ISLAMIC SCIENCEDid the Muslims just copy and preserve ancient Greek Science or did they add to it?

Abimbola Oyediran

ISLAMIC EMPIRE: BEGINNINGS

AL-MAMUN THE ‘CALIPH OF SCIENCE’ The fourth Caliph of the Abbasid dynasty. Reigned for twenty years Encouraged men of science and scholars to come and work

in Bagdad Sponsored the House of Wisdom. A library were translators

and experts did their work Was seen as a dictator because of his desire for knowledge

and power

HUNAYN IBN-ISHAQ

A Nestorian Christian Trained a medical doctor One of the more prominent

translators Translated the medical text

of Galen Made a valuable

contribution to medicine and anatomy.

Work was continued by his disciples & followers

OPTICS

Ptolemy’s work on optics was criticised by al-Haytham

Intense light causes the eye discomfort.

al-Haytham proposed that vision was due light coming into the eye

The first to use rules to describe the differing angles of refraction.

His the Latin version book Optics was in use until the1500s.

ASTRONOMY

Less of a distinction between astronomy and astrology during this period

Because of religious practices, a significant understand of the motion of the stars were required

Many of the occupied regions had a been star-worshipers so there was a lot of interest in astrology

ASTRONOMY

Ptolemy mechanical model of the solar system became increasingly criticised.

Astronomers began asking questions about observed motion of planets

Al-Tusi was astronomer during the 1200s, who endevored to replace to equants of Ptolemy modal to more uniformed motion.

He also established trigonometry as a separate from of matematics.

Summary

The scientists of that period made considerable advances in medicine, Physics, astronomy and Mathematics.

Many of such works came into Europe through Muslim Spain then translated to Latin.

The scholars of the Islamic Empire did not just translate the Greek text. They applied the knowledge and questioned the theories. They spent years experimenting and making careful observations.

The advances were made in science during the Islamic Empire that show that

REFERENCES Benoit, P. and Micheau, F.1995. The Arab Intermediary.

IN: Serres, M. (ed.) A History of scientific thought : elements of a history of science. Oxford, UK ; Cambridge, Mass., USA: Blackwell Reference.

Mason, S.F. 1962. A history of the sciences. New rev ed. Macmillan General Reference.

Masood, E. 2009. Science & Islam: a history. UK: Icon Books.

Sabra, A.I. 2003. Ibn al-Haytham's Revolutionary Project in Optics: The achievement and the obstacle. IN: Hogendijk, J.P. and Sabra, A.I. (eds.) The enterprise of science in Islam : new perspectives. Cambridge, Mass ; London: MIT Press.

Saliba, G. 2007. Islamic Science and the making of the European Renaissance. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

REFERENCES http://www.beastfromtheeast.org/Arabmap.jpg http://www.muslimheritage.com/uploads/

Earliest_description_of_eye_Hunayn_ibn_Ishaq_Fig_1.jpg http://greatbooksblog.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/0820-20galen.jpg http://innergarden.org/images/baytalhikma.jpg http://muqchem.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/alhazen1.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/