Anaximenes and the Milesian School

Anaximenes and the Milesian School Anaximenes (d. c. 528 B.C.) was a Pre-Socratic philosopher, who together with Anaximander and Thales, was a member of what we call the Milesian School because all three were from Miletus and may have studied with one another. Anaximenes may have been a disciple of Anaximander. Although there is some controversy, Anaximenes is thought to be the one to have first developed the theory of change. The Underlying Substance of the Universe Where Anaximander believed the universe was composed of an indefinite substance he called apeiron, Anaximenes believed the underlying substance of the universe was the Greek for what we translate as air because air is neutral but can take on various properties, especially condensation and rarefaction. This is a more specific substance that Anaximanders. In his Commentary on Aristotles Physics, the medieval Neoplatonist Simplicius repeats what Theophrastus (the successor of Aristotles school of philosophy) wrote about the Milesian school. This includes the ideas that that, according to Anaximenes, when air becomes finer, it becomes fire, when it is condensed, it becomes first wind, then cloud, then water, then earth, then stone. According to the same source, Anaximenes also said that change came from motion, which is eternal. In his Metaphysics, Aristotle links another Milesian, Diogenes of Apollonia, and Anaximenes in that both consider air more primary than water. Sources of the Pre-Socratics We have first-hand material of the pre-Socratics only from the end of the sixth century/start of the fifth B.C. Even then, the material is spotty. So our knowledge of the Pre-Socratic philosophers comes from fragments of their works included in the writing of others. The Presocratic Philosophers: A Critical History with a Selection of Texts, by G.S. Kirk and J.E. Raven provides these fragments in English. Diogenes Laertius provides biographies of the Pre-Socratic philosophers: Loeb Classical Library. For more on the transmission of texts, see The Manuscript Tradition of Simplicius Commentary on Aristotles Physics i-iv, by A. H. Coxon; The Classical Quarterly, New Series, Vol. 18, No. 1 (May 1968), pp. 70-75. Anaximenes is on the list of Most Important People to Know in Ancient History. Examples: Here are the relevant passages on Anaximenes from Aristotles Metaphysics Book I (983b and 984a): Most of the earliest philosophers conceived only of material principles as underlying all things. That of which all things consist, from which they first come and into which on their destruction they are ultimately resolved, of which the essence persists although modified by its affections-this, they say, is an element and principle of existing things. Hence they believe that nothing is either generated or destroyed, since this kind of primary entity always persists....In the same way nothing else is generated or destroyed; for there is some one entity (or more than one) which always persists and from which all other things are generated. All are not agreed, however, as to the number and character of these principles. Thales, the founder of this school of philosophy, says the permanent entity is water....Anaximenes and Diogenes held that air is prior to water, and is of all corporeal elements most truly the first principle. Sources The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Edward N. Zalta (ed.). Readings in Ancient Greek Philosophy: From Thales to Aristotle, by S. Marc Cohen, Patricia Curd, C. D. C. Reeve Theophrastus on the Presocratic Causes, by John B. McDiarmid Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, Vol. 61 (1953), pp. 85-156. A New Look at Anaximenes, by Daniel W. Graham; History of Philosophy Quarterly, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Jan. 2003), pp. 1-20.

A Short History of the Architecture Profession

A Short History of the Architecture Profession Architecture was not always thought of as a profession. The architect was the person who could build structures that didnt fall down. In fact, the word architect comes from the Greek word for chief carpenter, architektÃ… n.  In the United States, architecture as a licensed profession changed in 1857. Before the 1800s, any talented and skilled person could become an architect through reading, apprenticeship, self-study, and admiration of the current ruling class. Ancient Greek and Roman rulers picked out the engineers whose work would make them look good. The great Gothic cathedrals in Europe were built by masons, carpenters, and other artisans and tradesmen. Over time, wealthy, educated aristocrats became key designers. They achieved their training informally, without established guidelines or standards. Today we consider these early builders and designers as architects: Vitruvius The Roman builder Marcus Vitruvius Pollio is often cited as the first architect. As chief engineer for Roman rulers such as Emperor Augustus, Vitruvius documented building methods and acceptable styles to be used by governments. His three principles of architecture- firmitas, utilitas, venustas- are used as models of what architecture should be even today. Palladio The famous Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio apprenticed as a stonecutter. He learned about the Classical Orders from scholars of ancient Greece and Rome- when Vitruvius De Architectura is translated, Palladio embraces ideas of symmetry and proportion. Wren Sir Christopher Wren, who designed some of Londons most important buildings after the Great Fire of 1666, was a mathematician and scientist. He educated himself through reading, travel, and meeting other designers. Jefferson When the American statesman Thomas Jefferson designed Monticello and other important buildings, he had learned about architecture through books by Renaissance masters like Palladio and Giacomo da Vignola. Jefferson also sketched his observations of Renaissance architecture when he was Minister to France. During the 1700 and 1800s, prestigious art academies like École des Beaux-Arts provided training in architecture with an emphasis on the Classical Orders. Many important architects in Europe and the American colonies received some of their education at École des Beaux-Arts. However, architects were not required to enroll in the Academy or any other formal educational program. There were no required exams or licensing regulations. The Influence of the AIA In the United States, architecture evolved as a highly organized profession when a group of prominent architects, including  Richard Morris Hunt, launched the AIA (American Institute of Architects). Founded on February 23, 1857, the AIA aspired to promote the scientific and practical perfection of its members and elevate the standing of the profession. Other founding members included Charles Babcock, H. W. Cleaveland, Henry Dudley, Leopold Eidlitz, Edward Gardiner, J. Wrey Mould, Fred A. Petersen, J. M. Priest, Richard Upjohn, John Welch, and Joseph C. Wells. Americas earliest AIA architects established their careers during turbulent times. In 1857 the nation was on the brink of Civil War and, after years of economic prosperity, America plunged into depression in the Panic of 1857. The American Institute of Architects doggedly laid the foundations for establishing architecture as a profession. The organization brought standards of ethical conduct- professionalsim- to Americas planners and designers. As the AIA grew, it established standardized contracts and developed policies for the training and credentialing of architects. The AIA itself does not issue licenses nor is it a requirement to be a member of the AIA. The AIA is a professional organization- a community of architects led by architects. The newly formed AIA did not have funds to create a national architecture school but gave organizational support to new programs for architecture studies at established schools. The earliest architecture schools in the US included the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1868), Cornell (1871), the University of Illinois (1873), Columbia University (1881), and Tuskegee (1881). Today, over one hundred architecture school programs in the United States are accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), which standardizes the education and training of US architects. NAAB is the only agency in the US that is authorized to accredit professional degree programs in architecture. Canada has a similar agency, the Canadian Architectural Certification Board (CACB). In 1897, Illinois was the first state in the US to adopt a licensing law for architects. Other states followed slowly over the next 50 years. Today, a professional license is required of all architects who practice in the US. Standards for licensing are regulated by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). Medical doctors cannot practice medicine without a license and neither can architects. You wouldnt want an untrained and unlicensed doctor treating your medical condition, so you shouldnt want an untrained, unlicensed architect build that high rise office building in which you work. A licensed profession is a path toward a safer world. Learn More The Architects Handbook of Professional Practice by the American Institute of Architects, Wiley, 2013Architect? A Candid Guide to the Profession by Roger K. Lewis, MIT Press, 1998From Craft to Profession: The Practice of Architecture in Nineteenth-Century America by Mary N. Woods, University of California Press, 1999The Architect: Chapters in the History of the Profession by Spiro Kostof, Oxford University Press, 1977