Ancient Greece

===Science and technology===
{{Main|List of Graeco-Roman geographers|Greek astronomy|Greek mathematics|Ancient Greek medicine|Ancient Greek technology|Science in classical antiquity}}
[[File:0142 - Archaeological Museum, Athens - Antikythera mechanism - Photo by Giovanni Dall'Orto, Nov 11 2009.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Antikythera mechanism]] was an [[analog computer]] from 150 to 100 BC designed to calculate the positions of astronomical objects.]]

Ancient Greek mathematics contributed many important developments to the field of [[mathematics]], including the basic rules of [[geometry]], the idea of [[formal proof|formal mathematical proof]], and discoveries in [[number theory]], [[mathematical analysis]], [[applied mathematics]], and approached close to establishing [[integral calculus]]. The discoveries of several Greek mathematicians, including [[Pythagoras]], [[Euclid]], and [[Archimedes]], are still used in mathematical teaching today.

The Greeks developed astronomy, which they treated as a branch of mathematics, to a highly sophisticated level. The first geometrical, three-dimensional models to explain the apparent motion of the planets were developed in the 4th century BC by [[Eudoxus of Cnidus]] and [[Callippus of Cyzicus]]. Their younger contemporary [[Heraclides Ponticus]] proposed that the Earth rotates around its axis. In the 3rd century BC, [[Aristarchus of Samos]] was the first to suggest a [[heliocentric]] system. Archimedes in his treatise [[The Sand Reckoner#Estimation of the size of the universe|The Sand Reckoner]] revives Aristarchus' hypothesis that ''"the fixed stars and the Sun remain unmoved, while the Earth revolves about the Sun on the circumference of a circle"''. Otherwise, only fragmentary descriptions of Aristarchus' idea survive.<ref>Pedersen, ''Early Physics and Astronomy'', pp.&nbsp;55–56</ref> [[Eratosthenes]], using the angles of shadows created at widely separated regions, estimated the [[circumference of the Earth]] with great accuracy.<ref>Pedersen, ''Early Physics and Astronomy'', pp.&nbsp;45–47</ref> In the 2nd century BC [[Hipparchus|Hipparchus of Nicea]] made a number of contributions, including the first measurement of [[precession]] and the compilation of the first star catalog in which he proposed the modern system of [[apparent magnitude]]s.

The [[Antikythera mechanism]], a device for calculating the movements of planets, dates from about 80 BC and was the first ancestor of the astronomical [[computer]]. It was discovered in an ancient shipwreck off the Greek island of [[Antikythera]], between [[Kythera]] and [[Crete]]. The device became famous for its use of a [[differential gear]], previously believed to have been invented in the 16th century, and the miniaturization and complexity of its parts, comparable to a clock made in the 18th century. The original mechanism is displayed in the Bronze collection of the [[National Archaeological Museum of Athens]], accompanied by a replica.

The ancient Greeks also made important discoveries in the medical field. Hippocrates was a [[physician]] of the Classical period, and is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the [[history of medicine]]. He is referred to as the "[[List of persons considered father or mother of a field#Natural and social sciences|father of medicine]]"<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Grammaticos | first1 = P.C. | last2 = Diamantis | first2 = A. | title = Useful known and unknown views of the father of modern medicine, Hippocrates and his teacher Democritus | journal = Hellenic Journal of Nuclear Medicine | volume = 11 | issue = 1 | pages = 2–4 | year = 2008 | pmid = 18392218}}</ref><ref>[http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761576397/Hippocrates.html Hippocrates], Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2006. Microsoft Corporation. [https://web.archive.org/web/20091029181928/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761576397/Hippocrates.html Archived] 31 October 2009.</ref> in recognition of his lasting contributions to the field as the founder of the Hippocratic school of medicine. This intellectual school revolutionized [[medicine in ancient Greece]], establishing it as a discipline distinct from other fields that it had traditionally been associated with (notably [[theurgy]] and [[philosophy]]), thus making medicine a profession.<ref name="garrison9293">{{Cite book| last = Garrison | first = Fielding H. | year = 1966 | title = History of Medicine | publisher = W.B. Saunders Company | location = Philadelphia | pages = 92–93}}</ref><ref name="nuland5">{{Cite book | last = Nuland | first = Sherwin B. | year = 1988 | title = Doctors | publisher = Knopf | isbn = 978-0-394-55130-2 | page = [https://archive.org/details/doctorsbiography00nula/page/5 5] | url = https://archive.org/details/doctorsbiography00nula/page/5 }}</ref>