HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Reviel Netz (born January 2, 1968) is an Israeli scholar of the history of
pre-modern The term premodern refers to the period in human history immediately preceding the modern era, as well as the conceptual framework in the humanities and social sciences relating to the artistic, literary and philosophical practices which preceded t ...
mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
, who is currently a professor of
classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
and of
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
at
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
.


Life and work

Netz was born January 2, 1968, in
Tel Aviv, Israel Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
to Israeli author and Yoel Netz, an
entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
and
translator Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
of Russian classics. From 1983 to 1992, Netz studied at the
Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
, obtaining a B.A. in Ancient History and an M.A. in History and the Philosophy of Science; from 1993 to 1995 studied
classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
at Christ College,
Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, where he obtained his doctorate in 1995. From 1996 to 1999 Netz worked as a post-doctoral research fellow at
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...
, and concurrently in 1998 and 1999 worked as a post-doctoral fellow at
MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the mo ...
. In the fall of 1999 he took a position as an assistant professor in the
Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
Department of Classics, where he has continued to teach and publish today. Netz's major research interest include the wider issues of the history of cognitive practices; for example the history of the book, visual culture, literacy and numeracy. He is the author of a number of works in field, including volumes I and II of '' The Archimedes Palimpsest''. He also co-authored ''The Archimedes Codex'' with William Noel on the same subject matter, but oriented towards a public audience. It received the Neumann Prize as well as several works published by the
Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...
, including ''The Shaping of Deduction in Greek Mathematics: a Study in Cognitive History'' (1999,
Runciman Award The Runciman Award is an annual literary award offered by the Anglo-Hellenic League for a work published in English dealing wholly or in part with Greece or Hellenism. The award is named in honour of the late Sir Steven Runciman and is currentl ...
), ''The Transformation of Early Mediterranean Mathematics: From Problems to Equations'' (2004), and ''Ludic Proof: Greek Mathematics and the Alexandrian Aesthetic'' (2009). In 2014 he was awarded the Commandino Medal at the Urbino University for his contributions to the history of science. Netz has also appeared as a subject matter expert on PBS's Nova concerning ancient mathematics.PBS Nova: Working with Infinity
/ref> In addition to his work on the history of mathematics, Netz has published some Hebrew poetry, including "Adayin Baḥutz" in 1999.


Authored and co-authored works

*''The Shaping of Deduction in Greek Mathematics: A Study in Cognitive History'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999, . *''The Works of Archimedes: Translation and Commentary, Vol. I: The Two Books "On The Sphere and the Cylinder"'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004 and 2009 . *''Barbed Wire: an Ecology of Modernity'', Middletown, CT:
Wesleyan University Press Wesleyan University Press is a university press that is part of Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. The press is currently directed by Suzanna Tamminen, a published poet and essayist. History and overview Founded (in its present for ...
, 2007, . *With William Noel, ''The Archimedes Codex: Revealing the Secrets of the World's Greatest Palimpsest'', London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2007, . *''The Transformation of Mathematics in the Early Mediterranean World: from Problems to Equations'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007 . *''Ludic Proof: Greek Mathematics and the Alexandrian Aesthetic'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009, . *Editor, with William Noel, Natalie Tchernetska, and Nigel Wilson, ''The Archimedes Palimpsest Vol. I: Catalogue and Commentary'', Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...
, 2011, . *Editor, with William Noel et al., ''The Archimedes Palimpsest Vol. II: Facsimile and Transcription'', Cambridge University Press, 2011, . *''The Works of Archimedes: Translation and Commentary, Vol. 2: "On Spirals"'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017, .


See also

*
Archimedes Palimpsest The Archimedes Palimpsest is a parchment codex palimpsest, originally a Byzantine Greek copy of a compilation of Archimedes and other authors. It contains two works of Archimedes that were thought to have been lost (the ''Ostomachion'' and the ' ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Netz, Reviel 1968 births Living people Stanford University faculty Israeli classical scholars Historians of mathematics Israeli philologists Stanford University Department of Classics faculty Tel Aviv University alumni Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Scholars of ancient Greek history 20th-century Israeli historians 21st-century Israeli historians Israeli people of Romanian-Jewish descent