Best work Quote by Lucio Russo
“Unfortunately, the optimistic view that "classical civilization" handed down certain fundamental works that managed to include the knowledge contained in the lost writings has proved groundless. In fact, in the face of a general regression in the level of civilization, it's never the best works that will be saved through an automatic process of natural selection.”
About This Quote
Source Book: The Forgotten Revolution: How Science Was Born in 17th-Century Italy by Lucio Russo, 2015
The belief that ancient classics preserved all essential knowledge is false; progress often occurs despite loss, not because of it.
In simple terms: Ancient works didn't keep all knowledge; loss can happen.
Key Takeaway
Recognize that knowledge can be lost and reinvented.
Themes
history
knowledge
science
progress
Mood
reflective
critical
inquisitive
Type
historical
analytical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- archaeology
- education reform
- science policy
- library preservation
- curriculum design
Key Concepts
cultural transmission
natural selection
intellectual loss
Questions to Reflect On
- How do we identify what knowledge was lost?
- What mechanisms protect vital knowledge today?
A Different Perspective
Even surviving works may be biased or incomplete, limiting their usefulness.
![“Many scholars have felt that the Heronian passage [on a pipe-organ moved by an anemourion-like wheel] can be disregarded because it is not confirmed by other writings. Heron presumably mentioned the anemourion in a moment of distraction, forgetting that it had not been invented yet. We know that…” quote by Lucio Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ab2/lucio-russo-43521_disregarded_many-scholars-have-felt-that-the-heronia_2047751.jpg)
![“Today Eratosthenes' method [of calculating the circumference of the earth] seems almost banal... yet it is inaccessible to prescientific civilizations, and in all of Antiquity not a single Latin author succeeded in stating it coherently.” quote by Lucio Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d48/lucio-russo-43521_antiquity_today-eratosthenes-method-of-calculating_2489686.jpg)
![“The oft-heard comment that Leonardo [da Vinci]'s genius managed to transcend the culture of his time is amply justified. But his was not a science-fiction voyage into the future as much as a plunge into the past.” quote by Lucio Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/279/lucio-russo-43521_comment_the-oft-heard-comment-that-leonardo-da-v_2595258.jpg)
![“Euclid manages to obtain a rigorous proof without ever dealing with infinity, by reducing the problem [of the infinitude of primes] to the study of finite numbers. This is exactly what contemporary mathematical analysis does.” quote by Lucio Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/66c/lucio-russo-43521_analysis_euclid-manages-to-obtain-a-rigorous-proo_2943863.jpg)
