SCIENCE

YEAR BY YEAR
SCIENCE
THE ULTIMATE VISUAL GUIDE TO THE DISCOVERIES THAT CHANGED THE WORLD

YEAR BY YEAR
 LONDON, NEW YORK, MELBOURNE,
MUNICH, AND DELHI

DK LONDON DK INDIA
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Managing Editor
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First published in Great Britain in 2013

by Dorling Kindersley Limited A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL the British Library.
Penguin Group (UK) ISBN: 978 1 4093 1613 8
2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3 1 Colour reproduction by Alta Images, London
001 184801 Oct/2013 Printed and bound in China by Hung Hing
Copyright 2013 Dorling Kindersley Limited
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without Discover more at
prior written permission of the copyright owner. www.dk.com
CONTRIBUTORS
Jack Challoner
Science writer and communicator with a
background in physics. He contributed to
DKsScienceand has written more than 30
other books on science and technology, for
readers of all ages.
Derek Harvey
Naturalist and science writer for titles including
DKsScienceandThe Natural History Book.
John Farndon
Popular science writer, specializing in Earth
science and the history of ideas.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Professor Robert Winston
Robert Winston is Professor of Science and Society
and Emeritus Professor of Fertility Studies at Imperial
College London and runs a research programme in the
Institute of Reproductive and Developmental Biology.
He is an author and broadcaster and regularly writes
and hosts popular science programmes, many of which
have been shown around the world. Previous DK books
include the award-winning What Makes Me Me?,
Science Experiments, and Human.
CHIEF EDITORIAL
CONSULTANT
Patricia Fara
Senior Tutor of Clare College, University of Cambridge,
Patricia Fara has published a range of academic and
popular books on the history of science, and is a regular
contributor to radio and TV programmes.
Philip Parker
Historian and writer whose books include
DKsEyewitness Companion Guide: World
History,History Year by Year,andEngineers.
Marcus Weeks
Writer on history, economics, and popular science.
He has contributed to DKsScience,Engineers,
andHelp Your Kids with Maths.
Giles Sparrow
Popular science writer, specializing in astronomy
and space science.
CONSULTANTS
John Gribbin
Science writer, astrophysicist,and Visiting Fellow
in Astronomy at the University of Sussex. He is the
author ofScience: A History,published by Penguin.
Marty Jopson
Science communicator and TV presenter, with a PhD
in plant cell biology.
Jane McIntosh
Senior Research Associate at the Faculty of Asian
and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Cambridge.
Mary Gribbin
Science writer for young readers and is a Visiting
Fellow at the University of Sussex.
GLOSSARY
Richard Beatty
Edinburgh-based science writer, editor, and
scientic lexicographer.
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
Smithsonian contributors include historians and
museum specialists from:
National Air and Space Museum
The Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum
maintains the worlds largest collection of historic
aircraft and spacecraft, and its mission is to educate
and inspire by preserving and displaying historically
signicant aeronautical and spaceight artifacts.
National Museum of American History
The Smithsonians National Museum of American
History dedicates its collections and scholarship to
inspiring a broader understanding of the American
nation and its many peoples.
National Museum of Natural History
The Smithsonians National Museum of Natural
History is the most visited natural history museum
in the world and the most visited museum in the
Smithsonian museum complex.
National Museums of Asian Art
The Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler
Gallery hold in trust the nations extraordinary
collections of Asian art and of American art of the late
19th century aesthetic movement, and are dedicated
to the acquisition, care, study, and exhibition of works
in their collections.
 1 2 3
2.5 MYA799CE 8001542 15431788

010 BEFORE 044 EUROPEAN 074 THE AGE

SCIENCE BEGAN AND ISLAMIC OF DISCOVERY
RENAISSANCE
Features Features Features
016 Early Metallurgy 054 Understanding Stars 078 The Story of Anatomy
020 The Story of the Wheel 062 The Story of Gears 084 Measuring Instruments
026 The Story of Geometry 090 Medicine
034 Understanding Simple 100 Understanding
Machines Planetary Orbits
108 The Story of
Measuring Time
114 Microscopes
120 Understanding Newtons
Laws of Motion
132 Navigational Tools
146 Meteorological
Instruments

CONTENTS
4 5 6 7
17891894 18951945 19462013

158 THE AGE 230 THE ATOMIC 276 THE 350 REFERENCE
OF REVOLUTIONS AGE INFORMATION AGE

Features Features Features Categories

164 Fossils
170 The Story of the Engine
174 Understanding Compounds
and Reactions
184 The Story of Calculating
Machines
194 Understanding Cells
204 Understanding Evolution
212 Surgery
218 The Story of Sound
Recording
234 Understanding
Electromagnetic
Radiation
240 Flying Machines
244 Understanding Relativity
250 Understanding Atomic
Structure
260 The Story of Plastics
266 Understanding
Radioactivity
284 Understanding DNA 352 Measurements and Units
292 The Story of 355 Physics
Oceanography
358 Chemistry
298 The Story of Space
Exploration 360 Biology
316 Communication 364 Astronomy and Space
366 Earth Science
326 Understanding
Global Warming
334 The Story of Robotics
344 Understanding
Cosmology

368 Whos Who

375 Glossary
382 Index
398 Acknowledgments
Forewor d
Roughly one and a half million years
ago, our ancestors on the African
Savanna made crude handaxes by
chipping stone. Trial and error early
scientic endeavour led to tools
with which hominids could esh meat
from the bones of animals, dig to nd
tubers or water, and eventually, hunt
prey and skin the animals they found
for clothing. And once re had been
harnessed, about 300,000 years ago,
pre-humans improved their diet.
What fascinates me, is that with
these two technologies, pre-humans
inuenced their own evolution; we
are the only species on Earth that
has used tools and modied how
its descendants evolved. It seems
equally extraordinary that the basic
tool from which all inventions are
derived, the stone handaxe, hardly
changed in over 1 million years.
What this book records is how
our inventiveness led to faster
and faster development. Once we
invented farming, perhaps 10,000
12,000 years ago, our forefathers
changed their environment. A few
thousand years later, we had built
cities, invented writing, and
fashioned wheeled vehicles that,
as this book shows, could move
at surprising speeds.
Imagine a line across this page
measuring about 30 cm (11.8 in).
Let us pretend that this line
Extremophile habitat
Vivid colours in the Grand Prismatic Spring in
Yellowstone National Park, USA result from a
lm of pigmented bacteria around the edge of
the hot spring. Different species of microbes
ourish in specic temperatures and contain
pigments suited to their environments.
represents the million and a
half years since stone tools were
invented. Now to the same scale,
imagine a smaller line representing
the last 400 years, just one-tenth of
a millimetre the size of the full
stop at the end of this sentence. In
that short time, Galileo pointed his
telescope at the moons of Jupiter
in 1609, Newcomen produced his
atmospheric pump to remove mine
water in 1712, and Trevithicks steam
locomotive hauled a train in Wales
in 1804. Roughly a hundred years
later, the Wright brothers ew their
biplane for the rst manned ight.
Now we have built sophisticated
computers, landed on the Moon
and, using the building blocks of life,
fashioned synthetic living organisms
in laboratories.
Science, and the technology which
results from it, is moving so fast
that we cannot predict where human
inventiveness will lead. Will we
continue to change our evolution?
Whatever the case, the remarkable
history of science leaves no doubt
that we lead better, healthier, and
more fullled lives than at any
previous time. Our planet may
face major challenges, but there
is every reason to believe that our
inventiveness will be up to the task
of improving ourselves and protecting
the planet on which we live.
ROBERT WINSTON
Editor-in-Chief
1
BEFORE
SCIENCE BEGAN
2.5 MYA799CE
Starting with early experiments to make tools and use
fire, humans gradually learnt how to control, explore, and
understand their surroundings by developing techniques
in astronomy, medicine, and mathematics.
2.5 MYA 8000 BCE

The paintings at El Castillo in Spain, dating from around 41,000 YA , are among the oldest known cave art. Made using natural
pigments, the paintings include depictions of horses and bison, although the very earliest are abstract discs and dots.

THE FIRST SIGNIFICANT
SCIENTIFIC ADVANCE was the
production of stone tools. Around
2.5 million years ago (MYA), early
hominids (either Homo habilis
or Australopithecus) began
to modify cobbles by striking
them with another stone, thus
removing akes of stone and
creating a sharp edge a
method known as hard-hammer
percussion. These early pebble
tools, or choppers, are known as
Oldowan tools. They were used
for dismembering killed animals,
cracking bones for the marrow,
and scraping hides. Oldowan
technology spread throughout
Africa, where it lasted until
around 1.7 MYA.
Early hominids must have seen
and understood the power of re
by observing wildres caused by
lightning strikes. They may have
sharp edge where stone
ake struck off
Oldowan tool
Choppers like this were the earliest
stone tools. They were suitable for
tasks such as cutting animal hide.
Around 1.76 MYA, Upper Paleolithic leaf point
upper and lower
more advanced stone This skillfully crafted tool was
SURFACE 1 blocks rubbed
made by aking small pieces
together tools began to appear.
off a larger core using a
surface of both Unlike Oldowan tools,
SURFACE 2 sharp piece of bone or
blocks heat up
Acheulian tools, antler to apply pressure.
particularly the
GENERATING HEAT FROM FRICTION multipurpose handaxe,
were deliberately core (see panel,
Rubbing two surfaces together causes the kinetic movement shaped. Hard- opposite), and
energy of the rubbing motion to be transferred to the atoms in hammer percussion a wide range of ake
the surfaces. This process, known as friction, causes the atoms to (striking off akes tools such as knives,
heat up. The smoother the surfaces, the more heat is generated; with a hammerstone) spear points, and
in extreme cases this can cause nearby material to catch re. was used to rough out scrapers shaped for
the tools shape. It different purposes.
was then rened by In the late Middle
lit branches from these res decay and extends the range removing smaller and Upper Paleolithic
to use as weapons against of edible resources to include akes using a soft (c.35,00010,000 YA), a
predators or to provide light and plants containing toxins that hammer of bone new technique, indirect
heat. There is possible evidence can be broken down by heat. or antler. percussion, allowed for
for sporadic controlled use The earliest evidence of Mousterian tools are many blades to be struck
of re from around 1 MYA, with cooking comes from sites particularly associated with from a single core. The nal
evidence of regular use from such as Gesher Benot Yaaqov Neanderthals and occurred from stage of tool development
around 400,000 YA. Finds at in Israel (790,000 YA), where c.300,000 YA. They include rst appeared c.70,000 YA and
Gesher Benot Yaaqov in Israel concentrations of burnt seeds sharp-edged Levallois akes became widespread post-
(790,000 YA) show signs of the and wood were found. that were struck off a prepared glacially from about 10,000 YA.
active use of re. It involved microliths tiny
Early humans were able akes and blades for use in
to use devices such as re Making re composite tools.
ploughs or re drills to Early humans probably The earliest weapons were
made re using a re
produce their own re drill or re plough,
rocks or handaxes, but by about
with friction. Fire was which generates 400,000 BCE early people had
important for warmth heat by rubbing adapted sticks for use as
and protection, splitting two pieces of wood spears. At rst, these had
together. The heat
stones, hardening causes wood dust
sharpened wooden ends, but
the points of wooden to ignite and this by around 200,000 BCE stone
tools, and for cooking. can then be points started being attached to
Heating food breaks used to light create more effective weapons.
larger kindling.
down proteins, which The bow was probably rst
makes it easier to digest. ame generated in developed around 64,000 BCE,
It also protects food from kindling such as twigs but the earliest examples found

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Einkorn is the ancestor of modern wheat and still occurs naturally throughout southwest
Asia. It has a higher protein content than its domesticated descendent.

date from around 9000 BCE. Jomon pot

The arrows of this period This style of pottery
was produced in Japan
show evidence of etching for over 10,000 years.
attaching feathers to the shaft The earlier examples
to improve ight and accuracy. generally have pointed
The rst deliberate use of re bottoms. DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE
to harden clay dates from around
24,000 BCE, with the manufacture were red in pit-kilns, or The upland areas of the Fertile Crescent, an area of
of ceramic Venus gurines found bonre kilns, which were relatively fertile land in southwest Asia, were home to
at Dolni Vestonice in the Czech shallow pits dug in the wild cereals, sheep, and goats. Around 10,000 BCE the
Republic. Examples of the rst ground and lined with fuel. climate cooled, leading to a contraction of the range
pottery vessels, from around In western Asia, unbaked clay of wild cereals to areas with higher rainfall. Perhaps due to
18,000 BCE, were found in was initially used for making the greater difculty in gathering the seeds of these plants,
Xianrendong Cave in China, but vessels, bricks. The rst containers were communities began cultivating them next to their villages. Sheep
the earliest ceramic vessels to which were made from gypsum and lime and goats were also domesticated for their meat. More productive
have survived in any quantity are useful for plaster, which was made by sources of food led to increased population densities, while the
Jomon pots from Japan. These storing food and also for cooking. burning chalk. It was not until demand in time and labour needed for agriculture led to
date from about 14,000 BCE and Early pottery was generally around 6900 BCE that ceramic settlements becoming both larger and more sedentary.
were probably used for cooking formed by pinching (shaping the pottery appeared at sites such
food. The growing stability of wet clay by hand) or gradually as ayn in Turkey.
settlements probably played coiling rolls of clay up and into The earliest bone needles gatherers or foragers. The rst barley (Hordeum vulgare)
a role in the spread of pottery the shape of a pot. These pots date from around 30,000 BCE evidence of plant domestication were domesticated. Cultivation
and come from Europe. They (the deliberate selection and of these cereals was widely
stone tortoise core shape is may have been used to join manipulation of plants for distributed in southwest Asia,
core gradually developed skins together, using cultivation) is of wild rye particularly in a fertile crescent
threads of gut or sinew, and seeds that were sown and of land that stretched from
to thread pierced objects, harvested around the the Persian Gulf to the
akes are such as shells or beads. settlement of Abu Hureyra coastlands of the Near East.
detached Ancient clay impressions of in Iraq around 10,500 BCE. By 7000 BCE, barley had also
textiles date the rst woven About a thousand years later, been domesticated on the
akes are detached cloth to around 27,000 BCE. a group of wild cereals Indian subcontinent. In China,
from the face
Cordage the twisting notably einkorn (Triticum however, a different set of plants,
THE LEVALLOIS TECHNIQUE together of bres to increase boeoticum) and emmer notably millet and rice, was
the strength of the threads (Triticum dicoccoides), both domesticated beginning
This technique involves shaping a tortoise core using hard and appeared around 18,000 BCE, varieties of wheat, and wild in the 8th millennium BCE.
soft percussion. Flakes are struck from the edges and one face when three-ply cord was in
to produce the desired shape of the nal ake, which is then use in the Lascaux caves of Bone shuttle
Needles and shuttles of bone
detached from the core. The resulting ake has a sharp edge southern France.
were the rst means of binding
on all sides and can be used without further modication. Until at least 13,000 YA, early materials together, using animal
humans were hunter- gut or vegetable bres such as ax.

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8000 3000 BCE

15
THOUSAND
THE MAXIMUM
NUMBER OF SOAY
SHEEP ALIVE TODAY

The Soay sheep is native to a small island off the west coast of Scotland. It is a primitive breed,
very similar to the rst domesticated sheep in Europe.

Farming hillsides storage. Terrace agriculture,

ONE OF THE FIRST ANIMALS
to be domesticated by humans,
around 30,000 BCE, was the
dog, which was selectively bred
from domesticated wolves and
was used for hunting. Around
8500 BCE, people in southwest
Asia began to domesticate other
animals, beginning with sheep
and goats. Cattle and pigs
were domesticated around
7000 BCE in many places across
the world, and by 3000 BCE a
number of other animals had
been domesticated including,
in the Americas, the guinea
pig (around 5000 BCE) and the
llama (about 4500 BCE).
The rst large-scale
construction of stone buildings
began around 9000 BCE, with the
building of a ritual structure
at Gbekli Tepe in southeast
Anatolia (in modern Turkey).
It consisted of a number of
free-standing T-shaped pillars
within a low circular enclosure
wall. In around 8000 BCE the rst
settlement wall was built at
Jericho in Palestine. Made of
stone, the wall was about 5 m
(16 ft) high with a circumference
of 600 m (1,970 ft). Architectural
techniques became more
sophisticated, with the use of
corbelling (overlapping stone
to create a type of vaulted roof)
in northwest Europe by 4000 BCE,
and buttresses to strengthen
walls in Mesopotamia by around
3400 BCE. From about 5000 BCE,
the practice of building large
structures using massive
stones megaliths spread
throughout western Europe,
resulting in structures such as
the Carnac stones in Brittany,
France (dating from around
4500 BCE), Newgrange Passage
tomb in Ireland (around
3400 BCE), and Stonehenge
in England (from 2500 BCE).
By around 6500 BCE the people
of Mehrgarh (in modern Pakistan)
were making bitumen, a sticky
liquid that seeps from crude oil
deposits, to make reed baskets
waterproof, and around 2600 BCE
the people of the Indus
Civilization were using it to create
a watertight coating for brick-
built basins. In Mesopotamia
from the 4th millennium BCE,
bitumen was mixed with sand to
create a mortar for building and
as a tar for caulking ships.
The use of terraces to allow hilly in which at, cultivable areas are
areas to be farmed began in Yemen
cut into a hillside and irrigated
in about 4000 BCE but was also
widely practised in China and in by water channels, was
mountainous areas of Peru. developed in Yemen in around
4000 BCE. In China, networks
Where there was insufcient of banks and ditches were built
rainfall for agriculture, farmers to ood and drain wet-rice
developed irrigation to transport cultivation elds (paddies).
water to their elds. At Choga Cold-working (beating
Mami, in eastern Iraq, water or hammering) of naturally
channels from the River occurring metals, such as gold
Tigris were constructed from and copper, was practised as
around 6000 BCE, and by the early as 8000 BCE. Smelting
4th millennium BCE, dams and heating metallic ores with a
dykes were used to store water reducing agent to extract the
in reservoirs in parts of western pure metal (see 1800700 BCE)
Asia. In Egypt, the annual appeared as early as 6500 BCE in
ooding of the Nile River atal Hyk in Turkey. The
inundated elds naturally, but technique spread widely: it
from at least as early as 3000 BCE, was being used from southeast
excess water was diverted for Europe to
ALLOYS
The combination of two or more metals
produces an alloy, which may have different
characteristics from the original metals. In the
mid to late 5th millennium BCE, it was discovered
that smelting a small amount of arsenic with
copper produced arsenical bronze, which is
harder and stronger than copper alone. By
around 3200 BCE, true bronze was being produced
in southwest Asia by using tin instead of arsenic
in the smelting process, and objects such as this
early 2nd century bronze gurine were being
made. By the late 3rd millennium BCE, it had
also been discovered that copper could be
alloyed with zinc, forming brass.

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The Carnac stones in Brittany, France, are a series of more than 3,000 upright megaliths.
The oldest stones date from around 4500 BCE.

Spinning threads
Spindle whorls are often the rst evidence
BARLEY IS THRESHED FOR YOU, efcient harnesses for attaching
draft animals to wagons were
WHEAT IS REAPED FOR YOU, YOUR
of spinning spun threads are wrapped
around a spindle shaft. Whorls are usually
light; if heavier than 150 g (5 oz), they tend
to break the thread.
MONTHLY FEASTS ARE MADE WITH
IT, YOUR HALF-MONTHLY FEASTS
developed in Mesopotamia,
allowing greater loads and
distances to be attained.
As commercial transactions
ARE MADE WITH IT. grew more complex, accurate
Ancient Egyptian pyramid text, c.24002300 BCE measurements of goods became
essential. Standardized weight
5000 BCE, the method of coiling Four-wheeled wagons appeared and length measures were
pots was improved by a simple in Poland and the Balkans around introduced in Mesopotamia,
turntable (tournette) beneath the 3500 BCE and soon afterwards in Egypt, and the Indus Valley in
South Asia pot. By 3500 BCE, the tournette Mesopotamia. At rst, wheels the late 4th millennium BCE. The
by 5500 BCE; had been replaced in southern were solid discs connected to the earliest weights were often based
throughout Europe by Mesopotamia by a true potters wagon by a wooden axle, but on grains of wheat or barley,
3000 BCE; and as far as China wheel, consisting of a heavy around 2000 BCE, spoked wheels which have a uniform weight.
and Southeast Asia by 2000 BCE. During the early years of stone wheel that could be turned were developed, which made The standard unit of length, the
Casting metal objects with agriculture, ground for sowing rapidly and continuously. This lighter, more mobile vehicles cubit, was based on the length
a mould developed in the had to be cultivated using allowed the potter to throw the possible. Around 3100 BCE, of a mans forearm.
5th millennium BCE. The rst hand-held digging sticks or pot by placing a lump in the
known cast metal object hoes. The use of cattle as draft centre of the device and shaping handle of pot

comes from Mesopotamia and animals made the eventual use it as the wheel spun around.
dates from about 3200 BCE. of the ard, or scratch plough, For many
Spinning raw bres to make a possible. This primitive wooden millennia, all
thread may have begun as early plough, sometimes with a metal transport on land
as the 7th millennium BCE, which tip, cut shallow furrows. The was by foot. The
is the date of spindle whorls found earliest evidence of its use rst articial aids
at atal Hyk, Turkey. Weaving comes from the 4th millennium were sledges, which
may have arisen from the late BCE, and it spread widely in Egypt, have been found in
Paleolithic skill of making nets West Asia, and Europe. Finland dating from
and baskets. The loom a frame The quality of ceramics was 6800 BCE, and skis, which
or brace to keep one set of improved by the invention, in were in use in Russia around
threads (the warp) tense while around 6000 BCE, of kilns 6300 BCE. The invention of the
another (the weft) is interwoven specially built chambers in wheel revolutionized transport.
with it appeared in the form of which pottery could be red.
warp beams (simple sticks) and Two-chamber, updraught kilns Wagon in clay
backstrap looms (the warp beams (in which the re is in the lower This clay pot in the shape of a wagon
dates from around 3000 BCE and
were held taut by a strap around chamber) appeared in the
shows the typical features of early
the users back) in West Asia and Hassuna culture of Mesopotamia wheeled vehicles from central and wheel in the form of
Egypt by the 4th millennium BCE. in about 6000 BCE. Around southern Europe. a solid disc

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15
 2.5 MYA 7 9 9 CE B E FO R E S C I E N C E B E GA N

curved blade
adapted for
harvesting grain

Reaping hook Metal shears Cast-iron mould

Date unknown
By the Iron Age, metal harvesting sickles
had replaced int-bladed ones as the
metal was readily available and easier
to sharpen and mend than int.
Date unknown
These iron shears from Italy are similar
to those used by later sheep-shearers.
They were found in Riva del Garda, in
the Italian province of Trento.
c.300 BCE
The Chinese had invented high-temperature furnaces
capable of melting iron as early as 500 BCE. This enabled
them to produce cast iron by pouring molten metal into
moulds such as this one, used to make agricultural tools.

sharp tip for piercing

Bronze sword
c.1200 BCE
Sword blades could be
created using bronze, an Iron sword
at pommel
alloy of copper and tin. c.500700
Bronze Age swords, such as The Anglo-Saxons used the pattern-welding technique to blade with
this one from France, were make swords, in which rods of iron were twisted together rounded tip
carried only by the rich. and forged to form the core. An edge was then added.

EARLY METALLURGY
ANCIENT METALLURGISTS PRODUCED A VARIETY OF OBJECTS FROM LETHAL WEAPONRY TO STUNNING JEWELLERY

The development of metallurgy from around 6500 BCE, Chariot decoration

c.100 BCE 100 CE
made possible the production of ornamental objects of Enamelling, or the fusing of molten glass with
metal, was invented around 1200 BCE. The use
great beauty as well as tools and weapons that were of red glass in enamelling became especially
more durable and effective than those made of wood. popular in the late Iron Age, as seen in this
Celtic chariot decoration.

The earliest metalworking was cold-hammering the beating of

naturally occurring metals. After smelting (heating ore to extract metal)
was developed, techniques became more sophisticated. Metal casting began
around 5000 BCE, and alloys were developed in the 5th millennium BCE. By
the end of the ancient period, techniques such as gilding and inlaying had
been developed and metalworking had spread across much of the world.
Bronze Celtic brooch
c.800 BCE
This ornate brooch was created by
Hallstatt craftsmen in Austria. The
spiral pattern was part of the Celtic
artistic repertoire for over 1,500 years.
red enamel

Bronze pin ligree work

c.1200
Pins with attened
heads were a common
decorative item used for
fastening clothes in
Bronze-Age Europe.

granulation
Anglo-Saxon belt buckle
c.620 Gold Minoan pendant
This gold belt buckle features an c.17001550 BCE
intertwined pattern of snakes and beasts, This pendant, depicting bees depositing
birds head writhing snake highlighted in black niello an enamel- honey on a honeycomb, exhibits granulation
in prole pattern like substance formed from an alloy of (minute balls of gold soldered onto the
silver, copper, lead, and sulphur. surface) and ligree (ne threads of metal).

16
 hemispherical
iron cap

Corinthian helmet
c.700 BCE
This helmet is made from a single
piece of bronze, giving it extra strength.
Such helmets were popular in Greece
from the 8th to the 6th centuries BCE.

decorative
rigid face roundel
mask, riveted
to cap red glass inlay

Ceremonial shield cover

c.35050 BCE
Made from a bronze sheet, this shield
cover displays the repouss technique
of hammering the reverse side to
create a raised design on the front.

stamped
design

Silver plaque Lydian coins

c.300200 BCE
This plaque depicts the gures of the
Greek goddess Aphrodite, her son Eros,
and a girl attendant, made by repouss.
Other decorative incisions have been
highlighted with gilding.
c.700 BCE
The earliest coinage was produced
in Lydia (now in Turkey). It was made
from electrum a naturally occurring
alloy of silver and gold, which was once
believed to be a metal in its own right.

neck guard
Anglo-Saxon helmet (reconstruction)
c.620
Found in a ship burial at Sutton Hoo, UK,
the original helmet was made of iron and
covered with tinned bronze sheets. It was
decorated with silver wire and garnets.
turquoise
eye

leg shaped
as dragon

Bronze gure
c.1000 BCE
This statuette of a Canaanite Bronze Age vessel Copper mask
god was made with a technique c.800 BCE c.250
called cire-perdue casting, This animal-shaped ritual vessel, Found in the tomb of a nobleman from
which uses a single-use mould, known as yi, was used in Late the Peruvian Moche culture, this mask
and plated with silver using a Western Zhou China for washing shows mastery of metal sculpture. Both
direct application technique. hands before making a sacrice. eyes were originally inset with turquoise.

17
3000 1800 BCE
,,
,,
CLIMB UPON THE WALL OF URUK, WALK
ALONG IT, I SAY; REGARD THE FOUNDATION
TERRACE AND EXAMINE THE MASONRY
Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet I, c.2000 BCE

The ruins of Uruk, the worlds oldest city are in present-day Iraq. The site
of Uruk was rst settled around 4800 BCE and became a town around 4000 BCE.

IRRIGATION TECHNIQUES
BECAME MORE COMPLEX during
the 3rd millennium BCE. The
shadoof was developed in
Mesopotamia in around 2400 BCE.
It consisted of an upright frame
with a pole suspended from it; on
one end of the pole was a bucket
for scooping up water, while on
the other was a counterweight.
By 1350 BCE, the shadoof had
spread to Egypt. There, devices
called nilometers had already
been developed to measure
the rise and fall of the river,
which predicted how good
the harvest would be.
In the period 40003000 BCE
farming communities in
Mesopotamia had coalesced
to form the worlds rst cities,
such as Uruk c.3400 BCE. By
3100 BCE, cities had begun to
appear in Egypt, beginning with
Hierakonpolis. By 2600 BCE,
Mohenjo Daro and Harappa,
great cities of the Indus
Civilization, had been built.
As towns and cities developed,
the rst true writing emerged
in Mesopotamia around 3300 BCE,
probably prompted by the need
to keep detailed records.
Originally largely pictographic,
with signs looking like the things
they represented, they were
written using a stylus that
produced wedge-shaped marks.
Cuneiform script developed
as the curved outlines of these
early signs changed into a series
of wedge-shaped lines that
gradually became more stylized
over time. These symbols were
impressed into soft clay, which
then hardened to create durable
documents. At around the same
time, another writing system
developed in Egypt. Known as
hieroglyphic, this system was
EARLY ASTRONOMY
Evidence of interest in
astronomical phenomena
dates from Neolithic times in
Europe, when many megaliths
were laid out in an orientation
that indicated particular lunar
or solar events. Some of the
stones at Stonehenge (rst
erected around 2500 BCE) were
aligned to indicate the times of
year at which the winter and
summer solstices occurred.
Other features may have been
connected with lunar events.
initially primarily pictographic.
The earliest known examples
are clay labels from Abydos,
c.3300 BCE. Writing also
developed in the Indus Valley
around 2600 BCE, in China by
at least 1400 BCE, and in
Mesoamerica around 600 BCE.
Soda-lime glass was rst
developed in Mesopotamia
around 3500 BCE. It was made by
ring silica (sand), soda ash, and
lime in a furnace, but initially
was suitable only for small
objects. In Egypt, faience
became common from around
3000 BCE. Consisting of a mixture
of crushed quartz, calcite lime,
and soda lime, which when
vitried produced a blue-
turquoise glaze, faience was
used by the Egyptians on small
sculptures and beads.
The early 3rd millennium BCE
saw the spread of true bronze,
created by alloying copper with
tin, which became the most
commonly used metal in
Mesopotamia between 3000 and
2500 BCE. Clay crucible furnaces
for smelting appeared there in
around 3000 BCE. Mesopotamian
metallurgists also invented the
technique of gold granulation
around 2500 BCE. This produced
tiny gold balls, which were used
to decorate jewellery.

Egyptian boat of the dead

rack for holding A model of the boat buried near the
oars in place Great Pyramid of Khufu. The boat
shelter
was intended to ferry the dead
pharaohs soul across the heavens.

high, curved
stern

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18
 1
ST CENTURY
THE DATE BY WHICH
CUNEIFORM SCRIPT
HAD BECOME EXTINCT

Cuneiform (wedge-shaped) script developed from the earliest writing, invented in Mesopotamia around 3300 BCE .
It was used for a wide range of ancient Near Eastern languages, including Sumerian and Akkadian.

