The Origins of Atomism

Thales was giving thought to the primal source of all matter. Indian and Buddhist thinkers were also beginning to explain the material world in atomist terms. The full development of this track of thinking would occur over a period of about 5 centuries. In the next episode, we'll try to bridge a huge span of time from classical Greek philosophy through the pre-scientific works of the Arabic Hakim to the return of natural philosophy in Western Europe.