Historical

Antecedents in the
Course of Science
and Technology
Part A

JOHN CARLO B. CONIENDO

INSTRUCTOR
 Objectives
• After the lesson, the students must have

• explained how science and technology affected the society and

environment and vice versa;
• identified inventions and discoveries that changed the world over the
course of history; and
• discussed the scientific and technological developments in the
Philippines.
 Science
• defined as the system of
knowledge of the natural world
gained through the scientific
method.
• - originally known as the
“philosophy of the natural
world” (with early Greeks’ desire
to understand nature.
 Technology
• come from Greek words
“tekhne” meaning “art or
craft” and “logia” meaning
“subject or interest”
• practical applications of what
we know about nature - using
scientific principles for the
betterment of the human
situation
 Ancient Times
• In the ancient times, people
were concerned with
transportation and navigation,
communication and record
keeping, mass production,
security and protection, as well
as health, aesthetics and
architecture.
 Transportation
• significant because people were
trying to go places and discover
new horizons.
• search for food and better
settlements.
• exchange of surplus goods for
things they lacked.
 Navigation
• assisted them in their journeys
to unfamiliar and strange areas
in the world.
• allowed them to return home
after important trade.
 Communication
• was also essential in their
endeavors to discover and
occupy new places.
• helps in facilitating trades and
preventing possible conflicts
 Record-keeping
• they needed to remember the
places they had been to and
document the trades they made
with each other.
 Weapons and Armors
• used in establishments of new
alliances with other tribes
• used for security and protection
against risk of conflict between
tribes.
 Conservation of Life
• protection and cure against
illnesses and diseases (both
natural and man-made) that may
hamper the full potential of a
human being.
 Engineering
• integration
• better transportation,
establishment of structures for
protection from human attacks
and natural disasters and
construction of stronger and
bigger infrastructures.
 Architecture
• signs of technological
advancement of a particular
civilization
• establish identity of a nation
 In Conclusion
• With all these in mind, one can • Out of necessity, people in
conclude that the developments ancient times were able to
in science and technology, aside discover and invent things that
from affecting the lives of the would impact the lives of the
people, were the results of many modern people.
prior antecedents.
 SUMERIAN CIVILIZATION
• Sumeria is located on the
southernmost tip of ancient
Mesopotamia (now known as
Middle East)
 Cuneiform
• one of the major contributions
of the Sumerians is the
development of the first writing
system known as cuneiform.
• a system that utilizes word
pictures and triangular symbols
which are carved on clay using
wedge instruments and then left
to dry.
 Uruk City
• a great wonder (considered as
the first true city of the world)
• Sumerians made a city using
only mud or clay from the river,
which they mixed with reeds,
producing sun-baked bricks - a
true engineering feat.
 The Great Ziggurat of Ur
• an engineering and architectural
feat
• Ziggurat also known as the
mountain of gods (constructed
in the same manner as the Uruk
City)
• It served as the sacred place of
their chief god, where only
priests are allowed to enter.
 Irrigation and Dikes
• as population increased, so did
the demand for food.
• scarcity in water and flooding
caused some problems in
agriculture
• The creation of dikes and
irrigation canals brought water
to the farmlands and at the
same time controlled the
flooding of the rivers.
 Sailboats
• mode of transportation during
Sumerian civilization is through
waterways such as rivers and
seas.
• the invention of sailboats paved
the way for transportation and
trading as well as in fostering
culture, information and
technology.
 Wheel
• with the availability of materials
to be used in making a wheel,
the Sumerians invented the first
wheel.
• original application is in farming
and food processing
• invention of wheel and axle
contributed in easier mass
production.
 The Plow
• humans evolved from being food
gatherers to farm cultivators.
• a technology that would dig the
ground in a faster pace.
• farmers could cultivate larger
parcels of land faster, enabling
them to mass produce food
without taking so much effort
and time.
 Roads
• the Sumerians developed the
first roads to facilitate faster and
easier travel
• they utilized the same
technology they used as the sun-
baked bricks that they laid down
on the ground.
• they later poured bitumen, a
black sticky substance similar to
asphalt to smoothen the roads.
 BABYLONIAN CIVILIZATION
• Babylonian civilization emerged
near the Tigris and Euphrates
rivers.
• The great builders, architects
and engineers.
 Hanging Gardens of Babylon
• One of the seven wonders of the
world
• Structure made up layers upon
layers of gardens that contained
several species of plants, trees
and vines.
• Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar
II built the gardens for his wife
Queen Amytis.
• No physical evidence
 Supplementary Videos
• Ancient Mesopotamia 101
https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVf5
kZA0HtQ
 Activity 1: Hanging Garden of Babylon
• In a document format, read
articles or watch videos about
the hanging garden of Babylon
(where is it now or what happen
to it?) and do an essay about it
(in not more than 10 sentences
only).
• Submit work next meeting.