Polybius (/pəˈlɪbiəs/; Greek: Πολύβιος, Polýbios; c. 200 – c. 118 BC) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his work, The Histories, which covered the period of 264–146 BC in detail. The work describes the rise of the Roman Republic to the status of dominance in the ancient Mediterranean world and included his eyewitness account of the Sack of Carthage in 146 BC. Polybius is also renowned for his ideas concerning the separation of powers in government, later used in Montesquieu's The Spirit of the Laws and in the drafting of the United States Constitution.
Polybius was born around 200 BC in Megalopolis, Arcadia, when it was an active member of the Achaean League. His father, Lycortas, was a prominent, land-owning politician and member of the governing class who became Cavalry Commander of the Achaean League. Consequently, Polybius was able to observe first hand the political and military affairs of Megalopolis. He developed an interest in horse riding and hunting, diversions that later commended him to his Roman captors. In 182 BC, he was given quite an honor when he was chosen to carry the funeral urn of Philopoemen, one of the most eminent Achaean politicians of his generation. In either 169 BC or 170 BC, Polybius was elected hipparchus (cavalry officer), an event which often presaged election to the annual strategia (chief generalship). His early political career was devoted largely towards maintaining the independence of Megalopolis.
Gaius Iulius Polybius (fl. 1st century ) was a freedman of Emperor Claudius who was elevated to the secretariat during his reign. He assisted Claudius in his literary, judicial, and historical pursuits as a researcher before the emperor's accession and this became Polybius' official role in the imperial bureaucracy, with the title 'a studiis'.Suetonius, the biographer and secretary to the Emperor Hadrian, claims that Claudius was so appreciative of the help that Polybius was allowed to walk between the consuls when on official business.
When Polybius lost a brother in the early 40s, Seneca the Younger (then in exile) wrote his famous Ad Polybium in response. The intent seems to have been to gain Polybius' support for Seneca's recall to Rome. In the work, Polybius is praised for his loyalty to Claudius, but is also admonished that service to an emperor must come before grief. It had no effect on the freedman and Seneca remained in exile.
Disloyalty led Polybius to his downfall. He was executed for crimes against the state, proving that the freedmen were still in a position inferior to emperor, whatever their influence. Ancient historians claimed that Empress Messalina arranged for his death when she tired of him as a lover.
Polybius is an arcade cabinet described in an urban legend, which is said to have induced various psychological effects on players. The story describes players suffering from amnesia, night terrors, and a tendency to stop playing all video games. Around a month after its supposed release in 1981, Polybius is said to have disappeared without a trace. There is no evidence that such a game has ever existed.
Polybius is thought to take its name from the Greek historian of the same name who was known for his assertion that historians should never report what they cannot verify through interviews with witnesses.
The first documented reference to the game was an anonymously authored entry added to the site coinop.org on August 3, 1998. The entry mentions the name Polybius and a copyright date of 1981. The author of the entry claims in the description to be in possession of a ROM image of the game, and to have extracted fragments of text from it, including "© 1981 Sinneslöschen". The remainder of the information about the game is listed as "unknown", and its "About the game" section describes the "bizarre rumours" that make up the legend.
I'm kicking off from centre field
A question of being down for the game
The one shot deal don't matter
And the other one's the same
Oh! My friend I see you
Want you to come through (alright)
And she's standing in the shadows
Where the street lights all turn blue
She leaving Pan American (uhuh)
Suitcase in her hand
I said her brothers and her sisters
Are all on Atlantic sand
She's screaming through the alley way
I hear the lonely cry, why can't you?
And her batteries are corroded
And her hundred watt bulb just blew
Lallallal.. alright...huhuhhuh
She used to hang out at Miss Lucy's
Every weekend they would get loose
And it was a straight clear case of
Having taken in too much juice
It was outside, and it was outside
Just the nature of the person
Now all you got to remember
After all, it's just show biz
Lallalal...huhuh...lallal
We're just screaming through the alley way
I hear her lonely cry, ah why can't you?
And she's standing in the shadows
Canal street lights all turn blue
And she's standing in the shadows
Where the street lights all turn blue
And she's standing in the shadows