Editing Scientist (section)

===Classical antiquity===
[[History of science in classical antiquity|Knowledge about nature in classical antiquity]] was pursued by many kinds of scholars. [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] contributions to science—including works of geometry and mathematical astronomy, early accounts of biological processes and catalogs of plants and animals, and theories of knowledge and learning—were produced by [[philosopher]]s and [[physician]]s, as well as practitioners of various trades. These roles, and their associations with scientific knowledge, spread with the [[Roman Empire]] and, with the [[History of Christianity#Roman Empire|spread of Christianity]], became closely linked to religious institutions in most European countries. [[Astrology]] and [[astronomy]] became an important area of knowledge, and the role of astronomer/astrologer developed with the support of political and religious [[patronage]]. By the time of the [[medieval university]] system, knowledge was divided into the ''[[Trivium (education)|trivium]]''—philosophy, including [[natural philosophy]]—and the ''[[quadrivium]]''—mathematics, including astronomy. Hence, the medieval analogs of scientists were often either philosophers or mathematicians. Knowledge of plants and animals was broadly the province of physicians.