Chapts 1-2 Flashcards
Who was the first known person to look into the mystery of Earth’s shape and size?
Eratosthenes
This person grew up in northern Africa about 250 years before the birth of
Christ. He was a mathematician, geographer, and astronomer.
Eratosthenes
Who became known as Greece’s
most talented scholar?
Eratosthenes
Who opened a great library in Alexandria filled with every piece of information he could
acquire?
Ptolemy III
Approximately how many handwritten scrolls were in Ptolemy’s library?
500,000
Who required all of his men to send every document found on every
conquest and ordered all ships and visitors to have their documents copied?
Ptolemy III
What were the 3 proofs that earth is a sphere?
1. During a lunar eclipse the shadow of Earth fell on the moon in a circular shape. 2. When a ship was sailing away from view, the hull disappeared first below the horizon and the masts would come last. 3. Those who were in the north part of the Earth saw the north star – Polaris – as higher in the sky. Those in the south saw it closer to the horizon.
How many miles did Eratosthenes think the world was?
24,540 miles. or 250,000 stadia
how long is a stadia?
we think it is the distance of an event in the Greek athletic games, the distance a sprinter could run without getting out of breath.
These people were the greatest navigators and explorers of the
ancient world because they were traders.
The Phoenicians
Who was the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, who wrote about the Phoenician?
Homer
The height of the Phoenicians was around ________ BC
1200
How were the Phoenicians able to find there way on the open seas?
The stars
Which major star group (asterism) that helped sailors in ancient times?
The Big Dipper
What 4 names did the ancient world call the larger constellation around the big dipper?
The Great Bear, Big Bear, Ursa Major, and a sky chariot.
