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review: Alexandria 642nd Novel of the ancient world knowledge

Luminet French astrophysicists has written a novel about the famous library of Alexandria. There thousand years, many scientists, philosophers and other scholars endeavor, knowledge OF ANY Art gathering. Through this knowledge the world has received another face. 642 AD, the library may be set at the behest of an uneducated, power-hungry Caliph on fire and destroyed. (The author writes in his afterword that he had deliberately decided against the form of historical essays, as he voiced concern about how he should bring the subject of observation the reader, because ultimately "no historical truth about this ancient time was saved. ")

is the starting situation of the novel, the conquest of Alexandria Duch Amr ibn al-As in 642 AD The Bedouin commander to his master in order to destroy the library because the omnipotence - is contrary to notions of the Caliph. Three scholars from the library to try to dissuade eloquently and subtly intelligent Amr the proposed transaction and to provide them with arguments that enable him to persuade his master to refrain from Unsinnstat.

They begin the thousand year history of the library to report, tell of the high-minded people who have lived there for centuries and explain works which originated here and houses are. The reader encounters the great mathematician Euclid hear of Aristarchus of Samos, who recognized long before Copernicus that the earth on its axis and around the sun rotates. Archimedes and Eratosthenes of Cyrene, the polymath not stay out pairs, the latter including the prime number discovered and invented the basics of geography. Poets, such as Callimachus and Aristophanes are mentioned, but also the findings of the important astronomers Claudius Ptolemy are discussed. Moreover, by the philosopher Hypatia of Alexandria Mathmatikerin and the speech that had to be a martyr of religious intolerance of the natural sciences their lives. The description of this unusual woman, incidentally, very impressive. Regardless of the crowning achievements of many thinkers, which shows Luminet viewing angle, the rulers of the time the library to eingenommen haben. Die Klugen unter ihnen nutzten das in der Bibliothek aufbewahrte Wissen, um ihr Land zu modernisieren und zur Blüte zu bringen. Die Bornierten fügten, wenn sich ihre Dummheit mit Bosheit paarte, dem Ort des Wissens immer wieder Schaden zu. So auch 642 n.Chr., als es dem diesbezüglich glücklosen Amr, trotz stichhaltigster Argumentationskette, nicht gelang seinen Herrn davon zu überzeugen, dass diese Fülle von Kenntnissen für ihn von Vorteil sein könnte...

Der Untergang der Bibliothek von Alexandria wird von Jean- Pierre Luminet eindrucksvoll und spannend geschildert. Wer auch immer das antike Weltwissen zerstört haben mag, es muss ein boshafter, ignoranter Entscheider have been. Maybe people are kind in every century the worst affliction for people of good will.

Addendum: Interestingly, the notes, the so-called learned footnotes that bring long forgotten from physics classes back in memory.

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