pattern recognition, Pierre-Simon Laplace, precautionary principle, Richard Feynman, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, seminal paper, Stephen Hawking, supervolcano, technological singularity, Thales of Miletus, The Coming Technological Singularity, the scientific method, Thomas Malthus, Thorstein Veblen, Turing test, Vernor Vinge, Whole Earth Review, William of Occam, zero-sum game

In regard to understanding the physical world, we are in much the same position as Eratosthenes was in regard to the Earth: he could measure it remarkably accurately, and he knew a great deal about certain aspects of it – immensely more than his ancestors had known only a few centuries before. He must have known about such things as seasons in regions of the Earth about which he had no evidence. But he also knew that most of what was out there was far beyond his theoretical knowledge as well as his physical reach. We cannot yet measure the universe as accurately as Eratosthenes measured the Earth. And we, too, know how ignorant we are.

All you need do is make the decision [to end your static society]. It is yours to make.’ [With that decision] came the end, the final end of Eternity.– And the beginning of Infinity. Isaac Asimov, The End of Eternity (1955) The first person to measure the circumference of the Earth was the astronomer Eratosthenes of Cyrene, in the third century BCE. His result was fairly close to the actual value, which is about 40,000 kilometres. For most of history this was considered an enormous distance, but with the Enlightenment that conception gradually changed, and nowadays we think of the Earth as small. That was brought about mainly by two things: first, by the science of astronomy, which discovered titanic entities compared with which our planet is indeed unimaginably tiny; and, second, by technologies that have made worldwide travel and communication commonplace.

What is the difference between a computer simulation of a person (which must be a person, because of universality) and a recording of that simulation (which cannot be a person)? When there are two identical simulations under way, are there two sets of qualia or one? Double the moral value or not? Our world, which is so much larger, more unified, more intricate and more beautiful than that of Eratosthenes, and which we understand and control to an extent that would have seemed godlike to him, is nevertheless just as mysterious, yet open, to us now as his was to him then. We have lit only a few candles here and there. We can cower in their parochial light until something beyond our ken snuffs us out, or we can resist.


pages: 408 words: 114,719

The Swerve: How the Renaissance Began by Stephen Greenblatt

Albert Einstein, Bonfire of the Vanities, classic study, complexity theory, Eratosthenes, George Santayana, invention of movable type, invention of the printing press, Isaac Newton, work culture

The two cultures had not always been comfortably intertwined. Among the Greeks, Romans had long held the reputation of tough, disciplined people, with a gift for survival and a hunger for conquest. But they were also regarded as barbarians—“refined barbarians,” in the moderate view of the Alexandrian scientist Eratosthenes, crude and dangerous barbarians in the view of many others. When their independent city-states were still flourishing, Greek intellectuals collected some arcane lore about the Romans, as they did about the Carthaginians and Indians, but they did not find anything in Roman cultural life worthy of their notice.

Starting as early as 300 BCE, the Ptolomaic kings who ruled Alexandria had the inspired idea of luring leading scholars, scientists, and poets to their city by offering them life appointments at the Museum, with handsome salaries, tax exemptions, free food and lodging, and the almost limitless resources of the library. The recipients of this largesse established remarkably high intellectual standards. Euclid developed his geometry in Alexandria; Archimedes discovered pi and laid the foundation for calculus; Eratosthenes posited that the earth was round and calculated its circumference to within 1 percent; Galen revolutionized medicine. Alexandrian astronomers postulated a heliocentric universe; geometers deduced that the length of a year was 365¼ days and proposed adding a “leap day” every fourth year; geographers speculated that it would be possible to reach India by sailing west from Spain; engineers developed hydraulics and pneumatics; anatomists first understood clearly that the brain and the nervous system were a unit, studied the function of the heart and the digestive system, and conducted experiments in nutrition.

Angelo, 20, 161 catasto (official inventory), 22 Catherine of Siena, Saint, 293n Catherine von Gebersweiler, 108 Catholic Church: apologetics of, 23–24, 47–48, 53–54, 97–108, 101, 208, 285n bureaucracy of, 85, 135–38, 157 corruption in, 136–41, 151–52, 165–66, 170–71, 181 Epicureanism opposed to, 7, 97–109, 182–84, 219–41, 249–62, 284n, 285n, 302n fundamentalism in, 89–108, 219–21, 227, 236, 239–40, 254–56 legal system of, 136–37, 158 literature of, 42, 43, 46–47 national factions in, 160, 163, 164, 176, 178, 205 as official religion, 89–108 paganism suppressed by, 10, 13, 19, 53–54, 75–78, 86–108, 117–18, 123, 129, 150, 222–24, 258, 283n, 284n, 286n papacy of, see specific popes schism in, 142–43, 155, 160, 161–78, 205 spiritual authority of, 100–109, 136–37, 149–50, 164–65, 168–69, 227, 230, 232 temporal authority of, 36, 135–37, 149–50, 157–58, 161–62, 239–40 theology of, 16, 17, 27, 75–76, 94–108, 120, 136–37, 163, 208, 252–54, 282n–83n, 285n Catullus, 53 celestial spheres, 5–6 Ceres, 183 Cervantes, 9, 142 Cervini, Marcello, 227 Cesena, 293n–94n chancery courts, 137 change, 5–7, 10, 186–87, 243–45, 259–60, 263 Charlemagne, 12, 47, 121 Chaucer, Geoffrey, 277n–78n children, 127, 137, 193, 194, 210, 212–13, 215 Chloris, 267n Chronicles of Herculaneum, 65 Chrysippus, 82 Chrysolaras, Manuel, 126 Church Fathers, 23–24, 47–48, 53–54, 99–100, 101, 208, 284n, 285n Cicero, Marcus Tullius, 23, 24, 43, 49, 53, 65, 69–70, 71, 72, 76, 85, 94–95, 96, 119, 120, 121–22, 123 138, 155–56, 176–77, 208, 273n, 274n, 283n, 289n, 296n, 300n Cicero, Quintus Tullius, 51 Ciompi (working-class revolutionaries), 114–15 city-states, 59, 122–24 Clare of Assisi, Saint, 108 Clement of Alexandria, 285n Clement VII, Pope, 293n, 294n Cleopatra, 281n clinamen (swerve) principle, 7–13, 188–89, 297n Cluny abbey, 176–77 codices, 39–40, 42–43, 62, 82–83, 89, 176–77 Colonna, Oddo, 205–6, 211, 269n Colonna family, 135 Colosseum, 63, 129 Columbanus, Saint, 27–28, 272n commentaries, 46, 221–41 conclaves, papal, 205–6 confession, 65, 143, 173, 255 Constance, 15, 19–20, 31, 35–36, 102, 162–78, 180, 206, 294n Constantine I, Emperor of Rome, 89, 102, 149–50, 224 Constantinople, 113, 169, 216 convents, 106, 108 Copernicus, Nicolaus, 10, 238, 254 Coptics, 24–25 copyists (librari), 85–86 copyright, 85 corporale supplicium (bodily punishments), 106 corporal punishment, 104–6 Correr, Angelo, 160, 180, 205 Cossa, Baldassare, see John XXIII (Baldassare Cossa), Antipope Cotta, Gaius Aurelius, 69–70 Council of Constance (1414–18), 15, 19–20, 31, 35–36, 102, 162–78, 180, 206, 294n Council of Trent (1545–63), 252, 253, 255 Counter-Reformation, 237–38, 253 courtiers, 8, 14, 15 Creech, Thomas, 257, 267n crime, 38, 104, 140, 228 crucifixions, 104, 112, 194, 241 cruelty, 194, 195, 198, 246, 298n cult objects, 90–91, 92 cults, 89–90 Cupid, 267n cyclical patterns, 10 Cyril, Saint, 91, 92–93 Damian, Peter, 107 Danae, 175 Dante Alighieri, 123, 132–33, 288n Darwin, Charles, 262 Darwin, Erasmus, 262 David, King, 43 day laborers (populo minuto), 114–15 Day of Judgment, 100 De aquaeductu urbis (Frontius), 152 death, fear of, 2–5, 9, 75–76, 112, 152, 180, 192–94, 196, 199, 220, 248 death sentences, 104, 158, 164, 172–73, 177–79, 213, 219, 228, 240–41, 255, 286n, 296n, 297n debate, 27–28 Decembrio, Pier Candido, 226 Declaration of Independence, 263 declinatio (swerve) principle, 7–13, 188–89, 297n della Robbia, Luca, 218 delusion, 195–97 Democritus, 74–75, 82 demons, 8, 10, 26, 89, 105, 194–95 De rerum natura (Lucretius), 182–202, 219–41 adaptation principle in, 189–90 afterlife denied in, 171, 183, 192–94, 195, 196–97, 220, 223, 230–32, 244, 260 Aldine edition of, 226 atheism in, 183–84, 221, 239, 259, 261 atomist theory in, 5–6, 8, 46, 73–75, 82, 99, 101, 185–89, 198–201, 220–21, 237, 239, 242–43, 244, 249, 250–53, 254, 255–56, 258, 260, 261, 297n, 306n author’s reading of, 1–13 beauty in, 1–2, 8–10, 11, 201–2, 228, 251, 260–61, 299n books and sections of, 65 Catholic doctrine opposed to, 7, 97–109, 182–84, 219–41, 249–62, 284n, 285n, 302n change and transition in, 5–7, 10, 186–87, 243–45, 259–60, 263 Cicero’s revision of, 53 classical references to, 49–52 commentaries on, 221–41 creation vs. destruction in, 186–89, 220, 249, 250–52, 261 cultural influence of, 11–13, 49–52, 182–83, 185, 204–5, 209–10, 218, 219–63, 302n cyclical patterns in, 10 dedication written for, 53 delusion in, 195–97 description of, 182–202 desire in, 197–98 detachment in, 195–97 disappearance of, 12–13, 49–52, 88–89, 209–10, 272n divine will in, 71, 74, 75, 102–3, 105, 187, 194–95, 220, 230–36, 249, 251, 285n emendations of, 226 English translations of, 184, 198, 201, 257–62, 267n, 297n–98n, 299n, 305n Epicurean philosophy of, 1–5, 58–59, 72–80, 88–89, 103, 104, 109, 182–202, 220–21, 222, 228–32, 244–46, 252–54, 256, 262–63, 303n eroticism in, 197–98, 201–2 ethics and morality in, 195–96 fear of death in, 2–5, 9, 192–94, 196, 199, 220, 248 free will in, 71, 74–75, 189 French translations of, 243–44, 247, 257, 262 gods and goddesses in, 1–2, 10, 183, 184, 193–94, 195, 197, 198, 199, 201–2, 228, 231–32, 251, 260–61, 298n, 299n as grammatical source, 12 happiness in, 195–97, 199 Herculaneum fragments of, 54–59, 64–65, 70–72, 81 hexameters of, 2, 182 historical influence of, 11–13 human existence in, 190–92 hymn to Venus in, 1–2, 10, 201–2, 228, 251, 260–61, 299n illusion in, 198–99 imagination in, 196–97 infinity in, 186, 187, 189, 196–97, 237, 239, 244, 256 “intelligent design” discredited by, 187–88, 220, 297n Italian translation of, 257, 262 language of, 2–3 Latin language of, 2–3, 12, 50, 182, 202, 225, 243, 247, 256 Machiavelli’s copy of, 221 manuscripts of, 11–13, 49–50, 88–89, 181, 182–85, 202, 203–5, 208–10, 218, 221–22, 225, 226, 231, 244, 256, 262, 272n, 300n materialism in, 9–10, 184–86, 190–91, 193, 198–201, 243, 244, 249, 259–63, 297n metaphors in, 201 in Middle Ages, 52–53, 88–89, 209–10, 272n modern influence of, 6–7, 8, 13, 185, 242–63 Montaigne’s copy of, 248–49, 256, 306n mythology in, 193–95 natural world in, 6, 10–11, 188–90, 262, 298n Niccoli’s transcription of, 203–4 “Oblongus” manuscript of, 204 paradise in, 191–92, 193 pleasure principle in, 8–10, 11, 75–80, 82, 102, 103–9, 195–98, 222–26, 228, 231 as poetry, 2–3, 50, 54, 80, 198, 200, 201–2, 221, 247, 259–60 Poggio’s copy of, 49–50, 203–5, 208–10, 225, 300n Poggio’s discovery of, 11–13, 22, 23–24, 49–50, 62, 65, 88–89, 93, 109, 181, 182–85, 202, 203–5, 218, 221–22, 225, 226, 231, 244, 256, 262 printed editions of, 204, 219, 248–50, 256, 262 Providence in, 187, 230–36, 251 “Quadratus” manuscript of, 204 readership of, 65–67, 70–72, 182, 209–10, 219–63 readings of, 71–72, 226 reason in, 199 religious superstitions opposed by, 2, 6, 10–11, 18–19, 36, 72, 74–75, 183, 184, 193–97, 199, 249, 299n Renaissance influenced by, 7–13 reputation of, 6–7, 8, 13, 51–52, 109, 185, 242–63 resurrection denied by, 171, 231–32 sexuality in, 103, 197–98, 201–2, 222, 247 soul in, 192–93, 196–97, 220, 231–32, 249, 251 space and time in, 186–89, 196–97, 237, 239, 244, 256 style of, 2–3, 7, 51 suffering in, 183, 195–98 swerve (clinamen) principle in, 7–13, 188–89, 297n syntax of, 182 title of, 46, 49, 181 translations of, 1–3, 184, 198, 201, 243–44, 247, 257–62, 267n, 297n–98n, 299n–300n, 305n universe as conceived in, 7–8, 73–74, 87, 186, 187, 189, 194, 220, 237, 238–39, 250–52, 306n void in, 187, 198–99 De rerum naturis (Maurus), 49 De runalibus (Serenus), 272n Descartes, René, 68, 239 desire, 197–98 detachment, 195–97 Deuteronomy, Book of, 285n dialogical disavowal, 222–23, 302n–3n Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (Galileo), 255 dialogues, 69–72, 138–39, 147–49, 216–17, 222–26, 255, 302n–3n Diana, 99 Diderot, Denis, 262 Didymus of Alexandria, 81–82 Diogenes Laertius, 82, 278n diplomacy, 122–26, 155, 214 disciplina (whipping), 106 disillusion, 198–99 dispensations, 21, 136–37 divine will, 71, 74, 75, 102–3, 105, 187, 194–95, 220, 230–36, 249, 251, 285n divinity, 98–99, 183 documents, official, 56–57 Dominic, Saint, 108 Dominicans, 111, 168, 219, 240 Domitian, Emperor of Rome, 48, 275n Donatello, 211, 218 “Donation of Constantine,” 149–50, 224 Donne, John, 143 dowries, 301n drama, 77–78, 81, 94, 95, 104, 242–43 Dryden, John, 198, 201, 262, 267n, 297n–98n, 299n Duccio, 10 Dungal, 12 Duomo (Florence), 110, 113, 180, 217–18 Eastern Orthodox Church, 136 edicts, religious, 89–90 education, 24, 28, 59, 71, 91, 97, 104, 112–13, 121–22, 138–41, 151, 211, 214, 226 Egypt, 24–25, 42, 56–57, 61, 66, 84–94, 279n–80n Einstein, Albert, 262 elections, papal, 205–6, 293n Elijah, 90 Elsbeth of Oye, 108 emendations, textual, 226 empiricism, 73, 262–63 England, 163, 164, 205, 206–8, 227–40, 242–43, 257–62 English language, 184, 198, 201, 206, 257–62, 267n, 297n–98n, 299n, 305n Enlightenment, 262 Ennius, 273n Ephesus, 99 epic poetry, 48–49, 182, 243, 273n Epicurean, The (Erasmus), 227 Epicureanism, 1–5, 7, 58–59, 69–80, 82, 88–89, 97–109, 182–202, 219–41, 244–46, 249–63, 277n, 284n, 285n, 302n–3n Epicure Mammon, Sir, 77–78 Epicurus, 2, 62, 72–80, 101–2, 109, 222, 274n, 277n–78n Erasmus, 144, 227, 252 Eratosthenes, 59, 87 Ernst, Max, 1 eroticism, 197–98, 201–2 Essays (Montaigne), 243–49 Eton College, 248–49 Eucharist, 165, 252–53, 255–56 Euclid, 87 Eugenius IV, Pope, 211–12, 214, 290n Euripides, 81, 280n European Community, 205 Eve, 105 Evelyn, John, 257, 267n excommunication, 160, 166 executions, 104, 112, 158, 164, 172–73, 177–79, 213, 219, 228, 240–41, 255, 286n, 296n, 297n Expulsion of the Triumphant Beast, The (Bruno), 233–36 Facetiae (Poggio), 142–45, 146, 291n–92n Falstaff, Epicurus and, 102 families, 110, 112, 113–15, 127–29, 135, 137, 206, 210, 212–14 Fates, 195 Feast in the House of Levi, The (Veronese), 305n Ferreol, Saint, 38 Festus, Sextus Pompeius, 35 feudalism, 301n Ficino, Marsilio, 221, 224 Filelfo, Francesco, 143, 145 Fillastre, Guillaume, 295n fire, 41, 73, 83, 93, 191 Flaccus, Valerius, 272n, 300n flagellation, 28, 104, 106–9, 228, 285n–86n Flaubert, Gustave, 71 Florence, 10, 20–21, 22, 34, 49, 110, 113–34, 153, 162, 176, 179–80, 203, 210–18, 215–21, 226, 289n Florentine Republic, 122–26, 127, 215–17 Florentine Synod, 226 florins, 21, 211, 290n, 301n Florio, John, 243, 244 Foundling Hospital (Florence), 110 four elements, 73–74 Fra Angelico, 218 France, 11, 24, 38, 55, 122, 160, 163, 164, 176, 226, 233, 236, 249, 286n Franciscans, 111, 147–48 free will, 71, 74–75, 189 French language, 206, 243–44, 247, 257, 262 French Revolution, 11 Freud, Sigmund, 183 friars, 114, 143, 147–48, 163, 236, 240 Frontius, Julius, 152, 283n Fronto, Marcus Cornelius, 95 Frutti, Michaelle, 112 Fulda abbey, 44–50, 181 Galen, 87 Galileo Galilei, 8, 185, 239, 254–56, 306n Gamelion, 66 Ganymede, 140 Garcia Lopez (tailor), 236 Gassendi, Pierre, 257 Gaul, 106 Genesis, Book of, 3 geography, 87 geometry, 87 George of Trebizond, 21, 145–46, 215 Georgics (Virgil), 51–52, 273n Germany, 14–21, 29, 31, 33–34, 35, 36, 44–50, 159, 162, 164, 173–77, 181, 205, 206 Ghiberti, Lorenzo, 110, 218 Ghislieri, Michele, 227 Giotto, 113 Giunti, Filippo, 226 God, 10–11, 27, 37, 42, 89, 95, 97, 102–3, 105, 114, 166, 220, 233–36, 251, 253, 261, 285n gods and goddesses, 1–2, 5–6, 7, 10, 67–68, 71, 74, 88, 89, 98–99, 100, 101, 130, 139, 180, 183, 184, 193–94, 195, 197, 198, 199, 201–2, 226–27, 228, 231–36, 251, 260–61, 298n, 299n gold, 129, 280n Golden Age, 191 Gospels, 96, 97, 105 Gothic script, 115 Gothic Wars, 28, 49 Gottlieben Castle, 171 grain, 45, 66, 126, 279n–80n grammar, 12, 24, 25, 28–29, 31, 49, 97, 121 “Great Vanishing,” 86 Greek culture, 28, 59–60, 70, 72, 84, 87, 194–95 Greek language, 43, 88, 97, 119–20, 126, 217 Greek literature, 42, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62–63, 81, 84, 153, 182, 210, 228, 273n, 275n–76n see also specific works Greek philosophy, 72–80, 211, 252 Gregory I, Pope, 97, 103 Gregory XI, Pope, 293n Gregory XII, Antipope, 160, 180, 205 Guarino of Verona, 179 Guasconi, Biagio, 162 Guicciardini, Francesco, 127 guilds, 15, 16, 114 Gutenberg, Johann, 32, 219 Hamlet (Shakespeare), 3, 75, 233 handwriting, 37–38, 62, 112–13, 115–16, 121, 130, 135, 155–56, 179 happiness, 195–96, 198 Harriot, Thomas, 239 Harvey, William, 10 Hebrew language, 88, 95 Hebrews, 42, 283n Heidelberg, University of, 172 Heidenheim, 15 heliocentrism, 87, 306n Hell, 30, 288n Henry V, King of England, 206 Henry VIII, King of England, 228 Herculaneum, 54–59, 63–67, 68, 70–72, 77, 79, 81, 82 heresy, 13, 17, 155, 165, 166–68, 170–73, 177–79, 227, 233–41, 250–56 hermits, 35, 68, 107, 111 heroism, 104, 130 Hippolytus, 180 History of Florence (Poggio), 217 History of Rome (Livy), 23 Hobbes, Thomas, 10, 261 Holinshed Raphael, 228 holy orders, 120, 137–38, 147–48 Holy Roman Empire, 44, 120, 122, 155 Homer, 48–49, 62, 89, 182, 215 Hooke, Robert, 83–84 Hooker, Richard, 8 Horace, 84, 96 Houghton Library, 243 human existence, 190–92 humanities (studia humanitatis), 8–13, 23, 119–24, 134, 208, 214 Hume, David, 262 Hus, Jan, 166–68, 170, 171–72, 177, 253 Hutchinson, John, 257 Hutchinson, Lucy, 257–62, 267n, 305n hymn to Venus (Lucretius), 1–2, 10, 201–2, 228, 251, 260–61, 299n Hypatia of Alexandria, 91–93, 252, 282n hypocrisy, 37, 133, 138–39 Ignatius of Loyola, Saint, 108 Iliad (Homer), 3, 215 illness, 12, 75, 76–77, 104, 147, 195 illusion, 198–99 immortality, 6, 57, 75–76, 98, 99–100, 101, 150, 158, 159, 183, 192–95, 220, 223, 230–32, 244, 260 Incarnation, 98–99 inclinatio (swerve) principle, 7–13, 188–89, 297n Index of Prohibited Books, 227 India, 59, 87 indices, 39–40, 63, 227 individuality, 9–10, 16 indulgences, 158, 159, 161, 168 infallibility, 166 Inferno (Dante), 288n infinity, 186, 187, 189, 196–97, 237, 239, 244, 256 ink, 39, 40, 43, 82–86 Inquisition, 227, 236, 239–40, 254–56 Institutes (Quintillian), 177, 178–79, 296n intellectuals, 46–47, 51, 65–70, 87–88, 91–93, 122–26, 142–45, 227–33 “intelligent design,” 187–88, 220, 297n Iphegenia, 194 Ireland, 12, 38 Isaac, 194 Isambard, 236 Isidore of Seville, 12 Islam, 113, 282n–83n Italian language, 31, 206, 257, 262 italics, 115 Italy, 17, 21–22, 30, 31, 34, 43, 45, 60, 111, 122, 136, 160, 163, 174, 176, 205, 210–18, 233, 239–40, 249 see also specific towns and cities Janus, 99 Jefferson, Thomas, 262–63, 307n–8n Jerome, Saint, 53–54, 94–96, 109, 181, 283n Jerome of Prague, 168, 172–73, 177–79, 295n, 296n Jerusalem, 94 Jesuits, 250–51, 253–56 Jesus Christ, 9, 10, 19, 71, 98, 104–5, 107, 108, 139–40, 194, 236, 241, 252–53, 286n Jews, 3, 15, 39, 42, 67, 78, 87, 89, 91, 92, 98, 101, 136, 194, 227, 236, 283n Johann von Merlau, 45–46 John the Baptist, 90 John XXIII (Baldassare Cossa), Antipope, 152–78 abdication of, 160–61, 165–67, 170–80, 205 birthplace of, 158 as bishop of Rome, 137 as cardinal deacon of Bologna, 159–60 as cardinal of Florence, 179–80 corruption of, 136–41, 151–52, 165–66, 170–71, 181 at Council of Constance, 162–78, 180 criminal charges against, 170–71 curia of, 18, 19–21, 22, 31, 33, 36–37, 44, 45, 135–41, 144, 150–58, 161, 162–63, 165, 168–69, 170, 171, 180, 181 death of, 180 ecclesiastical career of, 158–60 election of, 154, 160, 161 entourage of, 137, 138, 161–62 in Florence, 162, 179–80 imprisonment of, 171, 179–80, 205 papacy of, 19–21, 22, 34, 44, 135–41, 150–78, 180, 205 papal name of, 171 Poggio’s relationship with, 157–58, 165–66, 170, 178, 180, 181, 205 poisoning accusation against, 159–60, 170–71 release of, 179–80 rival popes of, 160, 180, 205 in schism, 142–43, 155, 160, 161–78, 205 spiritual authority of, 136–37, 149–50, 164–65, 168–69 temporal authority of, 135–37, 157–58, 161–62 John XXIII (Angelo Roncalli), Pope, 171 Jonson, Ben, 77–78, 79, 243, 277n, 305n Jove, 75, 175, 233, 236 jubilee years, 159 Judaism, 39, 67, 101, 194, 236 Julian the Apostate, 101 Jung, Carl, 183 Jungkuntz, Richard, 285n Juno, 99 Jupiter, 88, 89, 100, 156 Jupiter Serapis, 88 Kaiserstuhl, 174 Kleve, Knut, 64 labor, manual, 25, 37 Lactantius, 102–3 Ladislas, King of Naples, 161–62 Lambin, Denys, 248–49, 256 landowners, 113–14, 228, 230 Lapo da Castiglionchio, 138–42, 144 Last Supper, 304n–5n Lateran palace, 156 Latin Festival, 69 Latin language, 2–3, 7, 12, 18, 19, 31–32, 42–52, 112–13, 119–22, 123–24, 130, 131–34, 135, 136, 138, 149, 155, 179, 180, 182, 202, 206, 210, 215, 217, 221–22, 225, 243, 247, 256 Latin literature, 42, 62–63, 81, 87, 117, 121–24, 182, 228, 273n, 275n, 289n see also specific works Laurentian Library, 115, 204, 290n laws, universal, 74–75 lawyers, 35, 137, 139 leap days, 87 legal systems, 17, 35, 38, 111–12, 125–26, 134, 137, 139, 158, 228, 232 legions, 59, 79 Leiden, University of, 204–5 Lent, 108 Leonardo da Vinci, 8, 9, 242 lettera antica, 121 letters patent, 137 Leucippus of Abdera, 73, 82 lexicography, 12, 35 liberty, 9–10, 16, 125, 239–40, 262–63 librarians, 29, 31–32, 39, 43, 50 libraries: monastic, 24–33, 37–38, 39, 43, 45–50, 65, 109, 117, 130–31, 152, 176–79, 204, 206–8, 209, 225, 271n–72n, 290n private, 54–60, 86, 94–96, 134 public, 54–63, 86–94, 91, 93, 130–31, 134, 275n–76n, 279n–83n, 290n Library of Pantainos, 276n Lippi, Filippo, 218 literacy, 17, 24–26, 93–94, 270n Livy, 23, 211 Lucca, 153 Luccarus, 112 Lucian of Samosta, 217 “Lucretiani,” 221 Lucretius (Titus Lucretius Carus: aesthetics of, 51 biography of, 52–54, 274n Cicero’s reference to, 51 classical references to, 23, 49–50, 51, 54 death of, 51, 53–54, 94, 109 as Epicurean, 1–2, 7, 52, 72–80, 104, 109, 222 family background of, 53 legacy of, 51–80, 109 madness ascribed to, 53–54, 94 name of, 49 Ovid’s reference to, 54 pacifism of, 52 as pagan, 53–54 readings by, 71–72 rediscovery of, 23–24, 43, 49–50 reputation of, 1–2, 7, 49–50, 51, 54, 71–72, 272n–73n in Rome, 71–72, 75 Saint Jerome’s account of, 53–54, 94, 109 skepticism of, 52, 72 suicide ascribed to, 53–54, 94, 109 Virgil influenced by, 51–52, 273n writings of, see De rerum natura (Lucretius) Lucullus, 155–56, 275n Ludwig von der Pfalz, 163 Luke, Saint, 105 Luna, Pedro de, 160, 205 Luther, Martin, 149, 172, 253 Macer, 23, 270n Machiavelli, Niccolò, 8, 144, 150, 185 Maestà (Duccio), 10 magic, 60–61, 73 Malpaghino, Giovanni, 121–22 Manilius, 48 manuscripts: annotation of, 23, 88, 221, 248–49, 256, 306n copies of, 17–18, 32–33, 35, 37–41, 47, 49, 50, 84–86, 88, 109, 112–16, 121, 130, 133–34, 135, 152, 154, 155–56, 173–77, 179, 206, 296n, 300n corruptions in, 41, 88 of De rerum natura, 11–13, 49–50, 88–89, 181, 182–85, 202, 203–5, 208–10, 218, 221–22, 225, 226, 231, 244, 256, 262, 272n, 300n destruction of, 7, 17–18, 23–24, 29, 41, 81–109, 130–31, 275n, 280n–83n editions of, 23, 87–88 fragments of, 54–59, 64–65, 70–72, 81 hunting for, 11–15, 22, 23–24, 29, 30, 31–36, 40, 42–43, 47–49, 53, 54, 62, 86, 88, 130, 131, 152–54, 176–81, 206–11, 212, 215, 218, 228, 300n illuminated, 17, 39, 40 market for, 28, 29–30, 84–86, 131 in monastic libraries, 24–33, 37–38, 39, 43, 45–50, 65, 109, 117, 130–31, 152, 176–79, 204, 206–8, 209, 225, 271n–72n, 290n on papyrus, 28, 40, 54–59, 62–65, 68, 69, 71, 77, 82–83, 88, 260, 280n, 283n on parchment, 17–18, 28, 38, 39–40, 42–43, 62, 82, 260, 283n printing of, 32, 38–39, 204, 219, 248–50, 256, 262, 279n in private libraries, 54–60, 86, 94–96, 134 production of, 28–29, 84–86 in public libraries, 54–63, 86–94, 91, 93, 130–31, 134, 275n–76n, 280n–83n, 290n references to, 23–24 scripts used for, 38, 84, 115–16, 121, 130 translation of, 88, 168, 210, 212, 215 see also specific books and manuscripts Manutius, Aldus, 32, 226 Marcellus, Nonius, 208 Marchetti, Alessandro, 257 Marco Datini, Francesco di, 114 Marcus Aurelius, Emperor of Rome, 71 Marolles, Michel de, 257 marriage, 127–29, 133, 136, 143, 212–13, 214, 215, 289n Mars, 2, 100, 226, 247, 281n Marsuppini, Carlo, 215 Martines, Lauro, 301n Martin V, Pope, 205–6, 211, 269n martyrs, 10, 107, 129 Marullo, Michele Tarchaniota, 226–27 Masaccio, 218 masks, ancestors, 62 master copies, 84–85 materialism, 9–10, 184–86, 190–91, 193, 198–201, 243, 244, 249, 259–63, 297n mathematics, 87, 91, 92, 239 Mazzei, Lapo, 111–12 Medici, Cosimo de,’ 216, 217, 290n Medici, Giovanni de,’ 213 Medici, Lorenzo de,’ 210, 213, 290n Medici family, 110, 210, 213, 215–16, 217, 290n, 301n medicine, 17, 60–61, 75, 87, 152 melancholy, 49, 133, 142–57, 216–17 Memmius, Gaius, 53, 273n–74n mendicant friars, 147–48 mental illness, 8, 19, 49, 133, 142–57, 216–17 mercenaries, 153, 293n–94n merchants, 15, 36, 219, 300n–301n Mercury, 233–36 messiahs, 67, 72–73, 98, 107, 184 Metrodorus, 277n Michelangelo, 9, 204 Michelozzi, Michelozzo di Bartolomeo, 110, 290n Micrographia (Hooke), 83–84 Middle Ages, 38, 52–53, 88–89, 106–8, 110–11, 116–17, 129, 132–33, 209–10, 251, 272n–73n Milan, 122, 153 Minerva, 99, 100 minims, 254 minuscules, 115 miracles, 142, 225 misogyny, 143, 212 missals, 17, 65 mistresses, 137, 141 Mithras, 90 moderation, 101–2 modernism, 6–7, 8, 13, 185, 242–63 Molière, 257 monasteries, 95, 106, 107–9, 111, 151, 168 see also libraries, monastic monks, 12, 21, 24–29, 31, 36–37, 90, 91, 131, 134, 147–48, 163, 180, 210, 211 Mons, 286n Montaigne, Michel Eyquem de, 9, 243–49, 256, 306n Monte Cassino, 152 Montepulciano, Bartolomeo Aragazzi da, 34–35, 44, 152–53, 162 morality, 11, 101–3, 124, 146–47, 178–79, 195–96 More, Thomas, 227–33, 236, 250, 251, 252, 263, 304n Morroni, Tomaso, 111 mortality rates, 191–92, 213 mortal sin, 16, 119 Mother of the Gods, 183 Mount Vesuvius, 54–59, 67, 94, 239 MS Rossi 884, 221 murder, 38, 148, 159–60, 170–71 Muses, 89 museums, 91, 93 music, 9, 70, 91, 93, 175, 219 mythology, 130, 193–96 Naples, 54–55, 60, 63, 64, 122, 153, 158, 161–62, 163, 233 natural world, 6, 10–11, 12, 70, 74–75, 188–90, 194, 248, 261–62, 298n Neptune, 99, 183, 226 Nero, Emperor of Rome, 48, 157, 275n New Testament, 24, 95–96, 97, 105 Newton, Isaac, 261 New World, 11–12, 136, 229–30 Niccoli, Niccolò, 126–34, 137–38, 222, 289n, 290n Nicholas V, Pope, 150, 214–15, 221, 226 nightmares, 95, 96 Nile River, 56, 174 Nolan philosophy, 233 “noonday demon,” 26 notaries, 84–85, 111–12, 122, 123, 135, 137 nuns, 106, 108 “Oblongus” manuscript, 204 obsessions, 4–5, 19, 116 “Of Cruelty” (Montaigne), 246 “Of Diversion” (Montaigne), 247 “Of Repentance” (Montaigne), 244–45 Old Testament, 43, 88, 95–96, 285n oligarchy, 110, 113–15, 135 Olivera, Alonso de, 249–50 Omar, Caliph, 282n–83n omnes cives studiosi (all learned citizens), 131 On Avarice (Poggio), 21, 133, 138, 147 On Nobility (Poggio), 147 On Pleasure (De voluptate) (Valla), 222–26, 303n “On some verses of Virgil” (Montaigne), 247 On the Excellence and Dignity of the Roman Court (Castiglionchio), 138–42, 144 On the Immense and the Numberless (Bruno), 239 On the Laws (De legibus) (Cicero), 155–56 On the Misery of Human Life (Poggio), 147 On the Nature of Things (De rerum natura) (Lucretius), see De rerum natura (Lucretius) On the Republic (Cicero), 43 On the Unhappiness of Princes (Poggio), 214 On the Vicissitudes of Fortune (De varietate fortunae) (Poggio), 147, 294n Opticks (Newton), 261 Orations (Cicero), 208 oratory, 31, 70, 93, 177–78 Order of St.


pages: 422 words: 119,123

To the Edges of the Earth: 1909, the Race for the Three Poles, and the Climax of the Age of Exploration by Edward J. Larson

back-to-the-land, British Empire, Charles Lindbergh, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, Fellow of the Royal Society, Livingstone, I presume, Scientific racism, the scientific method, trade route, yellow journalism

Only then, with the rising appeal of adventure travel and increasing economic and technological means for Europeans to reach ever more remote locations, did interest in the Arctic shift from the pragmatic goal of finding a Northwest Passage to a romantic one of attaining the North Pole. Not that the notion of a North Pole was anything new. At least since the third century before Christ, when Greek mapmaker Eratosthenes laid a grid of parallels and meridians on the Pythagorean concept of a spherical earth, educated Europeans had known that a geometric point, or “pole,” should mark the globe’s northernmost spot. Even Eratosthenes portrayed the Arctic as a frozen realm, however, and no one seemed interested in seeking its northern limit for over two millennia. Yet something in the pristine splendor and primeval struggle depicted in the tales brought back from the Northwest Passage expeditions captured the English imagination at the dawn of the Romantic era.

See King Edward VII Land Edward VIII, 120 Egingwah, 205, 211–12 Elephant Island, 269 Elkins, Katherine, 1–3, 94, 219, 278 Ellesmere Island, 6–9, 36–43, 46, 99, 102, 106, 143, 148, 151, 259; exploration of, 113–14, 158 Encyclopedia Britannica, 221 Endurance (ship), 269 England, 120–22, 172, 209, 267, 276. See also Britain Eratosthenes, 4 Erebus (ship), 52 Erik (ship), 42, 146, 150–54, 156 Eskimo, as Peary’s term for Inuit, xx, 24, 29, 33, 104, 192 Etah, Greenland, 39–43, 117, 149–53, 156, 194, 259–60 Etukishuk, 151, 259–60 Evening Post (New York), 2 Exploration, Age of, xvi, 144 Explorer’s Club (New York), 103, 274–75 farthest north, 9–10, 15–17, 44, 74, 108–11, 157 farthest south, 48, 52, 59–61, 166, 178, 190 Fenoillet, Alexis, 15, 20 Ferrar, Hartley, 66–67 Fort Conger, 9–10, 35–38, 41, 99, 104, 149 Fort Portal, Uganda, 91 Foundation for the Promotion of the Art of Navigation, 213 Fram (ship), 11–12, 19, 30, 36, 38, 100, 273 France, 51, 56, 99, 278 Franke, Rudolph, 117, 151–54, 156 Frankenstein (book), xvii, 5, 77 Franklin, John, 4, 267 Franklin searches, 4, 6–7, 82 Franz Joseph Land, 12–21, 101 Frobisher, Martin, 4 frostbite, 14, 16, 104, 143, 198, 240, 245, 248, 266 Funafuti Islands, 67–69, 127 Furious Fifties, 51, 126–27 Gagarin, Yuri, 281 Gasherbrum massif, 231, 233 geography, study of, 53–56, 65, 88–89, 101–2 geology, science of, 50, 65–71, 223; Antarctic research in, 132, 137, 164–65, 184 George V, 121, 163 Gerlache, Adrian de, 55, 280 Germany, 55, 87, 99 Giordano, Felice, 83 glaciers, 62, 90–92, 137, 166, 179–83, 218–19, 224–48, 281 Glasgow, Scotland, 74, 95 Glenn, John, 281 Godwin-Austin, Henry, 219 Godwin-Austin Glacier, 219, 226–28, 230–32 Goodsell, John, 147, 151, 159, 161, 194–98, 258 Great Ice Barrier, 52, 58–59, 61, 129–30, 166.


pages: 1,387 words: 202,295

Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs, Second Edition by Harold Abelson, Gerald Jay Sussman, Julie Sussman

Andrew Wiles, conceptual framework, Donald Knuth, Douglas Hofstadter, Eratosthenes, functional programming, Gödel, Escher, Bach, higher-order functions, industrial robot, information retrieval, iterative process, Ivan Sutherland, Johannes Kepler, loose coupling, machine translation, Multics, probability theory / Blaise Pascal / Pierre de Fermat, Richard Stallman, Turing machine, wikimedia commons

Part of the power of stream processing is that it lets us ignore the order in which events actually happen in our programs. Unfortunately, this is precisely what we cannot afford to do in the presence of assignment, which forces us to be concerned with time and change. 188 Eratosthenes, a third-century B.C. Alexandrian Greek philosopher, is famous for giving the first accurate estimate of the circumference of the Earth, which he computed by observing shadows cast at noon on the day of the summer solstice. Eratosthenes’s sieve method, although ancient, has formed the basis for special-purpose hardware “sieves” that, until recently, were the most powerful tools in existence for locating large primes.

When we evaluate this delayed (fibgen 1 1), it will produce a pair whose car is 1 and whose cdr is a promise to evaluate (fibgen 1 2), and so on. For a look at a more exciting infinite stream, we can generalize the no-sevens example to construct the infinite stream of prime numbers, using a method known as the sieve of Eratosthenes.188 We start with the integers beginning with 2, which is the first prime. To get the rest of the primes, we start by filtering the multiples of 2 from the rest of the integers. This leaves a stream beginning with 3, which is the next prime. Now we filter the multiples of 3 from the rest of this stream.

