The Muslim Scientific Legacy

With recent hopes of democracy and a new renaissance of the Islamic world, it’s perhaps appropriate to look back at the contributions that came from Muslim lands. This includes works in the fields of optics, ecology, engineering, algebra, mostly done in the years between 800 and 1250 A.D.. David Beillo has a wonderful slideshow in Scientific American.

In 1647, when Johannes Hevelius published his treatise on the moon, he placed Muslim scientist Alhazen on the frontpiece (left) to represent reason. (Image by Jeremias Falck via Wikimedia Commons).

Leave a Reply