Boat-building also developed had been developed in
signicantly around the Egypt, and by about
3rd millennium BCE. Early 2500 BCE, pairs of side
humans had probably been using oars and tillers had
some form of boat from as long been introduced.
ago as 50,000 BCE, although the Before 3000 BCE,
earliest surviving water craft is few monumental
a dug-out canoe that dates from structures were
around 7200 BCE. In the Gulf residential. The
region, boats were being made practice of building
of bitumen-coated reeds as some temples on
early as 5000 BCE. platforms began
By around 3000 BCE, more before 4000 BCE, the
sophisticated vessels made of platform rising with
wooden planks that were sewn each rebuilding. After
together were being built in 2900 BCE, temple
Egypt. Early boats were powered platforms in Sumerian
solely by oars. Sailing boats, cities such as Ur and
with square-rigged sails, Kish reached a
appeared in Egypt in around considerable height, leading to
3100 BCE, supplementing muscle the development of ziggurats
power with wind power. By initially three-tiered structures
3000 BCE, large steering oars with a shrine on the top
platform. Largely made of mud
bricks, with a baked-brick facing,
pair of these monumental structures
steering
suggest growing sophistication
oars
in structural engineering.
In Egypt, most
architecture was
Egyptian faience
This Middle Kingdom
(19751640 BCE) statue of
a woman with a tattooed
body shows the deep blue
colour typical of much
Egyptian faience work.
modied by building
six stepped platforms
to create a step
pyramid. By the
reigns of Khufu,
Khafre, and
Menkaure in mid-3rd
millennium BCE, the
creation of smooth-
sided stone pyramids
had been perfected, and
each of these pharaohs
erected a huge pyramid tomb
for himself at Giza. Collectively
known as the Great Pyramids,
each was oriented and built with
great precision, which suggests
that sophisticated surveying
techniques were in use.
An interest in observational
astronomy arose early in
Mesopotamia, culminating
in the Venus tablet of Ammi-
of the sky into constellations
dates from Babylonian
manuscripts c.1595 BCE.
With the growing administrative
demands of cities in the 3rd
millennium BCE, the development
of an accurate calendar became
vital. The rst known version is in
the Umma calendar of Shulgi, a
Sumerian document dating from
about 2100 BCE that contains
12 lunar months of either 29
or 30 days. When this 354-day
year became too out of phase
with the real 365.25-day year, an
extra month was added by royal
decree. The ancient Egyptians
had a similar calendar, but ve
days were added each year to
give a 365-day year.
There have been claims
that some prehistoric carvings
represent topographical maps,
but true cartography and real
maps were not developed until
150
125
HEIGHT IN METRES
the 3rd millennium BCE. The
Akkadian Ga-Sur tablet (dating
from about 2500 BCE) shows
the size and location of a plot
of land between two hills and
was probably part of a land
transaction. Fragments of a
statue of Gudea of Lagash, from
around 2125 BCE, show a plan of
a temple. The rst real street
map discovered to date shows a
scale plan of the Sumerian town
of Nippur (in present-day Iraq)
and dates from about 1500 BCE.
The rst surviving attempt to
map the entire known world
is the Babylonian world map
from about 600 BCE, which shows
the regions surrounding Babylon
(see 700400 BCE).
Monumentally tall
Built around 2560 BCE, the Great
Pyramid of Khufu was 147 m (482 ft)
tall and remained the worlds tallest
building for thousands of years.

100
religious (temples) or Saduqa (dating from around
funerary (tombs). The 1650 BCE). It contained the
75
tombs of the nobility and rising and setting times of
rulers of the Early Dynastic the planet Venus over a period
50
Period (around 2900 BCE) were of 21 years. A carved piece
simple mud-brick rectangular of mammoth tusk found in
25
structures known as mastabas. Germany, dating from about
Between 2630 and 2611 BCE, 32,500 BCE, may possibly
leaf-shaped 0
during the reign of the pharaoh represent the constellation Great St Peters Big Ben Statue of Taj Mahal Notre
blade
Djoser, a huge mastaba was Orion, but systematic division Pyramid Cathedral Liberty Dame

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m 19
 2.5 MYA 7 9 9 CE B E FO R E S C I E N C E B E GA N

Faster armies
Roman
Lightweight war chariots enabled
legionary armies to manoeuvre much
faster than an infantry ever could.
A Bronze Age chariot (c.1200 BCE)
moved over 10 times as fast
Chariot
as the marching pace of a
Roman legionary.
0 10 20 30 40 50
SPEED (KILOMETRES PER HOUR)

Egyptian chariot
Around 1600 BCE, the Egyptians developed leather bindings
lightweight war chariots that had spoked wheels connect shaft to
and a thin wooden semicircular frame. The chariot body
platform could accommodate two people, one
to manoeuvre at high speed, and another
armed with a bow.

footboard made
of sycamore wood
wood bent
into V-shape to
make spokes

,,BUT LET THE

LEFT-HAND HORSE
KEEP SO CLOSE IN THAT
hub or nave

,,
cattle intestines
fasten spokes THE NAVE [HUB] OF THE
WHEEL SHALL ALMOST
to hub

GRAZE THE POST.

Homer, Greek poet, from Iliad Book XXIII, first description of chariot race, c.750 BCE

Neolithic period c.1323 BCE c.750 BCE

Logroller
Neolithic people place loads
on rollers made from logs.
These logs, however, are
not always smooth and the
difculties in keeping them
aligned make this an
inefcient method.
Early logrollers
Spoked wheel
Wheels with spokes are lighter than
disc wheels, and allow a cart or war
chariot to be pulled by a lighter animal,
such as a horse. First developed in the
steppes of central Asia a little after
2000 BCE, these wheels spread to
Egypt by 1600 BCE.
Iron-rimmed wheel
The Celts add iron rims to the
wooden wheels of chariots to
improve their durability on rough
surfaces. They do so rst by nailing
the metal to the rim and later, by
applying strips of hot iron, which
shrink to t as they cool. Celtic chariot

3500 BCE
Potters wheel
In southern Mesopotamia,
potters become the rst to
use wheels to mechanize an
industrial process that of
making pottery. They use a
heavy, rapidly turning stone
wheel to shape clay on.
Egyptian
potter c.2500 BCE Egyptian c.300 BCE
Disc wheel potter Water wheel
The rst true transportation The Greeks invent water wheels as
wheels discs of wood connected a means of harnessing the power of
by axles are developed in the running water. They use water wheels
Balkans and Mesopotamia. either to raise water in buckets to a
The Sumerians higher level for irrigation, or to drive
used these on Disc wheels on around a shaft that operates
battle wagons. the Standard of Ur a milling machine.

20
 T H E S TO R Y O F T H E W H E E L

THE STORY OF
yoke to attach
horses to shaft

THE WHEEL
THIS SIMPLE INNOVATION HAS MOVED ARMIES, CARRIED LOADS, AND POWERED INDUSTRIES

One of the most important inventions in history, the wheel allowed the
transportation of loads over long distances, revolutionized early warfare,
and made the development of the first mechanized processes possible.
It opened up the globe to human exploration and revolutionized industry.

The earliest wheel, the logroller, Spoked wheel construction

box is easier was used by neolithic people to The spokes of a wheel distribute the
movement to move force applied to a vehicle evenly
transport heavy weights, such around its rim. As the wheel rotates,
as large stones used in the each spoke shortens slightly.
construction of megaliths.
outer rim
By 3500 BCE, the logroller of wheel
was adapted to create the
rst true wheels solid spokes radiating
wheels from central hub
turn around discs of wood connected by
friction gives static axles small
outside edges contact area, an axle. These wheels, employed in Greece to harness
of wheels grip so friction however, were very heavy. the power of water, via a turbine, for
on the road is less
Lighter, spoked wheels were use in milling. By the time of Industrial
WHEELS AND FRICTION invented around 1600 BCE. The more Revolution, the wheel appeared in one form or
hard-wearing, iron-rimmed wheels came around the other in almost all industrial machinery. Gears
The force needed to pull a load pressing down 800 years later, making for faster, more durable (toothed wheels) and cogs were used in the
directly on the ground is increased by the friction vehicles suitable for battle and long-distance Antikythera mechanism an astronomical
or rolling resistance between the load and the transportation. Wheels steadily evolved, using calculating machine created in Greece around
ground. The use of wheels resolves this problem. materials such as iron and steel as they were 100 BCE but it is possible they were used earlier
Since only a small part of the wheel is in contact developed. Modern wheels use high-tech alloys in China. Gears and cogs eventually became
with the ground at any one point in time, the rest of titanium or aluminium that are light and allow common components of machines as diverse as
of it can rotate freely, without being impeded by
vehicles to move faster, using much less power. clocks and automobiles. Yet there were some
friction. The little friction that remains allows the
cultures where the wheel did not feature as
wheel to grip the ground without sliding. Wheels
THE WHEEL IN INDUSTRY prominently. Some ancient civilizations of
are mounted on sturdy shafts, called axles, which
facilitate the rolling motion.
Beginning with the potters wheel around Central America and Peru either did not develop
4500 BCE, the wheel was also adapted for use in wheels, or, as in the case of the Aztecs of Mexico,
industrial processes. By 300 BCE, watermills were used them only in childrens toys.

c.100 BCE 1848 1915

Wheelbarrow Mansell wheel Radial tyre
The Chinese create a The quieter and more Patented by Arthur
wheelbarrow with a large resilient Mansell Savage, radial ply
central wheel, which railway wheel had tyres are made of
makes all the weight fall a steel central boss rubber-coated steel
on the axle. Easy to push, (hub), surrounded by or polyester cords. They
each wheelbarrow can a solid disc of 16 are now the standard tyre
carry up to six men. Wooden ox wheelbarrow teak segments. Gazelle steam engine for almost all cars. 1960s Mini

c.1035 1845 1910 2010

Spinning wheel
In China, a hand-crank-
operated driving wheel
is added to a hand-
spindle, automating it
and allowing multiple
spindles to be operated
Chinese spinner simultaneously.
Vulcanized rubber tyre Early automobile Modern wheel types
Robert Thomson uses spoked wheel Ultra-lightweight
vulcanized rubber Earliest automobile racing bicycles use
invented by Charles wheels have wooden composite carbon
Goodyear to make spokes, which are spokes, while car
pneumatic (air-lled) more suitable for wheels are made of
tyres, which are lighter narrow tyres, but tend magnesium, titanium,
and harder to wear out. to warp and crack. Ford Model T or aluminium alloys. High-tech racing bike

21
1800 700 BCE

The ancient Egyptian Rhind Papyrus is based on an original text written before 1795 BCE . It contains a series of mathematical
problems and their solutions, including calculations of the areas and volumes of geometrical gures.

IN THE EARLY 2ND MILLENNIUM ,, ANOTHER REMEDY FOR Stick chart

,,
BCE, the composite bow was Made by Marshall Islanders
developed, probably in the SUFFERING IN HALF THE HEAD. THE in Micronesia, this chart
uses sticks to represent
steppes of Central Asia. Unlike SKULL OF A CAT-FISH, FRIED IN OIL. currents and waves, a
self bows made of a single piece
of wood, the composite bow was
ANOINT THE HEAD THEREWITH. technique that may have
been passed down from
ancient Polynesians.
made of laminated strips of horn, Ebers Papyrus 250, Egyptian medical treatise, c.1555 BCE
wood, and sinew, which together
provided greater range and Steppes to China, where they depictions of surgery have been India, where the
penetration, and allowed the bow were used during the Shang found on temple walls, but most earliest evidence
to be smaller and easier to use on (17661126 BCE) and Zhou knowledge of ancient Egyptian of ironworking is
horseback. The bow was further (1126256 BCE) dynasties, and medicine comes from papyri thought to date from
modied to become recurved, west into Egypt and Mesopotamia. written around 1550 BCE. These around 1300 BCE.
with the ends curving forward, There is evidence that doctors show that medicine had moved Until medieval
which added even more strength. existed in Egypt during the Old beyond a belief that disease was times, smelting in
Composite bows spread from the Kingdom (c.27002200 BCE) and a divine punishment. The Edwin the West produced
Smith Papyrus (c.1600 BCE) only bloom that needed to as the Rhind Papyrus. It is
air is blown in lime and crushed contains details of human be hammered to remove based on a text written before
with bellows to clay lining iron ore and anatomy, shows awareness impurities. It was only in China 1795 BCE and consists of a series
help raise the charcoal of the link between the pulse that furnaces capable of melting of problems and solutions. It
temperature
tuyres bowl-shaped and heartbeat, and also gives iron were developed and iron shows the use of unit fractions
furnace instructions for the diagnosis could be cast. Evidence of cast (1n), solutions for linear
and treatment of a range of iron production in China dates equations, and methods for
ailments and injuries. The from the 9th century BCE. calculating the areas of triangles,
Ebers Papyrus (c.1555 BCE), In mathematics, the rectangles, and circles. It also
dating from about the same time, Babylonians had made major shows the volumes of cylinders
includes descriptions of diseases, advances by 1800 BCE, producing and pyramids.
tumours, and even of mental tables of reciprocals, squares, The earliest boats recovered
disorders such as depression. and cubes and using them to date from before 6000 BCE, but
SMELTING The earliest intentional solve algebraic problems, such early navigation was not
production of iron was in as quadratic equations. Several sophisticated. The most
Pure iron melts at 1540C (2800F), higher than early technology Anatolia in Turkey, which was tablets are thought to show an effective navigators of this
could achieve, so instead it was smelted by reducing iron ore exporting small quantities of awareness of Pythagorass period were the Lapita people
with charcoal at around 1200C (2200F). The ore was packed with iron by the 19th century BCE. theorem (see 700400 BCE). The of the Pacic (ancestors of the
charcoal in bowl furnaces, and tuyres (clay nozzles) were used to At rst, iron was smelted only Babylonians also estimated pi Polynesians), who from 1200 BCE
blow air in to raise the temperature. The resulting molten metal on a small scale, but by 700 BCE to be about 3.125, close to the expanded eastwards to Vanuatu,
was cooled to form a bloom, a solid lump containing iron and production was widespread in actual value of about 3.142. New Caledonia, Samoa, and Fiji.
various impurities, which was then hammered repeatedly to Europe. Smelting also developed Most of what is known of ancient Their voyage to Fiji involved a
remove the impurities and extract the iron. independently in a number of Egyptian mathematics comes 850 km (530 miles) journey
places, including Africa and from mathematical texts such across open sea. To accomplish

s
ian l ns CE
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t
pit
a
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22
An Assyrian bronze relief of the mid-9th century BCE shows war chariots carrying
soldiers to assault the city of Khazazu (present-day Azaz, in Syria).

this, the Lapitan sailors must The invention of the spoked 1700 Melting point
crouching 1539
have used knowledge of winds, lion cub wooden wheel around 2000 BCE, of metals
stars, and currents. They may poppy pods along with the domestication 1350 Iron melts at

MELTING POINT (C)

in crown a far higher
also have created stick maps, of the horse, opened up new 1083 1064 temperature
like those later used by possibilities in land transport, 1000 950 than other metals
the Polynesians who permitting lighter vehicles used in early
settled as far as and eventually the use of 700 metallurgy.
China was rst
Easter Island, adaptable riding animals. to master the
328
Hawaii, and Although harnesses 350 232 technology to
(by 1000 were in use from the melt iron.
1200 CE) 3rd millennium 0
Iron Copper Gold Bronze Lead Tin
New BCE, signicant
Zealand. advances began METALS

In Egypt and the to be made from c.1500 BCE. preserving bodies in the desert sophistication around 1000 BCE.
Near East, glass began to be The halter yoke, with at straps sand. These corpses were Bodies were mummied by
clay gure
made in signicant amounts glazed with across the neck and chest of the wrapped in linen bandages removing the internal organs
from about 1600 BCE. In the late quartz and animal, made horses more dipped in resin, which also helped (apart from the heart), washing
2nd millennium BCE, the metal oxides efcient at pulling light chariots. to prevent the bodies from out the body cavity, and packing
technique of bonding glass to Weighing as little as 30 kg (66 lb), decaying. By around 2700 BCE, it with natron for 40 days to dry
ceramics to produce glazes these chariots could carry two the Egyptians had discovered it out. The natron was removed
was discovered. Glass cloisonn warriors and became crucial to that natron (a mixture of salts) and replaced with clean packets
inlays and enamelling (fusing many Near Eastern armies. desiccated esh and could be of natron and linen soaked in
glass to metal surfaces) were The preservation of corpses used to mummify bodies. They resin to restore the bodys shape
developed by the Mycenaeans in had its origins in the natural gradually rened this process before being coated in resin and
Greece around 1200 BCE. Casting process of drying out and until it reached a peak of bandaged in linen.
glass (by pouring molten glass
into a mould) was discovered in EARLY SCRIPTS
Mesopotamia around 800 BCE.
Around 100 years later, the The transition from symbolic scripts to an alphabetic one, where Proto-Sinaitic
symbol for the
Phoenicians had developed each individual sign represents a sound in the language, seems to letter D
clear glass. have rst taken place among miners in the Sinai desert of Egypt
around 1800 BCE. The signs appear to derive from Egyptian hieratic
script (a cursive script that developed alongside the hieroglyphic Proto-Sinaitic
symbol for the
system), but there are few inscriptions in this proto-Sinaitic
Snake goddess letter H
Faience reached its peak in alphabet and it is not certain whether slightly later alphabets in
the Minoan civilization, with the region, such as proto-Canaanite (17th century BCE) and Ugaritic
works such as this goddess (13th century BCE), derived from it or developed separately. By Proto-Sinaitic
statuette (c.1700 BCE), but symbol for the
1050 BCE, proto-Canaanite had evolved into the Phoenician script letter K
with more available glass,
faience was replaced by that is the ancestor of Greek and other European scripts.
glass-glazed ceramics.

n s
e ian Iro ome
nc nic BC
E
ec e st ian
s
ra hoe Ca ced
a
pe P
0
00 ng
b th E h e e nic ss,
Ap ped c.1 elti on in BC du ft o a l
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E
0 BC
v sm mm ast 0 rst 0 BC
BC
E
lea ck c
r
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c.1 fully etic c.9 n is a c.8 velo alph 0 p
c.7 velo ng r
o
Ne iro Chin De eek
of hab de itati
alp in Gr im

ian
pt n s s
gi e
gy atio ir si tin
CE
E
c he las in el urop
0 B mi h t on st g ced ia m E
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c .1 m s r t CE p o Iro cro
e his 0 B rst esop BC
E
d a
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0 M 00 rea
ch of c.7 esp
te eak d
p wi

23
700400 BCE

The School of Athens fresco by the 16th-century Italian artist Raphael contains idealized depictions
of a number of Greek thinkers, including Pythagoras (left, holding a book).

AS EARLY AS 2300 BCE, the
Babylonians had developed
a sexagesimal number system
(based on writing numbers in
multiples of 60) and the principle
of position (where numbers
in different positions represent
different orders of magnitude).
By 700 BCE they sometimes used
a marker to indicate a null
value (zero).
The screw pump (or Archimedes
Screw) is a cylindrical pump with
a central shaft surrounded by
inner blades in the shape of a
spiral and encased in wood. As
the shaft is rotated, water is
pulled up the spiral, transferring
it from a lower to a higher level.
The invention of the pump is
traditionally ascribed to the
ancient Greek mathematician
Archimedes (287212 BCE) in
Archimedes Screw
A hollow cylinder with rotors in the shape
of a spiral inside, the screw pump pulls
water upwards. The original version
would have been turned by foot.
spiral-shaped
rotors move
water up shaft
water collected
from bottom
around 250 BCE, but it was
probably rst invented much
earlier, in the 7th century BCE
under the rule of King
Sennacherib of Assyria to water
his palace gardens at Nineveh.
By the 1st millennium BCE, the
Babylonians had begun to make
maps of larger areas. By around
600 BCE they had produced a
world map, which showed
the city of Babylon in relation
to eight surrounding regions.
The rst known Chinese map,
found on an engraved bronze
plaque in the tomb of King Cuo
of Zhongshan, was a plan of the
kings proposed necropolis.
The ancient Greek cartographic
tradition began in Ionia in the
6th century BCE. Anaximander
(c.611546 BCE) is said to have
drawn the rst world map that
rotation
of shaft
water expelled
from top
showed Earth surrounded cuneiform inscriptions
by a great ocean. Hecataeus
of Miletus (c.550480 BCE) also
drew a map to accompany
his Survey of the World
that showed three great
continents, Libya (Africa),
Asia, and Europe.
The rst evidence of
scientic (as opposed
to supernatural)
thinking about the
nature of the world
came from ancient
Greek philosophers in
the 6th and 5th centuries
BCE. Thales of Miletus
(b. c.620 BCE) believed
that water was the
fundamental material
of the universe, and
that earthquakes
happened when
the surface of Earth
rocked on the watery
surface on which it
oated. In contrast,
Anaximander, who
was also from Miletus,
believed that the prime
material of the universe
was apeiron, a substance Salt Sea
that preceded air, re, and
water. He also put forward an
early evolutionary theory, Ancient map
suggesting that humans had This Babylonian
developed from a type of sh. map from around
600 BCE shows the relationship
The rst atomic theory was
between Babylon and other
also proposed by a Greek, the important places in West Asia,
philosopher Democritus of city of Babylon including Assyria and Urartu.

se t
su ta de
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CE
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a e c ght s 0 BC ar olu 3 0 B s th f th iang eore
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Ba rrou rig Pyt
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BC Th d th s th iver pa th am
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ar r i un Eu nel on S
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Ar use er a
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24
 1.04
KILOMETRES
THE LENGTH OF THE
TUNNEL OF EUPALINOS
AT SAMOS

The Tunnel of Eupalinos, built in the 6th century BCE, may have been excavated
accurately by surveying a series of right-angled triangles above ground.

Abdera (460370 BCE), who PLATO (424348 BCE) scriptures called the Vedas The Maya of Mesoamerica
postulated that matter was completed c.500 BCE contain developed a complex calendrical
made up of an innite number references to using astronomical system based on a series of
of minute, indivisible particles. One of the most inuential of observations for calculating the cycles based on the number 20,
The most famous the ancient Greek philosophers, dates of religious ceremonies which may initially have been
mathematician of the ancient Plato proposed a type of ideal and identies 28 star patterns developed by the Olmecs (the
world was the Greek, Pythagoras society ruled by philosopher- in the night sky to help track rst major civilization in Mexico)
of Samos (c.580500 BCE). kings, and espoused the the movements of the Moon. before the 5th century BCE. The
He established a school that importance of ethics as a guide In the 5th century BCE, Greek Mayan Haab (year) had 18 months
promoted the mystical powers to a just life. In his many works, thinkers moved away from of 20 days plus one of vedays
of numbers and particularly of he set out a theory of ideal simple cosmological theories one of the two elements of the
the tetraktys, the perfect forms, of which the material towards more sophisticated Calendar Round cycle. Mayan
arrangement of 10 as a triangle world is only a reection. Most ideas about the nature of the astronomers also oriented
of four rows. He is best known of his books are cast in the universe. Heraclitus (c.535 monuments to sunset positions
for the theorem bearing his form of dialogues by his 475 BCE) sought to explain at the equinoxes and solstices,
name (see panel, below), but teacher Socrates. phenomena in terms of ux and and were able to predict eclipses.
he also rmly believed in the change. He also believed in the The cities of the Indus Valley
transmigration of souls and unity of opposites, saying the were laid out in a grid pattern
his followers lived by a strict set Zhou Bi Suan Jing (some parts earlier, Chinese mathematicians road is the same both up and around 2600 BCE, but the rst
of rules, including a prohibition of which date to as early as also invented magic squares down. Empedocles of Acragas person to theorize urban
on eating beans. 500 BCE), contain proof of square grids of numbers in (494434 BCE) believed that all planning was Hippodamus of
The oldest major Chinese Pythagorass theorem. At about which the numbers in all rows, matter consisted of varying Miletus (493408 BCE). He is said
mathematical treatise, the the same time, or possibly all columns, and both diagonals proportions of earth, air, re, to have devised an ideal city for
add up to the same total. and water. This theory 10,000 citizens, laid
PYTHAGORASS THEOREM By around 530 BCE, Greek of four elements out on a grid. Using
surveying expertise had advanced remained his Hippodamian
The theorem of Pythagoras a2 + b2 = c2 sufciently to allow the engineer inuential for grid, he also laid out
states that the sum of the 9 + 16 = 25 Eupalinos of Samos to excavate many centuries. Piraeus, the harbour
squares of the two short a water channel 1.04 km town of Athens, and
sides of a right-angled (0.65 miles) through a hillside Thurii in Italy.
triangle are equal to by digging tunnels from each
the square of the end. The two tunnels met almost
hypotenuse (the long perfectly in the middle. Eupalinos Mesoamerican
c b glyph for Zapotec
calendrics
side). Although associated may have used Pythagorass year Four
a This Zapotec stele
with the Greek mathematician theorem to survey right-angled Serpent
from Monte Albn
Pythagoras, the theorem was b2 = 16 triangles above ground to in Mexico dates
known to the Babylonians around determine the path of the channel. from 500400 BCE
and contains some glyph for
1800 BCE and possibly also to the Indian astronomy is thought Zapotec day
of the earliest
Egyptians as early as 1900 BCE. a2 = 9 to have its roots in the Indus calendary glyphs Eight Water
Civilization. Ancient Hindu sacred from Mesoamerica.

ts
en r ise nd
u
us
us m at ced us rit he
e le a jo r e u Hi wn m
cata ces d e se ly e n m cal t prod e nt kno d da id oc es t
n r i te o m s
He odu orl i
Ch ians uare
s a
E E kno ma
w ti re c
An ture ple
s pp gr De opo ry
E
BC s p
r w BC e g a Hi wn CE r o
0 th
e B CE
t i c s q 0 st h
at in B CE
rip o m BC
E
to s 0 B ra p c the
0 tu
c.5 Mile p of 00 ma ic 0 r
c.5 the e m an J 00 sc re c 1 s
45 sign aeu
2 e
c. 4 Abd tom
i
c.5 athe mag c.5 cred as a
of ma m n t of ines i Su a
s V e d d e Pi
r of st a
his inv
e Ch ou B as for r
Zh

s es s
tu nt cle
cli s za onte do ry
e ra se i x n
Da t M ring pe theo ts
H ve u r
BC
E
ni of BC
E
d a ea les Em his en
00 he u ate 4 00 ecte o, b mp in CE
0 B ard r ele
m
. 5
c at t stt 0 er xic xa tes a 5
4 fo ou w
h n 50 elae n Me wn e da eric ts of f
e s t nsta st n i kno itten oam pu
iz
e or a co b
Al rst f w Me
r s
th in o
25
 2.5 MYA 7 9 9 CE B E FO R E S C I E N C E B E GA N

THE STORY OF 4 triangular

faces arranged

GEOMETRY
in same plane

ONE OF THE OLDEST BRANCHES OF MATHEMATICS, GEOMETRY IS EXPANDING INTO NEW AREAS

The term geometry derives from ancient Greek words meaning Earth 6 edges

measurement, but this branch of mathematics encompasses more than

map-making. It is about relationships between size, shape, and dimension
and also about the nature of numbers and mathematics itself.
Geometry rst arose as a series of ad hoc rules
and formulae used in planning, construction, and
mathematical problem-solving across the
ancient world. Greek philosophers such as
Thales, Pythagoras, and Plato were the rst to
recognize geometrys fundamental relationship
to the nature of space, and to establish it as a
eld of mathematics worthy of study in its
own right. Euclid, probably a student of Plato
and a teacher at Alexandria, summed up
early Greek geometry in his great work
The Elements, written around 300 BCE, and
established fundamental mathematical and
scientic principles
through complex
geometrical models
developed from a
handful of simple
rules or axioms.
Axioms of geometry
Euclids approach to
geometry had a huge
and lasting inuence
on later mathematicians.
Tetrahedron
BREAKTHROUGHS IN UNDERSTANDING
Throughout medieval times, philosophers
and mathematicians from various cultures
continued to use geometry in their models of
the Universe, but the next major breakthrough
did not come until the 17th century, with the
work of French mathematician and philosopher
Ren Descartes. His invention of coordinate
systems to describe the positions of points
in two-dimensional and three-dimensional
space gave rise to the eld of analytical
geometry, which used the new tools of
mathematical algebra to describe and
solve geometrical problems.
Descartess work led to more exotic forms of
geometry. Mathematicians had long known that
there were regions, such as the surface of a
sphere, where the axioms of Euclidian geometry Octahedron
did not hold. Investigation of such non-Euclidian
geometries revealed even more fundamental
12 edges
principles linking geometry and number, and in
1899 allowed German mathematician David
Hilbert to produce a new, more generalized,
set of axioms. Throughout the 20th century,
and into the 21st, these have been applied to
a huge variety of mathematical scenarios. 8 triangular faces

c.2500 BCE 360 BCE c.400 CE

Practical geometry
Early geometry is
driven by the need to
solve problems such
as working out the
volume of material
required to build
a pyramid.
Platonic solids Archimedean solids 1619
These ve regular, convex polyhedra Greek mathematician Keplers polyhedra
(solids with several sides) are long Pappus describes German
known, but Plato now links them to 13 convex polyhedra, mathematician
ideas about the structure of matter. comprising regular Johannes Kepler
They comprise ve shapes that can be polygons of two or more discovers a new class
formed by the joining together of types meeting in identical of polyhedra known
Pyramids at Giza identical faces along their edges. vertices or corners. as star polyhedra.

c.500 BCE 4th century BCE 9 th century

Pythagoras Geometric tools Islamic geometry
The Greek philosopher The hugely inuential philosopher Mathematicians and astronomers
lends his name to the Plato argues that the tools of a true of the Islamic world explore
formula for calculating geometrician should be restricted the possibilities of spherical
the hypotenuse (long to the compass and straight geometry; geometric patterns
side) of a right-angled edge, and so helps to establish used in Islamic decoration at this
triangle from the lengths geometry as a science rather Pair of time show similarities to modern
of its other two sides. Theorem of Pythagoras than a practical craft. compasses fractal geometry. Mosaic at Alhambra

26

Platonic solids
There are only ve convex polyhedra
(solids having several sides) that can
be formed by joining identical polygons
(shapes with three or more sides). Known
as the Platonic solids, they are the cube
(hexahedron), tetrahedron, octahedron,
dodecahedron, and icosahedron.
6 square faces
12 edges
Hexahedron (cube)
Dodecahedron
12 pentagonal
faces
20 triangular
faces
30 edges
1637
Analytic geometry
Ren Descartess inuential work
La Gometrie introduces the idea
that points in space can be measured
with coordinate systems, and that
geometrical structures can be
described by equations a eld
Keplers polyhedra known as analytic geometry.
1858
Topology
Mathematicians become
fascinated by topology edges
and surfaces, rather than
specic shapes. The iconic
Mbius strip is an object with
a single surface and a single
Mbius strip continuous edge.
T H E S TO R Y O F G E O M E T R Y
SPHERICAL GEOMETRY
So-called spherical geometry allows the
calculation of angles and areas on spherical
surfaces, such as points on a map or the
positions of stars and planets on the imaginary
celestial sphere used by astronomers. This
system does not follow all Euclidean rules.
In spherical geometry, the three angles in
a triangle sum to more than 180 degrees and
parallel lines eventually intersect.
Icosahedron
,,
,,
LET NO ONE DESTITUTE
OF GEOMETRY COME
UNDER MY ROOF.
30 edges Plato, Greek philosopher and mathematician, c.427347 BCE
Z
20th century
(x,y,z) Fractal geometry
Computing power allows fractals
x z equations in which detailed
Y patterns repeat on varying scales
y to be illustrated in graphical
X form, producing iconic
Cartesian images such as the Mandelbrot
system famous Mandelbrot set. fractal
1882 Present day
Klein discovery Computerized proofs
Investigating geometries Computer power solves
with more than three problems such as the
dimensions, German four-colour theorem
scholar Felix Klein (only four colours are
discovers a construct needed to distinguish
with no surface Modern between regions of
boundaries. Klein bottle even complex maps). Four-colour map
27
400335 BCE

Euclids Elements is one of the most important mathematical texts from the ancient world.
It consists of 13 books and was originally written in Greek.

