Pythagoras was born in 569 BC on the island of Samos. As a child Pythagoras had 2 or 3 brothers. He and his brothers learned to recite poetry, recite Homer, and play the lyre. He grew up with his mother, Pythias, and his father, Mnesarchus. He often went on business trips with his father where he was taught by scholars. With these scholars he learned geometry and cosmology. Some scholars say that Mnesarchus once took him to Tyre, where he studied with scholars from Syria. They also suggest that they may have gone to Italy in those years. In addition to this, Pythagoras studied with many other teachers. He also studied with many sages in Chaldea. Additionally, Pherecydes of Syrus was someone he studied philosophy from. Furthermore, he studied with the philosopher Thales and his student Anaximander. Later in his life, his astronomical and geometric discoveries had developed from Thale's theories. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay 34 years after his birth, Pythagoras left for Egypt to study with the priests. Some say he did this to escape the tyranny of Polycrates, ruler of Samos. Furthermore, the Egyptian priest Oenuphis is believed to have studied with him for some years. For 10 years he remained here. Finally he obtained admission to the priesthood. In 525 BCE, Persia invaded Egypt, and Pythagoras was taken prisoner and taken to Babylon. Here, he learned that the Babylonians would be treated differently than a typical prisoner. He later escaped and returned to Samos. In Samos he founded a school called the Semicircle. A group of travelers from his island were killed. Later people arrived from that same country. Pythagoras pleaded with the leaders of his island and they listened to him. This upset many politicians and made him many enemies. Only in 500 BC was his school sacked. The buildings were set on fire killing many of his followers and students known as Pythagoreans. Some say that Pythagoras did not trample on plants even if his life was at stake because he believed that all living things had a soul. After a few years he went to Crete to study more. Furthermore, he founded another one here. Additionally, he worked with a secret group discussing mathematics, philosophy, metaphysics, and religion. They believed that the soul was immortal and could not be damaged. Furthermore, Pythagoras urged following a code of conduct followed by all Pythagoreans. All Pythagoreans wore simple linen clothing. They were not allowed to urinate in public. Furthermore, they were encouraged to have children and to reject rich material. Pythagoras focused his rules on everyday life. Furthermore, they were known to maintain silence. New members of the society should remain silent for 5 years. This was due to their code of not wanting to talk about their findings. He then returned to Samos and rebuilt his school, the Semicircle, which had previously burned down. He then shared his mathematical and philosophical discoveries with his students. Pythagoras is known for his countless discoveries. One of them is the Platonic solids. The five Platonic solids are the tetrahedron (4 triangles), the cube (6 squares), the octahedron (8 triangles), the dodecahedron (12 pentagons), the icosahedron (20 triangles). These are the only polyhedra, three-dimensional solids with the same regular polygon as sides. During his lifetime Pythagoras built the first 3 Platonic solids. Additionally, Pythagoras is known to designate even and odd numbers. He called odd numbers masculine and even numbers feminine. Furthermore, Pythagoras gave characteristics to many other numbers. For example, it defines what would become modulus, a mathematical concept commonly used today. He defined a system of remainder that is still used today. He also defined square numbers.Furthermore, he defined tetraktys as the sum of the numbers 1 to n. For example, the third tetrakyt is 1 + 2 + 3 = 6. Today these are known as triangular numbers. They are considered a special number for this reason. This is because the tetraktys represented the number of points needed to define the universe. The first 2 form a line, add a third point and the line becomes two dimensional. Adding a fourth point not on the plane of the first 3 gives a three-dimensional figure. Today, scientists have further used this information to develop higher dimensions. Scientists think the universe may have more than 3 dimensions. One of Pythagoras' most profound and well-known discoveries is the Pythagorean theorem. Although he was unable to prove it, he discovered that the sum of the squares of the legs of a right triangle is equal to the square of the hypotenuse of a triangle. To correct this equation, let the legs of the right triangle have lengths a and b and the hypotenuse has a side equal to c. The simple geometric formula is one of the main foundations of mathematics and Euclidean geometry. This formula remained unproven until the time of Euclid. Some argue that it was actually discovered by the Egyptians and Pythagoras simply popularized the formula and showed a use case for it. This extraordinary discovery led to another conspiracy. At that time, it was believed that all lengths could be expressed as a:b ratio. The Pythagorean theorem showed that this was not necessarily true. This value cannot be expressed as a ratio. This contradicts the beliefs of all Pythagoreans. Today we know that lengths are rational or irrational. Pythagoras' discoveries were not limited to mathematics. He also made many discoveries in the fields of music and cosmology. For example, he discovered that the planets are spherical. He discovered that due to gravity, matter was compacted into a quasi-sphere. He calculated that there were 9 planets and claimed that there was another directly opposite Earth that was not visible, making a total of 10 planets, a perfect number at the time. These discoveries laid the foundations of today's cosmology. His belief of a tenth planet later proved false. Furthermore, he discovered that music is composed of ratios. A ratio of 1:2 forms an octave. A ratio of 3:2 produces a fifth and a ratio of 4:3 creates a fourth. The ratio of the length of the held string to the total length of the string determines the pitch of the music. Today, musical instruments use this principle to create sounds of different pitches. The cause of Pythagoras' death is unknown. Some say it was because of a raid that caused his school to burn down. Others say he was killed by an angry mob. Others say that he was involved in the war between the Agrigentines and the Syracusans and killed them. Regardless, his legacy is long-lasting. I really like mathematics and without Pythagoras more than half of mathematical discoveries would not exist. Furthermore, he helped with many foundations of cosmology and philosophy. His legacy is lasting and will never be forgotten. Furthermore, the Pythagoreans continued to further develop Pythagoras' work. After his death, his followers soon finished building the remaining 2 Platonic solids. Furthermore, there were many mathematicians who used Pythagoras' discoveries to further develop outstanding theorems. His presence will never be forgotten from the face of our planet. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Pythagoras was a man of wonders and intelligence. Not only can we honor his extraordinary discoveries in mathematics, cosmology, and philosophy, but also his own., 2009.