The York Society of Engineers: A Lecture by FSTC Chairman, 6th December, York, UK
Lecture by Prof. Mohamed El-Gomati, Chairman of FSTC, at The York Society of Engineers, York.
Date: Thursday, 6th December 2012 Time: 7:30pm Title: Influence of Islamic Science Presenter: Prof. Mohamed El-Gomati, OBE, University of York Location: Askham Bryan College near York Orginezers: The York Society of Engineers
What Really Happened During the Dark Ages?
Isaac Newton once said: “I can see thus far because I am standing on the shoulders of giants.” However, seldom do we see references to non-Greek scientists and engineers, who contributed to our understanding of present day science and technology. The role of Arab and Muslim scientists and scholars, in particular during the so called “European Dark Ages”, is often presented as a translation movement which was limited to the preservation of Greek knowledge; a historical account that FSTC Chairman Professor El-Gomati challenged in his talk.
The lecture he presented in a meeting of The York Society of Engineers provided an overview of the vast scientific and technological advances from the era commonly referred to as the ‘Dark Ages’. Examples of many scientific advances and inventions from the Muslim civilisations (700-1700 CE), some of which were illustrated with computer animations, were shown. The aim of the talk was to shed some light on the cultural roots of science and technology through the ages, using the Muslim world as an example. It is hoped that by highlighting such contributions, one can encourage a dialogue and see the commonality among civilisations as a response to the clash theory.
See the announcement of the lecture on the website of The York Society of Engineers (central column: "Forthcoming Events/Lectures": Thursday 6th December 2012: "Influence of Islamic Science"; Presenter: Prof. Mohamed El-Gomati OBE (University of York).
The Trustees of FSTC: Prof. Salim Al-Hassani, Prof. M. El-Gomati, Peter Fell, Ian Fenn, Mohammed Hafiz, Zeki Poyraz, In Memoriam: Peter Raymond MBES Obituary of Peter Raymond MBE, founding Trustee of The Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation (FSTC) (published 1st February 2011).
Muslim Heritage Shines at Qatar through Ancient Wisdom Exhibition: Professor El-Gomati and Professor Al-Hassani representing the Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation (FSTC) in the high profile opening of the Qatar Science and Technology Park on March 16th 2009 (published 15 April 2009).
The Clock of Civilisations: Presentations, 3D Animations and Discussions in the BA Festival of Science (12 September 2007); one of the speakers was Professor Mohamed El-Gomati (published 10 September 2007).
Muslims and The Frontiers of Knowledge in the 21st CenturyS The Institute of Islamic Understanding in Malaysia (IKIM) organized an International Conference on the Muslims and the Frontiers of Knowledge in the 21st Century: Issues, Prospects and Challenges (Kuala Lumpur, on the 28th and 29th of July 2009). Professor Mohamed El-Gomati presented a keynote lecture in the first plenary session on Learning From the Past, Charting the Future (published 26 July 2009).
by: The Editorial Board
Related Articles: The fallacy of the 'Dark Ages'by: FSTC Limited There is a major fallacy in the concept of the 'Dark Ages'. That period coincides exactly with the Muslim apogee. In the midst of Europe's darkness, almost immediately after the fall of the Roman Empire, the Muslim civilisation came into being.
The magazine Saudi Aramco World published in May-June 2007 an interesting folder on Arabic and Islamic science. The folder of 20 pages consists of several articles illustrated with a rich iconography and accompanied with illuminating explanatory captions. Among this comprehensive coverage, we republish a long article on Rediscovering Arabic Science by Richard Covington. The author went through specialized literature and made interviews with historians of Islamic science in order to gain knowledge on the topic. His output came quite comprehensive, covering all important aspects of the Islamic scientific and technological tradition. Our readers will certainly enjoy our republishing of this good piece of scholarship, bringing evidence in an easily readable style about one of the most glorious pages of Islamic civilisation and one of the richest episodes of the history of science
