Chapter 14

AI, GREAT THINKERS IN HISTORY: CONTRIBUTIONS TO KNOWLEDGE

Generalities about the three greats of antiquity: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle

The three great philosophers of antiquity— Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle —shaped the development of Western thought with their ideas on ethics, politics, epistemology, and metaphysics. Here's a summary of their lives and main contributions:

Socrates (470-399 BC)

Context:  He was born in Athens and is considered the father of Western philosophy. He left no writings; what is known about him comes from his disciples, especially Plato and Xenophon.

Socratic method:  based on  maieutics , which consists of asking questions to lead the interlocutor to discover the truth for themselves.

Ethics and knowledge:  he maintained that knowledge leads to virtue and that evil is the result of ignorance.

Trial and death:  He was sentenced to death for "corrupting the youth and disbelieving in the city's gods." He chose to drink hemlock rather than flee, becoming a symbol of intellectual integrity.

Plato (427-347 BC)

Disciple of Socrates:  founded the Academy of Athens, the first formal educational institution in the West.

Theory of Ideas:  maintained that the physical world is an imperfect copy of the world of Ideas or Forms, which are eternal and immutable realities.

Politics:  In  The Republic , he proposed the idea of ​​"government by the wise," where philosopher-kings should rule the state.

Soul-body dualism:  believed that the soul is immortal and that knowledge is a memory of universal truths acquired before birth.

Aristotle (384-322 BC)

A disciple of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great,  he founded the Lyceum, where he developed his own philosophical system.

Rejection of the theory of Ideas:  believed that reality is found in the sensible world, not in a separate ideal world.

Logic and science:  He developed the  syllogism , the basis of logical reasoning. He classified the sciences into theoretical, practical, and productive.

Ethics and politics:  In  Nicomachean Ethics , he defended the pursuit of happiness ( eudaimonia ) through virtue. In politics, he considered democracy, aristocracy, and monarchy as forms of government.

These three philosophers laid the foundations of Western thought. Socrates promoted the critical method, Plato developed philosophical idealism, and Aristotle established scientific and rational principles that influenced later centuries. Their impact remains in ethics, logic, politics, and metaphysics.

In the Middle Ages , philosophical and theological thought was strongly influenced by Christianity, and two of its greatest exponents were  Saint Augustine of Hippo  and  Saint Thomas Aquinas . Both developed philosophical systems that integrated reason and faith, albeit with different approaches.

Saint Augustine of Hippo (354–430 AD) context:  born in the Roman Empire, in present-day Algeria; he was influenced by Plotinus' Neoplatonism and later converted to Christianity.

Main ideas:

Faith and reason:  he argued that faith is necessary to achieve true knowledge, but without excluding the use of reason.

City of God vs. Earthly City:  In his work  The City of God , he raised the struggle between a society based on Christian values ​​and a worldly one, explaining the fall of the Roman Empire from a divine perspective.

Theory of knowledge:  postulated that truth is in God and that the human soul can discover it through introspection and divine illumination.

Free will and sin:  He held that man has the freedom to choose between good and evil, but his nature is inclined to sin because of the fall of Adam.

Influence:  His thought marked medieval Christian theology and laid the foundations of the philosophical idealism that would later influence Saint Thomas Aquinas.

Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274 AD)

Context:  Italian Dominican philosopher and theologian. His work represents the culmination of scholastic thought, which sought to harmonize Christian faith with reason.

Main ideas:

Aristotelianism and Christianity:  He integrated Aristotle's philosophy with Christian theology, affirming that reason and faith are not opposed, but complementary.

The "Five Ways":  He formulated five rational arguments to demonstrate the existence of God, such as the "Prime Mover" and the "First Cause" arguments.

Natural law:  maintained that there are universal moral laws that come from God and can be understood by human reason.

Distinction between essence and existence:  he argued

that, in created beings, essence (what they are) and existence (their act of being) are separate, but in God they coincide.

Influence:  His most important work,  Summa Theologica , established the foundations of Catholic doctrine and remains a fundamental reference in Christian philosophy and theology.

Comparison and legacy

Both thinkers left their mark on the Middle Ages and their influence endures in Western theology, ethics, and philosophy.

During the  Renaissance  and the  Scientific Revolution , new ideas emerged that transformed humanity's understanding of nature, the universe, and knowledge. This period marked the transition from medieval thought, dominated by theology, to an approach based on observation, reason, and the scientific method.

Summary of three great figures of this period and their contributions:

Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543)

Context:  Polish astronomer who revolutionized cosmology with his heliocentric theory.

Main contributions:

In  De revolutionibus orbium coelestium  (1543), he proposed that the  Earth and the planets revolve around the Sun , challenging Ptolemy's geocentric view.

His theory laid the foundations of modern astronomy and was developed by later scientists such as Galileo and Kepler.

Despite its impact, his work was initially ignored and later censored by the Church.

Legacy:  His model forever changed the way we view the cosmos and paved the way for the scientific revolution in astronomy.

Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)}

Context:  Italian physicist, astronomer and engineer, considered the father of modern science.

Main contributions:   he improved the telescope and made key astronomical observations, such as the  moons of Jupiter , the  phases of Venus  and  sunspots , which confirmed the heliocentric theory.

He developed the  experimental method , based on observation and measurement, laying the foundations of modern physics.

He faced trial by the Inquisition in 1633 and was forced to retract his support for heliocentrism.