,, IF YOU CUT OPEN

THE HEAD, YOU WILL
FIND THE BRAIN

,,
HUMID, FULL OF
SWEAT AND HAVING
A BAD SMELL
Hippocrates, from On the Sacred Disease, 400 BCE

Healing hands began the study of dynamics by

ASTRONOMERS IN GREECE
were interested in predicting
the location of celestial bodies.
This led the Greek astronomer
Eudoxus of Cnidus (c.408355 BCE)
to develop a geometrical model
of the heavens, in which the
Sun, Moon, and planets moved
in a series of 27 concentric
spheres. He also made an
accurate estimate of the length
of the year at 365.25 days. At the
time, most Greek astronomers
believed Earth was stationary at
the centre of the Solar System,
but Heraclides of Pontus
(388312 BCE) offered a variation
on this theory. He claimed that
Earth rotated on an axis, which
explained the changing seasons.
Greek medicine moved in a
more scientic direction when
Alcmaeon of Croton began to
teach that health is achieved
by balancing the elements in
the body. Hippocrates of Cos
(460370 BCE), who valued clinical
observation, including taking
a patients pulse, applied this
theory, teaching that imbalances
in the body and impurities in
the air could cause disease.
In the mid-5th century BCE,
Euryphon of Cnidus, who was
A marble frieze
showing
Hippocrates
treating a sick
woman. He
advocated careful
examination to
determine the
underlying
disease.
from a rival school, taught that and water to include a fth
diseases were caused by residues aither which caused the stars
building up in the body and and planets to move in a circular
advised that these be neutralized. motion. Aristotle modied
The Greek polymath, Aristotle, Eudoxuss theory to explain
rened the theory of the four anomalies, adding additional
elements earth, air, re, spheres to a total of 55. He also
MOTION OF THE SPHERES
Greek astronomers explained irregularities in planetary motions
by theorizing that the Sun, Moon, and planets each sat in a series
of concentric spheres. The circular motion (at differing speeds) of
each sphere generated the planets orbits.
In the early 2nd century, the astronomer Ptolemy replaced the
spheres with circles in his model of the Solar System.
theorizing that speed could be
directly proportional to the weight
of the body, the force applied,
and the density of the medium
in which the body moved.
The foundations of geometry
were laid in the mid-4th century
BCE by the Greek mathematician
and father of geometry, Euclid
of Alexandria (325265 BCE)
in his 13-book work called
Elements. In it he puts forward
a set of ve geometrical
postulates and nine common
notions (or axioms). From these
he deduced a set of theorems,
including Pythagorass theorem,
and that the sum of angles in a
triangle is always 180 degrees.
Elements also included
pioneering work on number
theory, including an algorithm
for the greatest common divisor.

tes ces s t
ra
oc alan ato ry de
p Pl theo cli tha s
p
Hi imb BC
E ra es axi
t 0 the e
H ach its
CE
0 B s tha can 35 rd BC
E
te on
0 y 9 0 rwa ms 50 tus tes
c. 4 che bod ase c.3 ts fo l fo
r . 3
c Po rotan
tea the dise pu idea of rth
in use o f Ea
ca

s m e
nd fro s otl
ou ol us at k i ist of
a to f cho ns ox s Bo mar sel Ar ory es
s n es CE e
Pl my the ud s hi f CEB
De lt v
B th her
CE e A E p o 00 22 e p
7 B cad at 3 ng in -bui 3 es th of s
E
BC elo n
8
3 eA 75 ev otio res 0
5 ri er 0
35 en tion
th c.3 us d of m phe c.3 rtsp link r o
id y ls o
Hj rst
c m
Cn or tia
of the les e
e
28 c t h
334300 BCE

14
THOUSAND
THE NUMBER OF SPECTATORS
THAT CAN BE SEATED AT THE
THEATRE IN EPIDAURUS

The acoustic properties of the theatre at Epidaurus in Greece, built by Polycleitus the Younger in
the 4th century BCE , allowed the actors to be heard perfectly up to 60 m (197 ft) from the stage.

GREEK MEDICINE MADE engineering was used in the

SIGNIFICANT ADVANCES hydraulic machinery needed
in the 4th century BCE after to raise fuel to the re that
the dissection of human bodies burned on top by night. During
was pioneered by Diocles of the day, a mirror of polished
Carystus, who wrote the rst metal or glass reected the
book devoted to anatomy. The Sun to create a warning beacon
foundation of the Museum, a for ships.
scientic academy set up by Pythagoras had experimented
Ptolemy I of Egypt (367283 BCE), with acoustics in the 6th century
helped give rise to an Alexandrian BCE. Aristotle advanced his work
school of medicine. One further in the 4th century BCE by
member, Herophilus of Via Appia theorizing that sound consisted
Chalcedon (335280 BCE), The rst major Roman road, the Via In Europe, wooden trackways of contractions and expansions
Appia, originally ran from Rome
identied the brain as the seat to Capua. It was gravelled; paving
had been used to traverse wet in the air. The Greek theatre at
of the nervous system and stones were added in 295 BCE. and marshy ground since Epidaurus used stepped rows of
made a distinction between Neolithic times, but proper seats to lter out low-frequency
arteries and veins. the force that pulls heavy roads needed a strong, background noise, which
Greek understanding of objects down. He argued for centralized political authority allowed actors to be heard
physics also progressed under the existence of a vacuum and to build and maintain them. In perfectly in the back row.
Strato of Lampsacus (c.335 showed that, because air can be 312 BCE, the Romans began to Compiled before 300 BCE,
269 BCE). He rejected the idea compressed, voids must exist construct a vast network of the Chinese text Huang Di Pharos of Alexandria
of a force pushing light objects, between the particles of which roads, that bound their empire Nei Jing explains human The Pharos of Alexandria was one
of the Seven Wonders of the World.
such as air, upwards to counter it is made up. together. The rst road they physiology and pathology in It was destroyed by an earthquake
built, which ran from Rome terms of the balancing forces in the 14th century.
ARISTOTLE (384322 BCE) to Capua, was called Via Appia. of the universe: the opposing,
Roman roads were 38 m but mutually dependent, thought to be caused by an
A founding gure in Western (1026 ft) wide and were laid principles of yin and yang; the imbalance of yin and yang, in
philosophy, Aristotle was a pupil out on solid clay beds or timber ve elements (earth, re, wood, the patients qi, and in the
at Platos Academy in Athens. frameworks, lled with loose water, and metal); and qi, the ve elements that had their
During his career he wrote int or gravel. Sometimes they essence of which everything is counterparts in the organs of
more than 150 treatises on were bound together with lime composed. Ill health was the body and the environment.

5
almost every aspect of Greek mortar and topped with paving
philosophy and science. He stones, or cobbles in cities.
taught an empirical approach, The Pharos of Alexandria THE NUMBER OF
that knowledge is gained from was commissioned c.300 BCE
experience, and that all matter by the ruler of Egypt, Ptolemy I. PLATONIC SOLIDS
consists of a changeable form
and an unchangeable substance.
It was the tallest lighthouse in
the ancient world at 125150 m
(REGULAR POLYHEDRALS)
(410492 ft) high. Innovative IN EUCLIDEAN GEOMETRY
d
e
otl m CE y, sis an
a ist eu 0 B es or s
ilu s e ba m a
E f xtr Ar Lyc ns 27 clud The ph ie y I aros E t h a s d e u i
BC
0 us o ds e n
30 n i en t e ro ent at m h BC s s ru ds ar s dr I
Mu an
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4 B th th
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sp eory wh nda ic t of e br nerv co Alex th Gre E le geo h u Fir der- is
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29
300250 BCE

,, EUREKA! I HAVE FOUND IT.

Attributed to Archimedes, Greek inventor and philosopher c.287c.212 BCE
,,
The Roman writer Vitruvius recorded that when Archimedes got into his bath he noticed that his
body displaced a certain amount of water. This gave him the idea for the Archimedes Principle.

MAGNETIC IRON LODESTONES
were described in Chinese
literature of the 3rd century BCE.
By c.83 the Chinese text Lun-
heng (Discourses Weighed in the
Balance) had mentioned
the electrostatic qualities of
amber, which becomes charged
when rubbed.
At around this time, Chinese
diviners may also have discovered
that iron, when rubbed against a
lodestone, becomes magnetized
and will point in a particular
direction. The rst primitive
compasses were iron ladles
set on divining boards that
pointed south.
In Greece, Theophrastus of
Lesbos (c.370287 BCE) a pupil of
Aristotle and also his successor
as head of the Lyceum school in
Athens, extended Aristotles
work, particularly in botany.
He wrote Enquiry into Plants and
On the Causes of Plants, which
classied plants into trees,
shrubs, and herbs. He also
began the study of plant
reproduction and discussed
the best methods of cultivation
for agriculture and companion
planting to combat pests.
In astronomy, Aristarchus of
Samos (c.310230 BCE) rejected forces water through the
the prevailing view among early
Greek astronomers that Earth
was at the centre of the Solar
System. He believed that Earth
rotated in orbit around the Sun;
whether he considered the other
planets also orbited the Sun is
unclear. Aristarchus estimated
the comparative sizes of the
Sun and Earth at a ratio of about
20:1, and calculated
the distance
between Earth and
the Sun to be 499
times the radius
of Earth.
The science
of pneumatics
was founded by
Ctesibius of
Alexandria in the
early 3rd century
BCE. It is said that
one of his rst
inventions was
Chinese compass
A Han-era compass
in the form of a
magnetized ladle
set on a bronze
plate, featuring
a diviners
representation
of the cosmos.
Ctesibian pump
The rocker arm pushes the
piston down on one side,
creating pressure that
closes the inlet valve and
moves pistons
outow tube. Reduced
pressure on the opposite
side opens the valve to let
more water in.
chamber lls
with water
reduced pressure
opens inlet valve
water sucked in
an adjustable-height mirror for
his fathers barber shop that used
air compressed by counterweights
to move up and down. He
developed this idea to produce the
Ctesibian device, a two-chamber
force pump that used pistons
attached to a rocker to create
pressure. With the chambers of
the device immersed in water, the
rocker was moved up and down,
alternately sucking water into
one chamber and forcing it out
of the other.
Another inventor, and
philosopher, Archimedes
(287212 BCE) was also one of
the greatest mathematicians
of ancient Greece. In On the
Measurement of a Circle he
presented a method for
calculating the area and
pivot
water
rocker arm forced up
and out
piston
goes up piston
goes down
pressure
pushes
outlet
valve open
reduced pressure pressure
shuts outlet valve forces inlet
valve shut
circumference of a circle. He
also produced methods for
calculating the volumes of solids,
proving that the volume of a
sphere inside a circumscribed
cylinder is two-thirds that of
the cylinder. Archimedes was the
founder of hydrostatics (the
science of uids at rest). He
showed that objects placed in
water will displace a quantity of
liquid equal to their buoyancy.
He also developed a systematic
theory of statics, showing how
two weights balance each other
at distances proportional to their
relative magnitude. His aptitude
for practical applications led him
to develop the Archimedes screw
(see 700400 BCE) to pump out
the bilges of a huge ship he built
for the ruler of Syracuse. During

es e
us ed g th a
i m n
ch ch ati are
i star ps Ar lcul nd
Ar velo ory a
E a
BC c e
CE e e 60 on enc
5 0 B os d ic th c.2 rks fer
c.2 Sam entr o
w cu cl m e
r
of lioc cir a ci
he of

CEB
00 of
c.3 stus to of
a s
hr art ts us s
e op s st plan s ibi lop
e e p
Th sbo ify Ct dev um
Le lass 0 BC
E
r ia an p
c 5 nd ibi
c.2 lexa tes
A eC
30 th
 249100 BCE

Erasistratus is said to have cured Antiochus, the son of Seleucus I of Syria, who was gravely ill. He identied the disease
as love-sickness for his stepmother Stratonice, one of the rst diagnoses of a psychosomatic illness.

the Roman conquest of Sicily, in ANATOMY ADVANCED as the Sieve of Eratosthenes

214 BCE, he was employed by the
state to build various machines
to defend Syracuse from attack.
This included the Claw of
Archimedes a type of crane
with a huge grappling hook that
could capsize enemy ships.
volume of water displaced
is equal to volume of object
heavy
load
upthrust equal
to weight of
water displaced
ARCHIMEDES PRINCIPLE
This states that a solid object,
partly or wholly immersed in
a liquid, has a buoyant force
acting on it that is equal to
the weight of the uid it
displaces. The relative density
of the object can be worked
out by dividing the weight of
the object by the weight of the
displaced liquid. The boat
above can support a heavy
load because it displaces
a lot of water, therefore the
buoyant force supporting it
is equally great.
CONSIDERABLY IN GREECE with
the work of Erasistratus of Cos
(c.304250 BCE). He developed a
theory of vascular circulation,
in which he said that blood
passed through the body in veins,
while arteries distributed pneuma
(air) to vital organs. He also gave
an accurate description of the
brain, including the cerebellum,
and distinguished sensory from
motor nerves.
Eratosthenes of Cyrene
(c.275195 BCE) made the rst
map of the world featuring
lines of longitude and latitude
in around 240 BCE. He also
calculated the dimensions of
Earth by comparing the angles
of shadows at noon at Alexandria
and Syene in Egypt, which are
on roughly the same longitude.
He yielded a gure of 250,000
stades about 48,070 km
(29,870 miles) which is within
one per cent of the true gure.
Eratosthenes
also worked out
a simple method
of nding prime
numbers, known
Basilica
Maxentius
This early 4th-
century concrete
Basilica was the
largest building in
Rome at the time.
(see panel, right). circled numbers crossed-out numbers
Greek geometry advanced are primes are non-primes
further in the late 3rd century BCE
with the work of Apollonius of 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Perga (c.262190 BCE), whose
major work was entitled On 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Conics. In it he described
the properties of the three 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
fundamental types of conic
section the ellipse, parabola, 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
and hyperbola. He also developed
the theory of epicycles circular
orbits rotating around a larger
41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
circumference to rene the
theory of the motion of the SIEVE OF ERATOSTHENES
spheres (see 400335 BCE).
The Romans found a way This is a simple algorithm for nding prime numbers. Starting at 2,
of bonding small stones to without striking it out, strike out all multiples of 2 to the end of the
produce concrete in the late 2nd series. Return to the next non-struck out number (3) and without
century BCE. By adding pozzolana striking it out strike out every multiple of 3 to the end. Repeat the
stone (ash from prehistoric process; eventually all the non-struck out numbers will be prime.
volcanoes) to lime, they produced
a strong binding mortar. This
meant they could build stronger using concrete was the Porticus Hipparchus also calculated the
and cheaper monumental Aemilia in Rome in 193 BCE. length of the year to be 365.2467
buildings. The rst structure built Observational astronomy was days very close to the true value.
revolutionized by Hipparchus of At this time, the Chinese were
Nicaea (c.190120 BCE), who made busy rening the production of
a new map of the heavens that paper. The process of soaking
catalogued 850 stars. He invented and pulping textile rags then
a new astronomical sighting tool drying them out on a screen to
and surveying instrument called produce a brous mat for writing
the dioptra that was in use until on, probably dates from the late
it was replaced by the armillary 3rd century BCE. Although the
sphere. Using the dioptra, he invention of paper is often
discovered the phenomenon ascribed to Cai Lun (50121),
of precession, by which stars he probably just rened this
appear to move gradually in process and introduced new pulp
relation to the equinoxes. materials, such as tree bark.

p
tu
s es ve
lo
en k of s
tra th s de s
ri d
ya c BC
E
us ibe
sis shes to s e lt s
ve ea ka cti 60 ch cr the
a
Er gui om ra asur ns Ce yre Sil m l T he n Ar c.1 ppar des of
EE E i
CE n
0 B disti um f
r BC m
e sio
n 0 BC
o nt B C E
fro es BC
E
ed a Hi caea sion
5 4 0 ne e 20 e ir 00 ted And 00 lop ric Ni eces xes
c.2 Cos rebr llum c.2 Cyre s dim re c c.2 trac the c.2 deve Ame
of e ce rebe of rth fo pie ex e in is rth pr uino
Be gle eq
th e ce Ea si n or No
th

of f
eo ity
ius the ch ake jor s
o n o
M m ce Ma lyph u ge
oll es ns E
ica pie s CE g r tl
ar
Ap crib ctio BC
00 mer wo- uld 00 eo Pe rs ding is
BC
E
es se 2 5 ca g d in il
30 ga nic
d .
c h A x t mo C E z e e
Th e bu ilia me

c.2 Per f co ut ple ry 0 B Na eat E
m Ro
So com otte 20 the e cr BC ret e
so 3 A n
tie
p of ar 19 conc cus ilt i
p er rti bu
pr
o Po
31
100 BCE49 CE
,, THE LAWS OF MECHANICS ARE

,,
FOUNDED ON THOSE OF NATURE, AND ARE
ILLUSTRATED BY STUDYING THE MASTER-
MOVEMENTS OF THE UNIVERSE ITSELF.
Marcus Vitruvius Pollio, Roman architect and engineer, from
Ten Books on Architecture, c.15 BCE

A medieval depiction of a Vitruvian undershot waterwheel. Operated with a hand lever, the buckets ll with
water as the wheel rotates and the buckets dip into a water source. The water is deposited at the top.

THE ANTIKYTHERA MECHANISM time cycles, such as the 19-year
IS A COMPLEX DEVICE that shows Metonic cycle the basis for
the earliest understanding of the ancient Greek calendar.
gears. Dating from around By the 1st century BCE the
80 BCE, it was recovered in 1900 Maya calendar had developed
from a shipwreck off the Greek a 5,125-year era known as the
island of Antikythera. Made up Long Count. Twenty tun (years)
of a series of bronze toothed made a katun, 20 katun were
dials and at least 30 gears, it a baktun, and 13 of these
is thought to have been used completed the whole era. The
to predict solar and lunar earliest known date inscribed
eclipses and to track other in the Long Count system is
9 December, 36 BCE; this is found
driven gear rotates on a stele at Chiapa de Corzo
anti-clockwise in Mexico. The Maya also used
a 52-year Calendar Round,
with two elements working in
combination the 260-day Tzolkin
calendar and the 365-day Haab.
Around 90 BCE Posidonius of
Apamea, (c.13550 BCE) used
the relative position of the star
Canopus, seen from Alexandria
and Rhodes, to calculate the
driver gear rotates
clockwise
size of Earth. His calculation
was 240,000 stades, only slightly
GEARS smaller than the estimate of
Eratosthenes of Cyrene (see
Mentioned c.330 BCE by 250100 BCE). Posidonius also
Aristotle, the Romans calculated the size of the Moon
brought gears into common and made a study of tides,
use during this period in
ROMAN VETERINARY SCIENCE
Roman interest in veterinary
science sprang from the needs
of farmers and also of the
army, which had large cavalry
units. In the army, specialists
called mulomedicus cared for
military donkeys and horses.
Around 45 CE the Roman
writer Columella wrote
extensively on the care and
diseases of farm animals.
relating them to the phases
of the Moon.
Around this time, the Greek
physician Asclepiades of Bithynia
(c.12940 BCE) put forward his
idea of the brain being the seat
of sensation. He developed a
theory of disease based on the
ow of atoms in the body, a
doctrine he derived from the
atomic theory of the 5th-century-
BCE philosopher Democritus. His
treatment methods were very
subtle, prescribing baths and
exercises. Perhaps less humane
The Romans also advanced
engineering in this period. The
architect Vitruvius (c.8415 BCE)
was the rst to explain
the use of siphons
to lessen hydraulic
pressure in pumps.
He also described
the Vitruvian turning
wheel. When the wheel was
turned, buckets emptied water
into a channel at the top and
early terracotta lled up from a water source
horse head at the bottom. This type of
undershot waterwheel had
probably been invented earlier,
were the practices of his follower but Vitruvius may have rened
Themison of Laodicea, who was it to make it more effective.
the rst recorded physician to Glassblowing was developed
use leeches to bleed patients. around 50 BCE in Roman-
The Roman writer Celsus controlled Syria. Glassmakers
(c.25 BCE50 CE) produced one obtained a more even ow by
of the most important blowing molten glass through a
texts on medicine, tube (either freely or into
De Medicina, an a mould), rather
encyclopaedic than just pouring
summary of medical it. The higher
knowledge of the quality glassware
time. In it, he gave that resulted led to
accounts of the use the establishment
of opiates for calming of glassworks
patients and laxatives throughout the

3
waterwheels and hoists. to purge them. He Roman Empire.

MILLION
Gears are made up of sets of also detailed many
interlocking toothed wheels. surgical techniques,
They work when a larger including the removal Roman glass
wheel engages with a small THE DIAMETER OF THE SUN of kidney stones The strong colours
of this 1st century CE
wheel and alters the speed of
a driving mechanism.
IN STADES, ACCORDING and how to operate
on cataracts (clouding
vase from Lebanon
are typical of the early
TO POSIDONIUS of the lens in the eye). Imperial period.

e
es ine
g hin st to y br g
of t nin e ct CE
C r b lin
ing es ai at ite l
c.1 e the t sa d bo
t i
CE ion ra rli cont nt d rch se
0 B ruct ythe low e a
E n ou a u ar trac an
8
c. nst tik
b
s th t E
tio C an es
las by van
BC
36 crip ong m ib ex ning
Co e An nism EG d Le s L Ro escr mp m
i
BC ope
E
th cha e in ya C d u
0 l th Ma 5 B us e p
m
e c.5 deve s in c.1 ruvi forc
is rian i
V tht e
Sy of

of ea ius es us
se a
f u hin am e uv s
itr hod d rit g C els cal
o
e in C Ap e siz n es V
et an l a w erin s CE e d i a
n c f
s o th oo iad ps CE
5 B s m ng ts
e l
m co as
v e 50 m icin
ide re niu tes d M lep elo ry c.1 ribe veyi educ olu tise dise 2 5 the Med
Ev nctu do cula h an
c
As dev heo e C c. ces De
E i s c ur qu ea l
5 C a tr ima
u s E u
C CE ia t s de of s g a
0 B up Po cal Eart 5 B hyn ist isea od dia
c.9 ac CE .7
c Bit tom f d in c. 4 an pr ope
0B of o ild c l
c .9 of he a bu cy
t en
32
5074
,,
,,
NATURE WILL NEVER FOLLOW
PEOPLE, BUT PEOPLE WILL HAVE TO
FOLLOW THE LAWS OF NATURE.
Dioscorides, Greek physician and botanist, from De Materia Medica, c.5070

An illustration of the common bilberry, traditionally used for circulatory problems, from
a 6th-century manuscript of Dioscoridess Materia Medica (Regarding Medical Materials).

Moche medicine
This ceramic from
the Moche culture
of Peru shows a
doctor treating
a recumbent
patient.
INDIAN MEDICINE HAD ITS
ROOTS IN THE VEDIC PERIOD
before 1000 BCE, but in the period
100 BCE100 CE, the Caraka
Samhit (Compendium of Caraka)
appeared as one of the earliest
Indian medical texts. The book
highlights the importance of
clinical examination and the
use of careful regimes of drugs or
diets to cure illnesses. Traditional
Indian, or ayurvedic, medicine
came to stress the importance
of balancing humours in the body
and ensuring srotas (channels) in
the body transport uids correctly.
Much of what is known about The Greek geometer and sphere is spun by steam forced through
medicine in ancient South inventor Hero of Alexandria steam power pipe and into sphere
America comes from (c.1070 BCE) described a variety
examination of the ceramics of of cranes including the barulkos,
the Moche people from the late which operated using a toothed
1st century CE onwards. These worm-gear that could not
depict a variety of injured patients, reverse and which prevented
bung blocks
including some with facial loads from slipping. He provided
steam from
paralysis, and also show the the rst description of a lathe exiting the
bent pipe allows
use of crutches, and primitive for the precision cutting of steam to escape, cauldron
prosthetic legs for amputees. screws, and was also the rst which pushes the
The rst pharmacopoeia to describe the use of a wind sphere around
(compilation of medicinal wheel, in which the
plants) was compiled by rotating vanes
Dioscorides in Greece. In it operated pistons
he described over 600 plants, that made the
including their physical pipes of a water
properties and effects on organ sound. Hero is
patients. Hugely inuential, perhaps most well known
it was used by physicians for his studies into the
throughout the Middle Ages. properties of steam. He used
The Huainanzi (Master Huainan) his knowledge to build an
is a compilation of Chinese aeolipile. This is a primitive cauldron
knowledge composed before form of steam engine that uses lled with
122 BCE. It touches on a range of steam to spin a hollow sphere. water
subjects, including philosophy,
metaphysics, natural science, cauldron
Heros aeolipile
and geography. It is notable for stand
The aeolipile is the only known
its analysis of mathematical and ancient machine operated by
steam. It makes the sphere spin by
musical harmonies, including
channelling steam from a cauldron fuel for re
a description of the traditional into a hollow sphere and out of the
12-tone Chinese scale. bent pipes that are attached to it.

600
THE NUMBER OF
PLANTS DESCRIBED
IN DIOSCORIDESS
DE MATERIA MEDICA
he
f et ss
eo uc es s
las gla
On n a od als rid
r
ep u
s co st s g me
BC
E
di a ak es an ibe s
o r s
le ro e
00 t In ar d of escr es Di ur ch pir
r 1 lies ts, C pile C hin ng m o
er a d ran 70 the ia olo poly em
t e r x 0 ili 0 H dri n c 5 0 iles poe C
0 e s an
Af e ea al te com c.5 st sa c.5 exan rive c. mp aco c.7 plac Rom
th dic t, is r Al ar-d co arm re the
e
m mhi ge ph in
Sa

t t
rs en r be
s ith s
s s nv s w ear an s
an glas e i g oa tri to p m
s sh tion ts i
h app Ro cale g
om w e in t i es 5 s
0 R do hin er t
co ca pa
r
es ams e 7 rd gh
in
10 win 5 0 C eath 0 S itri ram h i n r f or elya wei
. f c.5 se v en Be ste for
0 se c lf- 0C
c .5 u e u gth c .5 t
es en
th en inv
str

33
 2 . 5 M YA 7 9 9 C E B E FO R E S C I E N C E B E GA N

UNDERSTANDING
SIMPLE MACHINES
DEVICES THAT CHANGE THE SIZE AND DIRECTION OF FORCES HAVE BEEN USED SINCE ANCIENT TIMES

Mechanical devices are composed of different working parts. Among the
most important are six basic components called simple machines, which
mathematicians and engineers have studied since ancient times: the wheel
and axle, the inclined plane, the lever, the pulley, the wedge, and the screw.
Greek engineer Hero of Alexandria (1st century the pivot at which those forces act. So, to
CE) was the rst person to bring together the gain a very large mechanical advantage
simple machines, in his book Mechanica, (multiplication of force) and move a heavy
although the inclined plane was not included load a very long lever should be used, but
in his account. Hero illustrated and explained the load needs to be close to the pivot point.
various devices for lifting heavy objects. Others What the ancient engineers didnt realize is that
before him had studied why these devices there is always a pay-off between force and the
work most notably, Archimedes of Syracuse distance to gain a large mechanical advantage,
(3rd century BCE), who studied levers. Archimedes the long end of the lever moves through a large
worked out that the ratio between the input force distance, while the load moves only a small way.
(the effort) and the output force (the load) is Similarly, using pulleys to lift a heavy load, the
equal to the ratio between the distances from length of rope you must pull is much greater
than the distance the
HERO
Hero (or Heron) of load moves. The amount
Alexandria was one of work done by the
of the most prolic effort is the same as
engineers of ancient
Greece. He is seen here the amount of work
demonstrating his done by the load
aeolipile, an early (neglecting friction).
example of the use
of steam power.
INCLINED PLANE
People have used simple ramps (inclined planes)
to gain a mechanical advantage since prehistory.
A person raising an object by pushing it up a
ramp pushes with a lesser force than if they were
lifting the object directly; however, they have to
push along the ramps length, while the load
moves, vertically, a much shorter distance.
small effort force
can lift a heavy load
distance travelled
by the effort force
distance travelled
by the load
RAMP
The simplest example of an inclined plane is a ramp.
A heavy load can be pushed up a ramp in a continuous
motion that requires a smaller force than would be
required to lift the load straight up.
axe blade (load)
effort force
wood splits apart

handle on wheel horizontal force

(crank) turns in a
larger circle than
the axle

WEDGE
Two inclined planes back to back make a wedge. An axe
WHEEL AND AXLE blade is a wedge, which forced vertically into a block of wood
produces a strong horizontal force. The force splits the
The wheel was invented in Mesopotamia around wood but the two pieces move only a small distance apart.
3500 BCE. When a wheel is xed to an axle, the two
turn together; ancient engineers used wheels in axle
devices such as the windlass by winding ropes effort
rope lifts weight force
around the axle. The mechanical advantage of a the longer the inclined
plane (and the shallower
windlass is the ratio of the crank wheels radius the thread), the more
to the axles radius if the crank wheel has weight moves turns it takes to drive
the screw home
twice the radius of the axle, the effort force will less distance
effort force than the handle
be doubled. Door handles and bicycle cranks inclined plane
equivalent to the
are modern examples screw thread
of the wheel and axle. TURNING FORCE
Gears are interlocking A rope is pulled by an axle
turned by a wheel. By making
wheels without axles; a wheel much larger than the
the mechanical axle, it is possible to gain a
weight
SCREW
advantage is the ratio large mechanical advantage A screw thread is equivalent to an inclined plane wrapped
but the handle moves around a shaft. Turning a screw inside a material pulls it
of diameters between through a much greater inwards. Screws are also used to move water, grain, and
one gear and the next. distance than the weight. load other bulk materials in screw conveyors.