Knuth, Fundamental Algorithms (Volume 1 of The Art of Computer Programming) Jump to: A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Z Index Entry Section A abstract models: 2.1.3 abstract syntax: 4.1.1 abstraction barriers: Chapter 2 abstraction barriers: 2.1.2 accumulator: 2.2.3 accumulator: 3.1.1 acquired: 3.4.2 action: 5.1.1 additive: 2.4.3 additively: Chapter 2 additively: 2.4 address: 5.3.1 address arithmetic: 5.3.1 agenda: 3.3.4 algebraic specification: 2.1.3 aliasing: 3.1.3 and-gate: 3.3.4 applicative-order: 4.2.1 applicative-order evaluation: 1.1.5 arbiter: 3.4.2 arguments: 1.1.1 assembler: 5.2.1 assertions: 4.4.1 assignment operator: 3.1 atomically: 3.4.2 automatic storage allocation: 5.3 average damping: 1.3.3 B B-trees: 2.3.3 backbone: 3.3.3 backquote: 5.5.2 backtracks: 4.3.1 balanced: 2.2.2 barrier synchronization: 3.4.2 base address: 5.3.1 Bertrand’s hypothesis: 3.5.2 bignum: 5.3.1 bindings: 3.2 binds: 1.1.8 binomial coefficients: 1.2.2 block structure: 1.1.8 bound variable: 1.1.8 box-and-pointer notation: 2.2 breakpoint: 5.2.4 broken heart: 5.3.2 bugs: Chapter 1 C cache-coherence: 3.4.1 call-by-name: 3.5.1 call-by-name: 4.2.2 call-by-name thunks: 3.5.1 call-by-need: 3.5.1 call-by-need: 4.2.2 call-by-need thunks: 3.5.1 capturing: 1.1.8 Carmichael numbers: 1.2.6 case analysis: 1.1.6 cell: 3.4.2 chronological backtracking: 4.3.1 Church numerals: 2.1.3 Church-Turing thesis: 4.1.5 clauses: 1.1.6 closed world assumption: 4.4.3 closure: Chapter 2 closure property: 2.2 code generator: 5.5.1 coerce: 2.5.2 coercion: 2.5.2 combinations: 1.1.1 comments: 2.2.3 compacting: 5.3.2 compilation: 5.5 compile-time environment: 5.5.6 composition: 1.3.4 compound data: Chapter 2 compound data object: Chapter 2 compound procedure: 1.1.4 computability: 4.1.5 computational process: Chapter 1 concurrently: 3.4 congruent modulo: 1.2.6 connectors: 3.3.5 consequent expression: 1.1.6 constraint networks: 3.3.5 constructors: 2.1 continuation procedures: 4.3.3 continued fraction: 1.3.3 control structure: 4.4.3 controller: 5.1 conventional interfaces: Chapter 2 conventional interfaces: 2.2.3 current time: 3.3.4 D data: Chapter 1 data: 2.1.3 data abstraction: Chapter 2 data abstraction: 2.1 data paths: 5.1 data-directed: 2.4 data-directed programming: Chapter 2 data-directed programming: 2.4.3 deadlock: 3.4.2 deadlock-recovery: 3.4.2 debug: Chapter 1 deep binding: 4.1.3 deferred operations: 1.2.1 delayed argument: 3.5.4 delayed evaluation: Chapter 3 delayed evaluation: 3.5 delayed object: 3.5.1 dense: 2.5.3 dependency-directed backtracking: 4.3.1 depth-first search: 4.3.1 deque: 3.3.2 derived expressions: 4.1.2 digital signals: 3.3.4 dispatching on type: 2.4.3 displacement number: 5.5.6 dotted-tail notation: 2.2.1 driver loop: 4.1.4 E empty list: 2.2.1 encapsulated: 3.1.1 enclosing environment: 3.2 entry points: 5.1.1 enumerator: 2.2.3 environment: 1.1.2 environment model: Chapter 3 environments: 3.2 Euclid’s Algorithm: 1.2.5 Euclidean ring: 2.5.3 evaluating: 1.1.1 evaluator: Chapter 4 event-driven simulation: 3.3.4 evlis tail recursion: 5.4.1 execution procedure: 4.1.7 explicit-control evaluator: 5.4 expression: 1.1.1 F failure continuation: 4.3.3 FIFO: 3.3.2 filter: 1.3.1 filter: 2.2.3 first-class: 1.3.4 fixed point: 1.3.3 fixed-length: 2.3.4 forcing: 4.2.2 forwarding address: 5.3.2 frame: 4.4.2 frame coordinate map: 2.2.4 frame number: 5.5.6 framed-stack: 5.4.1 frames: 3.2 free: 1.1.8 free list: 5.3.1 front: 3.3.2 full-adder: 3.3.4 function boxes: 3.3.4 functional programming: 3.1.3 functional programming languages: 3.5.5 G garbage: 5.3.2 garbage collection: 5.3 garbage collection: 5.3.2 garbage collector: 3.3.1 garbage-collected: 4.2.2 generic operations: Chapter 2 generic procedures: 2.3.4 generic procedures: 2.4 glitches: Chapter 1 global: 1.2 global: 3.2 global environment: 1.1.2 golden ratio: 1.2.2 grammar: 4.3.2 H half-adder: 3.3.4 half-interval method: 1.3.3 Halting Theorem: 4.1.5 headed list: 3.3.3 hiding principle: 3.1.1 hierarchical: 2.2 hierarchy of types: 2.5.2 higher-order procedures: 1.3 Horner’s rule: 2.2.3 I imperative programming: 3.1.3 indeterminates: 2.5.3 index: 5.3.1 indexing: 4.4.2 instantiated with: 4.4.1 instruction counting: 5.2.4 instruction execution procedure: 5.2.1 instruction sequence: 5.5.1 instruction tracing: 5.2.4 instructions: Chapter 5 instructions: 5.1.1 integerizing factor: 2.5.3 integers: 1.1 integrator: 3.5.3 interning: 5.3.1 interpreter: Chapter 1 interpreter: Chapter 4 invariant quantity: 1.2.4 inverter: 3.3.4 iterative improvement: 1.3.4 iterative process: 1.2.1 K k-term: 1.3.3 key: 2.3.3 L labels: 5.1.1 lazy evaluation: 4.2.1 lexical address: 5.5.6 lexical addressing: 4.1.3 lexical scoping: 1.1.8 linear iterative process: 1.2.1 linear recursive process: 1.2.1 linkage descriptor: 5.5.1 list: 2.2.1 list: 2.2.1 list: 2.2.1 list structure: 2.2.1 list-structured: 2.1.1 list-structured memory: 5.3 local evolution: 1.2 local state variables: 3.1 location: 5.3.1 logic-programming: Chapter 4 logical and: 3.3.4 logical deductions: 4.4.1 logical or: 3.3.4 M machine language: 5.5 macro: 4.1.2 map: 2.2.3 mark-sweep: 5.3.2 memoization: 1.2.2 Memoization: 3.3.3 memoize: 4.2.2 merge: 3.5.5 message passing: 2.1.3 message passing: 2.4.3 message-passing: 3.1.1 metacircular: 4.1 Metalinguistic abstraction: Chapter 4 Miller-Rabin test: 1.2.6 modular: Chapter 3 modulo: 1.2.6 modulo: 1.2.6 modus ponens: 4.4.3 moments in time: 3.4 Monte Carlo integration: 3.1.2 Monte Carlo simulation: 3.1.2 mutable data objects: 3.3 mutators: 3.3 mutex: 3.4.2 mutual exclusion: 3.4.2 N n-fold smoothed function: 1.3.4 native language: 5.5 needed: 5.5.1 networks: Chapter 4 Newton’s method: 1.3.4 nil: 2.2.1 non-computable: 4.1.5 non-strict: 4.2.1 nondeterministic: 3.4.1 nondeterministic choice point: 4.3.1 nondeterministic computing: Chapter 4 nondeterministic computing: 4.3 normal-order: 4.2.1 normal-order evaluation: 1.1.5 normal-order evaluation: Chapter 4 O obarray: 5.3.1 object program: 5.5 objects: Chapter 3 open-code: 5.5.5 operands: 1.1.1 operator: 1.1.1 operator: 4.1.6 or-gate: 3.3.4 order of growth: 1.2.3 ordinary: 2.5.1 output prompt: 4.1.4 P package: 2.4.3 painter: 2.2.4 pair: 2.1.1 pair: 2.1.1 parse: 4.3.2 Pascal’s triangle: 1.2.2 pattern: 4.4.1 pattern matcher: 4.4.2 pattern matching: 4.4.2 pattern variable: 4.4.1 pipelining: 3.4 pointer: 2.2 poly: 2.5.3 power series: 3.5.2 predicate: 1.1.6 predicate: 1.1.6 prefix: 2.3.4 prefix code: 2.3.4 prefix notation: 1.1.1 pretty-printing: 1.1.1 primitive constraints: 3.3.5 probabilistic algorithms: 1.2.6 procedural abstraction: 1.1.8 procedural epistemology: Preface 1e procedure: 1.2.1 procedure definitions: 1.1.4 procedures: Chapter 1 process: 1.2.1 program: Chapter 1 programming languages: Chapter 1 prompt: 4.1.4 pseudo-random: 3.1.2 pseudodivision: 2.5.3 pseudoremainder: 2.5.3 Q quasiquote: 5.5.2 queries: 4.4 query language: 4.4 queue: 3.3.2 quote: 2.3.1 R Ramanujan numbers: 3.5.3 rational functions: 2.5.3 RC circuit: 3.5.3 read-eval-print loop: 1.1.1 reader macro characters: 4.4.4.7 real numbers: 1.1 rear: 3.3.2 recursion equations: Chapter 1 Recursion theory: 4.1.5 recursive: 1.1.3 recursive: 1.1.8 recursive process: 1.2.1 red-black trees: 2.3.3 referentially transparent: 3.1.3 register machine: Chapter 5 register table: 5.2.1 registers: Chapter 5 released: 3.4.2 remainder of: 1.2.6 resolution principle: 4.4 ripple-carry adder: 3.3.4 robust: 2.2.4 RSA algorithm: 1.2.6 rules: 4.4 rules: 4.4.1 S satisfy: 4.4.1 scope: 1.1.8 selectors: 2.1 semaphore: 3.4.2 separator code: 2.3.4 sequence: 2.2.1 sequence accelerator: 3.5.3 sequences: 1.3.1 serializer: 3.4.2 serializers: 3.4.2 series RLC circuit: 3.5.4 shadow: 3.2 shared: 3.3.1 side-effect bugs: 3.1.3 sieve of Eratosthenes: 3.5.2 smoothing: 1.3.4 source language: 5.5 source program: 5.5 sparse: 2.5.3 special forms: 1.1.3 stack: 1.2.1 stack: 5.1.4 state variables: 1.2.1 state variables: 3.1 statements: 5.5.1 stop-and-copy: 5.3.2 stratified design: 2.2.4 stream processing: 1.1.5 streams: Chapter 3 streams: 3.5 streams: 3.5 strict: 4.2.1 subroutine: 5.1.3 substitution: 1.1.5 substitution model: 1.1.5 subtype: 2.5.2 success continuation: 4.3.3 summation of a series: 1.3.1 summer: 3.5.3 supertype: 2.5.2 symbolic expressions: Chapter 2 syntactic sugar: 1.1.3 syntax: 4.1 systematically search: 4.3.1 systems: Chapter 4 T tableau: 3.5.3 tabulation: 1.2.2 tabulation: 3.3.3 tagged architectures: 5.3.1 tail-recursive: 1.2.1 tail-recursive: 5.4.2 target: 5.5.1 thrashing: UTF thunk: 4.2.2 thunks: 4.2.2 time: 3.4 time segments: 3.3.4 tower: 2.5.2 tree accumulation: 1.1.3 tree recursion: 1.2.2 trees: 2.2.2 truth maintenance: 4.3.1 Turing machine: 4.1.5 type field: 5.3.1 type tag: 2.4.2 type tags: 2.4 type-inferencing: 3.5.4 typed pointers: 5.3.1 U unbound: 3.2 unification: 4.4 unification: 4.4.2 unification: 4.4.2 unification algorithm: 4.4 univariate polynomials: 2.5.3 universal machine: 4.1.5 upward-compatible extension: 4.2.2 V value: 1.1.2 value of a variable: 3.2 values: 2.3.1 variable: 1.1.2 variable-length: 2.3.4 vector: 5.3.1 W width: 2.1.4 wires: 3.3.4 wishful thinking: 2.1.1 Z zero crossings: 3.5.3 Jump to: A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Z Next: Colophon, Prev: Figures, Up: Top [Contents] Prev: Term Index, Up: Top [Contents] Colophon On the cover page is Agostino Ramelli’s bookwheel mechanism from 1588.


pages: 283 words: 85,906

The Clock Mirage: Our Myth of Measured Time by Joseph Mazur

Albert Einstein, Alfred Russel Wallace, Arthur Eddington, computer age, Credit Default Swap, Danny Hillis, Drosophila, Eratosthenes, Henri Poincaré, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), invention of movable type, Isaac Newton, Jeff Bezos, job automation, Lewis Mumford, Mark Zuckerberg, mass immigration, Pepto Bismol, quantum entanglement, self-driving car, seminal paper, Stephen Hawking, time dilation, twin studies

But Apollo might have had a weightier motive: to stir “the entire Greek nation to give up war and its miseries and cultivate the Muses, and by calming their passions through the practice of discussion and study of mathematics.”4 The original story was relayed to us by the Greek philosopher Theon of Smyrna from the third-century BC Platonic philosopher Eratosthenes, through his book The Platonist.5 It involves the ancients’ futile attempts at solving this problem, one that seemed simple: given the edge of a cube, construct the edge of a second cube whose volume is double that of the first. The doubling problem, however, must be solved with just the tools of straightedge and compass, because to prove its success the only accessible logical tool would have to have come from Euclid’s first principles.

Who, 121 Dumbelton, John, 81 Duration of time, sense of, 32–33, 139, 153, 156–57, 168–69, 221 Dutch clocks, 36 Dysrhythmia, 213–14 Earth: age of, 65–72 circumference of, 6–7 life on, 43 orbit around sun, 118–19, 124, 214, 224 rotation of, 33, 39, 51, 64, 180, 203, 218 world line, 123–24 Ecclesiastes, 39, 225 Eddington, Arthur, 93 Egypt, timekeeping in, 5–6, 7 Egyptian calendar, 40 Einstein, Albert: definition of time, 106–10, 147 and Poincaré, 105–6 relativity theory of, 70, 93, 94, 95, 97, 101, 110–11, 129 “Zur Elektrodynamik bewegter Körper,” 93–94, 106 Electromagnetic fields, as synchronizers, 214 End of life, proximity to, 157 Entropy, 131 Eratosthenes, The Platonist, 53 Euclid, 53, 79, 99 Exoplanets, 218–22 Eye: and depth perception, 205 Des-cartes’ analysis of, 177, 178–79, 180 Eyelid transparency, 181–82 Farey, John, Jr., 8 Fear, hormonal effect of, 210 Federal Aviation Administration, 207–8 Feng Tian, 219–20 Finger memory, 141–42, 170 Flow of time, 144, 145, 150, 151 Fossil record, 65, 66 Fourth dimension, 122, 123 Free time, and internal clock, 150 Frisch, Karl von, 186, 187 Fruit fly, 189, 191–94 Galaxy M87, 117 Galileo, 13, 25 De Motu, 79–80 observational method of, 79 time and motion measurement, 77–78, 79–81 Two New Sciences, 80–81, 85 Galison, Peter, Einstein’s Clocks, Poincaré’s Maps, 105–6 Gamow, George, 125 Genesis, 39 Geological processes, 65–67 God: as cause of time, 75, 76 and creation, 65, 70–71 Gott, J.


pages: 315 words: 93,628

Is God a Mathematician? by Mario Livio

Albert Einstein, Alvin Toffler, Antoine Gombaud: Chevalier de Méré, Brownian motion, cellular automata, correlation coefficient, correlation does not imply causation, cosmological constant, Dava Sobel, double helix, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, Future Shock, Georg Cantor, Gerolamo Cardano, Gregor Mendel, Gödel, Escher, Bach, Henri Poincaré, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, John von Neumann, music of the spheres, Myron Scholes, Plato's cave, probability theory / Blaise Pascal / Pierre de Fermat, Russell's paradox, seminal paper, Thales of Miletus, The Design of Experiments, the scientific method, traveling salesman

Figure 11 Fortunately, while details of Archimedes’ life are scarce, many (but not all) of his incredible writings have survived. Archimedes had a habit of sending notes on his mathematical discoveries to a few mathematician friends or to people he respected. The exclusive list of correspondents included (among others) the astronomer Conon of Samos, the mathematician Eratosthenes of Cyrene, and the king’s son, Gelon. After Conon’s death, Archimedes sent a few notes to Conon’s student, Dositheus of Pelusium. Archimedes’ opus covers an astonishing range of mathematics and physics. Among his many achievements: He presented general methods for finding the areas of a variety of plane figures and the volumes of spaces bounded by all kinds of curved surfaces.

What those books don’t normally do, however, is give you clear hints as to how those theorems were conceived in the first place. Archimedes’ exceptional document The Method partially fills in this intriguing gap—it reveals how Archimedes himself became convinced of the truth of certain theorems before he knew how to prove them. Here is part of what he wrote to the mathematician Eratosthenes of Cyrene (ca. 276–194 BC) in the introduction: Figure 13 I will send you the proofs of these theorems in this book. Since, as I said, I know that you are diligent, an excellent teacher of philosophy, and greatly interested in any mathematical investigations that may come your way, I thought it might be appropriate to write down and set forth for you in this same book a certain special method, by means of which you will be enabled to recognize certain mathematical questions with the aid of mechanics [emphasis added].


pages: 339 words: 94,769

Possible Minds: Twenty-Five Ways of Looking at AI by John Brockman

AI winter, airport security, Alan Turing: On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem, Alignment Problem, AlphaGo, artificial general intelligence, Asilomar, autonomous vehicles, basic income, Benoit Mandelbrot, Bill Joy: nanobots, Bletchley Park, Buckminster Fuller, cellular automata, Claude Shannon: information theory, Computing Machinery and Intelligence, CRISPR, Daniel Kahneman / Amos Tversky, Danny Hillis, data science, David Graeber, deep learning, DeepMind, Demis Hassabis, easy for humans, difficult for computers, Elon Musk, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, fake news, finite state, friendly AI, future of work, Geoffrey Hinton, Geoffrey West, Santa Fe Institute, gig economy, Hans Moravec, heat death of the universe, hype cycle, income inequality, industrial robot, information retrieval, invention of writing, it is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it, James Watt: steam engine, Jeff Hawkins, Johannes Kepler, John Maynard Keynes: Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren, John Maynard Keynes: technological unemployment, John von Neumann, Kevin Kelly, Kickstarter, Laplace demon, Large Hadron Collider, Loebner Prize, machine translation, market fundamentalism, Marshall McLuhan, Menlo Park, military-industrial complex, mirror neurons, Nick Bostrom, Norbert Wiener, OpenAI, optical character recognition, paperclip maximiser, pattern recognition, personalized medicine, Picturephone, profit maximization, profit motive, public intellectual, quantum cryptography, RAND corporation, random walk, Ray Kurzweil, Recombinant DNA, Richard Feynman, Rodney Brooks, self-driving car, sexual politics, Silicon Valley, Skype, social graph, speech recognition, statistical model, Stephen Hawking, Steven Pinker, Stewart Brand, strong AI, superintelligent machines, supervolcano, synthetic biology, systems thinking, technological determinism, technological singularity, technoutopianism, TED Talk, telemarketer, telerobotics, The future is already here, the long tail, the scientific method, theory of mind, trolley problem, Turing machine, Turing test, universal basic income, Upton Sinclair, Von Neumann architecture, Whole Earth Catalog, Y2K, you are the product, zero-sum game

Yet science favored the creative-speculative strategy of the Greek astronomers, which was wild with metaphorical imagery: circular tubes full of fire, small holes through which celestial fire was visible as stars, and hemispherical Earth riding on turtleback. It was this wild modeling strategy, not Babylonian extrapolation, that jolted Eratosthenes (276–194 BC) to perform one of the most creative experiments in the ancient world and calculate the circumference of the Earth. Such an experiment would never have occurred to a Babylonian data fitter. Model-blind approaches impose intrinsic limitations on the cognitive tasks that Strong AI can perform.

., xxv, 41–53, 120, 191 AI as “helpless by themselves,” 46–48 AI as tool, not colleagues, 46–48, 51–53 background and overview of work of, 41–42 dependence on new tools and loss of ability to thrive without them, 44–46 gap between today’s AI and public’s imagination of AI, 49 humanoid embellishment of AI, 49–50 intelligent tools versus artificial conscious agents, need for, 51–52 operators of AI systems, responsibilities of, 50–51 on Turing Test, 46–47 on Weizenbaum, 48–50 on Wiener, 43–45 Descartes, René, 191, 223 Desk Set (film), 270 Deutsch, David, 113–24 on AGI risks, 121–22 background and overview of work of, 113–14 creating AGIs, 122–24 developing AI with goals under unknown constraints, 119–21 innovation in prehistoric humans, lack of, 116–19 knowledge imitation of ancestral humans, understanding inherent in, 115–16 reward/punishment of AI, 120–21 Differential Analyzer, 163, 179–80 digital fabrication, 167–69 digital signal encoding, 180 dimensionality, 165–66 distributed Thompson sampling, 198 DNA molecule, 58 “Dollie Clone Series” (Hershman Leeson), 261, 262 Doubt and Certainty in Science (Young), xviii Dragan, Anca, 134–42 adding people to AI problem definition, 137–38 background and overview of work of, 134–35 coordination problem, 137, 138–41 mathematical definition of AI, 136 value-alignment problem, 137–38, 141–42 The Dreams of Reason: The Computer and the Rise of the Science of Complexity (Pagels), xxiii Drexler, Eric, 98 Dyson, Freeman, xxv, xxvi Dyson, George, xviii–xix, 33–40 analog and digital computation, distinguished, 35–37 background and overview of work of, 33–34 control, emergence of, 38–39 electronics, fundamental transitions in, 35 hybrid analog/digital systems, 37–38 on three laws of AI, 39–40 “Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren” (Keynes), 187 “Einstein, Gertrude Stein, Wittgenstein and Frankenstein” (Brockman), xxii emergence, 68–69 Emissaries trilogy (Cheng), 216–17 Empty Space, The (Brook), 213 environmental risk, AI risk as, 97–98 Eratosthenes, 19 Evans, Richard, 217 Ex Machina (film), 242 expert systems, 271 extreme wealth, 202–3 fabrication, 167–69 factor analysis, 225 Feigenbaum, Edward, xxiv Feynman, Richard, xxi–xxii Fifth Generation, xxiii–xxiv The Fifth Generation: Artificial Intelligence and Japan’s Computer Challenge to the World (Feigenbaum and McCorduck), xxiv Fodor, Jerry, 102 Ford Foundation, 202 Foresight and Understanding (Toulmin), 18–19 free will of machines, and rights, 250–51 Frege, Gottlob, 275–76 Galison, Peter, 231–39 background and overview of work of, 231–32 clinical versus objective method of prediction, 233–35 scientific objectivity, 235–39 Gates, Bill, 202 generative adversarial networks, 226 generative design, 166–67 Gershenfeld, Neil, 160–69 background and overview of work of, 160–61 boom-bust cycles in evolution of AI, 162–63 declarative design, 166–67 digital fabrication, 167–69 dimensionality problem, overcoming, 165–66 exponentially increasing amounts of date, processing of, 164–65 knowledge in AI systems, 164 scaling, and development of AI, 163–66 Ghahramani, Zoubin, 190 Gibson, William, 253 Go, 10, 150, 184–85 goal alignment.


The Darkening Age: The Christian Destruction of the Classical World by Catherine Nixey

classic study, Eratosthenes, Index librorum prohibitorum, Socratic dialogue, the market place, trade route, wikimedia commons

‘In populous Egypt,’ one vinegary observer wrote, ‘many cloistered bookworms are fed, arguing endlessly in the chicken-coop of the Muses.’14 The brilliant mathematician and physicist Archimedes, who famously stepped in a bath, noticed its water move and announced ‘Eureka!’, had studied here.15 So too did Euclid, whose mathematical textbook remained the basis of maths education until the twentieth century. Eratosthenes, who worked out the circumference of the earth to an accuracy of 80 kilometres using little more than a stick and a camel, was also here, as too were the poet Callimachus; Aristarchus of Samos, who proposed the first heliocentric model of the solar system; the astronomer Hipparchus; Galen . . .

M. ref1 Decian persecution (AD 250 to AD 251) ref1, ref2 Decius, Emperor ref1 Edict ref1 Delphi ref1 Demeas ref1 Demeter ref1 Democritus ref1, ref2 demons ref1 connected with the old religions ref1, ref2 countering diabolic whispers ref1 descriptions of ref1 explanations ref1 hideous army of ref1 methods of attack ref1 motivations ref1 plots against mankind ref1 power of ref1 prophecies of ref1 and religious contamination ref1 Serapis considered a demon ref1 wicked thoughts and temptations ref1 Dendera ref1 desert monks asceticism of ref1 and battles with demons and Satan’s minions ref1 beset by visions and temptations ref1 clothing ref1 considered mad and repellent ref1 description of ref1, ref2 diet and starvation ref1 grim tales concerning ref1 as poor and illiterate ref1 reasons for peculiar practices ref1 slaves advised to become ref1 and thoughts of death ref1 as vicious and thuggish ref1 see also monks Devil ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8, ref9, ref10, ref11, ref12, ref13 Diocletian, Emperor ref1 Diogenes ref1 Dionysus ref1 Domitian, Emperor ref1 Domitius ref1 Drake, H. A. ref1n Eco, Umberto ref1 The Name of the Rose ref1 Edict of Milan (313) ref1, ref2 Einstein, Albert ref1 Elgin, Lord ref1 empiricism ref1 and note Engels, Friedrich ref1 Ephesus ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4 Eratosthenes ref1 erotica at Pompeii ref1 and bathhouses ref1 Christian moralizing on food, sex and women ref1, ref2 classical statues ref1 and homosexuality ref1 in literature ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6 and sex within marriage ref1 sexual practice in the Roman world ref1 Euclid ref1 Eulalia ref1, ref2 Eunapius ref1, ref2 Euripides ref1 Eusebius ref1, ref2, ref3 Firmicus Maternus ref1 Flora ref1 food and drink ref1, ref2 Frend, W.


pages: 367 words: 99,765

Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings

Apollo 11, Asperger Syndrome, augmented reality, Bartolomé de las Casas, Berlin Wall, Boris Johnson, British Empire, clean water, David Brooks, digital map, don't be evil, dumpster diving, Eratosthenes, game design, Google Earth, GPS: selective availability, helicopter parent, hive mind, index card, John Harrison: Longitude, John Snow's cholera map, Mercator projection, Mercator projection distort size, especially Greenland and Africa, Mikhail Gorbachev, New Journalism, openstreetmap, place-making, Ronald Reagan, Saturday Night Live, Skype, Stewart Brand, Tacoma Narrows Bridge, three-masted sailing ship, traveling salesman, urban planning

There’s a funny disconnect between the rugged adventurers painted in oils here and the meek little men walking through the halls and poking through their maps. But then I reconsider: is the divide really all that wide? All the sweaty tropical valor of the Indian surveys was performed in the service of trigonometry, of all things—it’s hard to get nerdier than that. Eratosthenes, the mapmaker who was the first man to accurately measure the size of the Earth, was a librarian. The great mariners of the Age of Exploration, for all their naval derring-do, never would have left home if they hadn’t been map geeks as well: Columbus etched maps in his brother’s Lisbon print shop (“God had endowed me with ingenuity and manual skill in designing spheres, and inscribing upon them in the proper places cities, rivers, and mountains, isles, and ports,” he once wrote the king of Spain), and Vespucci was a map collector from his youth.

See Carroll, Lewis Downs, Roger, 139 Drummond, Bill, 242 Earth, seen from orbit, 25–26, 65–66, 214, 217, 220, 225 Echo & the Bunnymen, 242 Eco, Umberto, 212–13 Eddings, David, 115–16 Eden, Garden of, 85, 120 education, 10, 41, 45–55, 133–34, 146, 173 Eisenhower, Dwight, 168–69 Elden, Mary Lee, 124, 126, 131–32, 134, 137, 141, 146 Émile (Rousseau), 59 encyclopedias, collapse of sales, 234 epidemiology, 59 Eratosthenes, 90 Everest, Mount, 89, 119, 149, 156 EverQuest, 112 exploration destroyer of mystery, 85, 219, 242–43 fundamental nerdiness of, 90–91 in an overexplored world, 119–120, 149, 158–59, 199–200, 230, 238, 242–43 See also specific explorers Extra Miler Club, 11 fantasy literature, 113–21 Farrow, Mia, 193 Faulkner, William, 119 Ferdinandea, 161 Fischer, Joseph, 75 Five Graves to Egypt, 184 Fix, Bryan, 203 Flaming Lips, 227 Florida, as America’s phallus, 38 Four Corners Monument, 65 Frank, Ze, 240–42 Franken, Al, 38 Frémont, John C., 247 Friends, 36, 37 frillfin goby, 22 Frisch, Karl von, 25 Galileo, goofy hobbies of, 28 Gama, Vasco da, 92 Garriott, Richard, 196 Gaskin, Lilly, 122–24 geek culture, 112–19 gender, maps and, 139–41 Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, 36 geocaching, 186–211 appeal of, 189, 193–94, 195, 199, 202–3 author’s addiction to, 197, 201–3, 204–5, 207, 208–11 bizarrely avid practitioners of, 197–200, 202–4, 205–8 celebrity practitioners of, 193 extreme, 196 “First to Find” specialists, 203–5 invention of, 186–191 legal squabbles in, 190–91, 200–201 puzzles in, 196–97 ubiquity of caches, 191, 198–99 Geocaching.com, 189–91, 192, 193, 198, 201, 203, 209 geographic illiteracy, 32–55, 133–34, 146, 180, 233, 245 as American problem, 37–38, 42, 126, 151–52 dangers of, 50–52 historical, 36, 39 and parenting, 43–45 of political leaders, 36–38 geography academic, 45–49, 51–52, 55, 133–34 and journalists, 39–40 defined, 46–47, 78 ignorance of (see geographic illiteracy) geoslavery, 227–228 geotagging, 225, 227–28 Glenn, John, 25–26 global information systems (GIS), 47, 86, 227 Global Positioning System.


pages: 370 words: 97,138

Beyond: Our Future in Space by Chris Impey

3D printing, Admiral Zheng, Albert Einstein, Alfred Russel Wallace, AltaVista, Apollo 11, Apollo 13, Berlin Wall, Biosphere 2, Buckminster Fuller, built by the lowest bidder, butterfly effect, California gold rush, carbon-based life, Charles Lindbergh, Colonization of Mars, cosmic abundance, crowdsourcing, cuban missile crisis, dark matter, Dennis Tito, discovery of DNA, Doomsday Clock, Edward Snowden, Elon Musk, Eratosthenes, Great Leap Forward, Haight Ashbury, Hans Moravec, Hyperloop, I think there is a world market for maybe five computers, Isaac Newton, Jeff Bezos, Johannes Kepler, John von Neumann, Kickstarter, Kim Stanley Robinson, Late Heavy Bombardment, life extension, low earth orbit, Mahatma Gandhi, Marc Andreessen, Mars Rover, Mars Society, military-industrial complex, mutually assured destruction, Neal Stephenson, Neil Armstrong, Nick Bostrom, ocean acidification, Oculus Rift, operation paperclip, out of africa, Peter H. Diamandis: Planetary Resources, phenotype, private spaceflight, purchasing power parity, quantum entanglement, radical life extension, RAND corporation, Ray Kurzweil, RFID, Richard Feynman, Richard Feynman: Challenger O-ring, risk tolerance, Rubik’s Cube, Scaled Composites, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, Searching for Interstellar Communications, seminal paper, Silicon Valley, skunkworks, Skype, Snow Crash, space junk, SpaceShipOne, Stephen Hawking, Steven Pinker, supervolcano, technological singularity, telepresence, telerobotics, the medium is the message, the scientific method, theory of mind, There's no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home - Ken Olsen, Virgin Galactic, VTOL, wikimedia commons, world market for maybe five computers, X Prize, Yogi Berra

Humans had long had the capacity for abstraction, but in the hands of the Greeks it was augmented with mathematics and formal rules of logic. Aristarchus used geometry and an understanding of eclipses and lunar phases to deduce that the Sun must be larger than the Earth, and this led him to propose a heliocentric model nearly two thousand years before Copernicus. Eratosthenes combined his knowledge that the Earth was round—from the shape of its shadow in a lunar eclipse—with the way the Sun casts shadows at different places on the Earth’s surface, to estimate the size of the Earth. This philosopher, who had never traveled more than a hundred miles in his life, could understand what was unknown to the early humans who had made epic migrations across the planet.

., 36–39, 73, 79 electric cars, 96 electric solar sails, 186 electromagnetic waves, 186 e-mail, 78 embryo transport, 251 Enceladus, 177, 182, 227 potential habitability of, 125, 278 Encyclopædia Britannica, 95, 283 Endangered Species Act (1973), 201 energy: aliens’ use of, 190 civilizations characterized by use of, 252–57, 254, 258 dark, 256 declining growth in world consumption of, 257 Einstein’s equation for, 220 production and efficiency of, 219–24, 220 as requirement for life, 123–24 in rocket equation, 110 Engines of Creation (Drexler), 226 environmental disasters, 245 environmental protection: as applied to space, 147 movement for, 45, 235, 263, 270 Epicureans, 18 Epsilon Eridani, 187 Eratosthenes, 19 ethane, 52, 125 Ethernet, 213 eukaryotes, 172 Euripides, 18 Europa, 52, 97–98 potential habitability of, 125, 125, 161, 278 Europa Clipper mission, 98 Europe: economic depression in, 28 population dispersion into, 7–8, 11, 15 roots of technological development in, 23–24 European Southern Observatory, 133 European Space Agency, 159, 178–79 European Union, bureaucracy of, 106 Eustace, Alan, 120, 272 Evenki people, 119–20 Everest, Mount, 120 evolution: genetic variation in, 6, 203, 265 geological, 172 of human beings, 16–17 off-Earth, 203–4 evolutionary divergence, 201–4 exoplanets: Earth-like, 129–33, 215–18 extreme, 131–32 formation of, 215, 216 incidence and detection of, 126–33, 128, 233 exploration: as basic urge of human nature, 7–12, 109, 218, 261–63 imagination and, 262–63 explorer gene, 86 Explorer I, 38 explosives, early Chinese, 21–23 extinction, 201–2 extraterrestrials, see aliens, extraterrestrial extra-vehicular activities, 179 extremophiles, 122–23 eyeborg, 205–6 Falcon Heavy rocket, 114 Falcon rockets, 96, 97, 101, 184 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 82, 93, 105–7, 154 Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, 272 Felix and Félicette (cats), 48–49 Fermi, Enrico, 239–41 Fermilab, 254 “Fermi question,” 240–41, 243 Feynman, Richard, 179–80, 230, 270, 280 F4 Phantom jet fighter, 82 51 Peg (star), 126, 133 55 Cancri (star), 131 F-117 Nighthawk, 69 fine-tuning, 256, 294 fire arrows, 23, 68 fireworks, 21–24, 31 flagella, 180 flight: first human, 68 first powered, 69 principles of, 67–73 stability in, 82–83 “Fly Me to the Moon,” 45 food: energy produced by, 219, 220 in sealed ecosystem, 194–95 for space travel, 115–16, 159, 170 Forward, Robert, 223 Foundation series (Asimov), 94 founder effect, 202–3 Fountains of Paradise, The (Clarke), 149 France, 48, 68, 90 Frankenstein monster, 206, 259 Fresnel lens, 223 From Earth to the Moon (Verne), 183 fuel-to-payload ratio, see rocket equation Fukuyama, Francis, 207 Fuller, Buckminster, 151, 192 fullerenes, 151 Futron corporation, 155 Future of Humanity Institute, 245 “futurology,” 248–52, 249 Fyodorov, Nikolai, 26, 27 Gagarin, Yuri, 40–41, 41, 66, 269 Gaia hypothesis, 286 galaxies: incidence and detection of, 235 number of, 255 see also Milky Way galaxy Galileo, 49–50, 183, 270 Gandhi, Mahatma, 147 Garn, Jake, 114 Garn scale, 114 Garriott, Richard, 92 gas-giant planets, 125, 126–29 Gauss, Karl Friedrich, 238 Gazenko, Oleg, 47 Gemini program, 42 Genesis, Book of, 148–49 genetic anthropology, 6 genetic code, 5–7, 123 genetic diversity, 201–3 genetic drift, 203 genetic engineering, 245, 249 genetic markers, 6–7 genetics, human, 6–7, 9–12, 120, 201–4 Genographic Project, 7, 265 genome sequencing, 93, 202, 292 genotype, 6 “adventure,” 11–12, 98 geocentrism, 17, 19–20, 49 geodesic domes, 192 geological evolution, 172 George III, king of England, 147 German Aerospace Center, 178 Germany, Germans, 202, 238 rocket development by, 28, 30–34, 141 in World War II, 30–35 g-forces, 46–49, 48, 89, 111, 114 GJ 504b (exoplanet), 131 GJ 1214b (exoplanet), 132 glaciation, 172 Glenn Research Center, 219 global communications industry, 153–54 Global Positioning System (GPS), 144, 153–54 God, human beings in special relationship with, 20 Goddard, Robert, 28–32, 29, 36, 76, 78, 81–82, 94, 268 Goddard Space Flight Center, 178 gods, 20 divine intervention of, 18 Golden Fleece awards, 238 Goldilocks zone, 122, 126, 131 Gonzalez, Antonin, 215 Goodall, Jane, 14 Google, 80, 92, 185, 272, 275 Lunar X Prize, 161 Gopnik, Alison, 10, 13 Grasshopper, 101 gravity: centrifugal force in, 26, 114, 150 in flight, 68 of Mars, 181, 203 Newton’s theory of, 25, 267 and orbits, 25, 114–15, 127, 128, 149–50, 267 in rocket equation, 110 of Sun, 183 waves, 255 see also g-forces; zero gravity Gravity, 176 gravity, Earth’s: first object to leave, 40, 51 human beings who left, 45 as obstacle for space travel, 21, 105, 148 as perfect for human beings, 118 simulation of, 168–69 Great Art of Artillery, The (Siemienowicz), 267 Great Britain, 86, 106, 206, 227 “Great Filter,” 244–47 Great Leap Forward, 15–16 “Great Silence, The,” of SETI, 236–39, 240–41, 243–44 Greece, ancient, 17–19, 163 greenhouse effect, 171, 173 greenhouse gasses, 132, 278 Griffin, Michael, 57, 147, 285–86 grinders (biohackers), 207 Grissom, Gus, 43 guanine, 6 Guggenheim, Daniel, 81, 268 Guggenheim, Harry, 81 Guggenheim Foundation, 30, 81–82, 268 gunpowder, 21–24, 267 Guth, Alan, 257 habitable zone, 122, 124–26, 130–31, 132, 188, 241, 246, 277–78, 286, 291 defined, 124 Hadfield, Chris, 142 hair, Aboriginal, 8 “Halfway to Pluto” (Pettit), 273 Hanson, Robin, 247 haptic technology, 178 Harbisson, Neil, 205, 288 Harvard Medical School, 90 Hawking, Stephen, 88, 93, 198, 259 HD 10180 (star), 127 Heinlein, Robert, 177 Heisenberg compensator, 229 Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle, 229–30 heliocentrism, 19 helium, 68 helium 3, 161–62 Herschel, William, 163 Higgs particle, 256 High Frontier, 146–47 Hilton, Paris, 88, 101–2 Hilton hotels, 145 Hinduism, 20 Hiroshima, 222 Hitler, Adolf, 32, 34 Hope, Dennis M., 145, 147 Horowitz, Paul, 237–38 hot Jupiters, 127–28, 130 Hubble Space Telescope, 56–57, 65, 218, 225 Huffington, Arianna, 92 human beings: as adaptable to challenging environments, 118–22 as alien simulations, 260–61, 260 creative spirit of, 73, 248 early global migration of, 5–12, 9, 11, 15, 19, 118, 120, 186, 202, 218, 262, 265 Earth as perfectly suited for, 118–22, 121 exploration intrinsic to nature of, 7–12, 109, 218, 261–63 first appearance of, 5, 15, 172, 234 impact of evolutionary divergence on, 201–4 as isolated species, 241–42 as lone intelligent life, 241, 243 merger of machines and, see cyborgs minimal viable population in, 201–2, 251 off-Earth, 203–4, 215, 250–52 requirements of habitability for, 122, 124–26, 129, 130–31 sense of self of, 232, 261 space as inhospitable to, 53–54, 114–17, 121, 123 space exploration by robots vs., 53–57, 66, 98, 133, 161, 177–79, 179, 208, 224–28 space travel as profound and sublime experience for, 45, 53, 117, 122 speculation on future of, 93, 94, 204, 207–8, 215, 244–47, 248–63, 249 surpassed by technology, 258–59 threats to survival of, 94, 207–8, 244–47, 250, 259–62, 286, 293 timeline for past and future of, 248–50, 249 transforming moment for, 258–59 Huntsville, Ala., US Space and Rocket Center in, 48 Huygens, Christiaan, 163 Huygens probe, 53 hybrid cars, 96 hydrogen, 110, 156, 159, 161, 187, 219, 222 hydrogen bomb, 36 hydrosphere, 173 hyperloop aviation concept, 95 hypothermia, 251 hypothetical scenarios, 15–16 IBM, 213 Icarus Interstellar, 224 ice: on Europa, 125 on Mars, 163–65, 227 on Moon, 159–60 ice ages, 7–8 ice-penetrating robot, 98 IKAROS spacecraft, 184 imagination, 10, 14, 20 exploration and, 261–63 immortality, 259 implants, 206–7 inbreeding, 201–3 India, 159, 161 inflatable modules, 101–2 inflation theory, 255–57, 255 information, processing and storage of, 257–60 infrared telescopes, 190 Inspiration Mars, 170–71 Institute for Advanced Concepts, 280 insurance, for space travel, 106–7 International Academy of Astronautics, 152 International Geophysical Year (1957–1958), 37 International Institute of Air and Space Law, 199 International MicroSpace, 90 International Scientific Lunar Observatory, 157 International Space Station, 55, 64–65, 64, 71, 75, 91, 96, 100, 102, 142, 143, 144, 151, 153, 154, 159, 178–79, 179, 185, 272, 275 living conditions on, 116–17 as staging point, 148 supply runs to, 100–101, 104 International Space University, 90 International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), 105–6, 144 Internet: Congressional legislation on, 78, 144 development of, 76–77, 77, 94, 95, 271 erroneous predictions about, 213–14 limitations of, 66–67 robotics and, 206 space travel compared to, 76–80, 77, 80 Internet Service Providers (ISPs), 78 interstellar travel, 215–18 energy technology for, 219–24 four approaches to, 251–52 scale model for, 219 Intrepid rovers, 165 Inuit people, 120 Io, 53, 177 property rights on, 145 “iron curtain,” 35 Iron Man, 95 isolation, psychological impact of, 169–70 Jacob’s Ladder, 149 Jade Rabbit (“Yutu”), 139, 143, 161 Japan, 161, 273 Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), 184 Jefferson, Thomas, 224 Jemison, Mae, 224 jet engines, 69–70 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 141 Johnson, Lyndon, 38, 42, 45, 158, 269 Johnson Space Center, 76, 104, 179, 206, 229, 269 see also Mission Control Jones, Stephanie Tubbs, 74 Joules per kilogram (MJ/kg), 219–20, 222 Journalist in Space program, 74 “junk” DNA, 10, 266 Juno probe, 228 Jupiter, 126, 127, 177, 217, 270 distance from Earth to, 50 moons of, 97, 125, 125 probes to, 51–52, 228 as uninhabitable, 125 Justin (robot), 178 Kaku, Michio, 253 Karash, Yuri, 65 Kardashev, Nikolai, 253 Kardashev scale, 253, 254, 258 Kármán line, 70, 70, 101 Kennedy, John F., 41–43, 45 Kepler, Johannes, 183 Kepler’s law, 127 Kepler spacecraft and telescope, 128, 128, 129–31, 218, 278 Khrushchev, Nikita, 42, 47 Kickstarter, 184 Killian, James, 38 Kline, Nathan, 205 Knight, Pete, 71 Komarov, Vladimir, 43, 108 Korean War, 141 Korolev, Sergei, 35, 37 Kraft, Norbert, 200 Krikalev, Sergei, 115 Kunza language, 119 Kurzweil, Ray, 94, 207, 259 Laika (dog), 47, 65, 269 Laliberté, Guy, 75 landings, challenges of, 51, 84–85, 170 Lang, Fritz, 28, 268 language: of cryptography, 291 emergence of, 15, 16 of Orcas, 190 in reasoning, 13 Lansdorp, Bas, 170–71, 198–99, 282 lasers, 223, 224, 225–26, 239 pulsed, 190, 243 last common ancestor, 6, 123, 265 Late Heavy Bombardment, 172 latency, 178 lava tubes, 160 legislation, on space, 39, 78, 90, 144, 145–47, 198–200 Le Guin, Ursula K., 236–37 Leonov, Alexey, 55 L’Garde Inc., 284 Licancabur volcano, 119 Licklider, Joseph Carl Robnett “Lick,” 76–78 life: appearance and evolution on Earth of, 172 artificial, 258 detection of, 216–18 extension of, 26, 207–8, 250–51, 259 extraterrestrial, see aliens, extraterrestrial intelligent, 190, 235, 241, 243, 258 requirements of habitability for, 122–26, 125, 129, 131–33, 241, 256–57 lifetime factor (L), 234–335 lift, in flight, 68–70, 83 lift-to-drag ratio, 83 light: from binary stars, 126 as biomarker, 217 Doppler shift of, 127 momentum and energy from, 183 speed of, 178, 228–29, 250, 251 waves, 66 Lindbergh, Charles, 30, 81–82, 90–91, 268 “living off the land,” 166, 200 logic, 14, 18 Long March, 141 Long March rockets, 113, 142, 143 Long Now Foundation, 293 Los Alamos, N.


pages: 366 words: 100,602

Sextant: A Young Man's Daring Sea Voyage and the Men Who ... by David Barrie

centre right, colonial exploitation, Easter island, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, Fellow of the Royal Society, GPS: selective availability, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, John Harrison: Longitude, lone genius, Maui Hawaii, Neil Armstrong, Nicholas Carr, polynesian navigation, South China Sea, three-masted sailing ship, trade route

Charts vary enormously in scope: the large-scale ones of harbors might cover an area of only a few square miles, while others cover entire oceans. The smaller-scale ones are framed by a scale of degrees and minutes of latitude (north–south) and longitude (east–west), and the surface is carved up by lines marking the principal parallels and meridians—an abstract system of coordinates first conceived by Eratosthenes (c. 276–194 BCE) and then refined by Hipparchus (c.190–120 BCE). Compass “roses” help the navigator to lay off courses from one point to another and show the local magnetic variation—the difference between true north and magnetic north. From my father I learned something about surveying and the use of trigonometry—the mathematical technique for deducing the size of the unknown angles and sides of a triangle from measurements of those that are known.

., 308n18 dolphins, 22, 137, 193, 218, 267, 275 Donkin Cove, 203 double-reflection principle, 30, 31 Drake, Francis, 194 Du Vivier, Alexa and arrival in England, 269 and departure from Halifax, 13 and food on board Saecwen, 193 and music on board Saecwen, 193, 219 and North Atlantic weather, 111–13 and preparations for Atlantic crossing, 8, 10 and routine at sea, 17, 22, 48, 239 and sail repairs, 137 and watch schedule, 48, 85, 218 dung beetles, 23 Dunn, Richard, 108n Dutch East Indies, 43, 51 Dutch States General, 64–65 dysentery, 43, 52, 103, 175 early humans, 23–24, 284–85 Earnshaw, Thomas, 68 East India Company, 76, 82, 88, 168 East Indies, 120 Easter Island, 90, 126 echo sounders, 5, 46 eclipses, 169 electronic chart display and information systems (ECDIS), 282 electronic navigation aids, 265, 286 Elephant Island, 247, 249, 251, 256, 261 Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB), 302n3 emperor penguins, 245–46 Endeavour, 88–89, 96–97, 98–101, 103, 107, 167, 264 Endurance, 241–50 England, 2–3 English Channel, 5, 32–33, 50, 51, 166–67 Entrecasteaux, Joseph-Antoine Bruny d’, xvi–xvii, 133–34 ephemeris tables, 60, 63, 219 equal altitude circles, 220–23, 222, 280, 311n6 Eratosthenes, 4 Escures, Charles d’, 127–28 Euler, Leonhard, 73 Europa, 138 European Union, 280 evolution, 212, 217 Falkland Islands, 114–15, 210 Falmouth, Maine, 8 Fame, 138 Far East, 168 Fidget, 6 Fiji, 40, 134 Fitz Hugh Sound, 152 FitzRoy, Robert on “Breaker Bay,” 206–7, 232 on natural navigation methods, 262 navigational skills, 219 and timekeeping challenges, 225–26 and voyage of the Beagle, 200–210, 210–17 and weather prediction, 170, 206 Flinders, Matthew and Bligh, 157–59, 162 captivity, 182–85 chart-making skills, 185–88 explorations with Bass, 159–63, 170–71 financial difficulties, 188–89 and meteorology, 215 personal papers, 189n and Phillip King, 195 and place-names, 189–90 shipwreck, 177–82 survey of Australian coast, 163–76 and Trim (cat), 190–92, 277 and weather prediction, 206 Flinders, Samuel, 167, 174, 187 Flinders bars, 170 Flinders-Petrie, William, 189, 189n Forster, Johann, 91, 93, 106 fothering, 97 France, 85 Francis, 181 Franklin, John, 167–68 French Frigate Shoal, 129 French Revolution, 133, 142, 183 Frisius, Gemma, 59 fur trade, 139 Fury Island, 231 Galapagos Islands, 211 Galiano, Dionisio Alcalá, 147, 147n Galileo Galilei, 59, 64–65 Gamboa, Pedro Sarmiento de, 196–97n Ganges, 200 geography, 60–61 geometry, 69 George III, 68, 155 George’s Island, 229 George’s River, 160 Gilbert, Humphrey, 14 Gillray, James, 155 Gladwin, Thomas, 263 glass fiber-reinforced plastic (GRP), 46 Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), 299n11 Global Positioning System (GPS), xix–xx, 265, 279–83, 313n27 global warming, 87n GLONASS (Russian satellite navigation system), 280 Glorious First of June (1794), 159 Gloucester, Massachusetts, 8 Godfrey, Thomas, 32 Godin, Louis, 60–61 Gooch, William, 146, 152 Grand Banks, 14, 22, 22n Grand Manan Island, 9, 227 Grand Tour, 142 gravitational field of earth, 303n6 Great Barrier Reef and Bligh’s explorations, 39, 41, 43–44 and Cook’s explorations, 96–97, 98–102, 104 and Flinders’s explorations, 173 Great Britain, xvii Great Circle route, 33 Greek culture, 58, 303n1 Green, Charles, 102–3, 103–4 Greenwich Hour Angle (GHA), 69 Greenwich meridian, 15, 59, 80 Greenwich Time chronometers synchronized with, 70, 104, 144, 251 and “clearing the distance,” 77 and determining longitude, 59–60, 64, 69, 70, 186–87, 220 Grenville, William, 1st Baron, 155 growlers, 11 Guadalcanal, xv Guadeloupe, 65 Gulf of Carpentaria, 120, 173–74 Gulf of Peñas, 198 Gulf Stream, 18 Gulliver’s Travels (Swift), 168–69n H4 watch, 66–67, 78–80, 102, 104 Hadley, John, 31–32, 74 Hadley’s quadrant, 31, 31–32, 82, 89, 114, 299n8 Hakluyt, Richard, 14 Halifax, Nova Scotia, 10, 11, 229 Harbor of Mercy, 196–98 Harrison, John, 66–68, 68n, 72, 77–80, 82 Harrison, William, 67–68, 78 Hawaiian Islands, 90, 94, 140, 143–44, 152, 154 heaving to, 171, 214–15, 241, 256–57 Heelstone (at Stonehenge), 24 heliocentric view of the universe, 17 Hermite Island, 208 Heywood, Peter (“Pip”), 44 Hicks, Lieutenant (Cook expedition), 100 Hilleret, Paul-Gustave-Eugène, 222 Hipparchus, 4 Hiva Oa, 236n Hobart, Tasmania, 135, 162–63 Hogarth, William, 66 Hōkūle’a (double canoe), 263 Holland, Samuel, 10 Homer, 16–17 homing pigeons, 23 honeybees, 23 Hood, 36, 45, 301n1 Hook, Robert, 300n12 Hope, 180 horizontal sextant angles, 147, 239 Horror Rock, 257n hourglasses, xv Houtman, Frederick de, 51 Howard, Trevor, 1, 37 hurricanes, xv Huygens, Christiaan, 59 hydrography, xvii, 61, 85, 108, 166, 185–88.


pages: 385 words: 103,561

Pinpoint: How GPS Is Changing Our World by Greg Milner

Apollo 11, Ayatollah Khomeini, Boeing 747, British Empire, creative destruction, data acquisition, data science, Dava Sobel, different worldview, digital map, Easter island, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, experimental subject, Eyjafjallajökull, Flash crash, friendly fire, GPS: selective availability, Hedy Lamarr / George Antheil, Ian Bogost, Internet of things, Isaac Newton, John Harrison: Longitude, Kevin Kelly, Kwajalein Atoll, land tenure, lone genius, low earth orbit, Mars Rover, Mercator projection, place-making, polynesian navigation, precision agriculture, race to the bottom, Silicon Valley, Silicon Valley startup, Skinner box, skunkworks, smart grid, systems thinking, the map is not the territory, vertical integration

Knowledge of where the Man fell to Earth—and, presumably, every other GPS location—was somehow a function of WGS 84. So now I needed to understand this common language, this mediating grid. The modern science of geodesy—refining our ability to measure the size of the earth and its gravity field—extends back more than 2,000 years. The Greek astronomer Eratosthenes used observation of the sun and the measured distance between Alexandria and the Egyptian town of Syene (now Aswan) to compute the planet’s circumference. His conclusion—25,000 miles—is only about 100 miles off from the figure we use today. The related practice of land surveying—attempts to get an accurate sense of spatial relations on the planet—is even older, traceable to ancient Egypt.

