Zeno of Elea

He was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher of Magna Graecia and a member of the Eleatic
School founded by Parmenides. Aristotle called him the inventor of the dialectic. He is best
known for his paradoxes, which Bertrand Russell has described as "immeasurably subtle
and profound". Although written nearly a century after Zeno's death, the primary source of
biographical information about Zeno is Plato's Parmenides and he is also mentioned in
Aristotle's Physics. In the dialogue of Parmenides, Plato describes a visit to Athens by Zeno
and Parmenides, at a time when Parmenides is "about 65," Zeno is "nearly 40" and
Socrates is "a very young man". Assuming an age for Socrates of around 20, and taking the
date of Socrates' birth as 469 BC gives an approximate date of birth for Zeno of 490 BC.
Plato says that Zeno was "tall and fair to look upon" and was "in the days of his youth
reported to have been beloved by Parmenides.
 Anaximenes of Miletus

He was an Ancient Greek Pre-Socratic philosopher active in the latter half of the 6th century
BC. One of the three Milesian philosophers, he is identified as a younger friend or student
of Anaximander. Anaximenes, like others in his school of thought, practiced material
monism. This tendency to identify one specific underlying reality made up of a material
thing is what Anaximenes is principally known for today.
 Anaximander

He was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopherwho lived in Miletus, a city of Ionia (in modern-day
Turkey). He belonged to the Milesian school and learned the teachings of his master
Thales. He succeeded Thales and became the second master of that school where he
counted Anaximenes and, arguably, Pythagoras amongst his pupils.Little of his life and
work is known today. According to available historical documents, he is the first philosopher
known to have written down his studies, although only one fragment of his work remains.
Fragmentary testimonies found in documents after his death provide a portrait of the man.
He was an early proponent of science and tried to observe and explain different aspects of
the universe, with a particular interest in its origins, claiming that nature is ruled by laws,
just like human societies, and anything that disturbs the balance of nature does not last
long. Like many thinkers of his time, Anaximander's philosophy included contributions to
many disciplines. In astronomy, he attempted to describe the mechanics of celestial bodies
in relation to the Earth. In physics, his postulation that the indefinite (or apeiron) was the
source of all things led Greek philosophy to a new level of conceptual abstraction. His
knowledge of geometry allowed him to introduce the gnomon in Greece. He created a map
of the world that contributed greatly to the advancement of geography. He was also
involved in the politics of Miletus and was sent as a leader to one of its colonies.
 Parmenides

He was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from Elea in Magna Graecia (Greater Greece,
included Southern Italy). He was the founder of the Eleatic school of philosophy. The single
known work of Parmenides is a poem, On Nature, which has survived only in fragmentary
form. In this poem, Parmenides prescribes two views of reality. In "the way of truth" (a part
of the poem), he explains how reality (coined as "what-is") is one, change is impossible,
and existence is timeless, uniform, necessary, and unchanging. In "the way of opinion", he
explains the world of appearances; in which one's sensory faculties lead to conceptions
which are false and deceitful. He has been considered to be the founder of metaphysics or
ontology.
 Heraclitus

He was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, and a native of the city of Ephesus, then part of
the Persian Empire. He was of distinguished parentage. Little is known about his early life
and education, but he regarded himself as self-taught and a pioneer of wisdom. From the
lonely life he led, and still more from the apparently riddled and allegedly paradoxical nature
of his philosophy and his stress upon the needless unconsciousness of humankind, he was
called "The Obscure" and the "Weeping Philosopher".Heraclitus was famous for his
insistence on ever-present change as being the fundamental essence of the universe, as
stated in the famous saying, "No man ever steps in the same river twice" (see panta rhei
below). This position was complemented by his stark commitment to a unity of opposites in
the world, stating that "the path up and down are one and the same". Through these
doctrines Heraclitus characterized all existing entities by pairs of contrary properties,
whereby no entity may ever occupy a single state at a single time. This, along with his
cryptic utterance that "all entities come to be in accordance with this Logos" (literally,
"word", "reason", or "account") has been the subject of numerous interpretations.
 Diogenes of Sinope

