The paradox of Thales is that he left no writings, yet his legacy spread around the world. Did he even write down any of the results attributed to him? Did he possess the logical tools needed to develop the arguments credited to him? Historians nevertheless report that he is said to have written a book on navigation in which he described and made extensive use of the constellation Ursa Minor. But “success breeds success,” and so many important figures have been credited with results to which they contributed nothing! One thing, however, is certain: Thales was an eminent figure in his day; he travelled to Egypt and brought that country's geometric knowledge back to Greece. As for the results he left to posterity, they are best viewed with caution.
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A man of renown
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With Thales, it is difficult to separate legend from history. We know that he was born around 624 BCE in Miletus, Asia Minor (now in Turkey), and died around 547 BCE in the same city, probably from dehydration while watching an athletic competition. He was a wealthy merchant—notably through speculation in the olive trade—as well as a military adviser and engineer, but it was as the first Greek philosopher, as well as a scholar and mathematician, that Thales of Miletus earned his renown.
