Contemporary scientific disciplines such as chaos & complexity theory artificial intelligence & cognitive science treat themselves as new fields of inquiry but many of these ideas can be traced back to Hermeticism the European intellectual tradition sparked by the rediscovery of the Corpus Hermeticum & Platonic texts in the 15th century Building a map of the progression of scientific thought across centuries & continents Leon Marvell examines the ancient roots of Hermeticism its rise during the Renaissance & its suppression during the scientific revolution of the Enlightenment Offering a full reconsideration of the history of science from Newton to the present day as well as a Platonic-Hermetic perspective on modern technology Marvell reveals the pattern that connects the sciences philosophy & ancient knowledge & opens a potentially rich field of inquiry for 21st-century science