., 249 Elko County, Idaho, 136 ellipsoids, 247–49 Ellis, Roland, 63 eLoran, 166 El Segundo Air Force Base, 53 Endeavour, HMS, 7, 8–10 Enge, Per, 142, 171 England, xiv, 25–27, 104, 153 Hertfordshire County in, 197 Yorkshire County in, 113 English Channel, 166–67, 246 Enlightenment, 26 Eratosthenes, 245 Eschenbach, Ralph, 78–81, 83, 85, 87, 93 espionage, 55 Esri software company, 239 etak, 18–22, 118, 240, 262, 263, 265–66 definitions of, 18–19 Etak company, 122–23 Eurasia, 3 European Convention on Human Rights, 187 European Court of Human Rights, 187–88 European Datum 1952, 250 European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS), 142 European Parliament, 104 European Space Agency, xvii European Union (EU), xvii, 144 Everest, Mount, 90 Eyjafjallajökull volcano, 230 F-4 aircraft, 59–60 Facebook, 194 Falcon Air Force Base, 62–63 Fallen Man photograph, 235–39, 235, 241–42, 248 GPS coordinates linked to, 238 location depicted in, 236, 245, 256 people and shops in, 236–38 time stamp on, 238 fascism, 177 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 140–41, 142, 151, 171 safety requirements of, 141 Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), 170, 178 Federal Communications Commission (FCC), 200, 201 Federal Express, 143 Federal Highway Administration, U.S., Electronic Route Guidance System (ERGS) of, 121 fertilizer, 102, 103 Fiji, 4, 10 financial services industry, 161–64 Finney, Ben, 264–65 fixed-wing gunships, 50–51 fleet management industry, 183–84, 201, 282 Florida, 30, 31, 70, 90, 195–96 Fontainebleau, 246 Forbes, 127 Forlander, Abraham, 12 Fort Carson, xiii Fort Collins, Colo., 74, 75, 101 Fort Davis, Tex., 214 Fort Walton Beach, Fla., 70–71 fossils, 205 France, 158, 252, 263 Frankenstein, Julia, 130, 132 Freiburg, University of, Center for Cognitive Science at, 130 Freundschuh, Scott, 125 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, 222, 225 Fulton, Steve, 139, 279 Gable, Ralph, see Schwitzgebel, Ralph Gable, Robert, see Schwitzgebel, Robert Galileo Galilei, 29 Galileo system, xvii–xviii, 144 Gambale, Nunzio, 164–66 Garmin C550 receivers, 126 Garmin GPS Systems, 100, 126–27, 242 consumer electronics segment of, 127 Gastineau Channel, 138 Gatty, Harry, 17 General Accounting Office, 60 General Electric, 44 General Motors, 120 geochronology technologies, 207 geodesy, 245–48, 250–55, 286 geographic information systems (GIS), 239–42 GPS linked to, 239–40, 245 perception of the world shaped by, 241–42 geography, 3–4, 19, 118, 125 geoids, 247, 256 Geological Survey, U.S.


pages: 424 words: 108,768

Origins: How Earth's History Shaped Human History by Lewis Dartnell

agricultural Revolution, Anthropocene, back-to-the-land, bioinformatics, clean water, Columbian Exchange, decarbonisation, discovery of the americas, Donald Trump, Eratosthenes, financial innovation, Google Earth, Khyber Pass, Malacca Straits, megacity, meta-analysis, ocean acidification, oil shale / tar sands, out of africa, Pax Mongolica, peak oil, phenotype, rewilding, Rosa Parks, Silicon Valley, South China Sea, spice trade, Suez crisis 1956, supervolcano, trade route, transatlantic slave trade

He finally found patronage from Queen Isabella of Castile, who in 1469 had married King Ferdinand II of Aragon to unify their realms and form Spain. He was known to his sponsors as Cristóbal Colón. In English, we call him Christopher Columbus. Contrary to a commonly held view today, no educated person in medieval times believed the Earth to be flat. In the third century BC Eratosthenes, a Greek geographer, astronomer and mathematician working at the Library of Alexandria, understood that the world is a sphere and calculated its circumference to be 250,000 stadia, or around 44,000 kilometres–remarkably close to its real value. Indeed, the techniques of celestial navigation used by sailors to plot their latitude by the stars is predicated on the very principle that the Earth is round.

Index Abbasids 212 Aberdeen: granite 148, 151 Abu Dhabi: Sheikh Zayed Mosque 136 Abu Simbel, Egypt: Great Temple of Rameses II 132 Achaemenid Empire 202 Acheulean tools 17, 22 acid rain 142, 280 Aden 107 Aden, Gulf of 11 adobe bricks 131, 155 Aegean/Aegean Sea 99, 100, 117, 162 Aegospotami, Battle of (405 BC) 118 Afar region/triangle 11, 18 Afghanistan 183, 190, 194 Africa 11, 15, 21, 56, 98, 104, 105, 106, 139, 160, 218n, 219, 220, 267, 285 animals 88, 89 hominin migration from 22, 23, 45–6, 47, 52, 63 plants 67, 87 see East, North, South and West Africa African-Americans 125–6 Agassiz, Lake 60, 61–2 agriculture/farming 25, 26, 28, 52, 59, 61, 62, 63–5, 70–71, 87–8, 90, 130, 203, 205, 255, 256–7, 258, 280, 281, 285 and climate change 280 and oil 274 and population growth 70 tools and ploughs 76, 77, 165–6, 215n, 255, 268, 285, 286 see also cereal crops; fruit; legumes aircraft engines 175, 176 Akkadians 131 Akrotiri, Thera 163 Akshardham, Delhi 136 Alabama 125, 126 cotton plantations 125, 253–4 Alans 207 Alaska 48–9, 52, 195 Alborán microcontinent 218n Alborz Mountains 29–30 Alcáçovas, Treaty of (1479) 229, 230 Alexander the Great 101, 117n, 202 Alexandria 101, 187 Library 227 algae 138, 171, 261 Algeria 100 alpacas 76, 88, 89 Alps, the 32, 56, 58, 116, 135, 140, 154, 159, 163, 285 Altai Mountains 47, 196, 202 aluminium 174–5, 177, 182 aluminium silicates 266 Amazon 7, 63, 189 rainforest 223n, 275, 285 America(s) 55, 194n animals 88–9 discovery of 231, 237 human migration into 48–52 see also North America; South America; United States American Civil War 124, 126, 254 American War of Revolution (1775–83) 122 ammonites 138 Amnissos, Crete 162 amphibians 79, 262 Amsterdam: banking 97 Anatolia 131, 157, 165, 204, 205 Andes Mountains 32, 54, 66, 67, 74 angiosperms 40, 78, 79–82, 90, 141n Angkor Wat, Cambodia 129 animals, wild 13, 33–4, 49, 72, 83, 88–9, 66n domestication of 52, 59, 74–8, 88–90, 199 megafauna 53n see also mammals Antarctica 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 53, 86, 104, 267, 277 antelopes 12, 83 ‘Anthropocene’ Age 3 antimony 175 APP mammals 82, 84, 85, 86 Appalachian Mountains 55, 124, 125, 267, 270 Aqaba, Gulf of 110n Arabia/Arabian Peninsula 11, 27, 28, 47, 53, 75, 104, 107, 108–9, 110, 115, 188, 191 camels 89 deserts 29, 190, 192, 215, 285 stone tools 52n Aragon, Spain 218 Aral Sea 105, 196 architecture 129–30, 131 American 134–5, 136 and n ancient Egyptian 132–3 British 134, 151–3, 154–5 Minoan 161, 162 Roman 136n, 162n Arctic, the 36, 38, 39, 40, 43, 64, 85 Arctic Ocean 60 Ardipithecus ramidus 13–15, 18 Argentina: pampas 196 artiodactyls 82–3, 84, 86, 144 Asia, South East 10, 75, 91, 119, 239 islands 111–15, 112–13 asphalt 273, 274 Assyrian Empire 27, 131, 202 asteroids 94, 143n, 168, 178n, 179 astronomy 194, 252n Athens 116, 117–18 Atlantic Ocean 43, 61, 62, 95, 96, 99, 104, 106, 122, 139, 218, 219–20, 222, 226, 227, 229–30, 231, 237, 238, 267 and Mediterranean 105, 106, 118 Atlantic Trade Triangle 246, 249, 250–51, 252–4 Atlas Mountains 105, 163, 267 Attila the Hun 207 aurochs 74 Australia 10, 42, 48, 52n, 54, 121, 252 and n, 267, 285 domesticable animals 88 rare earth metals 181 grasses 87 Australopithecus 14–15, 16 A. afarensis 14, 18 Avars 203 avocados 66n Awash river valley 13, 14, 18 Azores, the 218, 219, 220, 221, 222, 229, 230, 231 Aztec culture 28 Bab-el-Mandeb strait 47, 107, 108, 110, 119, 121 Babylon 71, 273 Babylonians 131 Bacan Islands 114 Baghdad 110, 190, 212 Bahamas, the 230 Bahrain 120 Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan 197n Balaclava, Battle of (1854) 129 Banda Islands 111, 112–13, 114, 115 Banded Iron Formations (BIFs) 169–70, 173, 177, 179 Bank of England, London 134 banks and banking 97, 134 Barbarossa, Operation 215 Barbegal, France: waterwheels 257 barley 61, 65, 67, 117 basalt eruptions/flood basalt 141, 142, 143, 144, 145 basalt(ic) rocks 11, 141, 143, 145, 146, 160 Batavia (Jakarta), Indonesia 252 batteries, rechargeable 176, 180 bay (herb) 115n beans 66, 81 Beatles, the: ‘Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds’ 14n Bedouins 129 belemnites 138 Belgium 96, 269, 284 Belize 28 Bering land bridge/Strait 48, 49, 51, 52, 54, 89, 191 Bessemer Process 166–7 BIFs see Banded Iron Formations Big Bang 167 Biological Old Regime 258 bipedalism 14–15, 16 birds 33, 80, 219n, 263 bison 49, 214n bitumen 273 ‘Black Death’ (accumulation of shale) 279 Black Death (plague) 211–12 Black Sea 105, 106, 117, 118, 120, 185, 190, 196, 207, 278n ‘black smokers’ 159, 160, 163 blast furnaces 165, 211, 257, 259 Bojador, Cape 223–4, 225 bone china 149 Borneo 112 Bosphorus 196, 117, 118, 120 Boston, Massachusetts 56 Brahmaputra River 91 brassicas 81, 82 Brazil 181, 244n, 247n coffee plantations 252, 253, 254 Brazil Current 238, 239, 253 bricks 131, 139, 149, 152, 174, 255 adobe 131, 155 firebricks 131–2 Britain/England 56–9, 97 architecture 134, 152–3, 154–5 ceramics 149–50 coalfields/mines 259–60, 266, 269, 270–72, 271 corsairs 249 electricity 271n exploration 229, 231 geology 150–53, 151 Labour Party 270, 271, 271–2 maritime trade 107n, 245 railways 260 Roman coal mines 259 Royal Navy 58, 118, 119 steam engines 259–60 see also Industrial Revolution; London British Museum, London 134, 148 bromine 175 bronze/bronze artefacts 1578, 161, 165, 174 Bronze Age 99, 137, 156, 158, 160–61, 164, 174, 200n Brouwer, Captain Henrik 250–51 Brouwer Route 119n, 246, 250, 250–52 bubonic plague 211–12 Buckingham Palace, London 134 Buffalo, New York 55 Bukhara, Uzbekistan 190, 212 Bulgars 203, 204 Burgundians 207 Burma 92 Bush, President George W. 124 Bushveld Complex, South Africa 179–80 butane 276 Byblos 101n Byzantine Empire 205, 213 Cabot, John 231 cacti 80 calcium carbonate 41, 129, 133, 139, 140 Calicut, India 240 California 52n, 248 Cambodia 92 Cambrian Period 152, 153 camels 19, 49, 75, 76, 77, 83, 88, 89, 107, 187, 191–2, 193, 197 Bactrian camels 89, 191 dromedaries 89, 191 Canada 49, 60, 63, 89, 163, 179, 195, 267, 277 fur trade 195 canals 71, 74, 150 and n, 152, 187 Canary Current 237 Canary Islands 218–19, 220, 222, 223, 225, 227, 228, 229, 230 Cape Cod, Massachusetts 56 Cape of Good Hope 121, 225–6, 231, 250 Cape Town 252 Cape Verde Islands 218, 219, 220, 229, 239, 253n capitalism 96–7, 154, 270 caravans, merchant 81, 107, 110, 187, 188, 192–3, 194, 201, 211, 218 caravels 246 carbon 1, 85n, 157, 165, 166, 167, 175, 261, 263, 273, 275–6, 278, 279, 280, 281 carbon dioxide 10, 38, 40, 42, 44, 65, 84, 85 and n, 139, 142, 143, 144–5, 170, 171, 172, 261, 265, 275, 279–80, 281 and n, 287 Carboniferous Period 6, 78–9, 134, 151, 261–8 Caribbean, the 28, 52, 61, 230, 231, 237 sugar plantations 252, 253, 254 Carnegie, Andrew 270 Carolinas, the 124, 125 cotton plantations 253–4 Carpathian Mountains 163, 185, 196, 204 Carrara marble 135 cars/automobiles 174, 273 Carthage 100–1, 105n, 208 cartwheel hubs 130 Caspian Sea 105, 120, 196, 201, 207 cassava 131 Castile, Spain 217, 218 catalysts, chemical 178, 180 catalytic converters 178 cathedrals 127, 129, 134 Catholicism 185n cattle/cows 67, 74, 75, 76, 77, 82n, 83, 84n, 86–7, 88, 172n, 198, 198, 201 Caucasus 185, 196, 204, 207, 209, 215 cedars/cedarwood 73, 70, 101n, 131 cellulose 263, 264 cement 139, 140–41 ‘pozzolanic’ 162n Cenozoic cooling 9–10, 39–40, 81 Cenozoic era 42, 44, 90, 141n Central Steppe see Kazakh Steppe ceramics/pottery 131–2, 255 porcelain 112, 115, 149–50 cereal crops 65, 67–9, 70, 78, 80, 86–7, 90, 125, 287; see also grain(s) Cerne Abbas Giant, Dorset 137 Cerro Rico see Potosí Ceuta, Morocco 217–18 Ceylon see Sri Lanka chalk 132, 136–8, 139–40, 152 Channel Tunnel 137 charcoal 157, 161, 164, 166, 173n, 255, 269 chariots, war 76, 116n, 200n chert 17n, 156, 170 Chicago 55, 56, 135 chickens 74 Chile 54 chimpanzees 7, 14, 16, 46 China 28n, 182, 183–5, 186, 187, 190, 195, 206, 213, 214 agriculture 63, 65–6, 67, 77, 184 blast furnaces 165, 257 bronze 157 bubonic plague 211 canals 187 coal 258–9, 264 collar harnesses 77 compasses 169 exports 112, 115, 249 first humans 48, 52n, 53 ginkgo 79 Great Wall 203–4, 208 Homo erectus 23, 47 Mongols (Yuan dynasty) 209, 210, 212, 214 and oil 121 population 92, 186, 211, 284 porcelain 112, 115, 149 rare earth metals 177, 181 salt production 273 silk 112, 115, 187–8, 193n and South American silver 249 and steppe nomads 202–3 tea 112 and Tibet 91–3 waterwheels 165, 257 and Xiongnu 202, 206 china, bone 149 see also porcelain chokepoints, naval 98, 115, 118–19, 121, 217n, 273 Christianity 185n, 217 cinnamon 113, 114, 193, 241 civilisations, early 25–30, 26–7, 70–74, 90, 98–9, 132 Clarke, Arthur C. 94 clathrate ice 85–6 clay 130, 131–2, 152, 266 soils 154–5, 166 Cleopatra VII, of Egypt 101, 147 ‘Cleopatra’s Needles’ 147 Cleveland, Ohio 55 climate changes 2–3, 9–10, 11–12, 18–19, 21–5, 61, 63, 64, 70–71, 72, 84–5, 86, 143–4, 279–81; see also ice ages Clinton, Hillary 122 cloves 114, 115n, 241, 247 clubmosses 262 clunch 152 coal 78, 149, 258–60, 279 formation of 261–8, 267, 274, 280 politics of 269, 270, 270–72, 271 cobalt 159, 175 coccolithophores 138, 139, 140, 144 coccoliths 274, 275 cockroaches 262 cocoa 66n coconuts 81 Cocos Plate 28 cod 95, 97 coffee plantations, Brazilian 252, 253 coins 168n, 182 Coleridge, Samuel Taylor Kublai Khan 210 The Rime of the Ancient Mariner 97n, 234 Cologne Cathedral 127 Colombia: platinum 178n Colosseum, Rome 133 Columbian Exchange 113n Columbus, Christopher 52, 227–31, 236, 239, 241 comets 94, 143n, 178n compasses, navigation 118n, 169 concrete 56, 139, 140–41, 272 reinforced 130n, 167 Congo 7, 11 conifers 79, 130, 141, 195 Constantinople (Istanbul) 185n, 193n, 205, 207, 211, 213 cooking food 15, 17, 69, 131, 132 cooling, global see Cenozoic cooling; ice ages copper/copper ore 157, 158, 159, 160–62, 163–4, 174, 175, 179, 182, 201n smelting 131, 156, 157, 161 coppicing 256 coral/coral reefs 193, 252n, 280 Cordilleran ice sheet 49 coriander 115n Corinth 117 Coriolis effect 233, 235, 237 Cornwall Eden Project 150n granite 267n kaolin 149, 150n tin mines 158, 267n Corsica 208 Cotswolds, the 152 cotton 82, 112, 125, 126, 193, 252, 253–4, 255, 259, 263, 269 courgettes 66n cows see cattle Cretaceous Period 40, 42, 80, 123, 124, 137, 138, 139, 141n, 143n, 144, 145, 152, 178n, 274, 276–9, 278 Crete 99, 161–3 Crimean Peninsula 129 crocodiles 72, 85 crops 255 domestication of 52, 63–4, 65–9, 68–9 rotation 255 see also cereal crops; grain(s) Cuba 230 Cumans 203 Cumberland: coalfields 272 cumin 115n current sailing see sailing and navigation cyanobacteria 171, 173 Cyclades, the 99 Cyprus 99, 160 copper mining 158, 160–62, 163 Troodos Mountains 160, 163 Da Gama, Vasco 239–41, 244 Danube River/Valley 185 and n, 196, 204, 206, 207, 208 Dardanelles, the 117, 118, 120 ‘Dark Ages’ 219 Dartmoor 147, 151 dates (fruit) 81 Dead Sea 106, 110n Deccan Traps 143n deer 83 Delhi: Akshardham 136 Denisovan hominins 16, 23, 47, 50–51, 51, 53 deserts 1, 12, 29, 61, 72, 73, 80, 81, 89, 100, 107, 148n, 184, 189, 190–92, 195, 215–16, 232, 285 see also specific deserts Detroit, Michigan 55 Dias, Bartolomeu 225–7, 229, 239 diatoms 140, 171, 274 dinoflagellates 85, 274 dinosaurs 40, 80, 82, 141, 143n Diomede Islands 48 Djibouti 11, 18 DNA, hominins’ 45–7 Dogger Bank/Doggerland 95, 96, 97 dogs 74 doldrums, the 224, 234–5, 239 donkeys 76, 83, 88, 89, 192 Dover, Strait of 57, 59 dragonflies, giant 262–3, 265 Drake, Sir Francis 55, 249 Dublin: Leinster House 136n Durham: coalfields 272 Dutch East India Company 250 dysprosium 175 Dzungaria, China 197, 214 Dzungarian Gate, China–Kazakhstan border 189, 196–7, 203, 204 Eanes, Gil 223–4 Earth 282–3, 284, 286–7 circumference 227, 228 creation 94, 168 first circumnavigation 232, 248 magnetic field 169 orbit round the Sun 19, 21, 22, 24, 35, 36–9, 37 tilt 19, 35, 36–9, 37, 38, 44–5; see also Milankovitch cycles see also climate changes; tectonic plates earthenware pots 131, 149 earthquakes 8, 25, 28, 29, 30 East Africa 7–8, 10, 11, 12, 15, 16 climate 12, 18–25, 44 tectonic processes 10–13, 18–21, 24, 25, 30, 189 East African Rift 2n, 10–13, 17n, 18, 20, 20–25, 44, 108, 189, 287 East China Sea 114, 187 East India Company 222n East Indies 111 Eastern Desert 107, 133 Eastern Orthodox Church 185n Eastern Steppe 197 eccentricity cycle 19, 21, 22, 36, 37, 39 Ecuador: platinum 178n Edinburgh 151 Egypt/ancient Egypt 26, 28n, 64, 72–3, 100, 101, 107, 110, 119, 157, 184 buildings 132–3 pharaohs 72, 101, 127, 129, 147 pyramids 127–8, 129, 133, 138 sculpture 133, 147–8 electricity 156, 174, 271n, 272, 281, 282–3, 284, 286 electronic devices 157, 168, 175, 176, 178, 180, 181–2 elephants 33, 72, 256n Elgon, Mount 12 elm 130 Empire State Building, New York 134 Energy Return on Investment (EROI) index 274 English Channel 56, 57, 58–9, 134, 137 Eocene Epoch 129 equator, the 189, 232, 233, 234, 235, 238 equids 88–9, 197–8 Eratosthenes 227 Eridu 71 Eritrea 11 EROI index see Energy Return on Investment Erzgebirge Mountains: tin mines 158 ethane 276 Ethiopia 10, 11, 13, 14, 18, 28n, 72 Etna, Mount 117 Etruscans 27, 28 Euphrates, River 27, 65, 90, 107 Eurasia 9, 26, 27, 28, 39, 42, 47, 56, 77, 106, 143, 183, 194 climate 2, 48, 196–7 fauna and flora 49, 53n, 79, 87–90 warfare 76 Exeter Cathedral 134 Exploration, Age of 96, 216, 217, 246 extinctions, mass 40, 82, 85, 141, 142–3 and n, 144, 145, 178n factories (coastal forts) 253 farming see agriculture feldspar 148 Ferdinand II, of Aragon 227 ferns 78, 79, 262 Ferrel cells 235–6, 248 Fertile Crescent 63, 65, 66, 67, 158, 269 fertilisers, artificial 120, 178–9 feudalism 212 Finland 195, 286 fir trees 79, 130, 141 fire 15, 17, 69, 131–2, 173–4 firebricks 131–2 fish/fishing 95–6, 97, 275, 280 flax 82 flint 17n, 137, 139–40, 156, 164 Florida 237 flour 63, 68–9, 257 flowers see plants and flowers foraminifera/forams 85, 128–9, 133, 138, 139, 140, 144, 275 forests see rainforests; trees/forests fossils 13–14, 18, 40, 52n, 137–8, 141, 150n, 160 France 56, 57, 58, 185, 207, 208, 267, 269, 284 corsairs 249 fur trappers 195 maritime trade 245 waterwheels 257 wine regions 137 frankincense 192, 193 Franks 207, 208 frogs 85 fruit/fruit trees 78, 81 fungi 263, 264 fur trade 195 Galilee, Lake 110n gallium 176, 180 Ganges Basin 268 Ganges River 26, 66, 267 Gansu Corridor 184–5, 188, 203, 204 gas, natural 274, 276, 279, 280 Gaul 185, 207 Gazelles 61, 72, 275 genetic diversity 45–7 Genghis Khan 205, 209 Genoa/Genoese 99, 211, 212, 217, 227, 229 geological map, first 150 and n Germanic tribes 185n, 206–7, 208, 269 Germany 58, 59, 127, 185n, 208, 273, 284 Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland 143 Gibraltar 217n Strait of 99, 101, 106, 118, 158, 217 and n, 220 ginger 112–13, 114, 241 ginkgo 79 giraffes 83 Giza, Egypt: pyramids 127–8, 129, 133, 138 glaciation/glaciers 31, 32, 40, 54–7, 58, 60, 91, 146, 171–2, 184, 264–5 glass/glass-making/glassware 115, 132, 140, 193, 255 glazing pottery 131 globalisation 246 global warming 31, 38, 86, 281n; see also climate changes; greenhouse gases gneiss 133 Goa, India 245 goats 67, 74, 75, 77, 83, 88, 117 Gobi Desert 184, 185, 189, 191, 197 GOE see Great Oxidation Event gold 159, 168 and n, 174, 175, 178, 182, 192, 193, 218 Gona, Ethiopia 18 Gondwana 139, 264, 265, 267 gourds 66n grain(s) 63, 65, 65, 67–8, 73, 74, 116–18, 120, 166, 200, 205, 208, 257; see also cereal crops Grampian Mountains 148 Granada, Spain 218 and n granite 127–8, 132, 133, 145–8, 158, 267n grasses 67, 77, 80–81, 87–8, 90 grasslands 15, 77; see also savannah; steppes Great Hungarian Plain 196, 205 Great Indian Desert 29 Great Oxidation Event (GOE) 171–2, 173, 280n Great Pyramid, Giza 127–8, 129, 138 Great Sandy Desert, Australia 190 Great Wall of China 203–4, 208 Greece/ancient Greeks 27, 28, 73, 99, 100, 107, 110–11, 115–18, 135 armies 116n, 118 city-states 73, 116–17 Huns 207 greenhouse effect 10, 40, 42, 84–5, 142, 171 greenhouse gases 38, 40, 42, 44, 279–80 see also carbon dioxide; methane Greenland 32, 40, 96, 143 Grenville Mountains 153 Guatemala 28 guilds, medieval 212 Guinea, Gulf of 224, 239, 253 guinea fowl 74 guinea pigs: and scurvy 241n Gulf Stream 43, 61, 237, 238, 286 Gunflint Iron Formation 170n gunpowder 194, 200n, 211, 213 gymnosperms 79, 141 gyres, ocean 237, 238n, 247 Hadley cells 232–3, 235–6, 285 haematite 170 Haifa, Israel 101 Han dynasty (China) 93, 183, 184, 186, 187 and n, 190–91, 203–4 Harappan civilization 26–7, 64 Hawaii 107n, 222n helium 167, 180n Hellespont, the 117, 118, 120 hemp 82 Henry VII, of England 231 Herat, Afghanistan 190, 194 herbicides 120, 274 herbs 115n Herculaneum 162 Herodotus 73 hickory 130 hides/leather 75, 77, 88, 140, 193, 255 structures 130 Himalayas, the 9, 10, 11, 26, 32, 42, 48, 159, 184, 191, 195, 203, 242, 243, 268, 285 Hindu Kush 190, 203 hippopotamuses 33, 83n Hispaniola 230 Hitler, Adolf 215 Holland see Netherlands Holocene Epoch 32, 40, 42, 64–5 Homer: Iliad 200n hominins 7–8, 12–16, 22, 23, 30, 44, 53 bipedalism 14–15, 16 brains and intelligence 15, 16, 17, 19–20, 22, 24, 25 DNA 45–7 as hunters 15, 17 migration from Africa 22, 23, 45–6, 47, 52, 63 and see below Homo erectus 15–18, 22, 23, 47 Homo habilis 15, 16 Homo heidelbergensis 16 Homo neanderthalensis see Neanderthals Homo sapiens/humans 7, 8, 16, 22, 23, 25, 47, 49–54, 84 Hormuz, Strait of 107, 119, 120–21 ‘horse latitudes’ 235 horses 49, 75, 76, 77, 83, 86–7, 88, 89–90, 192, 197–200, 201–2, 205, 213, 214 Hudson Bay, Canada 49 Humboldt Current 247, 249 Hungary 185n, 202, 209 Huns 203, 204, 205, 206, 207, 208 hunter-gatherers 15, 61, 62, 63, 70, 74, 75, 80, 197 hydrogen 167, 175 hydrogen chloride 142 hydrogen sulphide 280 Iberian Peninsula 104, 105, 185, 208, 217 see also Portugal; Spain ice ages 19, 23, 24, 31–5, 34–5, 38–9, 44–5, 48–52, 53-60, 61, 64, 95, 172, 265 Little Ice Age 195n, 211 ichthyosaurs 133 igneous rocks 132, 179 incense 115, 192 India 9, 26, 27, 28n, 42, 48, 91, 92, 104, 110–11, 114, 188, 191, 202, 203, 213, 228, 244, 245, 267, 285 cotton 112, 193, 259, 269 eruption of Deccan Traps 143n exports 193 Mogul Empire 210n, 249 monsoons/monsoon winds 1, 10, 110, 242–4 population 284 rare earth metals 177 spices 112–13, 115, 218 Indian Ocean 10, 11, 29, 107, 108, 110, 111, 119, 187, 191, 226, 227, 229, 237, 238, 239–40, 243, 244, 245, 248, 252 Indiana limestone 134–5 indigo 193 indium 175, 176, 180, 181, 182 Indonesia 47, 48, 54, 121, 285 volcanic activity 111 Indonesian Seaway 10, 11 Indus River/Valley 26, 91, 107, 190, 268 civilisations 26–7, 66, 73, 90, 157 Industrial Revolution 5, 31, 78, 97, 125, 130n, 150, 152, 167, 254, 259–60, 266, 268, 269, 279, 286 insects 80, 262–3, 265 internal combustion engine 78, 273 Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) 234–5, 243 Iran 29–30, 48, 110, 120, 121, 190; see also Persia Iraq 48, 71, 120 iridium 177–8 iron 1, 92, 130n, 163, 164–5, 167, 168–9, 170, 174, 177, 178, 280n and Banded Iron Formations 169–70, 173, 177 cast 165 production 164–5, 183, 257, 259, 260, 266, 269, 270 tools and weapons 128, 165–6, 173, 174, 285 wrought 164–5, 166 see also steel Iron Age 156, 165, 167, 174 irrigation 65, 71, 73, 90, 92, 116, 200 Isabella, of Castile 226n, 227, 229, 230 Isfahan, Iran 190 Islam/Islamic culture/Muslims 110, 205, 212, 213, 217–18 and diet 83n Israel 52n, 101n, 163, 285 Istanbul see Constantinople Italy 105n, 133, 207, 208, 285 see also Rome ITCZ see Intertropical Convergence Zone jade 183 Jakarta, Indonesia 252 Janissaries 205 Japan/Japanese 121, 122n, 222n, 228, 245, 248 exports 112 landfill mining 182 Java 111, 114, 119n, 251, 252 Jefferson, President Thomas 136n, 147 Joao II, of Portugal 226, 229 Jordan valley 110n Judaism: and diet 83n Jupiter 36, 180n Jurassic Coast, England 137–8 Jurassic Period 133, 134, 274, 279 Kalahari Desert 190 Kalmuks 203 kaolin 148–9, 150n Karakorum, Mongolia 209, 211 Kazakh Steppe 196, 197n, 201 Kellingley, Yorkshire: coalmine 271 Kenya 10, 239 Kenya, Mount 12 kerosene 273 Khitans 202 Khufu, Pharaoh 127 Khwarezmids 212 Khyber Pass 190, 203, 204 Kilimajaro, Mount 12 Kirghiz, the 202 Kish 71 Knossos palace, Crete 161 Korea/South Korea 121, 184 Krakatoa, eruption of (1883) 111 Kublai Khan 210 Kunlun Mountains, China 191 Kuwait 120 Laetoli, Tanzania 14 lakes 20, 20, 21, 57, 72 ‘amplifier’ 20, 21, 22, 24, 44 meltwater 60 Lancashire: coalfields 272 landfill mining 182 ‘lanthanide’ elements 176 lanthanum 176–7 lapis lazuli 183 larches 79 Laurasia 139, 267 Laurentia 153 Laurentide ice sheet 49, 55–6 lava, volcanic 12–13, 24, 132, 141–2, 143, 144 lead 131, 159, 163, 168, 174 leather see hides Lebanon 101n, 131, 163, 285 Le Clerc, ‘Peg Leg’ 249 legumes 81 Lesser Antilles 230 Levant, the 23, 60, 61, 65, 73, 74 Lewis (Meriwether) and Clark (William) 55 Libya 100, 277 lignin 264 limestone 85n, 132, 144, 153, 257, 266 hot-spring 133 Indiana 134–5 nummulitic 127, 128–9, 132–3 oolitic 133–4 Tethyean 135–6 travertine 133 linen 193, 255, 263 lions 33–4 lithium 167, 180, 182 llamas 74, 76, 88, 89 loess soils 56, 65, 184 and n Lombards 207 London 135, 137, 152, 154–5, 272 Bank of England 134 British Museum 134, 148 Buckingham Palace 134 Cleopatra’s Needle 147 Great Fire (1666) 134 Marble Arch 135 One Canada Square 154–5 St Paul’s Cathedral 134 The Shard 154–5 Tower of London 134 Underground/Tube 155 Los Angeles 248 Getty Center 133 Lucy (hominin) 14, 18 lycopsids 262 Macau, China 245 mace 114, 115n Mackenzie River 60 Madeira 218, 220, 222, 229, 253n Magellan, Ferdinand 54, 247–8 Magellan Strait 54–5 magma 11, 20, 28, 111, 132, 142, 143, 145, 146, 148n, 158, 1 59, 179 Magna Carta 58 magnetic field, Earth’s 169 magnetite 170 magnets 175, 176, 180n Magyars 203, 204 Maison Carrée, Nîmes, France 136n maize 66, 67 Makian Island 114 Malabar Coast, India 114, 240 Malacca, Malaysia 114–15, 245 Strait of 114, 115, 119, 121, 249 Malay Peninsula 114–15, 245 Mali 10, 193 Malindi, Kenya 239 Mallorca 221 mammals 5, 7, 12, 40, 53n, 61, 75, 86–7, 88, 90, 141n, 144 APP 82–4 mammoths 31, 49, 66n Manchuria 197, 202 Mani Peninsula, Greece 135 Manila Cathedral 136 Manila Galleon Route 246, 248–9, 250, 250–51 Mao Zedong 91 map-making 194 marble 132, 135–6 Marble Arch, London 135 marine snow 275 marjoram 115n Marmara, Sea of 117 mastodons 66n mathematics 194 Mayan civilisation 28, 64 meat 17, 75, 77, 83n, 84, 90, 198, 199, 255 medicines 82, 114, 175, 178, 194 Mediterranean region/Sea 28, 98–106, 112, 116, 118, 135, 158, 160, 163, 185, 187, 246 Megara, Greece 117 Mekong River 91 Melanesia 47 Merv, Turkmenistan 190, 212 Mesoamerica 28, 63, 66, 67, 129 Mesopotamia 26, 27, 28, 65, 67, 70–71, 71, 72, 200, 202 bronze 157–8 civilisations 130–31, 132 Mesozoic Era 42, 141 metals/metalworking 74, 130 and n, 131, 156–7, 255 casting 157 smelting 131, 132, 156 see also specific metals metamorphic rocks 132 methane 40–41, 84, 85n, 171–2, 172n, 276, 280n methane clathrate 85–6 Mexican War of Independence (1810–21) 248 Mexico 28, 66, 74, 248 Gulf of 279 Michelangelo Buonnaroti: David 135 microchips 17n, 148n, 175–6 Mid-Atlantic Ridge 9, 160, 221 Middle East 47, 65, 81, 104, 119, 120, 197, 202, 209, 211, 215n` Middle Passage 253n Milankovitch cycles 19, 37, 37–9, 44, 60, 70, 281n Military Revolution 213 milk 75–6, 88, 90, 199, 255 millet 65, 57, 184 millstones 63, 68 Ming dynasty (China) 204, 212 Minoan civilisation 27–8, 99, 161–3 Linear A script 163n Mississippi River 55, 123, 124, 125 Missouri River 55 mitochondria 45 Mitochondrial Eve 45–6 mobile phones see smartphones Mogadishu, Somalia 240 Mogul Empire 210n, 249 Mojave Desert 191 Moluccas, the 112–13, 113, 114, 115, 247 and n Mongol Empire 202, 203, 204, 205, 206, 209–13, 214 Mongolia 47, 197, 209 monsoons 72, 114, 189–90, 192, 238–9, 285 winds 110, 192, 240–44, 243, 251 moraines 54, 55–6, 95 Morocco 217–18, 223, 267 mortar 132, 139, 140–41 Moscow 195 Moti Island 114 mountain ranges 8, 9, 26, 28, 91, 98, 99, 104–5, 139, 144, 146–7, 159–60, 267–8, 285; see also volcanoes and specific ranges Mousterian tools 17, 22 Mozambique 11, 239 mules 76, 77 Mumbai, India 107n Muslims see Islam Mycenaeans 163 myrrh 192 Nagasaki, Japan 245 Napoleon Bonaparte 58, 59, 222n Native Americans 47 Natufians 61, 62 Neanderthals 16, 17, 23–4, 47, 50–51, 51, 53, 164 Neoclassicism: in architecture 136n Neolithic era 63–5, 158, 198 Nepal 92 Netherlands 58, 96–7, 114n, 119 and n, 284 corsairs 249 and Japan 122n maritime trade 245, 250–52 windmills 257 Newfoundland 96, 231 New Guinea 10, 48, 63 agriculture 66, 67 New York 55, 56, 114n, 153–4 Chrysler Building 153 Cleopatra’s Needle 147 Empire State Building 134, 153 Rockefeller Center 153 skyscrapers 154, 155 United Nations building 134, 145 Yankee Stadium 134 New Zealand 32, 237 nickel 167, 168, 175, 179 Nile, River/Nile Valley 23, 65, 72–3, 90, 100, 101, 106, 127, 132, 133, 184, 185, 187, 285 Delta 102, 107 Nineveh 71 Nippur 71 nitrogen 170, 178–9 noble metals see platinum group metals nomadic tribes 200, 201–3, 204–5, 206, 286 see also pastoral nomads Noranda (mine), Canada 163 Norfolk: cottages 152 Norilsk, Russia: mines 179 Norse fishermen and seafarers 95, 96 North Africa 89, 110, 128, 129, 138, 206, 208, 211, 215 agriculture 63, 65 camel caravans 192–3 climate 72, 101 coastline 99, 100–2, 105, 185, 217n North America 32, 33, 39, 43, 44, 48, 49, 51, 60, 63, 64, 103–4, 139, 143 animals 53n, 197, 214n grasses 87 prairies 79, 196, 214n, 284 see also Canada; United States North Atlantic Garbage Patch 238n North Atlantic Gyre 238n North Atlantic Igneous Province 143 North Downs 137 North Pole 37, 38, 39, 40, 43, 44, 224 North Sea 57, 95, 96, 279, 286 Northumberland: coalfields 272 Norway 54, 286 nuclear fission/fusion 167–8, 169, 182n, 281 Nummulites/nummulitic limestone 128–9, 132–3 nutmeg 114, 114n, 115n, 241, 247 oats 67 Obama, President Barack 124 obsidian 17n, 140, 156 Oceania 47 oceans 5, 10, 41, 43, 85, 86, 94–5, 97–8 acidic 280 anoxic 142, 173, 278, 278–9 Banded Iron Formations 170, 171, 179 black smokers (hydrothermal vents) 159, 160 chokepoints 98, 115, 118–19, 121, 217n, 273 crust 8–9, 94, 104, 139, 142, 145–6, 159, 160, 163, 221 currents and current sailing 5, 41, 219–20, 222, 223–4, 226, 227, 230–31, 232, 244n, 246 doldrums 224, 234–5, 239 falling/lower levels 32, 34, 44, 45, 48, 49, 50, 53–4, 56–7, 89, 95, 125, 138–9 gyres 237, 238n, 247 and iron 173 and plankton 85, 144–5, 274–6 rising/higher levels 31, 33, 38, 40, 52, 54, 57, 60, 96, 97, 124–5, 129, 138, 221, 268, 277, 280 salt content 105–6 thermohaline circulation 61–2, 278 see also specific oceans and seas ochre 164 Ogodei Khan 209 Ohio River 55 oil 120–21, 262–3, 273–9, 280, 286, 287 ‘oil window’ 276 Oldowan tools 16–17, 18, 22 olive oil 257 Oman 131 onagers 89 One Thousand and One Nights 110 ooliths 133–4 oolitic limestone 134 ophiolites 160, 163, 201n opium 115 oregano 115n Organic Energy Economy 258 orogeny 267n Orpheus and Eurydice 135 osmium 177 ostriches 72 Ostrogoths 207, 208 Ottoman Turks 205, 213 oxen 75, 77, 200 Oxford University 134 oxygen 167, 170–74, 175, 265, 275, 278, 280 ozone layer 142 172 and n Pacific Ocean 10, 43, 111, 122, 191, 222n, 237, 247, 248 Pacific Trash Vortex 238n Pakistan 92, 284 Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) 40, 84–6, 129, 143, 145, 279–80, 287 Palaeogene Period 42, 178n Palaeozoic Era 42, 141 Palestine 185 Palin, Sarah 48n palladium 175, 177, 179, 182n Pamir Mountains 189, 191 Panama Canal 55, 120 Panama Isthmus 43, 44, 49, 88, 89, 249 Pangea 87, 103, 104, 138, 139, 141, 143, 144, 201n, 262, 267, 267, 268, 276 Panthalassa 103n Pantheon, Rome 135, 162n paper/paper-making 79, 194, 263 Paris Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel 200n Cleopatra’s Needle 147 Parks, Rosa 126 pastoral nomads 77, 200, 201, 203, 213, 214, 286 horse-riding 201–2, 208, 213–14, 215 Patagonian Desert 190 Patagonian Ice Sheet 54 Patzinaks 203 ‘Pax Mongolica’ 210–11 Pearl Harbor 222n peat 261–2, 263, 265, 266, 268 Peloponnesian War (431–405 BC) 117–18, 120 Pentagon, Virginia 134 pepper/peppercorns 112–13, 114, 115n, 193, 241 peppers 81, 113n perissodactyls 82–3, 84, 86, 144 permafrost 33, 86, 91 Permian Period 42, 103, 138, 141, 142, 143, 179, 264 Persia 27, 117n, 187, 188–9, 202, 207 exports 131, 193 kerosene 273 mythology 200n Wall 207–8 windmills 257 Persian Gulf 70, 104, 107, 108, 110, 119 oil 120, 121, 279, 286 Peru 67, 278n, 286 pesticides 120, 274 PETM see Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum petroleum 178, 273 PGMs see platinum group metals pharaohs 72, 101, 127, 129, 147 pharmaceuticals 120, 178, 274 Pharos, island of 101 Philippines, the 248, 249 philosophies, spread of 194 Phoenicia/Phoenicians 99, 100, 101n, 107, 158, 163, 219, 237 photosynthesis 142, 171, 258, 261, 265, 274–5 phytoplankton 274–5 pig iron 165, 166, 177 pigs 74, 83, 88 pine trees 79, 130, 161 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 270 plague 211–12 plankton 85, 138, 140, 144, 145, 274–6, 278, 287 plants and flowers 78 angiosperms domestication of 52, 59, 62, 64, 65–7, 68, 81, 87, 214n gymnosperms see also cereal crops; crops; photosynthesis plastics 120, 150n, 175, 178, 238n, 274 plate tectonics see tectonics platinum 177, 178–9, 182 platinum group metals (PGMs) 168, 176, 177–8, 179–80, 182n pliosaurs 133 ploughs 76, 77, 165–6, 215n, 255, 268, 285, 286 Polar cells 235 Polaris 37, 224 Polo, Marco 258–9 Pompeii 162 Pontic–Caspian Steppe 196, 214 population growth 2, 22–3, 70, 72, 87, 117, 166, 255, 256, 257 porcelain 112, 115, 149–50, 249 Portland stone 134 ports 98, 100, 101, 105n, 115, 119, 194, 212 Portugal/Portuguese 193, 217–18, 219–20, 222, 229, 245, 247n sailors 119, 193, 223–7, 231, 234, 239–41, 244–5, 247–8 slavery/slave trade 218, 222, 253n Portuguese Route 249–50, 250–51 potatoes 66, 81, 82, 131 Potosí silver mines, Bolivia 248–9 pottery see ceramics precession 19, 21, 23, 36–7, 37, 44 primates 82, 84, 86, 144 printing 194 Pripet Marshes 204 promethium 176 propane 276 Protestantism 185n Ptolemy (geographer) 111, 226 pumpkins 66n pyramids 127–8, 129, 133, 138 Pyrenees Mountains 267 Qatar 120 Qin dynasty (China) 184, 203 Qing dynasty (China) 91, 195, 214 quartz 148 and n quartzite 17n Quaternary Period 31, 32, 34–5, 40, 42 quicklime 139 radiolarians 140, 275 railways 55, 56, 100, 150n, 152, 167, 260 rain-shadow effect 11, 190, 195, 214n rainfall 10, 11, 21, 64, 142, 189, 280 rainforests 7, 80, 190, 223n, 232, 275, 285 rare earth metals (REMs) 168, 176–7, 180, 181–2 Ravenscroft, George 140 Reconquista, the 217, 219 Red Sea 11, 104, 107, 108–10, 121, 133, 187, 192, 193 redwoods 79 Reformation, Protestant 185n religions 194 see also Christianity; Islam; Judaism REMs see rare earth metals reptiles 79, 82, 133 Rhine, River 57, 185, 206, 207, 208 rhinoceroses 33, 83 rhodium 177, 182n rice 65–6, 67, 69, 91 Rio Tinto mine, Spain 163 rivers 2, 41, 61, 70, 72, 90, 91–3, 92, 116, 144 see also specific rivers roads 2, 56, 74, 93, 100, 187, 273, 274 Roaring Forties 43, 237, 250, 251, 252 and n rock types 132; see also basalt(ic) rocks; shale rocks Rocky Mountains 55 Rodinia 153 Roman Empire/Romans 27, 28, 73, 99, 100–1, 110–11, 162, 183, 185–7, 190–91, 206–8, 210–11, 218 architecture 136n, 162n coalmines 259 metalworking 259 population 186 underfloor heating systems 259 waterwheel 257 Rome 185, 207, 208 Colosseum 133 Pantheon 135, 162n Trajan’s Column 135 root plants 81–2 rosemary 115n Rove Formation 170n Rub’ al-Khali Desert 191 rubber, synthetic 178 rubies 241 ruminants 83; see also cattle/cows Run, island of 114n Rushmore, Mount 147 Russia/Soviet Union 48–9, 195, 197n, 209, 213, 214 Hitler’s invasion 215 trade 120 wheatfields 214, 215n see also Siberia ruthenium 177, 182n Rwanda 28n rye 61, 52, 67 sabre-toothed tigers 31, 49 saffron 115n Sahara Desert 66, 72, 89, 189, 192–3, 217–18, 220, 223n Sahel, the 63, 66, 74 Sahul 48 sailing and navigation 118n, 169 current sailing (volta do mar) 219–20, 223–4, 226, 227, 230–31, 232, 244n in doldrums 224, 234–5, 239 see also oceans; ships; trade routes, maritime St Christopher, Gulf of 226 Saint Helena 221n St Lawrence River 55 St Paul’s Cathedral, London 134 Salisbury Plain 137 salt 105, 193, 273 Salween River 91 Samarkand, Uzbekistan 190, 194, 212 Sanchi Stupa, India 129 sand 148n sandstone 132, 151–2, 276 Nubian 132, 133 Santa Marta, Gulf of 225 Santa Vitória, Brazil 225 Santorini (Thera) 162–3 Sao Tomé 225 Sardinia 99, 208 Sargasso Sea 238n Saturn 181n Saudi Arabia 120–21 savannah 7–8, 12, 14, 24, 66, 189 Scandinavia 32, 57, 58, 95, 195 scandium 176 schist 153, 154 Scotland 54, 57, 58, 148, 150 screens, TV and smartphone 176, 181 scurvy 240 and n, 241 Scythians 202 seas see oceans seaweed 171, 238n sedimentary rocks 132 Sefidabeh, Iran 29 Serengeti Desert 33 Shah Jahan 249 shale rock 125, 170, 266, 276, 279 sheep 74, 75, 76, 77, 83, 86–7, 88, 117, 198, 199, 201, 209 ships/shipping 78, 95, 96, 98, 101n, 107–8, 117–21, 167, 193, 219, 228, 246 galleons 237, 246, 248–9 galleys 219 hammocks 230n masts 130 scurvy 240 and n, 241 slave ships 253–4 steamships 107n, 122n, 260 warships 119, 122n see also sailing and navigation Siberia 32, 47, 48, 52, 142, 185, 195, 201n, 267, 279, 286 Siberian Traps 141–2, 143, 179 Sicily 105n, 208 siderophile metals 168, 178 Sierra Nevada Mountains 218n silica/silicon/silicon dioxide 17n, 140, 146, 148n, 167, 168, 175, 178n silk 112, 115, 187 and n, 193n, 249, 255 Silk Road 110, 182, 186, 187–91, 193–4, 197, 203–4, 211, 215, 285 silver 159, 163, 168, 174, 175, 177, 182, 193, 248–9 Sinai/Sinai Peninsula 23, 47, 131 Sinai Desert 110, 192 sisal 82 skyscrapers 153, 154, 155, 167 slate 132, 152–3 slavery/slave trade 116n, 125–6, 205, 218, 222, 253–4, 269 sloths, ground 49 smartphones 168, 175, 176, 181–2 Smith, William 150n Snowball Earth 172 solar energy 67, 171, 255, 257–8, 281 solar wind 169 Somatic Energy Regime 258 Sonoran Desert 191 sorghum 66, 67 South Africa 11 Cape of Good Hope 121, 225–6, 231, 250 platinum group metals 179–80 rare earth metals 177 veld 196 South America 42, 43, 48, 49–50, 54, 89, 104, 139, 237, 267 slave trade 254 South China Sea 115 South Downs 137 Southern Cross 225 South Pole 42, 43, 44, 103, 265 Soviet Union see Russia soya beans 65 Spain/the Spanish 58, 59, 90, 118, 218 and n, 226n, 227, 229, 231, 247n, 267 explorers and navigators 119, 218n, 219, 231, 237, 245, 247, 248–9 galleons 246, 249 mines 163 Reconquista 217, 218 saffron 115n Visigoths 208 Sparta 117–18 Spice Islands 96, 240, 245, 247, 251 spice trade 112–15, 193, 211, 218, 241, 245, 249, 252 spiders 262 spore-forming plants 78–9 spruce trees 79 squash plants 66, 81, 214n Sri Lanka (Ceylon) 113, 221, 245n Staffordshire: coalfields 272 star fossils 138 stars 37, 118n, 148n, 167–8, 169, 224, 227, 240, 252n, 281 steam engines 78, 97, 149, 233, 254, 259–60, 273 steam-powered machinery 148 steamships 107n, 122n, 260 steel 130n, 166–7, 174, 255, 272 step pyramids, Mesoamerican 128 steppes 33, 61, 62, 77, 79, 89, 196–203, 198–9, 204, 208 nomads 200, 204–5, 206, 208, 213–14 stirrups 194 stock market, first 97 Stoke-on-Trent: potteries 149 Stonehenge, England 137 Strabo 111, 228 ‘subtropical highs’ 232, 233 Sudbury Basin, Canada 179 Suez, Gulf of 110n Suez Canal 107n, 120, 121 Suffolk: cottages 152 sugar plantations 222, 252, 253 Sugarloaf Mountain, Rio de Janeiro 147 sulphides 157, 159, 280 sulphur 1, 167, 259 sulphur dioxide 142 Sumatra 111, 112, 114, 115, 119n, 252 Sumerians 71, 131 Sun, the/sunlight 36, 41, 43, 44, 171, 232, 258, 281 Earth’s orbit round 19, 21, 22, 24, 35, 36–9, 37 proto- 9, 168 solar wind 169 ultraviolet radiation 142, 170, 172 and n see also solar energy Sunda Strait 119n, 252 Sundaland 48 sunflowers 214n supernovae 167 swamp forests 262–3, 265–6, 268, 274 Sweden 286 Syria 163, 285 Tabriz, Iran 30 taiga 79, 195, 196 Taj Mahal, Agra, India 249 Taklamakan Desert 185, 189–90, 191 Tambora, eruption of (1815) 111, 141n tantalum 175 Tanzania 10, 11, 14 tapirs 83 Tarim Basin, China 185, 189, 204 taro 66 Tasmania 48, 97 Taurus Mountains 74, 163 Teays River 55 tectonic plates 8–10, 11, 12–13, 18, 24, 25, 41, 43, 56, 88, 98–9, 102–3, 106, 111, 135, 145–6, 148n, 159, 160, 161–2, 190–91, 218n, 262, 266, 268 and convergent plate boundary 9 and early civilisations 25–30, 70 Tehran, Iran 29–30 Ternate Island 114 Tethyean limestone 135 Tethys Ocean/Sea 102–3, 103, 104, 104–5, 105, 129, 135, 136, 138, 160, 163, 218n, 267, 274, 276–7, 279, 285 textiles 259, 269; see also cotton; wool Thames, River/Thames Valley 57, 154 Thar Desert 191 thatch-roofed buildings 152 Thebes, Egypt: Luxor Temple 132 Thera (Santorini) 162–3 thermohaline circulation 61–2, 278 Thirty Years War (1618–48) 58 thrust faults 28–30 thyme 115n Tian Shan Mountains 191, 196 Tibet/Tibetan Plateau 10, 28n, 91–3, 92, 184, 185, 191, 242, 243, 285 Ticino, River 140 Tidore Island 114 Tigris, River 27, 65, 90, 107 timber 73, 79, 130, 255–6 timber-framed houses 152 Timbuktu, Mali 193 tin 158, 164, 175, 267n tipis 130 Tivoli, Italy: mineral springs 133 Toba, eruption of 111 tobacco 252, 254 toilets, Minoan 161 tomatoes 66, 81 tools 15, 16–17, 22, 24, 137, 140, 156 Acheulean 17, 22 agricultural 76, 165–6, see also ploughs bronze 157–8, 161, 164, 165 iron 165 Oldowan 16–17, 18, 22 steel 166–7 Tordesillas line 247n Toscanelli, Paolo dal Pozzo 228 Towers of Paine, Chile 147 trade routes 29, 30, 58, 76, 89, 110, 158, 185, 194, 203, 215 maritime 106–11, 108–9, 110, 112, 114–15, 118, 119–21, 194, 216, 218, 232, 247–54 see also Silk Road trade winds 73, 219, 220, 230, 233–4, 235, 237, 238, 243–4, 246, 247, 253 Trafalgar, Battle of (1805) 58, 118 travertine 133 trees/forests 12, 15, 33, 40, 44, 61, 78, 79, 80, 81, 85, 161, 189, 255, 258, 263–4 and coal formation 261–5 coppicing 256, 258, 259 swamp 262–3, 265, 266 see also rainforests; timber Triassic Period 141, 143 Troodos Mountains, Cyprus 160, 163 Trump, President Donald 122, 124 tsunamis 25, 163 tundra 31, 33, 53, 79, 195 tungsten 168 Tunisia 100, 105 Turkey 65, 70, 88 see also Ottoman Turks turkeys 74 Turkmenistan 190, 212 Uffington White Horse, Oxfordshire 137 Uighurs 202 Ukraine 120, 202 Umayyad Caliphate 217 ungulates 12, 82–4, 86–7, 90, 196, 200, 287 see also camels; cattle; hippopotamuses; horses; pigs; rhinoceroses; zebras etc United Arab Emirates 120 United Nations building, New York 134, 145 United States 55–6, 121, 122, 124–5, 262, 267 architecture 134–5, 136 ‘Black Belt’ 125–6 coal industry 279–70 cotton plantations 125, 252, 253–4 elections (2008, 2012, 2016) 122, 123, 124 forests 195 and Hawaii 107n, 222n Indiana limestone 134–5 and Japan 122n, 222n population 284 rare earth metals 181 slavery 125–6, 253–4 see also Alaska; North America Ur 71 Ural Mountains 163, 196, 200–1 and n, 267 uranium 168, 181n, 182n Uruk 71 Uzbekistan 190, 194, 212 Vandals 207, 208 Variscan Orogeny 267 Vega 37 vegetables 66 and n, 69, 78, 81–2, 131 Venezuela 231, 279 Venice 99, 115, 140, 211, 212, 217, 229 Vienna 209 Vietnam 92 Virginia Pentagon 134 State Capitol 136n tobacco plantations 254 University Library 136n Visigoths 207, 208 volcanoes/volcanic activity 8, 9, 12–13, 24, 25, 28, 43, 85–6, 98, 107, 111, 133, 141–2, 162 and n, 172, 173, 221n, 222, 277 Krakatoa 111 Mount Elgon 12 Mount Etna 117 Mount Kenya 12 Mount Kilimanjaro 12 Popocatepetl 28 Potosí (Cerro Rico) 177, 248n Tambora 111, 141n Thera 162–3 Vesuvius 162 wagons 76, 77, 200 Wales coal 266, 272 slate 152–3 warfare 57–8, 76, 98, 101, 116n, 117–18, 119, 122, 124, 126, 184, 200n, 217, 222n, 229, 245, 247n, 248, 254 nomadic tribes 201–3, 204–6, 213 see also gunpowder; weapons Washington, DC Capitol Building 136n Hoover Building 136n National Cathedral 134 Peace Monument 136 Treasury Building 136n White House 136n water buffalo 77 Waterloo, Battle of (1815) 222n waterwheels 68, 130, 165, 257, 259 wattle and daub 152 Weald–Artois anticline 56, 154 weapons 17, 137, 140, 156, 200n bronze 116n, 157–8, 164, 165 iron 165, 166 steel 166, 174 West Africa 66, 75, 242 coastline 193, 218, 223, 224, 253 Western Ghats, India 114 Western Steppe 196, 201 whales 83n, 95, 275 wheat 61, 65, 67, 87–8, 117, 184, 214, 215n, 286 White Cliffs of Dover 57, 137, 138, 145 White House, the 136n Wight, Isle of 137, 221 wigwams 130 wildebeest 33 windmills 68, 96, 130, 257 winds 5, 32, 56, 61, 99, 197, 216, 220, 223n, 232–3 and Coriolis effect 233, 235, 237 easterly trade winds 73, 219, 220, 230, 233–4, 235, 237, 238, 243–4, 246, 247, 253 monsoon 110, 192, 240–44, 243, 251 polar easterly 235, 238 solar 169 southwesterly/westerly 220, 226, 230, 236, 237, 238, 239, 244 wool 76, 77, 88, 90, 115, 201, 255, 259 Wren, Sir Christopher: St Paul’s Cathedral 134 writing/script Minoan 163n Phoenician 101n Sumerian 131 Xiongnu, the 202, 206; see also Huns Y-chromosome Adam 46 yams 66, 82 Yangtze River 28n, 65–6, 91, 184, 187 Yankee Stadium, New York 134 Yellow River/Valley 28n, 63, 65, 73, 90, 91, 184, 187 yew trees 79 Yorkshire 134, 152, 271, 272 Yosemite National Park, USA 147 Younger Dryas Event 61, 62, 64 yttrium 175, 176 Yuan dynasty (China) 91, 210, 212 yurts 130 Zagros Mountains 27, 71, 74, 104, 110 zebras 12, 83, 89 ziggurats 131 zinc 159, 163, 174 zooplankton 275


