Islamic Science - In Brief

Islamic Science

Astrolabes

Astrolabes  Astrolabes are used to show the

positioning of the stars in the sky at a given place and time.  They are used to find the time of day or night.  A mariner’s astrolabe, a navigational instrument used to calculate geographic latitude, is different from the typical astrolabe.

Astrolabes - History  Astrolabe projection was first studied in ancient Greece ca. 225 BC.  By 400 A.D., the projection had been developed into the instrument known as the astrolabe.

Astrolabes – History  The astrolabe was introduced into the Muslim world in the eighth and ninth centuries, where it was fully developed.  Muslims used the astrolabe to calculate prayer times, which are dependent on the positions of the sun in the sky.

Astrolabes – History  The astrolabe was introduced to Europe through Islamic Spain in the early 12th Century.  The astrolabe remained the most popular astronomical instrument until about 1650, when it was replaced by more precise and accurate instruments.

Algebra f(y) = 2y3 + 5/7 y

f(x) = 3x4 + 2x + 9

Algebra  The word algebra comes from the Arabic word al-jabr, meaning “restoration.”  During the 9th Century, Muslim mathematicians developed algebra, which they called the science of restoration and balancing.

Algebra  A man named al-Khwarizmi, who studied in Baghdad, is accredited with being the “Father of Algebra.”  At around 830 A.D., al-Khwarizmi wrote a treatise called Hisab al-jabr wal muqabala, or The Compendious Book of Calculation by Completion and Balancing.  This title gives us the word “algebra.”

Numbers & the Concept of Zero  The numbering system as we know it

today (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0) was developed in India and brought to Europe by the Arabs. These numbers are known as “Arabic numerals.”  The concept of zero was also probably first developed in India, but it was first written down by Arabs, and it reached Europe through Islamic civilization.