Historical Antecedent

INTRODUCTION
 Primitive technology

 Technical progress of man was guided by 2

factors:
1. Discovery
2. Invention
Man’s earliest natural tool were as ff:
1. Teeth
2. Feet
3. and hands
 Scientists believe that life began on the
continent of Africa 3.6 million years ago……
Neanderthal Cro-Magnon Modern Man
S & T in the Stone Age
 Stone age is divided into 3 eras:

1. Paleolithic - Old Stone Age

2. Mesolithic- Middle Stone Age
3. Neolithic - New Stone Age
From oldest crude stone tools to discovery of fire
From hunting to farming
Advances in Stone tools

Some examples:

1. Flakes and Blades

2. Splinters from bones
3. Bow and arrow
4. ox-driven plow
• The Old Stone Age or the Paleolithic Era
(2.5M years – 10,000BCE)
• The Middle Stone Age or the Mesolithic Era
(10,000BCE to 6000BCE)
• The New Stone Age or the Neolithic Era
(8,000BCE to 3,000BCE)
•Old Stone Age (Paleolithic Era) people
eventually began to hunt in groups.

•Cave Art showing •These antlers may have been used

men hunting in as a disguise during the hunt.
groups
 •Man used
stone, wood,
and bone tools
to survive
during the Old
Stone Age.
 Bow found in Denmark

Hand Axe
Flint Blades used to sharpen
tools

Bone Harpoon
Many Stone Age people were Nomads,
or people who had no settled home.
 There was another important
•There was another
development – theimportant
discovery
development
of fire – the discovery
of fire.
S & T in the Stone Age
The use of fire led to the ff:
1. Various way to prepare food
2. inventions of food containers & kitchen
utensils
3. Discovery of mud plaster which led to pottery
and mud brick houses.
4. Inventions of illuminating devices like
1. stone and shell lamps
2. torches
3. Tapers
• The New Stone
Age or The
Neolithic Era
• Final stage of
cultural evolution
or technological
development
among prehistoric
humans
• During the
Neolithic
Era, people
began to
settle in
one place.
 Buildings and Houses

 Earliest houses were tent-like Construction

 At around 8, 500 B.C. – Mud brick was first used

to build a house.
•Man began to change his diet and
eat grains and small animals.
• Agriculture is the
raising of crops and
animals.
• The development of
agriculture began
over a long period of
time and in more
than one place.
• People learned how to
domesticate plants
and animals.
• Early people learned to
care for plants such as
wheat, barley, peas,
and lentils.
• The first farmers also
domesticated wild
goats, cattle, and
sheep.
•Ancient charred
• Man domesticated wild wheat
wheat grains are
shown in the
picture above.
The beginning of agriculture

 In 8000 B. C - the Fertile crescent became the

center of agriculture that spread to the
Mediterranean region to the western Europe

 In 5000 B.C - Rice

 In 4000 B. C – Maize
 In 3000 B. C - Chili and avocado
The beginning of agriculture

What was the effect of agriculture to man or the

society?
What about interaction in the society?
What was the effect of agriculture to science?
And to technology?
Urban Revolution

 Farming villages turned into urban centers.

So what was the effect of Urban revolution in the

society?

Farmers brought their crops in the city where

craftsmen traded their tools for food.
Beginning of Mining & metallurgy

 By about, 2500 BC, the dawn of bronze age, flint

mining became an occupation.

 Copper and smelting came about 5, 500 B.C in

the present day Iran.

 Copper axe - became in use in 4000 B.C.

 With the beginning of metallurgy, Stone Age

came to an end and gave way to Copper and
Bronze Age.
Transportation

 Transportation during the stone age was very

primitive despite the increase in trade.

 In water men used the ff:

1. rafts
2. inflated skin
3. baskets with High rim

Improvement in the land transportation was slower.

Sledges
3, 800 B.C. -the first wheel and oxen driven cart
 Transportation

 3000 B.C. true wheeled vehicle

Medicine

 Stone age medicine - was based on the concept

of supernatural causation of diseases.
 Illness was thought caused by sorcerers and evil
spirits.
Medicine

 In ancient Persia, medicine was practiced by

worshippers were largely religious and magical.

 In China, Chinese medicine was attributed to

Emperor Shen Nung (2700 B.C)
− First to compile herbal medicines
− inventing the technique of accupuncture
 S & T in the Bronze Age

By 3000 B.C. - urban civilization became dependent

on agriculture and they began to settle in the river
valleys

Nile river
twin Rivers of Euphrates and Tigris
Indus River
Yellow river
Water works for irrigation

Water supply, drainage, and irrigation dominated

the world of ancient civilization of Egypt and
Mesopotamia.

