Greek Guy
Two ways to introduce an ancient Greek mathematician: as the first to think something obvious, or as the founder of a lasting tradition.
Use this cartoon
Free for classrooms, worksheets, slides and other non-commercial use under CC BY-NC 4.0, with credit to Ben Orlin.
Cartoon by Ben Orlin, Math with Bad Drawings. https://cartoons.mathwithbaddrawings.com/2017-08-28-greek-guy/ (CC BY-NC 4.0)Transcript
[Option #1] "You know this Greek guy? He was the first human being ever to think this fairly obvious thought..."
[Option #2] "You know this Greek guy? He inaugurated an intellectual tradition that, two millennia later, you and I are still carrying forward."
[Caption] "Rule of Thumb: Don't choose an implausible lie over a dazzling truth."