task 1 Flashcards
emergence of fire
first emerged during the time of homo Erectus
different uses of fire/consequences
- guarding against animal predators
- cooking food > better quality > growth of brain / less illnesses (less bacteria)
- as heating source > possibility of traveling to colder climates > cultural expansion
what are the fundamental problems with fire?
- problem of ignition:
- natural caused > is not always there when needed fire > what technique causes combustion?
- friction between two dry inflammable surfaces > raises point of contact to temperature at which combustion will occur
- problem of choice of fuel
- wood is most efficient producer of heat / some sorts are better than others
- breackthrough: charcoal
- problem of extension of the range of use
- application is largely confined to cooking by roasting
starting point of “science”
- discovery of pottery (5th millennium BC)
- discovery/development of glass (5.000 years ago)
- technology of metals (after pottery/most kinds: 19th century)
- writing and scientific record (6.000-300 BC)
- numbers/measurement (35.000-20.000 BC)
Cambrian explosion
- beginning of “real life”
- some 542 million years ago
- -> emergence of organic life forms
- -> start of photosynthesis
Cambrian explosion: further divisions
- Paleozoic era: 540-250 million
- Mesozoic era: 250-66 million
- Cenozoic era: 66 million to now
=> throughout this time: intelligence wasn’t necessary for survival
Neolithic revolution
- around 10.000 BC
- transition from nomadic HUNTER-GATHERER -> FARMING & SETTLEMENT
- greater complexity of SOCIAL INTERACTIONS
- further impetus for THOUGHT & LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
- sedentary farming communities changed human interactions:
- -> from COOPERATION & SHARING > PROTECTION of goods & increased level of CONFLICT
preliterate civilisation: 3 characteristics
-> Lindberg
- KNOW-HOW
- knowledge is confined to “know-how” WITHOUT theoretical understanding of underlying principles - FLUIDITY OF KNOWLEDGE
- historical knowledge is limited to two generations
- function of oral tradition is transmission of practical skills - ANIMISM
- collection of myths and stories about beginning of universe / life / natural phenomena / etc.
- -> based on animism
=> scientific thinking cannot occur without written records
animism
- explanation of workings of the world and the universe by means of spirits with human-like characteristics
- distinction between “primitive people” and “scientific thinking”
protowriting
- emerged at around 6.000-300 BC in China / Egypt & Sumer / America
- represents entities without linguistic information linking them
- writing systems were a combination of pictograms and phonograms
- led to alphabetic writing system
- -> became logographic rather than pictographic
pictograms & phonograms
pictogram:
information conveying sign that consists of a picture resembling the object it represents
phonogram:
a sign that represents a sound or a syllable of spoken language
first alphabet ?????????
=> written records as basis of comulative nature of science
–> however: Socrates thought that availability of books made students lazy and discouraged them from properly studying
scholastic method
- particularly in the Middle ages
- students were taught to read and understand texts exactly as they were
- its abandonment by the Protestant churches was one of the reasons why science took such a high flight
scriptio continua
- in 8th century
- writers start to put spaces between the words
- -> this quality of texts made silent reading possible
numbers
- 35.000-20.000 BC: earliest evidence of counting
- quite early in evolution of human they could make distinctions up to three
- -> subitising
- all Indo-European languages share same roots for umbers 1 to 10
- -> split around 2.000 BC
place coding system
- fully in use by 500 AD
- system in which the meaning of a sign not only depends on its FORM but also on its POSITION in a string: “46.997”
- symbol for absence of a quantity at certain slot: “0”
- system was adopted by Arabs > changed & resulted in the current practice (Arabic numerals) s
egyptian vs. mesopotamian numeric advances
egyptians:
- main contributions were:
- -> geometrical knowledge
- -> devising of a calendar
mesopotamians:
- mathematical knowledge
- -> advanced number system
- -> mastering of basic algebraic equations
- —> practical use on astronomy
consequences of growth of science
resulted in different qualities:
- political stability
- urbanisation
- patronage
- availability of a writing system
philosophy
- around 600 BCE
- greeks were the first culture that started asking serious questions about the nature of the world
Plato’s
- 427-348 BC
- distinction between realm of eternal and realm of the ever-changing material reality
–> true path to knowledge was inward of reasoning rather than the outward path of perception
=> RATIONALISM (theoretical)
Aristotle
- 384-322 BC
- had been member of Plato’s school
- based his knowledge on careful observation of reality
- wrote extensively on human physiology and psychology
=> EMPIRICISM (practical)
four schools of Athen
- academy (Plato)
- lyceum (Aristotle)
- Stoa
- -> based on self-control / fortitude / detachment from distracting emotions - Garden of Epicurus
- -> based on virtuous and temperate life with enjoyment of simple pleasure by knowledge and friendship
Romans on acquiring knowledge
romans are much more interested in practical questions than the philosophical debates that preoccupied the Greeks
Byzantine empire
- 395-1453 AD
- dominance of Greek culture and language
- main contribution of history of science was the preservation of the Greek’s legacy
- emergence and eventual dominance of Christian religion > main factor for decline of scientific advancement
Arab empire
- 622-750
- interest in science got a strong impetus 749 EC
- -> apport / translation / research / advancement of Greek works
remains of the Western Roman Empire
- towards end: sharp decline in scientific endeavour
- -> due to political upheaval and economic downfall
- diminishing knowledge of Greek language
- -> Romans dominated other nations > inclination to learn Latin rather than Greek
=> leads to the “Dark Ages”
“Dark Ages”
- middle ages in Western Europe (after fall of Rome 476 AD)
- catholic church became patron of learning
- -> science was not at the forefront of education
- -> scientific knowledge fell back from the level it had reached
Renaissance
- 15th-16th century
- “revival of learning” > foundation of schools and universities
- -> arabic and greek texts included in curricula
protestant reformation
- starting 1516 AD
- Martin Luther revolted against the perceived greed and corruption of Papacy
- emphasised the need for education / CRITICAL THINKING (rather than scholastic method) / hard work / worldly success
=> further development of science
book printing
- around 1450 AD
- invention of book printing in Europe by Johannes Gutenberg
=> rapid and massive availability of information
biases in history writing
- focus on individuals
- matthew effect
- hindsight bias
- ethnocentrism
- summaries of summaries
biases in history writing:
focus on individuals
- historical writings are focused on individuals
- zeitgeist: time has come for an invention to be discovered > usually not only one did discover it
biases in history writing:
matthew effect
more credit is given to eminent scientists than they actually deserve
biases in history writing:
hindsight bias
tendency to assume that individuals knew more than they actually did
biases in history writing:
ethnocentrism
tendency to give too much credit to the input of economically dominant groups
biases in history writing:
summaries of summaries
- very few general history books are based on a full analysis of the original sources
- -> build on other books summaries
ARTICLE: Dunbar
- neocortex ←→ groups size
- species-related limited groups size
- -> consequence of enlarged brain size
Fertile Crescent
- region in the middle east with high level of civilisation at around 3.000 BC
- incl. ancient Mesopotamian & ancient Egyptian civilisation
sumerian number system
- base on 60
- consequences: our time units are based on 60 (sec./min./h.)
