Brief Historical Review

Abstract

Hippocrates of Cos (460–375 BC) (Fig. 2.1) is generally called the father of medicine (e.g., Edelstein 1967; Porter 1996; Yapijakis 2009). He saw the understanding of nature as one of the important parts of his medical doctrine (Fig. 2.2). He believed that he could not be a good doctor without knowledge of meteorology. In his treatise On airs, waters and places, Hippocrates analyzed different parts of climate and their impact on public health as well as the diseases that occur in locations that are exposed to specific winds (Boussoussou et al. 2017). It is obvious from the title of the treatise that he believed that there are various forms of air, with special characteristics, that relate to specific locations. He did not try to find the cause of the local meteorological phenomena; he just watched the influence of weather on human health – a problem that is still insufficiently understood.