> At 04:00 PM 5/17/98 PDT, you wrote:
> >
> >
> >actually wouldnt you agree that the ancient greeks and even egyptians
> >had a fairly high level of invention
> >
>
> The Greeks had the ability, for certain, but their spin on the scientific
> method was such that they saw no purpose in experimental proof of theories.
> After all, once you have figured Nature out in your mind, what point is
> there in getting messy by proving the truth? I particularly enjoyed reading
> Socrates' arguments for the existence of an immortal soul, based on his own
> personal experiences alone. No wonder the rulers of the time sought his
> death - he was as far from the pragmatic science of today as possible.
>
> Their 'inventions' were mostly used as special effects for their temples,
> to impress the common folk, or for toys. Persons who actually would dig
> into the mess to prove things were looked down on as mere mechanics and
> laborers.
>
> The Egyptians, I don't have good information on. Now I will have to go to
> the library again..
All of these, when compared to the societies before, were obviously more
inventive, but remember that they are really only known for a few inventions
that were true advances over what was used before, that were developed over
several hundred years. Comparing this with the over 5 million patents that have
been issued here in the US alone over the past 200 years (mostly within the
last 50 years) is like saying that a mouse standing on a pile of dung has a
similar view as giraffe.
-- TANSTAAFL!!! Michael Lorrey ------------------------------------------------------------ mailto:retroman@together.net Inventor of the Lorrey Drive MikeySoft: Graphic Design/Animation/Publishing/Engineering ------------------------------------------------------------ How many fnords did you see before breakfast today?