There has been more or less continuous contact between Europe and China since classical Greek times in spite of the distances between them and their totally different language.
Usually the connection was indirect and restricted to trade in luxury goods.
But even in the classical times there were curious synchronism in philosophical movements in Europe and China
Silk road- an ancient trade routine linking China with Rome.
Important Persons
Marco Polo- whose account of his travels and experiences offered European a firsthand view of Asian lands and Stimulated interests in Asian trade.
Zu Chongzhi- mathematician who calculated "pi" to the 7th digit.
Liu Ju-hsieh- mathematician who discovered "Pascal's Triangle"
Tao Ch'ien- famous poet and philosopher who influenced the ideaof "elixir of life".
Great Inventions
magnetic compass
printing press
gun powder
paper making
Astronomy - first planetarium which was made by an emperor.
Stellar explosion that took place in the "Crab Nebula" in 1054.
Mathematics - Asian abacus, "pi" was calculated to the seventh digit, decimal system, Pascal's Triangle
Military - Crossbows, poison gases, Bamboo-made cannons, Rockets
Medicine - "Elixir of life" potion, acupuncture, autopsy
The Indian Civilization is about the oldest still alive, and it achieved the high level of technology at an early stage.
The history of science and technology in India begins with the prehistoric human activity in Mehrgarh or Pakistanand continues through the Indus Valley Civilization also known as the Bronze Age Civilization to the early state and empires.
The Science And Technology in India has something to do with the following field:
Agriculture
Indian Astrology
Zinc Metallurgy
Mathematics
AGRICULTURE
The Irrigation was developed in the Indus Valley Civilization by around 4500 B.C. The size and prosperity of Indus Civilization grew as a result of this innovation, which eventually led to more planned settlements making use of drainage and sewers.
INDIAN ASTROLOGY
Indian Astronomical text named Vedanga Jyotisa dates back around 1200 B.C. It detailed several astronomical attributes generally applied for timing social and religious events.
In India there is a long established widespread beliefs in Astrology and it is commonly used for daily life.
Examples:With regards to marriage
With regards to career
With regards to election process
ZINC METALLURGY (refining metals)
Zinc mines of Zawar were active during 400 B. C.
Another important Indian contribution was in the Isolation, Distillation and use of Zinc. A major breakthrough in the history of metallurgy was India’s discovery of Zinc Distillation whereby the metal was vaporized and then condensed back into pure metal.
Early Iron objects found in India can be dated to 1400 B. C. Some scholars believed that by the early 13th century B.C. iron smelting was practiced on a bigger scale in India.
Rust free steel was an Indian inventions and remained an Indian skill for centuries.
MATHEMATICS
The use of Negative numbers was known in early India and their role insituation like mathematical problems of debt was understood.
The Decimal number system originated in India. Other cultures discovered a few features of this number system which was compiled in India where it attained coherence and completion.
List of Indian Inventions and Discoveries
1.ATOMISM
The earliest reference to the concept of atoms date back to India in the 6th century B.C.
According to Democritus:
The term “atomos” meaning uncuttable or the smallest indivisible particle of matter.
Dharmakirti and Dignaga
Indian philosophers and founder of VaishehikaSchool of atomism.
They considered atom to be:
1.point sized
2. dirationless
3. made of energy
2.CHANDRASEKHAR LIMIT AND NUMBERS
Discovered by the named after Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, who received the novel prize in Physics for his work on stellar structure and stellar evolution.
3.UNIVERSE
The earliest known philosophical models of the universe are found in VEDAS, the earliest text on Indian philosophy dating back to the late 2nd millennium B.C. They described COSMOLOGY in which the universe goes through repeated cycle of creation, destruction and rebirth.
4.INDIGO
Indigo was used as a dye in India, which was also a major center for its production and processing.
5.FIREARMS
By the 16th century Indians were manufacturing a diverse variety of firearms: large guns in particular.
The Indian war rockets were formidable weapons before such rockets were used in Europe.
In general, we can conclude that the science and technology in India has a greater part in terms of achieving high levels of technology in different kinds of field like in agriculture, in mathematics, in astrology and even in chemical elements that were still alive in our generation today.
Islamic culture is the most relevant to European Science
GREEK-----ARABIC-----LATIN-----HEBREW
The Arabic culture and language spread afar: to Portugal in the west and to the frontiers of China in the East and over many degrees of latitude.
