A: When most of we laypeople take baths, we sit in the tub, singing “Row, row, row your boat” while we play around with floating figurines. The famous ancient Greek mathematician/engineer Archimedes, however, bathed at a more serious level. During one of his more memorable bath sessions, Archimedes ended up discovering the scientific principles of density and buoyancy.
It all happened when Archimedes was living in Syracuse under the patronage of the royal family. The Emperor asked him to determine whether a crown was pure gold, and the answer struck Archimedes while he was in the tub. When the water started overflowing, he realized the crown’s density was the key. He grabbed the crown, placed it in water, and noted how much water was displaced. Then he took the crown’s exact weight in pure gold and repeated the process. Surprise, surprise – the numbers were different!
Supposedly, Archimedes was so excited by his discovery that he jumped out of the tub and ran home in the buff, shrieking “Eureka!” (or “I found it!”) in delight. What’s not known is if the neighbors, who must’ve witnessed the nude, dripping wet figure dashing and howling through the streets, shared in his mathematical excitement.
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Article comments
1 - Katie McNeill
I wish brilliant ideas came to me in the bath.
2 - Matthew T. Sussman
Other things Archimedes learned floated in water:
bread, apples, very small rocks, cider, gravy, lead, churches.
3 - Thomas
Yeah dats true how archemedes
discovered aye bathtub
4 - Charles Carrel
I'm a really really bent person i like archemedes a lt!!!!!!
5 - Chris Freestone
I Love Sophie bacon and she loves my lunchbox her jugs can't be filled with much water but the bacon's good with my mayonnaisse
6 - colby
the Beatles rock!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7 - SO Freestone
OMG I wish i was archimedes but a female way lol!!!! im studying him in science!!!!!
BTW wats a url???????????
8 - butterfly
why did he repeat the proccess
9 - michelle king
this is a good story about archimedes and wat he discoverd in the times when i was not alive and now i need to know more about what he invented
10 - SoooBananas
This is great, thanx 4 da help, now i can submitt my science project!
11 - sharukh
Cool science project done!!!!
12 - Naomi
Awesome, studying him in school :)
13 - amit
great piece of mind used...............