The History of Physics: A Very Short Introduction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Heilbron
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Revolution ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
Ancient Greece ◽  
History Of Physics ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
History Of ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Century Science ◽  
The Universe ◽  
Medieval Scholar

How does today’s physics—highly professionalized; inextricably linked to government and industry—link back to its origins as a liberal art in ancient Greece? The History of Physics: A Very Short Introduction tells the 2,500-year story, exploring the changing place and purpose of physics in different cultures; highlighting the implications for humankind’s self-understanding. It introduces Islamic astronomers and mathematicians calculating the Earth’s size; medieval scholar-theologians investigating light; Galileo, Copernicus, Kepler, and Newton, measuring, and trying to explain, the universe. It visits: the House of Wisdom in 9th-century Baghdad; Europe’s first universities; the courts of the Renaissance; the Scientific Revolution and 18th-century academies; and the increasingly specialized world of 20th‒21st-century science.

Trigonometry: A Very Short Introduction

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glen Van Brummelen
Keyword(s):  
Computer Graphics ◽  
Ancient Greece ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
Curved Space ◽  
Islamic World ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Concepts ◽  
History Of ◽  
Medieval India ◽  
The Universe

Trigonometry: A Very Short Introduction draws together the full history of trigonometry, stretching across two millennia and several cultures such as ancient Greece, medieval India, and the Islamic world. It introduces the key concepts of trigonometry, drawing readers beyond the basic relationships first encountered in school to reveal the richness of the entire subject of trigonometry and ideas such as curved space. It also explores connections with genuine modern applications, including navigation, the analysis of music, computer graphics, and powerful modelling tools in science, and shows how trigonometry has participated in big questions about the world, including the shape of the universe and the nature of infinity.

Time: A Very Short Introduction

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenann Ismael
Keyword(s):  
History Of Physics ◽  
Philosophical Thinking ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
Isaac Newton ◽  
Experience Of Time ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Nature Of Time ◽  
Everyday Living

Time: A Very Short Introduction explores questions about the nature of time that have been at the heart of philosophical thinking since its beginnings: questions like whether time has a beginning or end, whether and in what sense time passes, how time is different from space, whether time has a direction, and whether it is possible to travel in time. These questions passed into the hands of scientists with the work of Isaac Newton when the structure of space and time became connected to motion and included the subject matter of physics. This VSI charts the way that the history of physics, from Isaac Newton through Albert Einstein’s two revolutions, wrought changes to the conception of time. There are parts of physics that are in a state of confusion, but this strand of development is a story of philosophical illumination and conceptual beauty. The discussion here provides an opportunity to see what distinguishes the methods of physics from those of philosophy. It brings together physics, cognitive science, and phenomenology in the service of reconciling what modern theories tell us about the nature of time with the everyday living experience of time.

The History of Science as European Self-Portraiture

2006 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 523-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
LORRAINE DASTON
Keyword(s):  
History Of Science ◽  
Scientific Revolution ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
World History ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Image ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
History Of

Since the Enlightenment, the history of science has been enlisted to show the unity and distinctiveness of Europe. This paper, written on the occasion of the award of the 2005 Erasmus Prize to historians of science Simon Schaffer and Steven Shapin, traces the intertwined narratives of the history of science and European modernity from the 18th century to the present. Whether understood as triumph or tragedy (and there have been eloquent proponents of both views), the Scientific Revolution has been portrayed as Europe's decisive break with tradition – the first such break in world history and the model for all subsequent epics of modernization in other cultures. The paper concludes with reflections on how a new history of science, exemplified in the work of Shapin and Schaffer, may transform the self-image of Europe and conceptions of truth itself.

scholarly journals The History of the Translation of the Holy Quran in Bengali: The Translation Example of Gulam Azam

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 152-172
Author(s):  
Mizanur Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Social Life ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
Historical Process ◽  
Holy Quran ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Holy Quran ◽  
Different Cultures

