reading connection #1

            In the course of our studies we read about a man named Claudius Ptolemaeus. He is most famous for his theories about the cosmos. Ptolemy believed that the earth was the center of the universe and the sun, moon, planets, and stars revolve around the earth which stayed in a fixed position. Ptolemy also created a map showing his interpretation of the solar system, the remarkable part of this was that his map was incredibly close to what is true today. Ptolemy was able to accomplish all this thirteen centuries before the famous astrologer Galileo did. (Ptolemy)

            Ptolemy was the author of one of the most famous books in astrology the Tetrabiblos(Greek) or Quadrapartitium (Latin) meaning 'Four Books. In this book Ptolemy lays out the framework for astrology for other astrologers to follow in the future. Ptolemy did not gain his reputation purely on this book and his interpretation of the heavens. He also catalogued and named over 1000 stars, created the first viable theory of the refraction of light, and most impressively was able to calculate the dimensions of the earth with considerable precision. (Houlding)

            Debrah Houlding talks about Ptolemy on her website (http://www.skyscript.co.uk/ptolemy.html) and believes that even though Ptolemy was wrong about the earth being in the center of the universe he gave astrologers like Galileo a huge step forwards into uncovering the truths about the cosmos. We know today that the earth is not the center of the universe; however, back in Ptolemy’s time he was the one who came up with the theory and the Ptolematic system where the earth was in the center. Ptolemy was truly a revolutionary figure, thanks to him we now understand more about our universe. Hopefully in the future someone else like Ptolemy will come along and uncover more truths about what is out beyond our universe.

 

 

 

Works cited

 

Ptolemy. "Saving the Appearances" as it appears in Brian Baigrie's Scientific Revolutions: Primary Texts in the History of Science. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004.

 

Houlding, Debrah. "The life and work of Ptolemy." Sky Script. 1 June 1993. The Traditional Astrologer Magazine. 1 Oct. 2008 .

 

Arnett, Bill. "Ptolemy, the man." The nine planets. 26 Mar. 2006. 1 Oct. 2008 .