---
title: Archimedes foresight
date: "2001-07-26T12:00:00Z"
categories:
  - links
wp_id: 1731
description: Archimedes may have anticipated Cantor's work on infinity, a breakthrough in mathematical history suggesting ancient Greek scholars understood concepts of the infinite long before modern set theory was formally established.
keywords: [archimedes, georg cantor, infinity, mathematical history, set theory, ancient greece]
---

Archimedes may have [anticipated](http://www.nationalpost.com/tech/story.html?f=/stories/20010716/619990.html) a bit of Cantor's work on [infinity](http://www.mcn.net/~jimloy/infinity.html). In mathematical history terms, that's about as big as the ancient Greeks invented aeroplanes.