1. The Greek philosopher Archimedes was not only famous long ago, among
his contemporaries (167, b, 132), but even today his name is well known
everywhere. 2. No one's knowledge about the problems of geometry and
physics was greater. 3. No one understood better the properties of the
cylinder and the screw. 4. Having studied these properties a long time,
and having meditated a great deal about them, he understood them a
little (217) better than any one else ("iu alia"). 5. The story about
the debasing of the gold crowns has already been told. 6. There is
another anecdote, namely ("nome"), that he remarked to Hiero, king of
Syracuse, that with a lever he would move the world, as soon as he
had a place on which he himself could stand. 7. Having discovered how
("kiamaniere") the sunlight is reflected by a mirror, and heats the
wood upon which it shines, he invented a machine made out of mirrors.
8. Aided by this machine, the Syracusans were able to set on fire the
wooden ships of the enemy. 9. The enemy, however, were not repulsed
from the island, but at once rebuilt and repaired their ships, and sent
them back to attack the city again. 10. Finally, having captured the
city, they destroyed it, and killed a large number of the inhabitants
("logxantoj"), also Archimedes himself.