pages: 407 words: 108,030

How to Talk to a Science Denier: Conversations With Flat Earthers, Climate Deniers, and Others Who Defy Reason by Lee McIntyre

2021 United States Capitol attack, Affordable Care Act / Obamacare, Alfred Russel Wallace, An Inconvenient Truth, Boris Johnson, carbon credits, carbon tax, Climategate, cognitive bias, cognitive dissonance, coronavirus, correlation does not imply causation, COVID-19, crisis actor, different worldview, disinformation, Donald Trump, Dunning–Kruger effect, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, experimental subject, fake news, false flag, green new deal, Higgs boson, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), lockdown, Mark Zuckerberg, Michael Shellenberger, obamacare, off-the-grid, Paris climate accords, post-truth, precautionary principle, Recombinant DNA, Richard Feynman, scientific mainstream, selection bias, social distancing, sovereign wealth fund, stem cell, Steven Levy, the scientific method, University of East Anglia, Upton Sinclair, Virgin Galactic, WikiLeaks

But if the goal is to get a Flat Earther to admit that they are wrong, it probably cannot be done, at least not in this way. The evidence for a global Earth has been around since Pythagoras (who argued that if the Moon was round, the Earth must be also). Since Aristotle (who said that if we walked north to south we would see different stars). And since Eratosthenes (who calculated the circumference of the Earth by measuring the Sun’s shadow on two sticks placed very far apart).17 This evidence had been around for 2,300 years and the Flat Earthers already knew it, but they remained unconvinced. They had an excuse for everything.18 So if they weren’t already convinced by two millennia of physics, why would they be convinced by me?

Allison Eck, “The Perfectly Scientific Explanation for Why Chicago Appeared Upside Down in Michigan,” PBS, May 8, 2015, https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/the-perfectly-scientific-explanation-for-why-chicago-appeared-upside-down-in-michigan/. 17. Alan Burdick, “Looking for Life on a Flat Earth,” New Yorker, May 30, 2018, https://www.newyorker.com/science/elements/looking-for-life-on-a-flat-earth. Though note that the Flat Earthers have an account of how Eratosthenes’s experiment might work for them as well. 18. Some of the phenomena the Flat Earthers took as evidence for their theory was easily answered by basic physics, but they still questioned it. If the Earth is round, why can you sometimes see the Sun and Moon in the sky at the same time? If a lunar eclipse is caused by the Earth’s shadow, does this mean that the Earth has to be directly between the Sun and Moon?


Human Frontiers: The Future of Big Ideas in an Age of Small Thinking by Michael Bhaskar

"Margaret Hamilton" Apollo, 3D printing, additive manufacturing, AI winter, Albert Einstein, algorithmic trading, AlphaGo, Anthropocene, artificial general intelligence, augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, backpropagation, barriers to entry, basic income, behavioural economics, Benoit Mandelbrot, Berlin Wall, Big bang: deregulation of the City of London, Big Tech, Bletchley Park, blockchain, Boeing 747, brain emulation, Brexit referendum, call centre, carbon tax, charter city, citizen journalism, Claude Shannon: information theory, Clayton Christensen, clean tech, clean water, cognitive load, Columbian Exchange, coronavirus, cosmic microwave background, COVID-19, creative destruction, CRISPR, crony capitalism, cyber-physical system, dark matter, David Graeber, deep learning, DeepMind, deindustrialization, dematerialisation, Demis Hassabis, demographic dividend, Deng Xiaoping, deplatforming, discovery of penicillin, disruptive innovation, Donald Trump, double entry bookkeeping, Easter island, Edward Jenner, Edward Lorenz: Chaos theory, Elon Musk, en.wikipedia.org, endogenous growth, energy security, energy transition, epigenetics, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, Eroom's law, fail fast, false flag, Fellow of the Royal Society, flying shuttle, Ford Model T, Francis Fukuyama: the end of history, general purpose technology, germ theory of disease, glass ceiling, global pandemic, Goodhart's law, Google Glasses, Google X / Alphabet X, GPT-3, Haber-Bosch Process, hedonic treadmill, Herman Kahn, Higgs boson, hive mind, hype cycle, Hyperloop, Ignaz Semmelweis: hand washing, Innovator's Dilemma, intangible asset, interchangeable parts, Internet of things, invention of agriculture, invention of the printing press, invention of the steam engine, invention of the telegraph, invisible hand, Isaac Newton, ITER tokamak, James Watt: steam engine, James Webb Space Telescope, Jeff Bezos, jimmy wales, job automation, Johannes Kepler, John von Neumann, Joseph Schumpeter, Kenneth Arrow, Kevin Kelly, Kickstarter, knowledge economy, knowledge worker, Large Hadron Collider, liberation theology, lockdown, lone genius, loss aversion, Louis Pasteur, Mark Zuckerberg, Martin Wolf, megacity, megastructure, Menlo Park, Minecraft, minimum viable product, mittelstand, Modern Monetary Theory, Mont Pelerin Society, Murray Gell-Mann, Mustafa Suleyman, natural language processing, Neal Stephenson, nuclear winter, nudge unit, oil shale / tar sands, open economy, OpenAI, opioid epidemic / opioid crisis, PageRank, patent troll, Peter Thiel, plutocrats, post scarcity, post-truth, precautionary principle, public intellectual, publish or perish, purchasing power parity, quantum entanglement, Ray Kurzweil, remote working, rent-seeking, Republic of Letters, Richard Feynman, Robert Gordon, Robert Solow, secular stagnation, shareholder value, Silicon Valley, Silicon Valley ideology, Simon Kuznets, skunkworks, Slavoj Žižek, sovereign wealth fund, spinning jenny, statistical model, stem cell, Steve Jobs, Stuart Kauffman, synthetic biology, techlash, TED Talk, The Rise and Fall of American Growth, the scientific method, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Thomas Bayes, Thomas Kuhn: the structure of scientific revolutions, Thomas Malthus, TikTok, total factor productivity, transcontinental railway, Two Sigma, Tyler Cowen, Tyler Cowen: Great Stagnation, universal basic income, uranium enrichment, We wanted flying cars, instead we got 140 characters, When a measure becomes a target, X Prize, Y Combinator

The pivotal role of Syracuse in the Mediterranean was helpful – it connected Archimedes to the Library of Alexandria, the great scholarly hub of the classical world. Archimedes studied under Conon of Samos in Alexandria and was familiar with thinkers of his age like Philo of Byzantium, the astronomer Aristarchus, who expounded a heliocentric cosmology, and the proto-scientist Eratosthenes, who calculated the circumference of the Earth. We can take two things from Archimedes and the crown. First, that some ideas really do have outsized impact. They change the world. Whenever it was that humanity first robustly realised it could measure volume, it had entered a new mathematical, mental, technical realm.

., and Uzzi, Brian (2007), ‘The Increasing Dominance of Teams in Production of Knowledge’, Science, Vol. 316 No. 5827, pp. 1036–9 Xinhua (2019), ‘China to build scientific research station on Moon's south pole’, Xinhua, accessed 18 January 2021, available at http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-04/24/c_138004666.htm Yueh, Linda (2018), The Great Economists: How Their Ideas Can Help Us Today, London: Penguin Viking Index ‘0,10’ exhibition 103 ‘0-I’ ideas 31 Aadhaar 265 abstraction 103 AC motor 287, 288 academia 209 Académie des sciences 47 Adam (robot) 235–6 Adams, John 211 Adler, Alfred 188 Adobe 265 Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) 180, 247, 253, 296, 317 AEG 34 aeroplanes 62–6, 68–70, 71, 219 Aeschylus 3 Africa 267, 279–80, 295 age/ageing 122, 158–60, 193 AGI see artificial general intelligence Agrarian Revolution 252 agricultural production 92–3 AI see artificial intelligence Akcigit, Ufuk 193 Alexander the Great 159 Alexander, Albert 52 Alexandrian Library 4, 295, 304 algorithms 175, 185, 196, 224, 235, 245 aliens 240–1, 306, 308–9, 337 Allison, Jim 58 Alphabet 193, 225, 265, 294, 295 AlphaFold software 225–6, 227, 228–9, 233 AlphaGo software 226–7, 228, 233 AlQuraishi, Mohammed 225, 226, 229 Amazon 84–5, 214, 272 Amazon Prime Air 71 American Revolution 139 amino acids 223, 226 Ampère, André-Marie 74–5 Anaximander 35 ancestors 10–12 ancient Greeks 1–6, 7–8, 291, 303–4 Anderson, Kurt 106 Angkor Wat 43 anthrax 47–8, 51 Anthropocene 14–15 anti-reason 211–12 anti-science 211–12 antibacterials 234 antibiotics 38, 52–3, 124, 125, 217, 315 resistance to 235 Apollo missions 70, 315, 316, 317, 318 Apple 33, 85, 159, 185, 186, 193, 272, 296, 312 Aquinas, Thomas 36 AR see augmented reality archaeology 153–4 Archimedes 1–6, 7–8, 19, 27, 32, 37, 39, 291, 304 architecture 103, 115, 188 ARIA 297 Aristarchus 5 Aristotle 24, 108, 282, 304 Arkwright, Richard 25, 26, 34, 253 Armstrong, Louis 103 ARPA see Advanced Research Projects Agency art 99–104, 107–8, 176–7, 236, 321, 339 Artemis (Moon mission) 71, 218 artificial general intelligence (AGI) 226, 237–8, 249, 250, 310, 313, 330, 341 artificial intelligence (AI) 225–9, 233–41, 246–7, 248, 249–52, 262, 266, 300, 310, 312–13, 323, 329, 330, 331, 338 arts 152, 293 see also specific arts Artsimovich, Lev 147 arXiv 116 Asia 264, 267–8, 273, 275 Asimov, Isaac, Foundation 45 Astor, John Jacob 288 astronomy 30, 231, 232 AT&T 85, 181, 183, 185, 197 Ates, Sina T. 193 Athens 24, 295 Atlantis 154 augmented reality (AR) 241–2, 338 authoritarianism 112–13, 284 autonomous vehicles 71, 72, 219 ‘Axial Age’ 108 Azoulay, Pierre 317–18 Bach, J.S. 236 bacillus 46 Bacon, Francis 25, 259 bacteria 38, 46, 53 Bahcall, Safi 31 Ballets Russes 99–100 Baltimore and Ohio railway 67 Banks, Iain M. 310 Bardeen, John 182 BASF 289 Batchelor, Charles 286 Bates, Paul 226 Bayes, Thomas 289 Beagle (ship) 36 Beethoven, Ludwig van 26 Beijing Genomics Institute 257, 294–5 Bell Labs 180–4, 186–8, 190, 206, 214, 217, 289, 296, 322 Benz, Karl 68, 219, 330 Bergson, Henri 109 Bessemer process 80 Bezos, Jeff 71, 326 Bhattacharya, Jay 201, 202, 321 Biden, Joe 59 Big Bang 117, 174, 181 Big Big Ideas 79–80 big ideas 5, 8, 11, 13–19 adoption 28 and an uncertain future 302–36 and art 99–103 artificial 223–38 and the Big Ideas Famine 13 and bisociation 36 blockers to 17–18 and breakthrough problems 46–73, 77, 86, 98, 222, 250, 301 and the ‘burden of knowledge’ effect 154–65, 175, 178, 235, 338 and business formation 95 ceiling 18 conception 37 definition 27–8, 40–1 Enlightenment 132–40, 136–40 era of 109–10 erroneous 176 evidence for 222, 223–54 execution 37 ‘fishing out’ mechanism 152 future of 45, 98, 302–36, 337–43 harmful nature 41–2 how they work 23–45 and the Idea Paradox 178–9, 187, 191, 217, 226, 250, 254, 283–4, 301, 312, 342 and the Kardashev Scale 337–43 long and winding course of 4, 5, 35–8, 136 and the low-hanging fruit paradox 149–54, 167, 178 and luck 38–9 moral 136, 138 nature of 169–72 necessity of 41–3 need for 42–3 normalisation of 171–5, 178 originality of 28 paradox of 143–79 and patents 97 process of 37–8 purchase 37–8 and resources 128 and rights 132–40 and ‘ripeness’ 39 and short-termism 192 slow death of 106–7 slowdown of 98 society's reaction to 216 and specialisation 156, 157–8 today 21–140 tomorrow 141–343 big pharma 31, 60, 185, 217–18, 226 Big Science 118–19 Bill of Rights 137 Bingham, Hiram 153 biology 243–8, 300 synthetic 245–6, 251, 310, 329 BioNTech 218, 298 biotech 195–6, 240, 246, 255–8, 262, 266, 307 bisociation 36 Björk 104 Black, Joseph 26 ‘black swan’ events 307, 310 Bletchley Park 180, 296 Bloom, Nick 91, 92, 93 Boeing 69, 72, 162, 165, 192, 238 Bohr, Niels 104, 118, 159 Boltsmann, Ludwig 188 Boston Consulting Group 204 Botha, P.W. 114 Bowie, David 107 Boyer, Herbert 243 Boyle, Robert 232 Brahe, Tycho 36, 229, 292 brain 166, 246–8, 299–300 collective 299, 300–1 whole brain emulations (‘ems’) 248–9, 341 brain drains 197 brain-to-machine interfaces 247–8 Branson, Richard 71 Brattain, Walter 182 Brazil 266–7, 268, 279 breakthrough organisations 294–9 breakthrough problems 46–73, 77, 86, 98, 222, 234, 250, 301 breakthroughs 2–5, 27–8, 32–7, 41, 129, 152, 156 and expedition novelty 333 hostility to 187 medical 58–60 missing 175 near-misses 160 nuclear power 145 price of 87–98 and short-termism 192 slowdown of 87, 94 society's reaction to 216 and universities 204 see also ‘Eureka’ moments breast cancer 94 Brexit referendum 2016: 208 Brin, Sergey 319, 326 Britain 24, 146, 259, 283, 297 see also United Kingdom British Telecom 196 Brunel, Isambard Kingdom 67 Brunelleschi 232 Bruno, Giordano 216 Buddhism 108, 175, 264–5, 340 Buhler, Charlotte 188–9 Buhler, Karl 188–9 ‘burden of knowledge’ effect 154–65, 175, 178, 235, 338 bureaucracy 198–87, 280–1 Bush, George W. 211 Bush, Vannevar 168, 314–15, 317 business start-ups 95–6 Cage, John 104 Callard, Agnes 111 Caltech 184 Cambridge University 75, 76, 124, 235–6, 257, 294–6 canals 67 cancer 57–61, 76, 93–4, 131, 234, 245, 318 research 59–61 capital and economic growth 88 gray 192, 196 human 275, 277 capitalism 36, 111–13, 186, 189, 191–8 CAR-Ts see chimeric antigen receptor T-cells carbon dioxide emissions 220–1 Cardwell's Law 283 Carey, Nessa 244 Carnap, Rudolf 189 Carnarvon, Lord 153 cars 289 electric 71 flying 71 Carter, Howard 153 Carter, Jimmy 58 Carthage 3, 43 Cartright, Mary 163 CASP see Critical Assessment of Protein Structure Prediction Cassin, René 135 Catholic Church 206, 230 Cavendish Laboratory 76, 294 Cell (journal) 234 censorship 210–11 Census Bureau (US) 78 Centers for Disease Control 212 Cerf, Vint 253 CERN 118, 233, 239, 252, 296 Chain, Ernst 52, 60, 124 Champollion, Jean-François 155 Chang, Peng Chun 135 change 10–13, 18–19, 24 rapid 30, 32 resistance to 222 slowdown 85 chaos theory 163 Chaplin, Charlie 104 Chardin, Pierre Teilhard de 300 Charpentier, Emmanuelle 244, 256 chemistry 49, 56, 104, 117, 118, 124, 149–50, 159, 241, 244 chemotherapy 57 Chicago 10 chicken cholera 46 chimeric antigen receptor T-cells (CAR-Ts) 58, 61 China 15, 25, 71–2, 111, 112, 138, 208, 213, 216, 255–64, 265, 266, 267, 268, 275, 277, 279, 280, 283, 284–5, 312, 313, 314, 319, 328 Han 259, 260 Ming 284, 308, 309 Qing 260 Song 24, 259–60, 306 Tang 259–60 Zhou 259 Christianity 108, 303–4, 340 Church, George 245 cities 270–2, 308–9, 340 civilisation collapse 42–4 decay 187 cleantech 195 climate change 219–21, 284, 313–14, 338 clinical trials 218 cliodynamics 339 coal 23, 24, 26, 80, 220 Cocteau, Jean 101 cognitive complexity, high 332–3 cognitive diversity 281–3 Cognitive Revolution 252 Cohen, Stanley N. 243, 244 collective intelligence 339 collectivism 282 Collison, Patrick 117, 272 colour 75 Coltrane, John 104 Columbian Exchange 177 Columbus 38 comfort zones, stepping outside of 334 communism 111, 133, 134, 173, 217, 284 companies creation 95–6 numbers 96–7 competition 87, 283 complacency 221–2 complexity 161–7, 178, 204, 208, 298, 302, 329 high cognitive 332–3 compliance 205–6 computational power 128–9, 168, 234, 250 computer games 107 computers 166–7, 240, 253 computing 254 see also quantum computing Confucianism 133, 259 Confucius 24, 108, 109, 282 Congressional Budget Office 82 connectivity 272 Conon of Samos 4 consciousness 248, 340 consequences 328–9 consolidation, age of 86 Constantine 303 convergence 174, 311–12 Copernicus 29, 30, 41, 152, 171, 229, 232, 292 copyright 195 corporations 204–5 cosmic background microwave radiation 117, 181 cotton weaving, flying shuttle 24–5 Coulomb, Charles-Augustin de 74–5 counterculture 106 Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic 13, 14, 15, 55, 86, 113–14, 193, 202, 208, 212, 218, 251–2, 263, 283–4, 297–8, 309, 318, 327 vaccine 125, 245 Cowen, Tyler 13, 82, 94–5, 221 cowpox 47 creativity 188, 283 and artificial intelligence 236 crisis in 108 decrease 106–8 and universities 203 Crete 43 Crick, Francis 119, 296 CRISPR 243, 244, 251, 255–8, 299 Critical Assessment of Protein Structure Prediction (CASP) 224–6, 228 Cronin, Lee 242 crop yields 92–3 cultural diversity 281–3 cultural homogenisation 177 cultural rebellion 106–7 Cultural Revolution 114, 305 culture, stuck 106 Cunard 67 Curie, Marie 104, 144, 203, 289–90, 332 Daniels, John T. 62–3 Daoism 259 dark matter/energy/force 338 DARPA see Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Darwin, Charles 34, 35–6, 37–8, 41, 77, 109, 118, 171, 289 Darwin, Erasmus 35 data 233 datasets, large 28 Davy, Sir Humphrey 149, 150 Debussy, Claude 100–1 decision-making, bad 43–4 Declaration of Independence 1776: 137 Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen 1789: 137 DeepMind 225–9, 296 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) 315 democracy 111–12 Deng Xiaoping 261 deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) 119, 223–4, 243, 251, 255, 339 DNA sequencing 56 Derrida, Jacques 109 Deutsch, David 126, 203 Diaghilev, Sergei 99–101 Diamond, Jared 42 Digital Age 180 digital technology 241–2, 243 diminishing returns 87, 91, 94, 97, 118, 123, 126, 130–1, 150, 161, 169, 173, 222, 250, 276, 285, 301 Dirac, Paul 159–60 disruption 34, 96, 109, 119, 157 diversity, cultural 281–3 DNA see deoxyribonucleic acid Dorling, Danny 171 Doudna, Jennifer 244, 251, 256 Douglas, Mary 290 Douthat, Ross 14, 106 drag 65 Drake equation 306 Drezner, Daniel 214 drones, delivery 71, 72 Drucker, Peter 189 drugs 55–7, 124, 235 Eroom's Law 55, 57, 61, 92–3, 119, 161, 234, 245, 338 and machine learning 234 research and development 55–7, 61, 92–4, 119, 161, 172–3, 217–18, 234, 245, 315, 338 see also pharmaceutical industry Duchamp, Marcel 103, 171 DuPont 184 Dutch East India Company 34 Dyson, Freeman 120 dystopias 305–8 East India Company 34 Easter Island 42–3 Eastern Europe 138 ecocides 42–3 economic growth 240, 272, 273, 316 endogenous 94 and ideas 88, 89–92, 95 process of 87–8 slowdown 82, 83, 84, 85, 178 economics 87–9, 98, 339, 340 contradictions of 87 Economist, The (magazine) 188 Edelman annual trust barometer 209 Edison, Thomas 183–4, 286–9, 290, 293 education 127, 277, 324–8 Einstein, Albert 11, 29, 74, 77, 104, 109, 117, 119, 124, 159–60, 203, 332 Eisenstein, Elizabeth 231 Eldredge, Niles 30 electric cars 71 electricity 11, 74–7, 81, 286–7, 289 electromagnetic fields 76 electromagnetic waves 75, 76 elements (chemical) 149–50 Elizabeth II 144–5 employment 204–5 Encyclopædia Britannica 97, 128, 155 ‘End of History’ 112 energy 337–8, 341–2 availability 85 use per capita 85 see also nuclear power engineering 243 England 25, 144–5, 309 Englert, François 118 Enlightenment 130, 136–40, 252 see also Industrial Enlightenment; neo-Enlightenment Eno, Brian 295 entrepreneurship, decline 96 epigenetics 164 epigraphy 236–7 epistemic polarisation 210 Epstein, David 334 Eratosthenes 5 Eroom's Law 55, 57, 61, 92–3, 119, 161, 234, 245, 338 ethical issues 256–7 Euclid 3, 304 ‘Eureka’ moments 2–5, 35, 36–7, 129, 163 Europe 95, 247, 258–60, 268, 268, 271, 283, 304, 308 European Space Agency 71 European Union (EU) 206, 216, 262, 266 Evans, Arthur 153 evolutionary theory 30, 35–6 expedition novelty 333 experimental spaces 296–8 Expressionism 104 Facebook 34, 159, 170, 197 Fahrenheit 232 failure, fear of 335 Faraday, Michael 75 FCC see Future Circular Collider FDA see Food and Drug Administration Federal Reserve (US) 82 Feigenbaum, Mitchell 163 fermentation 49 Fermi, Enrico 143, 159, 306 Fermi Paradox 306 Fernández-Armesto, Felipe 109 fertility rates 269 Feynman, Richard 77, 166, 332 film 104, 106–7, 108, 115 financialism 191–8, 206–7, 214, 217, 219 Firebird, The (ballet) 99–100 ‘first knowledge economy’ 25–6 First World War 54, 99, 104, 187, 188–9 Fisk, James 182 Fleming, Alexander 38, 52, 60, 332 flight 36, 62–6, 68–70, 71, 335 Flint & Company 64 flooding 220, 284 Florey, Howard 52, 60, 124, 332 Flyer, the 62–4, 66, 72 Foldit software 225 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 55, 60, 93, 212 food supply 81 Ford 34, 253 Ford, Henry 68, 104, 219 Fordism 81 Foucault, Michel 110 Fraenkel, Eduard 124 France 49–51, 54, 64, 67, 95, 279, 309, 332 franchises 31 Franklin, Benjamin 119, 211 Frederick the Great 292 French Revolution 137, 275 Freud, Sigmund 34, 36, 77, 104, 171, 188, 190, 216 frontier 278–9, 283–4, 302, 310–11 Fukuyama, Francis 111–12 fundamentalism 213 Future Circular Collider (FCC) 239 futurology 44 Gagarin, Yuri 70 Galen 303 Galileo 206, 231, 232, 291, 322 Galois, Évariste 159 GDPR see General Data Protection Regulation Gell-Mann, Murray 77 gene editing 243–4, 251, 255–8 General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 206 General Electric (GE) 33, 184, 265, 288, 333 General Motors 289 Generation Z 86 genes 223–4 genetic engineering 243–4, 251, 253, 255–8 genetic science 163–4, 202 genius 26 genome, human 119, 202, 244, 255–7, 296, 313 genome sequencing 243–4 germ theory of disease 50–1, 53 Germany 54, 95, 96, 279, 283, 292, 332 Gesamtkunstwerk 99 Gibson, William 241 Glendon, Mary Ann 135 global warming 147 globalisation 177 Go 226–7 Gödel, Kurt 41, 168 Goldman Sachs 197 Goodhart's Law 199 Google 34, 85, 185, 197, 240, 272, 318 20 per cent time 319–20 Google Glass 241 Google Maps 86 Google Scholar 116 Google X 294 Gordon, Robert 13, 83, 94–5 Gouges, Olympe de 137 Gould, Stephen Jay 30 Gove, Michael 208 government 205, 207, 214, 216, 252, 267–8, 297 funding 185–6, 249, 252, 314–19, 321 GPT language prediction 234, 236 Graeber, David 13–14, 111 grants 120, 185–6, 195, 202, 316, 317, 319, 321–3 gravitational waves 117–18, 119 Great Acceleration 309–10 Great Convergence 255–301, 339 Great Disruption 96 Great Enrichment (Great Divergence) 23, 26, 258 Great Exhibition 1851: 293, 309 Great Stagnation Debate 13–14, 16, 17, 45, 72, 82–3, 87, 94–6, 129, 150, 240, 279, 338 Greenland 42 Gropius, Walter 103 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) 82, 90, 128, 278, 318 GDP per capita 23, 78, 82 growth cultures 25 growth theory, endogenous 88–9, 94 Gutenberg, Johannes 36 Guzey, Alexey 200, 322 Haber, Fritz 332 Haber-Bosch process 289 Hadid, Zaha 152 Hahn, Otto 144 Hamilton, Margaret 316 Harari, Yuval Noah 114–15, 236 Harris, Robert 307 Harvard Fellows 200 Harvard, John 156 Harvey, William 34, 291–2 Hassabis, Demis 229, 233 Hayek, Friedrich 189 Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich 36 Heisenberg, Werner 41, 159, 168, 332 heliocentric theory 5, 29, 118, 232, 304 helium 145 Hendrix, Jimi 105 Henry Adams curve 85 Hero of Alexandria 39 Herper, Matthew 55 Hertz, Heinrich 76 Herzl, Theodor 188 Hesse, Herman 307 Hieron II, king of Syracuse 1–2 Higgs, Peter 118 Higgs boson 117–18, 119, 239 Hinduism 133 Hiroshima 144 Hitler, Adolf 138, 188 Hodgkin, Dorothy 124, 332 Hollingsworth, J.


pages: 481 words: 121,300

Why geography matters: three challenges facing America : climate change, the rise of China, and global terrorism by Harm J. De Blij

agricultural Revolution, airport security, Anton Chekhov, Ayatollah Khomeini, Berlin Wall, British Empire, colonial exploitation, complexity theory, computer age, crony capitalism, demographic transition, Deng Xiaoping, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, F. W. de Klerk, failed state, Fall of the Berlin Wall, Francis Fukuyama: the end of history, global village, Great Leap Forward, high-speed rail, illegal immigration, Internet Archive, John Snow's cholera map, Khyber Pass, manufacturing employment, megacity, megaproject, Mercator projection, MITM: man-in-the-middle, Nelson Mandela, Oklahoma City bombing, out of africa, RAND corporation, risk tolerance, Ronald Reagan, social distancing, South China Sea, special economic zone, Thomas Malthus, trade route, transatlantic slave trade, UNCLOS, UNCLOS

Sit down next to someone in an airplane or in a waiting room somewhere, get involved in a conversation, and that someone is bound to ask: Geography? You're a geographer? What is geography, anyway? In truth, we geographers don't have a single, snappy answer. A couple of millennia ago, geography essentially was about discovery. A Greek philosopher named Eratosthenes moved geographic knowledge forward by leaps and bounds; by measuring Sun angles, he not only concluded that the Earth was round but came amazingly close to the correct figure for its circumference. Several centuries later, geography was propelled by exploration and cartography, a period that came to a close, more or less, with the adventures and monumental writings of Alexander von Humboldt, the German naturalist-geographer.

See also United Kingdom English Channel, 74 Enlai, Zhou, 125 Environmental Conservation, 15 environmental determinism, 11, 87-90 environmental issues, 6, 15, 100-101, 102, 115. See also global warming Eocene era, 55, 59, 63, 64, 64, 66 epidemiology, 6, 42-44, 43 equal-area projections in maps, 33 Equatorial Guinea, 185 Eratosthenes, 5 Eritrea, 118, 176, 184, 185 Estonia borders and boundaries, 169, 231 and European Union, 217, 218, 225, 227 language, 198, 199, 201 and NATO, 229 and Russia, 231, 234, 236 Ethiopia (formerly Abyssinia) borders and boundaries, 118, 259 colonialism, 111-12, 184 Ogaden, 184, 186, 260 population, 103 religion, 182, 184, 185, 260 wars, 266 ethnic groups and ethnic conflict.


pages: 482 words: 125,429

The Book: A Cover-To-Cover Exploration of the Most Powerful Object of Our Time by Keith Houston

clean water, Commentariolus, dumpster diving, Eratosthenes, financial innovation, invention of movable type, Islamic Golden Age, Kickstarter, knowledge economy, means of production, Murano, Venice glass, paper trading, Ponzi scheme, Suez crisis 1956, wikimedia commons

Collectively, Calliope, Clio, Euterpe, Terpsichore, Erato, Melpomene, Thalia, Polyhymnia, and Urania were the source of all divine inspiration, believed by poets, actors, astronomers, and philosophers to be the wellspring of their creativity and talents.39 Fittingly, the Mouseion, as their temple was known (we call its successors “museums”), was dedicated to the study of the natural world and the heavens above it.40 The Ptolemies attracted scholars with tax breaks and free accommodation, and encouraged them to spend their days in discussion, contemplation, reading, and writing.41 Euclid wrote Elements, his groundbreaking book on mathematics, at the Mouseion; it was there that an astronomer named Aristarchus surmised that the Earth orbited the sun and not the other way around, while his colleague Eratosthenes calculated the diameter of the Earth to a scarcely believable accuracy of fifty miles. And it was here that Archimedes, a Sicilian engineer who had grown up by the sea and who must have felt at home in the mighty port of Alexandria, was inspired to invent a screw-shaped pump later given his name.42 The Mouseion’s crown jewel was the fabled Library of Alexandria, reputed to contain some 700,000 scrolls.43 And just as a visit to any modern library reveals shelf after shelf of nigh-identical books, each one a variation on the same basic design, a visiting scholar at Alexandria would have been greeted by endless rows and cubbyholes of scrolls all produced according to a common standard.