34
 U N D E R S TA N D I N G S I M P L E M A C H I N E S

PULLEYS LEVERS
A simple pulley a rope passed over a free-moving wheel effort is The mechanical advantage of a lever is the ratio
half the
has no mechanical advantage, because the rope is continuous. load of distances from the fulcrum (pivot) to the effort
But by passing the rope underneath a pulley, the load is shared and the load. The ratio can be equal to one, or
between two sections of the rope, and the effort is reduced by greater than or less than one. There are three
half; in that case, the load moves half as far as the end of the types of lever, distinguished by the positions of
rope is pulled. By combining two or more pulley blocks, the the effort and load relative to the fulcrum.
mechanical advantage can be increased further.
CLASS 1 LEVER
xed pulley block
SINGLE PULLEY A class 1 lever has the fulcrum
A rope passed over one pulley can fulcrum between the effort and the
load
raise a weight attached to the load. A seesaw is a familiar
end of the rope. This set-up has moveable example normally, the pivot
no mechanical advantage, but pulley block is in the centre with the load
pulley wheel
it does change the direction and effort at an equal distance,
around which
of the force and it can effort so there is no mechanical
the rope moves
be more convenient than advantage. However, an adult
simply lifting the weight. sitting close to the pivot can
PLIERS
be lifted by a child sitting
weight rises on the opposite end.
movement

load is raised
half as far as
rope is pulled load effort

end of the rope

moves the HALF THE EFFORT fulcrum
same distance A single pulley block can be used to
as the weight create a mechanical advantage of
two. If the rope is slung under the fulcrum
load is the pulley wheel, the force is shared CLASS 2 LEVER
weight of between the two sections of load In a class 2 lever, the load is
effort is the object rope either side of the pulley.
equal to load
closer to the fulcrum than the
effort is so the mechanical
advantage is greater than one.
This can make it easy to lift heavy
weights, as in a wheelbarrow.
BLOCK AND TACKLE EASY TO LIFT xed pulley
A block and tackle with more block with NUTCRACKER
An arrangement of two pulley
blocks, one xed and one pulley wheels gives an two wheels
moving, is called a block and increased mechanical
advantage. In this example, effort movement
tackle. The mechanical
advantage is still two, the job of lifting the load
because the load is is shared between four
pulled by two ropes sections of rope, so
but pulling the rope the mechanical
downwards is more advantage is four. load
convenient.
rope must be
xed pulled four
pulley times as far as fulcrum effort
block the weight rises

CLASS 3 LEVER
In a class 3 lever, the effort is
closer to the fulcrum than the load,
load so the mechanical advantage is
moveable always less than one. The load
moveable pulley block moves further (and faster) than
pulley block with two wheels
the effort; a golf club benets
effort
from this effect.

effort force is effort force is one

half the load quarter the load movement
fulcrum
TONGS

load

load is the load is the

weight of weight of fulcrum effort
the object the object

35
75249
,, BEARS WHEN FIRST BORN ARE

,,
SHAPELESS MASSES OF WHITE FLESH
A LITTLE LARGER THAN MICE, THEIR
CLAWS ALONE BEING PROMINENT.
Pliny the Elder, from Natural History, Book VIII, 77

Pliny the Elder holds a pair of surveyors dividers in this

medieval frontispiece of his book entitled Natural History.

THE ROMAN HISTORIAN AND
PHILOSOPHER PLINY THE ELDER
(2379) compiled Natural
History, a 37-volume summary
of ancient knowledge, which
he completed in 77. It contains
much of what we know about
Greek and Roman science,
covering mineralogy, astronomy,
mathematics, geography,
and ethnography, as well as
including detailed sections on
botany and zoology. Natural
History is also signicant
because it contains the only
references we have to the
work of earlier scientists.
During this period three Greek
physicians published notable
works on anatomy and diseases.
In the late 1st century, Aretaeus
of Cappadocia wrote The Causes
and Signs of Acute and Chronic
Diseases, describing a vast range
of diseases, their diagnosis,
causes, and treatment. He was
the rst physician to describe
both diabetes and coeliac
disease. Among the other
conditions he dealt with were
pleurisy, pneumonia, asthma,
cholera, and phthisis
(tuberculosis), for which he
prescribed trips to the seaside.
In 100, Greek physician
Rufus of Ephesus wrote On the
Names of the Parts of the Human
Body, summarizing the Roman
knowledge of anatomy. He gave
a detailed description of the eye,
3:10
Infant mortality
rate in Rome
Despite medical
advances, in the 1st and 2nd
centuries, the infant mortality rate in
Rome was still roughly 30 per cent.
and was the rst to identify
the optic chiasma, where the
optic nerves partially cross in
the brain. He was also the rst
to name the pancreas and
made a detailed study of
melancholia (depression).
In the early 2nd century, the
Greek physician Soranus of
Ephesus produced On the
Diseases of Women. This was
the most comprehensive work
on the subject from the ancient
world. In it, he described
the appropriate training
for midwives and
gave instructions
for managing
childbirth, such
as the use of
the obstetric
chair or
birthing
stool, explained the use of the
speculum mirror for internal
examinations and how to
administer intra-uterine
injections, as well as giving a
detailed description of specic
gynaecological conditions.
Soranus of Ephesus also
pioneered the science of
paediatrics. His work contained
advice on the early care of
infants, including the making
of articial teats for feeding, and
accounts of childhood afictions
such as tonsillitis, a variety of
fevers, and heat-stroke.
Zhang Heng (78139) was
a polymath whose work
in China in the early 2nd century direction of one of eight dragons
included calculating a value heads, which opened and
for pi, the identication of 124 released a ball into the mouth
constellations in the sky, and of a bronze frog below, indicating
the construction of an armillary the direction of the earthquake.
sphere with moving parts to In 138, Zhang Heng used the
show the rotation of the planets. seismograph to successfully
He is best known for the detect an earthquake that
construction of the earliest had happened more than
seismograph, which he 640 km (400 miles) from the
completed in 132. It consisted of Chinese court, where he was
demonstrating it.
a bronze urn with a pendulum
inside. When a tremor occurred, In the 3rd century BCE, the
the pendulum swung in the Romans discovered the principle
Zhang Hengs seismograph
Earths vibrations caused a pendulum in
the seismograph to move, which released
a ball from a dragons teeth into a frogs
mouth, indicating the direction
of the earthquake.
crank opens
dragons mouth
ball
ball drops
into frogs
mouth

es s, ian n
en s tu a sic tio d
th do Asi hy sus en ce
os rite ro f p nv a pla ted
em s w He n o es ek he e I
00 lt, t re
or
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0 G s of tre y r 1 au tha supp
c.7 ilali ook log c.1 hys iden 0 te n v lt
Ph extb lmo a p nor, ox c.1 ranu es a olog Af iwa -vau roof
a t htha Mi allp So oduc aec of rrel lier s
op sm pr gyn ba ear mn
on an colu
by

f
s us so he 00
su tae a lau uces , 0 T is r1 s
he se re doci s e
n d 10 om a te set r
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A es fo
or r f
s o tr atom 00 pa ete 00 ria nom of o f te
r lo hin n ia e
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an he s h y
i
Ru rite n an o es d
c an go pr
i
o o
e d d rch crit e pu
om iny t lete stor 0 ex tr g em es Tr ope A 10 th
10 w o rib Al on udin heor ngl
77
R
Pl mp l Hi sc rk incl s t tria ve
l wn ing
co ura de de do sur
wo s l
t lau ica ea
Na e ne pher m
36 M s
One of the most complete, original Roman bridges, the Pons Aelius was built by Emperor Hadrian to provide a processional
route to his mausoleum (now the Castel SantAngelo). In its original form the bridge had eight arches.

Ptolemys map a gladiatorial school, where he through the Arabic world,

of the weight-supporting arch,
and used it in bridge-building.
In around 104, the engineer
Apollodorus of Damascus had
constructed a great bridge
across the Danube to facilitate
the Emperor Trajans invasion
of Dacia (modern Romania).
Trajans bridge was destroyed
by his successor Hadrian c.120.
Hadrian himself had several
great bridges built, including
the Pons Aelius in Rome c.134.
The best-known works of
GreekRoman astronomer
Ptolemy of Alexandria (c.90168)
The coordinates and topographic
lists in Ptolemys Almagest enabled
maps to be composed of his view of
the world. This map dates from 1492.
are on mathematical geography
and astronomy. In Geography, he
gave a description of the known
world, including coordinates for
longitude and latitude (the latter
derived from the length of the
longest day) and gave instructions
for the creation of a world map.
In Mathematical Compendium,
also known as Almagest, Ptolemy
presented a star catalogue with
over 1,000 listed stars and 48
constellations. He rened the
theory of the celestial spheres,
introducing additional epicycles
to explain irregularities in the
motion of the Sun and the Moon
and the apparent retrograde
motion of certain planets, when
they appear to orbit in a contrary
direction to other bodies in the
gained valuable knowledge of
human physiology and surgery.
He championed the theory
that the body had four basic
humours (see panel, below).
The Bakshali manuscript,
found in what is now Pakistan,
dates from around 200 and
contains instructions for the
computation of square roots.
It is probably the earliest
document to use a specic sign
for zero in the decimal system,
making it the rst complete
decimal notation with a single
sign for each number value.
This system spread westwards
THE FOUR HUMOURS
The theory of the four
humours stated that the body
is composed of four substances:
blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and
black bile. In blood, the four
acquiring the popular name
of Arabic numerals.
Chinese mathematics had
made signicant advances by
the time Jiuzhang Suanshu (Nine
Chapters on the Mathematical
Art) was in existence in 179.
It included rules for the
calculation of the area of arcs
of circles, for solid gures such
as cones, and for the treatment
of vulgar fractions (written in the
form x/y). It contained instructions
for the calculation of linear
equations, including the earliest
appearance of equations with
negative numbers.
air
blood

w
CLAUDIUS GALEN (c.130c.210)

ho
Solar System. He was the rst elements of the universe

et
Spring
astronomer to convert (re, air, earth, and
ldhood
Born in the ancient Greek city observational data into a water) are mixed Chi

w
e

at
r

Ma

crepitud
Summer

er
Winter
of Pergamum, Claudius Galen mathematical model to back equally, while yellow

nhood
phlegm
bile
consolidated the works of his up his theories, using spherical in the other

De
predecessors to create a single trigonometry to do so. His model humours, one Old age
scientic framework. His of the Solar System remained element predominates. Autumn
insistence on direct observation the basis of astronomical theory An excess of one humour

ld
dr

co
y

black
of the body cut across his view until the Renaissance. was believed to cause bile
that each of the bodys organs In 169, Claudius Galen became disease. Too much yellow bile
functioned according to a personal physician to the Roman led to jaundice, too much black
divinely ordained scheme. emperor Marcus Aurelius. Galen bile to leprosy, and too much
He wrote 350 medical works. specialized in anatomy and had phlegm to pneumonia. earth
earlier worked as a surgeon to

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37
250 499

This 15th-century painting depicts the seven liberal arts, core subjects such as arithmetic, music, astronomy, rhetoric, and grammar
that the 5th-century writer Martianus Capella established as the basis of early medieval European education.

DIOPHANTUS OF ALEXANDRIA Roman surgical instruments

(c.200c.284) founded the
mathematical discipline of
algebra around 250 by
introducing a systematic notation
to indicate an unknown quantity
and its power; for example,
in the equation x2 3 = 6, x2
represents an unknown number
raised to the power of 2 (or
squared). In his Arithmetica,
Diophantus provided solutions
for linear equations (in which no
variable in the equation is raised
to a power greater than 1 as
in ax + b = 0) and quadratic
equations (in which at least one
of the variables is squared as
in ax2 + bx + c = 0). Diophantus
also made a particular study
of indeterminate equations,
proposing a method of solving
them that is now known as
Diophantine analysis. Fermats
Last Theorem (see 163537)
is probably the most famous
example of such an equation.
Ancient Roman physicians
used a wide variety of surgical
instruments, including spatulas
and hooks (right), specula for
internal examinations, and saws.
In around 320, Pappus
of Alexandria
(c.290c.350)
compiled Collections,
an eight-volume work
that contained the
major results of the great
mathematicians who preceded
him and also introduced novel
concepts. Among these new
ideas were work on the centres
of gravity and the volumes
created by plane gures
revolving. He also proposed what
is now known as Pappuss
hexagon theorem, which states
that the intersections of three
collinear points (points along the
same line) with three similar
points along a similar line will
themselves be collinear.
In the 3rd century, Plotinus
(c.205270) created a modied
form of Platos teachings (see
700400 BCE) known as
Neoplatonism, which remained
inuential into the Middle Ages.
Plotinus taught that there is a
transcendent being (the One),
which cannot be described,
from which emanated a series
of other beings. These included
the Divine Mind and the World
Soul, from which human souls
are derived. Plotinuss follower
Iamblichus of Apamea
(c.245c.325) developed
including divine beings, and that drink, and diets. Oribasius
numbers themselves had a form also described a sling to bind
of concrete existence. a fractured jaw, which he
In line with the general trend attributes to the 1st-century
in the 3rd and 4th centuries for physician Heraklas. Oribasius
gathering together the work of became personal physician to
earlier scientists, Oribasius of the Roman emperor Julian,
Pergamum (c.323400) produced but failed to save his patron
Collections, a set of 70 volumes when he was struck by a spear
that brought together the during a battle in Persia in 363.
works of Galen and other In China, mathematicians
earlier medical writers. Only continued to make advances.
20 of these volumes survive, of Hai Tao Suan Ching, which dates
which four, collectively titled from 263, contains a discussion
Euporista, give advice on food, of right-angled triangles and in

,, I HAVE ATTEMPTED
TO EXPLAIN THE NATURE
these ideas, adding number
symbolism derived from
Pythagoras (see 700400 BCE).
Iamblichus believed that

AND POWER OF NUMBERS

mathematical theorems

,,
applied to the whole universe,

BY STARTING WITH THE

FOUNDATION ON WHICH Raised elds
ALL THINGS ARE BUILT. The Maya cut drainage channels
through swamps, heaping up the
fertile silt to create raised elds,
Diophantus of Alexandria, Greek mathematician, from Arithmetica, c.250 similar to the ones seen here.

s rm Zi un of es
a
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0 M sed ill P lot ied S t a pp rod ne s
5 i 70 od no is
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 ,,
,,
THE SHAPE OF THE EARTH IS NOT
FLAT, AS SOME SUPPOSE WHO IMAGINE
IT TO BE LIKE AN EXPANDED DISC
Martianus Capella, from On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury, 410439

7
THE NUMBER Mathematics progressed only
slowly during the later Roman
OF LIBERAL ARTS empire. In about 450, the

IDENTIFIED BY ROMAN Neoplatonist philosopher

Proclus (c.410485) produced
WRITER CAPELLA his Commentary on Euclid, in
which he preserved the work
around 300, Sun Zi compiled the a gure that was not improved of earlier mathematicians.
Sun Zi Suan Ching, which includes upon until the 16th century. Procluss contemporary,
an analysis of indeterminate Martianus Capella, from Domninus of Larissa (c.410480),
equations. It also contains what Madaura in North Africa, wrote Manual of Introductory
is now known as the Chinese established the basic structure Arithmetic, which included a
remainder theorem, which of early medieval European summary of number theory.
provides a method of nding education. In his On the Marriage By the 5th century, the Maya
solutions to problems in of Philology and Mercury (410439), had devised a sophisticated
modular arithmetic (also called he presented a compendium of calendrical system and a
clock arithmetic, because knowledge, which he divided into notation system for numbers
numbers are arranged in a circle, the trivium (grammar, dialectic, that could express any number
rather than along the number and rhetoric) and the quadrivium using only three symbols:
line). In the 5th century, Zu (geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, a dot for 1, a bar for 5, and a
Chongzhi (429500) wrote Zhui and music). In this work, he stated shell for 0. Maya astronomers
Shu (Method of Interpolation), in that Mercury and Venus orbit were particularly concerned
which he calculated pi to be 355/113. around the Sun, a view that with lunar cycles, the Sun,
He rened this to produce a value Copernicus used to support his eclipses, and movements
for pi that was accurate to seven heliocentric view of the solar of the planet Venus.
decimal places (see panel, below), system (see 1543). There is also evidence that the
Maya were practising raised-
THE VALUE OF PI eld agriculture from as early
as the mid-3rd century to utilize
Pi, the ratio of the circumference of a circle fertile land that would otherwise
to its diameter, was estimated at 3.125 by have been too waterlogged for
the Babylonians. The Greeks discovered a agricultural use.
method of calculating it by using the sides
of a polygon inside a circle to approximate
the circumference, and Archimedes used
this method to give a gure of 22/7. In
about 475, Zu Chongzhi calculated pi as Astronomical codex
A section from the Dresden Codex,
3.1415926 accurate to seven decimal places. Computers have
a 9th-century Maya astronomical
now calculated this value to trillions of decimal places. work that includes detailed tables
for movements of the planet Venus.

ia r
dr he
an op
lex of s o s zh
i n
f A od ot hil ng eve
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as rite s s 6 s
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39
500540
,,YET IT SEEMS NOT TO REST UPON

,,
SOLID MASONARY, BUT TO COVER
THE SPACE WITH ITS GOLDEN DOME
SUSPENDED FROM HEAVEN.
Procopius, Byzantine scholar, from The Buildings Book, c.50065

The dome of Hagia Sophia was completed in 537 and collapsed in an earthquake in 558. It was rebuilt
by Isidore the Younger, who raised it by about 6 m (20 ft) to make it more stable.

MUCH ANCIENT KNOWLEDGE geometry and Ptolemaic

reached the Middle Ages through
the efforts of Roman nobleman
Boethius (c.480c.524). He acted
as a link in the transmission
of Greek and Roman science
to scholars of his time. He
translated sections of Aristotles
Logic, produced an adaption
of GrecoRoman mathematician
Nicomachuss (c.60c.120)
Arithmetike Eisagoge (Introduction
to Arithmetic), and compiled
manuals of the liberal arts,
including accounts of Euclidean
BUILDING WITH PENDENTIVES
astronomy. Without his work,
much ancient knowledge might
have been lost in western Europe. Pendentives, such as those employed domed top
Flavius Cassiodorus in the church of Hagia Sophia in section of
building
(c.480c.575), who succeeded Constantinople, are curved, concave
Boethius as the leading Roman sections of masonry that are used to supporting
nobleman at the court of the join a square lower section of a building pillars and concave
Ostrogothic kings of Italy, retired to the circular base of a domed top arches pendentive
at corner of
around 540 to a monastery he section. They allow the weight of the
the square
founded at Vivarium in southern dome to be equally distributed onto section of
square lower
Italy. There, he composed square supporting walls or piers, which section of the building
Institutiones Divinarum et allows far larger domes to be built. building
Humanarum Lectionum (An
Introduction to Divine and Human
Readings). This treatises were collected. He stone oysters, or stone swallows; examples of problems involving
handbook on instituted the practice of copying they were said to emerge from arithmetical progressions
monastic life manuscripts, thus ensuring that the rock and y about during (where the difference between
included a important works survived into thunderstorms. By the mid-7th successive terms is constant).
compilation of the later Middle Ages. century, such fossils were being Around 53237, Byzantine
secular knowledge, Before the 6th century, scholars dissolved in vinegar for use as architects Anthemius of Tralles
divided according to had largely accepted Aristotles medicine in China. (c.474c.534) and Isidore of
the seven liberal view that motion was inherent in In early 6th century, Chinese Miletus succeeded in setting a
arts (see 250500). a body or caused by the medium mathematician Zhang Qiujian round dome over a square room
Cassiodorus also through which it travelled (such gave the rst example of the using pendentives. The dome of
established a as air). Greek philosopher John modern method of division Hagia Sophia (in Istanbul, Turkey)
library in which Philoponus (c.480c.570) inversing the divisor and remained the largest in the world
many ancient opposed this view, arguing that multiplying. He also gave for nearly a thousand years.
scientic and the medium actually resisted the
philosophical bodys movement. He proposed
that motion is caused
externally through energy
impressed upon it by the person
or thing moving it. This was the
Great minds
Boethius is shown rst expression of the theory of
here calculating impetus and inertia. Brachiopod
with written numbers Around 500, Li Tao-Yuan fossil
in a competition Resembling
recorded fossil animals in his birds wings,
against Pythagoras,
who is using a Commentary on the Waterways these became known as grooved, shell-like
counting board. Classic. He called these fossils stone swallows in China. birds wing

of
on se or ius t ,
ott rm t u ks f th es irs in rch s a
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40
541609

2
MILLION
THE ESTIMATED NUMBER OF
INDIVIDUAL MOSAIC TILES ORIGINALLY
USED TO CREATE THE MADABA MAP

The Madaba map is a mosaic showing Palestine and lower Egypt, with particular focus
on towns and other sites of Biblical importance. This part of the map shows Jerusalem.

THE FIRST DESCRIPTION of the One of the leading medical

bubonic plague was given by practitioners at the time of the
Roman historian Procopius Byzantine emperor Justinian was
(c.500c.565). He was present Alexander of Tralles (c.525c.605).
in Constantinople (now Istanbul) His Twelve Books on Medicine
when the disease struck the described a range of diseases
Byzantine empire in 542. He including those caused by
described the characteristic intestinal parasites. He was
swellings (or buboes) under the the rst physician to identify
arms and around the groin, and melancholy (depression) as
a type of delirium brought on by a cause of suicidal tendencies.

septicemia (blood poisoning)
that caused sufferers to run
about screaming.
By the 6th century, the
cartographic tradition inspired
by Ptolemy was waning, to be
replaced by a religiously inspired
view of Earth. The Madaba map,
thought to be the oldest surviving
map of Biblical cities, dates
back to this time. In around
550, Cosmas Indicopleustes,
a merchant from Alexandria,
composed the Topographia
7:10
Bubonic plague
death toll
At its peak,
the bubonic plague, which struck the
Byzantine empire in 542, killed 10,000
people a day in Constantinople alone.
Christiana (Christian Topography),
which controversially presented
the world as a at space dividing
the heavens from the underworld,
and in which Jerusalem occupied
a central position. Cosmas
located Paradise just beyond the
ocean that surrounded Earth.
Around 570, Chinese
mathematician Chen Luan
mentioned the abacus for the
rst time in a commentary on an
earlier work of the 2nd century.
He described 14 methods of
arithmetical calculation, one
of which he referred to as ball
arithmetic, in which a series
of wires were suspended on a
wooden frame, with four balls
strung on the lower half of each
wire representing a unit each,
and a ball on the upper half
representing
ve units.
Although the
Chinese had a long
tradition of canal
building, their
Rainbow bridge
This bridge over a side
section of the Grand
Canal at Wuxi, China,
arches in a dramatic
fashion, which gave
this type of construction
the nickname
rainbow bridge.
CHINESE BLOCK PRINTING
Printing using wooden blocks was probably invented in China in the
6th century, although the rst complete surviving printed book dates
to 868. A manuscript was prepared on waxed paper, which was
rubbed against a wooden block to transfer a mirror image of the
characters onto it. The block was then carved and used for printing.
greatest project was the cutting Chinese engineer Li Chun
of the Grand Canal from completed construction of the
Changan to Loyang, under Anji Bridge in Hebei. The arch
the Sui dynasty, which joined up was attened by two smaller
earlier, smaller canals. Its main arches in its spandrels (the
section, the Pien Chu canal, triangular area bounded by
which was 1,000 km (621 miles) the outer curve of an arch and
long. was completed in 605 and adjacent wall), which spread the
was said to have taken ve weight more evenly and meant
million labourers to build. that only one main arch was
By the early 7th century, needed to span the river.
Chinese engineers had worked
out that bridges did not need
semicircular arches. In 605,

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610699

This illustration from a 12th-century manuscript graphically depicts the use of Greek Fire. Flames
are being projected from a hand-held tube onto a eet of invading soldiers.

IN CHINA, in the year 610,

court physician Chao Yuanfang
(550630) compiled the rst
comprehensive Chinese
treatise on diseases. One
,, AS THE SUN ECLIPSES THE
STARS BY ITS BRILLIANCY, SO THE
contemporary knowledge,
entitled Etymologiae, using the
work of earlier encyclopedists
MAN OF KNOWLEDGE WILL ECLIPSE such as Roman author Marcus
THE FAME OF OTHERS IN ASSEMBLIES Terentius Varro (11627 BCE). It

of the diseases he described
was smallpox; he explained
that lesions with purple or black
colouration were far more deadly
than those that contained white
pus. He also recommended
brushing teeth daily and
proposed a routine of rinsing
and gargling then gnashing
the teeth seven times.
OF THE PEOPLE IF HE PROPOSES
ALGEBRAIC PROBLEMS, AND STILL
MORE IF HE SOLVES THEM.
Brahmagupta, Indian mathematician, from Brahmasphutasiddhanta
(The Revised System of Brahma), 628
Before 644, windmills had been
developed in Persia. They used
wind to drive wooden vanes set in
a circle around a windshaft. This
generated rotational energy,
,,
which could be used to grind
wheat. The earliest windmills had
vertical windshafts, unlike the
more familiar horizontal types that
were later developed in Europe.
Spanish bishop Isidore of
Seville was a prolic author who
wrote books on cosmology and
arithmetic. In the 7th century,
he compiled a 20-volume
manuscript of
helped disseminate classical
knowledge in the Middle Ages.
In the eld of surgery, Greek
physician Paul of Aegina
(c.625c.690) compiled The
Epitome of Medicine a digest of
medical treatises by ancient
authorities such as Galen. It
also contained descriptions of
new surgical procedures, such as
tracheotomy (surgery to the wind
pipe) and sterilizing wounds
through cauterization.
Chinese mathematician Wang
Xiaotong (c.580c.640) was the
rst to provide solutions for
cubic equations (of the form
a3+ba2+ca=n). It was a technique
that European mathematicians
did not master until Fibonacci
(see 122049) in the 13th century.
In India, one of the greatest
early mathematicians was
Brahmagupta (598c.668).
His Brahmasphutasiddhanta
(The Revised System of Brahma)
contained rules for using
negative numbers in arithmetic
and also rst stated the rule that
Vertical windmills
As the area around Nishtafun in
Persia (Iran) experienced high
winds, but had little water, windmills
were a very useful adaptation.
ISIDORE OF SEVILLE
(C.560636)
The Bishop of Seville for
more than 30 years, Isidore
wrote several important texts,
including the encyclopedic
Etymologiae, a dictionary of
synonyms, and a manual
of basic physics. He also
established a system of
seminaries to promote
ecclesiastical education.
He was canonized in 1598
by Pope Clement VIII.
two negative numbers multiplied
together yield a positive number.
In the late 7th century, a new
incendiary weapon was developed
in the Byzantine empire. Known
as Greek Fire, it was discharged
by tubes and burnt even in contact
with water. Its exact composition
is still unknown, but it was
probably a compound of naphtha
(a hydrocarbon mixture).

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700799

This image depicts Jabir ibn-Hayyan giving a lecture on alchemy in his home town, Edessa, modern Turkey. The
town played an important role in the transmission of Greek science into the Islamic world.

THE ISLAMIC WORLDS FIRST
MAJOR TREATISES on zoology
were produced by al-Asmai, a
philologist from Basra, Iraq. His
Kitab al-Khail (Book of the
Horse) and Kitab al-Ibil
(Book of the Camel)
described in detail
the physiology of these
animals. He also wrote
books on sheep and wild
animals, as well as a
book on human
anatomy.
pivoted
sighting rule
plate with
star map
13
As knowledge of Greek
astronomy spread to the Islamic
world, Ibrahim al-Fazari
(d. c.796), an astronomer from
Baghdad, wrote the rst
Islamic treatise on the
astrolabe a device that
Astrolabe transferred observations of the
A Greek invention rened by
Arab astronomers, the astrolabe celestial sphere onto at plates
helped perform complex and helped to predict the
astronomical location of celestial bodies.
calculations. In China, around 725, engineer
and astronomer Yi Xing
(683727) invented the rst
escapement for a mechanical
clock. The device was attached
to an armillary sphere (a model
of the celestial sphere) that was
powered by water. It used
a toothed gear to transfer
energy to the moving parts
of the sphere and to
regulate their movement.
Yi Xing also carried out
a major astronomical
survey to help predict
climate plate with solar eclipses more
coordinates to locate
users latitude
accurately and reform
the calendar.
In India, mathematician and
astrologer Lalla (c.720790)
became the rst to describe a
perpetuum mobile, a machine
that once set in motion would
carry on moving forever. His
Sisyadhivrddhidatantra (Treatise
for Increasing the Intelligence
of Students) also gave details of
a major Islamic centre for the
THE NUMBER OF study of science.
TEST SITES SET UP Jabir ibn-Hayyan (c.722804)
BY YI XING FOR HIS was an early Islamic alchemist
who has become known as the
ASTRONOMICAL father of Arab chemistry. He
invented the alembic, an
SURVEY enclosed ask for heating
liquids, established the
planetary movements, classication of substances
conjunctions, and eclipses, into metals and non-metals,
although he rejected the idea and identied the properties
that Earth rotated. of acids and alkalis.
A few years later, in 762, the Jurjish ibn Bakhtishu was
city of Baghdad was founded the rst of a dynasty of Islamic
by the caliph al-Mansur. The physicians who served the
rst planned city in the Islamic Abbasid caliphs at Baghdad.
world, its perfectly round shape He rose to prominence when
was laid out by al-Naubakht, he cured the caliph al-Mansur
a Persian astrologer. His son, of a stomach complaint in 765.
al-Fadl ibn Naubakht, founded His grandson Jibril founded
the House of Wisdom in the rst hospital in Baghdad
Baghdad, which became some time after 805.
AIR EARTH GOLD MERCURY TO PURIFY MAGNET
ALCHEMY
First developed in Hellenistic Egypt (4th1st century BCE) by scholars
such as Zosimos of Panopolis, alchemy was advanced further by
Arab practitioners such as ibn-Hayyan and al-Razi in the 8th9th
centuries. It was concerned mainly with the transmutation of base
metals, such as lead, into noble metals, such as gold, through the
use of the philosophers stone. It led to the development of many
practical chemical processes, such as distillation and fermentation.

se a hu lla
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2
EUROPEAN
AND ISLAMIC
RENAISSANCE
8001542
Classical knowledge was revived and expanded by Islamic
scholars attached to the mosques and the courts. Subsequently
translated into Latin, their Arabic texts circulated through
Western Europe and formed the basis of modern science.
80020 82160
,,FONDNESS FOR SCIENCE HAS

,,
ENCOURAGED ME TO COMPOSE A SHORT
WORK ON WHAT IS EASIEST AND
MOST USEFUL IN ARITHMETIC.
Al-Khwarizmi, Persian mathematician, c.780850

The House of Wisdom in Baghdad was a major centre of Islamic scholarship,

attracting the foremost thinkers from across the Islamic world.

THE ARABIC AND PERSIAN astrolabe an instrument used ONE OF AL-KHWARIZMIS

EMPIRES had a long tradition of
scholarship, and this continued
after the birth of the Islamic
religion. Islam encouraged
scientic and philosophical
pursuits, which were not seen
as incompatible with theology.
Libraries and other centres
of learning were established
in many Islamic cities during
the Islamic Golden Age.
Perhaps the greatest of these
was the House of Wisdom
(Bayt al-Hikma), founded in
Baghdad at the beginning of the
to observe the position of stars.
Although not the rst to produce
a work on the astrolabe,
al-Khwarizmis contribution
was signicant, especially in
the Islamic world, where the
astrolabe could be used to
calculate the time of daily prayers.
The Chinese were pioneers
in the technology of printing,
largely due to their invention of
paper possibly as early as the
2nd century BCE which lent
itself better to printing than the
papyrus and parchment used
MAJOR ACHIEVEMENTS was a
treatise on mathematics entitled
The Compendious Book on
Calculation by Completion and
Balancing, published around 830.
It contained a description of the
branch of mathematics now
known as algebra. Although he
drew on sources such as Greek
and Indian texts (see 250500),
he is considered to be the
inventor of algebra. In his book,
al-Khwarizmi explained the
process of balancing both sides
of an equation (al-jabr in Arabic,
ax 2 + bx + c = 0
ALGEBRA
Algebra is a branch of mathematics that uses letters to represent
unknown quantities (called variables), and symbols for operations
such as addition and subtraction. These can be combined in an
algebraic statement known as an expression, such as a + 3.
A mathematical statement, such as a + 3 = 7, is known as an
equation. Equations in which the highest power of an unknown
quantity is two are known as quadratic equations (as above), and
those in which the highest power is three are called cubic equations.

