NATS 1860 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Monism, Point Thomas, Scholasticism
21 Nov 2015
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Thales of miletus: one of the earliest thinkers in ancient greece, he wanted to know the nature and working of things, the nature of earth and the evolution of life, he was the first greek mathematician and astronomer, politician and businessman, thales" theory of monism states that the earth is made of 1 substance; water, the significance is that this theory was contradicted by later scientists such as empedocles of arigentum who stated the idea of pluralism. 4 elements: empedocles of arigentum believed everything was made of 4 elements; air, earth, fire, and water, this theory was later supported by aristotle, aristotle also suggested that there is a fifth element, ether, because it seemed strange to him that the stars and universal entities would be made up of earthly elements, the significance of this is that it is a complete 180 degree shift from the idea of monism, which was dominant theory at the time.