Dikes were built and maintained w/c requires the

cooperation of people to regulate water from the
river.
In terms of Water supplies for Cities

 Water supplies were carefully regulated.

 they drew their water from rivers, springs, or
wells.

 Sennacherib (Assyrian King)

 In terms of Processing of Raw
Materials
 Processing of raw materials/foodstuff involves
pressing, crushing and grinding which requires
tools and devices

 mortar and pestle

 Beer produced from fermentation of Barley

In terms of Transportation

 Moving bulky goods by land was still a major

problem making transportation by water more
popular in transporting farm products and other
materials

 Spoke wheels and lighter wagons began to

appear.
In terms of transportation

 In Mesopotamia, boats are made of

1.skin-float

2. raft made of hides stretched over wood frames

and a broad
In terms of textiles

 Mesopotamia

 Egypt

 India

-Processing of flax was known

Craftsmen

Crafts like pottery-making and textile

manufacturing was a household duties.

Specialized craftsmen

Building monuments and Pyramids - craftsmen

were employed as specialists.
In terms of Building Art

 Brick and stone were the primary building

material in both countries

 In Egypt - they have more natural stones

 In Mesopotamia - they have more supply of

clays for bricks.
In terms of Building Art

 In Mesopotamia,
 Kiln-baked bricks were reserved for monumental
buildings

 Popular monumental structures

1. temple towers consisting of truncated
pyramids
2. The hanging gardens of Babylon (1500 BC)
In terms of Building Art: Egypt

 In Egypt,
the abundance of natural stone was used in
architecture for major buildings.

It started at 2600 BC, natural stone were used as

wall surroundings of the Pyramid of King Zoser.

Another example,

Tombs of pharaohs were also made of natural

stones
Metallurgy

 The bronze age from 3000 BC to 1200 BC used

metallurgy based on alloying and casting

 Smelting of ores to yield copper, silver, gold

lead, antimony and tin were developed

 Some of these when alloyed with molten copper

resulted in an improved copper called BRONZE.
In terms of Medicine

 Mesopotamia

Superstitious , mysticism, astrology, and magic

played a dominant role in the lives of the people
in the Mesopotamia.
 In terms of Medicine

In Egypt,

Ancient Egyptians, believed that diseases were

caused by supernatural agents like gods,
goddesses, devils, and spirits of the dead etc…
In terms of development of Writing

In Mesopotamia - cuneiform using a wedge-

shaped strokes or characters was developed.
In terms of development of Writing

In Egypt,

Hieroglyphic writing was used around 3000 BC

 This writing was brush dipped in ink or dye on

papyrus
In terms of Astronomy: Egypt

 MODEL OF UNIVERSE

The universe was a rectangular box, Earth at the

bottom being slightly concave and the sky at top
supported by peaks of four mountains at corners
of the earth being flat.
In terms of Astronomy: Mesopotamia

 At first, they considered the earth and heavens as

2 flat discs.

 Later, the celestial or heaven was thought of as a

hemispherical vault resting on waters
surrounding the flat disc or Earth.

 Above the vault were water, beyond the water

was the dwelling of the gods and goddesses.
 The Birth Of
Iron Age Cultures
 The Metallurgy of Iron

 Iron in usable quantities was 1st smelted from ore

in the 15th century South of Caucasus as a by
product of gold making.

 In Europe

− Iron used up to the 14th cent. AD was made by the

process of low temperature reduction by using
charcoal and small, hand-blown clay furnace.
 The Metallurgy of Iron
 In China
− Cast iron was made possible as early as the 2nd
century B.C.

 The Iron Age people, once settled down, showed

themselves capable of building prosperous trading
or agricultural communities.
 Iron Age Medicine
 Empedocles (490-430 B.C.)
− Is reported to have rid 2 cities of
pestilence
 By draining the swamps and by
fumigation

 Anaxagoras (500-430 B.C.)

− First to dissect animals
 Iron Age Medicine
 Hippocrates (460-377 B.C.)

− The father of medicine

− His therapy was based on

cooperation with nature

− formulated medical ethics and

left numerous disciplines
 Age Medicine
 Marcus Terentius Varro
(116-27 B.C.)
− A Roman who was aware of the
existence of microorganisms
describing them as “small
creatures”
 Galen (130-200 A.D.)
 Aelius/ Claudius Galenus
− Became the imperial physician and
achieved great fame and authority
that remained unchallenged for the
next 1,200 years.
 The Plough and Axe
 With Iron axe:

 With Iron plough:

 Ships and Trades
 Better and larger ships were constructed

 This led to the EFFECTIVE and CHEAPER use of

sea ways in spreading culture.
 Iron Age Cities
 An Iron Age City
inherited all the arts of a
Bronze Age City.