400
hence the modern term algebra), balancing an equation by as al-Kindi) who in the mid-9th

THOUSAND and gave a systematic way of

9th century. As well as housing
thousands of books, the House
of Wisdom encouraged
research and the translation
of mathematical, scientic,
and philosophical texts from
ancient Greece.
Persian mathematician and
astronomer Muhammad ibn Musa
al-Khwarizmi (c.780850) was
one of the most important
scholars at the House of Wisdom,
studying both Greek and Indian
scientic treatises. In around
820, he described the use of the
THE NUMBER
OF BOOKS IN
THE HOUSE
OF WISDOM
elsewhere. Developing a form of
woodblock printing on silk that
had appeared around 200, they
applied the technique to paper
and used it for the mass
production of books. By the
9th century, it was being used
to print promissory notes
that were in effect a form of
paper money issued by the
Chinese government.
solving quadratic equations,
which had been described
almost 500 years earlier by Greek
mathematician Diophantus of
Alexandria. Central to his
method was the principle of
AL-KINDI (C.801873)
Born and educated in Kufa, near
Baghdad, Al-Kindi was one of
the rst major scholars of the
newly founded House of
Wisdom. He translated Greek
scientic and philosophical texts
into Arabic, and incorporated
Hellenistic ideas into Islamic
scholarship. He wrote treatises
on many subjects, including
medicine, chemistry, astronomy,
and mathematics.
transposing terms from one side
to the other and cancelling out
terms that appear on both sides.
Another prominent scholar at
the House of Wisdom was the
polymath Abu Yusuf Yaqub
ibn Ishaq al-Kindi (also known
and commentaries on Indian
century wrote a large number of
treatises on various scientic
subjects, ranging from
mathematics, astronomy, and
optics, to medicine and
geography. A scholar of theology
and philosophy, he was also
responsible for the translation
of many classic Greek texts
and their incorporation into
Islamic thinking. It is largely
through al-Kindis translations
texts that Indian numerals
were introduced to the Islamic
world, and subsequently
became the basis for the
modern system of numbers,
although zero was probably
discovered later (see 86199).
Al-Kindi was very sceptical
about alchemy, refuting one
of its central ideas the

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46
 86199

This statue of Al-Khwarizmi stands The Chinese edition of the Buddhist Diamond Sutra, printed using woodblocks
in Khiva, Uzbekistan, his birthplace. on a scroll of paper, is the earliest surviving printed book.

transmutation of metals.
However, alchemy was at the
root of another discovery this
time in China. In the early
9th century, Chinese alchemists
were experimenting with various
mixtures of substances to nd
the elixir of life. One of the
by-products of this quest was
the discovery, in about 855, of
gunpowder the rst man-
made explosive. It consisted of a
mixture of sulphur, carbon (in the
form of charcoal), and saltpetre
(potassium nitrate) all of which
occur naturally as minerals. The
mixtures explosive properties
meant that it was initially used in
the manufacture of reworks,
but gunpowder later came to fuel
rockets, and was eventually used
in the development of rearms.
10% 15%
carbon
sulphur
75%
saltpetre
Composition of gunpowder
Sulphur, carbon, and saltpetre, while
quite innocuous individually, become
highly explosive when mixed in the
correct proportions.
A CHINESE EDITION OF THE
BUDDHIST TEXT, Diamond Sutra,
was discovered in 1907 in
Dunhuang, northwest China.
Although it is probably not the
rst example of a woodblock
printed book, it is the earliest
known one, and bears the
date 11 May 868. The text
and illustrations of Diamond
Sutra exhibit a great deal of
sophistication, suggesting that
the techniques of printing on
paper were well known in China
by this time. An inscription at
the end of the manuscript
indicates that this was one
of a number of copies printed sealed ask cold water outlet
for distribution.
An inscription on a stone cold water
in Gwalior, India, dated 876, inlet
one liquid
contains one of the earliest boils into
known uses of the symbol vapour cooling cooled
for zero 0. Prior to the water jacket vapour
appearance of a specic symbol, around condenses
condenser into droplets
a space was used to indicate mixture of pure liquid
zero, which led to ambiguity and liquids collects
prevented the development of a in ask
heat
place value system of numbers source
(a system in which the position
of the numeral indicates its DISTILLATION
value). The introduction of
a symbol for Distillation is a method of separating the components of a liquid
zero in Indian mixture. The liquid mixture is converted into vapour by heating. As
mathematics the components of the mixture have different boiling points, they
was a vital step in vaporize at different rates. The vapour is then cooled so that it
the development condenses back into a liquid, which can be collected separately.
of the decimal Distillation can be used to extract liquids such as alcohol and
system of notation gasoline, and also to purify liquids, such as salt water.
we use today. This
decimal system
came to Europe replaced the use of cumbersome the Arabic al kuhl, originally
through the Roman numerals. used to describe a powder
inuence of Islamic Towards the end of the century, extracted from a mineral,
mathematicians, Arab alchemists developed but which later came to
and eventually the process of distillation mean the essence or spirit
a method of separating the of a liquid. The apparatus
ingredients of a liquid mixture. developed by al-Razi for
Muhammad ibn Zakariya distillation has remained
Alchemist Jabir
al-Razi (c.854925/35), along fundamentally unchanged
ibn-Hayyan at work
Alchemy in the Islamic with other alchemists, perfected to the present day.
world involved much the technique and was
experimentation, and successful in extracting a form
led to the development
of alcohol ethanol or ethyl
of many processes
that were later used alcohol by distilling wine.
in chemistry. The word alcohol derives from

s
til
dis
a zi ine
-R w
Al om
8 90 ol fr
.
c oh
alc

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i n
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8 T ng m d nd a
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47
900930
,,TRUTH IN MEDICINE IS AN
UNATTAINABLE GOAL, AND THE ART AS

,,
DESCRIBED IN BOOKS IS FAR BENEATH
THE KNOWLEDGE OF AN EXPERIENCED
AND THOUGHTFUL PHYSICIAN.
Al-Razi, Arab physician, 10th century

Arab doctor and chemist al-Razis belief in practical experimentation on

substances led him to propose an early classication of elements.

MUHAMMAD IBN ZAKARIYA
AL-RAZI (Rhazes) was one of
the greatest physicians of the
Arab world. Around 900, he
wrote Al-Shukuk ala Jalinus
(Doubts About Galen), in which he
criticized Galens theory of the
four humours (see 75250). He
rejected the notion that a balance
of these humours was necessary
for the health of the patient, and
dismissed the idea that body melting and extraction. He overlapping plates for mathematics underlying
temperature is automatically described the distillation of making astronomical the instrument. He
raised or lowered when a patient kerosene and petroleum from observations. Although presented formulas in
drinks warm or cold uids. His crude oil and gave recipes for al-Fazari was the rst spherical trigonometry,
clinical practices were advanced preparing hydrochloric and to describe it in the replacing Ptolemys
for this time; he ran a psychiatric sulphuric acids. 8th century, al-Battani geometrical
ward and wrote a treatise Around 920, Arab astronomer worked out the methods.
attacking untrained physicians. and mathematician al-Battani
The Kitab al-Hawi (Comprehensive (c.858929) proffered greater
Book), a collection of his clinical insights into the working of
notes, ran to 23 volumes, and the planispheric astrolabe
contained medical diagnoses, a device with a number of
including the rst description
of hayfever (or rose-cold). He
map of bodies
also wrote a monograph, Kitab
on the celestial
al-Judwar wal Hasba (Treatise on sphere
the Smallpox and Measles), which
was the rst work to detail the star pointer
symptoms of smallpox, although indicates
his explanation that the disease position of
was caused by the impurities specic star

from menstrual blood that stay

AL-RAZI (C.865925)
Born in Rayy, Mesopotamia
(now in Iran), al-Razi was a
physician and philosopher,
as well as an alchemist. He
encouraged experimentation
as a means of discovery and
his clinical notes became a
key medieval medical text. He
headed a hospital in Rayy, and
then two in Baghdad. Among
his innovations was the rst
recorded clinical trial on
patients with meningitis.
in the fetus during pregnancy mater, or
main section
and then bubble up to the skin
into which
in later life betrayed a belief in latitude
sympathetic magic. He was plates slot
particularly concerned with
preventing blindness caused rotating bar
by smallpox pustules, and
advocated regularly bathing ecliptic ring
the eyes in rose-water. shows path of
An alchemist as well as Sun through sky
a physician, al-Razi devised a
classication of elements into Astrolabe
spirits and metals and minerals. The user of an
He divided the latter into stones, astrolabe adjusted its
vitriols, boraces, salts, and other moveable parts to indicate
a specic date or time, and
substances, and gave a detailed the markings on the plates
account of the behaviour of each would then indicate the position
under various processes, such as of the various heavenly bodies.

i
ic
m n ps ra
,
ite
s az ic
-R
I sla ticia velo lgeb a wr 0 Al alen
0 0 a de a s q s 3 G ry
m
c.9 athe mil zmi owe
s r Lu nes 0 es eo es
rit rap
y
ibn umb 90 iticiz r th
m u Ka ari th p ta n cr mou a b i w the
s
w
A Kh g w an 2
b i
Qu on hu ar usic
al- alin r th 12 ise -F
Al on m
de eate c.9 reat 5
2 e
gr at c.9 atis
tre

30 rs
0 zi ve
90 -Ra s co les
Al ribe f dis ncip be ted
i
an ri ola da is
sc s o st abe ic
de tom pox att al p str i e
rl ol
p all A l-B atic he a Ea str sla lus
m
m
sy sm 20 em ng
t
9 27 ng a by I astu
c.9 ath rlyi .
c ivi uil r N t
m de rv b me
un su no
48 tro
as
931999

200
THE APPROXIMATE
NUMBER OF
NEW SURGICAL
INSTRUMENTS
INTRODUCED
BY AL-ZAHRAWI

A 14th-century manuscript shows two innovative surgical instruments introduced

by SpanishArab physician al-Zahrawi (Albucasis).

THE MODERN
NUMERALS for
expressing the
decimal system rst
appeared in Europe
in 976 in a treatise
written by the monk
Vigila in the northern
Spanish convent of
Albelda (although
he included only the
symbols for 1 to 9 and not zero).
This number system, now known
as HinduArabic, had originated
in the numerical notation of the
Brahmi script used in India in
the mid-3rd century BCE, which
then spread westwards after the
Arabs came in contact with India
in the early 8th century CE.
Although mechanical
armillary spheres and
mechanical escapements for
clocks had been devised in
China by Zhang Heng in the
2nd century and Yi Xing in
the 8th century, a superior
version was constructed by
the astronomer Zhang Sixun
in 979. It was powered by a
waterwheel with scoops that
deposited the liquid into a
clepsydra (a device that measures
time by the ow of liquid through
a small hole) as it turned around,
which in turn regulated the
measurement of the hours. In
order to avoid the liquid freezing
up in winter a problem that had
aficted earlier such clocks Yi
Xing had substituted mercury for
water. Zhang Sixuns improved
version made one complete
revolution each day, with each
quarter-hour and hour sounded
Abacus treatises by ancient scholars also known as Albucasis. He was
This is a modern such as Boethius, studied the court surgeon to al-Hakam, the
example of an
work of Islamic mathematicians, Umayyad Caliph of Cordoba. His
abacus, a counting
device that appeared and introduced the abacus to Kitab al-Tasrif (The Method of
in Mesopotamia Europe, giving instructions for its Medicine) containing detailed
around 2700 BCE. use in multiplication and division. descriptions of human anatomy
It was introduced
The greatest Arab surgeon of and the pathology of diseases
to medieval Europe
by Gerbert in medieval times was Abu al- became the main textbook for
around 990 CE. Qasim al-Zahrawi (c.9361013), medieval European physicians.
Ancient Ancient Ancient Ancient Modern
out by mechanical jacks that Babylonian Egyptian Greek Roman Chinese Mayan HinduArabic
emerged to strike bells and
drums, or to display the time on a
tablet. The clock also showed the
position of the Sun, Moon, and
ve planets on a celestial globe,
and was said to be so advanced
that after Sixuns death no-one
could keep it in working order.
In 984, Persian mathematician
Ibn Sahl (c.9401000) wrote
On the Burning Instruments, a
treatise in which he examined the
bending of light by lenses and
curved mirrors. He was the rst
to express a geometric theory of
refraction. He suggested that the

,,HE WHO DEVOTES

amount of light that is deected
when it enters another medium
(such as glass) varies, depending DEVELOPMENT OF NUMBERS

,,
on the refractive index (see

HIMSELF TO SURGERY 162124) of the substance.

Christian monastic scholar
Many early number systems, such as the Egyptian, were additive
the value of the number symbol did not depend on its position; to

MUST BE VERSED IN
Gerbert (c.9431003), who make 20, the symbol for 10 would be written twice. Around 2000 BCE,
became Pope in 999, was one the Babylonians began to use a partly positional system where the

ANATOMY.
of the rst Western European
mathematicians of the Middle
Ages. He sought to recover
Al-Zahrawi (Albucasis), in Kitab al-Tasrif, c.990 mathematical and astronomical
order of magnitude depends on the position in which the symbol
appears. Positional systems using 10 as the base developed in India,
and gradually evolved into the modern HinduArabic numerals.

i n l l
n zin ixu ica ah of
ish be ha g S chan b n S aw
ew and aac s K n I l t
J s e al- r s ha e d 84 he igh er
t
32 ian r I rib bu s fo isk 9 Z a m ere 9 es t of l rb
c.9 ysic ophe esc 0 A able be d 97 ilds ow y 9 s
97 opo tion Ge es o
0
ph ilos on d ever 6 t la bu ck p rcur pr frac
9 c t pe
ph lom ial f 50 es tro clo me c.9 rodu acus uro
c.9 oduc g as re int e ab val E
So lar r
p kin by
m
a a th die
m e
m

r
za
az n
uc
es aly
l-J es o d od ction
(H i,
a
bn ti
s an r le b as al ik ic er
9 I rea ics ers ip e Ab l-M ab om s
ijz tris ang on over lt
7 tes t iatr ord -S al- s A Ar oks r
0
5 ri r s Al the f an bn rite ain tbo t
as isc l ti g
c.9 w ge p di 9
96 k on
o i
w f m tex
e u
Ab as) ian i d xia in
sle r o l
80 Abb one dica rs jand s a eas
wo e h r
c .9 e 4 P hu rt ec
m 99 al-K t Ea is d
a
th
49
10001029
,, NOW IT IS ESTABLISHED
IN THE SCIENCES THAT NO

,,
KNOWLEDGE IS ACQUIRED SAVE
THROUGH THE STUDY OF ITS
CAUSES AND BEGINNINGS.
Ibn Sina (Avicenna), Arab polymath, from Canon of Medicine, c.1005

A page from Avicennas Canon of Medicine shows the heart and skull as part
of an illustration explaining the theory of the four humours.

AROUND 1005, THE ARAB
MEDICAL SCHOLAR and polymath
Ibn Sina (known as Avicenna
in Europe) wrote the Canon of
Medicine, a major compendium
that sought to provide a
systematic understanding of
medical knowledge of the time.
Avicenna tried to reconcile
theories of four humours
(blood, yellow bile, black bile,
and phlegm; see 100250) with
Aristotles idea of three life
forces (psychic, natural, and
human). Avicennas careful and
The Persian astronomer and
mathematician Abu Sahl al-Quhi
(c.9401000) was head of the
observatory founded by Sharaf
al-Dawla in Baghdad in 988, but
he was particularly noted for his
work in solving equations of
greater than the second degree
(in which the highest power of a
variable is more than two). He
employed a geometrical method
of intersecting curved lines to
achieve this. Around 1000, he
wrote On the Construction of an
Equilateral Pentagon in a Known
HOW LENSES WORK
A convex lens is thicker in the ray of light focal length
middle than at the sides. When
light rays strike the lens they are principal axis
diffracted and converge behind principal
converging focus
the lens at a single point called rays of light
the principal focus. Convex CONVEX (CONVERGING) LENS
lenses are used to treat long-
sightedness as they bring objects
that are closer, into focus. A principal focus focal length
concave lens is thinner in the
middle than at the sides. Light
rays diverge and seem to focus virtual ray

comprehensive account in ve
volumes of physiology, diagnosis,
therapy, the pathology of diseases,
and pharmacology made it an
extremely valuable medical
handbook. It was commented
on by many subsequent Arabic
physicians and was printed as
Latin translations 36 times.
Alhazens eye
Shown here is a
diagrammatic eye from
a 1575 Latin translation of
Alhazens Book of Optics.
Square, in which he demonstrated
the solution by solving an
equation to the fourth degree.
In 1005, the Fatimid caliph
al-Hakim founded the House
of Knowledge (Dar al-ilm)
in Cairo. Equipped with a vast
library covering subjects ranging
in front of the lens. These lenses
address short-sightedness.
from Islamic philosophy and
law to physics and astronomy,
it became a centre for
philosophers and theologians.
At rst, the House of Knowledge
hosted a series of public
lectures, but these
ended in 1015
after fears
that religious
dissidents were
establishing a
presence there.
The Arabic
sage Abu Ali ibn
al-Haytham
(c.9651039), also
known as Alhazen, is
best known for his Kitab
al-Munazir (Book of Optics),
which he wrote between 1011
CONCAVE (DIVERGING) LENS
and 1021. He proposed that the
blinding effect of bright light and
the existence of after-images
proved that vision was caused
by light coming into the eye. He
also developed a new theory of
IBN SINA (9801037)
diverging
rays of light
the eyes physiology, describing
it as being made up of various
humours and separated into
sections by spherical sheaths.
Born near Bukhara, Uzbekistan,
Ibn Sina (Avicenna) was a
medical prodigy. He claimed
to have successfully treated
patients by age 16. He served
the Samanid rulers of Bukhara,
but their overthrow in 999 led
to his exile. He ended up at the
court of Shams al-Dawla of
Hamadan, where he wrote
his great Canon of Medicine.

i
er an ind
uh
i m
no rst a ici ar m
l-Q the kim ro v 15 hys l-M ge e
A s d Ha f t
as es rno
10 ab p jah a the ast ms
00 be f on al- se o m giv upe Ar swi ibes a p d ge ia
10 scri n o bey gree h o l i
s an s
de lutio ons de lip ou air Mu dw f a Ma escr ary oun hol
Ca e H n C pr ctu of gr lanc
so uati cond 04 s th ge i 06 Ri n o
0
1 nd ed 10 i ibn ptio ele de me
eq e se Al scri a
th fou owl m cure
Kn de to

a)
nn f
v ice on o l
A a
a ( Can dic s
Sin he me ium se
I bn es t e, a end po n
ro visio s
05 os in p n p f ic
10 omp edic com ze y o Opt
c M
A lha eor k of
1 t h o
2 his n Bo
11 i
10
50
10301049

The earliest movable type in China was made of clay, and later of wood. Metal movable type such as these blocks
did not become common until the Ming dynasty in the 17th century.

IN THE EARLY 11TH CENTURY, carved for each individual page. weather using an iron sh. The Anatomy of a crossbow
SpanishArab astronomer Abu Around 1040, a commoner needle of this early compass This 16th-century German
crossbow could not be used without ight
Abdallah ibn Muadh al-Jayyani named Pi Sheng developed probably oated on top of a bowl
a crannequin a toothed wheel
(9891079) carried out work a form of movable type by of water and the technique was attached to a crank which was
integrating trigonometry and creating thin strips of clay later adapted for navigation at used to bend the crossbow.
optics. His Book of Unknown each impressed with a single sea. One document referring to
Arcs of a Sphere was the rst character, which he baked in a
comprehensive work on spherical re. He then placed these on an crannequin curved claws
trigonometry. Around 1030, iron tray to compose the page to grip bowstring
al-Jayyani used this work in his be printed. The clay letters could
Book on Twilight to calculate afterwards be rearranged as
the angle of the Sun below the desired to create a new page. toothed
horizon at the end of evening The method fell into disuse after rack
twilight to be 18 degrees. By Pi Shengs death until its revival cord loops
onto tiller pins rotating pin
taking this as the lowest angle in the mid-13th century. By then, released by trigger
at which the Suns rays can far more durable type made of
meet the upper edge
of the atmosphere,
he worked out the
height of Earths
atmosphere as 103 km (64 miles). steel pin to engage composite lathe of
Printing using carved wooden spanning mechanism bone, sinew, and wood
blocks had appeared in China
around the 6th century, but the iron had been invented in Korea, the period around 1086 tells of their power was limited by the
process was cumbersome, where it was rst used in 1234. a south-pointing needle used ability of the user to pull back
requiring a new block to be The Chinese had understood for nding bearings at night. the bow string by hand. By the
the properties of magnetic In 1123, an account of a mid-11th century, a stirrup
12 lodestones in transferring diplomatic mission to South was placed at the end of the stirrup
NUMBER OR ARROWS PER MINUTE

polarity to a needle several
10 centuries earlier (see 300
250 BCE), but no real application
8
was made. In 1044, the rst
mention is made of a south-
6
pointing carriage used to nd
4 directions on land during gloomy
2
The deadliest weapon?
Medieval crossbowmen red at as
0 3rd century BCE. Hand-held
little as a tenth the rate of longbow
Longbow Crossbow
archers, although their bolts had
WEAPON more power.
Korea describes the sailors
use of the compass. It would
be another 67 years, howver,
before such knowledge spread
to Europe.
Crossbows had made an
appearance in China as early
as the 8th century BCE and are
recorded in Greece in the early
crossbows came into use in
France in the 10th century, but
stock, so that the user could
push against this with his legs
while pulling the string back.
Mechanical cranks were also
invented that could be turned bolt
to tighten the string. By the
early 13th century, complex
windlasses (contraptions
wooden tiller
used to move heavy objects) veneered
were devised, which imparted with bone
high tensile strength to the
crossbow bolt.

ian at ts g
rs th nd
Pe er ts u en
0 g es aro i
aw s s i nv intin
.1 03 nom sug tate he N as uclid ribe ng pr
he or
c tro un i o s - c
r
as -Bir may ut sa
y Al s E es ion P i S pe f s
t 30 arize nd d ract 0 t y ck
Al rth n, b ve i 0
c.1 mm nts a r ext 04 le blo
Ea e Su t pro c.1 ovab clay
su me d fo ots m ing
th nno Ele tho e ro
ca e us
m cub
of

n
tla
zo f Bu ihha
ez f no b n s g
Ar ry o tio ss 0 I al- isin
d o d en mpa n, 05 im as ood
ido he an f t m o tio c.1 aqw mph of g ene
Gu w t tion m o irs ic c iga ina sT e ce ygi
0 e
03 s n ota ste rd
s 4 F net nav n Ch ite tise an h
c.1 vise al n s sy acho
4
10 mag for i wr rea ort and
c p t p t
de usi elo hex ed im die
m dev us 51
105069
,,
,,
THEN WAS ALL OVER ENGLAND
SUCH A TOKEN SEEN AS NO MAN
EVER SAW BEFORE
From The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, describing the comet of 1066

22
IN THE 11TH CENTURY, Chinese
mathematician Jia Xian described
a method of calculating square
and cubic roots using numbers
arranged in rows. Each row
contained one more number
than the row above it, to form a
triangle in which each number
is the sum of the two directly
above it. Known as the Jia
Xian triangle, it is also often
referred to in the West as
Pascals triangle, after French
mathematician Blaise Pascal
who described it 600 years later.
In 1054, the massive explosion
of a supernova (which formed
what we now know as the Crab
THE NUMBER
OF MONTHS THAT
THE SUPERNOVA
WAS VISIBLE
FROM 1054 TO 1055
Nebula) was visible from Earth. by European astronomers.
It was observed by Arabic and Astrologers viewed the comet as
Chinese astronomers, who an omen, and found it especially
described it as a guest star, signicant in the year of the
but its signicance was not Norman invasion of England.
realized by observers in Europe.
In 1066, the comet now called The Bayeux tapestry
This embroidered record of the
Comet Halley made one of
events surrounding the Battle
its regular 76-year periodic of Hastings in 1066 shows the
appearances and was described appearance of Halleys Comet.

outward pressure inward pressure neutron

of gas and radiation of gravity balances compressed shock wave star or
supports star outward pressure core implodes blows star apart black hole
fusion
hydrogen creates exhausted neutrinos material
envelope iron core released thrown out
by explosion

heavy
elements
form in
active outer
core CORE IMPLOSION layers
DYING SUPERGIANT COLLAPSES OCCURS DETONATION

FORMATION OF A SUPERNOVA

A supernova is an explosion of a massive supergiant
star at the last stage of its life. Over a long period of
time, a star builds up a core of iron, which eventually
collapses in on itself as the star runs out of fuel for
fusion. This results in an implosion that rapidly
reheats the star and restarts the process of fusion.
Subatomic particles called neutrinos are released
as implosion occurs. Now out of control, the star
explodes with a huge amount of energy billions
of times more than the Sun, which is also a star
shining brighter than other stars and scattering
debris in all directions, over vast distances.

nd
s ea s va
Jia ibe n es mer erno
0 50 escr n C
i
h on up o
c.1 an d Xia ater s
54 str e
Xi e Jia le, l the 10 ab a e th the
th ang as ngle Ar serv rms la
tri own l tria ob at fo ebu
kn sca th ab N
Pa Cr

n
ow
r kn hted
e g
lat si
et y is
com alle
e H
Th et
66 om
10 s C
a

52
107099
,, BY THE HELP OF GOD AND
WITH HIS PRECIOUS ASSISTANCE,
I SAY THAT ALGEBRA IS A
SCIENTIFIC ART.
Omar Khayyam, from Treatise on Demonstration of Problems
of Algebra, 1070
PERSIAN MATHEMATICIAN AND
ASTRONOMER Omar Khayyam
began work on his Treatise on
Demonstration of Problems of
Algebra in 1070, the year that he
moved to Samarkand, Uzbekistan,
and devoted himself to study and
writing. In it, he gave a complete
classication of the types of
cubic equation (an equation
involving a term to the power
of three, such as x+y3=15) and
described for the rst time a
general theory for solving them
using geometry. The method he
used involved the use of conic
sections and curves. He realized
that some equations, such as
quadratic (involving a squared
term) and cubic equations,
had more than one solution.
Khayyam was also
an accomplished
astronomer: from 1073 he
worked at the observatory
in Isfahan, Iran. Much of
his work was concerned
with the
compilation
of astronomical
tables, but he
also helped to
improve the accuracy
of the calendar.
Bamboo
Shens discovery of fossilized bamboo
in a cool and dry area led him to
conclude that the region would have
been warm and humid in the past.
s am
ar in n
m eg e o
7 0 O am b atis of ra
10 ayy Tre tion geb
Kh iting stra of Al
wr mon ms
De oble
Pr
,,
At Isfahan, he also worked on
his poetry, later collected in
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.
In 1079, he calculated the length
of a year as 365.24219858156
days a greater degree of
precision than ever before, and
remarkably close to the modern
measurement of 365.242190
days. This led to the introduction
of a new calendar in the Islamic
world, which was more accurate
than the Julian calendar used
in Europe at the time.
Meanwhile, in China, the
polymath Shen Kuo retired from
a successful career as a civil
servant and military leader in
the court of the Song dynasty,
and devoted his time to study.
He wrote an extraordinarily
wide-ranging collection of
essays on subjects as diverse
as politics, divination, music,
and the sciences. The Dream
,, UNDER THE GROUND,
A FOREST OF BAMBOO
SHOOTS WAS REVEALED
THESE WERE SEVERAL
DOZENS OF FEET BELOW
THE PRESENT SURFACE
OF THE GROUND.
Shen Kuo, from Dream Pool Essays, 1088
yy h
ha ngt s
K e
ar e l abl
Om es th d en
7 9 t n
10 lcula ar a efor
ca a ye ar r
of lend
ca
This manuscript is one of the many treatises that Omar Khayyam wrote
on mathematics, astronomy, mechanics, and philosophy.
OMAR KHAYYAM (10481131)
Born in Persia (now Iran), Omar
Khayyam showed a talent for
astronomy and mathematics at
an early age; he wrote many of
his treatises before he was 25
years old. In 1073, he was invited
by Sultan Malik-Shah to set up
an observatory in Isfahan. Here,
he worked on calendar reform
and astronomical tables, before
returning to his home town.
Pool Essays, named after his
garden estate, were nished in
1088, and included an overview
of the sciences of the time, as
well as some innovative ideas.
For example, Shen was the rst
to give a description of the
magnetic compass needle.
He explained how it could be
,,
e
m
used in navigation to determine
the direction of North. He also
contributed to the elds of
palaeontology and geology.
Describing the discovery
of the remains of marine
creatures in the strata of a
cliff hundreds of miles from
the coast, he suggested that
these must have been covered
by silt over a long period
of time which would have
been later eroded and also
proposed that the cliff must
have at some time been a
coastal area. He described
fossilized bamboo unearthed
by a landslide, in an area where
bamboo does not grow, and
came to the conclusion that this
was the remains of an ancient
forest from a time when the
climate of the area had been
signicantly different.
tes
ple ays
m s
co Es
K uo ool
n P
he eam
8 8 S Dr
10
53
 8 0 0 15 4 2 EUROPEAN AND ISLAMIC RENAISSANCE

UNDERSTANDING
STARS
MASSIVE BALLS OF HOT, IONIZED GAS, STARS ARE POWERED BY NUCLEAR REACTIONS

Our galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars and there are hundreds
of billions of galaxies, each containing similar numbers of these huge balls
of plasma (hot, ionized gas). A star glows because it is hot, and most of the
heat is generated by nuclear reactions in the stars core.
HANS BETHE
Around 6,000 stars are visible to the naked eye in LIFE CYCLES OF STARS In the 1930s, German-born physicist
the night sky. Apart from the Sun, they are so far Stars form in huge masses of gas and dust Hans Bethe (19062005) worked out
how nuclear fusion builds elements
away that, despite their enormous size, they called molecular clouds. Gravity causes matter inside stars, for which he was awarded
appear only as tiny points of light, even through in denser regions of these clouds to clump the 1967 Nobel Prize in Physics.
powerful telescopes. together to form protostars. This gravitational
collapse produces heat, which causes atoms to nuclear fusion reaction releases energy,
THE SUN IS A STAR lose electrons, becoming ions, so the matter in which heats the protostar further: a star is
The Sun is by far the closest star: the light and the protostar becomes plasma a mixture of born. When the hydrogen runs out, nuclear
other radiation it produces takes eight minutes to ions and electrons. At the protostars centre, the fusion ends, and the star cools and collapses
reach Earth, compared with over four years from high temperature and pressure cause nuclei of under its own gravity. A stars nal destiny
the next nearest star. Like other stars, the Sun is hydrogen atoms to fuse together to form nuclei depends upon its mass; the most massive
composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, with of helium and some heavier elements. This stars end up as black holes (see opposite).
small amounts of other elements. Its luminous
surface (photosphere) is white hot, with a
temperature of about 5,500C (10,000F), and its
outer atmosphere, the corona, is much hotter.
The Sun is about 5 billion years old, and is about
halfway through its life cycle.

109
THE NUMBER OF TIMES
GREATER THE SUNS STAR BIRTH
The molecular cloud in the Carina Nebula (part of which
STAR DEATH
As stars of low to intermediate mass near the ends of their
DIAMETER IS COMPARED is shown in this image from the Hubble Space Telescope)
is one of the largest known regions of star birth in our
lives, they eject haloes of hot gas, forming objects known as
planetary nebulae. At the centre of each such nebula is a small
WITH THE EARTHS galaxy, the Milky Way. remnant of the once much larger star, called a white dwarf.

