Final answer:
Thales of Miletus broke with mythological explanations and offered a naturalistic account for natural phenomena, leading to the beginnings of natural philosophy in Greece. His and his followers' ideas helped transition Greek thought from mythology to rational explanations, despite their lack of experimental methods.
Step-by-step explanation:
According to Simplicius, Thales was the first Greek thinker to break with mythological explanations and offer a naturalistic account for phenomena such as earthquakes. Thales is considered a pioneer in the field of natural philosophy, having sought to understand natural forces through reason rather than attributing them to the actions of the gods. His explanation of earthquakes, for instance, did not involve divine intervention but rather the earth floating in a vast ocean, which sometimes caused disturbances.
Thales' student, Anaximander, further developed the tradition of seeking natural explanations by positing that the earth was held in place not by water but through a balance of forces, marking a significant evolution of thought. This advancement in thinking about natural phenomena and the principles underlying them paved the way for the development of philosophical thought in the West, later influenced by figures like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, who began to conceive of more abstract entities as explanations for the origins and order of the universe.
The legacy of these early thinkers, including the Milesian school consisting of Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes, lay the groundwork for future generations, even though their methods lacked the experimental basis that would come to define modern scientific inquiry.