Who Discovered It

Introduction Taurus is one of the earliest discovered constellations in the world. It is the second sign of the Zodiac falling between Aries and Gemini. Taurus is made up of two groups of stars: the Pleiades and the Hyades. It is quite prominent in the northern hemisphere during winter. Discovery of Constellation Taurus It is not known who discovered the constellation Taurus first. But the constellation was always identified by the ancients with a bull. Some say this connection dates back to the Upper Paleolithic Era. One archeologist believes the Bull is depicted in 17,000 year old caves in Lascaux. Many references were made to Taurus in early history. The Sumerians said it rose in the sky during the spring. This suggests that the constellation was on the Vernal Equinox some 4,000 to 2,000 BC, the “Age of the Bull” in astrology. The Babylonians catalogued Taurus as “the Heavenly Bull.” The Greeks identified it with the divine bull that carried off Europa. Taurus was known...

Though today it is one of the most common metals in the world, there was a time when aluminum was actually one of the rarest and most precious. It took the scientists who discovered aluminum years of experimentation before they succeeded in refining this elusive element. Aluminum originates from the compound “alum,” given that name by French chemist and politician Louis-Bernard Guyton de Morveau in 1761. From as far back as 1787, scientists had hypothesized the existence of an unknown base metal in alum. While not quite the man who discovered aluminum, British chemist and inventor Sir Humphry Davy, can be credited for naming it (first as “alumium” before being given its current designation) in 1808. It was in 1825 when a Danish chemist and physicist named Hans Christian Oersted developed a way of extracting small amounts of aluminum from alum by having anhydrous aluminum chloride react with potassium amalgam to produce a chunk of metal with properties similar to those of tin. German...

Introduction The Latin origin of the word Virgo denotes a “virgin” or young woman. Presently, the autumn equinox is within Virgo. About 400 years from now it will move to Leo. Virgo is one of the biggest constellations in the sky, and contains many galaxies. It comes after Leo in the east. You can see it in the southern part of the sky in spring in middle latitudes of the northern hemisphere. History and Symbolism of Virgo Who discovered the constellation Virgo? Like several other major star formations, Virgo was known to the Sumerian and Babylonian astronomers. From them the knowledge of the sign passed on to the Egyptians, Greeks and other peoples in Asia Minor and the Mediterranean. Virgo is listed in a Babylonian astrology compendium known as the Mul Apin. These tablets are believed to be about 3,000 years old. The Mul Apin names Virgo as “absimu,”“the Furrow.” It was identified with the Babylonian and Akkadian goddess Shala. Virgo’s eastern stars including Spica were...

Introduction Orion’s Belt is an asterism of three stars in the Orion constellation. It is one of the most well-known constellations in the sky. The belt makes it easily discernible to the human eye. Because it is clearly visible, Orion’s Belt was known throughout the ancient world. No single astronomer discovered it. Features of Orion and Orion’s Belt The Orion constellation suggests the figure of a hunter with a belt around his waist. He appears to hold a club and shield in his hands. One of the stars representing the hunter’s legs is Rigel. It is the sixth brightest star in the heavens. Because of their brightness, Orion’s stars can be used to locate other stars such as Castor and Pollux and Sirius. The three stars of Orion’s Belt are named Alnitak, Alniham and Mintaka. Christian believers have identified them with ether the Three Magi who visited the child Jesus, and the three women named Mary in the Bible: Mary of Magdala, Mary of Cleopas and Mary the mother of the apostles...

From the studies that you, perhaps, have learned in school, the person credited to be the one who discovered the Pythagorean Theorem is the Greek philosopher, Pythagoras. However, there are some who say that this is not so. If you were to study the history of the theorem, you may see that it may not be Pythagoras after all who discovered the Pythagorean Theorem. The Early History Accounts of the Theorem In Northern Europe and Egypt during 2500 BC, there were some accounts pointing to an algebraic discovery of the Pytha gorean triples as expressed by Bartel Leendert van der Waerden. It was used in megalithic monuments during that time which had right triangles with integers as its sides. There were also written accounts during 2000 and 1786 BC which includes an Egyptian papyrus bearing a Pythagorean triple solution. During the circa 1750 and 1790 BC, a Mesopotamian tablet also contained many written entries which were similar to Pythagorean triples during Hammurabi the Great’s reign. India...