GEC7: Early Science

• Mesoamerica


  The entire area of Central America from Southern Mexico up to the border of South America, rich in culture & knowledge prior to the arrival of European colonizers
• Maya Civilization


  • Lasted for approximately 2,000 years
  • Incorporated advanced understanding of astronomy into their temples & other religious structures (Chichen Itza' Pyramid in Mexico)
  • Predicted eclipses & used astrological cycles in planting & harvesting (use of calendars)
  • Built hydraulic system, looms for weaving cloth, glittery paints, produced rubber products
  • One of the most scientifically advanced societies in Mesoamerica
  • Used the world's first writing system known as Mayan hieroglyphics
  • Created the number system based on the numeral 20
  • Developed the concept of zero & positional value, before the Romans did
• Inca Civilization: Developed scientific ideas & tools to help them in everyday life:

  • Roads paved with stones
  • Stone buildings that surmounted earthquakes & other disasters
  • Irrigation system & technique for storing water for their crops to grow in all types of land
  • Calendar with 12 months to make their religious festivals & prepare them for planting season
  • The first suspension bridge
  • Quipu, a system of knotted ropes to keep records that only experts can interpret
  • Inca textiles since cloth is one of the specially prized artistic achievements
• Aztec Civilization


  • Mandatory education - children mandated to get education regardless of social class, gender or age
  • Developed chocolate during their time, used as currency in Mayan culture
  • Used antispasmodic medication to prevent muscle spasms and relax muscles, which could help during surgery
  • Chinampa - a technology for agricultural farming in which the land was divided into rectangular areas & surrounded by canals
  • Aztec calendar - enabled them to plan their activities, rituals & planting season
  • Invention of the canoe - a light, narrow boat used for traveling in water systems
• India


  • Known for manufacturing iron & in metallurgical works
  • Ayurveda - a traditional medicine (before 2500 BC) still practiced as a form of alternative medicine
  • Susruta Samshita - describes different surgical & other medical procedures famous in Ancient India
  • Developed theories on the configuration of the universe, the spherical self-supporting Earth, and the year of 360 days with 12 equal parts of 30 days each
  • Tried to standardize measurement of length to a high degree of accuracy & designed a ruler (Mohenjodaro ruler)
  • Aryabhata (Indian astronomer & mathematician) - introduced a number of trigonometric functions, tables & techniques as well as algorithms of algebra
  • Brahmagupta - suggested that gravity was a force of attraction & lucidly explained the use of zero as both placeholder & decimal digit along with Hindu-Arabic numeral system
  • Madhava - considered as the "Founder of Mathematical Analysis"
• China

  • Known for traditional medicines (acupuncture) & discovered various medical properties & uses different plants & animals to cure human illnesses
  • Developed many tools (compass, papermaking, gunpowder, printing tools, iron plough, wheelbarrow & propeller) & developed a design of models of different bridges, invented the first seismological detector & developed a dry dock facility
  • Made significant records on supernovas, lunar & solar eclipses & comets, observed the heavenly bodies to understand weather changes & seasons that may affect their daily activities & used lunar calendars
  • Their religious & philosophical framework prevented their achievements from developing into modern science
• Middle East Countries

  • The Golden Age of Islam lasted until the 13th century
  • Muslim scientists placed greater value on science experiments rather than plaint-thought experiments that led to the development of scientific method in the Muslim world
  • Ibn al-Haytham (Muslim scientist) known as the Father of Optics for his empirical proof of the Intromission Theory of Light
  • Muhammad Ibn Musa al-Kwarismi (mathematician) introduced the concept of algorithm while the term algebra was derived from "al-jabr" (the beginning title of one of his publications)
  • The Arabic Numeral System (originally came from India) but the Muslim mathematicians refined it & introduced the decimal point notation
  • Jabir ibn Hayyan (Muslim chemist) considered by some scholars as the "Father of Chemistry"
  • Ibn Sina - pioneered the science of experimental medicine & was the first physician to conduct clinical trials, his books "Book of Healing" & "The Canon of Medicine" were used as the standard medicinal texts in both Muslim world & in Europe during the 17th century, discovered the contagious nature of infectious diseases & the introduction of clinical pharmacology
• Africa


  • Early science activities were developed to improve the quality of life
  • Development of geometry was a product of necessity to preserve the layout & ownership of farmlands of the Egyptians, used to build rectilinear structures, the post of lintel architecture of Egypt
  • Egypt was known to be a center of alchemy (the medieval forerunner of chemistry), tried to study human anatomy & pharmacology, & applied important components such as examination, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis for the treatment of diseases
  • Africans used 3 types of calendars: lunar, solar & stellar or combination of the three
  • Metallurgy was known in African regions during ancient times, invented metal tools used in their homes, in agriculture, & in building their magnificent architectures
  • Mathematics was prominent in the life of early people in the African continent, Lebombo Bone - the oldest known mathematical artifact dated 3,500 BCE found from the mountains between Swaziland & South Africa (a tool for multiplication, division, & simple mathematical calculation or a six-month calendar), had knowledge of the basic concepts of algebra, geometry and trigonometry
• In ASIA

  Asia  is the biggest continent in the world & home of many ancient civilizations.  It is the host to many cultural, economic, scientific & political activities of all ages.