2000 Year Old Astronomical Computer has Scientists Perplexed

Aleriv was a Visigoth,not a Hun.

My apologies.

Nice poem about him here:

www.john351.supanet.com/index14.html

Peter.

The so called barbarians have had a very bad press from various sources, most of them being counted amongst those who highlight only the glories of Rome and gloss over its brutal history of murder, slavery and conquest. Most of us ooh and aah when we see monuments like the Colloseum, never really thinking about the people who died or were enslaved to fund and build it or the thousands who unwillingly met their death in it. In my opinion the Roman civilization as a society or culture is to be denigrated and reviled, not admired.

Sing no songs of praise when beauty is produced by evil, rather hang your head in shame for all mankind that our fellows could not achieve the one without indulging in the other. Many of the so-called barbarian societies that took over as Rome crumbled were much closer to what we would regard as just and civilised than classical Rome ever was or appears to have wanted to be.

Where would we be now if the Romans had managed to keep the Barbarians in their place north of the alps ?

At the risk of deteriorating this into a monty python thread, what did the Romans ever do for us?

They were good engineers and came up with some interesting social and political structures, but I'm having trouble thinking of any new scientific contibutions they made. Other civilisations seem to have had more of a focus on science and invention.

The nature of empire is rape, pillage, treasure; the first two leading to the last. Pick your empire Persian, Roman, Ottoman, British; all sorts of noble talk of bringing the benefits of universal order and civilisation to the ignorant savages, but really at the end of the day, it's about bringing the loot home. The denigration of the conquered, allows the victor to believe the butchery was in a noble cause rather than the grubby pursuit of treasure.

The Romans weren't just good engineers, they were master engineers. They seemed to lack the creative flair of the ancient Greeks in the natural sciences and the arts; their energy more directed to practical pursuits required by empire, such as public administration, the Law, civil engineering and military technology.

Just finished two books by Tom Holland; Rubicon and Persian Fire. The early struggles of Democracy versus Tyranny/Monarchy in Rome and Athens is fascinating. I love reading about the flowering of philosopy, astronomy/cosmology and mathematics in ancient Greece. The greatest cultural tragedy ever was probably the burning of the great library in Alexandria, during Caesar's pursuit of Pompey in the civil war.

James

Almost every single LEARNED word in the English language is of Greek or Roman origin.

The very alphabet you write in is Roman !

There are no Irish, English, French or German alphabets around.(Ogham and Runic were based on the Roman alphabet.)

The list of what we owe to the Romans and especially to the Greeks is so endless that I suggest you buy a few history books and start reading them.

P.S. This is December. Latin for ten is "Decem". (10th Roman month)
You speak Latin and Greek all the time and probably don't realise it !

The greatest cultural tragedy ever was probably the burning of the great library in Alexandria, during Caesar's pursuit of Pompey in the civil war.

Makes one wonder how much humanity was set back!