On Computers

Comment 1: http://shennessy11.blogspot.com/
Comment 2: http://alex-chi.blogspot.com/2011/01/on-computers.html

The Complete Works of Aristotle
Aristotle
Edited by Johnathan Barnes originally published by Princeton University Press

Aristotle writes this trying to inform people about plants and about the many different ideas about plants that are obvious and those that are more counter-intuitive. He starts by talking about the parts of the plants that can mainly be seen: the fact they cannot move, their different parts, the fact there are different kinds of plants (trees, flowers, etc.), some produce substances, some produce fruit and the fact that plants, unlike animals are fixed to the ground, and do not like to move from it.

He then goes on to point out less obvious ideas about plants. He does this in terms of three elements that plants interact and have powers with: earth, water and fire. He explains how plants powers over the elements explain natural phenomina such as earthquakes and salt formations. He also explains how plants, unlike humans, are able to survive in different environments such as water or solid rock. He closes by describing the needs of plants and how these needs similarly to the needs of humans are mainly for reproduction. However it was noted that a plant most commonly produces leaves and fruit, its ability to produce other plants is contained within it self as plants have both male and female reproductive organs.

Throughout the article he also speaks of a qualities of plants as if they are human. He commonly gives an example about the plant, such as that it produces a fruit, or an edible vegetable, and then gives reasons as to how this is possible and why the plant does this.


I think it is amazing that someone would be logical enough to think about things like this two thousand years ago but I cant help be slightly amused at the notion that Aristotle thought that plants had souls. He had no what we would now refer to as "scientific fact" for this but simply thorough observation and study he was able to come up with all these notions as to 'why' a plant would do something or 'how' it would be able to grow a certain way or in a certain climate. It is interesting to think that he sat down and had to figure out logical sounding reasons as to why some plants produce flowers, some oils, some are trees, some shed leaves and other characteristics. He even goes so far as to talk about how fruits of some plants change from bitter to sweet and how Human interaction changes this. It would have been an astounding piece of writing that would challenge the minds of the people of the time and give them a solid foundation as to the idea that everything, even plants, have a purpose. I don't know if I would have quite believed him and that he would be able to learn all this through observation as much of it does not seem obvious by looking at it, but then again he did not have thousands of years of technology and social norms telling him how logic is supposed to work.