Athena's Son by Jeryl Schoenbeck Read Free Book Online Page B

calendar, I could be somewhere between 11 and 13, depending on when they decided to add months or what city-state I grew up in. If I used your system,” he looked at the man who liked to use solar eclipses, “I would be 10, as solar eclipses have proved to be less dependable than the moon.” He looked around satisfied that he had their attention. “My question is, how old am I?”
    The question was rhetorical and Archimedes took his terra cotta bowl of figs. “I am building a machine that would take all of these aberrations into account. Suppose this bowl is earth and this large fig is the moon. These other smaller figs represent our known planets.” He carefully laid out several figs around the bowl. “My machine calculates the motions of the moon and planets, giving us a more accurate calendar.”
    Enraptured in his model, he began moving the dried fruit planets in careful orbits around the bowl. “It will also organize the calendar into four-year cycles for our Olympiads. Everyone would use it, so it is universal, not arbitrary. It is not finished; I am still working on the ratios of the gears.”
    “ You’re telling us you made a machine that thinks?” The younger man with a black beard asked.
    “ Not think, it computes,” Archimedes said. “It uses finely calibrated gears,” He pushed the bowl against the cup and spun the bowl to keep up with the turn of the smaller cup. “Like this bowl, the main gear wheel transfers the power to the other wheels that interlock with it. The 12 months would be connected to the main wheel and they would all turn in relation to the orbit of the sun and revolution of the moon. It would compute the year for us.” Archimedes looked up, beaming.
    The oldest man slapped the table and laughed. “A machine to compute for man? Ha, that will be the day when a machine can think!”
    Archimedes ignored the jibe. “It is an improvement to what we have now because the gears provide accuracy, not an opinion. My computer is impartial, unlike men who calculate by personal bias.”
    The three men straightened their backs in unison, ready to strike like cobras. It appeared to Archimedes that they may not want to hear any more about his machine. He meekly moved back to his end of the table, taking his earth, moon, and gears with him.
    Across the dining room, Callimachus entered and moved gracefully among the diners. He did not seem to walk as much as float. His long white tunic went all the way to the floor and covered his feet. The effect was that he moved as if he had wheels instead of legs. He would occasionally stop and greet some men, have a quick discussion with older teachers, or nod at an acquaintance across the hall.
    The three teachers stopped him and gave an animated gesture toward Archimedes. Callimachus only raised his eyebrow before finally coming up to Archimedes.
    “ Good morning Archimedes. Did Hypnos visit you?” Callimachus asked.
    “ I slept very well, thank you sir,” Archimedes said.
    “ Oh, no, I didn’t mean the god of sleep. I was referring to my cat, Hypnos. He has an affinity for warm beds,” Callimachus said.
    “ Yes master, he was with me.”
    “ You need only refer to me as Callimachus. I am neither master nor servant,” He said as he knelt down and scratched Hypnos’s ear. “He is an Egyptian Mau, which is the only breed that is spotted, like a leopard. I bought him at the marketplace.” Callimachus stood back up. “That is where I’d like to start your tour of Alexandria. First we will visit the marketplace so you know the city better. Then we will return here to escape the afternoon sun and acquaint you with the library and school.”
    The marketplace! That is exactly what Archimedes was hoping to hear. There was still a question lingering in his mind.
    “ If I may ask Callimachus, about yesterday, how were you able to chase away a priest? I thought Egyptian priests wielded nearly as much power as the Pharaoh himself.”
    “ You are right,