STAR SIZES supergiant Sun

Stars come in a huge variety of sizes.
Supergiants, among the largest stars, large, hydrogen-
burning star white dwarf
can be over 1,500 times bigger than
the Sun. The Sun itself has a neutron
diameter of about 1.4 million km star
(about 870,000 miles) roughly
average for a star in the main part of black hole
its life. The smallest stars, neutron
red giant
stars, are only about 20 km (12.5
miles) across. Large stars Small stars
The main types of large star include supergiants, red Sun Small stars result from the death of larger stars. Stars
giants, and large hydrogen-burning stars.The Sun is like the Sun become white dwarfs, while more massive
an average-sized hydrogen-burning star. stars become tiny neutron stars or even black holes.

54
 solar prominence,
a loop of plasma

corona extends millions

radiative zone of kilometres into space

sunspot, convection
a cooler region of zone
core, at a temperature
the photosphere
outward pressure, of 15 million C
generated by reactions in (27 million F)
the core, counteracts the
inward pull of gravity

photosphere, the
Sun's luminous
visible surface

gravity pulls
plasma
inwards

INSIDE THE SUN chromosphere,

Nuclear reactions in a layer of
the core generate huge atmosphere
amounts of energy, which above the
passes out through a layered photosphere
internal structure and escapes into
space. The outward pressure exerted
by this radiation would blow the star
apart were it not for the force of
gravity acting in opposition.

NEUTRON STARS AND BLACK HOLES
Towards the end of a stars life, nuclear fusion
falters. The star starts to cool and collapse under
its own gravity. Inside a star like the Sun, a force
star, even this force cannot halt collapse and the
star continues to shrink, eventually becoming a
black hole a region of spacetime so dense that
even light cannot escape from it. two-dimensional
representation of BLACK HOLE

160,00 0
called electron degeneracy pressure resists four-dimensional According to the general
further collapse and the star becomes a white spacetime theory of relativity, gravity
dwarf. However, in some more massive stars, is curvature of spacetime
due to mass (see 1916).
gravitational collapse overcomes this force and steep-sided A black hole is a region of
THE NUMBER OF LIGHT
gravitational well
pushes electrons and protons together to form spacetime with a central
neutrons. The result is a neutron star, which is point of innite density
prevented from further collapse by a force called YEARS FROM EARTH TO a singularity that
produces an innitely
neutron degeneracy pressure. In a very massive THE NEAREST BLACK HOLE singularity deep well in spacetime.

55
 110049 115099
16,000
THE NUMBER OF WORKERS
ASSEMBLING SAILING SHIPS
AT THE VENICE ARSENALE
IN THE 17TH CENTURY
A 17th-century painting shows workers at Venices Arsenale. Innovative construction
techniques enabled the Venetians to dominate the seaways for centuries.

AROUND 1104, THE CITY
AUTHORITIES IN VENICE ordered
the construction of the Arsenale,
a state shipyard and armoury,
which would employ 16,000
workers by the 17th century.
The Arsenale pioneered new
production techniques,
,, BECAUSE OF THE FREQUENCY
OF THE EXPERIENCE, THESE
The Chinese had started to Raymond of Toledo
print on silk using stencils Archbishop Raymond is
seen standing before King
before the end of the Han
Alfonso VII at his coronation
Dynasty (220 CE), but they in 1135, a demonstration
began to use multiple of the importance of royal
colours in the wooden block patronage.
printing of pictures c.1107.
By 1340, the technique was
Around 1121, in the
Persian city of Merv,
al-Khazini wrote Book
of the Balance of Wisdom
INDIAN MATHEMATICIAN AND
ASTRONOMER Bhaskara II
(111485) described a perpetual
motion machine, one that would,
once a force was imparted to it,
carry on working indenitely.
Bhaskaras device was a wheel
whose spokes were lled with
mercury. He theorized that
mercury was sufciently heavy
so that as the wheels turned it
would ow to the edge of the

JUDGEMENTS MAY BE REGARDED
AS CERTAIN, EVEN WITHOUT OUR
KNOWING THE REASON.
Abul Barakat al-Baghdadi, Kitab al-Mutabar, early 12th century
producing prefabricated parts
and using a method of frame-
building for ships that made it
possible to construct a vessel
in a single day.
TRANSLATING ANCIENT MANUSCRIPTS
The works of many classical
philosophers had been lost in
the Christian West, but they
were preserved through
translations made into Arabic
in the 8th and 9th centuries.
These manuscripts in turn
became available in Europe
from the 12th century, where
they were translated into Latin
by scholars such as Gerard
of Cremona.
,,
applied to an edition of the
Diamond Sutra (see 86199)
where the main text is in black,
and the prayers are in red.
In the 11th century, Avicenna
had theorized that the motion
of a projectile continues because
of the mail (inclination, or motive
power) imparted to it by the
projector, but said that only one
such force could exist in a body at
any time. This was later conrmed
by French priest Jean Buridan
(see 135062). Around 1120,
Baghdad philosopher Abu
lBarakat (c.10801165) proposed
that more than one mail could exist
in a projectile. As it fell, the mail
pushing it forwards weakened, and
another mail took over, causing it
to accelerate downwards. These
mail forces caused acceleration. In
this way, he expressed the idea of
the relationship between force
and acceleration.
in which he put forward a
theory of centres of
spokes and impel the machine
around another part-turn.
gravity. He suggested Bhaskara II was better known
gravity varies according for his astronomical and
to the distance from the mathematical works, which
centre of the world made him one of the most
the farther the objects are, respected Indian mathematicians
the heavier they seem. of the Middle Ages. In Lilavati
English philosopher Adelard (named after his daughter), his
of Bath (10801152) spent seven
years in Salerno and Sicily, where
he learned Arabic. His extensive
knowledge of Arabic culture and
language led him in 1126 to
translate al-Khwarizmis
astronomical work, the Sindhind
Zij, (Astronomical Tables of
Sindhind) into Latin, bringing
his work to a wider audience.
Raymond, Archbishop of Toledo
in Spain from 112652,
encouraged the translation of
books from Arabic into Latin.
The rst translators were
succeeded in 1167 by Italian- In perpetual motion
This 13th century version of a
born Gerard of Cremona
perpetual motion machine is an
(111487) who translated more overbalanced wheel with hinged
than 80 Arabic works. mallets around its rim.

lar
ho th
on sc ses ory Ba II a re
cti
n o
sia op he of ds ic ra t a
tru er i pr of t
d i
lar cl ab s ka s tha squ d
ns e 1 P zin rm de Eu Ar ha ate wo e an
Co nic gins 2 a 6 A ates from
B r t
4 e e 11 Kh ly fo ion 2 50 st s itiv
0 V
11 the ale b al- ear vitat 11 nsl nts 11 mon r ha pos tive
e
of sen an gra tra me tin d mb on ega
e e
e nu ots, er n
Ar of El o La
int ro e oth
th

at sh of
ak
ar he do wi ne e
se
B of t en ole y Je orda , o mal t
eu n l f T man
h s on l a
es rs i g u n
Ab tio twe on o
s
ni va otu f
e sa
i n u et d of from pa Sa work ons Tr wn tise taly
Ch olo ntin 20 no be ati e c on tin
S n i 50 kno rac o, I
07 le c pri 11 ses hip ler se neti n m ns s 45 ia es a t
1 e ay atio ork o La 11 atic duc equ
1
1 rst , p rn
c. ultip lock
1 es ns acce i n g o R l l w int m ians Sale
pr io Ch ma ass ea 1 s
5 tran sica bic e pr ato i c s
m odb ex elat and 25 es p or ath r pe ysic
wo r e 11 us com to K 26 s a ad o
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for ing ge o r E
at ya
56 o vo
 ,, KNOWLEDGE

,,
IS THE CONFORMITY
OF THE OBJECT AND
THE INTELLECT.
Ibn Rushd (Averros), from Commentaries on the Physics, late 12th century

The philosopher Ibn Rushd (Averros) is banished from the court of the Almohads, after their
overthrow of the Almoravids, whom he served as court physician.

Worlds rst striking clock restricted this analysis to celestial
An illustration from al-Saatis treatise on the bodies. Its extension to bodies
water clock shows the two falcons at each end
who would nod forwards every 60 minutes and on Earth would be made only
release a pellet onto a cymbal to sound the hour. in the 13th century by Thomas
Aquinas (c.122474).
In 1154, Arab engineer
al-Kaysarani constructed the
worlds rst striking clock,
near the Umayyad mosque
in Damascus. It was
powered by water and
was described by al-
Kaysaranis son Ridwan al
Saati in his 1203 treatise
On the Construction of
Clocks and their Use.
Islamic water clocks
became so sophisticated
that in 1235 one was
stone, which included grid lines
and an indication of the scale
of the map.
While waterwheels had long
been used in Europe for the
grinding of grain, around 1180
the idea was adapted to the use
of windpower. Unlike earlier
Persian windmills, which were
horizontal, the European
vertical mills used a post
design, with sails mounted on
a vertical tower that itself was
free to rotate as the wind varied.
By the 1190s, windmills had
become so commonplace that
Pope Celestine III imposed a
tax on them.

most comprehensive treatise, he
discussed fractions, algebra and
algorithms, permutations and
combinations, and the geometry
of triangles and quadrilaterals.
He also introduced the idea of
negative quantities in geometry.
In his Bija-Ganita (Seed Counting),
he concluded that the division
of a number by zero would
produce innity. He also
became the rst mathematician
to realize that there are two
square roots of a number, one
positive and one negative. In his
astronomical work of 1150, the
Siddhanta-siromani (Head Jewel of
Accuracy), Bhaskara II performed
calculations on small increments
2
scope than those
developed by Isaac
Newton or Gottfried
Leibniz ve
centuries later.
The Spanish-born philosopher
Ibn Rushd (112698), known as
THE NUMBER Averros in Europe, commented
extensively on Aristotles work
OF SQUARE in the 4th century BCE, seeking
ROOTS OF to integrate his ideas with
Islamic theology. Around 1154,
ANY NUMBER in his work on Aristotles theory
of motion, Averros made a
of motion that came close to distinction for the rst time
an idea of differential calculus, between the motive force of
which studies the rates at which an object (its weight) and the
quantities change. However, his inherent resistance of a body
ideas were of much narrower to motion (its mass), although he
built in Baghdad that
told people the times
of prayer, day and night.
The advanced state of both
cartography and printing in
China are indicated by the
rst printed map, which dates
from around 1155 (at least three
centuries before its rst
European counterpart in 1475).
Contained in the Liu Ching Tu
(Illustrations of Objects
mentioned in the Six Classics), it
depicted parts of western China
with rivers and provincial
names given, and showed the
line of the Great Wall. Vane power
A more grandiose cartographic This German windmill shows the
typical arrangement of four sails
creation of the Chinese Sung
attached to a vertical post, but unlike
dynasty was the Yu Ji Tu, an 1137 earlier post-mills only the cap of the
map of the country carved in mill rotates to face the wind.

s) ch rry al lar s y
s en ie lic ho o te db
s ro
er tics Fr Th rites Bib ith sc ona oled nsla ke ng l
es en Ibn v 5 n n
lia e m T ra tin al in ac adi hoo
bb ing (A ne ea 15 gia s w ling w f
Ita of Cr ad o ol; t o La nt s
is I le sc
8 A of B s on ny 54 s i id c.1 eolo rtre nci ation y izo pear ope
5 11 shd of k the ve 67 e o t r no y V cal
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51 ar tis bo
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R eor ses s ha sts
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0H sa Eu
r
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11 ldeg trea nd th pres ject resi of rks t of sm Ge com tion wor 18 ill ern S H m
c.1 ndm est 91 or of
i s
H ite ine a
ex at ob hat ce wo coun ic co be nsla 90 11 per line
wr dic t ac aton tra arly wi rthw Em dec
e th ss for no
m a
m tive Pl ne to
o
m

d r es
te ola os n
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ni t p part na s l n M ise o s
ra
s
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sic ea
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sa st tal ra hy s tr ntid
ay s r in 55 p, n 0 I isa t into p
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57
120019
,,THE IMPACT OF AL-JAZARIS

,,
INVENTIONS IS STILL FELT IN
MODERN CONTEMPORARY
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING.
Donald Hill, Studies in Medieval Islamic Technology, 1998

ITALIAN MATHEMATICIAN that were useful for the Pisan

Leonardo Pisano (Fibonacci)
published the Liber Abaci (Book
of Calculations) in 1202, the rst
major western European work
popularizing the use of Hindu
Arabic numerals and place
notation (see 86199). The book
also presented rules for
algebra, which he probably
derived from al-Khwarizmi (see
82160), as well as solutions for
nding square and cube roots.
Fibonacci described techniques
Ingenious devices
This illustration of one of al-Jazaris
mechanical devices shows an
automaton that pours water from
a pot, then returns to a chamber
where it is scooped back up again.
merchants of his day, including a
method for multiplication using
a grid, advice on the barter of
goods, and the use of alloys
to make coins. The Fibonacci
sequence (below) is derived from
a problem that concerned the
growth of a rabbit population.
In 1206, Arab engineer Ibn
Ismail al-Jazari published the
Book of Knowledge of Ingenious
and Mechanical Devices, detailing
50 machines, including the rst
descriptions of crankshafts
and camshafts. The most
spectacular of these was a 2 m-
(6.5 ft-) high water clock in the
form of an elephant with a
phoenix that marked half-hours.

each number in sequence continues

sequence is sum of in same way
two numbers before it indenitely
sequence
starts with 1 1+1 1+2 2+3 3+5

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8
FIBONACCI SEQUENCE

The Fibonacci sequence is a series of numbers in which each

successive number is the sum of the two numbers preceding it.
Any number in the series is known as a Fibonacci number. These
occur surprisingly often in nature, with the number of petals of
many owers being Fibonacci numbers (daisies have 13, 21, or
34), while the arrangement of leaves on a plant stem is also
determined according to a ratio connected to this sequence.

i r
cc be
o na e Li g ian gh ne
F i b t h din bic tal Hu wi
s
02 he un Ara 14 I ian ses ic
12 blis xpo du 12 ysic ca u ept ole
e
pu aci Hin ph Luc ntis ves r ion
Ab e of als of an a ser fect
us mer as d ob in in
nu an pus
of

r
f ola
ko ch ates
B oo ous d
s
sh s l ry
i no tti an ta
is gen ices
ar sy he co ot tr lane atin
az f In ev fts ch of t at S L
l-J ge o cal D sha fts r
hu dy tle y 17 Sc s P to
A 12 ael ruji y in
06 led an an sha
i k A c stu to sit ch -Bit eor
12 now ech s cr am 2 10 the Aris iver i
M al Th
K d M ibe d c 1 s
n of Un
an escr an ba orks aris
58 d w P
122049
A 13th-century illustration shows the ow of blood through the body by
means of veins. The top of the heart can just be seen.
EARLY CHINESE GUNPOWDER
WEAPONRY had been relatively
low powered, in the form of
hand-hurled grenades or
re-arrows, with a small charge
attached to the shaft. In 1231,
faced with a Mongol invasion, the
Chinese defenders of Ho Chung
deployed the Heaven-Shaking
Thunder Crash Bomb, which
contained gunpowder rich
enough in saltpetre to burst
an iron casing. The resulting
explosion could be heard 50 km
(31 miles) away, and the shrapnel
from the explosion was said to
have torn iron armour to pieces.
In 1232, the Chinese also used an
early form of rocket consisting of
a spear with a bamboo container
packed with gunpowder attached
to it. When lit, these re-spears
were propelled forwards by the
,, THE CONSIDERATION
OF LINES, ANGLES AND
FIGURES IS OF THE
GREATEST UTILITY SINCE
IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR
,,
NATURAL PHILOSOPHY
TO BE KNOWN WITHOUT
THEM.
Robert Grosseteste, English philosopher and theologian, in On Lines,
Angles, and Figures, c.1235
t ba
er
ob te
0 R tes
2 31 st t P
12 osse hes ry
Gr blis enta es y tics
pu mm totl nal
co Aris ior A
on ster
Po
or s t
0 J op lev al
23 evel of virtu nt
. 1
c e d ium of me
or
m ilib ide la
Ne equ the disp
f
o and
Rockets in the making
Shown here is an early
Chinese rocket of the
kind used at the siege
of Kaifeng in 1232. The
soldier is about to light
the fuse on the bamboo
gunpowder container.
explosive charge. Another form of
the weapon was used as an early
form of amethrower, which
could shoot re up to 2 m (6.5 ft)
towards an enemy, causing
appalling injuries.
Robert Grosseteste (c.1168
1253), Bishop of Lincoln, played
de
us y
d an heor s
er
r a ce
31 ey hoo of m Da
2 n
1 o sc in
m st ch
90
THOUSAND MILES
THE LENGTH OF THE ENTIRE
NETWORK OF BLOOD VESSELS
IN THE HUMAN BODY
axiom that equal weights at
equal distances from a fulcrum
are in equilibrium (see pp.3435),
Jordanus introduced the idea
of virtual displacement
(which looks at the effects
of innitesimal changes on
a mechanical system) into the
science of mechanics. His De
Ratione Ponderis (On the Theory
of Weight) also investigated the
problem of downward forces
acting along the trajectory of a FIBONACCI (C.11701250)
moving body. He demonstrated
that the more oblique the objects Leonardo Pisano (Fibonacci)
a key role in reconciling trajectory, the smaller the was born into a wealthy
Aristotelian philosophy and downward forces (later merchant family in Pisa, Italy.
scientic method with Christian understood as positional gravity). His father was in charge of
thinking through his commentary Jordanus also developed proof to the Pisan trading colony in
on Aristotles Posterior Analytics, show the point at which weights Bugia in Tunisia, and there
published from 1220 to 1235. His supported by angled (or bent) Fibonacci came into contact
logical method was rigorous, a levers on a fulcrum will be with Arabic mathematical
process he called resolution and in equilibrium (balanced). ideas. Aged 32, he published
composition, which involved the
testing, by experiment if possible,
of hypotheses, and the rejection of
any conclusions that were not
Syrian polymath and anatomist
Ibn al-Nas (121388) produced
a major medical compendium
the Sharh Tashrish al-Qanun
the Liber Abaci, which
brought him great fame and
he gave a mathematical
demonstration to King
based on observation. His theory (Commentary on Anatomy in Ibn Frederick II of Sicily.
that all changes were caused by Sinas Canon). It contained a host
the action of forces acting
through a medium led him to
of anatomical discoveries, but
al-Nass major breakthrough to the left through pores in the
study optics and to write treatises was his discovery of how blood wall that separated the two
on rainbows and astronomy. circulated between the heart chambers. However, he did not
Around 1230, European and lungs. He showed that blood explain how the blood then
mathematician Jordanus de
Nemore produced a new theory
circulates from the right-hand
side of the heart to the left
returned from the hearts left
ventricle to the right. A full theory
of levers in his Elementa Super
Demonstrationem Ponderum
through the lungs, in contrast to
the traditional view of Galen (see
of bloods circulation would not
be formulated until William
(Elements on the Demonstration 100250), who held that blood Harvey in the 17th century
of Weight). Building on Aristotles seeped in from the right ventricle (see 162830).
n
ian e ple
of of s l sic th
f t y ica hy iles n Sim l
Li ud ari em p
h ic mp k o tia eia
12 the le a 0 C of am co oo en po
on istot sity 4 dia he he
d Isl tar e B u aco
30 ope ew t blis 8 y
24 Ba nsi st i rm
v n
Ar iver 2
c.1 cycl lom n pu c.1 al- ehe mo pha
Un en rtho hma n r
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Ba glis Co ugs val A
En Dr die
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m
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hs
at f
i
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s
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y b l n i p o in
ar shm ly in 6 S pu on
th ist ici
g C r w ic
hw li ive e, 4 ah ion rst me
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ak stab clus icin cus 5 S
- D e s 4 bi at , ic 47 rst nsic
Al for l ex ed ma 12 say rm ians rab 12
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59
125068
,, TO CURE MELANCHOLY,
CUT A CROSS-SHAPED HOLE IN
THE SKULL THE PATIENT
IS TO BE HELD IN CHAINS.
Roger Frugardi, Italian surgeon, from Chirurgia, late 12th century
AROUND 1250, PRIEST AND
PHYSICIAN Gilbert the
Englishman completed the
Compendium Medicinae
(Compendium of Medicine). It
became one of the most widely
used medical works of the
Middle Ages and was translated
from Latin into German, Hebrew,
Catalan, and English. The work
had separate volumes devoted
to the head, heart, respiratory
organs, fevers, and womens
diseases. In the books, Gilbert
also wrote about the diagnosis
of leprosy by its numbing
effect on skin.
In 1266, English friar and scholar
Roger Bacon completed his Opus
Majus (Greater Work). Ostensibly
a plea for church reform, the
work included large sections on
experimental observation and
natural sciences, intended to
ROGER BACON (122092)
Educated at Oxford University,
England, Roger Bacon
travelled to Paris, where he
lectured on Aristotle. In 1247,
he gave up his post to research
privately. He joined the
Franciscan Order in 1257 in
order to continue his studies.
He was commissioned by Pope
Clement IV to produce a work
on church reform, which led to
his Opus Majus in 1267.
m s
iu
nd
he mpe
t
t Co es
er
ilb ns lud sy
0 G hma e inc pro
5
12 glis icin of le
En Med sis
of gno
dia
60
,,
,, EXPERIMENTAL
SCIENCE IS
THE QUEEN OF
SCIENCES AND
,,
THE GOAL
OF ALL
SPECULATION.
Roger Bacon, in Opus Tertium, 1267
convince the Church of the
virtues of new learning. It also
contained the rst description of
gunpowder in western Europe,
and ideas for ying machines
and steam ships. The section on
optics was particularly important.
In it, Bacon agreed with Arab
scholar Alhazens view that vision
is made possible when rays
emanating from the object
viewed enter into the eye
Surgeon Roger Frugardis surgical treatise, Chirurgia (Surgery), was one of Europes earliest
books on surgery. This illustration shows a hernia operation in progress.
(see 100029). He examined the
properties of differently shaped
lenses, and described the use
and mathematics behind
magnifying lenses although he
did not, as commonly supposed,
actually invent spectacles.
Italian surgeons Hugo
(c.11801258) and Teodorico
Borgognoni (120598) came
from a family of doctors who
practised in Bologna, a leading
centre of medicine. By the 1260s,
Teodorico was advocating the
cleansing of wounds with wine
and their rapid closing up. This
practice was in contrast to
most contemporary medical
practitioners who went along
with Greek physician Galens
insistence that pus be allowed
to form in wounds. The
Borgognonis also advocated
using dry bandaging for
wounds discarding the salves
and poultices used at the time.
They also used an early form of
anaesthesia by holding sponges
soaked with narcotics such as
opium or hemlock near the
noses of patients who were
about to undergo surgery.
Opus Majus
This diagram from Roger Bacons
major work shows the structure
of the eye, the curvature of its lens,
and how light rays striking the
lens produce vision.
er be he s
s og scri of t rtie
ico te ith ic 7 R de ure ope es
or voca ds w thet 6
d
eo ad un aes 12 acon uct e pr lens
0 T ni o n s B str th ng
26 gno of w f a tion e d i
c.1 rgo ing se o era th e an nify
o s
B an nd n o u p ey mag
cle ne a ics i of
wi rcot
na
s
nu
M ag oes
s a n by
rtu lc d
l be at vo ause inds
A h c w
60 s t are ean
12 rite n
w r ra
bte
su
126979 128099
,, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO DIRECT

,,
YOUR STEPS TO CITIES AND
ISLANDS AND TO ANY PLACE
WHATEVER IN THE WORLD.
Pierre de Maricourt, French scholar, describing the compass in Epistola
de Magnete, 1269

Figures wearing eyeglasses soon found their way into religious art, as is shown here

26
in this 1491 detail from the Betrayal by Judas in Notre Dame, Paris, France.

IN 1280, GUO SHOUJING

IN 1269, FRENCH SCHOLAR
PIERRE DE MARICOURT
wrote Epistola de magnete (Letter
on the Magnet), the rst work
to describe the properties of
magnets. In it, he set out the
laws of magnetic attraction and
repulsion, and explained how to
identify the poles of compasses.
Maricourts work led to the
construction of better magnetic
compasses, which became
invaluable aids in sea navigation.
He also described the operation
of a perpetual motion machine,
which worked using magnetism.
In 1276, the Mongol ruler of
China, Kublai Khan, asked
mathematician and engineer
Guo Shoujing (12311316) to
reform the calendar. To perform
this task, Guo rst had a series
of astronomical instruments
constructed. This included a vast
equatorial armillary sphere
nally completed his calendar.
According to his calculations, a
year had 365.2425 days.
The earliest surviving cannon
is from China and was made
c.1288. Before cannons were
strengthened by the use of cast
iron barrels, the Chinese had
probably used bronze tubes to
eject projectiles using gunpowder
explosives. Manuscripts of 1274
and 1277, however, refer to huo
pao explosive weapons used by
Gaocheng observatory the Mongols to demolish the
Of its two towers, one contained an ramparts of Chinese cities so
armillary sphere. Between them lay
the invention may have occurred
a sky-measuring scale to measure
the shadow of the 12-metre gnomon. a little earlier.
Although the magnifying
calibrated with a ring representing properties of glass lenses had
equatorial coordinates, a system been studied by English bishop
not used in Europe until the time Robert Grosseteste (11751253)
of Tycho Brahe (see 156574) and Roger Bacon earlier in the
three centuries later. He then 13th century, the
established astronomical rst description
observatories at Peking (Beijing) of eyeglasses
and Gaocheng, near Loyang, was given by a
China, between 1279 and 1280. Dominican friar
At the latter, a 12 m- (39 ft-) high Giordano da Pisa
gnomon (shaft on a sundial) sat
on top of a pyramid, casting
shadows, which were measured
at the time of the Suns solstices Camera obscura
This 16th-century
to help determine the length of
illustration of a
the year. Guo used advanced camera obscura
trigonometry to calculate the shows how an image
length of a year. of the Sun is reversed
after light passes
through an aperture
on to a surface in a
darkened room.
(c.12601310), who wrote that he
had seen them in 1286. Early
glasses were convex (curving
out) to correct long-sightedness.
Concave lenses (curving in) for
short-sightedness did not appear
for more than a century.
In 1290, French astronomer
William of St Cloud gave an
account of a solar eclipse
witnessed by him ve years
earlier. Many of those who
had observed the eclipse had
SECONDS
THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN GOUS
CALCULATION
AND ACTUAL
DAYS IN A YEAR
damaged their eyes by viewing
the Sun directly. In order to
prevent this, William used a
camera obscura a type of
pinhole camera in which light
goes into a dark chamber and is
projected through a tiny aperture
onto another surface, such as
a card, opposite it. The technique
had been used by earlier
astronomers, such as Alhazen in
the 11th century, to prove that
intersecting rays do not interfere
with each other. William,
however, was the rst to explain
its use in solar observation.
He also calculated an accurate
value by which the Earth tilts on
its axis, by observing the Suns
position at the solstices. In
addition, he produced an
almanac with detailed positions
of the Sun, Moon, and planets
at various dates between 1292
and 1312.

am k
illi rke ks on s on
m
9 W rbe wor i sh s of end st nn
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12 Moe tes des Po she opti l iam omm nife atio r si n l
8 i i l k ng m a n
fon ca is
of nsla ime 7
0 pub a, o
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h
tra Arc tin 7 7 ho o ref dar 28 ng f
12 itelo ctiv 12 lice sur n ca S
uo rk t len c.1 rvivi hina o n
se stro ds t
o
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in t 76 G wo e ca 9 6 U a rea
P e s
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12 gin ines s fro s
12 ble s p
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th tab

of o of
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o u fm t ac nno a c. Verd mys picyc
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Cl e o ob ect
ric s o irs f ca hin ou obs Pek oche 12 ear
8 li of e St e us a to ndir ipse
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th cur n i ecl
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t ri
du
61
 8 0 0 15 4 2 EUROPEAN AND ISLAMIC RENAISSANCE

coiled springs beneath

chassis store and
programmable gears can release energy tiller alters
be set to steer the car
direction of
in a particular direction
front wheel for
manual steering

like a childs toy

car, spinning the
wheels in reverse
stores energy in
the spring brake mechanism keeps
the car stationary
until released

30
THE NUMBER OF GEAR WHEELS
FOUND IN THE REMAINS OF THE
ANTIKYTHERA MECHANISM RECOVERED
FROM A MEDITERRANEAN SHIPWRECK

c.230 BCE South-pointing chariot c.125 BCE 13th century

Early gears Zhang Hengs armillary sphere Mechanical clocks in Europe
The Chinese south-pointing Chinese scholar Zhang Heng builds The rst mechanical clocks
chariot probably uses a an armillary sphere driven by gears using gears to drive the rotation
gear arrangement that and water. His model, showing the of pointers and to control the
ensures the gure at the motions of the Sun, Moon, and stars, striking of chimes are invented.
front points to the would go on to inuence not only They are powered by the
south as the Chinese gear technology, but also controlled drop of a weight
wheels turn. later clockmakers (see 700799). Clock at Salisbury Cathedral attached to a drive chain.

c.200 BCE c.7th century 1206

Watermills Persian windmills Book of Ingenious Devices
Greek watermills that use gears to The rst functional Arab polymath al-Jazari
harness hydropower begin to spread windmills, developed writes a treatise describing the
throughout the GraecoRoman world. in Persia, have construction of 100 remarkable
The Chinese develop their own water horizontal sails that machines including
wheel technology about 200 years drive the rotation the crankshaft
later, with gearing mechanisms to of a vertical shaft. many of which rely Al-Jazaris
Chinese watermill drive various motions. Windmill gear on gears. treatise

62
 T H E S TO R Y O F G E A R S

THE STORY OF
GEARS
SIMPLE BUT EFFECTIVE MECHANISMS FOR TRANSMITTING FORCES OF ROTATION, GEARS HAVE A LONG AND COMPLEX HERITAGE

The ability to alter the direction of a force, transmit it from one

axis of rotation to another, or trade force with movement, is rack and pinion gear
converts linear motion to
a vital aspect of many modern machines. Yet, such mechanical rotary motion or vice versa
functions often rely on gearing techniques that are centuries old. bevel gears,
with their tilted
edge, transmit
A gear is a wheel mounted on a central In ancient Greece, gear technology reached rotation from
rotating axis, with a series of teeth or its apex with devices such as the Antikythera one axis to
another
cogs around its outer edge that can engage mechanism a complex astronomical calculator
with the cogs of another gear. The teeth allow recovered from a Mediterranean shipwreck screw-like
the gear to transmit its angular motion to its around 1900. helical gear
engages with a
neighbour, forming a pairing known as a worm gear spur gears, the
transmission. The ratio of teeth between the two PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS whose teeth simplest form
are arranged of straight-
wheels determines the speed and force with which More immediate practical applications of gears, at an angle toothed gears
the second gear rotates, providing a so-called such as their use in harnessing power from
mechanical advantage; a smaller secondary owing water and wind, gradually spread arrangement of spur
gears causes the gear
gear rotates more rapidly, but with less torque throughout the ancient world. Treadmills powered with fewer teeth to
or rotational force. by animals or even humans became common. rotate more rapidly

The earliest specic devices known to
have used gears were the Chinese south-
pointing chariots direction-nding
devices used in the 3rd century BCE.
Leonardo da Vincis vehicle
This model of self-propelled
automobile was built from
a Leonardo da Vinci sketch.
The force from the
expansion of two wound
springs is transmitted
through ingenious
gearing to drive
the rear wheels.
Gears found various applications in mills our
mills are perhaps the most familiar, but saw
mills also used gears to turn rotating cutting
blades, and hammer mills used gearing to lift
and drop heavy hammers for beating metal
or minting coins.
New advances led to the development of
traditional clockwork in Europe in around
the 13th century, and the Industrial Revolution
saw the development of further ingenious
transmissions to harness the power of steam
engines. The use of gears has continued to the
present day in modern machines ranging from
automobiles to inkjet printers.
bevel and spur
transmissions change
direction of motion
TYPES OF GEARS
Gears can be designed or arranged in a variety
of ways to transmit motion from one direction
to another. Complex transmission assemblies
can take the motive power from a single rotating
drive shaft and apply it to drive a range of linear
movements or to propel further rotating shafts
at any speed required.