The holy Quran is the divine message sent to all humanity by Allah (SWT). This message concerns not only the owners of the language from which it descended but all humanity. So it is necessary to translate this message into those languages for people from different cultures to understand. However, whether the Quran will be translated into other languages has been discussed throughout history and positive and negative opinions about the issue continue. As a Muslim-dominated country, Bangladesh has been working on the translation of the Quran since the 18th century. This article, firstly, discussed the historical process of the translation of the Quran into Bengali and then the translation of the Quran by Gholam Azam is examined as an example, who worked to understand and explain the Quran and reflect the effect of the Quran in social life.

scholarly journals PRINCIPLES OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION AND COMPOSITION IN MUSIC AND ARCHITECTURAL ENVIRONMENT

2021 ◽  
Vol 112 ◽  
pp. 53-58
Author(s):  
N.A. Novinskaya ◽  
◽  
A.I. Kuzyakina
Keyword(s):  
Structural Organization ◽  
Golden Ratio ◽  
Ancient Greece ◽  
Central Section ◽  
Basic Principles ◽  
History Of ◽  
Ancient Times ◽  
Music And Architecture ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Architecture And Music

The article explores the basic principles of the structural organisation in music and architecture. We analyze development and transformation of these principles through the various stages of human culture from ancient times to the present. We explore understanding of harmony and aesthetics in different cultures. We review the basic rules of harmony taking the art of ancient Greece and Rome as an example. We review the history of the Golden Ratio and its realisation in practice. The central section gives the calculation of the Golden Ratio in the J. S. Bach`s Chromatic Fantasia in D minor. Finally, we describe the formation and development of the fractal aesthetics and give the examples of fractal art in architecture and music.

Reading: A Very Short Introduction

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belinda Jack
Keyword(s):  
Public Education ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
Ancient World ◽  
Human History ◽  
Digital Reading ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
Paper Making ◽  
Late 18Th Century ◽  
History Of ◽  
Printing Paper

Reading: A Very Short Introduction explores the fascinating history of literacy and the opportunities reading opens. For much of human history reading was the preserve of the elite, and most reading meant being read to. Innovations in printing, paper-making, and transport, combined with increased public education, brought a boom in worldwide literacy from the late 18th century. Established links between a nation’s levels of literacy and its economy led to the promotion of reading for political ends. Reading has also been associated with subversive ideas, leading to censorship. Telling the story of reading, its ambiguities and complexities, from the ancient world to digital reading and restrictions today, this VSI explores why it is such an important aspect of our society.

Methodism: A Very Short Introduction

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
William J. Abraham
Keyword(s):  
18Th Century ◽  
John Wesley ◽  
Future Prospects ◽  
Christian Church ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
Global Impact ◽  
The Future ◽  
History Of

Methodism: A Very Short Introduction traces Methodism from its origins in the work of John Wesley and the hymns of his brother, Charles Wesley, in the 18th century, right up to the present, where it is one of the most vibrant forms of Christianity. Considering the identity, nature, and history of Methodism, it provides a fresh account of the place of Methodism in the life and thought of the Christian Church. Describing the message of Methodism, and who the Methodists are, it also considers the practices of Methodism and discusses its global impact and its decline in the homelands. Finally, looking forward, this VSI considers the future prospects for Methodism.

World Music: A Very Short Introduction

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip V. Bohlman
Keyword(s):  
Music Industry ◽  
Folk Song ◽  
World Music ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
National Pride ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
Different Cultures

World Music: A Very Short Introduction looks at the history of world music and its many definitions. ‘World music’ is more than a marketing term for the music industry. During the Enlightenment, the idea of the ‘folk song’ encouraged European audiences to imagine music from around the world. Technology helped to create the ‘audio moment’—the transformation of sound into material which could be recorded and distributed worldwide. Throughout history, music has been used to express unity and national pride. World music both foregrounds and transgresses borders. Ideas in different cultures about world music, and indeed about music, are as diverse as ever.

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