Hero of Alexandria

Hero of Alexandria
(c. ad 62) Greek mathematician and inventor
Hero produced several written works on geometry, giving formulae for the areas and volumes of polygons and conics. His formula for the area of a triangle was contained in Metrica(Measurement), a work that was lost until 1896. This book also describes a method for finding the square root of a number, a method now used in computers, but known to the Babylonians in 2000 bc. In another of Hero's books, Pneumatica (Pneumatics), he wrote on siphons, a coin-operated machine, and the aeolipile – a prototype steam-powered engine that he had built. The engine consisted of a globe with two nozzles positioned so that steam jets from the inside made it turn on its axis. Hero also wrote on land-surveying and he designed war engines based on the ideas of Ctesibius. Yet another of his works, Mechanica (Mechanics), was quoted by Pappus of Alexandria.

Scientists. . 2011.

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  • Hero of Alexandria — Heron Born c. 10 AD Residence …   Wikipedia

  • Hero of Alexandria — noun Greek mathematician and inventor who devised a way to determine the area of a triangle and who described various mechanical devices (first century) • Syn: ↑Hero, ↑Heron • Instance Hypernyms: ↑mathematician, ↑inventor, ↑discoverer, ↑artificer …   Useful english dictionary

  • Hero the younger — is the name given without any sufficient reason to a Byzantine land surveyor who wrote (about A.D. 938) a treatise on land surveying modelled on the works of Hero of Alexandria, especially the Dioptra. Literature* Geodesie de Heron de Byzance ,… …   Wikipedia

  • Alexandria — /al ig zan dree euh, zahn /, n. 1. Arabic, Al Iskandarîyah. a seaport in N Egypt, in the Nile delta: founded in 332 B.C. by Alexander the Great; ancient center of learning. 2,201,000. 2. a city in NE Virginia, S of the District of Columbia.… …   Universalium

  • Hero — /hear oh/, n. 1. Class. Myth. a priestess of Aphrodite who drowned herself after her lover Leander drowned while swimming the Hellespont to visit her. 2. Also, Heron. (Hero of Alexandria) fl. 1st century A.D., Greek scientist. * * * I… …   Universalium

  • Hero (disambiguation) — A hero is a person who performs extraordinary deeds for the benefit of others.Hero may also refer to:Heroic figures* Superhero, a hero with extraordinary powers * Hero (title), a title presented by governments to their citizens for great… …   Wikipedia

  • hero — herolike, adj. /hear oh/, n., pl. heroes; for 5 also heros. 1. a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities. 2. a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic… …   Universalium

  • Hero's formula — /hear ohz/, Geom. the formula for the area of a triangle when the sides are given: for a triangle with sides a, b, and c, the area is equal to sqrt(s(s a)(s b)(s c)), where s is equal to one half the perimeter of the triangle. [named after HERO… …   Universalium

  • Hero — He•ro [[t]ˈhɪər oʊ[/t]] n. 1) myt a legendary priestess of Aphrodite and the lover of Leander 2) big Also, Heron (Hero of Alexandria) fl. 1st century a.d. , Greek scientist …   From formal English to slang

  • Hero's formula — /hear ohz/, Geom. the formula for the area of a triangle when the sides are given: for a triangle with sides a, b, and c, the area is equal to sqrt(s(s a)(s b)(s c)), where s is equal to one half the perimeter of the triangle. [named after HERO… …   Useful english dictionary

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