'Nature and the Greeks' and 'Science and Humanism'

'Nature and the Greeks' and 'Science and Humanism' PDF

Author: Erwin Schrödinger

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2014-11-06

Total Pages: 185

ISBN-13: 1316124118

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Nobel laureate Erwin Schrödinger was one of the most distinguished scientists of the twentieth century; his lectures on the history and philosophy of science are legendary. 'Nature and the Greeks' and 'Science and Humanism' makes available for the first time in many years the texts of two of Schrödinger's most famous lecture series. 'Nature and the Greeks' offers a comprehensive historical account of the twentieth-century scientific world picture, tracing modern science back to the earliest stages of Western philosophic thought. 'Science and Humanism' addresses some of the most fundamental questions of the century: what is the value of scientific research? And how do the achievements of modern science affect the relationship between material and spiritual matters? A foreword by Roger Penrose sets the lectures in a contemporary context, and affirms they are as relevant today as when they were first published.

The Greeks and the Environment

The Greeks and the Environment PDF

Author: Laura Westra

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 1997

Total Pages: 244

ISBN-13: 9780847684465

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Environmental ethicists have frequently criticized ancient Greek philosophy as anti-environmental for a view of philosophy that is counterproductive to environmental ethics and a view of the world that puts nature at the disposal of people. This provocative collection of original essays reexamines the views of nature and ecology found in the thought of Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, and Plotinus. Recognizing that these thinkers were not confronted with the environmental degradation that threatens contemporary philosophers, the contributors to this book find that the Greeks nevertheless provide an excellent foundation for a sound theory of environmentalism.

The Greek Concept of Nature

The Greek Concept of Nature PDF

Author: Gerard Naddaf

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 2012-02-01

Total Pages: 278

ISBN-13: 0791483673

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In The Greek Concept of Nature, Gerard Naddaf utilizes historical, mythological, and linguistic perspectives to reconstruct the origin and evolution of the Greek concept of phusis. Usually translated as nature, phusis has been decisive both for the early history of philosophy and for its subsequent development. However, there is a considerable amount of controversy on what the earliest philosophers—Anaximander, Xenophanes, Pythagoras, Heraclitus, Parmenides, Empedocles, Anaxagoras, Leucippus, and Democritus—actually had in mind when they spoke of phusis or nature. Naddaf demonstrates that the fundamental and etymological meaning of the word refers to the whole process of birth to maturity. He argues that the use of phusis in the famous expression Peri phuseos or historia peri phuseos refers to the origin and the growth of the universe from beginning to end. Naddaf's bold and original theory for the genesis of Greek philosophy demonstrates that archaic and mythological schemes were at the origin of the philosophical representations, but also that cosmogony, anthropogony, and politogony were never totally separated in early Greek philosophy.

An Environmental History of Ancient Greece and Rome

An Environmental History of Ancient Greece and Rome PDF

Author: Lukas Thommen

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2012-03-08

Total Pages: 199

ISBN-13: 1107002168

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Lively and accessible account of the relationship between man and nature in Graeco-Roman antiquity. Describes the ways in which the Greeks and Romans intervened in the environment and thus traces the history of tension between the exploitation of resources and the protection of nature.

Environmental Problems of the Greeks and Romans

Environmental Problems of the Greeks and Romans PDF

Author: J. Donald Hughes

Publisher: JHU Press

Published: 2014-02-15

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 1421412101

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How did ancient societies change the environment and how do their actions continue to affect us today? In this dramatically revised and expanded second edition of the work entitled Pan’s Travail, J. Donald Hughes examines the environmental history of the classical period and argues that the decline of ancient civilizations resulted in part from their exploitation of the natural world. Focusing on Greece and Rome, as well as areas subject to their influences, Hughes offers a detailed look at the impact of humans and their technologies on the ecology of the Mediterranean basin. Evidence of deforestation in ancient Greece, the remains of Roman aqueducts and mines, and paintings on centuries-old pottery that depict agricultural activities document ancient actions that resulted in detrimental consequences to the environment. Hughes compares the ancient world's environmental problems to other persistent social problems and discusses attitudes toward nature expressed in Greek and Latin literature. In addition to extensive revisions based on the latest research, this new edition includes photographs from Hughes's worldwide excursions, a new chapter on warfare and the environment, and an updated bibliography.

Did the Greeks Believe in Their Myths?

Did the Greeks Believe in Their Myths? PDF

Author: Paul Veyne

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 1988-06-15

Total Pages: 178

ISBN-13: 9780226854342

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An examination of Greek mythology and a discussion about how religion and truth have evolved throughout time.

Pan's Travail

Pan's Travail PDF

Author: J. Donald Hughes

Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press

Published: 1996-01-01

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780801853630

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In Pan's Travail, J. Donald Hughes examines the environmental history of the classical period and argues that the decline of ancient civilizations resulted in part from exploitation of the natural world. Focusing on Greece and Rome, as well as areas subject to their influences, Hughes offers a detailed look at the impact of humans and their technologies on the ecology of the Mediterranean basin. He also compares the ancient world's environmental problems to those of other eras and discusses attitudes toward nature expressed in Greek and Latin literature.