Ancient Texts Catoptrics is the title of two texts from
ancient Greece: •
Catoptrics written by "Pseudo-Euclid"; although the book is attributed to
Euclid, its contents are a combination of knowledge dating from Euclid's time together with information which dates to the later Roman period. It has been argued that the book may have been compiled by the 4th century mathematician
Theon of Alexandria. The
Latin translation of
Alhazen's (Ibn al-Haytham) main work,
Book of Optics (
Kitab al-Manazir), exerted a great influence on Western science: for example, on the work of
Roger Bacon, who cites him by name. His research in catoptrics (the study of optical systems using mirrors) centred on spherical and
parabolic mirrors and
spherical aberration. He made the observation that the ratio between the
angle of incidence and
refraction does not remain constant, and investigated the
magnifying power of a
lens. His work on catoptrics also contains the problem known as "
Alhazen's problem". Alhazen's work influenced
Averroes' writings on optics, and his legacy was further advanced through the 'reforming' of his
Optics by Persian scientist
Kamal al-Din al-Farisi (d. ) in the latter's
Kitab Tanqih al-Manazir (
The Revision of Optics).
Renaissance 16th century Jewish-Ferrarese physicist
Rafael Mirami wrote a treatise on the subject,
Compendiosa introduttione alla prima parte della specularia, which became influential in a revival of the field, and contributed towards astronomical calculations instigated by
Pope Gregory XIII, that led to the creation of the
Gregorian Calendar. ==Catoptric telescopes==