 […] Simplicius, clearly aware of the fact that the works of many philosophers earlier, contemporary with, and later than Aristotle were in danger of disappearing made a point of quoting from them at length. And so he has often preserved for us texts and information not extant elsewhere. Suffice it to mention, by way of example, the fragments of Anaximander, Parmenides, Zeno, Melissus, Empedocles, Anaxagoras, Theophrastus (especially his History of Philosophy or Physikôn Doxai), Eudemus (especially his History of Geometry), Xenocrates, Epicurus, The Stoics, Porphyry, etc. It is noteworthy that in the case of the Presocratics Simplicius alone has preserved at least two thirds of all the verbatim quotations. (Tarán 1987b: 247)