He’s also known as Diogenes the Cynic, was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders
of Cynic philosophy. He was born in Sinope, an Ionian colony on the Black Sea, in 412 or
404 BC and died at Corinth in 323 BC.Diogenes was a controversial figure. His father
minted coins for a living, and Diogenes was banished from Sinope when he took to
debasement of currency. After being exiled, he moved to Athens and criticized many
cultural conventions of the city. He modeled himself on the example of Heracles, and
believed that virtue was better revealed in action than in theory. He used his simple life-
style and behaviour to criticize the social values and institutions of what he saw as a
corrupt, confused society. He had a reputation for sleeping and eating wherever he chose
in a highly non-traditional fashion, and took to toughening himself against nature. He
declared himself a cosmopolitan and a citizen of the world rather than claiming allegiance to
just one place. There are many tales about his dogging Antisthenes' footsteps and
becoming his "faithful hound".
 Pythagoras of Samos

He was an Ionian Greek philosopher and the eponymous founder of the Pythagoreanism
movement. His political and religious teachings were well-known in Magna Graecia and
influenced the philosophies of Plato, Aristotle, and, through them, Western
philosophy.Knowledge of Pythagoras's life is largely clouded by legend and obfuscation, but
he appears to have been the son of Mnesarchus, a seal engraver on the island of Samos.
Modern scholars disagree regarding Pythagoras's education and influences, but they do
agree that, in around 530 BC, he travelled to Croton, where he founded a school in which
initiates were sworn to secrecy and lived a communal, ascetic lifestyle. Following Croton's
decisive victory over Sybaris in around 510 BC, Pythagoras's followers came into conflict
with supporters of democracy and Pythagorean meeting houses were burned. Pythagoras
may have been killed during this persecution, or he may have escaped to Metapontum,
where he eventually died.
 Empedocles

He was a Greek pre-Socratic philosopher and a citizen of Akragas, a Greek city in Sicily.
Empedocles' philosophy is best known for originating the cosmogenic theory of the four
classical elements. He also proposed forces he called Love and Strife which would mix and
separate the elements, respectively. These physical speculations were part of a history of
the universe which also dealt with the origin and development of life. Influenced by the
Pythagoreans, Empedocles was a vegetarian who supported the doctrine of reincarnation.
He is generally considered the last Greek philosopher to have recorded his ideas in verse.
Some of his work survives, more than is the case for any other pre-Socratic philosopher.
Empedocles' death was mythologized by ancient writers, and has been the subject of a
number of literary treatments.
 Democritus

Democritus was born in Abdera, Greece in 460BC. He lived to be 90 years old, dying in the
year 370BC. He studied natural philosophy in Thrace, Athens, and Abdera, Greece. He
enjoyed studying geometry as well. Democritus traveled to many places some of which
including India, Egypt, and Babylon. Democritus was never married. His mentor, Leucippus,
originally came up with the atomic theory, but it was then adopted by Democritus. The
atomic theory stated that “The universe is composed of two elements: the atoms and the
void in which they exist and move.” According to Democritus atoms were miniscule
quantities of matter. Democritus hypothesized that atoms cannot be destroyed, differ in
size, shape and temperature, are always moving, and are invisible. He believed that there
are an infinite number of atoms. This hypothesis was created in 465BC.
 Epicurus

He was an ancient Greek philosopher who founded a school of philosophy now called
Epicureanism. Only a few fragments and letters of Epicurus's 300 written works remain.
Much of what is known about Epicurean philosophy derives from later followers and
commentators. For Epicurus, the purpose of philosophy was to attain the happy, tranquil
life, characterized by ataraxia—peace and freedom from fear—and aponia—the absence of
pain—and by living a self-sufficient life surrounded by friends. He taught that the root of all
human neurosis was death denial, and the tendency for human beings to assume that
death will be horrific and painful, which he claimed causes unnecessary anxiety, selfish
self-protective behaviors, and hypocrisy. According to Epicurus, death is the end of both the
body and the soul and therefore should not be feared. He also taught that the gods neither
reward nor punish humans; that the universe is infinite and eternal; and that occurrences in
the natural world are ultimately the result of atoms moving and interacting in empty space.
 Hypatia

