Ptolemy

Ptolemy Prince Boachie-Darquah - Spring 2014

  Claudius Ptolemy, (AD 90 – c. AD 168) a Greco-Roman, was known as a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and a poet. He lived in lived in the city of Alexandria in the Roman providence of Egypt. He is known because he propounded the geocentric theory that prevailed for 1400 years (Ptolemy).

 Ptolemy wrote several books in which three were used in later Islamic and European science. The first of the three books is known as the Almagest. The second book is known as Geography which talks about the thorough discussions of the geographic knowledge of the Greco-Roman world. The third book was Apotelesmatika  or most commonly known as Tetrabiblos (Ptolemy).

 Ptolemy major contribution was that his model could explain the motions of "heavenly bodies" accurately media type="custom" key="25660672" align="left"

The Ptolemaic model assumed that each planet moved on a small sphere or circle called an epicycle, that moved on a large sphere or circle called a deferent.



Ptolemy's fame partly came from the model but his influence was greatly because he wrote a great summary about astronomy. Some of what he believed was that the job of an astronomer was to explain why "wonders" move using circular uniform motions.



Modern planetariums are built using gears and motors that basically copy the Ptolemaic model for the appearance of the sky viewed from a fixed earth (Ohio State University).

**__<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 17pt;">Independent Studies __**

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**NAME -** Ptolemy

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**URL** - []

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**AUTHOR** - University of Oregon

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**LAST UPDATED** - Unknown

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**DATE REVIEWED** – 4/23/14

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**REVIEWED BY**: Prince Boachie-Darquah

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**ACCURACY**: - All facts are accurate and up to date.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**READABILITY and CLARITY -** Mainly for people that want to know more about him. A bit wordy and the format is not very present. The page is readable.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;">**EASE OF NAVIGATION** - All information is provided on one page including the animations showing Ptolemy’s models.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 11pt;">**GENERAL DESCRIPTION** – The website has a lot of information dating from Ptolemy’s early work up to what he is known for. The website provides animations to help explain his models. There are also some practical pictures but no external links to find out more information if needed


 * NAME – ** Ptolemy Biography


 * URL ** – [|http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Ptolemy.html]


 * AUTHOR ** - //J J O'Connor// and //E F Robertson//


 * LAST UPDATED ** – April 1999


 * DATE REVIEWED ** – 4/23/14


 * REVIEWED BY ** : Prince Boachie-Darquah


 * ACCURACY ** : - All facts are accurate. May need a bit of updating


 * READABILITY and CLARITY – ** This page is recommended for scholars pursuing in Astronomy. Highly recommended. Clear and readable


 * EASE OF NAVIGATION ** – Very easy to navigate and find information.


 * GENERAL DESCRIPTION ** – This website was made University of Andrews in Scotland. There is a lot of information that is provided as well as formulas on how to do some of the calculations yourself. Links for more information are provided as well as other useful reverences.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">NAME – **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Ptolemys Books


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">URL **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – <span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> [|http://www.hps.cam.ac.uk/starry/ptolbooks.html]


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">AUTHOR **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Graham Hart //


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">LAST UPDATED **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – 1999


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">DATE REVIEWED **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – 4/24/14


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">REVIEWED BY **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">: Prince Boachie-Darquah


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">ACCURACY **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">: - All facts are accurate. May need a bit of updating


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">READABILITY and CLARITY – **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> This page is recommended for people who want to know more about the books Ptolemy wrote


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">EASE OF NAVIGATION **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – Very easy to navigate and find information.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">GENERAL DESCRIPTION **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – This website talks about some of the books Ptolemy wrote and a brief summary of them.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">NAME – **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Ptolematic System


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">URL **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – <span class="apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> [|http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/482079/Ptolemaic-system]


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">AUTHOR **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – //<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Alexander Raymond Jones //


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">LAST UPDATED **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – Unknown


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">DATE REVIEWED **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – 4/25/14


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">REVIEWED BY **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">: Prince Boachie-Darquah


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">ACCURACY **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">: - All facts are accurate.


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">READABILITY and CLARITY – **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> This page is recommended for everyone


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">EASE OF NAVIGATION **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> – Very easy to navigate but a bit wordy (too much words)


 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">GENERAL DESCRIPTION **<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> – This website talks about Ptolemy’s Ptolemaic system and describes in details almost everything you need to know about it.


 * NAME – ** Ptolemy Biography


 * URL ** – []


 * AUTHOR ** – //G. J. Toomer//
 * LAST UPDATED ** – 2007


 * DATE REVIEWED ** – 4/23/14


 * REVIEWED BY ** : Prince Boachie-Darquah


 * ACCURACY ** : - All facts are accurate. May need a bit of updating


 * READABILITY and CLARITY – ** This page is recommended for anyone wanting to know what he did and what he was known for.


 * EASE OF NAVIGATION ** – Very easy to navigate and short


 * GENERAL DESCRIPTION ** – **This website is brief and short. It is a summary of Ptolemy and what he is known for**.

//**Works Cited**// O'Connor, J. J., and E. F. Robertson. "//Claudius Ptolemy//." Ptolemy Biography. JOC/EFR, Apr. 1999. Web. 24 Apr. 2014

Ohio State University. "//The Ptolemaic Model//." The Ptolemaic Model. Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2014.

University of Ohio. "//Ptolemy//." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Apr. 2014. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.

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