TPO 30 burning mirror

The reading and the lecture both are about the burning mirror, a polished copper surface curved to attack Roman ships, causing them to catch fire. The author claims that it was a complete myth and the Greeks never built such a weapon. However, the speaker argues that the claims mention in the reading are not convincing and provides three reasons for the Greek to build this device.

The author of the reading states that Greeks were not technologically advanced enough to make such a weapon. However, the professor explains that Greeks did not need a large sheet of copper to create this device. Moreover, experiment shows that individual flat pieces of polish copper could be arranged in parabolic shape. Needless to say, Greek mathematicians already knew the properties of parabola and could have assembled in small mirror pieces into parabolic shape. Therefore, the professor strongly supports that Greek could have built such a device against Romans.

Secondly, the author contends that burning mirror would have taken a long time to set ships on fire. Also, an experiment showed that it took 10 minutes to set the object on fire and meanwhile the object had to be unmoving. In contrast, the professor refutes this by mentioning that an experiment showed that burning mirror set wood on fire which usually takes 10 minutes. But boats made up of other materials like pitch, catches fire within seconds. Eventually the boat would burn and spread to move fire quickly even if the boat is moving.

Finally, the author claims that flaming arrow was a common method of setting the ships on fire that time. Hence, the Greek had no reason to build a weapon like a burning mirror. On the other hand, the lecturer explains that Romans were already familiar with farming arrow and they could not see burning rays from mirror but just mirror. In this way, the Romans would be surprised if all of a sudden the fire start on ship. Thus, a burning mirror would of course be effective than a flaming arrow. Therefore, the speaker believes that Greek could have built a burning mirror against Romans.