00:00Did an ancient scientist really burn enemy ships using sunlight? UNM.
00:06Let me take you back in time, more than 2,200 years ago,
00:12to an ancient city called Syracuse on the island of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea.
00:20Syracuse was a rich and beautiful Greek city.
00:23It had strong walls, big temples, smart people,
00:27and one of the greatest minds in history, Archimedes, lived there.
00:32But at that time, a powerful force was rising.
00:37The Roman Empire.
00:39The Romans were growing fast.
00:42They had already won big wars.
00:45They controlled much of Italy, and now they wanted more.
00:50Rome looked at Syracuse and saw something valuable.
00:54Sicily was full of food, ships, and money.
01:00A perfect place to control the sea.
01:03So, the Romans set their sights on Syracuse.
01:07And soon, their army and warships were on the way
01:10to attack the city.
01:13In the city of Syracuse, there was an old man.
01:16He was not a soldier.
01:18He didn't have a sword or armor.
01:20He was quiet.
01:21But he was very, very smart.
01:23His name was Archimedes.
01:25People called him a thinker.
01:27But he was also a scientist, a math expert, an inventor, and a builder.
01:31He had ideas that no one had ever seen before.
01:34Some say he was hundreds of years ahead of his time.
01:37One day, news came.
01:39The Roman army and navy were coming to attack the city.
01:42Most people were scared.
01:44The Romans had a big, strong army.
01:46And they had never lost a war.
01:48But Archimedes was not scared.
01:50He did not run away.
01:52He did not hide.
01:53He decided to stay.
01:55And protect his city.
01:56Not with fighting.
01:57But with his brain.
01:59Archimedes was ready to fight.
02:01Using science.
02:02When the Romans came to attack the city.
02:05Archimedes was ready.
02:06He started building machines to stop them.
02:10He made catapults.
02:11Big weapons that could throw huge stones far through the air.
02:15These stones smashed Roman ships and soldiers from a distance.
02:18Then he built something even crazier.
02:21Claw-like machines.
02:22These were hidden on the city walls.
02:25When a Roman ship got close.
02:27The claws would lift the ship out of the water.
02:29And then drop it down hard, smashing it.
02:32He also made traps inside the city.
02:34Using math, ropes, and levers.
02:37Everything was calculated.
02:39Archimedes knew exactly where to hit and how to break things.
02:42But the most shocking part?
02:44Some stories say.
02:46He used a solar death ray.
02:47Archimedes placed many shiny metal mirrors.
02:50He turned them toward the sun.
02:52And aimed the sunlight at the Roman ships.
02:55Slowly, the heat built up.
02:57Until the wood caught fire.
02:59Roman ships burned.
03:00And they ran away in fear.
03:01Some people think this is just a story.
03:05But others believe.
03:07Archimedes really did it.
03:10Ancient stories say something amazing.
03:14Archimedes used mirrors to fight the Romans.
03:17He took many shiny bronze mirrors.
03:20Like big metal plates.
03:22He placed them carefully.
03:25And pointed them toward the sun.
03:26The sunlight hit the mirrors.
03:30And the mirrors sent that light straight toward the Roman ships.
03:34All the heat went to one place.
03:37Like a laser beam.
03:39Slowly, the heat got stronger and stronger.
03:43Until the wood on the ships caught fire.
03:46Roman soldiers began to scream.
03:49Their ships were burning.
03:52Panic spread everywhere.
03:55And finally, the Roman fleet had to run away.
03:59All of this was done with sunlight and mirrors.
04:03No fire.
04:05No swords.
04:06Just the power of science.
04:08People still ask today.
04:11Did Archimedes really burn ships with mirrors and sunlight?
04:17Some people say, no, it's just an old story.
04:20It didn't really happen.
04:21They think someone made it up to make Archimedes look like a hero.
04:25But other people say, yes, it could be true.
04:27They believe Archimedes used math to move the mirrors just right.
04:32So the sun's heat would burn the Roman ships.
04:34In modern times, some scientists tested this idea.
04:38A TV show called Mythbusters tried to see if it would work.
04:41They used big shiny mirrors.
04:43They pointed the mirrors at a wooden boat.
04:45The mirrors reflected sunlight onto the boat.
04:48And guess what?
04:49It worked.
04:50The wood got hot, then started to burn.
04:52But it only worked when the sun was bright.
04:55And the mirrors were placed perfectly.
04:57If the weather was cloudy, or if the angles were wrong,
05:01it would not work.
05:02So maybe.
05:04Archimedes really did do it.
05:05Maybe he used just sunlight and mirrors.
05:08To stop a Roman attack.
05:10A real weapon, eh?
05:11Made with nothing but the power of the sun.
05:15Archimedes was a great thinker.
05:18He used his brain to protect his city, not weapons.
05:22But in the end, even the smartest man could not stop what was going to happen.
05:28After many days of fighting,
05:31the Roman army broke into the city of Syracuse.
05:35They came in with full force.
05:38Soldiers were everywhere.
05:41People were scared.
05:43Everything was out of control.
05:46The Roman general, Marcellus,
05:48gave a clear order.
05:50Do not hurt Archimedes.
05:52He wanted to protect him.
05:54He knew Archimedes was a special and brilliant man.
05:59But in the noise and chaos of war,
06:03one Roman soldier did not know who Archimedes was.
06:07The soldier saw an old man sitting on the ground.
06:10That man was Archimedes.
06:14Archimedes was calm.
06:16He was drawing circles in the sand.
06:20He was thinking deeply,
06:22maybe working on a new idea.
06:24The soldier told him to get up.
06:26But Archimedes didn't move.
06:30He looked at his drawings and said,
06:32Do not disturb my circles.
06:34The soldier didn't understand.
06:36He got angry.
06:37And he killed Archimedes right there.
06:40Archimedes did not die in a battle.
06:42He was not killed as a fighter.
06:43He died quietly.
06:45While drawing simple shapes in the sand.
06:48A genius lost forever.
06:50Archimedes died.
06:51But his inventions and ideas were not lost.
06:55People still remember what he did.
06:57He showed that you don't always need weapons to fight.
07:00Sometimes a smart brain is the best weapon.
07:02He used science and math to protect his city.
07:05He proved that knowledge can be powerful.
07:08Even in times of war.
07:09Today, after more than 2,000 years,
07:12Archimedes is still known as one of the smartest people in history.
07:16For more ancient genius, forgotten heroes, and real mysteries,
07:19subscribe to Vault of Centuries.
07:22Because sometimes,
07:24the past is smarter than the present.
