Thales of Miletus
In 624 BCE, Thales of Miletus was born. The first of Ionian scientists; he learned how to measure heights of pyramids from the lengths of their shadows and the angle of the sun above the horizon—a method used to measure mountains of the moon thousands of years later. He also developed some geometric theorems that were later expanded by Euclid. He predicted eclipses. Though we lived in a dome. He claimed that “water is everything” and that “life is everywhere”. His motto, "Know thyself", is still what many spiritual practices of today encourage us to do—and we still struggle with it. He became very wealthy by predicting a good olive season and acquiring ownership of “all the olive presses in Miletus”... I’ll let Aristotle explain below. For this and much more, Thales is considered the first of the “seven sages”.
“They say that Thales, perceiving by his skill in astrology (astronomy) that there would be great plenty of olives that year, while it was yet winter hired at a low price all the oil presses in Miletus and Chios, there being no one to bid against him. But when the season came for making oil, many persons wanting them, he all at once let them upon what terms he pleased; and raising a large sum of money by that means, convinced them that it was easy for philosophers to be rich if they chose it.”
Source: Durant, Will, 1885-1981, The Life of Greece: A history of Greek government, industry, manners, morals, religion, philosophy, science, literature and art from the earliest times to the Roman conquest. Simon and Schuster, 1939.
Public domain
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Full disclosure, I may occasionally borrow a sentence from Will Durant's Story of Civilization. I absolutely love that collection!