Human uses of animals mantis was considered a god in southern African Khoi and San tradition for its praying posture. Among the mammals, cattle, deer, horses, lions, bats and wolves (including werewolves), are the subjects of myths and worship. Reptiles too, such as the crocodile, have been worshipped as gods in cultures including ancient Egypt and Hinduism. Of the twelve signs of the Western zodiac, six, namely Aries (ram), Taurus (bull), Cancer (crab), Leo (lion), Scorpio (scorpion), and Pisces (fish) are animals, while two others, Sagittarius (horse/man) and Capricorn (fish/goat) are hybrid animals; the name zodiac indeed means a circle of animals. All twelve
Ancient Greek astronomy Perga (c. 262 BC–c. 190 BC) responded by introducing two new mechanisms that allowed a planet to vary its distance and speed: the eccentric deferent and the deferent and epicycle. The deferent is a circle carrying the planet around the Earth. (The word "deferent" comes from the Greek fero φέρω "to carry"and Latin "ferro, ferre", meaning "to carry.") An eccentric deferent is slightly off-center from Earth. In a deferent and epicycle model, the deferent carries a small circle, the epicycle, which carries the planet. The deferent-and-epicycle model can mimic the eccentric model, as shown by Apollonius' theorem. It can also