The most characteristic Arabic Scientific developments were in:
ALCHEMY
Medieval chemical art whose principles objectives where to find the panacea and to transmute base metals into gold.
RHAZES
Makes the earliest known suggestions for furnishing a chemical laboratory.
MATH
Arabic numerals - an Indian system of numerical notation during the 19th century. It was invented in India passed through Persian to the Arabs, and was introduced in the Europe in the 10th century.
Persian Mohammed IBN Alkhwarismi is the Persian Mohammed where from. He developed the process of vectification.
ASTRONOMY AND ASTROLOGY
Constant preoccupation in the Islamic world. It was developed in Spain.
Cordova- located in Southern Spain.
Toledo- located in Central Spain.
Toledan- tables of proposition were drawn up in 1080
The Ptolemic was replaced by this concentric system.
Generated new needs and resources and accompanied by a signficant increase in a technological innovation.
the beggining of the invention of the city
CATEGORIES IN THE URBAN REVOLUTION
1. Craftsmen and Scientist - led to the search for other metallic ores, to the development and encouragement of trade in order to secure specific metals. - rise of the first civilization
SUMMERIAN ASTRONOMERS
Plotted the motion of heavenly bodies.
Based calculations about calendar
Relationship between science and technology have emerged.
2. Copper and Bronze
Goldsmiths - the technique of heating the metal incredible over a strong fire and casting it into simple clay or stone.
Bronze - is the important material of early civilization.
3. Sea Transportation - progress from sailing ship to vessels Irrigation - developed of systemic irrigation.
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects (such as stars, planets, comets, nebulae, star clusters and galaxies) and phenomena that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere (such as the cosmic background radiation). It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the formation and development of the universe.
Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences. Prehistoric cultures left behind astronomical artifacts such as the Egyptian monuments and Stonehenge, and early civilizations such as the Babylonians, Greeks, Chinese, and Indians performed methodical observations of the night sky. However, the invention of the telescope was required before astronomy was able to develop into a modern science. Historically, astronomy has included disciplines as diverse as astrometry, celestial navigation, observational astronomy, the making of calendars, and even astrology, but professional astronomy is nowadays often considered to be synonymous with astrophysics.
During the 20th century, astronomy split into two major categories:
physics technology A B
A. OBSERVATIONAL ASTRONOMY
Focused in acquiring data from observation which analized by the aids of basic principles of physics.
B. THEORETICAL ASTRONOMY
Oriented towards the development computer or analytical models to described astronomical object and phenomena.
Some Contributions of Early Civilization
Babylonians
Beggining of mathematical and scientific astronomy. They discovered the lunar eclipse recorded in repeating cycle known as a "caros".
2. Greeks (3rd B.C.)
Aritarcus- calculated the mass of the earth and measures the distance and the size of the moon and star. He is also the first to proposed a heliocentric model of the solar system.
Hipparchus- invented the first and the earliest known astronomical device such as the astrolabe.
Astrolabe
-Antiktheria mechanism (150 - 80 B.C.)- was an early analog computer designed to calculate of sun, moon, etc.
3. Persian
Azophi- discovered the andromeda galaxy and described in his "book of fixed stars".
4.Egyptians
ALI IBN RIDWAN- first observed the SN (supernova 1006). The brightest apparent magnitude stellar event recorded in the history.
AXIOM or postulate is a proposition that is not proved or demonstrated but considered to be either self-evident, or subject to necessary decision. Therefore, its truth is taken for granted, and serves as a starting point for deducing and inferring other (theory dependent) truths.WHILE a THEOREM is a statement which has been proven on the basis of previously established statements, such as other theorems, and previously accepted statements, such as axioms.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND The early Greeks developed the LOGICO-DEDUCTIVE METHOD whereby conclusion (new knowledge) follow from premises (old knowledge).
Euclid established common notions very basic self-evident assertions: Things which are equal to the same thing are also equal to one another.
If equals be added to equals, the wholes are equal.
If equals be subracted from equal, the remainers are equal.
Things which coincide with one another are equal to one another.
AXIOMATIC SYSTEM- is any set of axioms from which some or all axioms can be used in conjunction to logically derive theorems.
