Islamic Golden Age

Islamic Golden Age

• The eighth century signified great prosperity and development for the Islamic world.
• Prosperity and development extended in to mathematics, natural sciences, arts, and the economy.
• The House of Wisdom in Baghdad was a major landmark showcasing the age's development.
• Harun Al Rachid founded the House of Wisdom to translate the world's classical knowledge into Arabic.
• Translation was performed by famous scholars from diverse cultural backgrounds.
• Baghdad, also known as the City of Peace during the Abbasid era, became one of the greatest cities.
• The center of trade shifted to Cairo, Egypt, with the rise of the Fatimids.
• Damascus became a major cultural center due to administrative and economic activity.
• Trade flourished via ship and camel caravans, with merchants traveling from Morocco to beyond the Caspian Sea.
• High demand products were imported from China, Eastern Africa, and India, including gold, slaves, silk, porcelain, sandalwood, and spices.
• Egypt contributed grain, while Iraq contributed linen products and dates to the trade market.
• Architecture and architectural decoration mirrored the growth of the Islamic nation in various countries reached by Muslim invasions.
• Palaces of caliphs or local governors were common architecture.
• Other architecture, like the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia, the Great Mosque of Samarra in Iraq, and the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain, also stood out.
• Public buildings, fountains, courtyards, and marketplaces had wonderful architecture.
• Islam requires Muslims to practice their religion appropriately, following the teachings in the Quran.
• Equality is fundamental in Islam, with all people considered equal in God's eyes.
• Muslims were encouraged to treat each other equally, irrespective of class.
• They were encouraged to free slaves and stop the act of selling them, with many military slaves freed.
• Women were spiritually and socially equal to men, having duties towards their families, as well as the right to work and inherit property.
• The Quran limited the number of wives a man could marry to four, whereas previously men could marry as many women as they wanted.
• Arabs greatly valued philosophy, science, and history, translating works of philosophers like Aristotle from Greek into Arabic.
• Arabic works were then translated into Latin, promoting knowledge and education.
• Paper factories flourished, followed by booksellers and libraries in Baghdad.
• Astronomy was studied, with an observatory set up in Baghdad to study the stars.
• The astrolabe, an instrument used by sailors to determine their location, was improved.
• Medicine and history advanced during the Golden Age of Islam.
• Al Razi, regarded as the best doctor, wrote medical books to spread knowledge.
• Ibn Sina, also a philosopher, wrote a medical encyclopedia translated to Latin and used as an intellectual reference in Europe.
• Ibn Khaldun, wrote one of the most famous books in history called Muqaddimah (Introduction to History).

Europe's Scientific Revolution

• The Scientific Revolution occurred in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries, focusing on science and technology.
• The revolution changed how Europeans perceived themselves and the world.
• During the Middle Ages, scientists/natural philosophers relied on ancient authorities like Aristotle.
• Ideas started shifting during the 15th and 16th centuries.
• Renaissance humanists mastered Greek and Latin, becoming familiar with philosophers who contradicted Aristotle.
• Discoveries by people like Archimedes and Plato led humanists to question old ideas.
• Scientific activity was also boosted by accurate calculations, observations, and measurements.
• Instruments such as telescopes and microscopes advanced scientific discoveries.
• The printing press facilitated the rapid spread of new ideas while reintroducing ancient mathematicians' works.
• Ancient mathematicians' works played key roles in navigation, military science, and geography.
• Key discoveries occurred in astronomy, medicine, and chemistry.

Earth at the Center of the Universe

• Philosophers in the Middle Ages created a Earth model that was geocentric.
• The geocentric system was earth-centered and defined planetary motion as that in which the sun, moon, and planets revolve around Earth.
• Astronomer Ptolemy provided the origins of this system in the A.D. 100s.
• The Ptolemaic system was the main focus until May 1543, when Copernicus presented a different argument in a book.
• Copernicus perceived the universe as heliocentric/sun centered.
• Copernicus's discovery was advanced further by mathematician Johannes Kepler.
• Galileo made discoveries.
• Isaac Newton improved the understanding of the universe.
• Newton defined the three laws of motion and the universal law of gravitation, that every object is attracted to every other object in the universe by a force called gravity.
• Einstein presented the concept of relativity.
• Einstein is known for mass-energy equivalence formula E = mc2
• Einstein received the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics for services to theoretical physics, and discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect.

