Athens Sea Route Wall
26. The ancient Greeks constructed a 7 mile wall linking Athens with the port of Piraeus so people could travel safely to the sea.
27. Empedocles, a 5th century Greek philosopher best known for developing the Four Elements idea, also decided that matter could not be made or destroyed and created an evolution theory that said form came before function and the fittest lived on.
28. The term “echo” originates in Greek mythology. Hera, the goddess of women and marriage, was so irritated by Echo that she punished her by removing her voice except when she repeated someone else’s shouted words. As a result, Echo could only repeat another person’s voice.
29. The custom of placing candles on birthday cakes goes back to the ancient Greeks, who commonly lit candles as gifts to their many gods and goddesses. They did this to honor the Greek moon goddess Artemis. The round cakes stood for the moon, and the candles were used to show the moon’s reflected light.
30. Several thousand years before Plato spoke of Atlantis, a large island really existed and then vanished in the center of the North Sea.
31. When Socrates was asked to suggest his own punishment, he proposed a government salary and free dinners for the rest of his life.
32. Aristotle’s Eudemian Ethics, which discusses happiness and what makes life worth living, was first published in a modern language only in 2011.
33. A Greek man called Vassilis Palaikostas, also known as “Robin of the Poor,” stole money from rich people, gave it to the poor, and escaped from the same high-security prison twice.
34. Both ancient Greek and Egyptian medicine treated obesity as a medical disorder. Hippocrates wrote that “Corpulence is not only a disease itself but the harbinger of others”.
35. Each year in the Greek town of Vrontados, two rival church congregations carry out a “Rocket War” by launching tens of thousands of homemade rockets across the town, aiming to strike the bell tower of the other church.
Sun Escape From Diogenes
36. Alexander the Great once asked Diogenes, a Greek philosopher who was homeless and lived in a barrel, whether there was anything he could do for him. Diogenes answered, “yes, get out of my sun”. Alexander departed, saying, “If I wasn’t Alexander, I’d like to be Diogenes,” and some accounts say Diogenes replied, “If i wasn’t Diogenes, I’d like to be Diogenes”.
37. Draco was the Ancient Greek lawmaker who created the first legal code in Athens. In time, his laws came to be regarded as increasingly severe and punitive, which is why a law is called “draconian” when the punishment is too extreme for the offense.
38. The Greek poet Hipponax was so skilled at insulting people that some of his targets killed themselves.
39. Ancient Greek mathematician Hero of Alexandria invented the first vending machine, which dispensed holy water after a coin was inserted. He also invented the first steam engine and the first wind powered machine, 2000 years before the industrial revolution.
40. The Ancient Greeks did not like Ares very much. He stood for the violent and untamed side of war, unlike Athena, who was the goddess of military strategy.
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