 It had:
− Fortifications
− Harbors
− Aqueducts
 Iron Age Cities
 Improved methods of production enabled goods to
be produced for the market.

 Another feature of the Iron age was the use of

slaves mostly in:
− Agriculture
− Mines
− Manufacture
 The Alphabet and Literature

− Cuneiform
− Hieroglyphics

“Phoenician Alphabet”
Syllabic => Phoneme
1000 BCE-true Alphabet
 The Alphabet and Literature
 Writing men ceased to be confined to business and
official documents and led to the appearance of
poetry, history and philosophy
 The Phoenicians

 The 1st people to benefit from the new conditions

of Iron Age.
- This led to trade, exploiting sea transport and the
popularization of the alphabet.
 The Ancient Greeks
-were the only people to take over the bulk of learning that was
available after centuries of destructive warfare and neglect in
the previous empires of egypt and babylonia
- with their interest and intelligence they transformed the acquired

knowledge into something simpler, more rational and more

abstract
 Economic Basis
 Ancient Greek culture depended on
− Poor dry farming with small peasant holdings like:
 Olive groves
 Fishing
 Vine yards
 Architecture
 Greek’s architecture showed:
− Beauty
− Proportion
− Symmetry involving accurate
drawing

 Two instruments were great

help:
 Birth of Abstract Science
 The Ancient Greeks had the capacity to separate:
− factual and verifiable from emotional, mystical and
traditional statements

 They had the ability to:

− sustain by logic an argument
− appeal to common sense their statement about
nature.
 Separation of Science from Technology
 In the Iron Age, Ancient Greek SCIENCE

− was far more rational and abstract remaining

separated from technology

− Its presentation is in the form argument using

reasons and experience based on principles rather
than examples from problems of technology
 Separation of Science from Technology

 The belief that the universe is rational and follows

some few principles served to liberate men from:
− Superstition
− Mysticism
− Magic
− Supernatural
explanations
 Separation of Science from Technology
 The development of TECHNOLOGY in the Iron Age
was not fundamental innovations compared during
Bronze Age.

 The use of iron led to improvement and implement

other materials
Advances in Science
& Technology in the
iron age
Advances in Science and Technology
WHEN? WHAT? WHERE?
610 B.C. Principles or reductionism and Ionian, Greece
mechanism of Thales

600 B.C. Metallic money; Phoenician Lydia

alphabet
600 B.C. Birth of abstract science Greece

585 B.C. Thales predicted solar eclipse; Ionian, Greece

Principles of reductionism and
mechanism

350 B.C. Classification of known animals Greece

300 B.C. Museum and the library of Egypt

Alexandria
Advances in Science and Technology
WHEN? WHAT? WHERE?

300 B.C. Euclid’s geometry codified or written Greece

290 B.C. Pharos lighthouse in Alexandria Built Alexandria

290 B.C. Euclid “The Elements” from Alexandria;

mathematics of Egypt and Babylonia Egypt

275 B.C. Aristarchus heliocentric model of the Alexandria

universe

260 B.C. • Principle of the lever and other Greece

simple machines
Advances in Science and Technology
WHEN? WHAT? WHERE?

260 B.C. Maya developed numeration system Central America

based on place value

240 B.C. Romans developed concrete Rome

46 A.D. Julian Calendar introduced by Julius Rome

Cesar

50 A.D. Glass blowing technique perfected Egypt

Advances in Science and Technology
WHEN? WHAT? WHERE?

105 A.D. Invention and use of paper China

150 A.D. Galen dissected animals to China

know how organs function

160 A.D. Ptolemy “The Almagest” Alexandria

developed Ptolemy’s model of
the universe

250 A.D. Algebra considered a branch Alexandria

of Mathematics
The Development of
Ancient Greek
Science
The 4 major Phases or Eras in the history of
the Iron Age Greek Science: Ionian, Athenian,
Hellenistic or Alexandrian and the Romans.
 The Ionian

 1st Ionian or Pre-Socratic

Philosopher was THALES of
Miletus (625 – 545 BC)
 The Ionian

− He introduced a different method of inquiry in the

study of natural world.

 Principle of Reductionism
 Principle of Mechanism
Ionian Philosophers
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID
Thales of Miletus The basic substance in the universe is water

(635-545 B.C)

Parmenides of Elea Impossible for something to come out of

nothing and therefore change is impossible
(480 B.C.) and all being is eternal.
 Ionian Philosophers
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID
Pythagoras of Samos Mathematics can describe the natural world

(582-500 B.C.) Numbers are the foundation of reality

providing a conceptual model of universe

which is divided into earth, movable heaven

and Olympus house of god and goddesses.

