Historians of philosophy from Europe and the US begin the two-volume set by looking at what many consider the beginnings of Western thought, and at the mists of time from which it precipitated. Their topics include the structure of the eye and its cosmological function in Empedocles, Philolaus and the central fire, Socrates on the definition of figure in the Meno, and dialectic by negation in three late dialogues. Annotation ©2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)