Greatest Minds and Ideas of the Western World

This Website was last updated on:  30 March 2011

Introduction

In 2002, I initiated a self-imposed project involving the identification and discussion of the ideas of the most important philosophers, mathematicians and scientists of the Western World, from the time of the ancient Greeks to the present day.  Three groups of nine people (three enneads) were identified, one ennead for each category.

While reviewing the intellectual history of the West, I noted that an unusually large number of brilliant thinkers lived during the 6th Century B.C.  -- not only in the West but in Persia, India and China as well.  This era has been called the "Shower of Stars" by the historian Will Durant and is at the center of the "Axial Age" as defined by the philosopher Karl Jaspers.  Accordingly, I have added a page devoted to a group of nine outstanding thinkers who flourished during that most unusual century.

I have also appended a page devoted to some of the greatest ideas, generated by modern western science, which have helped to define the true importance (or lack thereof) of the Earth and its human life forms with respect to the Cosmos.  In most cases, these ideas were developed as the result of the work of several very determined scientists over a period of many years.  The ideas discussed are considered to be among the most important intellectual contributions of Western Civilization since the Renaissance.

This project is being accomplished mainly as an intellectual exercise for my own personal amazement and amusement.  Even so, the results of these studies are being made available to anyone who may have similar interests via this web site.

This project is being accomplished mainly as an intellectual exercise for my own personal amazement and amusement.  Even so, the results of this study are being made available to anyone who may have similar interests via this website.  Opinions cited at this website are entirely my own and I am solely responsible for any errors, whether objective or subjective, that may be found.

My Websites

I currently support twenty-four websites. Fifteen sites are related to philosophy and art and nine are related to genealogy and local history.  Hyperlinks to these sites are shown below.

Philosophy and Art:

* Sites still under construction

Genealogy and Local History:

Copyright© 2003-2007 By Phil Norfleet