Claw of Archimedes Claw of Archimedes The Claw (, "harpágē", "snatcher") of Archimedes (also known as the "iron hand") was an ancient weapon devised by Archimedes to defend the seaward portion of Syracuse's city wall against amphibious assault. Although its exact nature is unclear, the accounts of ancient historians seem to describe it as a sort of crane equipped with a grappling hook that was able to lift an attacking ship partly out of the water, then either cause the ship to capsize or suddenly drop it. These machines featured prominently during the Second Punic War in 214 BC, when the Roman Republic
Archimedes-lab.org and the development of creativity. Here's a quote from Scientific American (May 27, 2003): "This virtual lab borrows the empirical spirit and creative curiosity that Archimedes brought to his work and invites visitors to explore with the same expectations for mind-blowing discovery." Archimedes-lab.org has won several awards from scientific and educational publications, including a Scientific American Web Award in 2003, the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Web Award, and a mention in MERLOT, the Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching and in The DO-IT Center, the Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology Center. Archimedes-lab.org Archimedes-lab.org is a free