CHARACTERISTIC OF AXIOMATIC SYSTEM 1. Independent 2. Complete 3. Consistent
THEOREM Many theorems are of the form of an indicative conditional.
If A, then B, In this case A is called the hypothesis (antecedent) of the theorem and B the conclusion (consequent).
A Definition may be a statement of the essential properties of a certain thing, or a statement of equivalence between one expression and another, usually more complex expression that gives meaning of the first.
A thing being is called (from Latin) a DEFINIENDUM the expression which defines it is called a DEFINIENS.
Lexical Definition
a "dictionary Definition" reports the meaning of the word as it normally used.
Intensional Definition
of the general term, on the other hand,is the sets of features which are shared by everything to which it applies.
Extensional Definition
of a general term is just the collection of individual thing to which it correctly applied.
Contextual Definition
some words cannot be clearly define on their own, but it is posible to offer schema for defining every sentence which they occur.
Stipulative Definition
is the specification of meaning adopted or assumed specifically for the purposes for argument or discussion in a given context.
Ostensive Definition
gives the meaning of a term by pointing out he thing denoted by, it, or pointing out of examples of the kind of thing meant by it.
Precising Definition
is the definition that extends the dictionary definition of a term for specific purpose by including additional criteria that narrow down the set of thing meant by it.
Operational Definition
of quantity is a specific process whereby it is measured.
Distinction, identification and organization of two or more items, information and facts according to their similarities which are determined through comparison.
Gives a closer view on the link between the object being compared.
Definition Of Classification According to Gottfried Wilhelm Von Leibniz;
It is a differential of two or more objects and that these two objects are not "EVER EXACTLY ALIVE". In fact, no two things are "EVER EXACTLY ALIKE". That if ever there were two objects which were so alike, they would be some object. There is always an essential dissimilarity even in a pair of apparently identical objects.
PLATO'S THEORY OF UNIVERSALS 1. Universalia In RE (universal in the things) - Everything is a combination of form and matter. 2. Universalia Ante Rem (universal before the things) - The link between member of the class is that they are all imitations of an archetype which existed the world was made. 3. Universalia Past Rem ( universal after the things) - nothing general exist particular things
FOUR DIFFERENT TYPES OF SIMILARITY
1. Genetic similarity- having similar origins 2. Structural similarity- having the same constituent parts. 3. Functional similarity- having similar behavior. 4. Apparent similarity- having similar external features.
LANGUAGE Is an abstract system of word meaning and all aspect of culture. It includes speech, written character, numerals, symbol, gestures and expression of non-verbal communication.
Object - the thing which the sign stands for. Sign - it represents what the object is. Interpreter - the person who does the sign in which the sign stands for.
TERMS In percepts "sense meaning". According to C.I. Lewis: terms in simple way is study of its use and effect of the circumstances in which people employ it or react more or less consistently.
All terms have perceptual meaning. But there are some terms do not have meaning that fall into two classes: * grammatical term * abstract term
All language begin on ordinary language under the process of immediate necessity of communication but not in all cases like. * customary usage as how it is spread * grammatical term * declision case spread fall down
ORDINARY LANGUAGE ANALYSIS Is the argument that any language which is adequate stands as the transmitter of nuances or differences and shades of meaning on which everyday conversation must be fluid.
PERCEPTION - Is the process of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information. - Means receiving, collecting actions of taking possession with the mind or senses.
"WHAT ONE PERCEIVES IS A RESULT OF INTERPLAYS BETWEEN PAST EXPERIENCES, INCLUDING ONE'S CULTURE AND THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PERCEIVED"
FOUR KEYWORDS Perception - Experience - Knowledge - Science
EDMUND HUSSERL - Bracketing : This means forgetting for the time being all that one has learned in order to take an unprejudiced look at what is represented.
KNOWLEDGE - Is difined expertise and skills acquired by a person through experience or education. - Acquisition involves complex cognitive processes. - Confident understanding of a subject with the ability to use for specific purposes.
THE FOUR MATTER OF FACTS That something exist. That something can be known. That there is something which matter. That something including the foregoing statements.
FOUR BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY Ontology or theory of being Epistemology or theory of knowledge Axiology or the theory of value Logic or the theory of influence.
OTHER SOURCES OF KNOWLEDGE - Custom and tradition - Sense perception - Intuition
