Hippias Of Elis

Hippias Of Elis, (flourished 5th century bc, Elis, in the Peloponnese, Greece), Sophist philosopher who contributed significantly to mathematics by discovering the quadratrix, a special curve he may have used to trisect an angle.

A man of great versatility, with an assurance characteristic of the later Sophists, Hippias lectured on poetry, grammar, history, politics, archaeology, mathematics, and astronomy. His vast literary output included elegies and tragedies besides technical treatises in prose. He is credited with an excellent work on Homer, collections of Greek and foreign literature, and archaeological treatises; but nothing remains except a few fragments. He is depicted in Plato’s Protagoras, and two of Plato’s minor dialogues are named after him.