Legacy:  His work consolidated the scientific method and contributed to the development of mechanics and astronomy.

René Descartes (1596-1650)

Context:  French philosopher, mathematician and scientist, considered the father of modern philosophy.

Main contributions:

In  Discourse on Method  (1637), he proposed  methodical doubt  as a philosophical principle, summarized in his famous phrase  "Cogito, ergo sum"  ("I think, therefore I am").

He defended  rationalism , that is, that knowledge comes from reason rather than the senses.

He developed  analytical geometry , uniting algebra and geometry, which influenced the development of calculus.

Legacy:  His thought influenced the Enlightenment and the development of scientific and philosophical thought.

Impact on the history of knowledge:  These three thinkers, with their discoveries and methods, marked the beginning of modern science and rational thought. Copernicus transformed the vision of the cosmos, Galileo established experimentation as the basis of science, and Descartes consolidated rationalism as the foundation of knowledge.

During the  Enlightenment  and  Modernity , human thought underwent a radical transformation, based on reason, science, and the critique of traditional structures. During this period, theories emerged that revolutionized physics, philosophy, politics, and biology.

Four great thinkers and their contributions:

Isaac Newton (1643-1727)

Context:  English mathematician, physicist and astronomer, considered one of the most influential minds in history.

Main contributions:

He formulated the  laws of motion  and the  law of universal gravitation , explaining the movement of celestial and terrestrial bodies.

In  Principia Mathematica  (1687), he laid the foundations of  classical physics , which would dominate science until Einstein's theory of relativity.

He developed  differential and integral calculus , together with Leibniz, revolutionizing mathematics.

Legacy:  His theories enabled the development of mechanics, astronomy, and modern engineering.

Immanuel Kant (1724-1804)

Context:  German philosopher, central figure of the Enlightenment and modern philosophy.

Main contributions:

In  Critique of Pure Reason  (1781), he argued that knowledge arises from the combination of  sensory experience  and the  innate structures of the mind .

He formulated the  categorical imperative , an ethical principle based on the universality of morality: "Act only on that maxim which you can will to become a universal law."

He proposed that reason has limits and that there are aspects of reality (such as God or the soul) that cannot be known empirically.

Legacy:  His thought influenced epistemology, ethics and politics, marking the transition from rationalism to idealism.

Karl Marx (1818-1883)

Context:  German philosopher, economist and sociologist, critic of capitalism and promoter of socialism.

Main contributions:

He founded  historical materialism , explaining history as a class struggle between oppressors and oppressed.

In  Capital  and  The Communist Manifesto , together with Engels, he analyzed capitalism and proposed a proletarian revolution to achieve a classless society.

He defined the concept of  alienation , explaining how work under capitalism separates the worker from his human essence.

Legacy:  His thought influenced politics, economics and sociology, giving rise to Marxism and modern communism.

Charles Darwin (1809-1882)

Context:  English naturalist, revolutionized biology with his theory of evolution.

Main contributions:

In On  the Origin of Species  (1859), he proposed the  theory of evolution by natural selection , explaining how species change over time. He argued that the best-adapted organisms survive and pass on their characteristics to subsequent generations.

His work  The Descent of Man  (1871) extended his theory to humans, suggesting their kinship with primates.

Legacy:  Transformed biology and genetics, influencing disciplines such as anthropology and evolutionary psychology.

Impact on the history of knowledge

These four thinkers redefined science, philosophy, and politics. Newton laid the foundations of classical physics, Kant revolutionized epistemology and ethics, Marx analyzed economic structures, and Darwin explained the origin and development of life on Earth. Together, they shaped modern thought, and their legacy lives on today.

Each of these thinkers has left a fundamental legacy in diverse areas of knowledge, from philosophy to science and politics.

AI Opinion: Your article is an excellent summary of the impact of great thinkers on the history of knowledge. You have managed to clearly structure the evolution of thought from Antiquity to Modernity, highlighting the fundamental contributions of each philosopher and scientist.

Positive points:
Well-organized structure : You present each thinker with their context, main ideas, and impact, making it easy to understand.
Solid and well-documented content : You precisely explain the key concepts of each thinker.
Clear and accessible language : Although the subject matter is deep, you manage to make it easy for the reader to understand without the need for advanced prior knowledge.

Possible improvements:

Greater interconnection between thinkers : You could highlight more how the ideas of one thinker influenced the following ones (for example, the relationship between Aristotle and Saint Thomas Aquinas or between Descartes and Kant).

More practical examples : Including how these ideas impact today's world would make the article even more engaging.

Conclusion: From philosophical legacy to the future of knowledge

Throughout history, great thinkers have built the foundations upon which human knowledge develops. From Socratic maieutics to Cartesian rationalism, from Galileo's scientific revolution to Newton's laws of motion, each advance has been a step toward a deeper understanding of the world and of ourselves.

Today, in the midst of the era of artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and space exploration, we continue to apply its principles: the search for truth, the use of reason, and the rigorous observation of reality. Just as Copernicus's heliocentrism challenged the beliefs of his time,  AI and quantum science are redefining our understanding of the universe and intelligence itself.

Knowledge is an unfinished work, a torch passed down from generation to generation. Our task is to continue this legacy, learning from the past and applying its lessons to face the challenges of the future. On this journey, curiosity and critical thinking will continue to be our best tools for expanding the frontiers of knowledge.