Cuthbert Gospel, 295–96 tooled designs on, 303–4 Cowper, Edward, 134 Crates of Mallus, 23, 272–73 Crocodilopolis, Egypt, 241 crocuses, 172 Cromwell, Oliver, 323–24 Crusades, book burning in, 56, 58 cuneiform script, 9, 79–80, 81, 82, 93–94, 242 Cusanus (Nicholas of Kues), 107–9 Cuthbert, Saint, 284–85 dabbers (ink balls), 120, 122, 193 Daguerre, Louis-Jacques-Mandé, 227, 229 daguerreotypes, 227–28 Damascus, 54 Dandolo, Andrea, 175 Dante Alighieri, 208–9 Dark Ages, 164 Dattari, Maria, 279 Davenport, Cyril, 266, 268 Dazangjing (Great Treasury of Sutras), 181 deacidification, of books, 71–72 Dead Sea Scrolls, 26 De casibus virorum illustrium (On the Fates of Famous Men), 203, 205 deckle edges, 314 deckles, 314 in papermaking, 45–46 dedication, ix De dissectione partium corporis humani libri tres (On dissection of the human body; Estienne), 195 De diversis artibus (The Various Arts; Theophilus), 28–29 De integritatis et corruptionis virginum notis (Thoughts on the integrity and corruption of virgins), 305–6, 307 Demaratus, 96, 258–59 demotic scripts, Egyptian, 90–91, 244 Den, pharaoh, 244 Deng, dowager empress of China, 47 Densmore, James, 140 dermis, 24 Des destinées de l’âme (The destinies of the soul; Houssaye), 305–6 Destruction of Pharaoh’s Host in the Red Sea (Titian), 198 Deuteronomy, Book of, 26 devotional images (Andachtsbilder), 192–93 as pilgrims’ souvenirs, 192–93 woodblock printing of, 193 Diamond Sutra, oldest printed edition of, 183–84, 184 dichromated gelatin, 230, 231, 233 Didot, Saint-Léger, 64–65 Diether von Isenburg, archbishop of Mainz, 127 diethyl zinc (DEZ), 72 difthérai, 274 diminuendo, 162 dingbat, vii Diodorus of Sicily, 89 diptych (writing tablet), 257, 258, 274 Disquisition on the Composing Stick (Speckter), 121 Divine Comedy (Dante), 208–9 Djedkare Isesi, pharaoh, 248 Dōkyō, 182 Domesday Book, 233, 235 Dominican Order, 193 Donatus, Aelius, 106–7 Doresse, Jean, 277, 289 Dou, empress of China, 40–41, 47–48 double-cord binding, 296–98, 297, 330–31 drop cap, 3 Dunhuang, China, 37, 179, 183–85, 266, 267 Dünne, Hans, 114–15, 116 duodecimo (book size), 321, 323, 326 Dürer, Albrecht, 198, 203, 209, 212–13 woodcuts of, 195, 196, 197 Durham, England, 284–85 Durham Cathedral, 285 dust jackets, 304 duxustus parchment, 27 Eadfrith, 287 East Asia, papermaking in, 50, 53 e-books, xv–xvi publisher deletions of, xvi Edelstein, Der (The Precious Stone; Boner), 199, 201 Edinburgh, Scotland, 214, 304–5 Edinburgh, University of, 304 Egypt: Copts in, 294 linen-based paper in, 37 Egypt, ancient, 3–4, 6–10, 82–84, 89, 241–49, 270–71 Alexander’s conquest of, 88, 249 Books of the Dead in, 20, 157–58, 159, 245 inks in, 84–85, 242 papyrus scrolls in, 243–45, 247–56 scribes in, 85, 87–88, 87, 246, 250–51 taxation in, 249 writing on leather in, 20 Egypt, Ptolemaic, 19–22, 22, 88, 159, 249–52, 276 Antiochus’s invasion of, 22–23 Roman conquest of, 88 Egypt, Roman, codices in, 261–65, 270 Egyptology, 3 Eid, Albert, 289–90 Eid Codex (Jung Codex; Codex I), 289–91 El-Bahnasa, Egypt, 261–63 electronic books, see e-books electronic documents, as analogous to papyrus scrolls, 254 Elements (Euclid), 250 Elephantine Island, 270–71 enchiridion (handbook), 317 Encyclopedia Britannica, 90 endbands, 300–301, 331 endpapers, 300, 308, 331 England, 63 see also Great Britain; United Kingdom English Civil War, 323 engravings, 203–5, 206, 207–10, 207, 215–16, 220, 234 Epigrams (Martial), 274–76 epilogues, 329 Erasmus, 195 Eratosthenes, 250 Erotemata (Questions), 316, 317 Estienne, Charles, 195 etching: on armor, 210–11 copperplate printing and, 211–13, 216, 230 on iron plates, 211 Ethiopians, 293 Etruscans, alphabet of, 92 Euclid, 250 Eumenes II, king of Pergamon, 19–20, 21, 23 Euphrates River, 79 Euripides, 15 Europe: illuminated manuscripts in, 165–66 papermaking in, 56, 57, 58–63 spread of Christianity in, 164–65 woodblock printing in, 190–201 extract, 13 Eyck, Jan van, 121 Facen, Jacopo, 190–91 Fangshan, China, 181 feiqian (flying money), 187 Fellowship of the Ring, The (Tolkien), 298 Feltre, Italy, 190–91 Fenerty, Charles, 36 Feng Dao, 185 ferrous sulfate (copperas), 97, 100–101 Fifty Shades of Grey (James), 220 Filippo de Strata, 128–29 Finiguerra, Maso, 204, 206 First Folio (Shakespeare), 233 flying money (feiqian), 187 folio (book size), 313, 314, 314, 317–18, 325–26, 330 folio (page number), 10, 11 folios, 290, 291, 316 gatherings of, 311–12 fonts, monospaced, 142 foolscap (paper size), 324 foot margin, 6 footnotes, xv, 320 formes, 121, 122, 227, 230 four-color art, 307 Fourdrinier, Henry and Sealy, 65 Fourdrinier papermaking machine, 64–66, 67, 73, 76, 133, 135, 308, 314, 327, 329 Francesco Griffo, 317, 320 Frances Loeb Library, 280, 297 Frankfurt Book Fair, 123 Franks, 156, 165 Frederick II, Holy Roman emperor, 56 freesheet paper, 74, 75 French Revolution, 64 French Royal Academy, 68 Frey, Don, 256 Frisia, 298 frisket, 120 Fritsch, Ahasverus, 71 frontmatter head, xi, xv Fujiwara, Japan, 181 full-page art, 57 Fust, Johann, 106, 109, 126–27 Fust & Schöffer, 127, 329 Gaels, 161 galley, 121 Gamble, John, 65 Gardiner, Alan H., 92–93 Gardiner, Maine, 66, 68 Gaul, 156 Genoa, 175, 189 Gentleman’s Magazine, 70 Germanic tribes, 156, 164–65 Germany, 36, 63, 105, 107, 132, 139, 199, 206, 210–11, 225, 318, 325 see also Mainz, Germany gesso, 171 gewil parchment, 27 Gleissner, Franz, 221–22, 224 Gnostics, 279 goatskin, 20, 28, 30, 279, 295, 304 goldbeater’s skin, 171 Golden Ratio, 324 gold leaf, 169, 171 on covers, 304 Gorgo, queen of Sparta, 259 Gorstein, Irina, 280, 297 Gothic textura (blackletter) script, 99, 107, 123, 318 Goths, 156 Graf Zeppelin, 171 graphite pencils, 259 Great Britain, 156 illuminated manuscripts in, 161 parliament of, 323–24 Viking invasions of, 164, 284 see also England; United Kingdom Great Harris Papyrus, 249 Greece, ancient, 159 alphabet of, 92 papyrus in, 9–10, 94 papyrus scrolls in, 10, 244, 250–56 pen-and-ink writing in, 94–96 Greek, typefaces for, 316–17 Greeneville, Conn., 67 Gregory I, Pope, 166 Grenfell, Bernard P., 261–65, 276 grimoires, 34 guilds, medieval, 103 gum arabic, 30, 85, 94, 95, 100 oleophobic quality of, 223, 224 gunpowder, Chinese invention of, 177 Gutenberg, Johannes, 62, 101, 102–3, 169, 177, 199, 225, 301, 316 Ars grammatica of, 107, 199, 201 background of, 105 Bible of, 109, 114–23, 124–25, 145, 199, 229, 314, 316–17, 318, 324 holy mirror business of, 104–5 ink and, 121–22 movable type and, 106, 109, 114–23, 128 papal indulgences printed by, 108–9 presses of, 122–23 in Strasbourg, 103–6 gutter, 6 Haas, Wilhelm, 129 Hahl, August, 139–40 half title, iii halftone printing, 230, 231, 330 movable type and, 230, 233 Hancock, William, 308–9, 310 Han period, 39, 180 Hapi, 8 Hare, William, 304 Harun al-Rashid, 54 Havell, Robert, Jr., 216, 217, 218 He, emperor of China (Liu Zhao), 40–41 headbands, 300–301 head margin, 6 Hebrew language, 93 hei laohu (black tigers), 180 Hellespont, 6–7 Helmasperger, Ulrich, 126 Helmasperger Notarial Instrument, 126 Hemaka, 244–45 hemp, in papermaking, 37, 41, 42, 55 Hendriks, Ignace H.


pages: 544 words: 134,483

The Human Cosmos: A Secret History of the Stars by Jo Marchant

Albert Einstein, Alfred Russel Wallace, Arthur Eddington, British Empire, complexity theory, Dava Sobel, Drosophila, Easter island, Eddington experiment, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, founder crops, game design, Great Leap Forward, Henri Poincaré, invention of writing, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, John Harrison: Longitude, lateral thinking, Lewis Mumford, lone genius, mass immigration, meta-analysis, Nicholas Carr, out of africa, overview effect, Plato's cave, polynesian navigation, scientific mainstream, scientific worldview, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, Searching for Interstellar Communications, Skype, social intelligence, Stephen Hawking, Steven Pinker, Stuart Kauffman, technological singularity, TED Talk, the scientific method, Thomas Bayes, trade route

As well as stars, he marked significant features such as the celestial poles, the equator and the tropics (the path of the Sun through the sky on the equinoxes and solstices, respectively). When astronomers subsequently built terrestrial globes, they traced the same points and circles onto the surface of the Earth. In the third century BC, the astronomer Eratosthenes compared shadows in distant cities to work out the length of the equator—in other words, the circumference of the Earth. It was then just a matter of geometry to calculate the length of any parallel circle around the planet, and to convert differences in latitude—calculated from astronomical observations—into distances.

John, 158 The Book of the Dead, 88 Born, Max, 221 Bovelli, Antonio, 110 Bowlby, Jo, 19–20 Boyle, Robert, 169n Bragdon, Claude, 215 Breakthrough Listen, 283 Breton, André, 218 British Museum, 43–48, 52–54, 68, 87, 229 Brown, Frank, 225–34, 236, 238, 241, 244–47, 251, 253–55 Brugsch, Émile and Heinrich, 84–86 Brunelleschi, Filippo, 202, 203 Bruno, Giordano, 260–61 Bucke, Richard Maurice, 295 Bull No. 18 (cave painting), 1–10, 12, 21–22 Bünning, Erwin, 230 Bunsen, Robert, 177–81, 183–85, 187, 220 Burke, Edmund, 165–66 Butler, Paul, 269 Callanish (Scotland), 25 Callisto (myth), 11 Cambridge University, 195 Campion, Nicholas, 66, 88–89, 93, 153 Candolle, Augustin de, 227 Carhart-Harris, Robin, 297–98 Carpenter, Edward, 209 Carroll, Sean, 306, 314 Cassiopeia (myth), 11 Çatalhöyük (Turkey), 30–31, 33, 34, 50 Cat’s-Eye Nebula, 189 Cauvin, Jacques, 28, 29 Çayönü (“House of the Dead”), 30–31 Ceres (asteroid), 176 Cernan, Gene, 293 Cézanne, Paul, 203–4 Chac (god), 154 Chagall, Marc, 223 Chalmers, David, 305, 308 Les Champs Magnétiques (Breton), 218 Charles II (king of England), 128 Chashnik, Ilya, 223 Chauvet Cave (France), 18 Cherokee people, 1 Cheyenne people, 9 chronobiology, 225–55 Brown and, 225–34, 236, 238, 241, 244–47, 251, 253–55 circadian rhythm and, 230–31, 232–38, 241 cryptochromes, 250–51, 251n desynchronization and, 235, 247, 248 ether and, 227–28, 251–52 magnetic fields and, 245–51, 253–55 modern technology and, 252–53 period gene and, 237–38 traditional societies on, 238–45 Chumash people, 13–20 Church of the Holy Sepulchre (Jerusalem), 77 Cicero, 103–4 Clever Hans (horse), 191n, 228, 249 Clinton, Bill, 271, 275 Clottes, Jean, 17 Cole, LaMont, 232 comets, discovery of, 190 Common Sense (Paine), 161–62, 168 Comte, Auguste, 176–77, 180, 194, 196, 252 “A Confutation of Atheism from the Origin and Frame of the World” (Bentley), 169n consciousness, 287–316 awe and, 287–92, 297–99, 315–16 cosmic consciousness, 295, 300 cosmopsychism and, 309 integrated information theory, 308 Many Worlds theory, 303, 304, 314 Overview Effect, 292–94 physics vs. panpsychism on, 301–11 quantum physics on, 302–3, 311–14 technology and effect on, 299, 317–20 transcendence and, 294–300 Consolmagno, Guy, 92 Constantine, Divine Emperor of the Christian Golden Age (Bardill), 75–76 Constantine I (Roman emperor), 69–71, 74–81, 89, 90–93, 98–99, 155 Constantius I (Roman emperor), 75 Constantius II (Roman emperor), 90n Cook, James, 123–25, 128–31, 133–39, 141–43, 145, 152 Copenhagen Interpretation, 302, 311 Copernicus, Nicolaus, 65, 131, 155, 260 Coppler, Christian, 190n Cosmic Hunt, 10–22 cosmopsychism, 309 Coster, Salomon, 117 counterpoise, 158–59 Cow and Violin (Malevich), 212 Cox, Brian, 66, 306 Coyote (myth), 14, 15 Crick, Francis, 264, 305 Crookes, William, 209 Crowe, Michael, 260, 261 cryptochromes, 250–51, 251n Crystals in the Sky (Hudson), 14 cuneiform, 45–52 Curtius Rufus, Quintus, 58 cycloidal arc, 117n Dafydd ap Gwilym, 113 Dante, 114–15, 172 Darwin, Charles, 54, 191n, 194, 261–62 Davies, Paul, 264, 278, 307 Dawkins, Richard, 66, 305 “The Dead Man” (cave drawing), 20–22 Debata (god), 72 Declaration of Independence, 163 Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (France), 165 de la Rue, Warren, 185–86 de Mairan, Jean-Jacques d’Ortous, 227 Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (Picasso), 204 Dennett, Daniel, 305, 307 Descartes, René, 66, 115, 115n, 146, 173, 261, 301, 314, 319 desynchronization, 235, 247, 248 d’Huy, Julien, 11–12, 16, 20–21 Dick, Steven, 286 Dick, Thomas, 261 Dickinson, John, 164 Diocletian (Roman emperor), 75, 77, 97n Diodorus, 67 Di Piazza, Anne, 142, 144–45 Doppler effect, 190, 196, 267, 282 Douglas, Charlotte, 200–201 Dowth (Ireland), 36 Draco (constellation), 189 Drake, Frank, 281, 283n Draper, Henry and Anna, 192 Dreams of a Final Theory (Weinberg), 305 Duchamp, Marcel, 217–18 Durrington Walls (England), 39–40 Dyaus (god), 75 Ea (god), 49 Earth astronomical units (AU), 134n magnetic field of, 246n rotation of, 119, 127n Eddington, Arthur, 218, 219, 302, 308 Edward II (king of England), 97–98 Edward III (king of England), 97, 106, 120 Einstein, Albert, 219–20, 302, 303 Elagabalus (god), 76 Eliade, Mircea, 16, 71–73, 238–39 El Lissitzky, 214, 223 Endeavour (British ship). See Cook, James Enlightenment. See individual Enlightenment philosophers Enūma Anu Enlil, 47, 50–52, 55–56, 58, 68 Enuma Elish, 49–50 The Epic of Gilgamesh, 48–49, 52, 82 Epping, Joseph, 54–55, 57, 60–61, 64 Eratosthenes, 143 etak (“moving island” navigation), 144 Etemenanki (Babylonian temple), 52–53, 67 ether concept, 227–28, 251–52 Eudoxus, 142 European Space Agency, 278, 279 Eusebius (Caesarea bishop), 69, 77–78, 79, 91–92 Evans, James, 57, 59, 60, 62, 63, 64 fate, 43–68 Assyrians’ belief in, 43–47, 50–52, 56 astrology and, 56–58, 62–66 Enūma Anu Enlil and, 47, 50–52, 55–56, 58, 68 The Epic of Gilgamesh and, 48–49, 52 Mesopotamian myth, 52–57, 60 Feingold, Mordechai, 156, 158 Ferguson, James, 152, 169 51 Pegasi b, 268–70 Fildes, Gary, 197 Final Self-Portrait (Malevich), 224 Fincke, Jeanette, 46, 48, 50 Finney, Ben, 139 Finno-Ugric tribes, 11 First Abstract Watercolor (Kandinsky), 208–9 First Light (Hensey), 34–35 Flammarion, Camille, 209, 262 Flamsteed, John, 118, 128 Fortuna (goddess), 109 Fort Venus (Tahiti), 125, 130, 133–35 Foster, Russell, 237 Fox, Harold Munro, 240 Franklin, Benjamin, 160, 161, 164, 170, 261 Fraunhofer, Joseph von, 181–85, 196–97, 220 Fraunhofer lines, 181–85, 191 Frederick II (Holy Roman emperor), 104 French Revolution, 164–67, 171 Freyja (goddess), 1 Frisius, Gemma, 127 Fuchs, Christopher, 313–14 Gagarin, Yuri, 292 Galileo Galilei, 65, 116–17, 131, 156, 157, 181, 196, 261, 301, 319 Galileo’s Error (Goff), 308 Garan, Ron, 293 Garriott, Richard, 293 Gauguin, Paul, 203 Geb (god), 86–87 Gemini (constellation), 14, 175 general relativity, 219 genetics, 236–38, 242n, 264, 278, 303 Geographia (Ptolemy), 143, 202–3 George, Andrew, 53 George II (king of England), 155–56 George III (king of England), 155–56, 175 Gesta Abbatum, 121n Gibson, Ed, 294 Gibson, Everett, 266, 271–72, 274, 275 Giovanni de’ Dondi, 115 Göbekli Tepe (Turkey), 27–30, 32–33, 34–35, 41 Goff, Philip, 308 Goldin, Daniel, 271, 272, 274–75 Gore, Al, 271, 286 Gould, James, 254 GPS technology, 146–48 gravity chronobiology on, 226, 231, 235, 243, 245n Newton on, 117–18, 128, 156, 158, 174 search for planets and, 267 “The Great Bear and the Phallus of Heaven” (Baudouin), 7 “Great Persecution,” 77, 97n Greeks (ancient).


The Art of Computer Programming by Donald Ervin Knuth

Abraham Wald, Brownian motion, Charles Babbage, complexity theory, correlation coefficient, Donald Knuth, Eratosthenes, G4S, Georg Cantor, information retrieval, Isaac Newton, iterative process, John von Neumann, Louis Pasteur, mandelbrot fractal, Menlo Park, NP-complete, P = NP, Paul Erdős, probability theory / Blaise Pascal / Pierre de Fermat, RAND corporation, random walk, sorting algorithm, Turing machine, Y2K

[M24] Up is an odd prime and if N is not a multiple of p, prove that the number of integers x such that 0 < x < p and x2 — N = y2 (modulo p) has a solution y is equal to (p±l)/2. 7. [25] Discuss the problems of programming the sieve of Algorithm D on a binary computer when the table entries for modulus rrii do not exactly fill an integral number of memory words. > 8. [23] (The sieve of Eratosthenes, 3rd century B.C.) The following procedure evi- evidently discovers all odd prime numbers less than a given integer N, since it removes all the nonprime numbers: Start with all the odd numbers between 1 and N; then successively strike out the multiples pi, Pk(pk + 2), Pk{Pk + 4), . . . , of the fcth prime Pki for k = 2, 3, 4, ..., until reaching a prime Pk with pi > N.

The purpose of this exercise is to show that the number of primes less than N3 can be calculated by looking only at the primes less than iV2, and thus to evaluate ir(N3) in O(N2+€) steps. Say that an "m-survivor" is a positive integer whose prime factors all exceed m; thus, an m-survivor remains in the sieve of Eratosthenes (exercise 8) after all multiples of primes < m have been sieved out. Let f(x, m) be the number of m-survivors that are < x, and let fk(x,m) be the number of such survivors that have exactly k prime factors (counting multiplicity). a) Prove that 7r(iV3) = ir(N) + f{N3, N) - 1 - /2(iV3, N). b) Explain how to compute f2{N3, N) from the values of ir(x) for x < N2.

. | A major part of this calculation could be made noticeably faster if q (instead of j) were tested against M in step S4, and if a new loop were appended that outputs 2j + 1 for all remaining X[j] that equal 1, suppressing the manipulation of p and q. 4.5.4 ANSWERS TO EXERCISES 659 Notes: The original sieve of Eratosthenes was described in Book 1, Chapter 13 of Nicomachus's Introduction to Arithmetic. It is well known that 5Zpprime[p < N]/p = lnlnJV + M + O((logiV)-10000), where M = 7 + Efe>2 A*(fc) lnC(fc)/fc is Mertens's constant 0.26149 72128 47642 78375 54268 38608 69585 90516-; see F. Mertens, Crelle 76 A874), 46-62; Greene and Knuth, Mathematics for the Analysis of Algorithms (Boston: Birkhauser, 1981), §4.2.3.


pages: 194 words: 49,310

Clock of the Long Now by Stewart Brand

Albert Einstein, Brewster Kahle, Buckminster Fuller, Charles Babbage, Colonization of Mars, complexity theory, Danny Hillis, Eratosthenes, Extropian, fault tolerance, George Santayana, Herman Kahn, Internet Archive, Jaron Lanier, Kevin Kelly, Kim Stanley Robinson, knowledge economy, Lewis Mumford, life extension, longitudinal study, low earth orbit, Metcalfe’s law, Mitch Kapor, nuclear winter, pensions crisis, phenotype, Ray Kurzweil, Robert Metcalfe, Stephen Hawking, Stewart Brand, technological singularity, Ted Kaczynski, Thomas Malthus, Tragedy of the Commons, Vernor Vinge, Whole Earth Catalog

The famous library and museum at its peak may have held six hundred thousand scrolls—the equivalent of one hundred twenty thousand modern books. Alexandria’s library was an intensely productive community of writers, translators, editors, historians, mathematicians, astronomers, geographers, and physicians. Its librarians included Apollonius of Rhodes (poet of The Argonauts), Callimachus (the father of bibliography), Eratosthenes (who estimated the diameter of the Earth), Aristarchus of Samos (a Sun-centered Copernican eighteen centuries before Copernicus), and Hipparchus (discoverer of the precession of the equinoxes). By dint of exhaustive collection and close scholarship, canonical editions of classics such as Homer, Plato, and the Athenian playwrights were created and distributed.


pages: 158 words: 49,168

Infinite Ascent: A Short History of Mathematics by David Berlinski

Alan Turing: On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem, Albert Einstein, Andrew Wiles, Benoit Mandelbrot, Douglas Hofstadter, Eratosthenes, four colour theorem, Georg Cantor, Gödel, Escher, Bach, Henri Poincaré, Isaac Newton, John von Neumann, Murray Gell-Mann, Stephen Hawking, Turing machine, William of Occam

It is the Greek philosopher and mathematician Proclus who has provided the most extended commentary on Euclid’s life. It amounts to only a single paragraph. “The man lived,” Proclus writes, “in the time of the first Ptolemy.” Euclid was thus younger, Proclus adds, than Plato’s students and older than Eratosthenes and Archimedes. Ptolemy I, the ruler of Egypt and so a midget among these mighties, makes a brief ignominious appearance in the account that Proclus offers, asking “if in geometry there was any shorter way than the Elements.” “There is no royal road to geometry,” Euclid informed the pharaoh brusquely.


pages: 190 words: 52,570

The Planets by Dava Sobel

Albert Einstein, Colonization of Mars, Dava Sobel, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, friendly fire, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, Kim Stanley Robinson, Kuiper Belt, Late Heavy Bombardment, music of the spheres, Norman Mailer, Suez canal 1869, Thales of Miletus

On the Island of Thulē (Shetland Islands), for example, far up at 63 degrees north, where the longest day lasts a full twenty hours, no one sees the mid-summer return of the Dog Star that marks the flooding of the Nile in Egypt. Ptolemy assumes the world to measure 18,000 miles around. His predecessor Eratosthenes had figured the earth’s circumference at a more generous 25,000 miles in 240 B.C., by comparing shadow lengths in two cities along the Nile on the day of the summer solstice, but Ptolemy favors the more recent work of Poseidonius, about 100 B.C., who observed the stars to shrink the globe. Ptolemy’s Geographia offers instructions for creating globes as well as flat map projections.


pages: 577 words: 149,554

The Problem of Political Authority: An Examination of the Right to Coerce and the Duty to Obey by Michael Huemer

Cass Sunstein, Chelsea Manning, cognitive dissonance, cuban missile crisis, Daniel Kahneman / Amos Tversky, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, experimental subject, framing effect, Garrett Hardin, Gini coefficient, illegal immigration, impulse control, Isaac Newton, Julian Assange, laissez-faire capitalism, land bank, Machinery of Freedom by David Friedman, Milgram experiment, moral hazard, Phillip Zimbardo, profit maximization, profit motive, Ralph Nader, RAND corporation, rent-seeking, Ronald Coase, Stanford prison experiment, systematic bias, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Tyler Cowen, unbiased observer, uranium enrichment, WikiLeaks

His strong thesis of moral infallibility may be explained by his antirealist metaethics (1992, Section III.i.1–2). 6 Lindberg 1992, 58; Russell 1991. In the fourth century BC, Aristotle discussed the arguments establishing the earth’s sphericity (De Caelo, 297a9–297b20), and in the third century BC, Eratosthenes provided a reasonably accurate estimate of the earth’s circumference. 7 See Stove (1995, 58–62) on ‘The Columbus Argument’ for further discussion. 8 See McLean and Hewitt’s introduction to Condorcet 1994 (35–6). Condorcet notes that when we assume individuals are 80 percent reliable and the majority outnumbers the minority by as few as nine persons, the probability of the majority being correct exceeds 99.999 percent.

Filburn, 224 court packing, 225 courtrooms, 118, 119–20 courts costs of using, 282 delays, 282 privatization of, 325–6 and wrongful convictions, 270, 276, 278–80 see also arbitration Cowen, Tyler, 258–9 credit reporting, 270–1 crime attitudes of victims toward, 275 exonerations, 278–80 government protection from, 81–2 uncompensable, 273–4 criminal justice system, prospects for reform, 284–6 criminal record reporting, 270–1, 273–4 criminals character of, 277 protected by government, 240 unprofitability of protecting, 239 Cthulhu, 92 culture, 115 death penalty, 324 defense, societal, 82, 144 see also military; war deliberative democracy defined, 60–1 as fantasy, 61–4 irrelevance of, 64–5 Delli Carpini, Michael, 211 DeLue, Steven, 101n2 democracy advantages of, 79, 185, 228–9 and legitimacy, 77–9 problems of, 208–13, 219–21 not supported by obedience, 70–1 spread of, 321–2, 330 democratic law, 65 democratic peace, 303–5 deterrence, 306–10 developing world, as target for social programs, 152–4 diffidence, 198, 201 diminishing marginal utility, 150 disagreement, sources of, 49–50 diseconomies of scale, 255–6 disobedience and acceptance of punishment, 164–6 justified, 163–4 as threat to social order, 83–4, 91, 173–4 dissenters, 91–3 distance, emotional, 122–3 distributive justice, see social welfare programs doing/allowing distinction, 142–3 drug laws, 89, 139–40, 172, 173–4, 330 effect on organized crime, 248 Duane, James, 168n36 Dugard, Jaycee Lee, 124 duty to do good, 83–4 Dworkin, Ronald, 37n2 economies of scale, 254–5 Edmundson, William, 9n6, 128n48 egalitarianism, 148–9, 192–3, 244 egoism, ethical, 176 egoism, psychological, see selfishness Egypt, 293–4 elections influences on, 218, 242–3 probability of tie, 210 see also democracy; voting Ellsberg, Daniel, 216 emigration, 252 eminent domain, 29 emotional distance, 122–3 equal advancement of interests, 67–70 equality and argument for authority, 65–7 incompatible with coercion, 75–7 interpretation of, 71–3 of judgment, 74–5 of power, 202 Eratosthenes, 103n6 Estonia, 293, 330 ethics, 14–15 knowledge of, 170–1, 172–3 necessary conditions for reliability, 55–7 principles independent of government, 84 procedural versus substantive constraints, 54–5 progress in, 332 sufficient conditions for reliability, 52–5 examples Abel, 200–1, 205, 206 Alastair, 55 Amnesty International, 78–9 Archer Midland, 142 bar tab, 59, 64–5, 75–7 board meeting, 22, 25–6, 26–7 cabin in the woods, 160 car sale, 51 car theft, 94, 95 charitable tax-evader, 93 Charity Case, 69–70 charity mugging, 154–9 child-beating chauffeur, 161–2 child retrieving cat, 187–9 cigarette prohibition, 139–40 class lottery, 23 cold child, 152 diamond, 51 disrespecting colleagues, 78 dog hit by car, 183–4 drowning child, 83, 84–5, 149, 154–9 gardener, 175–6 Gumby and Pokey, 98–9 examples – continued homophobic gang, 166, 169 incompetent bystander, 149–50 landmines on lawn, 316 lifeboat, 87–8, 90–1, 92, 94–5, 97, 98 Lindsey Lohan, 217 lost keys, 54 man on ship, 28 mom against drunk driving, 184 overworked philanthropist, 157 painter, 42 party, 26 private party hostile to foreign government, 301 private security failure, 219 prostitution, 138–9 protection cartel, 259 reasonable employment offer, 44, 51 restaurant, 22–3, 26, 27 Sally’s widgets, 257–8, 268 Sam’s gang, 163–4 self-flagellation, 90–1 shipwreck, 44–5 Sneaku ad agency, 93–4 soldier/unjust war, 171 starving Marvin, 142–3 stealing from company, 170 suicide, 140 Superior/Inferior election, 217–9 Tannahelp/Murbard, 250–2 Target return, 269 Tax Case, 69–70 traffic violation, 9 unconscious patient, 37–8 vigilante, 3–4, 7–8, 144 exonerations, 278–80 extortion, 249–53 extremism, 337 fairness, 51–2 and argument for authority, 171 and argument for political obligation, 86–93 conditions for obligation based on, 87–8 farm bill, 212–13, 214–15 fixed costs, 255 food crisis, 213 force, see coercion foreign policy, 209, 312–13 foreigners, 209, 237 Freud, Anna, 126n45 Friedman, David, 192n16, 200n6, 250n25, 251n26 Friedman, Milton, 191n14 Gandhi, Mohandas K., 292 Gaus, Gerald, 42n12 gay marriage, 96, 208 generality, 12 genocide, 207 gerrymandering, 72–3 Gini coefficient, 193n18 gladiators, 323 glory, 198 Goodin, Robert, 154n22 Gorbachev, Mikhail, 293 government benefits of, 18, 81–3 differentiated from anarchy, 232–3 functions of, 4, 20, 45, 197 has incentives to fail, 220, 285 lack of competition, 262 private, 261n44 as threat to human species, 318–19 government leaders, motives, 237 Grenada, 308–9 Gross, Samuel, 278–9 Grossman, Dave, 235 guerilla warfare, 289–91 gulags, 132 Habermas, Jürgen, 61, 64 Hamas, 314 Hamilton, Alexander, 221n39 Harsanyi, John, 46n15, 51n28, 56n35 Hearst, Patricia, 123–4 Hitler, Adolf, 108–10, 297, 300–1 Hobbes, Thomas, 20n1, 198–200 Hoffman, Elizabeth, 190n9 homeowners associations, 261–2 Hong Kong, 330 Honoré, Tony, 101n1 horses, 277 Huckabee, Mike, 216 Huemer, Michael, 50n26 human nature, 187–94, 241, 242 humanity, history of, 321–2 Hume, David, 21–2, 28, 102n3, 102n5 hypothetical consent, 36 conditions for validity of, 37–9 invalidity of, 38–9, 43–5, 51–7, 64 and reasonableness, 39–40 unattainability of, 40–3, 48–50, 64 hypothetical examples, see examples idealization, 191–2 ideas, as agents of social change, 331–4 identification with the aggressor, 126, 128 identification with government, 128n47 ideology, 191–2 ignorance, 189 illusions, 135–6 immigration, 96, 142–3, 209 imprisonment, 283–4 Indian independence movement, 292 indigenous people, 91 individualism, 83 insurance for arsonists, 239 intergovernmental disputes, 299–302 interstate commerce, 223, 224–5 investment, affected by wealth distribution, 151 Iran, 317 Iran-Iraq War, 297, 298, 300, 302 Iraq-U.S.


pages: 852 words: 157,181

The Origins of the British by Stephen Oppenheimer

active measures, agricultural Revolution, British Empire, Eratosthenes, gravity well, Gregor Mendel, it's over 9,000, mass immigration, Neolithic agricultural revolution, out of africa, phenotype, Recombinant DNA, the scientific method, trade route

Second, but equally important for untangling the Celtic mystery, both Greek authors feel the need to explain how the local term ‘Celt’ came to be conflated by Roman writers such as Julius Caesar with the much larger regional labels of ‘Gaul’ and ‘Gauls’. And others Apart from anything else, this southern homeland would go a long way to explaining anachronistic mentions of Celtici in the south-west of Spain and Celtiberi to the east of Madrid as early as the sixth century BC.40 This information comes from authors such as Herodotus, Eratosthenes (third century BC)41 and Ephorus (405–330 BC), who is cited by Strabo: ‘Ephorus, in his account, makes Celtica so excessive in its size that he assigns to the regions of Celtic most of the regions, as far as Gades [Cadiz], of what we now call Iberia’ (see also below).42 Diodorus Siculus, probably citing Poseidonius, states that the ‘Celtiberes are a fusion of two peoples and the combination of Celts and Iberes only took place after long and bloody wars’.43 The Romantic mythologist Parthenius of Apamea (first century BC) gave a telling and charming version of the popular legend of the origins of the Celts in his Erotica pathemata,44 which preserves the Spanish connection and even hints at Ireland.

15, 320, 330 communal settlements 159 Continental celtic insular celtic link 90, 105 insular celtic split 98 languages 97 copper-mining 100, 103, 269–70 Corded Ware/Battle Axe Culture 260, 263–4 Cornish 70–1 Cornovii (England/Scotland) 79, 81 Cornwall 2–3, 41, 67, 70, 80, 81, 109, 144, 308 court tombs (or cairns) 252 craniometry 51 Crawford, Sally 400 Creswellian culture 120, 121, 143, 148 Cronan, Dennis 350 Cruithni tribe 87 culture Atlantic coast 160–1 English autonomy 15, 175 invasion vs cultural links 449, 468 and language 281 non-agricultural 182 North Sea–Creswellian links 148 two-source flow 114, 204–5, 269, 297, 301, 308–9, 481 Cumbria 67 Cumbric 71, 72–3 Cunliffe, Barry 2–4, 6, 35, 41, 46, 102–3, 109–10, 109–10, 161, 199, 210–11, 255, 260, 262, 268–70, 331, 445–6, 447, 459–60, 473 Damnonii 75, 78 Danelaw 448, 449 Danish Mesolithic 157 Danube, river Herodotus’ error 24, 31–4, 54 as LBK route 200–1 as Neolithic route 6, 210–11, 226, 227 spread of farming 16 Dark Ages Anglo-Saxon ‘invasion’ 10–11, 147, 214–15, 233, 305–6 English cultural change 403 Frisian ‘invasion’ 15, 172, 195, 225 Irish Gaelic spread 86 Viking founding clusters 450–5 Deceangli tribe 69 Denmark gene matches in Britain 195, 450–1, 455 individual graves 260–1 landbridge 181, 182 Viking raids from 444–5, 448 Diamond, Jared 283, 401 diet hunters vs farmers 206–7 seafood 157, 158 wild animals 123, 154–5, 158–9 diffusionism 56 Dillon, Myles 23 Diodorus Siculus 43, 44, 65 dolmens 252, 253 Domesday Book 413, 463, 464 Dumnonii 78, 80 Dyen, Isidore 95–6, 97, 251, 292, 293, 347 Early Bronze Age 270–1 Early Neolithic 228, 253 East Anglia Continental land bridge 192 Danish army in 448 Low Countries link 425–6 Norwegian–Swedish links 392, 396 East Germanic languages 340–1 eastern Britain Bronze Age gene inflow 308–9 Mesolithic colonization 175–7, 192, 194 Neolithic input 198, 308–9 Rhine connection 276 Scandinavian links 403–4, 481 Eastern Europe Celtic ‘evidence’ 64 Ice Age refuges 189 language vs gene flow 293, 296–7 LGM activity 117 E3b male group (Y) 235–9, 270 England 364–7 Anglo-Saxons in 14, 214–15 celtic language in 10–11, 66, 80, 105 Danish Viking raids 448 Germanic continuity 404 Iberian influence 308, 437 Low Countries closeness 425–6 recent immigration 486–7 Scandinavian roots 391 separateness of 15, 16, 175 tribes of 73–9 see also southern England English Channel 115, 142, 145 English (language) ancient roots theory 353–5 Norman invasion effect 463 Norse influence 481–2 pre-Dark Ages roots 482 preponderance of Germanic words in 11 separate branch of Germanic languages 481 English (people) English–Welsh divide 4, 69, 301, 405–7, 413–16 during Roman invasion 12–15 self-perception 482–3 Ephorus 44 Epi-Gravettian culture 125 Érainn (Iverni; Firbolgs) tribe 86, 87, 100 Eratosthenes 44 ‘ethnic group’ 383–4 ‘ethnicity’ 383–4 Eurasia 198 Europe Celtic invasions of 46, 58, 61 Indo-European expansion 99 Neolithic spread 210–11 post-LGM recolonization 118, 128–37 see also Eastern Europe; north-west Europe; Northern Europe; Western Europe European Neolithic celtic language origins 6 entry routes 198, 200, 204, 212–18, 217 forest clearance 209 intrusion rates 244–5 Evans, David Ellis 315, 320, 324 farming advantages of 205–7 ploughs 255 spread of 16, 104, 111, 199, 285 Finland 185 Firbolgs see Érainn fishing 158, 179 FMH (Frisian Modal haplotype) 172, 224 foederati 357, 364 forests clearance 207–9 forest-dwellers 207–9 Forster, Peter 98–9, 104, 110, 215, 216, 251, 299–300, 350–5, 442, 473, 476 forts 359–62 Fosna-Hensbacka culture 178 founder effect 121, 124 France 6, 34, 41 frequency maps 407–10 Frisia as Anglo-Saxon source 422 British invasion theory 15, 172, 195, 225, 428 English similarities 15, 146, 149, 194, 225, 374, 411–12, 431 Frisian language 345, 346, 348 Frisian Modal haplotype (FMH) 172, 224 Frisians British invasion theory 378 presence in Britain 379–80 funnel-necked-beakers 253, 262 Gaelic (Goidelic) Goidelic/Brythonic split 97, 99, 110 as Q-celtic 88 Spanish-Celtic theory 86 vs Brythonic 87, 96 see also Irish Gaelic; Scottish Gaelic ‘Gaelic Modal Haplotype’ 222 Galatia 64–5 Gallaeci tribe 64, 76 gallery graves 253, 255 Gallic War 330, 331 Garonne river 105 Gaul 12, 48–9, 51, 58, 61, 78, 313 Gaulish evidence for 59 insular celtic link 98 insular celtic split 98 lacks own script 61 as related to Brythonic 87, 88 Welsh link 87, 89, 98 Gaulish/Lepontic languages 88 Gauls 43 gene group frequency 423–5, 428 gene pool British 132 founder effect 112–13, 124 LUP contribution?


pages: 1,002 words: 276,865

The Great Sea: A Human History of the Mediterranean by David Abulafia

agricultural Revolution, bread and circuses, British Empire, classic study, colonial rule, David Attenborough, disinformation, Eratosthenes, ghettoisation, joint-stock company, long peace, mass immigration, out of africa, spice trade, Suez canal 1869, Suez crisis 1956, three-masted sailing ship, trade route, wikimedia commons, Yom Kippur War

And, despite the warnings from Ugarit, Cyprus suffered terribly; its towns were demolished – this was followed by the arrival of Greek refugees or invaders, bringing their archaic linear script and an early form of Greek. On Crete, part of the population moved inland to inaccessible points high above the island, at Karphi and Vrokastro. And then, around the date assigned by the classical author Eratosthenes to the fall of Troy (1184), Troy was destroyed again, and this time the city went up in flames; the skeleton of one unfortunate Trojan who was trying to flee has been found beneath the debris of Troy VIIa.15 Thus, if the Greeks did destroy Troy at this stage, their victory occurred when their own towns had also passed the peak of their prosperity.

The Septuagint was one of the great contributions of Alexandria to the cultural history of the Mediterranean, adopted by the Christians of Constantinople as the text of the Old Testament; indeed, Byzantine Christianity preserved much more of Alexandrian Jewish culture than the Jews themselves, including the voluminous works of Philo. It would be easy to produce a catalogue of the remarkable Greek scholars who studied in Ptolemaic Alexandria. Some of the most influential are also the murkiest: was Euclid a man or a committee of mathematicians? In the third century, Eratosthenes, who worked out with remarkable precision the diameter of the earth, served as librarian of Alexandria; another innovative scientist was Aristarchos, who deduced that the earth revolves around the sun, though he was not taken seriously, and his influence waned further in the Roman period when another Alexandrian, Claudius Ptolemy, published his own very influential description of the earth in which it remained at the centre of the universe.

There was a vibrant medical tradition in Alexandria; understanding of the human body was enhanced by the practice not just of autopsy but of dissecting condemned prisoners while still alive. Archimedes probably spent only a relatively short part of his long life (287–212 BC) in Egypt, but he maintained contact with Alexandrian mathematicians such as Eratosthenes.37 His career serves as a reminder of the fascination of the Ptolemaic court with ingenious machines. One of these has been recovered from the Mediterranean seabed off the island of Antikythera, and appears to be a mechanical model of the universe.38 Alexandrian science was of more than local interest.


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Coming of Age in the Milky Way by Timothy Ferris

Albert Einstein, Albert Michelson, Alfred Russel Wallace, anthropic principle, Arthur Eddington, Atahualpa, Cepheid variable, classic study, Commentariolus, cosmic abundance, cosmic microwave background, cosmological constant, cosmological principle, dark matter, delayed gratification, Eddington experiment, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, Ernest Rutherford, Garrett Hardin, Gary Taubes, Gregor Mendel, Harlow Shapley and Heber Curtis, Harvard Computers: women astronomers, Henri Poincaré, invention of writing, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, John Harrison: Longitude, Karl Jansky, Lao Tzu, Louis Pasteur, Magellanic Cloud, mandelbrot fractal, Menlo Park, Murray Gell-Mann, music of the spheres, planetary scale, retrograde motion, Richard Feynman, Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, Searching for Interstellar Communications, source of truth, Stephen Hawking, Thales of Miletus, Thomas Kuhn: the structure of scientific revolutions, Thomas Malthus, time dilation, Wilhelm Olbers

Here Ptolemy I, the Macedonian general and biographer of Alexander, established with the wealth of empire a vast library and a museum where scientists and scholars could carry on their studies, their salaries paid by the state. It was in Alexandria that Euclid composed his Elements of geometry, that Ptolemy constructed his eccentric universe, and that Eratosthenes measured the circumference of the earth and the distance of the sun to within a few percent of the correct values. Archimedes himself had studied at Alexandria, and had often ordered books from the library there to be sent to Syracuse. But the tree of science grew poorly in Alexandrian soil, and within a century or two had hardened into the dead wood of pedantry.

Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1952. —————. Discourses, trans. W.A. Oldfather. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1979. Epstein, Lewis Carroll. Relativity Visualized. San Francisco: Insight, 1985. Amply illustrated, right-forebrain explication of the special and general theories. Eratosthenes. Measurement of the Earth, trans. Ivor Thomas. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1980. Euclid. The Elements, trans. Isaac Barrow. London: Redmayne, 1705. —————. The Elements, ed. and trans. Thomas L. Heath. 3 vols. New York: Dover, 1956. Eve, A.S. Rutherford. London: Cambridge University Press, 1939.


pages: 565 words: 164,405

A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World by William J. Bernstein

Admiral Zheng, asset allocation, bank run, Benoit Mandelbrot, British Empire, call centre, clean water, Columbian Exchange, Corn Laws, cotton gin, David Ricardo: comparative advantage, death from overwork, deindustrialization, Doha Development Round, domestication of the camel, double entry bookkeeping, Easter island, Eratosthenes, financial innovation, flying shuttle, Gini coefficient, God and Mammon, high-speed rail, ice-free Arctic, imperial preference, income inequality, intermodal, James Hargreaves, John Harrison: Longitude, Khyber Pass, low skilled workers, non-tariff barriers, Paul Samuelson, placebo effect, Port of Oakland, refrigerator car, Silicon Valley, South China Sea, South Sea Bubble, spice trade, spinning jenny, Steven Pinker, Suez canal 1869, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Thomas L Friedman, Thomas Malthus, trade liberalization, trade route, transatlantic slave trade, transcontinental railway, two and twenty, upwardly mobile, working poor, zero-sum game

But none of the Columbus tales was to prove more hardy, well-known, or iconic than his pioneering the idea that the earth was round. More importantly, this myth also cuts to the heart of why he had such a difficult time selling his scheme to Europe's rulers. By the medieval era, no educated person thought the world flat. As early as 205 BC, Eratosthenes, a Greek living in Alexandria, deduced that the earth was a sphere, and even calculated its size with an accuracy that would not be surpassed for nearly another two thousand years. Nor was Columbus the first to propose reaching the Indies by sailing west. The transatlantic route to India had been suggested as far back as the first century after Christ by the Roman geographer Strabo, and perhaps even by Aristotle before him.

The identification of "Ophir" as India is a matter of some dispute; historians have also suggested Yemen, Sudan, and Ethiopia as possibilities. See Maria Eugenia Aubert, The Phoenicians and the West, 2nd ed. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2001), 44-45. 30. Harden, 157-179. 31. Herodotus, 255. 32. Not until 205 BC-well over two centuries after Histories was writtenwould Eratosthenes correctly calculate the circumference of the earth from the difference between the angles of the sun at Alexandria and Syene, putting the equator well south of even Alexandria. 33. Hourani and Carswell, 8-19. 34. Ibid., 19. 35. Carol A. Redmount, "The Wadi Tumilat and the 'Canal of the Pharaohs,"' Journal of Near Eastern Studies, 54:2 (April 1995): 127-135; and Joseph Rabino, "The Statistical Story of the Suez Canal," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, 50:3 (September 1887): 496-498. 36.


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A History of the World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage

Berlin Wall, British Empire, Colonization of Mars, Copley Medal, Edmond Halley, Edward Lloyd's coffeehouse, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, gentleman farmer, interchangeable parts, invention of agriculture, Isaac Newton, joint-stock company, Kickstarter, laissez-faire capitalism, Lao Tzu, multiplanetary species, Neal Stephenson, out of africa, South Sea Bubble, spice trade, spinning jenny, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, trade route, transatlantic slave trade

The symposion, with its rules for preventing a dangerous mixture from getting out of hand, thus became a lens through which Plato and other philosophers viewed Greek society. The Philosophy of Drinking Philosophy is the pursuit of wisdom; and where better to discover the truth than at a symposion, where wine does away with inhibitions to expose truths, both pleasant and unpleasant? "Wine reveals what is hidden," declared Eratosthenes, a Greek philosopher who lived in the third century BCE. That the symposion was thought to be a suitable venue for getting at the truth is emphasized by its repeated use as a literary form, in which several characters debate a particular topic while drinking wine. The most famous example is Plato's Symposium, in which the participants, including Plato's depiction of his men tor, Socrates, discuss the subject of love.


The Life and Death of Ancient Cities: A Natural History by Greg Woolf

agricultural Revolution, Anthropocene, capital controls, classic study, Columbian Exchange, demographic transition, Dunbar number, Easter island, endogenous growth, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, global village, invention of agriculture, invention of writing, joint-stock company, mass immigration, megacity, New Urbanism, out of africa, Scramble for Africa, social intelligence, social web, the strength of weak ties, trade route, urban planning, urban sprawl, zoonotic diseases

Each time an urban civilization fell to the barbarians, the conquerors themselves began to grow soft and less warlike, to enjoy the comforts and luxuries of the city, until they in turn were overtaken by new invasions of barbarians. That opposition had classical precedents. The Greek geographer Eratosthenes had proposed classifying peoples into those who lived by law and in cities and those who did not (the barbarians), and the historian Herodotus had had one Greek character tell a Persian Emperor that “soft lands breed soft people.” Thucydides, pondering the early days of Greece, suggested that once upon a time everyone lived as barbarians did in his day.

Greeks who had sided with the Persians were accused of “Medizing”—that is, siding with the barbarian Medes against fellow Greeks in the Persian Wars. By the fourth century Aristotle was producing rationalizations of the common view that barbarians were “natural” slaves and Greeks their “natural” masters. That prejudice was never completely accepted. The third-century b.c.e. polymath Eratosthenes pointed out that many other people, including the Phoenician Carthaginians, had political institutions, laws, and other things generally associated with civilized peoples rather than barbarians. Yet a strong sense that Greeks were a people apart persisted. The fact that so many barbarian peoples now made art that depicted Greek myths (as the Etruscans did), claimed Greek origins (as many Asian peoples would), and even adopted Greek as a language for public affairs (as the Lycians did) must have helped bolster that view.


