Although Aristotle and Theophrastus are better known, Strato was closer to modern thinking. He had a naturalistic view of the world. Like the atomists (Leucippus and Democritus), Strato was a materialist. He believed that everything in the universe was made of matter and energy. He was one of the first philosophers to have a secular worldview. Cicero said "he liberates God from a big job and me from fear".