1781 1835 1990s

Murdochs gearing
1480 Scottish engineer William
Leonardo da Vincis work on gears Murdochs sun and planet
Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci utilizes gear transmission converts
complex gear assemblies in many of his vertical motion, such as
inventions, such as lens-grinding and that of a steam-driven
metal-rolling devices, and shows a deep beam, into the rotational
theoretical understanding of their function. motion of a driveshaft.
Gear hobbing proccess
British engineer Joseph
Whitworth invents
hobbing the rst
process for the
production of high
precision gears, on
Sun and planet gearing an industrial scale.
Nanotechnology
Machines created on a
nano-scale often rely on
the same gearing
principles as larger
devices, except that the
gear wheels are mere
Plastic gear micrometres across.

18th century 19th century Safety 1950s

Industrial Revolution Development of bicycles
The rise of steam power during the Through the 19th century,
Industrial Revolution drives advances bicycles gradually develop from
in gear technology. The linear motion the scooter-like velocipedes
of steam pistons is applied to the that were invented around
rotation of locomotive wheels. 1817 to pedal-powered
machines that use gears
Steam locomotive and a drive chain.
bicycle Plastic gears
Gears made from new
plastics materials are
introduced from the 1950s.
They lack the strength of
properly machined metal
gears, but are far more easily
and cheaply manufactured.

63
130010 131116

The search for an explanation of the colours of the rainbow preoccupied medieval The title page of Mondino de Luzzis Anatomia shows a corpse on the
scholars, including Roger Bacon and Theodoric of Freiberg. dissecting table; it has already been opened up and had organs removed.

0.45
EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE USED
A SYSTEM OF WEIGHTS based
on the Roman pound, which
had 12 unciae (or ounces) and
was mainly used for weighing
pharmaceuticals and coins.
A new set of measures suitable
for bulky goods, such as wool,
was introduced in England
around 1303 (when it was
mentioned in a charter). It
was called avoirdupois, from
the Norman French Habur de
Peyse meaning goods having
weight and was based
on a 16-ounce pound a
measure that would be used
for the next 700 years.
The avoirdupois pound
probably originated in
Florence, where an almost
identical unit was in use for
the weighing of wool. Soon
supplementary weights
Weighty issues
This is one of a set of standard
avoirdupois weights that
were issued by Elizabeth I
of England in 1582. These
weights were to remain
the standard measure
until the 1820s.
KILOGRAMS
THE MODERN
EQUIVALENT OF THE
AVOIRDUPOIS POUND
were added, including the
hundredweight (112 pounds),
which was dened in an
ordinance of 1309.
The properties of the rainbow
had fascinated philosophers
from Aristotle to Roger Bacon,
who thought their colour was
due to the reection of light from
spherical raindrops in a cloud.
Around 1310, the Dominican
friar Theodoric of Freiberg
(c.12501311) carried out
scientic experiments to
determine the origins of
rainbows by using glass balls
lled with water through which
he passed light, which was
then projected onto a screen.
He concluded that the
rainbow was caused by light
striking spherical rain drops,
which was rst refracted, then
reected internally on the
inner surface of the drop,
and then refracted again.
Theodoric also properly
described the colour
spectrum. He discovered that
the light that projected out of
his glass balls produced
the same range of colours
as a rainbow, and in the
same order (red,
yellow, green,
and blue).
EARLY SURGERY AND DISSECTION
Surgery took a long time to become established as a separate
discipline, but written records since 1170 indicate a growing medical
sophistication. By 1200, operations for bladder-stones, hernias, and
fractures were routine. By the 14th century, surgeons were aware of
the need to avoid infection, sometimes cleaning wounds with wine
and closing them up as soon as possible.
THE EARLIEST WRITTEN clocks mechanism. The rst
RECORDS OF WEIGHT-DRIVEN clock faces were probably divided
CLOCKS feature in the Italian up according to the canonical
writer Dante Alighieris book hours (seven regulated times of
Paradiso (Paradise) (c.131321), prayer), which punctuated the
although such clocks probably church day. Clocks showing
rst appeared decades earlier. 12 equal hours were rst
Weight-driven clocks use recorded in 1330.
a weight to act as an energy Among the rst major surgical
storage device so that the clock writers was Henri de Mondeville
can run for a certain period of (c.12601316). A former military
time (such as a day or a week). surgeon who came to teach
Winding such clocks pulls on a medicine at Montpellier, de
cord that lifts the weight, which is Mondeville had, by 1308, begun
affected by gravity and falls; the to use anatomical charts and a
clock uses the potential energy model of a skull as aids to his
as the weight falls to drive the teaching. Around 1312, he

is
po s
rdu ight land on
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13 stem ced ed po re
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Hu av o 1
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13 ded
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ian
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sh des me th ric t wr ieri
gli o do s ou e a n h t-
ru e he rie th i g
En sden inst g te tal Ali gh
7 0 T ar on m 1 I nte wei his
5 0 dde , an actin 131 rg c nts ctru w 2
Da a in se
0 a n r .
c ibe me pe nbo 13 ns ck di
13 of G lica ext e i s i 13 tio clo ar a
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Jo the ex colo an m ri o
d bo
64
 131749
,,
,,
IT IS FUTILE TO DO WITH
MORE THINGS THAT WHICH
CAN BE DONE WITH FEWER.
William of Ockham, Franciscan friar, from Summa Totius Logicae, c.1323

,,GOD HIMSELF WAS A

PRACTISING SURGEON
IN 1323, WILLIAM OF OCKHAM
produced one of the greatest
works of logic of the Middle

,,
Ages Summa Logicae (The Logic
WHEN HE MADE THE FIRST Handbook) in which he radically

MAN FROM MUD AND EVE diverged from traditional

FROM ONE OF HIS RIBS.
Henri de Mondeville, French surgeon, from Cyrurgia, c.1312
produced his Cyrurgia (Surgery),
a manual based in part on his
observations of dissected corpses,
although his denitions were
not always accurate.
The practice of dissection
was revived by Italian medical
professor Mondino de Luzzi
(c.12751326), who taught at
Bologna, and who performed
Dissections featured regularly
in his teaching. In 1316,
Mondino completed Anatomia,
the rst textbook specically
concerned with anatomy
(rather than surgery).
An atlas of the body
This anatomical drawing from Henri
de Mondevilles Cyrurgia shows the
lower part of the torso cut away,
Christian philosophy. Most
notable in Williams ideas is the
idea of economy, that if a cause
or factor is unnecessary to prove
an argument, then it should be
discarded, a principle that came
to be called Ockhams razor. He WILLIAM OF OCKHAM (C.12851349)
promoted the idea that individual
perception is the foundation of Franciscan friar William of Ockham studied at Oxford and by 1315
all knowledge about the world, he was lecturing on the Bible. His theories of logic were seen by
attacking long-held metaphysical many as attacking Christian tenets, and he was summoned to the
explanations for the order of the Papal court at Avignon to answer charges of erroneous teaching.
Universe. He also advocated He ed before the enquiry was concluded and spent the rest of his
the separation of secular and life at the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV of Bavaria.
ecclesiastical power.

20
a public dissection in 1315. revealing the internal organs. Windmills had been used to
grind our since the 12th century analysis. Later, in 1377, he
in Europe, but in 1345 windmills proposed the idea in his Livre
are rst recorded as being used du Ciel et du Monde (Treatise of
to operate water-pumps to drain the Sky and the World) that the
land in the Netherlands. The Earth was not immobile at
resulting reclaimed land, or the centre of the Universe, as
polders, ultimately came to
make up a fth of the country,
traditional cosmology held, but
that it rotated on its axis. He PER CENT
which is still protected from met objections from those
the sea by a system of dykes. who said birds would simply
THE
Around 1349, the French y off it, by afrming that the PROPORTION
scholar Nicholas of Oresme oceans were included in OF THE
the rotation.
NETHERLANDS
(c.132082) expounded a
system using graphs to
represent the growth of a THAT IS
function (such as the velocity
of an object), which was a
RECLAIMED
great aid to mathematical LAND
e
zi n sts nc sh d
uz lic t ar
s oh gge bsta ed gli ian ea f
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M ca Euro En Dum pa ated pav lecu 5 W laim aina ds
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t 65
135062
,, A PROJECTILE WOULD BE MOVED
BY AN IMPETUS BY THE THROWER

,,
AND WOULD CONTINUE TO BE MOVED
AS LONG AS THE IMPETUS REMAINED
STRONGER THAN THE RESISTANCE.
Jean Buridan, French priest, in Questions on the Physics of Aristotle, c.1357

A catapult in the fortress of Edessa hurls a ball at a siege tower. According to

Jean Buridans theory, the catapult has imparted impetus to the projectile.

IN THE LATE 1340S, A NEW AND reached Constantinople in 1347 by humidity or rotting corpses. 200
TERRIBLE DISEASE STRUCK and spread by ship throughout Remedies included controlling

Europe, the Middle East, and
North Africa. The Black Death
was an epidemic of bubonic
plague that infected humans via
rat eas. It was discovered later
that the cause was a bacterium
called Yersinia pestis. The plague
Plague victims
This 15th-century Swiss manuscript
shows victims of the plague with the
characteristic swellings, or buboes,
covering large parts of their bodies.
the Mediterranean, arriving in
France and England in 1348. The
disease began with swellings, or
buboes, in the groin and armpit,
followed by the spread of black
spots over the body and high
fever. It caused millions of deaths
across Europe.
Contemporary physicians, who
had no cure for the plague,
believed that it was caused by
putrefaction in the air brought on
the bodys heat by avoiding
putrefying foods, such as meat
and sh, fumigating rooms, and
wearing pomanders infused with
spices close to the nose.
Although doctors had failed to
control the plague, after its end
a renewed energy was given to
medical science. By 1351, Padova
had 12 medical professors (as
against three in 1349). Measures
to promote public health were
HEIGHT (METRES)
150
100
50
0
0 100
also enacted. In 1377, the
Republic of Ragusa (Dubrovnik)
ordered a quarantine of 30 days
for anyone coming from plague-
infected areas, as did Marseilles
in 1383. By 1450 Milan would
establish a permanent board of
health, and health passports
were introduced in Italy in 1480.
Aristotles explanation of
projectiles in motion had long
puzzled scholars. In 1357, the
French priest Jean Buridan
(c.130058) published Questions
on the Physics of Aristotle. He
pointed out that a thrown stone
continues to move even out of
200 300 400 500 600
DISTANCE (METRES)
Free fall
The impetus provided by throwing an
object to a greater height means it
travels further before downward
forces pulls it back to the ground.
contact with the thrower. He
theorized that the person throwing
an object imparts a force to it,
which he called impetus, and this
causes it to continue to move, so
long as the resistance of the air
does not stop it. He believed the
amount of impetus in an object
depended on the amount of matter
in it, so that feathers would not
move quickly when thrown,
whereas heavier objects would.

50 PER CENT
THE PROBABLE DEATH RATE
IN EUROPE DURING THE PEAK
OF THE BLACK DEATH IN THE
MID-14TH CENTURY

th t.
ea ou led
k D rs kil
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Fre n pu of im
57 ida ry
13 Bur theo
66
136399
,, A SURGEON WHO DOES

,,
NOT KNOW HIS ANATOMY
IS LIKE A BLIND MAN
CARVING A LOG.
Guy de Chauliac, French physician, in Great Surgery, 1363

This illustration from Guy de Chauliacs Chirurgia Magna shows patients with a variety
of injuries, including a broken arm and an eye wound, visiting a surgeon.

FRENCH PHYSICIAN GUY DE In 1364, the Italian

CHAULIAC (c.130068) was clockmaker
personal surgeon to three Giovanni de
Popes. He remained in Avignon Dondi (131889)
during the outbreak of the published his
Black Death in 1348, an Planetarium, a
experience that led him to description of
distinguish for the rst the complex
time between pneumonic astronomical
(affecting the lungs) and clock (astrarium)
bubonic plague. that he had just
His Chirurgia Magna (Great completed after
Surgery, 1363), became one 16 years of work.
of the medieval worlds most This 1m- (3.3ft-) high,
important surgical textbooks. weight-driven clock
In its seven volumes, he gave with an escapement Making gunpowder
advice on the treatment of and balance wheel was the most German legend attributed the
invention of gunpowder to alchemist
fractures, advising extending advanced of its time. Its seven
Barthold Schwartz. This woodcut
broken limbs with pulleys and dials showed the celestial depicts him stirring together the
weights, and noting the loss of movements of the Sun, Moon, ingredients for gunpowder.
cerebrospinal uid in skull and ve calendars, and it acted
fractures. He outlined procedures as a perpetual calendar, unevenly and mostly at the
such as tracheotomies (cutting including showing the date of surface, military technologists
open the windpipe) and the Easter. The clock was regulated had to devise new techniques.
replacement of lost teeth by by a balance that swung 1,800 They left a conical hole in the
ox bone. But his over-reliance times an hour; and the addition centre of the tube, which
on the work of Galen (see or removal of small weights encouraged an even burn (and
100250 BCE) led him to some enabled corrections to be made sufcient thrust), and made the
retrograde steps, such as if the device ran too fast or slow. rocket airtight, except for a
abandoning antiseptic The rst recorded use of small opening at the rear. These
treatment of wounds and rockets in Europe as a military methods were discussed by the
encouraging pus to form as weapon came in 1380 at the German military engineer Konrad
part of the healing process. Battle of Chioggia, fought between Kyeser (1366after 1405) in his
the eets of Venice and Genoa. Bellifortis (War Fortications)
Rockets need an ignition that in 1405. Kyeser also advised
Accurate marking of time provides continued and regular the adding of feathers (like the
This reconstruction of de Dondis thrust as the projectile ies etching of an arrow) or weights
1364 astrarium shows three of
through the air (unlike cannon to the rear of the rocket to make
its seven dials, as well as the
balance wheel and weights that balls). Since gunpowder its trajectory more even and to
regulated its movement. packed into a tube burns enable more accurate aiming.

h de se
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67
140021 142249

Italian artist Masolino da Panicale was an early master of visual perspective. He made good use of the technique The dome of Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral, Florence, is 42 m (137.8 ft) in diameter
in St Peter Curing a Cripple and the Raising of Tabitha, painted for the Brancacci Chapel , Florence. and 54 m (177 ft) high and took its architect, Brunelleschi, 16 years to complete.

42
THE PRINCIPLES OF LINEAR Brunelleschi may have been IN 1420, THE MONGOL RULER Zij-i-Sultani, a star catalogue
PERSPECTIVE were known to taught the technique by ULUGH BEG (141149) had showing the position of 1,018
the ancient Greeks, particularly Florentine physician Paola established a scientic institute xed stars.
Euclid who wrote of it in his Toscanelli (13971482), but at Samarkand, Uzbekistan; in Between 1430 and 1440, Ibn

Elements, but knowledge of
these was lost after the fall
of the Roman Empire.
Although Italian artist Giotto
(12661337) had attempted to
use algebraic formula to create
perspective, he had only partially
succeeded. Renewed efforts to
achieve true linear perspective
included works from 1377 to
1397 by Italian mathematician
Biagio Pelacani (c.13471416),
who showed how mirrors could
be used as aids to view objects
at a distance. In 141516, Italian
METRES
THE WIDTH OF
THE DOME
OF FLORENCE
CATHEDRAL
(13771446) demonstrated
in public for the rst time the
use of mirrors, by reecting
an image of the Florence
Baptistery onto a 30 cm-
(12 in-) canvas, which could
he did not publish his theories
until 1460. The rst full account
of the application of linear
perspective to painting,
including the creation of a grid
to organize the placement of
objects in a picture and of the
principles of the vanishing point
and horizon line, was set out by
Leon Battista Alberti (140472),
another of Toscanellis pupils,
in his On Painting in 1436.
As well as being an innovator
in drawing, Brunelleschi devised
advanced machinery for the
1424, he started to build an
observatory there. It had a huge
sextant that had a radius of 40 m
(131 ft). Among the astronomers
recruited was Jamshid al-Kashi
(c.13801429), who produced a
mathematical encyclopedia
with a section on astronomical
calculations, calculated the
value of pi to 17 decimal places,
and helped produce an extremely
accurate set of trigonometric
tables. In 1437, the astronomers
at the observatory published the
Ali al-Qalasadi (141286), a
Spanish Muslim mathematician,
published a work in which he
used a series of short words
and abbreviations to stand for
arithmetical operations in
algebraic equations. He was not
the rst to do so such Arabic
abbreviations had appeared a
century earlier in North Africa,
and Diophantus had devised a
form of algebraic notation but
al-Qalasadis widely diffused
works were responsible for
popularizing the system.

+
architect Filippo Brunelleschi then be drawn in perspective. construction of his many building In 1436, Brunelleschi nally
projects in Florence. Among completed the dome of Florence
hole in artists mirror is moved up and down these was a colla grande (great Cathedral after 16 years work.
canvas sight line so artist can compare his crane), a massive barge-based The dome was the largest
work with original building

original
building
hoist that could lift weights of
more than one ton, had three
different lifting velocities, and
could operate in reverse without
unsupported structure yet
built, and Brunelleschi solved the
problem of its weight by building
a lighter inner shell, on which

artist looks
through small
hole in canvas
artists
canvas is
reected in the mirror
unhitching the load. In 1421,
the authorities in Florence
granted him the rst recorded
monopoly patent. The Venetian
was built a tougher outer dome.
He used a ring and rib pattern
of stone and timber supports
between the two shells, and
BRUNELLESCHIS PERSPECTIVE

Florence architect and artist Filippo Brunelleschi used mirrors to

recreate an accurate depiction of Florences Baptistry on canvas. He
government would go on to
regularize the process of
granting patents, giving inventors
10 years monopoly rights, as
realized that linear perspective could be used to give an accurate long as the invention was
impression of a three-dimensional object on a two-dimensional properly registered.
surface. Using a single perspective point (a hole in the canvas) and
a mirror, he produced a painting that was identical to the original.
ARABIC
x
MATHEMATICAL
devised a herringbone pattern for
the bricks, both of which helped
diffuse the weight of the structure.
Nicholas of Cusa (140164),
CHARACTER SYMBOL
a German philosopher, wrote
A new mathematical language a number of treatises such as
The mathematician al-Qalasadi used
De Docta Ignorantia (On Learned
short Arabic words for algebraic
operations, such as wa (and) for Ignorance), which included
addition and ala (over) for division. advanced astronomical and

ild
c bu
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,, WE OUGHT NOT TO SAY THAT

,,
BECAUSE THE EARTH IS SMALLER
THAN THE SUN AND IS INFLUENCED
BY THE SUN, IT IS MORE LOWLY.
Nicholas of Cusa, German philosopher, in De Docta Ignorantia, 1440

An early 16th-century woodcut shows Nicholas of Cusa caught between a group advocating church
reform (as Nicholas did) and conservative Papal supporters.

Printing for the masses

JOHANNES GUTENBERG (C.140068)
Born in Mainz, Johannes
Gutenberg later moved to
Strasbourg where he engaged
in a mysterious venture he
called adventure and art
perhaps his rst experiments
in printing. By 1448, he was
back in Mainz, where, by
This replica of Gutenbergs
press shows the type of
machinery that he employed
in Mainz for the production
of his 42-line Bible, so called
because of its 42-line columns.
lever to tighten
plates together
to impress ink

1450, his printing press was

in operation. The venture did
not prosper and by 1459 plate for laying
Gutenberg was bankrupt. plate for
movable type
in strips
placing paper

cosmological ideas. He held 1450, he had ink transferred

the radical view that Earth
rotates on its own axis and
orbits around the Sun,
preguring Copernicuss
theory 100 years later.
Around 1440, Johannes
Gutenberg began experiments
with printing using movable
type. The blocks could be moved
as required and later reused. By
established to printing block
a printing
press that
produced the earliest
extant printed work in
Europe, an edition of the
Ars Grammatica. Gutenbergs
printing techniques grew more
sophisticated and, in 1454, he
published an edition of the Bible.

,, IT IS A PRESS FROM WHICH

SHALL FLOW IN INEXHAUSTIBLE

,,
STREAMS LIKE A NEW STAR
IT SHALL SCATTER THE
DARKNESS OF IGNORANCE.
Johannes Gutenberg, German printer, c.1450

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 145067 146882

An illuminated page from Gutenbergs 42-line Bible. The 48 surviving copies

are among the most valuable books in the world.

30
IN 1454, GERMAN PRINTER
JOHANNES GUTENBERG
completed his edition of the Bible
printed with 42 lines on each
page. It was the rst substantial
book printed in Europe and its
180 or so copies sold out almost
immediately. The Gutenberg
FLORINS
Bible was soon followed by THE ORIGINAL
hundreds of works by Gutenberg
and other printers, allowing the
COST OF THE
much more rapid dissemination GUTENBERG
of scientic ideas. BIBLE
In 1464, German mathematician
Johannes Mller, also known as
Regiomontanus (143676), was that two triangles that have
completed his De Triangulis sides in similar proportions will
Omnimodis (On Triangles), a also have similar angles. He
systematic textbook for relied on the work of Arabic
trigonometry. One of his mathematicians.
fundamental propositions The rst work on cryptography
had been written in the 13th
century. By the 15th century,
4 A B C
3 cyphers were in widespread
gk l use for diplomatic
ce
D
2

correspondence. Codes relied

E
V X Z 1

n
i h dba

on monoalphabetic
p r

F G I L

substitution, in which each

letter is transformed into
t v z M
f

the same encoded letter.

In 1466, Italian painter and
&
q
T

x y philosopher Leon Battista

s om Alberti (140472) devised
S

N a cypher disc that made

O P Q R
polyalphabetic substitution
possible. Each new rotation of
Cracking the code the disc generated an entirely
Albertis disc operated by rotating
new alphabet for coding.
the inner ring so that an agreed
character (such as g) lined up
with the A of the outer ring.

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 148399
,, ALTHOUGH NATURE
COMMENCES WITH REASON

,,
AND ENDS IN EXPERIENCE
IT IS NECESSARY FOR US TO
DO THE OPPOSITE
Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, architect, and engineer, in Notebooks

This woodcut shows Columbuss three ships, the Nia, Pinta, and Santa Maria, on their ve-week
crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, which ended in the discovery of the Americas.

THE LATE 15TH CENTURY

saw the production of the rst
printed practical mathematical
subtraction, as well as division
and ve different ways of
performing multiplication,
THE DEVELOPMENT OF
MATHEMATICAL NOTATION
progressed rapidly during the late
,, I STEERED FOR THE
CANARY ISLANDS THENCE

textbooks. The Treviso Arithmetic,
printed in 1478, demonstrated
techniques of addition and
LEONARDO DA VINCI
(14521519)
Born in Tuscany, Leonardo
da Vinci was the most creative
mind of the Renaissance.
He became an apprentice
sculptor before moving to
Milan to work for the ruling
Sforza family. A talented
artist, his paintings include
The Last Supper (149598)
and Mona Lisa (c.1503). His
scientic interests were vast
and he produced 13,000
pages of notebooks.
Leonardo da Vincis notebooks
This page from Leonardos notebooks
shows his sketches of ying machines.
He used mirror-writing to make notes,
although it is uncertain why he did so.
including cross-multiplication
and a chessboard technique
similar to modern practice. It
also dealt with the rule of
mixtures (for instance, showing
the proportions of a precious
metal in alloys) and methods of
calculating the Golden Number
(see 172324).
In 1483, it was followed by
a German counterpart, the
Bamberger Rechenbuch
(Bamberger Arithmetic), which as
well as setting out ve procedures
for multiplication, gave rules for
the summing of geometrical
and arithmetical progressions.
The prolic scientic interests
of the Italian painter, architect,
and engineer Leonardo da Vinci
led him to his studies on the
mechanisms of ight. He
considered that the bird is an
instrument operating through
mathematical laws and he
worked on designs for ying
machines using bird-like wings.
In 1481, he also devised a
parachute, with a sealed linen
cloth supported by wooden poles
that made a pyramidal shape,
that would reduce the rate of
acceleration in a fall and cushion
the wearers impact. There
is, however, no evidence that
Leonardo actually built any
of these fantastic machines.
15th century. The Dresden
Manuscript (1461) gave special
symbols for the rst four
powers of x, and, around 1489,
the German mathematician
Johannes Widman (146298)
wrote the rst work to use the
signs + and to represent
the operations of addition and
subtraction. He also used a long
line to represent equals.
Around 1489, Leonardo began
a study of human anatomy,
using dissections of animals and
human corpses (he claimed to
have dissected 10). He recorded
his ndings in notebooks
between 1489 and 1507. In these,
NAVIGATING AND MAPPING THE WORLD
,,
TO TAKE MY DEPARTURE AND
PROCEED TILL I ARRIVED
AT THE INDIES.
Christopher Columbus, from Journal of the First Voyage, 1492
he made the most detailed landed at San Salvador in the
anatomical drawings yet seen. Bahamas, the rst European to
In 1490, Leonardo was the rst reach the Americas since the
person to describe capillary Vikings in the 11th century. His
action, the ability of water in tiny voyage led to an exchange of
spaces to crawl upwards, population, food crops, and
acting contrary to other natural diseases as well as the discovery
forces (such as gravity). of large numbers of hitherto
In October 1492, the Genoese unseen species, such as the
explorer Christopher Columbus llama and armadillo.
The translation of Ptolemys Geography from
Greek to Latin in 1409 and the Portuguese
voyages down the west coast of Africa gave an
impetus to map-making techniques.
Maps of the 15th century, such as this 1540
map (left) by Ventian monk and mapmaker Fra
Mauro, combined a knowledge derived from
Ptolemy with information sourced from
mariners charts, but did not use a projection
that portrayed distances accurately. It wasnt
until 1569 and Flemish geographer and
cartographer Gerardus Mercators world
map that maps really helped sailors
determine routes at sea more easily.

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150016 151735
,,FRACASTORO

,,
DECLARED THAT FOSSIL
SHELLS HAD ALL BELONGED
TO LIVING ANIMALS.
Charles Lyell, Scottish geologist,
Principles of Geology, 183033

Martin Waldseemllers 1507 world map was the rst to name America, although
much of the coastline of North and South America remained unknown.

THE EXPLORATION OF NEW clock-maker Peter Henlein THE MEDIEVAL

LANDS IN THE LATE 15TH
CENTURY, and in particular,
Columbuss discovery of the
Americas in 1492 and Vasco
da Gamas circumnavigation
of Africa en route to India in
149798, provided much new
material for map-makers.
In 1504, a letter written by
Amerigo Vespucci (14541512)
detailing his third voyage to
America came into the hands
of a group based in St-Di in
Lorraine (in modern-day
France). One of them, Martin
Waldseemller (c.14701522),
produced a globe and world
map in 1507 in which he
suggested that the new-found
continent be called America,
the rst occurrence of the term.
In 1508, Waldseemller wrote
a treatise on surveying, in which
he described the theodolite
(which he called polimetrum)
for the rst time. Using a
theodolite, surveyors and
cartographers could now
measure angles of up to
360 degrees.
First pocket-watch
The compact workings
of Peter Henleins portable
clock (c.1512) were driven
by a slowly uncoiling spring.
It was the rst timepiece
small enough to be carried
in the users pocket.
4
YEARS
THE AVERAGE LIFESPAN
OF A SWISS MILITARY
WATCH BATTERY
40 hours The average lifespan of a
16th-century wind-up pocket watch
Batteries versus springs
Henleins rst watch would have
lasted less than two days before
needing rewinding, but this was
a major achievement at the time.
In the late 15th century,
clock-makers learned how to
construct spring-driven clocks
in which the gradual uncoiling
of the spring operates the
mechanism. The Nuremberg
(14851542) applied this system
to portable clocks (watches). In
1512, Henlein was recorded as
having made a watch that went
for 40 hours and could be
carried in a pocket.
In 1513, Polish astronomer
Nicolaus Copernicus (1473
1543) wrote his Commentariolus
(Little Commentary), a preliminary
outline of his revolutionary view
that Earth revolved in orbit
around the Sun. Feeling
dissatised with the old planetary
theory of Ptolemy, with its
multiplicity of celestial spheres,
geocentric view, and its
anomalies (such as the apparent
retrograde motion of some
planets), Copernicus explained
how a planets periodicity varied
in proportion to its distance from
the Sun. Fearing the reaction of
the Church, Copernicus kept his
ndings to himself for 30 years.
Around 1500, gunsmiths
devised the wheel-lock
mechanism for rearms.
It used a serrated metal
wheel that rotated
rapidly, striking against
a lump of the mineral
pyrite, and creating
sparks that lit the
gunpowder charge.
13TH-CENTURY
SCHOLAR Albertus
Magnus had described
stones with the gures
of animals, but Arab
and medieval scholars
believed they were
produced by Earth itself
or were the remains of
animals drowned in the
Biblical ood. In a debate
in 1517, Italian physician
Girolamo Fracastoro
(14781553) was the rst
to publicly express the
view that fossils are
organic matter,
originally animals, Portrait of Paracelsus
that has been ossied over time. Paracelsus was both physician
and chemist, and stressed the
In August 1522, the 18
importance of using chemical
survivors of Ferdinand Magellans techniques in the production
expedition arrived in Spain, of medicines.
having completed the rst
circumnavigation of Earth. The polygons and solids and their use
voyage had taken three years, and as an aid for artists in producing
more than 230 crew (including scientically accurate images.
Magellan) perished. However, it German chemist and physician
did denitively prove the size of Theophrastus von Hohenheim
Earths circumference to be (14931541), known as
about 40,000 km (24,800 miles). Paracelsus, devised a new
In 1525, German artist Albrecht classication of chemical
Drer (14711528) published substances, rejecting Aristotle
his Instructions for Measuring and Galens four humours. In his
with Compass and Ruler, one De Mineralibus (On Minerals), he
of the rst works on applied divided them instead using the
mathematics, which contained three principal units of sulphur,
detailed accounts of the mercury, and salt. Paracelsus
properties of curves, spirals, spurned the study of anatomy
and regular and semi-regular and promoted the idea that the

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 153642
,,TO KEEP ALIVE THE MEMORY

,,
OF OLD KINGDOMS AND EVENTS
AND MAKE KNOWN TO COMING
GENERATIONS OUR TIME.
Imperial charter describing Gerardus Mercators terristrial globe, c.1535

Girolamo Fracastoro was one of the rst to believe that fossilized shells, such
as this fossil of the Archimedes species, had once been animals.

body (microcosm) must be in surveyed from an accurately
balance with nature (macrocosm). measured base line. He went on
His interest in distilling chemicals in 1547 to suggest a new way of
led him to use apparently noxious calculating longitude, by using a
substances such as sulphuric portable clock set to the time of
acid (which he employed against the point of departure that could
gout), mercury, and arsenic as be compared with a clock
medicines. Some time before showing the time at the point of
1529 he began to use a pain arrival. The imprecision of clocks,
reliever he called laudanum. however, rendered the technique
In 1533, Flemish cartographer of limited practical value.
Gemma Frisius (150855) gave In 1521 Italian surgeon
the rst full description of the Berengario da Carpi (c.1460
method of triangulation, by 1530), who lectured on anatomy
which a large area could be at the University of Bologna,
wrote about the
importance of the
anatomy of things
that can be observed,
which included the
use of dissection of
human corpses. He
used this as the basis
for his Anatomia Carpi
(The Anatomy of Carpi),
which was the rst
anatomical work to
use printed gures
to illustrate the text.
Attention to detail
Drawings from
Anatomia Carpi show
the veins leading into the
heart. These examples
show how accurately
da Carpi derived his
drawings from his
programme of human
corpse dissection.
GERARDUS MERCATOR
(151294)
Born in Flanders, Gerardus
Mercator embarked on a
career making mathematical
instruments. He began
producing maps in 1537 and
published his rst world map
in 1538. In 1569, he compiled
another map of the world,
this time using a projection
that showed constant lines
of course as straight lines,
which came to bear his name.
AN IMPETUS TO BOTANY IN THE
RENAISSANCE had been provided
by the desire to illustrate plants
found in classical authors texts,
such as those of Roman naturalist
Pliny, and the possibilities
provided by printed illustrations.
Between 1530 and 1536, German
Carthusian monk Otto Brunfels
(c.14881534) published his
Herbarum Vivae Iconis (Living
Pictures of Herbs) with 260 De Historia Stirpium (The History
woodcuts of plants, whose of Plants), in which he described
accurate detail set an exacting around 550 plants (mainly
standard for botanical drawing. medicinal ones), providing their
In 1530, Gemma Frisius had names and therapeutic virtues.
compiled a manual explaining Its drawings were so clear that it
how to construct a globe showing became the rst botanical work
Earths geography (a terrestrial to be widely used by laymen.
globe). In 1541, Flemish
cartographer Gerardus Mercator
produced what would become
the rst surviving
terrestrial globe. He also
included a selection of
stars superimposed on
the globe, as well as
rhumb lines (which showed
the straightest course
between two points on the
same latitude); both were
invaluable aids at sea.
In 1542, German
botanist Leonhard
Fuchs (150166)
published his
Botanical drawing
Accurate and attractive
illustrations, such as this drawing
of a borage, or starower, made
Fuchss De Historia Stirpium
a valued botanical handbook.

