05-31-2005, 03:24 PM
Funny that it is such a wide range from the scholars. I'd like to read their arguments for the estimate. I guess when it comes to these extremely ancient stories, where we have no other source, perhaps the important thing is to *know* the stories rather than *believe* the stories.
We are told that the Romans were descended from Aeneas and that Romulus and Remus were raised by a she-wolf. That's the story and it's all we got. What really happened is something we will really never know, because even if we dig up another ancient story that's different and more plausible, we still don't know if it has any resemblance to the truth.
In the case of impossible numbers though, we do at least have the option to scale them down to something *possible*. I think there may be knowledge to be gained by trying to solve the problem, even if failure is certian. What is the biggest possible army that Xerxes could have brought over? Forget about what actually happened, but how far off is the story from the realm of possibility? What steps would we take to answer this question?
We are told that the Romans were descended from Aeneas and that Romulus and Remus were raised by a she-wolf. That's the story and it's all we got. What really happened is something we will really never know, because even if we dig up another ancient story that's different and more plausible, we still don't know if it has any resemblance to the truth.
In the case of impossible numbers though, we do at least have the option to scale them down to something *possible*. I think there may be knowledge to be gained by trying to solve the problem, even if failure is certian. What is the biggest possible army that Xerxes could have brought over? Forget about what actually happened, but how far off is the story from the realm of possibility? What steps would we take to answer this question?
Rich Marinaccio
