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Bringing
life to Muslim Heritage
Discover 1000 years of missing history and explore the fascinating Muslim
contribution to present day Science, Technology, Arts and Civilisation.
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Science and Rationalism in 9th Century Baghdad
Text of the Lecture of Professor Jim Al-Khalili in the Conference Muslim Heritage in our World: Social Cohesion marking the 1001 Inventions Exhibition at the House of Parliament, 15th of October 2008, Church House, London, UK.
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The Book of Curiosities or A Medieval Islamic View of the Cosmos
The Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford has purchased the medieval Arabic manuscript Kitāb Gharāib al-funūn wa-mulah al-uyūn popularised under the title the Book of Curiosities, an exceptionally rich text on cosmography. The treatise is one of the most important recent finds in the history of Islamic cartography in particular, and for the history of pre-modern cartography in general. The manuscript, a highly illustrated treatise on astronomy and geography compiled by an unknown author between 1020 and 1050, contains an important and hitherto unknown series of colourful maps, giving unique insight into Islamic concepts of the world. Portions of the text are preserved in later copies, but the copy owned by the Bodleian library is the only nearly complete coy and the one to have been extensively studied and released in an electronic edition which represents a model for online publishing of Arabic original manuscripts. This high-quality digital reproduction includes interactive displays, through mouse-over techniques, as well as access to a modern Arabic edition and an annotated English translation.
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The Advent of Scientific Chemistry
Until recently, the mainstream history of scientific ideas has failed to acknowledge numerous Islamic scientists and their great efforts and achievements throughout the centuries. This short article seeks to contribute in redressing this injustice by highlighting Muslim contributions and attitudes towards the progress of chemistry.
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Certain Aspects of Medical Instruction in Medieval Islam and its Influences on Europe
In this article, Professor Aydin Syili analyses the medical teaching in the different phases of Islamic civilisation, especially in the madrasa system. The network of schools covered the Islamic world from the 11th century, while the European university was developed over a century later and at a time when already Latin translations of Arabic philosophical and scientific works were available. Thus he establishees a parallelism between the features of the madrasa and the university in pre-modern Europe and stresses how the medical authorities of Islam such as al-Râzî and Ibn Sînâ were accorded a place of honour in European medical schools.
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A ‘Gap-Filling’ Book on Islamic Economic Thought Buy Viagra, Cialis, Levitra online
This book is a collection of previously-published papers on the origins of economic thought discovered in the writings of some prominent Islamic scholars belonging to the five centuries prior to the pre-modern era. This period was labelled by the late Joseph Schumpeter in the 1950s as representing the "great gap" in literary history, in particular the history of economic thought. Since then, this mishap, already well embedded in the relevant literature, was further strengthened and perpetuated. However, during this period the Islamic civilisation was about the most fertile grounds for intellectual developments in various disciplines, including economics. The present single-volume collection of papers attempts to fill that blind-spot in the history of economic thought.
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From Alchemy to Chemistry
Until recently, the mainstream history of scientific ideas has failed to acknowledge numerous Islamic scientists and their great efforts and achievements throughout the centuries. This short article seeks to contribute in redressing this injustice by highlighting Muslim contributions and attitudes towards the progress of chemistry.
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Glimpses in the History of A Great Number: Pi in Arabic Mathematics
The Greek letter pi (symbolized by π) is defined as the ratio of the circumference of the circle to its diameter. It is considered to be a vital element in the calculations of areas and sizes of several mathematical figures: the circle, the cube, the cone and the sphere, from which infinite practical applications have sprung. As a result, mathematicians in many civilizations (Greek, Chinese, Indian, Arabian and European) have been highly concerned with calculating π as carefully as possible. This article by Professor Moustafa Mawaldi, the Dean of the Institute for the History of Arabic Science in Aleppo, sheds light on the contribution of some mathematicians of the Islamic civilisation in refining the value of pi. The works surveyed are those of Al-Khwarizmi, Al-Biruni, Al-Quhi, and Al-Kashi.
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Sine, Cosine and the Measurement of the Earth
Mathematics has long been an area of expertise amongst Muslim mathematicians. This article considers the contributions of Al-Tusi and Al-Battani and others in trigonometry, focusing upon the progress their discoveries represented in comparison with the ancient tradition as displayed in Ptolemy's Almagest.
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Eye Specialists in Islam
"I invite you... to go back with me 1000 years to consider the fascinating history of the old Arabian ophthalmology which I have studied in the past five years." With these words Julius Hirschberg, addressing the American Medical Association in July 1905, presented the work of Muslim ophtalmologists. Inspired by the pionnering work of the eminent German expert, Dr Ibrahim Shaikh describes in brief in this well informed article the contributions of Al-Ghafiqi, Ibn al-Haytham, Salahuddin Ibn Yusuf, Kalifah of Aleppo, Zarrindast, and Ammar Al-Mosuli. He devotes a special interest to the first description of cataract operation by Al-Mosuli and its subsequent impact on the works of his followers.
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Arabic Star Names: A Treasure of Knowledge Shared by the World
Many of the prominent stars known today are of Arabic origin as they bear names given to them during the golden age of Islamic astronomy. A major contribution in this field is that of al-Sufi (10th century). Presenting shortly the historical context of the old nomenclature of Arabic star names, the article contains also a list of 165 stars known by Arabic names.
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Deciphering Egyptian Hieroglyphs in Muslim Heritage
The article surveys some results of Dr. Okasha El Daly's exciting discoveries about the precedence of Muslim scholars of the golden age of Islamic culture in deciphering the hieroglyphs of Ancient Egypt. This ground breaking achievement was attributed until recently exclusively to Europeans scholars, and especially to Champollion.