Empedocles of Acragas

(500-430 B.C.) All things are composed of and the universe

stems from four root elements: fire, water,

air and earth.

 The Athenian
 After the subjugation of Ionian and destruction of
Miletus by the Persians, Athens commanded
leadership of Greek Science
Athenian Philosophers
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID
Socrates
Astronomy was a waste of time and the
task of philosopher is to give order to man
and human society.
Truth could be reached only through
clarity, sharp logic, and integrity.

Plato

Theory of Forms/Ideas known by pure

reason, in which presents a solution to the
problem of universals
 Athenian Philosophers

WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID

Aristotle He made a great deal of observations in

Biology or Zoology
Classified motion into natural and
“violent”

•Explained natural motion on earth

according to natural place of elements.
• Everything that exists has a purpose

• Set up a Lyceum

World is composed of atoms which are

Democritus of Abrera
unchangeable, incorruptible, immutable
but collide, move and combine.
The Hellenistic
Hellenistic Philosophers
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID

Aristarchus of Samos Proposed the first heliocentric model of

the universe.
(310-230 B.C.)

In his model, the sun is the center of the

universe and all celestial bodies revolved

around the sun.

 Hellenistic Philosophers
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID

Archimedes of Syracuse

(287-212 B.C.)

Formulated the Archimedes principle of

buoyancy and the principle of the lever.
Fundamental concepts of Physics-center
of gravity

Euclid of Athens Systematic Geometry

(325-265 B.C.)
 Hellenistic Philosophers
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID

Hipparchus of Nices

(190-120 B.C.) Determined the positions of 1,080 stars

and classified them according to their

brightness.

Continued the work of Aristarchus in

determining the sizes and distances of the

moon and sun.

Romans
 Roman Philosopher
WHO WHAT HE SAID OR DID

Claudius Ptolemy of Adopted and developed a systems of

Alexandria epicycles and eccentrics. He modified the
known geometric model of the universe,
(85-165 B.C.) into the so called Ptolemy Model.

Ptolemy Model
Ancient Greeks,
Views About
Nature
 The Universe
 Ancient Greeks divided the
universe into 2 parts:
− Celestial or Heaven

− Terrestrial or Earth
 Aristolean Physics
 Aristolean Physics
− Developed by Aristotle
− Basically description or explanation of motion

 2 Classification of Motion:
1. Natural Motion
2. Violent Motions
 Aristolean Physics
1. Natural Motion
− Celestial
 Is the motion of objects in heaven

− Terrestrial
 The motion of objects on earth dictated
by the natural place of the terrestrial
elements
 Aristolean Physics
2. Violent Motion
− Needs a mover in contact exerting a force on the
moving object.
 Geocentric Model of the Universe
 Based on 2 assumptions:
 Geocentric Model of the Universe
 Claudius Ptolemy in 160
A.D.

− Introduced his model

called:
 Ptolemy’s Model of the
Universe
 Ancient Greek Views About Earth
The Earth is spherical
 During lunar eclipse the earth’s
shadow on the moon shows a
curve edge.

 At the sea on a calm day the

topmost part of an approaching
vessel is the first to be seen.

 At night the visible

constellation changes as one
moves northward or southward.
 Ancient Greek Views About Earth
1. The Earth is at rest
− The Iron Age Greek believed
that the earth is at rest
because if the earth is moving
then:

 Why do we not feel its moving?

The Decadence of
Iron Age Science
 Decadence of Iron Age
 The sharp decay of science during this time could
be attributed to the following:
1. The practical interest of the Romans
2. The general crises in the classical society
3. General brutalization and improvement of population
and slaves
 Public Works, Trade and Agriculture
 Using existing knowledge the Romans were able to
construct gigantic public works such as:
− Roads
− Aqueducts
− Harbors
− Baths
− Theaters
 Architecture & Engineering
 2 Important contribution of
Iron Age Roman
Technology:

Architecture-engineering

Agriculture
 Decline and Fall
 From the time of Hadrian (117-139 A.D.)
− The whole Roman economy began to break.
− The army became a burden
− Money economy gave way to barter
− The rich escaped taxation
− Trade became limited to luxuries
− Most of what had been gained by science was lost,
and knowledge decayed and disappeared
 Mysticism & Organized Religion

 Magic schools were developed using Plato’s

mystical side of idealism and mathematics for
numerology
 Loss of Technology & Material Organization

 The culture that depended on large scale material

organization was lost in the Barbarian invasion of
western Europe. Roads, bridges, irrigation canals,
aqueducts all decayed and almost disappeared.

 The only fine technology to survive were those

producing portable objects of metal works for
weapons and ornaments.
END