Episode #34 – Did Archimedes Build a Death Ray?

Archimedes was one of the ancient world’s most important mathematicians. His discoveries would form the foundation upon which all future western science was built. However, he’s probably best remembered for his amazing inventions that saved his city from attackers during the siege of Syracuse. The most discussed of all of these amazing devices has to be Archimedes’ “Death Ray”. This mysterious machine was said to be able to set ships on fire from hundreds of meters away. Did this fabled “Death Ray” really exist, or is just another legend in a life filled with mythology.

Works Cited
 
Archimedes, and Thomas Little Heath. The Works of Archimedes. Seaside, OR: Rough Draft Printing, 2007. Print.
 
“Archimedes Death Ray: October, 2005.” Mit.edu. MIT, 2009. Web. 7 Jan. 2017.
 
Bellio, David. “Fact or Fiction?: Archimedes Coined the Term “Eureka!” in the Bath.” Scientificamerican.com. Scientific American, 8 Dec. 2006. Web. 7 Jan. 2017.
 
Cicero, Marcus Tullius., and Michael Grant. Cicero: On the Good Life. Harmondsworth, Middle Sex, England: Penguin, 1971. Print.
 
Lucian, A. M. Harmon, K. Kilburn, and M. D. Macleod. Lucian. London: W. Heinemann, 1913. Print.
 
Plutarch, John Dryden, and Arthur Hugh Clough. Plutarch. the Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans. New York: Modern Library, 1992. Print.
 
Polybius, W. R. Paton, F. W. Walbank, and Christian Habicht. The Histories. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 2010. Print.
 
Simms, D. L. “Galen on Archimedes: Burning Mirror or Burning Pitch?” Technology and Culture 32.1 (1991): 91. Web.
 
Wesley, John. “Wesley Center Online.” The Wesley Center Online: Chapter 12 – Of Burning Glasses. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Jan. 2017.