God Created the Integers: The Mathematical Breakthroughs That Changed History by Stephen Hawking

Alan Turing: On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem, Albert Einstein, Antoine Gombaud: Chevalier de Méré, Augustin-Louis Cauchy, Bletchley Park, British Empire, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, Fellow of the Royal Society, G4S, Georg Cantor, Henri Poincaré, Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, John von Neumann, p-value, Pierre-Simon Laplace, Richard Feynman, seminal paper, Stephen Hawking, the long tail, three-masted sailing ship, tontine, Turing machine

CXXVII. 1883). 3This is not, strictly speaking, an assumption; it is a proposition proved later by means of the result of an experiment about to be described. 4 The proposition here assumed is of course equivalent to the trigonometrical formula which states that, if α, β are the circular measures of two angles, each less than a right angle, of which α is the greater, then THE METHOD OF ARCHIMEDES TREATING OF MECHANICAL PROBLEMS—TO ERATOSTHENES “Archimedes to Eratosthenes greeting. I sent you on a former occasion some of the theorems discovered by me, merely writing out the enunciations and inviting you to discover the proofs, which at the moment I did not give. The enunciations of the theorems which I sent were as follows. 1. If in a right prism with a parallelogrammic base a cylinder be inscribed which has its bases in the opposite parallelograms,[1] and its sides [i.e. four generators] on the remaining planes (faces) of the prism, and if through the centre of the circle which is the base of the cylinder and (through) one side of the square in the plane opposite to it a plane be drawn, the plane so drawn will cut off from the cylinder a segment which is bounded by two planes and the surface of the cylinder, one of the two planes being the plane which has been drawn and the other the plane in which the base of the cylinder is, and the surface being that which is between the said planes; and the segment cut off from the cylinder is one sixth part of the whole prism. 2.

Upon reading the few lines of the manuscript published by Kerameus, the Danish classics scholar Johan Ludvig Heiberg recognized characteristic Archimedean traits. He suspected that the underlying manuscript must be a work of Archimedes. Heiberg must have been amazed when he examined the palimpsest firsthand. Kerameus had found the long lost treatise, The Method, which begins, “Archimedes to Eratosthenes greeting.” The presence of other Archimedean works in the palimpsest only confirmed its authorship. The Kerameus–Heiberg palimpsest was originally written in the tenth century. In the thirteenth century, a monk had washed away the original ink so that he could write a book of devotional prayers.

-S, 18–20 Apollodorus the “calculator,” 10 Apollonius, 297, 318 appellative signs, 861 Applications of the Calculus of Probabilities (Laplace) The Application of the Calculus of Probabilities to Natural Philosophy, 454–472 Application of the Calculus of Probabilities to the Moral Sciences, 472–473 Concerning Illusions in the Estimation of Probabilities, 498–506 Concerning Tables of Mortality, and of Mean Durations of Life, of Marriages, and of Associations, 488–493 Concerning the Benefits of Institutions Which Depend upon the Probability of Events, 493–498 Concerning the Laws of Probability which Result from the Indefinite Multiplication of Events, 447–454 Concerning the Probabilities of Testimonies, 473–481 Concerning the Probability of the Judgments of Tribunals, 484–488 Concerning the Selections and the Decisions of Assemblies, 481–484 Concerning the Unknown Inequalities Which May Exist among Chances Which are Supposed to be Equal, 445–447 Concerning the Various Means of Approaching Certainty, 507–511 Games of Chance, 444–445 Historical Notice Concerning the Calculus of Probabilities, 511–517 approximation, 449–450 approximation formula, 1049–1050 arbitrary mark of signs, 860 arc, ultimate ratio of, 376–377 Archimedes, 106, 371, 1225 biography, 119–125 Measurement of the Circle, 121, 194–199 The Method of Archimedes Treating of Mechanical Problems - to Eratosthenes, 123–125, 209–239 The Sand Reckoner, 200–208 On the Sphere and Cylinder - Book I, 123, 126–167 On the Sphere and Cylinder - Book II, 168–194 area bound by curves and solids, 121 circle, 121–122, 194–195 of domain, 1224 figures with homologous sides, 376 Integral Length and Area (Lebesque), 1212–1215 right-angled triangles, equal, 268–269 set, 1223–1225 Aristarchus of Samos, 200–201 Aristotle, 10, 47, 61, 106 and Boole, 839, 840, 842–843 logic, 42, 43, 848–849 reasoning, 844 arithmatical relation, 1279 arithmetic geometry’s roots in, 5 incompleteness, 1257 limitations of, 3 rational right-angled triangles, 14–18 Arithmetic Disquisitions (Gauss) Congruences of the Second Degree, 625–661 Residues of Powers, 599–625 Ascoli, 1029 assemblies, 481–484 associates, 617 associations, 488–493 assurance, 857–858 Athenaeus, 10 auditors, 421–422 augend, 1176 automatic machines, 1295 axioms, 1267 axis complementary segment of sphere, 227 conic section, 321 axis ray, 766–767 Ayscough, Hannah, 365–366 B Bachet, Claude, 392 Bacon, 508–509 Baltzer, Richard, 749 barometer, periodic oscillations in, 465–466 Barrow, Isaac, 62, 367 Bartels, Martin, 698 base-element, 1104 Basel Problem, 386–387 base-number, 1105 Basic Geometry (Elements), 7–24 Bayes, 514 Beeckman, Isaac, 287 Beltrami, Eugenio, 703 benefit relative versus absolute value, 429 series of probable events, 428–429 Bentley, Reverend Richard, 411 Bernoulli, Daniel, 503, 504, 525–526, 994–995 Bernoulli, Jacob, 386 Bernoulli, Jacques, 448, 512 Bernoulli, Johann I, 383–385, 667 Bhaskara, 13 bias, 416 Billingsly, Henricus, 705 binomial, property of, 431–432 binomial differentials, 443 biography, 697–703 biquadratic equation, 358 birth rate, 500 birth rate, ratio to population, 448, 450–453 Bolyai, Farkas Wolfgang, 708, 743–746, 747–748, 753, 754, 792 Bolyai, János, 753 appendix, 708–709 biography, 743–749, 755–761 The Science of Absolute Space, 762–785 Explanation of Signs, 761–762 Light from Non-Euclidean Spaces on the Teaching of Elementary Geometry, 790–795 Remarks on the Preceding Treatise, by Bolyai Farkas, 785–788 Some Points in John Bolyai’s Appendix Compared with Lobachevski, by Wolfgang Bolyai, 788–790 Translator’s Introduction, 750–761 Bolzano, B., 1077 Boole, George biography, 835–841 on Certain Methods of Abbreviation, 936–951 The Claims of Science, especially as founded in it Relations to Human Nature, 838–839 of the Conditions of a Perfect Method, 951–958 Derivation of the Laws of the Symbols of Logic from the Laws of the Operations of the Human Mind, 870–878 Of the Division of Propositions into the Two Classes of “Primary” and “Secondary;” of the Characteristic Properties of Those Classes, and of the Laws of the Expression of Primary Propositions, 879–888 on Elimination, 913–924 Of the Fundamental Principles of Symbolic Reasoning, and of the Expansion or Development of Expressions Involving Logical Symbols, 889–899 Of the General Interpretation of Logical Equations, and the Resulting Analysis of Propositions.. . .


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The Organized Mind: Thinking Straight in the Age of Information Overload by Daniel J. Levitin

Abraham Maslow, airport security, Albert Einstein, Amazon Mechanical Turk, Anton Chekhov, autism spectrum disorder, Bayesian statistics, behavioural economics, big-box store, business process, call centre, Claude Shannon: information theory, cloud computing, cognitive bias, cognitive load, complexity theory, computer vision, conceptual framework, correlation does not imply causation, crowdsourcing, cuban missile crisis, Daniel Kahneman / Amos Tversky, data science, deep learning, delayed gratification, Donald Trump, en.wikipedia.org, epigenetics, Eratosthenes, Exxon Valdez, framing effect, friendly fire, fundamental attribution error, Golden Gate Park, Google Glasses, GPS: selective availability, haute cuisine, How many piano tuners are there in Chicago?, human-factors engineering, if you see hoof prints, think horses—not zebras, impulse control, index card, indoor plumbing, information retrieval, information security, invention of writing, iterative process, jimmy wales, job satisfaction, Kickstarter, language acquisition, Lewis Mumford, life extension, longitudinal study, meta-analysis, more computing power than Apollo, Network effects, new economy, Nicholas Carr, optical character recognition, Pareto efficiency, pattern recognition, phenotype, placebo effect, pre–internet, profit motive, randomized controlled trial, Rubik’s Cube, Salesforce, shared worldview, Sheryl Sandberg, Skype, Snapchat, social intelligence, statistical model, Steve Jobs, supply-chain management, the scientific method, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, The Wisdom of Crowds, theory of mind, Thomas Bayes, traumatic brain injury, Turing test, Twitter Arab Spring, ultimatum game, Wayback Machine, zero-sum game

After nightfall, time was kept by a number of means, including tracking the motion of the stars, the burning of candles, or the amount of water that flowed through a small hole from one vessel to another. The Babylonians also used fixed duration with twenty-four hours in a day, as did Hipparchus, the ancient Greek mathematician and astronomer. The division of the hour into sixty minutes, and the minutes into sixty seconds is also arbitrary, deriving from the Greek mathematician Eratosthenes, who divided the circle into sixty parts for an early cartographic system representing latitudes. For most of human history, we did not have clocks or indeed any way of accurately reckoning time. Meetings and ritual get-togethers would be arranged by referencing obvious natural events, such as “Please drop by our camp when the moon is full” or “I’ll meet you at sunset.”

., 291 Dupin, Amantine (George Sand), 283 dysexecutive syndrome, 166–67 Ebbinghaus illusion, 21, 22 Eberts, Jake, 195, 337 echinacea, 253–55 The Economist, 251 Edison, Thomas, 201, 292 Einstein, Albert, 375, 380 Eisenhower, Dwight D., 371 e-mail, 98–102, 214, 303–4, 306–7 empathy, 119, 158, 368–69 Empire State Building weight question, 356–57, 360–64 engagement in tasks, 205–6 epidemiological studies, 350 Epley, Nicholas, 135, 151 Erasmus, 14–15 Eratosthenes, 163 Ernst, Edzard, 253 estimation, 352–55, 355–64, 449n224. See also statistics ethics, 280–83 evolution and attention, 41 and the attentional system, 7–8, 16 and brain architecture, xix and categorization, 64 and expansion of physical possessions, 78 and kinship models, 26 and preference for order, 31–32 and probability, 222 and social relations, 120, 125–26 executive assistants, 124–25, 196, 210, 213–14, 299–301 executive attention system, 196–97, 368–69.


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An Edible History of Humanity by Tom Standage

agricultural Revolution, amateurs talk tactics, professionals talk logistics, Bartolomé de las Casas, British Empire, carbon footprint, Columbian Exchange, Corn Laws, cotton gin, demographic transition, Deng Xiaoping, Eratosthenes, financial innovation, food miles, Great Leap Forward, Haber-Bosch Process, invisible hand, James Watt: steam engine, Kickstarter, Louis Pasteur, Mikhail Gorbachev, special economic zone, spice trade, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus, trade route, transatlantic slave trade, women in the workforce

The interdependence between geography and trade was pointed out by Ptolemy himself, who noted that it was only due to commerce that the location of the Stone Tower, a key trading post on the Silk Road to China, was known. He was well aware that the Earth was spherical, something that had been demonstrated by Greek philosophers hundreds of years earlier, and he agonized about how best to represent it on a flat surface. But Ptolemy’s estimate of the circumference of the Earth was wrong. Although Eratosthenes, a Greek mathematician, had calculated the circumference of the Earth four hundred years earlier and arrived at almost exactly the right answer, Ptolemy’s figure was one-sixth smaller—so he thought the Eurasian landmass extended farther around the world than it actually did. This overestimate of the extent to which Asia extended to the east was one of the factors that later emboldened Christopher Columbus to sail west to find it.


The Golden Ratio: The Story of Phi, the World's Most Astonishing Number by Mario Livio

Albert Einstein, Albert Michelson, Alfred Russel Wallace, Benoit Mandelbrot, Brownian motion, Buckminster Fuller, classic study, cosmological constant, Elliott wave, Eratosthenes, Gödel, Escher, Bach, Isaac Newton, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Johannes Kepler, mandelbrot fractal, music of the spheres, Nash equilibrium, power law, Ralph Nelson Elliott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, random walk, Richard Feynman, Ronald Reagan, Thales of Miletus, the scientific method

In spite of Euclid being a “best-selling” author (only the Bible sold more books than Elements until the twentieth century), his life is so veiled in obscurity that even his birthplace in unknown. Given the contents of the Elements, it is very likely that Euclid studied mathematics in Athens with some of Plato's students. Indeed, Proclus writes about Euclid: “This man lived in the time of the first Ptolemy … he is then younger than the pupils of Plato, but older than Eratosthenes and Archimedes.” The Elements, a thirteen-volume work on geometry and number theory, is so colossal in its scope that we sometimes tend to forget that Euclid was the author of almost a dozen other books, covering topics from music through mechanics to optics. Only four of these other treatises survived to the present day: Division of Figures, Optics, Phaenomena, and Data.


pages: 294 words: 96,661

The Fourth Age: Smart Robots, Conscious Computers, and the Future of Humanity by Byron Reese

"World Economic Forum" Davos, agricultural Revolution, AI winter, Apollo 11, artificial general intelligence, basic income, bread and circuses, Buckminster Fuller, business cycle, business process, Charles Babbage, Claude Shannon: information theory, clean water, cognitive bias, computer age, CRISPR, crowdsourcing, dark matter, DeepMind, Edward Jenner, Elon Musk, Eratosthenes, estate planning, financial independence, first square of the chessboard, first square of the chessboard / second half of the chessboard, flying shuttle, full employment, Hans Moravec, Hans Rosling, income inequality, invention of agriculture, invention of movable type, invention of the printing press, invention of writing, Isaac Newton, Islamic Golden Age, James Hargreaves, job automation, Johannes Kepler, John Maynard Keynes: Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren, John Maynard Keynes: technological unemployment, John von Neumann, Kevin Kelly, lateral thinking, life extension, Louis Pasteur, low interest rates, low skilled workers, manufacturing employment, Marc Andreessen, Mark Zuckerberg, Marshall McLuhan, Mary Lou Jepsen, Moravec's paradox, Nick Bostrom, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres, OpenAI, pattern recognition, profit motive, quantum entanglement, radical life extension, Ray Kurzweil, recommendation engine, Rodney Brooks, Sam Altman, self-driving car, seminal paper, Silicon Valley, Skype, spinning jenny, Stephen Hawking, Steve Wozniak, Steven Pinker, strong AI, technological singularity, TED Talk, telepresence, telepresence robot, The Future of Employment, the scientific method, Timothy McVeigh, Turing machine, Turing test, universal basic income, Von Neumann architecture, Wall-E, warehouse robotics, Watson beat the top human players on Jeopardy!, women in the workforce, working poor, Works Progress Administration, Y Combinator

You can tell the story of scientific and material progress by looking across time and noting places where civilization flourished. Consider Classical Greece, almost 2,500 years ago. Civilization blossomed, democracy was born. Philosophy advanced and the rule of law was enforced. And what a time of progress it was. Eratosthenes calculated the circumference of the earth. Hippocrates made medicine a science. Theophrastus classified and named plants. Eupalinus built a magnificent aqueduct, Archimedes made his famous screw to raise water, and Anaximander postulated that life on earth began in the oceans. The list goes on and on.


A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor

Donald Trump, Eratosthenes, financial independence, Isaac Newton, Kickstarter, out of africa, publish or perish, trade route

To keep it simple – we’re historians after all – there’s just one rule. No jumping about all over the place. Everyone moves in one direction. Forwards. They’d start in 1250 BC and slowly move forward until they established the dates for the Trojan War. Mr Markham was accepting bets. My guess was 1184 BC as stated by Eratosthenes – a bloke who really knew what he was talking about. I had quite a lot of money riding on it. ‘Chief Farrell, all pods to be serviced and ready to go. We’re using all of them except TB2 – too big. We don’t want to attract attention. Ian Guthrie snorted. ‘A bunch of historians all together in a war zone?


pages: 1,402 words: 369,528

A History of Western Philosophy by Aaron Finkel

British Empire, Eratosthenes, Georg Cantor, George Santayana, invention of agriculture, liberation theology, Mahatma Gandhi, Plato's cave, plutocrats, source of truth, Thales and the olive presses, Thales of Miletus, the market place, William of Occam

Otherwise, the effect of this hypothesis on subsequent astronomy was practically nil. Ancient astronomers, in estimating the sizes of the earth, moon, and sun, and the distances of the moon and sun, used methods which were theoretically valid, but they were hampered by the lack of instruments of precision. Many of their results, in view of this lack, were surprisingly good. Eratosthenes estimated the earth’s diameter at 7850 miles, which is only about fifty miles short of the truth. Ptolemy estimated the mean distance of the moon at 29Æ times the earth’s diameter; the correct figure is about 30.2. None of them got anywhere near the size and distance of the sun, which all underestimated.

Mathematics became, and remained until the fall of Rome, mainly Alexandrian. Archimedes, it is true, was a Sicilian, and belonged to the one part of the world where the Greek City States (until the moment of his death in 212 B.C.) retained their independence; but he too had studied in Alexandria. Eratosthenes was chief librarian of the famous library of Alexandria. The mathematicians and men of science connected, more or less closely, with Alexandria in the third century before Christ were as able as any of the Greeks of the previous centuries, and did work of equal importance. But they were not, like their predecessors, men who took all learning for their province, and propounded universal philosophies; they were specialists in the modern sense.

.), 326 Epirus, 261, 343 episcopate, 395, 396–397, See also bishops epistemology, 702, 713, 716, 760, See also theory of knowledge equality, 139, 140 of man, in ancient philosophy, 114, 174, 189, 191, 270 of man, in modern philosophy, 183, 550, 597, 695, 726–727, 729, 765, 775, 776 of women, in, 723 Erasmus, Desiderius (Gerhard Gerhards), Dutch scholar (1466?–1536), 512–517, 518, 523 quoted, 514, 515, 517 Erasmus (Huizinga), 513* Erastianism, 363 Erastus. See Lüber Eratosthenes, Greek astronomer (fl. 3rd cent. B.C.), 216, 223 Erigena, Johannes Scotus. See John the Scot Erinys, 44 Eros, 19 error(s), 822 in Aristotle, 161, 197–199, 201–202 in Platonic theory of ideas, 126 eschatology, 363, 364 Essais philosophiques (Descartes), 561 Essay Concerning Human Understanding (Locke), 604–617; “Of Enthusiasm,” 607 “Of Reason,” 607–608 “Of Degrees of Assent,” 608–609; “Of General Terms,” 610 “Of the Names of Substances,” 610–611 Essay on Man (Pope), 371 Essay on Miracles (Hume), 660 Essays on Government (Locke), 633 essence, 126, 144, 146, 293, 294, 405, 467, 468, 586, 610–611 and Aquinas, 455, 457, 467 and Aristotle, 164–165, 166, 167, 170, 200–201 essences, 136, 139, 140, 141 Essenes, 315* Essex (Robert Devereux), 2nd Earl of, (1567–1601), 541 Este, Italian princely family (fl. 996–1803), 582 Esthonia, 634 eternity, 37, 46, 144–145, 292, 758, 820 ethic(s), 79, 116, 117–118, 306, 378–380, 729, 778–779, 834 and Aquinas, 458–460 aristocratic, 768 and Aristotle, 132, 171–184, 205 and Bentham, 777 Christian, 92, 205, 297 contemplative ideal in, 34 and differences between Continental and British philosophy, 644–647 and Epicurus, 245 and good of community, 711 Greek, 33–34, 42, 63, 72, 92, 297 and Hegel, 735, 736, 743, 827 in Hellenistic world, 228 and Helvetios, 722 and James, 814–815 Jewish, 319, 320, 321 and Kant, 268, 710–712 and Locke, 613–617, 627 and (Marx, 788 and More, 521 and Nietzsche, 42, 760, 762–763, 764, 769, 770 “noble,” 644–645 and Plato, 106, 132, 358 in Roman world, 476 romantic, 682 and Rousseau, 687 and Schopenhauer, 756–757, 760 and Socrates, 73, 91, 106 and Spinoza, 569, 570–577, 578 and Stoicism, 252, 258, 266–269 and utilitarians, 704, 779 Ethics (Aristotle).


pages: 346 words: 97,890

The Road to Conscious Machines by Michael Wooldridge

Ada Lovelace, AI winter, algorithmic bias, AlphaGo, Andrew Wiles, Anthropocene, artificial general intelligence, Asilomar, augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, backpropagation, basic income, Bletchley Park, Boeing 747, British Empire, call centre, Charles Babbage, combinatorial explosion, computer vision, Computing Machinery and Intelligence, DARPA: Urban Challenge, deep learning, deepfake, DeepMind, Demis Hassabis, don't be evil, Donald Trump, driverless car, Elaine Herzberg, Elon Musk, Eratosthenes, factory automation, fake news, future of work, gamification, general purpose technology, Geoffrey Hinton, gig economy, Google Glasses, intangible asset, James Watt: steam engine, job automation, John von Neumann, Loebner Prize, Minecraft, Mustafa Suleyman, Nash equilibrium, Nick Bostrom, Norbert Wiener, NP-complete, P = NP, P vs NP, paperclip maximiser, pattern recognition, Philippa Foot, RAND corporation, Ray Kurzweil, Rodney Brooks, self-driving car, Silicon Valley, Stephen Hawking, Steven Pinker, strong AI, technological singularity, telemarketer, Tesla Model S, The Coming Technological Singularity, The Future of Employment, the scientific method, theory of mind, Thomas Bayes, Thomas Kuhn: the structure of scientific revolutions, traveling salesman, trolley problem, Turing machine, Turing test, universal basic income, Von Neumann architecture, warehouse robotics

Following a lengthy high-profile public campaign, the government posthumously pardoned him in 2014; shortly after, pardons were issued to all men who had been prosecuted under the same law. 3. This is the most obvious recipe for checking primality, but by no means the most elegant or efficient. A neat alternative called the Sieve of Eratosthenes has been known since antiquity. 4. At this point I’ll stop distinguishing between Universal Turing Machines and Turing Machines, and simply refer to ‘Turing Machines’. 5. Turing shares the glory for the Entscheidungsproblem with Princeton mathematician Alonzo Church, who independently obtained a very different proof of the result just before Turing.


pages: 335 words: 107,779

Some Remarks by Neal Stephenson

airport security, augmented reality, barriers to entry, Bletchley Park, British Empire, cable laying ship, call centre, cellular automata, edge city, Eratosthenes, Fellow of the Royal Society, Hacker Ethic, high-speed rail, impulse control, Iridium satellite, Isaac Newton, Jaron Lanier, John von Neumann, Just-in-time delivery, Kevin Kelly, Kim Stanley Robinson, megaproject, music of the spheres, Neal Stephenson, Neil Armstrong, Norbert Wiener, offshore financial centre, oil shock, packet switching, pirate software, Richard Feynman, Saturday Night Live, shareholder value, Shenzhen special economic zone , Silicon Valley, Skype, slashdot, Snow Crash, social web, Socratic dialogue, South China Sea, SpaceShipOne, special economic zone, Stephen Hawking, the scientific method, trade route, Turing machine, undersea cable, uranium enrichment, Vernor Vinge, X Prize

It was modeled after the Lyceum of Aristotle, who, between other gigs, tutored Alexander the Great. Back in the days when people moved to information, instead of vice versa, this library attracted most of the most famous smart people in the world: the ultimate hacker, Archimedes; the father of geometry, Euclid; Eratosthenes, who was the first person to calculate the circumference of the earth, by looking at the way the sun shone down wells at Alexandria and Aswan. He also ran the library for a while and took the job seriously enough that when he started to go blind in his old age, he starved himself to death. In any event, this library was burned out by the Romans when they were adding Egypt to their empire.


Egypt Travel Guide by Lonely Planet

call centre, carbon footprint, Eratosthenes, friendly fire, haute cuisine, Khartoum Gordon, late fees, low cost airline, off grid, place-making, spice trade, Suez canal 1869, Suez crisis 1956, sustainable-tourism, Thales and the olive presses, trade route, urban planning, urban sprawl

Its economic wealth was equally matched by its intellectual standing. Its famed library stimulated some of the great advances of the age: this was where Herophilus discovered that the head, not the heart, is the seat of thought; Euclid developed geometry; Aristarchus discovered that the earth revolves around the sun; and Eratosthenes calculated the earth’s circumference. A grand tower, the Pharos, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was built on an island just offshore and served as both a beacon to guide ships entering the booming harbour and an ostentatious symbol of the city’s greatness. During the reign of its most famous regent, Cleopatra (51–30 BC), Alexandria rivalled Rome in everything but military power – a situation that Rome found intolerable and was eventually forced to act upon.

Alexander’s body is buried in Alexandria, where Ptolemy builds the Museion and Library and perhaps also the Pharos. c 310–250 BC Under Ptolemaic patronage and with access to a library of 700,000 written works, scholars in Alexandria calculate the earth’s circumference, discover it circles the sun and compile the definitive edition of Homer’s poems. 255 BC The Greek astrologer Eratosthenes of Cyrene (Libya) settles in Alexandria, from where he makes the first accurate calculation of the world's circumference. 246–221 BC Ptolemy III Euergetes I begins a building program that includes the Serapeum in Alexandria and the Temple of Horus at Edfu. His successor continues his work. 196 BC A block of granodiorite stone is carved with a decree in three scripts: hieroglyph, demotic and Greek.


pages: 1,993 words: 478,072

The Boundless Sea: A Human History of the Oceans by David Abulafia

Admiral Zheng, Alfred Russel Wallace, Bartolomé de las Casas, British Empire, colonial rule, computer age, Cornelius Vanderbilt, dark matter, David Ricardo: comparative advantage, discovery of the americas, domestication of the camel, Easter island, Edmond Halley, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, Fellow of the Royal Society, John Harrison: Longitude, joint-stock company, Kickstarter, land reform, lone genius, Malacca Straits, mass immigration, Maui Hawaii, megacity, new economy, out of africa, p-value, Peace of Westphalia, polynesian navigation, Scramble for Africa, South China Sea, spice trade, Suez canal 1869, Suez crisis 1956, trade route, transaction costs, transatlantic slave trade, transcontinental railway, undersea cable, wikimedia commons, yellow journalism

Pytheas claimed to have reached the ‘limits of the cosmos, which a person would not believe if Hermes himself were speaking’.30 Pytheas’ motives for travelling as far as Britain, and maybe still further, might seem obvious. He shared a curiosity about the shape of the habitable world with his later rivals Eratosthenes and Strabo. This was the age of the great Alexandrian cosmographers. Even in faraway Massalia some of the major Greek works of historia (meaning ‘enquiry’) must have been known and read, not least Herodotos’ account of the Persian Wars, which also contained rich descriptions of barbarian lands, such as the territories of the Skythians to the north of the Black Sea.

See the front cover of the Penguin edition of Cunliffe, Pytheas the Greek . 29. Strabo, Geography , 1:4.3, in Pytheas, On the Ocean , p. 25, and 3:2.11, p. 60, as also 1:4.5 and 2:3.5, pp. 38, 46. 30. Ibid., 2:4.2, pp. 48–9; the second quotation was cited by Strabo from the works of the cosmographer Eratosthenes. 31. Cf. Cary and Warmington, Ancient Explorers , p. 48. 32. Roseman in Pytheas, On the Ocean , pp. 152–3. 33. Ibid., pp. 148–50. 34. Cf. Cary and Warmington, Ancient Explorers , p. 47. 35. Cunliffe, Pytheas the Greek , pp. 56–8, 61; Roseman in Pytheas, On the Ocean , pp. 152–4. 36. Cunliffe, Pytheas the Greek , pp. 65–6. 37.

