Biography
Born: 129 in Lo-yang, China
Died: 210 in China
Liu Hong was of noble birth, descended from the Imperial family of the Eastern Han Dynasty. This dynasty was established in 25 AD after the brief 15 year reign of Wang Mang's Hsin dynasty. The capital was Lo-yang where a large ornate palace was built. In Encyclopaedia Britannica the aims and achievements of the Han rulers are described:-
... the Han came to require cultural accomplishment from their public servants, making mastery of classical texts a condition of employment. The title list of the enormous imperial library is China's first bibliography. Its text included works on practical matters such as mathematics and medicine, as well as treatises on philosophy and religion and the arts. Advancement in science and technology was also sought by the rulers, and the Han invented paper, used water clocks and sundials, and developed a seismograph. Calendars were published frequently during the period.
Liu Hong became interested in astronomy as a young boy. He was appointed to the Imperial Observatory in 160 and was involved in making astronomical observations. Two works which he wrote, namely the Qi Yao Shu (The Art of Seven Planets) and a new version entitled the Ba Yuan Shu (The Art of Eight Elements) have been lost so we know little of their contents. We do know that Liu presented these works to the Emperor in 174 or 175, and we also know that they were based on Buddhist beliefs.
Perhaps the greatest of Liu's achievements was his work which led to a new calendar. This calendar was published in 187 and described the motion of the moon far more accurately than any previous Chinese calendar. His measurements of the length of the shadow of a pole at the summer and at the winter solstices give results which are accurate to within 1% of their true value.
- Xu Yue
Born: about 160 in Donglai, Shandong province, China Died: about 227 in China We know a little of Xu Yue but the main text which bears his name, the Shushu jiyi (Notes on Traditions of Arithmetic Methods), is probably the work of a later author trying...
- Oenopides Of Chios
Born: about 490 BC in Chios (now Khios), Greece Died: about 420 BC Very little is known about the life of Oenopides of Chios except that his place of birth was the island of Chios. We believe that Oenopides was in Athens when a young man but there is...
- Johann(iii) Bernoulli
Born: 4 Nov 1744 in Basel, Switzerland Died: 13 July 1807 in Berlin, Germany Johann(III) Bernoulli was a son of Johann(II) Bernoulli. He was certainly considered a prodigy when a child with an encyclopedic knowledge and, like many other members of his...
- Abraham Bar Hiyya Ha-nasi
Abraham bar Hiyya was a Spanish Jewish mathematician and astronomer. In the Hebrew of his time 'Ha-Nasi' meant 'the leader' but he is also known by the Latin name Savasorda which comes from his 'job description' showing that he...
- >> Biography Of Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (Chinese: 李小龍; born Lee Jun-fan, Chinese: 李振藩; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong American martial artist, Hong Kong action film actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, filmmaker, and the founder of Jeet Kune...
Biography
Liu Hong
Born: 129 in Lo-yang, China
Died: 210 in China
Liu Hong was of noble birth, descended from the Imperial family of the Eastern Han Dynasty. This dynasty was established in 25 AD after the brief 15 year reign of Wang Mang's Hsin dynasty. The capital was Lo-yang where a large ornate palace was built. In Encyclopaedia Britannica the aims and achievements of the Han rulers are described:-
... the Han came to require cultural accomplishment from their public servants, making mastery of classical texts a condition of employment. The title list of the enormous imperial library is China's first bibliography. Its text included works on practical matters such as mathematics and medicine, as well as treatises on philosophy and religion and the arts. Advancement in science and technology was also sought by the rulers, and the Han invented paper, used water clocks and sundials, and developed a seismograph. Calendars were published frequently during the period.
Liu Hong became interested in astronomy as a young boy. He was appointed to the Imperial Observatory in 160 and was involved in making astronomical observations. Two works which he wrote, namely the Qi Yao Shu (The Art of Seven Planets) and a new version entitled the Ba Yuan Shu (The Art of Eight Elements) have been lost so we know little of their contents. We do know that Liu presented these works to the Emperor in 174 or 175, and we also know that they were based on Buddhist beliefs.
Perhaps the greatest of Liu's achievements was his work which led to a new calendar. This calendar was published in 187 and described the motion of the moon far more accurately than any previous Chinese calendar. His measurements of the length of the shadow of a pole at the summer and at the winter solstices give results which are accurate to within 1% of their true value.
- Xu Yue
Born: about 160 in Donglai, Shandong province, China Died: about 227 in China We know a little of Xu Yue but the main text which bears his name, the Shushu jiyi (Notes on Traditions of Arithmetic Methods), is probably the work of a later author trying...
- Oenopides Of Chios
Born: about 490 BC in Chios (now Khios), Greece Died: about 420 BC Very little is known about the life of Oenopides of Chios except that his place of birth was the island of Chios. We believe that Oenopides was in Athens when a young man but there is...
- Johann(iii) Bernoulli
Born: 4 Nov 1744 in Basel, Switzerland Died: 13 July 1807 in Berlin, Germany Johann(III) Bernoulli was a son of Johann(II) Bernoulli. He was certainly considered a prodigy when a child with an encyclopedic knowledge and, like many other members of his...
- Abraham Bar Hiyya Ha-nasi
Abraham bar Hiyya was a Spanish Jewish mathematician and astronomer. In the Hebrew of his time 'Ha-Nasi' meant 'the leader' but he is also known by the Latin name Savasorda which comes from his 'job description' showing that he...
- >> Biography Of Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (Chinese: 李小龍; born Lee Jun-fan, Chinese: 李振藩; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong American martial artist, Hong Kong action film actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, filmmaker, and the founder of Jeet Kune...