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The Islamic Heritage in China: A General Survey
In this article, Anthony Garnaut, an expert of the Muslim Chinese culture, focuses on the Islamic heritage in China and its relevance to understanding both the evolution of Chinese history and culture, and to appreciating the complex, multi-ethnic influences on modern China. Beginning with the Mongol conquest of the greater part of Eurasia in the 13th century, that brought the extensive cultural traditions of China and Persia into a single empire, he describes the great impact the Muslim Chinese communities exerted in the Chinese civilisation in technology, sciences, philosophy and the arts.
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The Science of Restoring and Balancing – The Science of Algebra
Muslim contributions in the field of mathematics have been both varied and far reaching. This article by Mahbub Ghani (from the Department of Electronic Engineering at King's College, London University) considers some Muslim contributions in algebra, focussing in particular on the contributions of scholars such as Al-Khwarizmi, Ibn Qurra, Al-Karaji and Al-Samaw'al.
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Ottoman Contributions to Science and Technology: Examples from Geography and Astronomy
The Ottoman contribution to science and technology during their six hundred year rule is beyond measure. This article is a brief outline of just some of the Ottoman scientific activities and related institutions that brought about the revival of culture, science, and learning in civilization throughout the Islamic world and beyond. To instantiate the Ottoman scientific contributions, the author focuses on two significant examples from astronomy and geography in the 16th century: the foundation of Istanbul Observatory and Taqi Al-Din's achievements therein, map making and mapmakers such as the famous sailors Piri Reis, Saydi Ali Reis and Macar Ali Reis.
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The Six-Cylinder Water Pump of Taqi al-Din: Its Mathematics, Operation and Virtual Design
The main objective of this study is to investigate into the six-cylinder water raising pump described around 1550 by the Ottoman Muslim scientist Muhammad Ibn Ma'rūf, known as Taqī al-Dīn, in his treatise Al-Turuq al-Saniya fī al-' ālat al-rūhaniya. After an outline of the historical context and an English translation of the relevant sections of the manuscript, the focus is laid on the engineering analysis of the water pump. The result of the analysis yielded the reconstruction of the machine through a graphical model which was then used to produce a virtual 3D animation of the mechanical workings of the various parts, including the water turbine, the cam shaft, the connecting rods, the reciprocating pistons and the cylinders.
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Taqi al-Din ibn Ma‘ruf and the Science of Optics: The Nature of Light and the Mechanism of Vision
In this article, some aspects of Kitab Nūr hadaqat al-ibsār wa-nūr haqīqat al-anzār (Book of the Light of the Pupil of Vision and the Light of the Truth of the Sights) of the renowned Ottoman astronomer Taqī al-Dīn ibn Ma‘rūf, who lived in Istanbul in the 16th century, is discussed in detail in order to show the high level and quality of the scientific research carried out during the reign of the Ottoman Empire.
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The Astronomical Clock of Taqi Al-Din: Virtual Reconstruction
In his book The Brightest Stars for the Construction of Mechanical Clocks (Al-Kawakib al-durriyya fi wadh' al-bankamat al-dawriyya), Taqi al-Din Ibn Ma'ruf analyses the four main types of time keeping devices known in the 16th century: watches, domestic clocks, astronomical clocks and tower clocks. Such machines represent the earliest mechanical computers. In the following, we present for the first time a virtual reconstruction of the astronomical clock type through geometrical drawing and 3D animation.
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The Instruments of Istanbul Observatory
In this article, Professor Sevim Tekeli, an outstanding scholar in the history of Ottoman science, describes the instruments built by Taqî al-Dîn Ibn Ma'ruf and his team at the Istanbul observatory (was in activity between 1577 and 1580), and points out in particular the close resemblances between them and those used in Western Europe by Tycho Brahe, at the same time, in his observatory at Uraniborg Castle.
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Muslim Printing Before Gutenberg
This article by an eminent scholar, Dr Geoffrey Roper, presents an outline of a tremendous issue: the existence of printing in early Islam, several centuries before the invention of printing by Gutenberg in the 15th century. Based on his work on original sources, he states that some of the early printed Arabic documents display quite sophisticated designs involving calligraphic headpieces, transverse lettering, geometric panels, roundels, and the use of colour. The author documents briefly this important discovery and concludes that "Muslims were practising the craft of printing for some five centuries before Gutenberg".
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Kamal Al-Din Al-Farisi’s Explanation of the Rainbow
This article focuses on a critical presentation of the arguments put forward by Kamal al-Din al-Farisi about the formation of the rainbow. This optical phenomenon was explained simultaneously but independently by two scientists, Kamal al-Din al-Farisi and Theodoric of Freiberg. Surprisingly, their theories of the rainbow were nearly correct in some respects and somewhat similar to our present understanding. This study reveals that Kamal al-Din al-Farisi was well ahead of his time in his assumptions related to most of the above mentioned topic.
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Al-Jazari's Third Water-Raising Device: Analysis of its Mathematical and Mechanical Principles
Five pumps or water-raising machines are described by al-Jazari in his monumental treatise of mechanics Al-Jami' bayn al-‘ilm wa 'l-‘amal al-nafi' fi sina'at al-hiyal (A Compendium on the Theory and Useful Practice of the Mechanical Arts). The following long article is a detailed study of the third of these water-raising devices. The study presents a detailed analysis of the mathematical and mechanical principles of this sophisticated machine and explains its functioning. Further, the various components of the pump are reconstructed via computer assisted design. A profusion of 3D graphics and 3D animations show the device in different angles and helps in viewing it in operational mode.
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