Eureka! The Science of Archimedes

History through Experience

Archimedes was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor and astronomer c.287BC - c.212BC.  He is considered to be one of the greatest mathematicians of all time and is credited with designing many innovative machines and weapons. Galileo referred to him as "superhuman." He has been called the Einstein of his time (or some have called Einstein the Archimedes of his time).  Both a crater and a mountain range on the moon have been named in his honor.

Callie having her Eureka! moment!

A favorite Archimedes anecdote tells the story of how he discovered a method for determining the volume of an irregular shape while bathing. He jumped out of the water running naked through the streets shouting "Eureka!" meaning "I have found it! "

Great TedTalk about Buoyancy and Archimedes  www.youtube.com/watch?v=0v86Yk14rf8

 

The Stomachion is an ancient tangram-type puzzle. Believed by some to have been created by Archimedes, it consists of 14 pieces cut from a square. The pieces can be rearranged to form other interesting shapes. Callie got to learn about symmetry and the importance of how shapes can be placed together (creating new shapes or placement to form a specific shape).

Besides the exhibit... we spent some time enjoying other wonderful activities offered at the Space Center... like rock climbing. She's off the ground folk!

Today was a wonderful day where we combined education with fun!