ABSTRACT
Greek concepts of science and technology were strongly influenced by philosophers such as Pythogaras and Plato. The Greeks of Mycenae, who were in possession of the peninsula by 1600 b.c., are more properly termed “Achaeans.” Greek philosophers, notably Pythagoras and the Ionian, Thales, defined abstract rules for studying physical problems. Thales had brought Egyptian geometry back to the Greek world. Thales took Egypt’s practical geometry into the abstract by development of concepts where a line becomes a directed ray. In an engineering sense, Greek civilization gave critical thought and concepts such as pi, zero, and the square root. The Minoan variant of Mycenaean civilization shows a less monumental treatment in construction. The Greek temple, while representing little in the advance of engineering, was the height of an elegant style. In a history of engineering, science, or technology, Greece presents an enigma.
