Islamic science: The revival begins here

newscientist.com ^ | 6/28/10 | Lorna Casselton, foreign secretary of the Royal Society

[Nachum]

Today the Royal Society will publish the first report based on its Atlas of Islamic-World Science and Innovation Project. The reason we have chosen to undertake this project is the potentially staggering impact that countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and others could have on science in the coming decades.

Saudi Arabia has established the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, which has risen from the desert in just a few years based on a £20 billion endowment. Qatar has built Education City, a 2500 acre campus outside Doha where seven of the top US universities now have bases. Abu Dhabi is attempting to establish the world's first fully sustainable city and innovation hub, with 50,000 people and 1500 businesses focussed on renewable energy.

[Nachum]

Ah, a world full of Islamic scientists. I feel safer already.

[SubMareener]

IIRC, most of the famous Islamic scientists did their best work when they were in prison for contradicting their Islamic rulers.

[Michel12]

All they miss is a brain...

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

“When people speak of you they speak of your POETS and Scientists!
Make warriors of your poets! Have your scientists invent newer poisons for our arrows!”.—Ben Usiff.(El Cid)

[Nat Turner]

Islamic Scientists = Jumbo Shrimp = Public Education = Good Government = Oxymoron

[James C. Bennett]

Even in their “heyday”, most of the Muslim works were basically derivatives of Indian, Persian and Greek works, from antiquity.

They passed off the modern base-10 numeral system that is currently in use, complete with the concept of zero, as “Arabic” numerals, when in fact, all they did was borrow it from the Indians.

[mountainlion]

How come liberals have so little to contribute to science outside of abortion, global warming and economics?

[LearsFool]

This is satire, right?

[reagan_fanatic]

Given the muslim’s natural desire to kill anyone they don’t like by whatever technical means available, I’d be happy if they remained mired in the 6th century.

[bert]

They are not mired in the 6th centuary.

They possess the tallest building in the world.

Think jubail and yanbu then reassess your thinking

[James C. Bennett]

That’s exactly the problem.

A primitive, barbarian mindset, clubbed with modern means and amenities, when added to secular tolerance, proves a deadly mixture.

[UCANSEE2]

[boomop1]

Fire up your magic flying carpet.

[LonePalm]

Can anyone name any significant invention or discovery that was developed, in the last century, by a Muslim working in a Muslim country when they developed it?

Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)

[bert]

Your ignorance is vast. You should read a little before you post

[James C. Bennett]

Please enlighten me. I’m serious.

[liberty_lvr]

They possess it because they had the money to pay for it. Muslims neither designed nor built it (from a project managerial stand point - of course they provided labor); Burj Khalifa was contracted out to western engineering firms.

Call it one of the spoils of war, a product of the greatest mass transfer of wealth in the history of mankind. Although, to Dubai's credit, some but not all of said wealth was created by ways other than drilling a hole in the ground.

BTW, kudos for your work with the American Chestnut - absolutely lovely tree and beautiful wood to work with.

[Amberdawn]

Correct! We should all refer to the numbers as Indian, not arabic.

[The_Reader_David]

Don't worry. Islam bought Al Ghazali's occasionalism wholesale. It won't be long before a pack of clerics issue fatwas against Muslims doing science because science is based on the regularity of the natural world, and as such denies that everything happens by the direct will of Allah.

And no, I'm not joking: that was what killed Islamic science in the 12th century.

[SunkenCiv]

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	Gods Graves Glyphs	This is good, there hasn't been a breaththrough in scimitar technology or beheading techniques in centuries. Thanks Nachum. Saudi Arabia has established the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, which has risen from the desert in just a few years based on a £20 billion endowment. Qatar has built Education City, a 2500 acre campus outside Doha where seven of the top US universities now have bases. Abu Dhabi is attempting to establish the world's first fully sustainable city and innovation hub, with 50,000 people and 1500 businesses focussed on renewable energy. To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
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