Contribution
Democritus used reasoning instead of science when he came up with his theory. He based his work off of the philosophers Leucippus and Anaxagoras. Democritus was the first person to suggest that materials were made up of smaller things. He called these things 'atomos'. He theorized that every material had its own 'type' of atomos and that no matter how small you cut something up, it would always have the same properties. He said that matter cannot be created nor destroyed. He found that the smell of bread could be so strong you could taste it, so he knew there had to be little 'pieces' of bread flying around in the air.
Significance
As he was the first to propose any type of atomic theory, he is the most important, because he planted the idea that led to modern theory.
Fun Facts
- Democritus suggests that human life was originally like that of animals; it describes the gradual development of human communities for purposes of mutual aid, the origin of language, crafts and agriculture.
- He also invented democracy...no big deal.