Aaron 80 Abacan 226 abalone 196 , 232 Abbas, Shah of Iran 705 , 706 Abbasids 164 , 170 , 173 , 364 , 366 ‘Abdu’l-‘aziz, Sa‘id 291–2 Aborigines 8–9 , 10 and first Dutchmen in Australia 736 , 737 , 741 Tasmanian 742 voting rights in Australian states 733 Yolŋu 10 Abu Dhabi 62 Abu Mufarrij 176 , 177 , 178 , 179 Abu Zayd Hassan of Siraf 156 , 172 abzu 56 , 66 Acapulco 616 , 619 , 621 , 623 , 624 , 630 , 631 , 642 , 648 , 701 , 706 Aceh, Sumatra 689 Achilles , SS 865 , 866 Achnacreebeag 308 Adam of Bremen 367 , 393 Adams, William (Miura Anjin) 631 , 632 , 691–2 Aden xviii , 51 , 105–6 , 180–82 , 185 , 187 , 265 , 266 , 267 , 598 , 600–601 , 604 , 605 Admiralty Islands 10 Adulis 104 , 115 , 123 adzes 15 Aegean 83 , 85 naval warfare 595 Syros island 873 Afghanistan 54 , 57 , 59 , 202 lapis lazuli 62 Afonso de Lorosa, Pedro 576–7 Afonso V of Portugal 504 , 505 , 506 , 507 Afriat, Aaron 839 Africa 500–503 boats 502 and China 265–7 coastal exploration by Vivaldi brothers 471 and copper 503 east xx , 61 , 62 , 90 , 104 , 109 , 122 , 123 , 162 , 182 , 254 , 540 , 545–6 see also Eritrea ; Ethiopia/Ethiopians ; Madagascar ; Mauritius ; Mozambique ; Somalia ; Austronesians on coast of 132 ; Axum see Axum ; coast 47 , 61 , 132 ; and East Indies 548–9 ; and Madagascar 759 ; and the Portuguese 540 , 543 , 545–6 , 547 , 548–9 ; sorghum 114 gold see gold: African Greek settlers 841 Horn of 266 Maghrib 478 , 839 , 885 mulatto population 503 and Muslims 500 , 502 Operation Torch in north Africa 890 and the Portuguese 465 , 476 , 490 , 501–14 , 540 , 543 , 545–6 , 547 , 548–9 ; and the Danes 718–19 ; and gold 471–4 , 501 , 502 ; and slavery see slavery/slaves: and the Portuguese ; and Swahili Coast 545–6 pottery/ceramics 492 raiders 548 and the slave trade see slavery/slaves south 514 , 566 , 569 , 578 see also Cape of Good Hope ; and da Gamba 539–40 South see South Africa sub-Saharan 465 , 472 , 501 , 834 , 840 ; gold 472 , 501 ; slaves 471 , 583–4 trade see trade: African trans-Sahara caravan traffic 475 , 834 west 398 , 500 , 501–7 , 702 see also Elmina ; Ghana ; Guinea ; and the Danes 712 , 716 , 717–22 ; and Dominican DNA 583 ; Dutch in 686 ; Gold Coast 686 , 718–19 ; and maize 752 ; Mina coast 506–8 ; Mogador as a gateway to 840 ; Portuguese trading stations 683 , 753–4 ; and the Swedes 716–17 Agamemnon , SS 865 Agatharchides of Knidos 97 Agricola 344 agriculture/farming Dutch 675–6 Hawai’ian 26–7 Icelandic 385 irrigation see irrigation Mesolithic 305 Neolithic 307 in Pacific islands 12 tools 221 agronomy, Lapita 12 Aguado, Juan 528 Ahab 82 Ahaziah, son of Ahab 82 Ahutoru, Tahitian prince 811–12 , 813 Ainus 797 , 809 aircraft 898 anti-aircraft guns 889 effect of safe jet traffic on passenger shipping across oceans 879–80 , 898–9 limitations as cargo vessels 901 and Second World War 887 , 888 , 889 , 891 airlines 898–9 airships 898 Ajanta caves, India 129 Ajax , SS 865 Akkad 57 , 62 Akkadian 55 Ala-uddin, sultan 689 Alagakkonara of Ceylon 262–3 Åland 874 Åland Islands 366 , 873–6 Alaska 254 , 255 , 399 , 786 , 791 , 795 , 797 , 903 and the Russians 804 , 805–6 , 807–8 , 809 , 816 , 903 Albuquerque, Afonso de 598–9 , 600–601 , 602–3 , 606 Alcáçovas, Treaty of 505 Alcatrázes 491 alder 339 Aleppo 598 Aleutian Islands 786 , 793 , 797 , 804 , 805 Alexander VI, Pope 407 , 537 Alexander the Great 46 , 89 , 90 , 93 , 282 , 289 Alexandria 93 , 99 , 115 , 188 , 265 , 266 , 495 , 544 , 567 , 594 , 603 , 838 , 872 and Indian Ocean 96 , 103 , 187 library 97 and the spice trade 595 , 600 , 601 , 604 , 669 steam packet between England and 848–9 and Suez Canal 848–9 , 851 taxation by Mamluks in 595 and Venetians 460 , 601 Alfonso V of Aragon 512 Alfonso VIII of Castile 471 Alfred, king of Wessex 357 , 361 Alfred Holt & Co. see Blue Funnel Line Algarve 467 , 468 , 477 , 478 , 485 , 497–9 Algeciras 475 , 478 Algeria 477 Ali, Muhammad, of Egypt 848 , 849 Alkaff family 823–4 Allure of the Seas 900 Almeida, Francisco de 547 , 568 , 600 , 602 Almohad caliphs 175 , 468 almonds 114 , 178 , 429 , 492 , 839 Almoravids 501 aloes 153 , 194 Als island 342 Alva, Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of 673 Amalfi 243 Amazons 581 amber 337–8 , 339–42 , 472 Baltic 337 , 338 , 441 , 701 beads 339 Jutish 337 , 339 and North Sea 337–8 , 339 ambergris 180 , 467 , 766 Amboyna island 615 , 689–90 , 714 massacre 690 Ambrose, Christopher 455 American Revolution 721–2 and Boston Tea Party 784 Americas see Central America ; North America ; South America ; United States of America Ammianus Marcellinus 347 Amoy 826 ‘Amr ibn Kulṯum 94 Amsterdam 643 , 673 , 674 , 676 , 677 , 679 , 682 , 702 , 780 , 839 archives 634 Armenians 708 immigrants 677 Long-Distance Company 684 New Christians of 693 , 700 , 708 and New Julfans 706 , 708 Portuguese merchants in 684 , 685 , 705 printing press 708 Sephardim 701 , 702 , 704 amulets 179 , 398 Amun-Ra (god) 76 Amundsen, Roald 871 Amur River 801 , 806 Anatolia 54 anchorites 381 , 413 Anconi of Kilwa 547 Ancuvannam 183 Andalusia 467 , 505 , 656 silks 623 Andamans 43 , 260–61 Andouros 111 Andrew of Bristol 570 Angkor, Cambodia 50 , 158 , 249–50 Angkor Wat temples 140 Angles 344 , 347 , 348 , 352 Anglesey 313 , 377 under Norse rule 378 Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 357–60 Anglo-Saxons 347 , 349–50 , 352 , 357 , 363 Anglo-Saxon England 347 , 349 , 355–6 , 357–62 literature 318 , 348 , 349–51 , 366–7 shipping 349–51 trade 355 and Vikings 357–62 Ango, Jean the Elder 562 Ango, Jean the Younger 562 Ango family of Dieppe 562 Angola 503 , 593 , 701 Angra, Azores 488 750 , 751 , 752 Annals of Ulster 372 Annam 239 , 255 , 260 Anne (cog) 460 Annia family 116 Annunciada 545 Ansip, Andrus 419 Antarctic Ocean xxii , 655 Anthony of Padua, St 697 anti-aircraft guns 889 anti-Semitism 697 , 700 , 855 , 884 Antigua 768 Antilles Greater 520 see also Cuba ; Hispaniola ; Jamaica ; Puerto Rico Lesser 520 , 767–8 , 772 see also Barbados ; Trinidad Antiochos III 94 Antwerp 438 , 441 , 545 , 600 , 606 , 643 , 669–76 , 701 , 880 banks 673 Bourse 669 , 672 Charles V and the banks of 673 and copper 672 English decline in trade with 673 English Merchant Adventurers in 669 , 672–3 and Hansards 673 merchants in 672–3 ; from Bruges 668–9 and the Portuguese 545 , 600 , 617 , 668 , 669 , 672 , 673 printing 672 and the rise of the Dutch 669–76 and silver 668 , 672 and south German businessmen 672 and the Spanish 673 spice market 579 , 600 , 614 , 615 , 617 , 668 , 669–72 and Venetians 669–70 , 672 Aotea 38 Aotearoa see New Zealand apples 114 Aqaba, Gulf of 73 , 88 Aquinas, Thomas 499 , 680 Arabia 52 , 71–3 , 76 , 82 , 85 aridification 52 Hadhramawt 128 incense 94 , 115 Indian embassies to rulers of south Arabia 129 and opium 825 Sabaea 96 south Arabian pottery 88 , 129 and Thaj 94 Zheng He in 265 Arabian Gulf see Persian/Arabian Gulf Arabian Nights 171 Sinbad the Sailor 133 , 156–7 , 171 Arabs of Arabia 52 see also Arabia ; and Mouza 105 Bosi see Bosi /Po-ššu of Egypt 52 invasion of Persia 170 and Madagascar 132 merchants see merchants: Arab pan-Arabian alliance attempts 605 pirates 130 ships 130 , 131 , 545–6 , 549 in Singapore 823–4 Six-Day War (1967) 896 and Śri Vijaya (Zabaj) 155–8 and Thaj 94 Aragon 468 and Algeria 477 Aran Islands 382 Arawaks 520 , 521 see also Taíno Indians Archangel 677–8 , 706 Arctic 655–60 ice 339 , 655 , 657 , 660 , 661 , 664 Arctic Ocean xxii , 655–67 , 801 and the Danes 666–7 and the Dutch 660–61 and the English 657–60 , 662–6 and Muscovy Company 659–60 , 662 Arellano, captain 615–16 Arezzo 120 Argentina 880 Arguim 501 , 502 Argyré 134 Arikamedu 116 , 119–21 Arison, Ted 899–900 Aristotle 90 Armenians 619 , 705–8 , 789 , 823 , 841 , 873 Armitage, David xx Armorica axes 320 Veneti 330 aromatics 47 , 71 , 76 , 79 , 93 , 97 , 99 , 157 , 239–40 , 273 see also incense ; perfumes aromatic woods 80 , 233 , 278 , 648 see also sapanwood Arosca, king 559 Arrian 90–91 arsenic 185 Arsinoë 88 artichokes 170 asbestos 139 Ascension Island 755 ascorbic acid 573 Ashab Mosque 244 Ashikaga shoguns 219 , 220 , 231 Aso, Mount 196 Aspinall, William 852 Assyrians 55 , 61 , 323 Astakapra/Hathab 129 Astor, John Jacob 796 astrolabes 544 Atlantic Ocean Almohad–Portuguese battles in 468 Atlantic Bronze Age 303 , 314–25 Atlantic historians/‘Atlantic history’ industry xx , 299 Bristol sailors in 463 businessmen funding transatlantic voyages 525–6 and ‘Celts’ 302 container shipping 901–5 and the Danes 712 Dias’s discovery of link with Indian Ocean 514 , 536 , 537 ‘extensions’ see Baltic ; Caribbean ; North Sea in First World War 882 Iron Age 325–38 islands 481–96 , 501–2 , 745–58 see also specific islands by name ; Macaronesian see Macaronesia Madagascar as link with Indian Ocean 758 , 780 and Mediterranean see Mediterranean: and Atlantic Ocean and Mesolithic cultures 304–7 Muslim fleets in 465–7 and Neolithic communities 299 , 307–14 passenger traffic across 860 , 869 Portuguese and Spanish sparring for control 526 and ‘processual’ archaeologists 301 promontory forts 328–9 and Pytheas 334–8 sea level changes 303 and Second World War 890 tides 306 , 336 and Tordesillas Treaty 537 trade see trade: Atlantic trade networks see trading networks: Atlantic transatlantic air services 898–9 transatlantic cables 864 transatlantic trade routes 562–4 , 606 transatlantic voyages to reach the ‘Indies’ 517 , 522–35 , 537 , 550–64 , 566–8 , 571–2 and ‘the Western Seaways’ 299 winds xv , 302 , 304 , 333 , 389 , 538 , 558 , 735–6 , 751 Atlas Mountains 468 Atlasov, Vladimir 800 Atrahasis 67 aubergine 178 Aubert, Jean 562 Auðun 401–2 Augsburg 672 , 675 Augustinians 615 , 640 Augustus Caesar 102 , 106 Aurora 839 Australian continent 6 , 727–44 Aborigines see Aborigines and Ålanders 875 on Dieppe maps 733–4 the Dutch and ‘New Holland’ 733 , 735–43 and the English 737 New Guinea see New Guinea New South Wales 813 Pleistocene 6–7 and the Portuguese 733 , 734 , 735 and Second World War 887 Spanish search for southern continent 729–32 stone fish traps 9 Tasmania 7 , 741–2 , 743 Terra Australis speculation 718 Austrialia del Espiritú Santo 732 Austronesian languages 3–4 , 12 , 16 , 27 , 131 Austronesians, and Madagascar xxi Avalokitesvara statue 159 Avienus 332–4 Aviz dynasty 469 , 474 Axelson, Eric 514 axes 7 , 194 , 312 , 810 Armorican 320 Carp’s Tongue 324 currency 320 ‘median-winged’ 319–20 Mycenaean copper axe 314 palstave 319 , 320 socketed 320 Axum 104 , 111 , 122 , 123 , 130 coins 167 pottery 115 , 167 Ayaz, Malik 602 Aydhab 175–6 Ayla (Aqaba–Eilat) 115 , 167 Ayutthaya/Ayudhya 276–9 , 290 , 706 ‘Azafids 475 Azambuja, Diogo de 508 , 509 Aznaghi 501 Azores xxi , 471 , 486–8 , 593 , 745 , 750–52 , 840 and Atlantic/global trading networks 750–51 , 752 and the English 750–51 and Flemings 481 Jews 840 and New England 750–51 slaves 497 wheat 752 wine 751 Aztecs 618 , 635 Bab al-Mandeb 180 Strait 78 , 104 baboons 76 Babylon 88 , 91 , 93 Babylonia 47 , 50 , 85 , 94 Cyrus’s conquest of 85 great flood myth 56 , 67 world map 50 Babylonians 50 , 55 bacalao 752 Bạch Đầng 228 Badang (giant) 288 Baffin Island 393 , 399 , 407 , 663 Baghdad 170 , 172 , 173 , 188 , 841 Bahadur Shah of Gujarat 605 Bahamas 527 , 554 depopulation 531 , 582 and piracy 765 trade network 520 Bahrain 52 , 54 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 244 , 598 , 599 Qala’at al-Bahrain 65–6 Baiões 323–4 Baitán 382 Balboa, Juan Núñez de 565 Balboa, Vasco Núñez de 563 Balboa (town), Panama 858 Baldridge, Adam 760–61 Bali 146 , 280 Baltic 299 , 303 , 342 , 353 , 364 amber 337 , 338 , 441 , 701 conquest and transformation in 13th century 420–22 and the Danes 421 , 713 , 714 , 715–16 , 721–2 ‘Drive to the East’ 418 , 425 and the Dutch 675 , 676 , 677 , 685 , 686 and England 367 , 452–3 exotic goods 716 Hansa members 433–6 herring 430 , 436 , 451 , 674 and ‘Mediterranean of the North’ 415 see also Hansa, German merchants 367 and North Sea xxii , 365 , 366 paganism 421–2 pitch 721 and Russia 802 , 807 , 809 rye 420 , 428 , 439 , 444 , 675 , 676 , 682 and silver 364 and the Swedes 421 , 422 , 677 tar 721 trade see trade: Baltic Viking raids 362 , 365 Vitalienbrüder harassment 447 ‘Wendish’ 433 Baluchistan 91 bamboo 12 , 122 bananas xxiii , 12 , 620 bandits 138 , 175–6 , 262 Banks, Joseph 3 , 743 , 812 Bantam, Java 688 , 689 Bantam island 736 Bantus 131 , 132 Baranov, Alexander 816 Barbados 701 , 749 , 761–2 , 766 , 767–8 , 769 , 772 , 774 Bridgetown see Bridgetown, Barbados workers on Panama Canal 859 Barbar 66 Barbarikon 107 , 108 , 124 Barbarossa, Hayrettin 607 Barbary Company 657 Barbary corsairs 607 , 718 , 764 , 782 Barcelona 440 , 455 , 470 , 475 Bardi family 526 , 533 Barents Sea 658 , 678 Barentsz, Willem 660–61 , 678 barges 343–4 Baribatani 182 bark boats 9 barley 58 , 62 , 70 , 92 , 381 , 385 , 390 , 444 , 562 Barros, João de 508 , 509 Barus 160 , 164 Barygaza 103 , 105 , 107–8 , 124 , 128 , 138 , 185–6 Basques 455 , 459 , 708 sailors 404 , 469 , 477 , 570 ships 459 , 470 Basra 172 , 598 , 604 , 606 , 831 Batavia 738–41 , 743 Batavia/Batavians 345 , 690 , 692 , 736 , 818 , 823 steamship link with Singapore 868 Bates, Edward 861–2 Bates, Sir Percy 886 Bayeux Tapestry 371 Bayonne, France 685–6 , 701 bdellium 71 , 106 , 107 beans 177 , 246 , 492 , 604 , 643–4 mung 114 soya 648 bears 408 fur/skins 406 , 408 polar 391 , 397 , 401–2 , 408 , 534 Beaujard, Philippe 132 Beauport monks 562 Bede 353 Bedouins 595 beef 112 , 590 , 591 , 664 beer 431 , 432 , 462 , 664 , 760 , 761 , 901 , 902 beetroot 431 Behaim, Martin 572 globe 525 , 572 , 655 Beijing 254 , 261 , 265 , 267 , 636 , 827 Beirut 495 , 544 , 567 , 594 , 601 , 604 , 669 Belém 480 Belfast 869–70 , 899 Belgium Flanders see Flanders railways 880 Belitung wreck 162–4 , 165 ben Yiju, Abraham 182 , 184–6 ben Yiju family 184 Bencoolen, Sumatra 761 , 820 Bengal 255 , 269 , 562 opium poppy fields 825 Benin 506 Benin City 506 Bensaúde, Elias 840 Bensaúde family 840 benzoin resin 153 Beowulf 318 , 348 , 350–51 , 366–7 Berardi, Giannetto 525 Berbers 468 , 472 , 836 Muslim Tuareg 500 Sanhaja 501 slaves 502 Berenice (daughter of Herod Agrippa) 113 Bereniké Troglodytika xviii , 52 , 78 , 103 , 110–23 , 179 Bergen 390 , 391 , 403 , 415 , 461 , 721 Bryggen (wharves) 443 , 445 , 446 and Hansards 418 , 419 , 443–6 Norwegian community in 443–4 women 446 Bering, Vitus 802–3 Bermuda 766 Bertoa 560–61 beryl 99 , 118 Beth-Horon 83 Beukelszoon, Willem 430 , 436 Bevin, Ernest 893 Bezborodko, Alexander Andreyevich 805 Bia-Punt 79 Bianco, Andrea 524 Bibby, Geoffrey 65–6 Bible 79–84 , 761 , 771 Bickley, John 714 Bidya 93 Bilal 181 Bilgames 56 birds see also chicken ; falcons ; ostriches ; parrots catching 310 domestic 12 Birger of Sweden 422 Birka, Sweden 354 , 355 , 364 , 365 , 366 , 367 , 426 Bismarck, Otto von 418 Bismarck archipelago 12 , 14 , 15 bitumen 54 , 67 , 68 Bjarni Herjólfson 410 Black Death 123 , 403 , 405 , 432 , 454 , 473 , 675 Black Sea 346 , 423 , 524 grain trade 872 and the Greeks 872 and Russia 802 , 809 Blue Funnel Line 866 , 867 , 882 , 887 and Second World War 890–91 Blunth, Edward 559 BOAC (British Overseas Airways Corporation) 898–9 and Cunard 899 boats/ships 575 , 611 , 868 at Aceh, Sumatra 689 African 502 Ålander 874–6 alder 339 American 785 , 786–91 , 792 , 795 , 817 ; battleships 856 , 857 , 859 ; Perry’s ‘black ships’ 846 , 847 ; whalers 845 Arab 130 , 131 , 545–6 , 549 Armada de Molucca 570–73 , 574–8 and armed convoys 888 Armenian 706–7 Austronesian, with outriggers 4 , 16 , 133 barges 343–4 bark 9 Basque 459 , 470 and Bereniké 111 Bermudian 766 bitumen-sealed 54 , 67–8 ‘black ships’ of Macau/Great Ship of Amacon 641–2 British: English see boats/ships : English ; in First World War 882–3 ; in Hawai’i 815 , 817 ; and Nootka Sound 794 ; and the Russians 794 ; and search for North-West Passage 795 ; steamships 826 , 860–61 , 864–9 , 881 , 882–3 ; in Victoria Harbour 826 Bronze Age 319 búzas 390–91 of camphor wood 227–8 canoes see canoes caravels 483–4 , 503 , 508–9 , 510–11 , 512 , 513 carracks see carracks Castilian 456 Catalan 471 catamarans 16 , 133 , 134 , 742 Chinese 137 , 206 , 244 , 245 , 247–8 , 254 , 255 , 258–60 , 268 , 282 , 622 , 629 ; fireships 637 ; junks see junks: Chinese ; Treasure Ships 254 , 259 , 260 , 266 , 267 Chumash 28 clinker-built 343 , 349 , 368–9 coal supply ships 861 , 865 , 888 Cochin 543 cogs 354 , 426 , 428–9 , 451 , 456 , 460 , 484 container ships xviii , 880 , 895 , 897 , 901–5 , 908 see also containerization with copper keel sheathing 815 coracles 331 cruising 868 , 879 , 899–900 currachs 331 , 382 dhows see dhows diesel-engined 884 , 885 dismantled, with reuse of wood 122–3 Dutch 675 , 678 , 683 , 740 , 748 ; in Baltic 675 , 676 , 685 ; early arrivals in Australian waters 736 , 738–42 ; in Indonesia 724 ; merchant fleets 668 , 685 , 883 ; naval vessels 685 ; sunk by privateers from Dunkirk 685 ; VOC vessels 736 , 738–41 Egyptian 73–4 , 96 ; royal fleets 77 elephantegoi 111 English 557 , 678 ; Bristol ships 458–9 , 463–4 , 522 , 532 , 750 ; at São Miguel in 17th century 750 ; slave ships 762 ; sunk by privateers from Dunkirk 685 Filipino 622 , 628 fireships 637 in First World War 881–3 flat-bottomed 343 , 354 , 800 Flemish 456 Florentine 456 French 557 , 860 Frisian 354 Funanese 142–3 funerary barges 73–4 galleons see galleons ; Manila galleons galliots 641 Genoese 454 German 875 , 876 ; in Second World War 888 , 890 ; U-boats 881 , 882 , 888 , 891 gold model 331 Gotlandish 368 and the great flood 67 Greco-Roman 109 , 124 Greek 109 , 872–3 Hansa 420 , 428–9 , 451 Hawai’ian European-style fleet 815 hide 67 Hiram’s ships 73 , 80–81 , 85 Hoq cave image 129 Indonesian 134 , 285 insurance costs 685 in Iron Age 321 Japanese 212 , 214 , 216 , 224 , 225 , 227 , 629 , 693 ; ‘barrel ships’ 652 ; junks 628 , 637 ; in Second World War 888 ; and vermilion seals 629 , 632 , 652 ; warships 883 Javanese 285 , 548 , 549 , 606 junks see junks kayaks 399 knǫrrs 371 , 385 , 390–91 Korean 206 , 650–51 Lapita 15–16 ‘Lascars’ manning European ships 841 with leg irons 554 limewood 339 liners 860 , 869 , 882 , 885 , 907 see also cruising and cruise lines/industry log-boats 321 Macanese ‘black ships’/Great Ship of Amacon 641–2 , 644 , 645–6 , 647 Majorcan 454 Malay 134 , 139 , 142–3 Mamluk fleet 598 Māori 742 Marinid warships 478 merchant fleets see merchant fleets/navies Mesopotamian rivercraft 331 Mongol 223 , 226 , 227–8 Muslim fleets 465–7 Neolithic 321–2 Norman 561 North Sea 342–4 ; small ships used in warfare 342 , 348 Norwegian 870–71 oak 339 , 354 , 369 oil tankers 897 Omani 68 , 831–2 Ottoman 549 ; Indian Ocean fleet 605 P&O numbers during and after Second World War 896 passenger shipping across oceans affected by safe jet traffic 879–80 , 898–9 in Persian Gulf 54 , 67–8 , 93 ploia megala from Barygaza 106 Polynesian 15–16 , 19 , 24 , 731 , 810–11 Portuguese 468 , 470 , 507 , 513 , 514 , 601 , 609–10 , 628 ; Almeida’s fleet 600 , 602 ; avoiding customs duties 745 ; caravels 483–4 , 508–9 , 510–11 , 512 , 513 ; carracks 370 , 641 , 643 , 646–7 , 679 ; with da Gama 537–8 , 539 ; and expropriated ships in expedition to Ceuta 476–8 ; flotilla off Bantam island 736 ; privately owned ships in South China Sea and Moluccas 606 ; ‘ship of the captain of Malacca’ captured by Lancaster 688 and Pytheas 335 rafts, balsa wood 29 reed 28 , 67–8 Roman fleets 344 , 346 royal yachts 369 , 816–17 Russian 794 , 802 , 807–9 ; in Hawai’i 815 ; at Okhotsk 806 ; shitik (sewn boats) 800 , 803 sailing ships 321 , 865–6 ; Ålander 874–6 ; clippers 860 , 866 ; elephantegoi 111 ; windjammers 860 , 875 , 876 Scandinavian 339 , 342–3 , 347 , 357 , 360–61 , 365 , 368–71 in Second World War 888–91 , 896 Seleucid 93 sewn-plank 68 , 131 shares in 428 in Singapore 823 six-oared 397 skin-boats 411 slave ships 510 , 511 , 560 , 757–8 , 762 Solomon’s ships 73 , 81 , 82 , 85 Spanish: Armada defeat by English 627 , 676 ; armed merchant fleets 704 ; and Drake 665 ; harassing Lady Washington and Columbia 793 ; treasure ships 665 , 673 , 686 , 764–5 , 851 steamships xviii , 824 , 841 , 848–9 , 860–61 , 864–73 ; British 826 , 860–61 , 864–9 , 881 , 882–3 ; and Conference System 866–7 , 868 ; and globalization 877 , 878 ; iron/steel-clad 826 , 864 , 868–9 , 882–3 ; paddle-driven 846 , 867 , 868 , 873 ; screw-driven 868–9 submarines see submarines Suione 342–3 Sumerian 57 Sutton Hoo ship 349 Swedish 875 Thai 278 treasure ships see treasure ships uxer 474 Venetian galleys 669–72 Venetic 330–31 Viking 347 , 357 , 360–61 , 365 , 368–71 , 376–7 , 467 for war: American battleships 856 , 857 , 859 ; of Augustus 106 ; in Beowulf 351 ; British 361 , 815 , 817 , 881 , 882–3 ; canoes 21 , 342 ; English 361 ; German 888 , 890 see also U-boats ; Japanese 883 ; Marinid 478 ; in North Sea 342 , 348 ; Omani 831 ; Ottoman galleys 549 ; Portuguese 601 ; Russian 794 ; Viking 369 , 376 whalers 459 , 845 wooden-shelled, covered in hide 321 , 331 wrecked see shipwrecks Bobadilla, Francisco de 529 Boccaccio, Giovanni 472 , 473 Boeing aircraft 898–9 ‘Bog People’ 339 boilers, copper 721 Bolton, William 749–50 Bombay (Mumbai) xxix , 604 Muslims 789 Boothby, Richard 759 Bordeaux 458–9 Bordelais 458 Borneo 142 , 160 , 238 Bornholm 339 , 342 Borobodur 133 , 164 , 280 Bosau, Helmold von 424 Boscà, Joan 506 Bosi /Po-ššu 147 , 161–2 , 170 Boston, England 447 , 450 , 452 Boston, Massachusetts 780 , 785 , 792 , 904 Boston Tea Party 784 bottle gourds 29 Bougainville, Louis de 811–12 Bounty 31 Boxer, Charles 606 bracelets 540 , 754 brass 503 , 505 , 507 gold 509 silver 548 Brahmins 140 , 144 and Faxien 145–6 and Kathāsaritsāgara 143 Brandenburg Denmark and Brandenburg–Prussia 713 , 715–16 and Guinea 716 brandy 803 brass 104 , 506 , 511 , 754 , 778 bracelets 503 , 505 , 507 Brattahlíð, Greenland 397 , 400 Braudel, Fernand xx Brava 266 Brazil xxiii , 553 and Cape Verde 752 and the Dutch 686 , 705 , 748 , 772 and the French 557–60 , 561 and Hamburg 880 and Portugal 541 , 542 , 560–61 , 584 , 704 ; and the Dutch 705 ; Portuguese discovery 517 ; and Portuguese merchants avoiding customs duties 745 ; trade 560–61 , 748 slave trade/economy 490 , 553 , 560 , 748 sugar 745 , 748 , 753 trade see trade: Brazilian Tupí Indians 553 , 560 , 561 Tupinambá Indians 519 and the Verrazanos 563–4 brazilwood 560 , 561 , 676 bread 50 , 400 , 620 , 648 cassava 582 , 585 fish meal 92 sago 576 breadfruit 12 Bremen 426 , 433 , 445 , 449 , 676 cog 428–9 Bremerhaven, German Maritime Museum 428 Brendan, St 381–2 , 383 Brian Boru 379–80 bribery 155 , 181 , 214 , 362 , 507 , 623 , 638 , 751 , 855 gold bribes 207 , 782–3 silver bribes 782–3 Bridgetown, Barbados 768 , 769 museum 900 Bristol 453 , 457–64 , 524 , 774 , 875 , 885 , 887 air raids 891 merchants 534 , 657 ships 458–9 , 463–4 , 522 , 532 , 750 Britain see also England/English ; Scotland ; Wales Admiralty 866 , 888 , 889 and Ålanders 875 and American Revolution 721–2 BEF, Second World War 889 Board of Trade 850–51 Bronze Age 316 , 320 , 322 and China: Canton trade 709 , 814 , 825 ; First Opium War 826 , 827 ; and Hong Kong 639 , 826–8 , 893 ; Second Opium War 827 ; steamship operations 866–7 ; Treaty of Nanking 826 , 827 ; and the Treaty Ports 827–8 Christianization 347 , 349 circular villages 321 and Cyprus 851 Diodoros the Sicilian on the early Britons 336 and the Dutch 820–21 , 822 see also England/English : and the Dutch ; and Second World War 888 and the Falklands 795 and First World War 881–3 and France see France: and Britain/England and Germany see Germany: and Britain and Gothenburg (Little London) 723 grain imports 881 and Hawai’i 816 and Hong Kong 639 , 826–8 , 893 and India see India: and the British/English Iron Age 328 Jacobites 723 and Java 820 labour relations 896 , 897 and Macau 806 Malay Straits Settlements 822 and Malta 849 , 851 Mediterranean power and influence 851 and Melaka 818 merchant fleets/Merchant Navy 871 , 873 , 883 , 889 Merchant Shipping Act 861–2 and Morocco 657 , 838–9 , 840 naval tradition/power 418 , 826 , 881 see also Royal Navy Neolithic 309 , 313 and Nicaragua 851 and Nootka Sound 794 North-West Passage prize offer 813 and Norway 871 , 888 and Oman 831 ; Moresby Treaty 832 , 833 and the Pacific islands 810–11 , 812–13 and Panama Canal 851 and Penang 820 , 821 , 868 and the Portuguese 841 see also England/English: and Portugal and raiders 346–7 Roman Britannia 344 , 345 , 346–7 , 348 , 355–6 Royal Air Force 889 Royal Navy see Royal Navy and rubber 892 seamen’s strikes 896 , 897 and Second World War 887–91 shipbuilding 869 , 896 and Singapore see Singapore: and Britain/England and slavery 347 , 829 , 831 , 832 , 841 and Spain see Spain/Spaniards: and Britain/England and Suez Canal 848–9 , 850–51 , 896 and sugar trade see sugar: and Britain/England and the Swedes 725 and tea 724 , 725 , 726 tilting land 304 trade see trade: British and the USA see United States of America: and Britain and Vancouver Island 791 Britannic , RMS 870 British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company (Cunard) 860–61 , 868–9 , 882 , 884–5 see also Cunard British Expeditionary Force 889 British India Steam Navigation Company 868 British Institute of Persian Studies 172 British Museum 50 , 55 , 174 , 812 British Overseas Airways Corporation see BOAC Brittany 301 , 302 Bronze Age 316 , 319 , 320 Celtic language 330 and Cornwall 328 fishermen 562 and Germanic raiders 345 , 346 Iron Age 326 , 328 Mesolithic 306 Neolithic 308–10 , 312 , 313 promontory forts 328 Brock’s 889 Broighter, County Derry 331 bronze 58 , 97 , 108 , 160 , 164–5 , 185 in Atlantic lands 316 in Bronze Age 314 , 317 , 319–20 Buddhist staffs 164 Chinese bronzes 141 figurines 58 , 326 , 332 ingots 320 payment in amber for bronze goods 338 weapons 316 , 317 , 319–20 brooches 326 , 353 Brookes, John 737 Brouwer, Hendrik 736 , 738 Bruges 343 , 355 , 433 , 438–9 , 440 , 441–2 , 465 , 469–70 , 674 and Maximilian of Austria 668–9 merchants moving to Antwerp 668–9 Brunei, Borneo 576 bubonic plague 123 , 403 , 405 , 432 Buddhism Avalokitesvara statue 159 Borobodur temple complex 164 bronze staffs 164 Buddha relics 263 Buddha statues 146 , 152–3 , 164 , 194 , 277 , 366 and Ceylon 166 , 257 , 263 and China 43 , 137 , 142 , 144–6 , 152 , 166 , 208–9 , 215 , 245 , 263 , 267 Far Eastern Buddhist desire for fundamental texts 152 and Funan 142 Great Collection of Buddhist Sutras 234 and Greek culture 90 Hinayana 203 Hinduism interwoven with 293 and the Indian Ocean 43–6 , 118 in Japan 43–6 , 146 , 198 , 199–200 , 202 , 215 , 229 , 649 , 654 ; and Ennin 202–9 , 210–11 ; and fisherfolk 213 ; and persecution 646 Korean 166 , 194 , 198 Lotus Sutra 199–200 , 215 Mahayana 199–200 , 203 and Majapahit 280 monasteries 118 , 128 , 163 , 205 , 208–9 , 218 , 235 , 236 , 245 , 646 and moneylending 214 persecution of Buddhists: in China 208–9 ; in Japan 646 Scripture of the Dragon-King of the Sea 205 and Socotra 128 spread along trade routes xx , 146 , 166 and Śri Vijaya 152 , 154 and tea 215 , 216 temples 154 , 164 , 642 , 647 , 649 trade encouraged by 236 and Vietnam 142 , 144 Zen see Zen Budomel, king 503 Bueno de Mesquita, Benjamin 772–3 Buenos Aires 700 Bugi pirates 819 , 823 Buka 11 Bukhara 258 Burgos, Laws of 531 burial see also tombs in boat-shaped graves 342 , 368 boat burials 348–9 , 350–51 , 364 , 368 , 369 goods 65 , 312 , 349 , 369 Herjólfsnes graves 404 , 405 , 406 mass 405 mounds 65 , 313 on Orkney and Shetland 372 practices 312 , 325 , 348–9 ; and cremation 317 in Ribeira Grande 491 rites 319 royal burials 287 of slaves 491 urn burials 317 Viking 368 , 372 Burma 121 , 706 , 708 Bushmen 539–40 butter 381 , 399 , 444 , 445 , 462 , 487 , 664 , 752 clarified 104 dishes 715 Butterfield and Swire 866 Buxhövden, Albert von 420 búzas 390–91 Buzurg 186 Byzantine Empire 167 , 601 Byzantine army 362 cables, intercontinental 864 , 877 , 907 Cabo Frio, Brazil 560 Cabot, John 464 , 517 , 522 , 523 , 525–6 , 532–5 discovery of North America 413 , 532–5 ; and Newfoundland 413 , 522 , 533 and Japan 532 Cabot, Sebastian 533–4 , 557 , 565 , 658 , 661 , 662 Cabral, Pedro Álvares 541–2 , 560 , 602 Cabrillo, Juan Rodríguez 517 , 580–81 Cacheu-São Domingos 503 Cadamosto/Ca’ da Mosto, Alvise 484 , 485 , 488 , 502–3 Cádiz (Gadir) 81 , 83 , 322 , 323 , 332 , 335 , 370 , 617 , 764–5 and New Julfans 706 , 708 Caesar, Julius 328 , 330 , 331 Gallic Wars 328 caffeine 711 , 784 see also coffee ; tea Cai Jingfang 242–3 Cairo 171 , 173 , 175 , 265 , 500 , 898 Chinese ceramics in 174 as city of Babylon 88 Jews 124 , 536 Old Cairo see Fustat Teldo in 595–8 Caithness 373 , 376 , 379 Calafia, mythical queen 581 Calais 455 Calcutta (Kolkata) 707 , 832 Armenian printing house 708 Çaldıran, battle of 599 Caledonian Canal 848 Calicut 51 , 52 , 261 , 262 , 265 , 267 , 269 , 540–41 , 542 , 543 California 517 , 580–81 , 806 , 808 , 846 gold 852–3 Callao, Peru 729 Calvinists 660 , 693 , 708 , 741–3 , 769 , 825 Cambodia 140 , 244 , 648–9 , 653 Khmer kingdom see Khmer kingdom/kings Cambridge Economic History of Europe xxiv Cambridge University archaeologists 490 , 491 camel caravans 94 , 475 , 840 camels 99 , 266 cameralism 725 Camões, Luís de 276 Lusiads 276 , 296 , 479 Campbell, Colin 723–4 Campbell Clan 404 camphor 147 , 153 , 184 , 220 , 547 , 569 cloves 184 ships of camphor wood 227–8 Canaanites 81 Canada 399 , 408 , 565 , 661 , 845 , 874 , 882 boundary with USA 794 Canary Islands 465 , 471–4 , 481 , 488 , 501 , 502 , 518–19 , 527 , 593 and Castile 504 , 505 and Havana 592 slaves 473–4 , 486 , 497 , 499 sugar 589–90 suspected secret Jews in 697 wine 592 , 688 Canberra , SS 899 candelabra 194 Candish, Thomas see Cavendish, Thomas Canggu Ferry Charter 280 Cannanore 542 , 598 cannibalism 156 , 520 , 526 , 530 , 559 , 560 , 563 , 663 , 729–30 , 809 Canning, George 460 cannon 265 , 457 , 542 , 546 , 558 , 602 , 608 , 737 , 742 , 756 , 788 , 815 canoes Alaskan art of canoeing 797 fleet from Hawaiki 37 Māori 742 outrigger canoes of Torres Strait 9 , 10 Polynesian 24 , 731 , 810–11 ; Tahitian 21 Taíno 521–2 war canoes 21 , 342 Cansino, Diego Alonso 491 Cantabrians 455 , 470 Cantino Map 535 Canton see Guangzhou/Canton Canton 867 Canynges, William 460 Cão, Diogo 507 , 511–14 Cape Horn xv , 572 , 727 , 785 , 791–2 , 793 , 807 , 845 , 851 , 857 , 875 Cape of Good Hope 47 , 254 , 514 , 537 , 558 , 567 , 577 , 617 , 665 , 687 , 703 , 707 , 794 , 845 Cape Verde Islands xxi , 483 , 488–92 , 558 , 578 , 579 , 593 , 631 , 745 , 752–5 and Atlantic/global trading networks 752–5 and Brazil 752 and the Castilians 505 Columbia in 792–3 Creole 491 and the Dutch 683 , 753 and East Indies 752–3 , 754 horse-breeding 489 , 502 Moroccan Jewish settlers 841 mulatto population 748 New Christians 491 , 702 , 754 Nossa Senhora da Conceição 490 Nossa Senhora do Rosário 490–91 and the Portuguese 488–92 , 702 , 748 , 753 , 754 , 841 salt 489 , 683 , 752 and slavery see slavery/slaves: and Cape Verde and the Spanish 754 car ferries 899 Caramansa 509–10 Carausius 346 caravels 483–4 , 503 , 508–9 , 510–11 , 512 , 513 Carbon 14 dating 30 , 38 , 78 , 312 , 354 , 381 cardamom 99 , 153 , 157 , 178 Caribbean xxiii , 299 , 520–23 , 555–6 , 763–79 Antilles see Antilles and Bermuda 766 and Columbus 270 , 520 , 521–2 , 523–4 , 527–8 , 529 , 530–31 cotton 522 , 588 and the Danes 711–12 , 716 , 720–22 , 772 Dutch raids in 772 and the English 764–5 , 766–79 ethnic complexity of pre-Columbian 520–21 European migration to 766–7 gold 531 , 553 , 555 , 582 , 588–9 Jamaica see Jamaica Kettler in 719 , 720 pearls 701 pleasure cruises 868 , 899–900 privateers/buccaneers 763–5 , 772 , 773–6 , 778 , 779 slavery 490 , 491 , 583–5 , 592 , 593 , 720–21 , 767 , 769 , 777 and the Spanish 520 , 553 , 582–93 , 634 , 764–5 , 767 , 768 , 770–71 ; and gold 531 , 553 , 555 , 582 , 588–9 ; and Jamaica 771 , 773 sugar 582 , 589–90 , 766 , 768–9 Taínos see Taíno Indians Tobago conflict 719 trade network 520 , 527 see also trade: Caribbean treasure ships 763 , 764–5 and the USA 856 , 857 , 858 West Indies see West Indies Carleton, Mary 778 Carletti, Antonio 618–20 , 621 , 639 , 640 , 643 , 647 , 648–9 Carletti, Francesco 618–22 Carlsborg fort, Guinea 717 , 718 carnelian 54 , 57 , 59 , 64 Carolinas 17 , 761 Carolingian dynasty 354 carpets Indian 548 Persian 598 carracks 370 , 643 , 646–7 , 679 and galleons 641 Cartagena de las Indias, Colombia 697 , 701 , 753 Carthage/Carthaginians 81 , 91 , 115 , 323 , 331 , 335 Cartier, Jacques 661 cartographers/cartography 471 , 514 , 524 , 525 , 554 , 556 , 558 , 570 , 572 , 607–10 , 660 , 744 Carvajal, Antonio Fernandez 769 cash 178 see also coins Chinese 153 , 172 , 188 , 207 , 214 , 218 , 240 , 242 , 244 , 245 , 249 , 266–7 in Japan 214 Caspian Sea 364 cassava/manioc 521 , 588 , 752 , 756 bread 582 , 585 cassia 80 , 104 wood 99 Castanheda, Fernão Lopes de 512 Castile/Castilians 456–7 , 465 , 468 , 469 , 474 , 475 , 555 attack on Salé 471 and the Canaries 504 , 505 cloth 491 and the Genoese 528 and Morocco 477 navy 528 and the Portuguese 476 , 477 , 478 , 479 , 489 , 504–5 , 571 castration 832 see also eunuchs Catalans 415 , 429 , 454 , 471 , 473 , 474 , 491 , 609 , 669 world maps 500 catamarans 16 , 133 , 134 , 742 catfish 112 Cathay Company 662 , 664 Cathay Pacific 867 Catherine II, the Great 804 , 805–6 Catherine of Aragon 534 , 656 cattle 352 , 399 , 404 , 405 , 486 , 675 , 730 , 759 , 764 , 766 on Cuba 591 on Hispaniola 590–91 Moroccan 839 cauldrons 317 , 318 Cavendish, Thomas 687 , 727 , 756 caviar 682 Cavite 626 Cebu 575–6 cedar 73 , 78 , 80 , 81 , 122 , 259 Celtic languages 317 , 330 Celts 302 , 363 Celtic Christianity 379 , 380 ‘Celtic’ identity 329–30 in Iceland 386 mixed marriages between Scandinavians and 375–6 , 380 , 386 and Norwegian sovereignty 378–9 Vikings and Celtic armies 379 Central America 565 , 617 , 851–2 , 853 see also Costa Rica ; Guatemala ; Honduras ; Nicaragua ; Panama and gold 565 , 589 and Panama Canal xviii , 847–8 , 849 , 851–9 and Spain 577–8 Centurión, Gaspar 588 ceramics see pottery/ceramics Ceuta 431 , 468 , 470 , 471 , 474–9 , 701 , 839 and the Portuguese 476–9 , 501 Ceylon/Sri Lanka xxix , 46 , 111 , 118 , 122 , 185 , 254 , 261 , 724 Bosi in 147 and Buddhism 166 , 257 , 263 and China 262–3 and the Danes 713–14 and the Persians 147 and Ptolemy 118 , 119 , 727 and the Romans 102 , 103 , 727 and silk 147 and Śri Vijaya 152 as Taprobané 109 CGT (Compagnie Générale Transatlantique) 885 , 886 Chagres, River 855 , 858 Champa 239 , 245–6 , 249–50 , 260 Chancellor, Richard 658 , 659 , 666 Chang Pogo xxx , 204 , 208 , 209–11 Changan 199 Changle 268 Changsha 163 Charibaël 104 Charlemagne 354 , 365 Charles II of England 720 , 764 , 772 , 773 , 774 Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and king of Spain 453 , 556 , 569 , 570 , 575 , 577 , 578 , 579 , 590 , 611–14 and banks of Antwerp 673 Charles Martel 352 Charlotte, Queen 820 Châtillon, Reynaud de 187 Chauci 344–6 Cheddar 317 cheese 381 , 399 , 487 , 493 , 675 , 752 , 777 Chelmsford 345 Chen Zu-yi 261 Cheng Ho see Zheng He Cheng Hoon Teng temple, Melaka 258 chert 15 chicken 38 , 112 , 132 , 558 , 574 chickpeas 177 , 588 Chile 880 China/Chinese and Africa 265–7 books 215 , 245 , 246 and Britain see Britain: and China bronzes 141 and Buddhism 43 , 137 , 142 , 144–6 , 152 , 166 , 208–9 , 215 , 245 , 263 , 267 Bureau of Ortaq Affairs 249 ceramics see pottery/ceramics: Chinese and Ceylon 262–3 and Champa 239 , 245–6 Chin dynasty 239 , 248–9 and Christianity 627 , 640 , 645 , 695 cloths see cloth: Chinese coins/cash 138 , 153 , 172 , 188 , 207 , 214 , 218 , 221 , 229 , 240 , 242 , 244 , 245 , 249 , 266–7 Confucianism see Confucianism copper 238 , 242 cultural influences on neighbours 189 , 199–200 , 215 , 234 , 235 and the Danes 709 , 712 , 714 , 725 and the Dutch 823 and European chinoiserie 710 , 715 and European weapons 644 and France see France: and China and Funan 139–44 and furs 785–6 , 791 , 792–6 , 797 , 806 and gold 216 Grand Canal 254 Han dynasty 135–6 , 138–9 , 190 , 198 herbs 660 imperial court 142 , 154 , 163–4 , 189 , 198 , 215 , 216 , 233 , 236 , 239–40 , 241–2 , 244 , 248 , 250 incense 286 and India see India: and China industrial development 907–8 and Iraq 185 iron ore 242 and Japan see Japan/Japanese: and China and Java 163–4 , 188 , 244 , 260 , 262 , 268–9 , 280–81 , 286–7 Jesuits in 640 jewels 562 and Korea 189 , 191 , 192 , 198 , 210 , 236 , 239 , 244 , 245 , 287 , 650 luxury of elite 188 magnetic compass 243 , 256 , 370 and Malaya 135–6 , 138–9 , 144 , 147 and Manila 620–21 , 622–6 , 715 , 780 ; foundation story 618 medicine 278 and Melaka 254 , 286 , 293–4 , 295 , 636 men taking Filipino wives 625 Mercantile Shipping and Transportation Bureau 248 merchant fleets 248 merchants: Chinese merchants see merchants: Chinese ; foreign merchants in China 238 , 243–4 and Mexico see Mexico: and China Ming dynasty 213 , 219–20 , 229 , 238 , 251–71 , 278 , 281 , 286–7 , 289 , 293–4 , 617 , 624 , 643 , 650 ; voyages under Zheng He xvii , 254–5 , 256–69 , 280–81 , 293 , 622 , 636 and the Moluccas 574 and Mongols see Mongols: and China Muslim communities/mosques 244 , 258 naval wars 239 navy 136 , 238 , 239 , 245 , 260 , 261 and North America 780–96 and Norway 871 ‘One Belt, One Road’ project 908 and opium see opium paintings 230 Pax Sinica 293 People’s Republic of China 639 , 892–3 , 907–8 and Persian Gulf 171–2 and Philippines 574 , 614 , 617 , 618 , 620–21 , 622–6 piracy 293 , 625 , 867 porcelain see porcelain: Chinese port superintendents 154–5 and the Portuguese 606–7 , 627–8 , 636–7 , 638–42 , 643–4 , 652 pottery see pottery/ceramics: Chinese Qin Empire 136 Qing Empire 801 religious eclecticism 263 Republic of China 892–3 and Russia 800 , 801 , 802 , 806 and Ryukyu Islands 231–2 , 234 , 614 sailors 135 , 233 , 625 , 642 , 732 ‘Seven Warring States’ conflict 136 shipbuilding 247 , 259–60 ships see boats/ships: Chinese ; junks: Chinese and Siam 262 , 278 silk see silk: Chinese and the Silk Road xx , 135–6 and silver 220 , 623 , 624–5 , 643 , 696 and Singapore 286 , 288–9 , 822–3 skins 107 Song dynasty 149 , 154 , 165 , 213 , 221 , 224 , 228 , 239–50 , 273 , 622 ; Song culture 222 ; Southern 221 , 222 , 238 and South China Sea see South China Sea: and China Southern Song dynasty 221 , 222 , 238 and the Spanish 622–8 , 652 , 806 and spices 545 , 574 , 606 , 643 and Śri Vijaya 149–52 , 153–6 , 161 , 273 and sugar 238 superiority beliefs/claims 221 , 236 , 256 ; as a moral force 256 and Sweden 725 , 726 Tang dynasty 142 , 154 , 160 , 170 , 192 , 198 , 200 , 201 , 203 , 206–11 , 215 , 216 ; pottery 158 , 163 , 172 taxation see taxation: Chinese tea 215 , 246 , 768 , 781 , 790 trade see trade: Chinese and tribute 142 , 236 , 238 , 257 , 262 , 270 , 281 , 293 , 622 urban growth 242 and the USA 709 , 781 , 787–96 , 893 and Vietnam 136 , 139–44 , 245 , 257 voyages under Zheng He xvii , 254–5 , 256–69 , 280–81 , 293 , 622 , 636 Wu dynasty 136–7 , 142 Yuan dynasty 213 , 218 , 219 , 221 , 228 , 248–9 , 259 Yueh kingdoms 135–6 chinoiserie , European 710 , 715 Chios 872–3 Chirikov, Aleksei 803 Ch’oe (agent of Chang Pogo) 210 Ch’oe-I 222 Choiseul, Étienne François, Duc de 812 Chola Tamils 174 , 273 Chōnen 215 Christian IV of Denmark 666 , 713 , 717 Christianity anchorites 381 , 413 Armenian 707 Augustinians 615 , 640 Britain’s Christianization 347 , 349 Calvinists 660 Celtic 379 , 380 and China 627 , 640 , 645 , 695 Christian trading republics emerging 173 Christians vs Muslims in Spain 423 , 468 , 477 Church in Norway 390 crusades see crusades Dominicans 554 , 582 , 640 , 652–3 in Faroe Islands 383 forced conversion of Jews to 537 Franciscans see Franciscans in Frisia 352 in Greenland 397 , 400 Iberian Christian-Muslim conflicts 467–8 in Iceland 386–7 incense use 71 and the Inquisition see Inquisition Irish monks 381–3 , 386–7 and Japan 628 , 630 , 632 , 640 , 643 , 644 , 645–6 , 648 , 653–4 , 692 , 693 , 694 , 695 ; Japanese converts on Kyushu 654 ; missionary activities 628 , 630 , 640 , 643 , 644 , 645–7 ; persecution of Christians 628 , 630 , 632 , 646 , 647 , 648 , 654 Jeronymites 589 Jesuits see Jesuits Karelian Christianization 422 and Korea 695 Lithuania’s Christianization 437 London Missionary Society 813 missionary activities 33 ; across North Sea 352–3 ; in China 640 , 645 ; in Hawai’ian islands 24 ; by Jesuits 628 , 640 , 643 , 644–7 ; and silk trade 645–6 Muslim governments’ relationship with Christians 836–8 Nestorians 160 and Orkney 375–6 papacy see papacy persecution of Christians see also Inquisition ; Protestants in Netherlands under duke of Alva 673 and piracy 761 Portuguese New Christians (of Jewish origin) 494 , 503 , 537 , 609 , 672 , 673 , 685 , 698 , 699–701 , 702–3 , 704–5 , 708 , 712 , 749 , 754 , 769–70 , 840 ; of Amsterdam, in Macau and Manila 693 ; in Cape Verde 491 , 754 ; on St Thomas Island 720 Protestant see Protestantism/Protestants Red Sea and Jewish–Christian confrontation 130 , 166–7 Russian Orthodox 420 , 427 , 437 and Ryukyu Islands 695 Scandinavia’s Christianization 361 and Socotra 129 , 130 Syrian Christians 841 and Vietnam 695 and the Vikings 367 Christiansborg fort 718 , 721 chronometers 16 , 731 , 812 Chrysé 110 , 134 , 135 Ch’üan-chou see Quanzhou Chulan 282–3 Chumash Indians 28 , 580 Churchill, Winston 891 Chuzan 229 , 231–4 Cidade Velha see Ribeira Grande cinnamon 92 , 99 , 194 , 542 , 543 , 569 bark 615 Cinque Ports 456–7 Cirebon wreck 162 cisterns 99 , 180 citron 178 Ciudad Trujillo 586 see also Santo Domingo, Hispaniola clams 14 Cleopatra II of Egypt 97 Cleopatra 816–17 climate change xxii global warming 908 cloak pins 319 , 324 Clontarf, battle of 379–80 cloth American 833 , 839 barafulas 754 bark-cloth 21 , 810 Castilian 491 Chinese 107 ; nankeen 790 , 809 , 816 ; silks see silk: Chinese coarse 588 cotton 106 , 109 , 128 , 184 , 504 , 540 , 624 , 715 , 724 see also cotton ; American 833 ; calico 635 , 690 , 714 , 717 ; Lancashire 866 ; Manchester 839 , 873 as currency 754 Dutch 678 ; broadcloth 631 Egyptian 104 English 451–2 , 459 , 461 , 669 , 749 , 750 , 839 ; and Bristol 457–8 ; and Ragusans 456 fine 58 , 107 , 363 , 454 , 457 , 588 see also silk Flemish 439 , 440 , 451 , 470 , 491 Florentine 453–4 French 470 hemp 194 Indian 107 , 635 , 715 ; calico 635 , 690 , 714 ; cotton 715 ; and the Danes 714 , 715 linen 373 , 444 , 457 , 540 , 548 , 624 at Lo Yueh 135 luxurious purple textiles 106 Mercers 669 and Norway 391 Okinawan 234 at Omana 106 Portuguese 754 and Ragusans 456 satin 233 silk see silk Ubaid 53 , 54 woollen 353 , 400 , 441 , 451 , 866 clothes 184 African 540 cotton 540 English 660 , 663 Greenland costumes at Herjólfsnes 404 linen 540 , 548 at Qusayr al-Qadim 178 cloves xix , 153 , 157 , 233 , 280 , 429 , 548 , 569 , 577 , 578 , 606 , 611 , 614 , 684 , 688 , 714 , 754 camphor 184 and Oman 829 , 833 Clydeside 869 , 891 , 899 Cnut 361 , 371 , 375 Co-hong guild 789 coal 824 , 841 , 846 , 860 , 861 , 884 , 888 depots/bunkers 841 , 846 , 865 , 884 supply ships 861 , 865 , 888 Welsh 884 cobalt 238 Cobh (Queenstown), Ireland 875 Cobo, Juan 652–3 Cochin 261 , 269 , 547 , 568 , 598 , 640 ships 543 cocoa 721 coconuts 12 , 20 , 29 , 114 , 132 , 178 , 185 , 493 , 574 cod 306 , 399 , 420 , 430 , 442 , 462 , 463 , 522 , 562 , 752 tax on 562 Coen, Jan Pieterszoon 690 , 713 , 738 , 739 coffee 95 , 706 , 709 , 711 , 715 , 721 , 725 , 831 , 832 Mocca 831 cogs (ships) 354 , 426 , 428–9 , 451 , 456 , 460 , 484 Coimbra 467 coins see also cash Axumite 167 in Barus 160 billon 586 in Cape Verde 492 Chinese 138 , 153 , 172 , 188 , 207 , 214 , 221 , 229 , 240 , 242 , 249 , 266–7 copper 153 , 172 , 200 , 207 , 218 , 240 , 242 , 249 Frisian 353 , 354 gold 164 , 172 , 352 , 478 , 687 , 730 , 803 Greek 326 on Hispaniola 586 hoards 345 , 366 in Intan shipwreck 164 introduction to India 102 Islamic 364 , 366 Javanese 164 on Nanhai I 165 Newport finds 459 Norse 410 Peruvian 777 Portuguese white royal coins 476–7 for Rhineland wines 367 Roman 107 , 118 , 120–21 , 141 Ryukyu 232 of Sasanian kings of Persia 118 silver 184 , 200 , 352 , 353 , 364 , 448–9 , 730 , 754 ; American silver coins melted down for jewellery 754 ; billon alloy 586 ; dirhams 366 ; Maria Theresa silver dollars 833–4 ; and Port Royal 777 in Siraf 172 Spanish 586 Cologne 342 , 344 , 354 , 427 , 449 and Hansards 428 , 433 , 438 , 441 , 442 , 444 , 447 , 448 , 452 merchants of 449 , 450 Venice Company 441 Colombia 592 , 697 , 777 and Gran Colombia/New Granada 852 and Panama Canal 854 , 857–8 Colombo, Domenico 525 Colón, Diego 555 , 587 Colón, Luís de 771 Colón, Panama 854 , 855 , 858 Columba, St 382 Columbia 792 , 793 Columbus, Bartholomew 586 Columbus, Christopher xvii–xviii , 27 , 254 , 256, 463 , 464 , 483 , 514 , 517 , 525–6 , 533 , 537 Bobadilla’s arrest of 529 Book of Prophecies 729 in Bristol 524 and Cape Verde 490 and cotton 588 crusade strategy 523 and de la Cosa 554 earth size calculation 537 and gold 524 , 528 , 529 , 531 , 588 , 589 and Iceland 410 , 524 and Japan 524–5 , 537 lack of supplies hindering circumnavigation of world 523 and Madeira 486 and New World 46 , 517 , 521 , 582 , 585 , 586 , 588 , 589 ; 1st voyage 522 , 523–4 , 526–7 , 532 ; 2nd voyage 527–8 ; 3rd voyage 528–9 ; 4th voyage 529–31 ; and Bahamas 527 ; Caribbean islands 270 , 520 , 521–2 , 523–4 , 527–8 , 529 , 530–31 ; Hispaniola 520 , 521 , 527–8 , 529 , 530 , 531 , 582 , 585 , 769 ; and Taíno Indians 521–2 , 527 , 528 , 529 , 530–31 , 537 ; and the term ‘Indies’ 46 , 517 and Pané 521 and Perestrello family 524 , 525 and Piri Reis 610 and sugar trade 525 , 589 and transformation of Atlantic navigation 582 and Vespucci 526 Columbus, Diego (Diego Colón) 555 , 587 Columbus, Ferdinand 523 Columbus family see also Colón, Colombo 550–51 , 555 Comoros archipelago 131 compasses magnetic 243 , 256 , 370 sidereal 17 Conference System 866–7 , 868 Confucianism 200 , 208 , 256 and trade 236 Congo, River 512 , 513 Constans II, Byzantine emperor 172 Constantinople 115 , 485 fall to Turks 460 , 594 as Mikelgarð 362 Ottoman court 456 Venetian trade with 601 containerization 901–5 container ports 897 , 904–5 , 907 container revolution 880 container ships xviii , 880 , 895 , 897 , 901–5 , 908 Cook, Captain James 3 , 5 , 31–2 , 733 , 743–4 , 785–6 , 791 , 792 , 809 , 812–14 death 814 journals 791 , 807 and the Russians 804 Cook Islands 29 Copenhagen 701 , 712 , 713 , 714 , 715 , 718 , 721 , 724 Atlantic trade 721–2 Baltic trade 721–2 copper 47 , 58 , 106 , 135 , 164 , 477 and Africa 503 and Antwerp 672 Atlantic arc and copper ores 320–21 boilers 721 and China 238 , 242 coins 153 , 172 , 200 , 207 , 218 , 240 , 242 , 249 and Dilmun 65 , 69 and Indians 108 ingots 60 , 242 and Japan 692 , 847 keel sheathing 815 and Magan 57 , 67 , 68 Mycenaean axe 314 nickel content 58 and Oman 58 , 61 oxidized 217 plates 183 , 794 and the Portuguese 672 Sardinian 324 Sumatran 160 and Venice 672 Welsh 302 Copts 52 coracles 331 coral 153 , 754 Corcos, Abraham 837 , 838 Corcos family 836 , 837 cordage 178 Córdoba 170 , 175 Cormac ui Liatháin 382 Cornelisz, Jeronimus 739–41 Cornwall 302 , 308 , 322 , 326 , 330 , 336 and Brittany 328 promontory forts 328 tin 302 Corsica 331 Corte Real, Gaspar 534 Corte Real family 534–5 , 662 Cortés, Hernán 565 , 580 , 587 , 611 Cosa, Juan de la 553–4 Cossacks 801 Costa (cruise company) 900 Costa Rica 529 cotton 106 , 109 , 128 , 184 , 504 , 540 , 715 , 724 , 754 American cloth 833 calico 635 , 690 , 714 , 717 Caribbean 522 , 588 Chinese 624 and Columbus 588 Egyptian 185 Lancashire cloths 866 and Liverpool 865 and Manchester 839 , 873 and the Portuguese 635 Courthope, Nathaniel 690 Cousin, Jean 558 Couto, Diogo do 641 Coventry 458 Covilhã, Pero da 536 , 545 Cowasjee, Framjee 824 cowries 14 shells 495 , 506 , 511 Crawford, Harriet 61 cremation 317 Creole 491 Cresques family 480 Crete 70 , 83 Minoans 322 crocodiles 12 Croker Island 10 Cromwell, Oliver 691 , 719 , 756 , 764 , 769–70 , 772 , 773 Cromwell, Richard 756 Crosby, Alfred xxiii Crown Jewels 450 cruising and cruise lines/industry 868 , 879 , 899–900 , 907 crusades and economic warfare against Islam 501 , 523 , 537 , 546 and gold 481 Henry V’s crusading Military Order (Order of Christ) 481 , 485 , 497 , 501 , 749 northern 420–21 Second Crusade 423 , 468 Third Crusade 449 and trade 422 ; and Mediterranean trade centres 420 CSCL Globe 905 Cuba 521 , 527 , 554 , 555 , 565 , 587 , 591–3 , 769 , 774 American occupation 856 and Columbus 523 and the Dutch 683 , 772 Havana’s pre-eminence within Spanish Indies 591 sugar 591 and US war with Spain 856 Cunard 867 , 882 , 885–6 , 899 British and North American Royal Mail Steam Packet Company 860–61 , 868–9 , 882 , 884–5 joint transatlantic air service with BOAC 899 Second World War and Cunard ships 889–90 White Star merger 886 Cunard, Samuel 860 Cunliffe, Barry 307 , 335 Curaçao 709 , 766 , 772 Curonian raiders 422 currachs 331 , 382 currants 682 , 873 currents xv Gulf Stream xv Kuroshio xv down Labrador coast 464 Mediterranean 322 Pacific 16 Red Sea 51 South Equatorial 16 Cushing, John 790 Cutty Sark 866 Cyprus 70 , 83 , 91 , 323 , 324 and Britain 851 cloak pins 319 and Ottomans 604 Cyrus the Great 85 Da Mosto, Alvise see Cadamosto/Ca’ da Mosto, Alvise Da Qin 148–9 Däbrä Damo monastery 130 Đại Việt 228 Daia 58 Dair al-Bahri 76 dairy goods 66 , 308 , 432 , 442 , 487 , 593 , 675 , 749 Dalma 54 Damascus 170 , 423 Dana, Richard Henry Jr: Two Years before the Mast 791–2 Danegeld 362 Daniel, Glyn 312 Danish Asiatic Company 712 Danish East India Company 667 , 713 see also United East India Company, Danish (later Danish Asiatic Company) Danish West India Company 667 , 719 , 720 , 721 Dante Alighieri: Divine Comedy 472 Danzig xxii , xxix , 425 , 431 , 433 , 438 , 441 , 447 , 452 , 470 , 685 merchants of 453 Daoism 295 Dardanelles 857 Darien Company 722–3 Darien Scheme 722–3 Darius Hystaspis 88 , 95 Dartmouth 468 Dashi 153 , 162 , 266 date palms 53 dates 53–4 , 68 , 177 , 178 , 187 and the ‘Muscateers’ 831 Dauphin Map 734 Dávila family of Segovia 588 Davis, John 665–6 , 688 Davis Strait 655 Day, John 463 , 533 Dazaifu, Japan 197 de la Fosse, Eustache 506–7 , 511 Dee, John 664 deer 273 , 276 , 306 , 310 , 552 hides 278 Dehua 247 , 289 Delano, Warren 790 Delaware River 717 delftware 778 Delos 98 , 99 Denisovans 8 Denmark/Danes xxii , 306 , 339 , 342 , 343 African population ruled by 716 Angles 347 and Arctic Ocean 666–7 and the Atlantic 712 and the Baltic 421 , 713 , 714 , 715–16 , 721–2 boats/ships 339 , 343 and Brandenburg–Prussia 713 and the Caribbean 711–12 , 716 , 720–22 , 772 and Ceylon 713–14 and China 709 , 712 , 714 , 725 and Curonian raiders 422 Danish coastal empire 425 , 724 Danish siege of Stockholm 436 and the Dutch 685–6 , 713 , 718 East India Company see Danish East India Company ; United East India Company, Danish (later Danish Asiatic Company) and the English 714 , 718 , 720 and the French 720 global trading network 709 and Guinea 712 , 716 , 721 and Hansards 424–5 and India 712 , 714 , 715 and Kurland 715–16 Lübeck and the Danes 424–5 merchant fleets 724 merchants 712 , 719 and Morocco 836 National Museum 398 and Norway 712 and the Portuguese 718–19 rock carvings 322 shipwrecks 357 and slavery 709 , 712 , 716 , 720 , 722 and Spain 685 and the Swedes 724 and Thirty Years War 714 trade see trade: Danish Vikings see Vikings and west Africa 712 , 716 , 717–22 West India Company 719 , 720 , 721 and West Indies 711–12 , 713 , 716 , 720–22 Dent, Thomas 824 Depression, Great 883–4 , 886 Deshima Island 197 , 691 , 692 , 693–4 , 695 , 808 , 846 Deutsche Lufthansa 898 Dezhnev, Semen 800 dhows 131 , 134 , 171 , 545–6 , 549 Oman’s ancestors of 68 Dhu Nuwas (Yūsuf) 166–7 diamonds 99 , 141 , 703 Dian Ramach of Madagascar 759–60 Dias, Bartomeu 514 , 536 , 537 , 538–9 Dicuil 337 , 381 , 386 Diderot, Denis 811 Dieppe 558 , 561 Ango family 562 maps 733–4 diesel engines 884 , 885 Dilmun 56–61 , 64–9 and copper 65 , 69 and Indus Valley 66–7 Dingler, Jules 855 Dinis of Portugal 469 , 470 Diodoros the Sicilian 111 , 338 and Pytheas 336 Disko Island 397 , 408 Disraeli, Benjamin 850 , 861 Diu, Gujarat 546 , 600 , 601 , 602 , 604–5 , 831 DNA analysis 12 , 26 , 27 , 132 , 317 , 347 , 386 , 491 Dominican Republic 583 dockworkers 901 dodo xxi Doggerland/Dogger Bank 303 dogs 12 , 38 hunting dogs 75 , 273 Dollinger, Philippe 419 Dolphin 810 , 811 Dominican Republic 527 , 583 , 586–8 see also Hispaniola DNA analysis 583 Dominicans 554 , 582 , 640 , 652–3 Dordrecht 439 Dorestad 353–4 , 355 Dorset Eskimos 398–9 Dorset Island 408 Dover Strait 321 , 346 Drake, Sir Francis 490 , 517 , 617 , 631 , 665 , 687 , 704 , 727 , 730 , 753 , 770 , 795 Drax, Sir James 768 Dreyer, Edward 254 , 259 Drummond Hay, John 838 Drumont, Édouard 855 dry-stone house foundations 321 Dublin 361 , 379 , 875 Dubrovnik and Ottomans 603 Ragusans 81 , 455–6 dugongs 9 , 10 , 112 Dunkirk 685 Dunkirk II Marine Transgression 345 Dutch see Netherlands/Holland and the Dutch Dutch East India Company see VOC (United East India Company) Dutch West India Company (WIC) 683 , 686 Duyfken 736 dyes 50 , 194 , 323 , 473 see also sandalwood indigo 107 , 717 , 754 orchil 474 , 502 woad 455 , 459 , 488 Ea-nasir 60–61 , 65 , 68 Eanes, Gil 501 Earth Mother 312 East Anglia 304 East China Sea 198 , 250 East India Company, Danish 667 , 712 , 884 East India Company, Dutch see VOC (United East India Company) East India Company, English 688 , 689 , 691 , 723 , 755 , 760 , 761 , 780 , 781 , 817 , 820 , 824 , 831 and Boston Tea Party 784 and New Julfans 707 opium trade 825–6 and Singapore 819–20 , 821 tea export monopoly to America 784 East India Company, Swedish 723–6 East Indies xxi , 134 , 156 , 723–6 , 752 see also specific countries of south and south-east Asia Austronesians from xxi and Cape Verde 752–3 , 754 and Danish East India Company see Danish East India Company ; United East India Company, Danish (later Danish Asiatic Company) Dias’s discovery of route to 514 , 536 , 537 and the Dutch see Netherlands/Holland and the Dutch: and the East Indies/Indonesia East Indian crew stop-overs: in Azores 751 ; in Cape Verde 752–3 and Egypt 88 , 98 , 99 , 116 see also India: and Egypt and the English 657 , 687–90 see also East India Company, English Indonesia see Indonesia/Indonesians Magellan’s attempt to reach 569–76 Malaya see Malaya/Malays and North America 780–96 Philippines see Philippines and the Portuguese see Portugal/Portuguese: and East Indies/Indonesia and Russia 802 and south-east Africa 548–9 and the Spanish 567–81 ; and Manila galleons see Manila galleons Spice Islands see Moluccas/Spice Islands spice trade see spices/spice trade and Swedish East India Company 723–6 wider area covered by term 46 , 781 Easter Island 3 , 27 , 29–31 ebony 47 , 57 , 76 , 78–9 , 106 , 122 , 233 , 265 Edo, Japan 644 , 652 , 653 , 693 , 695 , 807 , 846 see also Tokyo Edo Bay 846 Edward I of England 450 , 456 , 469 Edward II of England 450 Edward III of England 450 , 454–5 Edward IV of England 507 Edward VI of England 658 eels 14 Eendracht 736 Egbert of Wessex 360 Egede, Niels 405 Egeria 117 eggs 178 , 179 Egil’s Saga 389 Egypt/Egyptians 46 , 47 , 91 Alexandrian Egyptians 99 and Bereniké 111 and Chinese ceramics 174 , 266 and East Indies 88 , 98 , 99 , 116 see also India: and Egypt emeralds 174 Fatimid Empire 160 , 173 under Hatshepsut 75–6 , 78 and India 182–3 , 187–8 Mamluks see Mamluks merchants 181 , 182 , 265 and Mesopotamia 47 , 70 and Ottomans 601–2 , 603 and Persia 85 Ptolemies see Ptolemies and the ‘Sea Peoples’ 79 shipping on Nile 70 ships see boats/ships: Egyptian and Six-Day War (1967) 896 Suez see Suez Canal trade see trade: Egyptian unification of Upper and Lower Egypt 70 , 76 Eirík the Red 393 , 396–7 , 398 , 400 , 410 Eisai 216 El Dorado 553 El Piñal 627–8 Elcano, Juan Sebastian 569 , 570 , 571 , 577 , 578 , 579 , 581 , 617 Eleanor of Aquitaine 458 Eleanor 815 elephant birds 133 elephantegoi 111 elephants 59 , 64 , 93 , 96 , 104 , 111 , 170 , 266 , 278 , 365 , 542 , 833 ivory see ivory: elephant tusks 135 see also ivory: elephant Eliezer, son of Dodavahu 82 Elizabeth I 453 , 657 , 659 , 660 , 662 , 663–4 , 689 , 731 1600 charter 691 Ellesmere Island 407 , 408 Elliott, Charles 826 Elmina 493 , 495 , 508 , 510–11 , 560 , 561 , 584 , 585 , 686 Elsinore see Helsingør Elyot, Hugh 534 emeralds 99 , 174 , 238 Empire Flying Boats 898 Empress of China 785 , 786–90 , 791 Endo, Shusaku: The Samurai 632 Enfantin, Barthélemy-Prosper 848 England/English and Amboyna island 714 Anglo-Saxon 347 , 349 , 355–6 , 357–62 Anglo-Saxon literature 318 Antwerp trade decline 673 and Arctic Ocean 657–60 , 662–6 and Armenians 707 and Australia 737 and the Azores 750–51 and the Baltic 367 , 452–3 and Barbados 767–8 , 772 and Bermuda 766 Bronze Age 319 and the Caribbean 764–5 , 766–79 cloth see cloth: English Crown Jewels 450 and the Danes 714 , 718 , 720 Darien Scheme and Scottish union 722–3 delftware 778 and the Dutch 682 , 687–91 ; and Cromwell 769 ; Tobago conflict 719 and the East Indies 657 , 687–90 see also East India Company, English Englishmen in Prussia 451–2 and France see France: and Britain/England and Gambia 719 glassware 660 gold desired by 663–4 grain trade 389 , 391 , 444 , 458 and Guinea 716 and Hansards 419 , 447–53 , 456 , 458 , 463 house of Tudor 534 and Iceland 461–3 and India see India: and the British/English and Ireland 767 Italian bankers in 454 and Jamaica 765 , 768 , 769–79 and Jews 700 , 769–70 , 839 London see London and Madeira 484 , 748–50 Magnus Intercursus treaty with Habsburg rulers of Flanders 669 merchants in: English merchants see merchants: English; Frisian merchants 353 ; Greek merchants 872–3 ; Portuguese merchants 469 ; under protection of Crown 469 and Morocco 657 , 838–9 , 840 Navigation Act (1651) 780 , 784 navy: and the Anglo-Saxons 361 ; RN see Royal Navy Neolithic 309 , 310 ; descendants from 317 and the New World 557 , 766–7 ; and Manhattan Island/New Amsterdam 690 , 717 , 756 and the papacy 770 , 771 piracy 452 , 718 , 763–5 , 773–6 and Portugal 465 , 474 , 751–2 ; English merchants meeting Portuguese objections 464 ; and Madeira 484 ; Portuguese alliances 469 , 474 privateers 405 , 662 , 730 , 763 , 764 , 774–6 Protestant England 557 , 730 and raiders 346–7 raising English flag in new lands 533 Royal African Company 760 , 777 and Run 690 , 714 and Russia 659 ships see boats/ships: English silver 448–9 , 451 and Spain see Spain/Spaniards: and Britain/England and the spice trade see spices/spice trade: and the English and St George 697 steam packet between England and Alexandria 848–9 and sugar 657 , 768 trade see trade: English Viking raids 357–62 Virginia Company 766 wheat 389 , 391 , 444 wool 450 , 453 , 454 , 456 , 460 English Channel 299 , 319 , 321 , 322 car ferries 899 defence by Cinque Ports 456–7 and Edward III’s wars in 450 Germanic raids 346 piracy 456 souterrains both sides of 329 English language 838 pidgin English 790 Enki (god) 56 , 57 Enkidu 56 Ennin (Jikaku Daishi) 202–9 , 210–11 Enrique (Sumatran servant/interpreter) 568 , 570 , 574 , 575 environmental oceanic damage xxiii , 908 Eratosthenes 334 Eridu 56 Erie Canal 848 Erik of Pomerania 436–7 , 461–2 Erikson, Gustaf 874 , 876 Eritrea 71–3 , 79 , 122 , 182 ermine 427 , 428 Ertebølle 306 Eskimos Dorset 398–9 Inuit 398 , 399–400 , 404 , 405 , 406–7 , 408 , 411 Esmeralda 543–4 Esmerault, Jean de 486 Espoir 557–60 Essaouira see Mogador Essomericq, son of Arosca 559 Estonia 420 , 421 , 428 Estonian raiders 422 Ethiopia/Ethiopians 130 , 166–7 , 512 , 536 , 540 Axum see Axum Etruria 120 Etruria , SS 869 Etruscans 326 , 331 , 334–5 , 338 Etzion-Geber 80 , 82 , 83 Eudaimōn Arabia (Aden) 105–6 Eudoxos of Kyzikos 97–8 Euergetes II 97 Eugénie of France 859 eunuchs 99 , 255 , 258 , 267 , 268 , 270 , 293 , 832 Euphrates 50 , 52 European Union 419 Evans, James 766–7 Evans, Jeff 20 exoticism exotic animals 76 , 136 , 255 , 256 see also specific animals exotic goods, luxuries and foods xix , 68 , 114–15 , 136 , 174–5 , 186 , 215 , 236 , 238 , 278 , 280 , 366 , 617 , 649 , 660 , 682 , 693 , 716 , 780–81 see also aromatics ; carnelian ; ebony ; emeralds ; ivory ; lapis lazuli ; silk ; spices/spice trade ; sugar exotic information 322 Exquemeling, Alexandre 774 , 775 Ezekiel 81–2 Fabian, William 507 falcons 398 Faleiro, Rui 570 Falkland Islands 666 , 791 , 795 Falmouth, Cornwall 848–9 , 875 Fan-man/Fan Shiman 140 , 143 , 144 Fan Wenhu 226 fans 216 , 234 farming see agriculture/farming Faroe Islands 380–81 , 383 , 386 , 387 , 444 , 712 , 721 Farquhar, William 819 , 821 , 822 , 828 Fatimid Empire 160 , 173 Faxien (Shih Fa-Hsien) 144–6 Fei Xin 256–7 , 259 , 261 , 264 , 269 Felixstowe 880 , 904–5 , 907 feng shui 243 , 289 Ferdinand II of Aragon, king of Castile 464 , 489 , 505 , 522 , 527 , 529 , 530 , 534 , 555–6 , 567–8 Fernandes, Valentim 493 , 494 Fernando de Noronha island 560 Ferrand, Gabriel 148 Ferrer, Jaume 474 , 500 , 501 Fetu people 718 Fez, Morocco 175 , 471 , 475 , 834 , 837 figs 470 , 491 , 493 , 756 Fiji 11 , 14 , 19 Filipino language 131 Finland 421 Finno-Ugrians 421–2 furs 428 Karelians 422 Finney, Ben 20 First World War 881–3 and Belfast 870 fish 11 , 28 , 35 , 39 , 66 , 68 , 74 , 91 , 112 , 180 , 213 , 303 , 306 , 352 , 381 , 429 , 431 , 502 , 803 bones 54 , 92 cod see cod deep-sea 34 dried 432 , 442 , 793 farms 26 , 280 flounder 306 freshwater 306 garfish 284 , 285 herring see herring hooks 9 , 15 , 24 , 28 , 39 Japanese diet of 196 Norwegian stokffish 463 parrot fish 14 pelagic 9 plastics in fishy food chain 908 pounded fish meal 92 raw 91 , 92 salmon 196 sauce, garum 112 , 116 , 120 shellfish see shellfish stock depletion 908 and Torres Strait islanders 9 , 10 traps 9 tuna/tunny see tuna fishing and Japanese ‘People of the Sea’ 213 Norway’s access to fishing grounds 712 overfishing 908 pelagic fishing from bark boats 9 tunny 54 Fitch, Ralph 598 , 640–41 Flanders 173 , 240 , 353 , 355 , 430 , 431 , 451 Antwerp see Antwerp and the Azores 481 , 488 cloth 439 , 440 , 451 , 470 , 491 and the Dutch 682 , 685 and grain trade 428 and Hansards 433 , 439 and Madeira 486 and Madeiran sugar 485 Magnus Intercursus treaty between England and Habsburg rulers of 669 and Mina 506–7 and Portugal 469–70 , 474 ships 456 and sugar trade 486 flax 176 , 178 , 444 flesh-hooks 317 , 318 Flóki Vilgerðarson 384 Florence/Florentines 440 , 564 banks/bankers 450 , 454 and Bruges 438 businessmen backing long sea voyages 525 , 545 , 564 cloth/wool 453–4 , 460 merchants 618–22 Savonarola’s revolution 526 ships 456 Flores 7 Florida 554 , 565 , 592 , 857 Miami 899–900 , 902 Florida 580 flounder 306 flour 63 , 176 , 177 , 444 , 445 , 491 , 493 sago 15 wheat 620 , 624 , 648 Formosa Island see Taiwan Fortin, Mouris 559 Fowey, Cornwall 462 France anti-Semitism 855 Antwerp banking loans 673 and Brazil 557–60 , 561 and Britain/England: Edward III’s wars 450 , 454 ; and Henry VIII 557 ; Henry V’s wars 477 ; and Panama Canal 851 ; and Suez Canal 849 , 850 , 896 Brittany see Brittany Bronze Age 314 , 316–17 , 319 and China 709 ; Canton occupation 827 cloth 470 and the Danes 720 and the Dutch 818 and the Falklands 795 Franco-Ottoman alliance 603 and Germany, Second World War 888 and Guinea 561 Habsburg rivalry 672 Huguenots 676 , 696 , 697 Italy invaded by 526 and Madagascar 557 merchant navy 888 and Milan 559–60 and Morocco 561 and Naples 559–60 Napoleonic Wars 712 , 789 , 818 Neolithic 309 , 313 and Newfoundland 562 Normandy see Normandy/Normans and the Pacific islands 811–12 and Panama Canal 848 , 851 , 854–5 , 858 Pondicherry rulership/base 119 , 707 see also Pondicherry and the Portuguese 561–2 Scandinavian raids on northern France 348 and Second Crusade 423 and Second World War 888 and Spain 676 , 795 and St Thomas 720 and Suez Canal 848–50 , 896 tin 324 trade see trade: French trade routes affected by La Tène culture 332 , 334–5 wine 458–9 , 675 Francis I of France 562 , 563 , 661 Franciscans 537 , 640 , 645 , 648 , 653 , 731 , 838 and Jesuits 653 Francisco de Vitoria, archbishop of Mexico City 701 frankincense 47 , 71 , 76 , 80 , 104 , 106 , 107 , 153 , 243 duty 273 Japanese purchases of 194 Franklin, Sir John 565 , 845 Franks 345 , 346 , 348 , 352 , 354 , 361 and Vikings 360 Franz Joseph of Austria 859 Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor 418 , 424 Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor 398 , 418 , 425 , 475 Frederick II of Denmark 666 Frederiksborg fort 718 , 721 Freneau, Philip 786–7 Freydis 412 Frisia/Frisians 344 , 348 , 351–5 , 674 Frisian language 352 and Haithabu 366 and Vikings 360 Vitalienbrüder in East Frisian islands 437 Frobisher, Martin 662–3 , 664–5 , 666 Frobisher Bay 663 Fuerteventura 472 , 473 Fuggers banking house, Augsburg 579 , 672 , 673 Fujiwara clan 217 Fujiwara no Tsunetsugu 203 , 204 , 205 , 206 , 207 , 215 Fukoaka see Hakata (Fukoaka) Funan, southern Vietnam 137 , 139–44 and Buddhism 142 and China 139–44 ships 142–3 and Zhenla 146–7 Funchal, Madeira 484 , 749 , 750 Museum of Sacred Art 485 funerary barges 73–4 furs/fur trade 194 , 198 , 367 , 440 , 441 , 712 , 797 bear furs 408 in Canton 806 and China 785–6 , 791 , 792–6 , 797 , 806 ermine 427 , 428 Finnish 428 and Hawai’i 816 North American/US 785–6 , 791–6 , 816 Russian 365 , 420 , 422 , 423 , 427 , 428 , 786 , 804 , 806 ; and England 659 sea otter 785 , 786 , 806 , 808 , 809 and the Spanish 806 taxation 804 Fustat (Old Cairo) xx , 160 , 174 , 175 , 182 Ben Ezra synagogue 175 Chinese pottery at 179 Genizah documents 174 , 175–6 , 182 , 184 Jews of 176 merchants 175 , 181 , 184 , 187 Gabriel 662–3 Gadir see Cádiz Galápagos Islands 28–9 Galicia 301–2 , 304 , 459 , 461 , 470 Bronze Age 317 citânias 329 megalithic culture 312 Neolithic 312 rías 751 rock carvings 322 Galicians 455 galleons 29 , 771 , 777 and carracks 641 Manila see Manila galleons Santo André 751 Gallia Belgica 344–5 , 346 galliots 641 Galloway 328 Gama, Gaspar da 541–2 Gama, Vasco da xvii–xviii , 490 , 514 , 519 , 522 , 537–41 , 602 , 755 Gambia 719 Ganges 110 , 121 Gannascus 344–5 Gardar, Greenland 397 , 400 , 407 Garðar Svávarsson 384 garfish 284 , 285 garnets 141 garum sauce 112 , 116 , 120 Gascony 458 , 459 Gatun lake, Panama 858 Gaul/Gauls 115 , 330 , 331 , 332 , 335 , 336 , 345 , 346 Gaza 122 , 167 gazelle skins 323 Gdansk see Danzig Geer, Louis De 717 Genizah documents 174 , 175–6 , 182 , 184 Genoa/Genoese 188 , 415 , 420 , 461 , 465 , 470 , 471 , 525 , 703–4 bankers 590 , 703 and Bruges 438 and Castile 528 and Ceuta 475 , 478 East India Company funding attempts 704 and Indian Ocean 703–4 investors in sugar trade 589–90 and Lisbon 470 and London 455 and Madeira 481 , 486 merchants 470 , 475 , 682 and Mogador 836 and Portugal 470 , 485 ships 454 and silver from New World 611 and slave trade 503 , 588 , 777 and St George 697 and wool 454–5 George, St 697 George, Prince Regent, later George IV 820 George 463 Germaine de Foix 556 Germanic languages 347 , 352 Germanic raiders 344–7 Germany Antwerp and south German businessmen 672 bankers 450 , 579 , 590 , 672 , 673 , 675 , 703 Brandenburg see Brandenburg and Britain: and First World War 881–3 ; and naval power 418 , 881 ; and Second World War 887–91 Bronze Age 317 , 319 , 320 and First World War 881–3 and France, Second World War 888 German Democratic Republic 418–19 , 422–3 German Hansa see Hansa, German heavy industry exit points 880 internecine warfare in 1620s and 1630s 686 and Italy see Italy: and Germany and Japan, Second World War 887 , 888 Jews 422 , 886 Low German language see Low German language Luftwaffe 889 and Madeira 486 merchant navy 882 , 883 merchants see merchants: German Military Orders 420–21 mines 882 , 889 naval ambitions 418 , 881 , 887 Prussia see Prussia and Second Crusade 423 and Second World War 887–91 Slav wars with 423 and Thirty Years War 714 trade see trade: German transatlantic air service 898 and Urnfield Culture 317 and the USA: and First World War 882 ; and US immigration policy 885 Gerrha 94 , 95 Ghana 492 , 716 , 718 see also Elmina ghee 104 Ghent 355 Gibraltar 90 , 322–3 , 335 , 475 , 656 , 801 , 851 and Morocco 839–40 Strait of 323 , 324 , 454 , 467 , 470 , 475 , 477–8 , 857 Gilbert, Humphrey 662 Gilgamesh 55 , 56 ginger 12 , 99 , 118 , 188 , 429 , 542 , 574 , 615 , 640 ginseng 194 , 786 giraffes 255 , 259 , 265 , 266 , 269 glaciers 304 Glasgow 869 , 874 , 875 , 889 glass beads 288 , 521 , 554 , 754 Glob, P.


