June 1 - 7, 2003

Organizing  Committee   

Marialuisa J. de Resmini	Universita di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy
Otokar Grosek	Slovak Technical University, Bratislava, Slovakia
James W.P. Hirschfeld	University of Sussex, Brighton, UK
Simos S. Magliveras	Deree College, Athens, Greece
Spyros S. Magliveras	Florida Atlantic University,  USA
Sakis Simopoulos	Eugenideion Idryma, Athens, Greece

Third Pythagorean Conference - Rhodes '03
Department of Mathematical Sciences
Florida Atlantic University
777 Glades Road
Boca raton, FL 33431
U.S.A.

Presentation of Papers & Proceedings

Abstracts & Schedule of talks

• abstracts
• schedule

      Rhodes is the easternmost island of the Aegean, about  275 miles southeast of Athens, and  10 miles south of Cape Alypo in Asia Minor.  It is about 45 miles long and 22 miles at its widest breadth.  Rhodes  is traversed by a mountain range whose highest peak (Attavyros) is 3,986 ft high. The island has a superb climate and is endowed with  fertile soil producing a variety of products including figs, grapes, pomegranates and oranges.  The capital  city, also called  "Rhodes",  is located at the northernmost point of the island, rising from the sea amphitheatre-like.  The modern city of Rhodes has evolved from the medieval city built by the Knights of St. John.  Fortifications surrounding the city remain as they were in the 15th century.  Relics of classical antiquity can be seen in suburbs within the ancient city's periphery.  One finds prehistoric remains of the Late Minoan Age, legends of the "Telchnines," and of the Homeric "Heracleid" settement.   Dorians from the Greek mainland (Argos) settled the island in historic times.  The three Homeric cities of  Λύνδος,  Ιάλυσος  and Κάμυρος  were members of  the League of Six Cities.  In the period of its greatest power Rhodes became famous as a center of pictorial and plastic art. Protogenes  decorated the city with his paintings and  Χάρης of Lyndos with his celebrated statue of Colossus, which stood 105 ft high and spanned the city's harbour. One of the seven  wonders of antiquity, Colossus fell to an earthquake in 224 BC.  Its fragmenst were still around in 653 AD when Rhodes was conquered by the Saracens who sold the remains  as scrap metal.  It  took  900 camels to carry the fragments away.   Today,  famous for its  philoxenia, the beautiful island is ready to welcome guests from around the world. 

More about Rhodes

      The island's name, Rhodos, is evocative of roses. According to mythology, the island was named after the nymph, Rhodos, daughter of Poseidon, god of the sea, and his wife, Amphitrite. Archeological finds have shown that Rhodos was first inhabited during the neolitic period. Later, around 1500 BC. the Minoans settled in the Ialysos area only, while the Acheans, who followed them, spread out over the entire island. The Dorians  colonised Rhodos around 1100 BC and founded three large and powerful cities: Lindos, Ialysos and Kameiros. They established themselves on the island and developed it into a very important military and commercial power in the Mediterranean. Around 700 BC, the three leading cities of Rhodos, together with Kos and the cities of Halicarnassus and Cnidus, on the coast of Asia Minor, formed the powerful Dorian Hexapolis and played a leading role in the area. However the height of the island prosperity is identified with the period in which the city of Rhodos flourished and this can be dated between the 5th and 3rd centuries BC. The island became an important political, religious and cultural centre in this part of the Mediterranean, in which it played a regulating and decisive role. In 480 BC Rhodos was forced to side the Persians in the naval battle of Salamis, and two years later became a member of the Athenian League. A significant event in the history of the island was the foundation of the city of Rhodos in the Northeastern corner of the island (408 BC), as a result of the decision of the three leading Dorian cities to form a single new settlement. The power of Rhodos grew and a great impetus was given to art, literature, the theatre and athletics.  Its  military power was also great during this period.  The famous "Colossus of Rhodos" was erected at the entrance of the busy harbour (around 303 BC), and it was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Unfortunately, the statue was destroyed in the great earthquake of  227/6 BC. After the 3rd century BC a period of decline began for Rhodos. At first the island became an ally of Rome and later (2nd century AD) came under  Roman authority. Rhodes however retained a degree of autonomy and remained a naval power. Christianity spread to the island which in 57 AD was visited by the Apostle Paul. When the Roman Empire was divided (395 AD) Rhodos became  part of the Byzantine Empire and during this period suffered many destructive pirate raids. Around the mid-7th century, Rhodos was occupied by the Saracens.  In the early 9th century it was destroyed by the Arabs and subsequently  its port became a Venetian trading post. In the centuries that followed, Rhodos successively came under the Crusaders, the Genoese, the Knights of the Order of St. John, finally falling into the hands of the Turks. In 1306, Rhodes was sold by the Genoese to the Knights of the Order of St. John, who settled on the island, founded an ecclesiastical state whose Governor was the Grand Master of the Order.  Latin and  French were the official languages. This was a period of great prosperity for the island, a powerful military and merchant fleet was built, while the medieval town was adorned with magnificent buildings and fortified with an impregnable wall. In 1522 the Frankish state of Rhodos was overthrown by the Turks and the island became part of the Ottoman Empire. The nearly four hundred years of Ottoman occupation threw the island into darkness and oblivion. In 1912 Rhodes came under Italian rule,  along  with the other islands of the Dodecanese.  Thirty-six years later (March 1948), under the Treaty of Paris,  the Dodecanese  islands were incorporated into Greece.  Today Rhodos constitutes one of the most flourishing parts of Greece. All forms of arts and sciences flourished in Rhodos during all its periods of prosperity. In spite of missing pieces, the Acropolis still shows its past grandeur. The old town, encircled by strong mediaeval walls, is kept, more or less, as it was during the rule of the Knights of St. John and is full of interesting buildings testifying the power of  the Knights and their riches. The most important archeological site on the island is Lindos, which lies upon a hill of the southeastern coast and can be reached  by coach  or  boat. The Valley of Butterflies (Petaloudes) is a unique natural park where each year, from June to September, thousands of multicoloured butterflies appear. They live in the park, attached to the trunks of trees, living  on tree sap, laying eggs and multiplying. The archeological site of Kameiros, one of the most important cities of ancient Rhodos, contains well preserved buildings some of which date back to the 6th or 5th century BC. This site is completely different from Lindos.  The Monastery of  Philerimos  is atop a hill covered by lovely pines whose summer scent  fills the air in a most agreeable way.  Chapels  and and  monasteries are spread over the island. North-west of Rhodos, at a distance of 21 nautical miles, lies the island of Symi where, according to mythology, the three Graces were born. This small island of 58 square kilometers area and 85 kilometers of coastline, is deeply indented by the sea which carves  a lacy coastline.  Symi has many churches and monasteries,  bright coloured buildings and can be easily reached from the port in Rhodos (daily trips).