Among the titans of the Renaissance, the great Italian Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) was undoubtedly the most versatile, distinguishing himself from other Renaissance geniuses by the truly cosmic scope of his interests, knowledge, explorations, and discoveries. He remains remembered in cultural history primarily as a brilliant artist and sculptor, but he also earned the reputation of an outstanding scientist, enriching nearly every field of knowledge of his era with his many extraordinary observations and far ahead of his time with his insightful insights. A leading exponent of the new, experimental natural sciences, Leonardo left no less a mark on mathematics, anatomy, mechanics, hydraulic engineering, military art, and even aircraft construction than on the theory and history of art. Constantly in dialogue with the universe, he viewed it as a gigantic laboratory, and saw both science and art as a means of understanding and transforming the world around us. Leonardo expressed his original views on these topics in numerous handwritten notes, amounting to approximately seven thousand pages; part of this enormous legacy is included in this book.