User talk:Singinglemon

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Welcome!

Hello, Singinglemon, and welcome to Wikipedia! Thank you for your contributions. I hope you like the place and decide to stay. Here are some pages that you might find helpful:

I hope you enjoy editing here and being a Wikipedian! Please sign your name on talk pages using four tildes (~~~~); this will automatically produce your name and the date. If you need help, check out Wikipedia:Questions, ask me on my talk page, or ask your question and then place {{helpme}} before the question on your talk page. Again, welcome! Deb 11:59, 2 October 2007 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] Wow

Wow, Singinglemon, I really like your contributions to ancient philosophy. I am looking forward to reading much more of your work. Good luck, --Fabullus 21:51, 3 November 2007 (UTC)

Thanks a lot, I'm just messing around trying to improve things where I can. (The page on the Cynics was startling poor!) Singinglemon 15:29, 4 November 2007 (UTC)

Dear Singinglemon, I am really, really impressed by the many contributions you have made to the field of ancient philosophy on the english wikipedia. Keep up the good work! Best wishes, --Fabullus (talk) 18:49, 24 January 2008 (UTC)
Singinglemon, I have to echo Fabullus. Your contributions are really impressive - both in quantity and quality! Great work. Jonathan Stokes (talk) 07:41, 11 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] WP:MDP

Hi. Per your move of Olympiodorus to Olympiodorus (disambiguation), that is actually going against our conventions. In fact, there is an entire project, WP:MDP, which undoes (repairs) moves like that. Thought you would like to know. Thanks. —Wknight94 (talk) 15:51, 28 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Timocrates

Well, thank you for taking up my challenge about creating a page on Timocrates of Lampsacus! By the way, can we be sure that Epicurus' work entitled simply Timocrates (instead of 'against Timocrates') was really directed against the present Timocrates, or perhaps rather dedicated to another Timocrates (say Timocrates of Potamus, who may have been a pupil; at least he was close and trusted enough to be made one of the two chief beneficiaries and trustees of Epicurus' will)? --Fabullus (talk) 09:01, 31 January 2008 (UTC)

You're probably right - I stupidly got the assertion from a textbook without thinking whether it was correct or not. It is also possible, I guess, that the work Timocrates was written for Timocrates of Lampsacus before he went apostatical. The only thing I can think of which might back up the idea these volumes were written against Timocrates is a line from Cicero (De Natura Deorum) that Epicurus "devoted whole volumes to the dissection of Timocrates, the brother of his own intimate companion Metrodorus, because he differed from him upon some point in philosophy." But that's too weak to stand as evidence, so I've expunged the line. Singinglemon (talk) 22:28, 31 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Archelaus

You wouldn't know by any chance the source for the assertion that Archelaus believed the earth to be shaped like an egg, would you? --Fabullus (talk) 19:15, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

No, it was a line copied straight out of Smith. The most detailed account of his philosophy is apparently from Hippolytus [1] who says concerning the Earth:

And he says that the heaven was inclined at an angle, and so that the sun diffused light over the earth, and made the atmosphere transparent, and the ground dry; for that at first it was a sea [or marsh?], inasmuch as it is lofty at the horizon and hollow in the middle. And he adduces, as an indication of the hollowness, that the sun does not rise and set to all at the same time, which ought to happen if the earth was even.

It sounds to me like he thought the surface of the Earth was like a saucer, which might make sense given that his teacher Anaxagoras apparently believed that the Earth was flat. Singinglemon (talk) 00:30, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

Yes, that's also what I remember. Should this be changed in the article? --Fabullus (talk) 07:48, 10 February 2008 (UTC)
Nah, let's just leave it like that. Afterall, it wouldn't be Wikipedia if there wasn't at least one made up fact per page. :) Singinglemon (talk) 13:14, 10 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Diagoras of Melos

Thanks for the good expansion over there. Oh and for your ongoing high-level contributions as well. ~ Alcmaeonid (talk) 15:09, 18 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Re: Important Platonists

Hi! About this maybe you're right but if we consider important only who we have the luck to know something of his work neither Hypathia could be highlighted, and Hypatia was widely extimed an important Neoplatonist and a martyr. According to Eunapius (Vitae Sophistarum) Aedesius was an important Neoplatonist (even a saint) alongside the others I have highlighted. Philosophers like Sosipatra considered even a holy woman, Chrysanthius, Maximus of Ephesus, the Emperor Julian were considered important and so Sallustius (who wrote De Diis et Mundo), Macrobius etc.