Medicine and Chemistry at the Forefront

• The revolution in medicine commenced in the 16th century with anatomists and doctors Andreas Vesalius and William Harvey.
• Andreas Vesalius corrected ancient misconceptions of the dissection of the human body, proving anatomical dissection can test speculation.
• Vesalius emphasized understanding the structure of the body in medicine and accurately described the individual organs and general structure of the human body.
• William Harvey described how blood was pumped around the body by the heart.
• French scientist Blaise Pascal studied how liquids behaved under pressure, leading to Pascal's Law, which was applied to tools like the syringe.
• Boyle's Law stated that a gas's volume varies with pressure.
• Antoine Lavoisier invented a system to name chemical elements/founder of modern chemistry.
• Margaret Cavendish was a philosopher who popularized the Scientific Revolution including the competing vitalistic and mechanistic natural philosophies and atomism.
• Maria Winkelmann, an astronomer, discovered a comet, with her writings concentrating on the conjunction of the sun with Saturn, Venus, and Jupiter.

Egypt and the Mediterranean

• The Nile River was key to Egypt, providing food and riches.
• Originating in central Africa, the Nile spans over 4000 miles (6436 km) northwards, being the world's longest river.
• The Nile empties into the Mediterranean, splitting into two branches forming a delta.
• The Nile Delta was Lower Egypt, while the upstream/southern land was Upper Egypt.
• The Nile's yearly flooding, or the "miracle," left mud that created fertile soil, enabling crop surpluses and agricultural prosperity.
• The Nile enabled travel and faster communication.
• Egypt's natural barriers, like deserts, the Red Sea, Nile rapids, and the Mediterranean Sea, provided protection from invaders.
• Egyptian history is divided into the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms, each marked by stability, strong leadership, building projects, freedom from invasion, and rich culture.
• Periods of political disorder and invasions separated the kingdoms.
• Around 3100 B.C., King Menes united Upper and Lower Egypt, forming the first royal dynasty.
• 2700 B.C. to 2200 B.C. was a period of prosperity and splendor for the Old Kingdom.
• Egyptian monarchs were called pharaohs, meaning "great house" or "palace".
• Ancient Egyptians saw kingship as divine; subjects obeyed the pharaoh, who had absolute power, supported by their family.
• A government bureaucracy developed where Egypt was divided into 42 provinces run by governors appointed by the pharaoh.
• The Old Kingdom was a time of splendor, exemplified by the pyramids.
• Egyptians practiced mummification to dry bodies and prevent rotting.
• During 2055 B.C. to 1650 B.C., the Old Kingdom lost stability, leading to the rise of the Middle Kingdom.
• The Middle Kingdom was considered a golden era due to rapid expansion exemplified by invading Nubia.
• The Egyptians built fortresses; pharaohs sent traders to Syria, Kush, Mesopotamia, and Crete.
• in the Old Kingdom handled power, and the pharaohs were perceived as leaders with absolute power.
• During the Middle Kingdom, pharaohs were more concerned for their people, became public, and prioritized public welfare.
• Pharaohs were expected to build public works.
• People in Egypt progressed, advancing their skills occurred.
• Egyptians started writing in 3000 B.C.
• The early form of writing was Hieroglyphics, a complex form of writing used in tombs and temple walls.
• Other were writing, hieratic script, used for business and daily life.
• It was written on papyrus reed from the Nile River.
• Egyptians were experts in mathematics, and developed the 365-day calendar.
• After about 1200 B.C., there was no dominant power in Western Asia.
• The Indo-Europeans settled along the Black Sea, eventually forming the Hittite Kingdom that threatened the Egyptians.
• After the Hittites, the Phoenicians expanded trade, producing purple dye, glass, and lumber, building ships, charting routes, and becoming international sea traders.
• They used the 22-alphabet letter in their writing, which then passed to the Greeks and Romans.