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Ionia was one of the cradles of western philosophy and science .<ref> Russell, Bertrand. History of Western Philosophy (New York, Simon, and Schuster, 1999), p 12</ref>. Traditionally the Ionian cities, was where Greek science and philosophy began. This was due to the wealth of the city-states, freedom of thought and the influence of Babylon and Egypt intellectual traditions. Here for the first time in the West, individuals offered explanations for the origin of the world without recourse to some deity .<ref>Russel, p 14</ref>. They used reason and observation to develop theories on the nature of the world. Thales from Miletus (6th century BC) was probably the first philosopher and scientist in the western tradition. He argued that life came from the sea and was also an astronomer and he successfully predicted an eclipse. The philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras came from Samos. Xenophanes was another important philosopher who criticized Greek polytheism and was arguably the first monotheist.