I have highlighted philosophers like Aedesia and Asclepigenia cos they were important and extimed teachers and... also women, and in the history of philosophy there are few women, and in particular I want to put the attention to the fact that in the ancient world were even female philosophers.

Modern point of view about antiquity is often wrong, our criteria often are based on misconceptions or even prejudices (not your case I think ;)), for their contemporaries those philosophers were important why it should not be the same for us?

Cheers! ;) :)

--Antioco79 (talk) 09:57, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Alexamenus

This is an automated message from CorenSearchBot. I have performed a web search with the contents of Alexamenus, and it appears to include a substantial copy of http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/0119.html. For legal reasons, we cannot accept copyrighted text or images borrowed from other web sites or printed material; such additions will be deleted. You may use external websites as a source of information, but not as a source of sentences.

This message was placed automatically, and it is possible that the bot is confused and found similarity where none actually exists. If that is the case, you can remove the tag from the article and it would be appreciated if you could drop a note on the maintainer's talk page. CorenSearchBot (talk) 21:40, 10 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Theophrastus

I notice that you amended the text on Pliny and T. However, having re-read T's text "On Stones", I notice that he does mention old myths such as stones "growing" (a myth also repeated by Pliny). Your comments would be appreciated. Peterlewis (talk) 12:24, 11 May 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for pointing that out. I got the line from R. J. Forbes, (1966), Studies in Ancient Technology: Ancient Geology; Ancient Mining and Quarrying; Ancient Mining Techniques, page 8 where he says that his "work is also free from fable and magic, which Pliny's essay is certainly not." But I should have checked by reading the actual work! I've replaced the line with one from John F. Healy, Pliny the Elder on Science and Technology, page 176 where he says "One noteworthy feature of this work is its comparative freedom from fable and magic," which I hope is more accurate.
Incidentally, you might like to know that most of that subsection On Stones is a rough summary I wrote of an article from the 1830 edition of the The Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal available here: [2] Thanks for the improvements you have made in the past week or two. Singinglemon (talk) 20:37, 11 May 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for the correction. I was hoping to speak with John Healy about Pliny, but unfortunately I learnt from his old department that he died some time ago. Such a shame after his two excellent books about Pliny. KC Bailey is also a good source of info. The only commentary I have seen on T appears to be very out-of-date and wrong in some particulars. Peterlewis (talk) 20:49, 11 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] On the Essence of things such as souls

Hello I hope all is well I want to work on the Neoplatonism article- Salvation (henosis) section. I don't want to use an entire Ennead to source the cosmic process. Ennead IV.8.6-7 could you please help. By the way your work so far is absolutely wonderful. LoveMonkey (talk) 02:03, 25 May 2008 (UTC)
I have been struggling with this in my definition or translation of the nous or demiurge.[3] Problem is Aristotle is considered more important and key in that the one or source in substance is energy. Ousia/essence/substance both Aristotle and Plotinus state that the one in substance and or essence/ousia is energy. Plotinus makes the one, dynamus or force/power, as not the monad in ousia, with ousia meaning being (which the one can not have). Plotinus seems to cut operation as a meaning from energy/energeia, to make the one, force/power/dynamus. Difficult stuff, and then Continental philosophy changing things again. LoveMonkey (talk) 04:43, 25 May 2008 (UTC)

My knowledge of Neoplatonism pretty weak. One reason I write stuff on here about ancient philosophy is to find out more it. I've had a proper look at the Neoplatonism article, and I am surprised how little it says on Neoplatonism! I might add some stuff, even if its just copying stuff over from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. The detailed technicalities of Neoplatonism, I think are beyond me though. Singinglemon (talk) 23:18, 27 May 2008 (UTC)