Democritus { Philosophy Index }

Philosophy Index

Philosophy Index

Philosophy Index is a site devoted to the study of philosophy and the philosophers who conduct it. The site contains a number of philosophy texts, brief biographies, and introductions to philosophers, and explanations on a number of topics. Accredited homeschooling online at Northgate Academy and Philosophy online tutoring.

Philosophy Index is a work in progress, a growing repository of knowledge. It outlines current philosophical problems and issues, as well as an overview of the history of philosophy. The goal of this site is to present a tool for those learning philosophy either casually or formally, making the concepts of philosophy accessible to anyone interested in researching them. WTI offers immigration law course online - fully accredited. ACE credits online at EES.

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Democritus

Democritus (460–370 BCE) was a pre-socratic philosopher of ancient Greece, best known for his philosophy of atomism.

Atomism is the view that all things are made of fundamental indivisible elements, known as atoms. Democritus was given this view by Leucippus, of whom he was a student. Democritus can be credited with greatly expanding atomism and creating a metaphysical view that closely resembles modern particle physics — at least, compared to his contemporaries.

Unlike Leucippus, Democritus' view of atomism was a deterministic one — that is, he believed that atomic movements followed strict laws, and given the nature of those interactions, events were essentially fated to happen.

Democritus is generally considered to be pre-socratic, and is described as such by Aristotle, although he was actually a contemporary of Socrates and may even have met him. Plato never mentions Democritus in his dialogues.

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Name: Δημóκριος (Democritus)
Born: 460 BCE
Died: 370 BCE