Thales was the earliest known Greek philosopher. He was born in Miletus in Asia Minor. All that is known about Thales and his thoughts comes from brief and scattered reprorts by later historians and philosophers.
According to the Greek philosopher Aristotle, Thales was the first philosopher to attempt to doscover the underlying material and source for all things. Aristotle wrote that Thales believed that water was this element. Instead of explaining the enigmas of the world with mythology and supernatural stories, Thales was the first to look at these events using philosophy and scientific explanations. He was the first to use reasoning and observation in attempting to answer the questions about human beings and the universe. He also founded the Greek science of astronomy. This is why Thales is considered the founder and father of philosophical and scientific tradition in the Western World.