She was a Hellenistic Neoplatonist philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician, who lived
in Alexandria, Egypt, then part of the Eastern Roman Empire. She was a prominent thinker
of the Neoplatonic school in Alexandria, where she taught philosophy and astronomy. She
is the first female mathematician whose life is reasonably well recorded. Hypatia was
renowned in her own lifetime as a great teacher and a wise counselor. Although no writings
directly written by her have survived, it is thought that she may have edited the surviving
text of Ptolemy's Almagest and possibly co-written some of the commentaries attributed to
her father, Theon of Alexandria. She also wrote a commentary on Diophantus's thirteen-
volume Arithmetica, which may survive in part, having been interpolated into Diophantus's
original text, and another commentary on Apollonius of Perga's treatise on conic sections,
which has not survived. She is known to have constructed astrolabes and hydrometers, but
did not invent either of these, which were both in use long before she was born. Although
she herself was a pagan, she was tolerant towards Christians and taught many Christian
students, including Synesius, the future bishop of Ptolemais. Towards the end of her life,
Hypatia advised Orestes, the Roman prefect of Alexandria, who was in the midst of a feud
with Cyril, the bishop of Alexandria. Rumors spread accusing her of preventing Orestes
from reconciling with Cyril and, in March 415 AD, she was murdered by a mob of Christian
monks known as the parabalani under the leadership of a lector named Peter.
 Aristotle

Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, together with Socrates and Plato, laid much of the
groundwork for western philosophy. Aristotle (c. 384 B.C. to 322 B.C.) was an Ancient
Greek philosopher and scientist who is still considered one of the greatest thinkers in
politics, psychology and ethics. When Aristotle turned 17, he enrolled in Plato’s Academy.
In 338, he began tutoring Alexander the Great. In 335, Aristotle founded his own school, the
Lyceum, in Athens, where he spent most of the rest of his life studying, teaching and
writing. Some of his most notable works include Nichomachean
Ethics, Politics, Metaphysics, Poetics and Prior Analytics.
 Plato

Ancient Greek philosopher Plato founded the Academy and is the author of philosophical
works of unparalleled influence in Western thought. Born circa 428 B.C.E., ancient Greek
philosopher Plato was a student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle. His writings
explored justice, beauty and equality, and also contained discussions in aesthetics, political
philosophy, theology, cosmology, epistemology and the philosophy of language. Plato
founded the Academy in Athens, one of the first institutions of higher learning in the
Western world. He died in Athens circa 348 B.C.E. Due to a lack of primary sources from
the time period, much of Plato's life has been constructed by scholars through his writings
and the writings of contemporaries and classical historians. Traditional history estimates
Plato's birth was around 428 B.C.E., but more modern scholars, tracing later events in his
life, believe he was born between 424 and 423 B.C.E. Both of his parents came from the
Greek aristocracy. Plato's father, Ariston, descended from the kings of Athens and
Messenia. His mother, Perictione, is said to be related to the 6th century B.C.E. Greek
statesman Solon.
 Socrates

Socrates (469-399 B.C.) was a classical Greek philosopher who is credited with laying the
fundamentals of modern Western philosophy. He is known for creating Socratic irony and
the Socratic method (elenchus). He is best recognized for inventing the teaching practice of
pedagogy, wherein a teacher questions a student in a manner that draws out the correct
response. He has had a profound influence on Western philosophy, along with his students
Plato and Aristole. Though much of Socrates' contribution is to the field of ethics, his input
to the field of epistemology and logic is also noteworthy.