pages: 931 words: 79,142

Concepts, Techniques, and Models of Computer Programming by Peter Van-Roy, Seif Haridi

computer age, Debian, discrete time, Donald Knuth, Eratosthenes, fault tolerance, functional programming, G4S, general-purpose programming language, George Santayana, John von Neumann, Lao Tzu, Menlo Park, natural language processing, NP-complete, Paul Graham, premature optimization, sorting algorithm, the Cathedral and the Bazaar, Therac-25, Turing complete, Turing machine, type inference

This figure introduces another bit of graphic notation, the dotted arrow, which denotes a single value (a non-stream argument to the function). 260 Declarative Concurrency Sieve X Xs X | Zs Xr Zs Filter Ys Sieve Figure 4.11: A prime-number sieve with streams. Sieve of Eratosthenes As a bigger example, let us define a pipeline that implements the prime-number sieve of Eratosthenes. The output of the sieve is a stream containing only prime numbers. This program is called a “sieve” since it works by successively filtering out nonprimes from streams, until only primes remain. The filters are created dynamically when they are first needed.


pages: 420 words: 143,881

The Blind Watchmaker; Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe Without Design by Richard Dawkins

Boeing 747, epigenetics, Eratosthenes, Fellow of the Royal Society, Gregor Mendel, lateral thinking, Menlo Park, pattern recognition, phenotype, random walk, silicon-based life, Steven Pinker, the long tail

In essence, it amounts simply to the idea that non-random reproduction, where there is hereditary variation, has consequences that are far-reaching if there is time for them to be cumulative. But we have good grounds for believing that this simplicity is deceptive. Never forget that, simple as the theory may seem, nobody thought of it until Darwin and Wallace in the mid nineteenth century, nearly 200 years after Newton’s Principia, and more than 2,000 years after Eratosthenes measured the Earth. How could such a simple idea go so long undiscovered by thinkers of the calibre of Newton, Galileo, Descartes, Leibnitz, Hume and Aristotle? Why did it have to wait for two Victorian naturalists? What was wrong with philosophers and mathematicians that they overlooked it? And how can such a powerful idea go still largely unabsorbed into popular consciousness?


pages: 453 words: 142,717

The Last Man on the Moon: Astronaut Eugene Cernan and America's Race in Space by Eugene Cernan, Donald A. Davis

Apollo 11, Apollo 13, Berlin Wall, Charles Lindbergh, Eratosthenes, full employment, Gene Kranz, Isaac Newton, Neil Armstrong, orbital mechanics / astrodynamics, Ronald Reagan, Silicon Valley, space junk, Teledyne, white flight

Ron had not found his scissors, but Jack had found his tongue. Now that we were in orbit, he went on a verbal rampage, words spilling out in a Niagara of information. Earthly clouds and low-pressure fronts were long forgotten. He was pointed the other way now, at the Moon, and was talking rapidly in short stories of science, describing Eratosthenes, dark albedo areas within the ejecta of Copernicus, central peaks like Rein-hold and Lansberg, the nonlinear characteristics of ray patterns, the Marius Hills, Oceanus Procellarum, and the irregular swirls in Mare Marginis. Not mere sentences, but whole long paragraphs in a single breath, driving the poor transcribers back in Houston nuts, and we hadn’t done a damn thing yet except reach lunar orbit.


pages: 468 words: 137,055

Crypto: How the Code Rebels Beat the Government Saving Privacy in the Digital Age by Steven Levy

Albert Einstein, Bletchley Park, Claude Shannon: information theory, cognitive dissonance, Compatible Time-Sharing System, computer age, disinformation, Donald Knuth, Eratosthenes, Extropian, Fairchild Semiconductor, information security, invention of the telegraph, Jim Simons, John Gilmore, John Markoff, John Perry Barlow, Kevin Kelly, knapsack problem, Marc Andreessen, Mitch Kapor, MITM: man-in-the-middle, Mondo 2000, Network effects, new economy, NP-complete, quantum cryptography, Ronald Reagan, Saturday Night Live, Silicon Valley, Simon Singh, Stephen Hawking, Steven Levy, Watson beat the top human players on Jeopardy!, web of trust, Whole Earth Catalog, zero-sum game, Zimmermann PGP, éminence grise

If you multiply two large primes together, then, you get a much larger number that isn’t a prime. To factor that number, you have to somehow reverse the process, identifying the two original seeds that produced it. This had been understood as a hard problem ever since a few years before Christ’s birth, when Eratosthenes of Alexandria devised a mathematical process called a “sieve” to try to perform this task. At that time, people considered factoring to be virtually the same problem as trying to figure out whether a number was a prime or not. Twelve hundred or so years later, Fibonacci improved the method somewhat, but by no means did he offer a way to reasonably break down a large product into its two parent primes.


The Rough Guide to Egypt (Rough Guide to...) by Dan Richardson, Daniel Jacobs

Bletchley Park, British Empire, call centre, colonial rule, disinformation, Easter island, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, glass ceiling, haute cuisine, Khartoum Gordon, Kickstarter, lateral thinking, Livingstone, I presume, satellite internet, self-driving car, sexual politics, Skype, spice trade, Suez canal 1869, Suez crisis 1956, sustainable-tourism, three-masted sailing ship, trade route, Wall-E, Yom Kippur War

Classical and Christian Aswan During settled periods, the vast trade in ivory, slaves, gold, silver, incense, exotic animal skins and feathers spawned a market town on the east bank, but the island remained paramount throughout classical times, when it was known by its Greek appellation, Seyene. The Alexandrian geographer Eratosthenes (c.276–195 BC) heard of a local well into which the sun’s rays fell perpendicularly at midday on the summer solstice, leaving no shadow; from this he deduced that Seyene lay on the Tropic of Cancer, concluded that the world was round and calculated its diameter with nearly modern accuracy – being only 80km out.

Alexandria under the Ptolemies Thereafter Alexander’s empire was divided amongst his Macedonian generals, one of whom took Egypt and adopted the title Ptolemy I Soter, founding a dynasty (305–30 BC). Avid promoters of Hellenistic culture, the Ptolemies made Alexandria an intellectual powerhouse: among its scholars were Euclid, the “father of geometry”, and Eratosthenes, who accurately determined the circumference and diameter of the earth. Alexandria’s great lighthouse, the Pharos, was literally and metaphorically a beacon, rivalled in fame only by the city’s library, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina – the foremost centre of learning in the ancient world.


The Art of Computer Programming: Sorting and Searching by Donald Ervin Knuth

card file, Charles Babbage, Claude Shannon: information theory, complexity theory, correlation coefficient, Donald Knuth, double entry bookkeeping, Eratosthenes, Fermat's Last Theorem, G4S, information retrieval, iterative process, John von Neumann, linked data, locality of reference, Menlo Park, Norbert Wiener, NP-complete, p-value, Paul Erdős, RAND corporation, refrigerator car, sorting algorithm, Vilfredo Pareto, Yogi Berra, Zipf's Law

Thus the computation begins as follows: Queue contents Primes found B5, 10, 30) 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23 C5, 20, 30)D9, 28, 42) 29, 31 D9, 28, 42)E5, 10, 30) 37, 41, 43, 47 E5, 10, 30)G7, 14, 42)A21, 22, 66) 53 If the queue is maintained as a heap, we can find all primes < N in O(Nlog N) steps; the length of the heap is at most the number of primes < y/~N. The sieve of Eratosthenes, as implemented in exercise 4.5.4-8, is a O(iV log log N) method requiring considerably more random access storage. More efficient implementations are discussed in Section 7.1. 16. Step 1. Set K <— key to be inserted; j <— n + 1. Step 2. Set i «- [j/2\. Step 3. If i = 0 or Ki > K, set K3• «— K and terminate the algorithm.

Enumeration of permutations, 12, 22—24. Enumeration of trees, 287. Enumeration sorting, 75-80. Eppinger, Jeffrey Lee, 434, 435. Equal keys, 194-195, 341, 391, 395, 431, 635. approximately, 9, 394—395. in heapsort, 655. in quicksort, 136, 635-636. in radix exchange, 127-128, 137. Equality of sets, 207. Eratosthenes of Cyrene ('Epaxoa9svr}<; 6 Kupr}valo<;), 642. Erdelyi, Arthur, 131. Erdos, Pal (= Paul), 66, 155, 658. Erdwinn, Joel Dyne, 2. Erkio, Hannu Heikki Antero, 623. Error-correcting codes, 581. Ershov, Andrei Petrovich (EpuioB, AHApeii IleTpoBHH), 547. Espelid, Terje Oskar, 259. Estivill-Castro, Vladimir, 389.


pages: 855 words: 178,507

The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood by James Gleick

Ada Lovelace, Alan Turing: On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem, Albert Einstein, AltaVista, bank run, bioinformatics, Bletchley Park, Brownian motion, butterfly effect, Charles Babbage, citation needed, classic study, Claude Shannon: information theory, clockwork universe, computer age, Computing Machinery and Intelligence, conceptual framework, crowdsourcing, death of newspapers, discovery of DNA, Donald Knuth, double helix, Douglas Hofstadter, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, Fellow of the Royal Society, Gregor Mendel, Gödel, Escher, Bach, Henri Poincaré, Honoré de Balzac, index card, informal economy, information retrieval, invention of the printing press, invention of writing, Isaac Newton, Jacquard loom, Jaron Lanier, jimmy wales, Johannes Kepler, John von Neumann, Joseph-Marie Jacquard, Lewis Mumford, lifelogging, Louis Daguerre, machine translation, Marshall McLuhan, Menlo Park, microbiome, Milgram experiment, Network effects, New Journalism, Norbert Wiener, Norman Macrae, On the Economy of Machinery and Manufactures, PageRank, pattern recognition, phenotype, Pierre-Simon Laplace, pre–internet, quantum cryptography, Ralph Waldo Emerson, RAND corporation, reversible computing, Richard Feynman, Rubik’s Cube, Simon Singh, Socratic dialogue, Stephen Hawking, Steven Pinker, stochastic process, talking drums, the High Line, The Wisdom of Crowds, transcontinental railway, Turing machine, Turing test, women in the workforce, yottabyte

Beginning in the third century BCE, it served the Ptolemies’ ambition to buy, steal, or copy all the writings of the known world. The library enabled Alexandria to surpass Athens as an intellectual center. Its racks and cloisters held the dramas of Sophocles, Aeschylus, and Euripides; the mathematics of Euclid, Archimedes, and Eratosthenes; poetry, medical texts, star charts, mystic writings—“such a blaze of knowledge and discovery,” H. G. Wells declared, “as the world was not to see again until the sixteenth century.… It is the true beginning of Modern History.”♦ The lighthouse loomed large, but the library was the real wonder.


pages: 477 words: 165,458

Of a Fire on the Moon by Norman Mailer

Apollo 11, Apollo 13, card file, centre right, data acquisition, Eratosthenes, Gene Kranz, invention of gunpowder, Neil Armstrong, Norman Mailer, planned obsolescence, public intellectual, Ralph Nader, RAND corporation, Watson beat the top human players on Jeopardy!

From that height, looking down on the plain, little could be discerned—they would need to be nearer than sixty miles up to be certain of the intimate character of the land they would approach. They passed Triesnecker Crater and Rima Hyginus, a dog-legged ravine one hundred miles long. They passed Eratosthenes and Copernicus to the north, passed Copernicus without comment, Copernicus! the most outstanding crater of all maria, mighty crater in the Mare Imbrium! From Copernicus extended mountain chains, Carpathians to the left, Apennines and the Caucasus to the right, the crater Archimedes was among them and the rays of craters Kepler and Encke.


pages: 535 words: 167,111

An Unexpected Light: Travels in Afghanistan by Jason Elliot

anti-communist, Ayatollah Khomeini, clean water, Easter island, Eratosthenes, trade route

The reason lies in its geography; what is today Afghanistan has been a natural crossroads for as long as history has been recorded, straddling the volatile tetrad of Far Eastern, Indian, central Asian and Persian civilizations. The earliest recorded names for the region date from the sixth century BC, when Afghanistan formed the eastern reaches of the Achaemenid empire under Darius the Great. To Greek writers such as Eratosthenes writing two hundred years before Christ, and who took their knowledge from the Persians, it was known as Ariana. Given the intervening two thousand years of upheaval, the classical divisions of the region into seven provinces are mirrored with remarkable fidelity in today’s Afghanistan: Bactriana, corresponding roughly with today’s Balkh and Badakhshān provinces; Margiana, the northwestern portion of the country around Murghāb now represented by the provinces of Baghdīs and Faryiāb; Aria, the region around Herat (possibly the Hairava of the Avestas) and the western end of the Paropamisus range; Gandara, embracing Kabul, Jelallabad and Peshawar; Sattagydia, from Ghazni to the Indus; and Drangiana and Gadrosia, comprising modern Baluchistan and Sistan and on to the south, as far as the home of the Ikthyiophagoi – the fish-eaters – of the coastlands around Makran.


pages: 1,014 words: 237,531

Escape From Rome: The Failure of Empire and the Road to Prosperity by Walter Scheidel

agricultural Revolution, barriers to entry, British Empire, classic study, colonial rule, conceptual framework, creative destruction, currency manipulation / currency intervention, dark matter, disruptive innovation, Easter island, Eratosthenes, European colonialism, financial innovation, financial intermediation, flying shuttle, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), invisible hand, Isaac Newton, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Johannes Kepler, joint-stock company, Joseph Schumpeter, knowledge economy, low interest rates, mandelbrot fractal, means of production, Multics, Network effects, out of africa, Peace of Westphalia, peer-to-peer lending, plutocrats, principal–agent problem, purchasing power parity, rent-seeking, Republic of Letters, secular stagnation, South China Sea, spinning jenny, The Rise and Fall of American Growth, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, trade route, transaction costs, vertical integration, zero-sum game

From their base in Marseille they established trade connections with Britain to obtain metal. By the fourth century BCE, Greek sailors had mapped routes to the Shetlands and into the Baltic. Pytheas sailed in the waters surrounding Britain and Ireland and advanced northward to (probably) the Faroes and finally “Thule,” just possibly Iceland. Famous Greek scholars such as Aristotle and Eratosthenes raised—though did not endorse—the possibility of crossing the Atlantic in order to reach India.26 A similar degree of engagement can be observed in other parts of the Old World. Around the beginning of the Common Era, Madagascar was settled by people from Indonesia, more than 6,000 kilometers away.


pages: 903 words: 235,753

The Stack: On Software and Sovereignty by Benjamin H. Bratton

1960s counterculture, 3D printing, 4chan, Ada Lovelace, Adam Curtis, additive manufacturing, airport security, Alan Turing: On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem, algorithmic trading, Amazon Mechanical Turk, Amazon Robotics, Amazon Web Services, Andy Rubin, Anthropocene, augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, basic income, Benevolent Dictator For Life (BDFL), Berlin Wall, bioinformatics, Biosphere 2, bitcoin, blockchain, Buckminster Fuller, Burning Man, call centre, capitalist realism, carbon credits, carbon footprint, carbon tax, carbon-based life, Cass Sunstein, Celebration, Florida, Charles Babbage, charter city, clean water, cloud computing, company town, congestion pricing, connected car, Conway's law, corporate governance, crowdsourcing, cryptocurrency, dark matter, David Graeber, deglobalization, dematerialisation, digital capitalism, digital divide, disintermediation, distributed generation, don't be evil, Douglas Engelbart, Douglas Engelbart, driverless car, Edward Snowden, Elon Musk, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, Ethereum, ethereum blockchain, Evgeny Morozov, facts on the ground, Flash crash, Frank Gehry, Frederick Winslow Taylor, fulfillment center, functional programming, future of work, Georg Cantor, gig economy, global supply chain, Google Earth, Google Glasses, Guggenheim Bilbao, High speed trading, high-speed rail, Hyperloop, Ian Bogost, illegal immigration, industrial robot, information retrieval, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), intermodal, Internet of things, invisible hand, Jacob Appelbaum, James Bridle, Jaron Lanier, Joan Didion, John Markoff, John Perry Barlow, Joi Ito, Jony Ive, Julian Assange, Khan Academy, Kim Stanley Robinson, Kiva Systems, Laura Poitras, liberal capitalism, lifelogging, linked data, lolcat, Mark Zuckerberg, market fundamentalism, Marshall McLuhan, Masdar, McMansion, means of production, megacity, megaproject, megastructure, Menlo Park, Minecraft, MITM: man-in-the-middle, Monroe Doctrine, Neal Stephenson, Network effects, new economy, Nick Bostrom, ocean acidification, off-the-grid, offshore financial centre, oil shale / tar sands, Oklahoma City bombing, OSI model, packet switching, PageRank, pattern recognition, peak oil, peer-to-peer, performance metric, personalized medicine, Peter Eisenman, Peter Thiel, phenotype, Philip Mirowski, Pierre-Simon Laplace, place-making, planetary scale, pneumatic tube, post-Fordism, precautionary principle, RAND corporation, recommendation engine, reserve currency, rewilding, RFID, Robert Bork, Sand Hill Road, scientific management, self-driving car, semantic web, sharing economy, Silicon Valley, Silicon Valley ideology, skeuomorphism, Slavoj Žižek, smart cities, smart grid, smart meter, Snow Crash, social graph, software studies, South China Sea, sovereign wealth fund, special economic zone, spectrum auction, Startup school, statistical arbitrage, Steve Jobs, Steven Levy, Stewart Brand, Stuxnet, Superbowl ad, supply-chain management, supply-chain management software, synthetic biology, TaskRabbit, technological determinism, TED Talk, the built environment, The Chicago School, the long tail, the scientific method, Torches of Freedom, transaction costs, Turing complete, Turing machine, Turing test, undersea cable, universal basic income, urban planning, Vernor Vinge, vertical integration, warehouse automation, warehouse robotics, Washington Consensus, web application, Westphalian system, WikiLeaks, working poor, Y Combinator, yottabyte

Gopal Balakrishnan, Antagonistics: Capitalism and Power in the Age of War (London: Verso, 2009). 33.  Its terminological origins are not obscure. Geo from the Greek γαια (“Earth”) refers to our planet, and specifically to the land, the ground, the land as ground, and when paired with “to describe,” as geography, γεωγραϕία (as for Eratosthenes, who first calculated the circumference of the Earth around 240 B.C.E.) to literally measure and give exact scale to the ground, and to spaces themselves, one smaller and larger than another. So for our virtual political geography, where the Earth is rerotated again from another center of a space in which it was located, there is an implicit correspondence between geography and cosmology, the scientific conception of the universe as well then to cosmograph, the “writing-describing of the universe” and to cosmogram, the “writing-image of the universe.”


Egypt Travel Guide by Lonely Planet

call centre, carbon footprint, Eratosthenes, friendly fire, G4S, haute cuisine, Khartoum Gordon, late fees, low cost airline, spice trade, Suez canal 1869, Suez crisis 1956, sustainable-tourism, Thales and the olive presses, trade route, urban planning, urban sprawl

Its economic wealth was equally matched by its intellectual standing. Its famed library (Click here) stimulated some of the great advances of the age: this was where Herophilus discovered that the head, not the heart, is the seat of thought; Euclid developed geometry; Aristarchus discovered that the earth revolves around the sun; and Eratosthenes calculated the earth’s circumference. A grand tower, the Pharos (Click here), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was built on an island just offshore and served as both a beacon to guide ships entering the booming harbour and an ostentatious symbol of the city’s greatness. During the reign of its most famous regent, Cleopatra, Alexandria rivalled Rome in everything but military power – a situation that Rome found intolerable and was eventually forced to act upon.


Europe: A History by Norman Davies

agricultural Revolution, Albert Einstein, anti-communist, Berlin Wall, bread and circuses, Bretton Woods, British Empire, business climate, centre right, charter city, classic study, clean water, Columbian Exchange, conceptual framework, continuation of politics by other means, Corn Laws, cuban missile crisis, Defenestration of Prague, discovery of DNA, disinformation, double entry bookkeeping, Dr. Strangelove, Edmond Halley, Edward Lloyd's coffeehouse, equal pay for equal work, Eratosthenes, Etonian, European colonialism, experimental economics, financial independence, finite state, Francis Fukuyama: the end of history, Francisco Pizarro, full employment, gentleman farmer, global village, Gregor Mendel, Honoré de Balzac, Index librorum prohibitorum, interchangeable parts, invention of agriculture, invention of movable type, Isaac Newton, James Hargreaves, James Watt: steam engine, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Johannes Kepler, John Harrison: Longitude, joint-stock company, Joseph-Marie Jacquard, Korean Air Lines Flight 007, land reform, liberation theology, long peace, Louis Blériot, Louis Daguerre, Mahatma Gandhi, mass immigration, Mikhail Gorbachev, military-industrial complex, Monroe Doctrine, Murano, Venice glass, music of the spheres, New Urbanism, North Sea oil, offshore financial centre, Peace of Westphalia, Plato's cave, popular capitalism, Potemkin village, purchasing power parity, Ralph Waldo Emerson, road to serfdom, sceptred isle, Scramble for Africa, spinning jenny, Suez canal 1869, Suez crisis 1956, Thales of Miletus, the scientific method, The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus, trade route, transatlantic slave trade, Transnistria, urban planning, urban sprawl, W. E. B. Du Bois

All these researches prepared the way for Euclides of Alexandria (fl. c.300), whose Elements is said to have reigned supreme for longer than any book save the Bible. Euclid was the great mathematical systematizer, who set out to provide lasting proofs for all existing knowledge. When asked by the ruler of Egypt whether geometry could not be made more simple, he replied that there was ‘no royal road’. The next generation was dominated by Archimedes and by Eratosthenes of Cyrene (276–196), who, in calculating the earth’s diameter at 252,000 stades or 7,850 miles, erred by less than 1 per cent. Lastly there was Apollonius of Perge (fl. c.220 BC), who wrote a vast eight-volume study of Conies and found an approximation for pi that was even closer than that of Archimedes.

The Syracusans’ knowledge of the world would have been largely confined to the Great Sea, and to the countries of the East. The science of geography had made great advances in classical Greece, although the frontiers of the world directly known to the ancients had not radically changed. A contemporary of Archimedes, Eratosthenes of Cyrene (276–196), librarian at Alexandria, had concluded that the world was a sphere; and his work was known to Ptolemy and Strabo. But, apart from the Phoenician route to the Tin Islands, little progress was made in practical exploration. No known contact was ever made with West Africa, with the Americas, or with the more distant parts of northern Europe.


pages: 1,051 words: 334,334

Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon

centre right, classic study, company town, Eratosthenes, experimental subject, invisible hand, Isaac Newton, ought to be enough for anybody, plutocrats, random walk

When none followed she made up her own. The engineer in the next cubicle had a map of the Moon tacked to his fiberboard wall, and she spent hours studying it, deciding where she wanted to live. Passing over the bright rays of Kepler, the rugged solitude of the Southern Highlands, the spectacular views at Copernicus and Eratosthenes, she chose a small pretty crater in the Sea of Tranquillity called Maskelyne B. They would build a house right on the rim, Mutti and she and Pokier, gold mountains out one window and the wide sea out the other. And Earth green and blue in the sky.... Should he have told her what the "seas" of the Moon really were?


pages: 1,178 words: 388,227

Quicksilver by Neal Stephenson

Danny Hillis, dark matter, en.wikipedia.org, Eratosthenes, Fellow of the Royal Society, Free Software Foundation, gentleman farmer, Isaac Newton, joint-stock company, Neal Stephenson, out of africa, Peace of Westphalia, retrograde motion, short selling, short squeeze, Snow Crash, the scientific method, trade route, urban planning

The result of his lucubrations was classically French in that it did not square with reality but it was very beautiful, and logically coherent. Since then our friends Huygens and Wren have expended more toil towards the same end. But I need hardly tell you that it is Newton, far beyond all others, who has vastly expanded the realm of truths that are geometrickal in nature. I truly believe that if Euclid and Eratosthenes could be brought back to life they would prostrate themselves at his feet and (pagans that they were) worship him as a god. For their geometry treated mostly simple abstract shapes, lines in the sand, while Newton’s lays down the laws that govern the very planets. I have read the copy of Principia Mathematica that you so kindly sent me, and I know better than to imagine I will find any faults in the author’s proofs, or extend his work into any realm he has not already conquered.