Archimedes was a Sicilian mathematician who lived circa 287-212 BC. He discovered the principles of hydrostatics, namely the science of how solid bodies will act when placed in liquids.
He is reputed to have made this discovery when in the bath and having had a blinding flash of genius, shouted Eureka (I have found it) and ran naked through the street.
He figured out the principles of hydrostatics after King Heiron ll of Syracuse wanted to know if his new crown were indeed gold or gold plated. Archimedes took a lump of gold and placed it in the bath and measured how much water was lost. He then placed the crown in the water and ascertained that the crown displaced less water, thereby indicating that it must be composed of gold and a less dense metal. Therefore the crown was not in fact gold.
Eureka is still used today as meaning a flash of inspiration or genius.
He is reputed to have made this discovery when in the bath and having had a blinding flash of genius, shouted Eureka (I have found it) and ran naked through the street.
He figured out the principles of hydrostatics after King Heiron ll of Syracuse wanted to know if his new crown were indeed gold or gold plated. Archimedes took a lump of gold and placed it in the bath and measured how much water was lost. He then placed the crown in the water and ascertained that the crown displaced less water, thereby indicating that it must be composed of gold and a less dense metal. Therefore the crown was not in fact gold.
Eureka is still used today as meaning a flash of inspiration or genius.
