OT: AW: Romans: was [sdiy] Build a Tape Flanger?

[Czech Martin]

What about Latin scripture (image you would have to write chinese
symbols, think about the effects on printing and computers...,
I know that the Romans got that from greek and northern africa).
What about having roads? (In fact, some roads are still there where
the old roman ways where, epsecially in the alps...)
What about having written law, and at least an idea of civil rights?

Don't think too much about Nero or Caligula, where it all went down
the drain...

The romans did not invent so much on their own, but preseverd the
wisdom e.g. of ancient greece for us and spread that
across their empire.
I think the romans had a more practical oriented common
sense.

(This may be also true for the arabs, several hundred
years later. The ancient writings where saved because
these people translated them into arab, and later
this was translated to latin. Arround 1000 or so
you needed both, latin and arab language knowledge
in order to read the classic writings..)

In fact, we in western Europe and following from that
in all former colonies are all Greeks, in matters of culture.

Just think of musical scales, Euclidian geometry, philosophy,
the concept of dialog and proof in science and the 
last but not least separation of the arts from religion.

E.g. the phytagoreian theorem a**2 + b**2  = c**2 which
we all know from school was well known in Babylon and ancient
Egypt, but after all we (I?) know these people had no proof
for this. They knew that it worked for some examples
in a practical way, and this knowledge was taken care of
by priests, it was secret, as well as scripture and
other scientific results. Perhaps these people saw no
reason for proof, because it was "devine" knowledge
and therefore needed no further proof.
It is said that Greek matematician-philosophers traveled
a lot across the then known world, collected the "rules
of thumb" and then tried to proove that back at home.
Prooving means a clear, logical path from the axioms
right down to the theorem in question, clear for
anyone skilled in the art, based on a common aggreement
of valid logical steps. No more magic, no more priests,
no secrets. And ... no god.

I think from that time we have this deep schism between
science and religion.

Sorry for the bla bla..

m.c.


> -----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
> Von: Tony Allgood [mailto:oakley at techrepairs.freeserve.co.uk]
> Gesendet: Dienstag, 4. September 2001 10:29
> An: Synth DIY
> Betreff: Re: [sdiy] Build a Tape Flanger?
> 
> 
> >... even the ROMANS has indoor plumbing...
> 
> But apart from the indoor plumbing, what else have the Romans 
> ever given
> us???
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Tony Allgood, Penrith, Cumbria, England
> 
> Oakley Modular Synth and TB3030:
> www.oakleysound.com/projects.htm
> My music: www.mp3.com/taklamakan
> 
> 
>