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3
THE AGE OF
DISCOVERY
15431788
As international travel increased, greater emphasis was placed
on first-hand observations and accurate instruments. Instead
of relying on written authority, natural philosophers devised
experiments to construct testable theories about the Universe.
1543
Copernicuss idea that all the planets revolve round the Sun, rather than Earth being at the centre of the Universe,
was a departure from conventional astronomy and challenged the authority of the Church.
A CENTURY AFTER GUTENBERG
REVOLUTIONIZED PRINTING
with the invention of movable
type (see 14501467), scientists
were able to publish their work
for a mass readership, giving
new ideas wider inuence. The
year 1543 was a milestone in
scientic publishing, when
several important books rst
appeared. Two books stood
out Nicolaus Copernicuss
De Revolutionibus Orbium
Coelestium (On the Revolutions
of Celestial Bodies) and Andreas
Vesaliuss De Humani Corporis
Fabrica (On the Structure of
the Human Body). They are
often seen as marking the
beginning of a new scientic
age, as they called into
question the conventional
authorities on astronomy
and anatomy.
Up to that time, most
astronomers believed
that Earth was at
the centre of the
Universe a view put
forward by Ptolemy
in the 2nd century.
Copernicus, however,
calculated that Earth,
and all the planets,
revolved around the
Sun. He had been
working on this idea
since about 1510, and
by the 1530s had put
together mathematical
76
400
THE FIRST PRINT RUN
OF COPERNICUSS
DE REVOLUTIONIBUS
ORBIUM COELESTIUM
calculations to support his and went against the Church.
argument. However, he was He was eventually persuaded
reluctant to publish his theory to publish De Revolutionibus
as it challenged convention by Georg Rheticus, an Austrian
mathematician who had come
to study with him. It is said that
Copernicus was presented with
its rst edition on his deathbed.
An expensive book, De
Revolutionibus sold only a few
hundred copies and did not have
an immediate impact. However,
Copernicuss mathematical
arguments for a heliocentric
(sun-centred) Universe
were soon accepted by most
astronomers, leading to a rift
between them and the Church.
In contrast, Vesalius
was 28 years old when he
published his comprehensive
seven-volume study of human
anatomy, De Humani Corporis
Fabrica. This was the rst
De Humani Corporis Fabrica
Vesaliuss treatise on human
anatomy was lavishly illustrated
with detailed drawings of
various stages of dissection.
The gures are drawn in poses
similar to the allegorical
paintings of the time.
ts
s ges tre
lau sug cen
i co s e
h s De ica n
y N nicu at t e
Ma per n is ers
o
C e S Unu i v
th the
of
,,
,,
AT REST, HOWEVER, IN THE
MIDDLE OF EVERYTHING
IS THE SUN.
Nicolaus Copernicus, De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium, 1543
The heliocentric Universe
In De Revolutionibus Orbium
Coelestium, Copernicus used
mathematics and astronomical
observations to show how Earth
and the other ve planets move
in circular orbits around the Sun.
book of human anatomy to his translation of Euclids
be fully illustrated, showing Elements into Italian, the rst
in detail what Vesalius had translation of that work into a
discovered in his dissections modern European language.
of human bodies. Unlike Welsh mathematician Robert
Copernicuss work, De Humani Recorde published The Ground
sold well, and Vesalius published of Artes, the rst printed book
a single-volume summary of on mathematics in English.
the book later in 1543. It was to remain a standard
This year also saw ground- textbook for more than a century.
breaking publications in the eld
of mathematics. Italian engineer
and mathematician Niccol
Fontana Tartaglia published
NICOLAUS COPERNICUS (14731543)
Born in Torun, Poland, into
a German family, Nicolaus
Copernicus was brought up
by his uncle after his fathers
death. He studied law in
Bologna and medicine in
Padua. Copernicus lectured in
mathematics in Rome before
returning to Poland to work
as a physician. He developed
the idea of a heliocentric
Universe, but had only just
published his work when
he died in 1543.
us ani
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I E 77
 15 4 3 17 8 8

Anatomy of the shoulder

Leonardo da Vinci brought both
artistic aptitude and scientic
enquiry to his studies of anatomy.
He often worked in collaboration
with an anatomist to ensure the
accuracy of his work.

deltoid
(shoulder muscle)

biceps brachii
(biceps)

trapezius
(neckshoulder muscle)

scapula (shoulder blade)

connects the humerus
with the clavicle

clavicle (collar bone)

humerus (upper arm bone)

pectoralis (pectoral muscle)

ribcage

sternum (breast bone)

1600 BCE
Mummication
In ancient Egypt, bodies
are mummied; the
internal organs are
removed for religious
reasons and to help
preservation and are
stored in canopic jars.
12th century
Islamic physicians refute Galenic wisdom
There is no prohibition of human dissection in the mediaeval
Islamic world, where physicians such as Ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar)
perform routine autopsies. Ibn Zuhr corrects some of Galens
Canopic jar human anatomy much of it based on the Barbary ape.
Late 15th century
New observations
With physicians refuting Galen, Leonardo da Vinci
begins his study of human anatomy. Italian
physician Berengario da Carpis Anatomia Carpi
introduces a new age of original observation.

500 BCE 180 BCE 1300s

Early Greek anatomy Galenic circulation Mondino de Liuzzi
The Greek physician Greek-born physician Italian physician Mondino
Hippocrates promotes Galen concludes that blood de Liuzzi performs the rst
animal dissection as a is continually made in the public human dissections
way of learning about body, an idea corrected c.1315, but his catalogue of
the human body. only in the 17th century. anatomy perpetuates many
erroneous ideas of antiquity.
Hippocrates Galens anatomy Liuzzis Anathomia

78
 T H E S TO R Y O F A N ATO M Y

THE STORY OF
ANATOMY
THE SECRETS OF THE LIVING BODY HAVE LONG FASCINATED BOTH SCIENTISTS AND ARTISTS

The exploration of biological structure anatomy is the basis for

understanding how bodies work. Early anatomists had to dissect cadavers
to find answers to even simple questions; later, technologies such as the
microscope helped physicians to chart the body in greater detail.

In the ancient world, anatomists dissected the
bodies of animals but were forbidden to open
human cadavers, which were considered sacred.
As a result, Galen (129200 CE), Romes most
celebrated physician, circulated erroneous ideas
about the human body
that were based on
animal anatomy. When
human dissection was
sanctioned, Galens
ideas were corrected
through direct
Anatomical waxwork
Three-dimensional gures,
such as this 19th-century wax
fetus, were important tools for techniques reveal internal structures in 3D
observation. By the Renaissance, artists such as
Leonardo da Vinci (see 146882) were illustrating
bodies with exquisite realism, and each new
anatomical publication charted and named new
structures. Flemish-born anatomist Andreas
Vesalius (see 1543) dominated the scene with
his illustrated De Humani Corporis Fabrica.
DELVING DEEPER PRESERVING ANATOMICAL SPECIMENS
With the invention of microscopes in the 1600s,
Dead body parts decay quickly. Preservation
anatomists could see that organs were made up
in alcohol prolongs opportunities for study, but
of cellular tissues. By the 1900s, the discovery
also dehydrates specimens, causing distortion.
of X-rays heralded new directions for anatomy.
Formalin is commonly used as a xative to avoid
Today, powerful electron microscopes can probe
this. Some of the most sophisticated modern
the detailed structure of cells, and new imaging
methods preserve bodies in a dry state, for

,,
example, by replacing water and fat with plastic.
teaching medicine. without the need to cut the body open.

,,THE HUMAN FOOT IS A MASTERPIECE

OF ENGINEERING AND A WORK OF ART.
Leonardo da Vinci, Italian polymath, from his notebooks, 150818

Vesalius Microtome MRI scan

illustration 1770
1543 Microtome 1940s1950
Father of anatomy The microtome is invented for MRI scanning
Artists attend the dissections cutting tissue into extremely thin, In 1946, American physicists nd
of Flemish-born Andreas almost transparent sections. a way of detecting signals from
Vesalius to draw accurate This enables samples to be atoms that enable scientists to
illustrations for his De examined under high-power obtain images of the soft internal
Humani Corporis Fabrica. light microscopes. structures of living bodies.

1665 Mid-19th century 1895

Compound microscopes Comparative anatomy
Anatomists such as Marcello Directed by Charles Darwins
Malpighi, Jan Swammerdam, and evolutionary theory of 1859,
Robert Hooke use sophisticated many anatomists seek
microscopes to record the structure evidence of common descent
of cells, capillaries, and tissues. among species.
Chimpanzee
Hookes microscope skeleton
X-rays
German physicist Wilhelm
Rntgen uses his newly
discovered X-rays to reveal the
bones of his wifes hand, and
shows a way of examining
internal bony structures X-ray
without the need to dissect. of hand

79
154445 154650
,, CLOTHES, LINEN, ETC NOT
THEMSELVES CORRUPT, CAN

,,
FOSTER THE ESSENTIAL SEEDS OF
THE CONTAGION AND THUS CAUSE
INFECTION.
Girolamo Fracastoro, Italian physician, poet, and geologist, 1546

The Orto Botanico di Padova (Padua Botanical Garden), the oldest existing botanical garden in Europe,
continues to be a major centre for research in botany and pharmacology even today.

GERMAN CLERGYMAN AND
INSTRUMENT-MAKER GEORG
HARTMANN (14891564), was
the rst to notice and describe,
in 1544, the phenomenon of
magnetic inclination. Also known
as magnetic dip, this is the
phenomenon whereby the needle
of a compass follows the line of
Earths magnetic eld, which
curves around Earths surface.
As a result, the north-pointing
end of a compass needle tends
to point slightly downwards
in the northern hemisphere
and upwards in the southern
hemisphere. Hartmanns
discovery was not widely-known
until centuries later. In 1581,
English instrument-maker Robert
Norman published his own
account of the phenomenon.
MICHAEL SERVETUS (151153)
Spanish scientist Miguel
Servet, also known as
Michael Servetus, wrote
several treatises on medicine
and human anatomy. He was
the rst European to correctly
explain pulmonary circulation
in Christianismi Restitutio (The
Restoration of Christianity).
His theological works were
considered heretical, and he
was burned at the stake in
Geneva for his views.
In 1545, Italian mathematician
Girolamo Cardano (150176)
published Ars Magna (The Great
Art), an important book on
diseases in greater depth in
rst of its kind and a model for
subsequent botanical gardens,
it was established by the Senate
of the Venetian Republic. It was
3.4
PHYSICIAN, GEOLOGIST AND
POET GIROLAMO FRACASTORO
(14781553) published his most
important work, On Contagion
and Contagious Diseases, in Italy
in 1546. Best known at the time
for his poem Syphilis, or the
French Disease in 1530, he BILLION
YEARS
covered his examination of
On Contagion, offering an early
explanation of the mechanism THE AGE OF
by which diseases are spread. THE EARLIEST
FOSSILS, OF
His theory was that each disease
is caused by very small bodies,
or spores, which are carried SINGLE CELLS,
in the body, skin, and clothing
of the person affected. These
DISCOVERED
minute bodies, he believed, IN AUSTRALIA
could multiply rapidly, and be
transmitted from person to clothes, or even the air. Despite
person by physical contact, being initially accepted by the

,, MATHEMATICS
IS ITS OWN
algebra. He presented solutions
to cubic and quartic equations,
involving unknown quantities
to the power of three and four,
EXPLANATION respectively. He drew on his
used for growing and studying
medicinal plants and
comprised a circular plot of
land, symbolizing the world,
through handling unwashed medical establishment, his ideas
had little effect on the treatment
and prevention of disease until
his theory was proved right
surrounded by water. The by Louis Pasteur (see

FOR THE own ideas as well as those of

compatriots such as Niccol
rst custodian of the
gardens was Luigi
185758) and others
centuries later.
RECOGNITION Fontana Tartaglia (14991557), Squalermo (151270), Fracastoro also took
THAT A FACT IS a translator of the works of also known as an interest in the

SO, IS THE CAUSE Euclid and Archimedes. Ars Anguillara. He

,,
Magna made reference for the cultivated around
UPON WHICH rst time to imaginary numbers 1,800 species of
Ammonite fossil
Early scholars believed
WE BASE THE those numbers that are a medicinal herbs, that fossils were the
PROOF. multiple of the square root of -1.
Italy was also becoming a
making a signicant
contribution to the
remains of animals
laid down in the
biblical ood. By the
centre for botanical research, modern scientic studies
Gerolamo Cardano, Italian 16th century, people
mathematician, in De Vita with the opening of the botanical of botany, medicine, and were considering
Propria Liber garden in Padua, in 1545. The pharmacology. other theories.

s
er to dus t
g ov n ter ar tha ic
or disc de let Ger ns aph t
G ne ar a
4 4 an dip alg o
In ue, nti ogr ren
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Fracastoro made major advances in
understanding the spread of disease.
emerging study of geology. After
examining the fossils of marine
creatures found by building
workers while excavating a site
in Verona, he expressed the
controversial idea that they
may be the fossilized remains
of animals that had lived there
many years before.
This, however, was not the view
held by other geologists of the
time. German scholar Georg
Pawer, known as Georgius
Agricola (14941555)
dismissed the idea.
He maintained that
these were organic
shapes created by
the action of heat on fatty
matter within the rocks.
Despite this erroneous opinion,
Agricola was among the rst to
lay a scientic foundation for
the study of geology. In his 1546
publication De Veteribus et Novis
Metallis, better known as De
Natura Fossilium, he attempted
to categorize various minerals
and rocks according to their
characteristics. This, along with
his earlier text De Re Metallica,
provided a comprehensive
overview of mineralogy and
geology, and was a practical
guide to various mining
techniques and machinery used
at the time. It also showed the
inadequacy of contemporary
theories, which had not changed
since the time of the Romans.
o es a um
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50 no he ub
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155154
,, LET THERE BE FOR EVERY
,,
PULSE A THANKSGIVING,
AND FOR EVERY BREATH
A SONG.
Konrad Von Gesner, German naturalist, 1550s
Konrad von Gesner published several volumes of Historia Animalium, illustrated
with dramatic pictures and accurately detailed drawings.
ENGLISH SURVEYOR LEONARD Animalium (The History of readers. Despite its popularity bodies of the same material fell
DIGGES (152059) made Animals). This book attempted in northern Europe, the series at the same speed, no matter
measurement of distance more to present a comprehensive was banned by the Catholic what their weight, contradicting
accurate with the invention, in catalogue of the real and Church because of von Gesners the law proposed by Aristotle.
1551, of the theodolite. mythical creatures of the world Protestant beliefs. In a second edition of the work,
In the same year, German and included illustrations and The anatomical drawings of he modied his theory to account
naturalist Konrad von Gesner engravings. More importantly, it Italian physician Bartolomeo for air resistance (friction), but
(151665) published the rst introduced exotic and recently Eustachi (c.152074) , completed maintained that different sized
of ve volumes of his Historia discovered animals to European in 1552, were not published until bodies would fall at the same
1714 because he feared speed in a vacuum.
elevation scale excommunication from the
Catholic Church. He studied de-oxygenated
human teeth and was the rst to lung blood
describe adrenal glands, but he
telescope is more commonly known for his
research into the workings of the
ear, specically the tube now
known as the Eustachian tube.
Michael Servetus (see panel,
opposite) published his
Christianismi Restitutio
(The Restoration of
oxygenated
Christianity) in 1553, but fell heart blood
foul of both the Catholic and
Protestant authorities PULMONARY
in doing so. In it, he included CIRCULATION
the rst correct description of
pulmonary circulation. The heart pumps de-
Also controversial was oxygenated blood through
the theory proposed by the pulmonary artery to
Giambattista Benedetti small capillaries around the
(153090) concerning bodies lungs, where carbon dioxide
(objects) in free fall. In his book is replaced with oxygen.
lower plate published in 1554, he stated that The pulmonary vein returns
this oxygen-rich blood to the
Theodolite heart. Michael Servetus was
The theodolite is used to measure the rst to describe this
vertical and horizontal angles. This
system in 1553, but it had
levelling modern example is equipped with a
screw telescope, which enables surveying little inuence at the time.
over even longer distances.
es
gg
Di sta
rd lite eo his s tti es
a
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rt is a Gi ti p ies
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81
155557 155859
,,TO AVOID TEDIOUS REPETITION

,,
OF IS EQUAL TO, I WILL
SETTLE ON A PAIR OF
PARALLELS OF ONE LENGTH
Robert Recorde, Welsh physician and mathematician, 1557

Robert Recorde was the author of the rst Smoking became a fashionable habit
books on algebra in English. in 16th-century Europe.

De Re Metallica
Georgius Agricolas It introduced a symbol he invented
lavishly illustrated book
on mining techniques
describes the formation
of ores in the ground,
and how metal can be
extracted from them.
descriptions of the
some German mathematicians.
=, the equals sign. Best known
for popularizing mathematics in
Britain, Recorde had originally
studied medicine and worked as
a physician to the Royal family,
and for a time was controller of
Although platinum had already
been used by the indigenous
people of Central and South
America to make jewellery
and ornaments, it was unknown
in Europe until the 16th century.
The rst written reference to
the metal came in 1557 in the
writings of Julius Caesar
FRENCH DIPLOMAT JEAN NICOT,
(15301600) while ambassador
in Lisbon, Portugal, was
introduced to tobacco, brought
by Spanish explorers from
America. Native Americans
smoked it in religious rituals,
and ingested or made poultices
with its leaves for medicinal

GEORGIUS AGRICOLAS BOOK
De Re Metallica (On the Nature
of Metals) was published
posthumously in 1556. In it, he
described various techniques
for mining minerals, and the
machines, especially water mills,
used for raising them from the
mines. This classic text of
mining engineering included
veins of ores found in
rock, and how metals
could be extracted
from them, as well
as a comprehensive
catalogue of the
minerals known at
that time. Sometimes
referred to as the
father of mineralogy, the Royal Mint supervising the
Agricola made
contributions to the
emerging elds of a debtors prison a year after
geology, metallurgy,
and chemistry.
After his books
The Ground of Artes
(1543) on arithmetic,
and The Pathway to
Knowledge (1551) on
geometry, the Welsh
mathematician Robert Recorde
published a companion volume,
The Whetstone of Witte, in 1557,
probably the rst book on
algebra in English. As well as
presenting the principles of
algebra, this book established
usage of the symbols + (plus) and
(minus), which had previously
been used only occasionally by
1768C
Scaliger (14841558), an Italian purposes. Nicot sent tobacco
scholar. He described how plants and snuff to the royal
Spanish explorers came across court in France, where smoking
an unknown element, with an and snuff-taking soon became
THE MELTING unusually high melting point fashionable. The tobacco plant
POINT OF and resistance to corrosion.
Originally known as white gold,
Nicotiana, and the chemical
nicotine, are named after him.
PLATINUM platinum was later recognized In the same year, Italian
as an element which occurs anatomist and surgeon Realdo
naturally in both pure and alloy Colombo (c.151659) published
manufacture of coins. Despite (combined with another element)
fame and standing, he died in forms in South America, Russia,
and South Africa.
publishing The Whetstone.
Nugget of platinum
A rare metal, platinum
is one of the least
reactive
elements.
Title page of De Re Anatomica
Though Realdo Colombo published
only one book on anatomy, his
discoveries rivalled those of Andreas
Vesalius and Gabriele Falloppio.

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82
 156064

Ambroise Par developed new surgical techniques while working as a battleeld

surgeon, and demonstrated his ideas to his students.

formal title was the Academia known by the Latinized form

GABRIELE FALLOPPIO (152362)
Born in Modena, Italy, Falloppio
studied medicine in Ferrara,
and went on to teach anatomy
and surgery at the Universities
of Ferrara and Padua. He also
served as superintendent of
the botanical garden at Padua.
He is credited with important
discoveries in the anatomy
of the human head and
reproductive systems. He died,
aged only 39, in Padua.
his treatise De Re Anatomica
(On Things Anatomical). Colombos
practical background in surgery
led to a sometimes acrimonious
rivalry with his more academic
contemporary Andreas Vesalius.
However, he is credited with
advances in anatomy, including
work on pulmonary circulation.
ITALIAN POLYMATH
PLAYWRIGHT GIAMBATTISTA
DELLA PORTA (c.15351615),
particularly interested in the
sciences, founded a group of
like-minded thinkers in Naples,
nicknamed the Otiosi, or men of
leisure, who met to uncover the
secrets of nature. Their more
Secretorum Naturae (Academy
of Secrets of Nature), considered
to be the rst scientic society.
Its membership was open to
anyone who could demonstrate
that they had made a new
discovery in one of the natural
sciences, and meetings were
held at della Portas home until,
thanks to his interest in occult
philosophy, Pope Paul V ordered
the Academy to disband in 1578.
Della Porta went on to
encourage the founding of
another society, the Accademia
dei Lincei (Academy of Lynxes)
in 1603.
Gabriele Falloppio, who had
succeeded Realdo Colombo as
chair of anatomy and surgery
at Padua University in 1551,
published his major work,
Observationes Anatomicae
(Anatomical Observations), in
1561 at the height of what
in retrospect was a golden age
of his name, Fallopius, he made
valuable contributions to the
study of the ears, eyes, and
nose, as well as human
reproduction and sexuality.
A nerve canal in the face (the
aquaeductus Fallopii) and the
Fallopian tube connecting the
ovaries with the uterus are
named after him. Falloppio was
a respected physician and skilful
surgeon as well as anatomist.
He wrote a number of treatises
on surgery, medication, and
treatments of various kinds,
although only one, Anatomy,
was published in his lifetime. His
work complemented the writings
of his compatriots Vesalius and
Colombo, and often quietly
corrected their misconceptions. Prosthetic hand by Par
Par designed sophisticated
Meanwhile, Frenchman
prostheses to replace missing
Ambroise Par (151090) limbs, such as the hand shown
wrote one of the rst manuals in this 1585 drawing.
of modern surgery. His
Treatise, written in French rather amputated limbs with balms

,, IT IS GOOD
FOR NOTHING
fallopian tube of anatomical
discovery.
Sometimes
than Latin, was based on his
experience as a surgeon on the
battleeld. As well as describing
and ointments rather than
cauterizing the wounds with
boiling oil, which often harmed
surgical procedures, some of the very tissues the surgeon
BUT TO CHOKE his own invention, Pars book was attempting to mend. Pars
A MAN, AND proposed the idea of surgery innovative scientic approach

,,
as a restorative procedure, based on empirical observation
FILL HIM FULL Fallopian tube which should involve minimum did much to improve the status
OF SMOKE AND Also known as the suffering. It stated that pain of the barber-surgeon
EMBERS.
oviducts or salpinges, relief, healing, and even previously considered inferior
uterus the tubes named after
ovary
Falloppio allow the
compassion were essential to to the medical physician.
Ben Jonson, English playwright, eggs to pass from the successful surgery. This came
in Every Man in His Humour, 1598 ovaries to the uterus. from his experience of treating

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83
 15 4 3 17 8 8 THE AGE OF DISCOVERY

Roman set square

c.1st century BCE Brass half-circle theodolite
This bronze instrument would have 19th century
complete circle
been important to Roman builders, A theodolite measures horizontal and vertical
scale or brass ring
helping them to set construction angles and is an important tool in surveying. The
blocks exactly square. instruments telescope is focused on a distant
object, the position of which is determined with
respect to horizontal and vertical scales.
straight edges
set in a right
angle eye-piece
rotating base
xed on
tripod

Laser spirit level Circumferentor

21st century 1676
An instrument used Used by surveyors before the
in construction for invention of the theodolite,
measuring vertical the circumferentor measured
angles, this level denes angles and could be used
a level plane along the horizontally and vertically
beam of a laser. to work out distances. vertical
half-circle
graduated
into degrees

MEASURING
INSTRUMENTS
SIMPLE OR SOPHISTICATED, THERE ARE MEASURING INSTRUMENTS FOR ALL PURPOSES

In everyday life, exact measurement is not always important.

A wooden cup can be adequate for delivering a fair share
of grain, but scientists who want to know the dimensions
of microscopic objects need to use precision instruments.

In scientic experiments or studies, measurements must be made

with an appropriate level of care and accuracy to ensure that results
and conclusions are reliable. Scientists require their measuring
instruments to give values within an acceptable margin of error, using
standard units that are recognized universally. Today, nearly all
countries use the Systme Internationale (SI) the modern form
of the metric system which was introduced in the 1960s.

Grain measure Lead weight

Traditional c.250 BCE Jade weight
Fixed quantities of grains, Greek merchants Date unknown
such as wheat or used standard In early Chinese
barley, were once weights usually made civilizations, precious minerals
used as standard from lead, and fashioned such as jade were used for
units of mass. into rectangles. standard weights.

kilogram Standard weights

19th century levelling
plate
Conical glass ask Many countries today
21st century have replaced the pound
This ask is used as a with the kilogram.
holding container for
chemical reactions in
Graduated pipette experiments where Nesting cups
21st century total volume does not 19th century
Glass pipettes, graduated in have to be accurate. Cup-like standard weights used with
fractions of millilitres, can counterbalancing mechanical scales
measure liquid volumes millilitre could be nested together
precisely, drop by drop. graduations
in multiples.
pound

84
 MEASURING INSTRUMENTS

Yardstick
measurement read measuring rod dial around movable screw 18th century
from point where The Imperial yard
screw touches scale (3 ft or 0.9 m) has long
been a popular unit
Brass micrometer of measurement for
Early 19th century construction work.
The rst micrometers Most yardsticks can
opened up the eld of Modern micrometer be used as rules.
precision engineering; 21st century
these adjustable Most modern micrometers work
screw-like devices enable as calipers that move by tiny
telescope for
accurate measurement distances as they close around
viewing
of small distances. an object.

calipers for
measuring internal
dimension
sliding scale

Laser distance meter

Vernier calipers 21st century
20th century This shoots a laser
Spring balance calipers for In 1631, Paul Vernier invented a sliding scale pulse at a distant object
18th century measuring for taking small measurements with great and measures the time
Originating in the 18th century, external accuracy. The principle of the Vernier scale taken for the pulse to
spring balances rely on dimension remained in use for modern instruments. be reected back.
stretching a spring in
proportion to an
Cased balance
applied force the
pointer 18th century
weight. The dial
Beam-balances were used
can be calibrated
in science and medicine, but
in units of mass cross beam is small portable balances were
(for example, horizontal when also used for such purposes
kilograms) or weights are equal as measuring coins.
force (Newtons).

horizontal full
circle graduated
central pivot coin
into degrees with
Vernier scale

suspended weight

Surveyors chain
19th century
Land surveyors began using
chains in the 1600s. This
example is 20 m (about
66 ft) long,and is divided
into 100 links.

Analytical balance
21st century
The most sophisticated modern
digital balances can weigh minute
Weighing scales fractions of a gram, and are
18th century so sensitive that they must be
links at xed- Scales determine an unknown weight by counterbalancing protected from vibrations, dust,
distance intervals it with known weights until equilibrium is achieved. and air movements.

85
156569
The Exeter Ship Canal reconnected the English inland port of Exeter to the sea,
bypassing the section of the River Exe that was no longer navigable.
BEGUN IN 1564, THE EXETER
SHIP CANAL WAS COMPLETED
in 1566 or 1567. A man-made
navigable channel, it re-
established the town of Exeter
in England as a port after
centuries of blockages on the
River Exe by weirs constructed
to power watermills. Probably
the UKs rst articial
waterway, the Exeter Canal
was a forerunner of the prolic
canal-building that came with
the Industrial Revolution in
157071
The rst modern world atlas, the Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, showed the
extent of voyages of discovery in the 16th century.
,, HE DOES SMILE HIS FACE INTO
,,
pinhole
MORE LINES THAN IS IN THE NEW or lens
MAP WITH THE AUGMENTATION external
scene
OF THE INDIES.
William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, c.1602
inverted
image
Maps became increasingly curved surface of the Earth
important during the 16th when designing his paper map CAMERA OBSCURA
century, as traders and of the world. Now known as
explorers made voyages around Mercators projection, this A camera obscura (Latin for dark chamber) is a simple room or
the world. While cartographers method shows the lines of box with a small hole in one of its walls. Light from outside passes
could make accurate globes long