Re: Elemental Physics

>"S. Wilson" wrote:
>>
>> It may or may not be true, but I'm told the Greeks believed
>> experimentation was gauche and lower-class.
>
>Heh.  We I didn't mean their ideas had stood the test of time but they
>do hold credit for thinking of them first.  I think they even thought
>the earth revolved around the sun.  I think in their way of thinking,
>knowledge was finite (you learned all there was so no need to look
>further).  I think even most of their knowledge came just from thought
>not through experimentation like you said.  The Greek belief could be a
>model used in the AD&D setting to explain why they never seem to take
>that next step in technology.
>
>--
>This has been a Galwylin® Production
>
>Timothy R. Haney		The Tome of Galwylin
>galwylin@??????.net		http://www.airnet.net/galwylin/

Only in this century has mankind achieved anything approaching what the
Greeks achieved.  They had invented an internal combustion engine,
practiced relatively advanced dentistry, surgery and mathematics, and, yes,
they did know that the earth revolved around the sun (as did the Chinese,
Babylonians, ancient Hebrews, Egyptians, Mayans, Hindus, Incans, Aztecs,
Celts - nearly everyone except the Christians knew about the earth
revolving about the sun).  For this level of achievement, a certain amount
of experimentation had to have occurred.  One of the major reasons that
their technological achievements did not catch on was that it was cheaper
and easier to have slaves do the work instead.  That is why the internal
combustion engine was considered little more than an interesting toy and
not really useful for anything.  Without slavery, those in power must
devise alternate means of accomplishing tasks, and technological advance is
the result.  Likewise, IMC those societies with slavery are less developed
on the magical front than those without.