Islamic Science?

Question

It has been many years since a muslim scientist has come up with any major scientific breakthrough. A muslim Iranian physicist, Reza Mansouri, suggests that this is because of the cultural influences of islamic communities, such as the same word for religious scholar (in arabic) is used for the scientific scholar. Also, he suggests that because Islam is so influential, many muslims only study the sciences to help understand God and to understand religious concepts. He also points out that there are no universities from muslim countries in the top 200 in the world.

What are your views on this? Is there any other reason for the lack of muslim contribution to science in the past 6 centuries?

All imput would be welcome, but please note i will report anything that is racist.

thanks dark angel for answering my question twice but i was looking for two different views. The scientific one and the more religious one.

I am very interested in islamic culture, but I am a physicist doing a report into the state of Islamic science. Any further contribution would be much appreciated. Email: [e-mail]

#alexandraferari.... I do know all that. Muslims have contributed to science, however this has not been evedent for many centuries and that is what I'm touching on. Islam and muslim science were both influential for about 7 centuries before this continual decline in muslim science. I want to know why this has happened.

AA - thank you very much for the links. However, I do know Iran is doing something to get far. Dr Mansouri is leading Iran to a better scientific future, but even he says its at least 50 years before Iran will be anywhere as good as the other non-muslim countries.

Also, Do not think that I am just looking on Yahoo answers, but as an academic, I know that the more interesting questions and answers often come from the most unexpected places. I'd also like to point out that I am not do a thorough social review on the matter, more an introduction to an informed debate. I am a physicist not a historian or sociologist.

Answer 1

If you are a serious academic you are certainly looking in the wrong place for answers: I have posted some links below, i advise that you contact them and also middle eastern and Islamic studies departments of UK universities (as a starting point). Do you really think that CNN are going to announce a major break through coming from Iran? Nope ,,,,

The Islamic world is also striving to improve its record and achieving in science. Iran is rapidly expanding its scientific activities (see editorial and letters to the premier international science magazine "Nature": volume 443 page 906 (26 October 2006), and volume 442 pages 719–720 (www.nature.com/nature)) Iranian scientists working in Iran has been contributing to important 20th century discoveries, e.g. discovering glycosylated hemoglobin, and performing the first cornea transplant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_in_Iran)

Answer 2

In the opening chapter of the Quran a scientific breakthrough
alone....In the name of Allah the Compassionate and the Merciful. Excuse the English translation....
The ayat "Lord of all universes". That was a time when science had not even a clue about the earth being round or a conceptual idea that there was the milky way or even beyond. Now with today's technologies we do. The only answer I can give you is there are many notable Muslim scientists and algebra is from the original name of it's founder al jabour. All of this you probably know. I would like to see Dubai spend more of it's time and money building ice skating rinks in the desert,castles in the air, and seven star hotels for tourists..and contribute some of that vast wealth into the Muslim scientific community. Some of the elite scientists in the United States are imported from Muslim countries and educated in the west.

Answer 3

the same as the other question!!!!!!!
alsalamo alikom
good question
but there are some exceptions like Dr Ahmad zewail
and others
i think other reason for this is the bad conditions of education in Islamic counties
and there is not any kind of encouragement
and the greatest reason is that Muslims seem not to understand Islam any more
Islam is a way of living it is not just to pray and sit in masajid
Islam is life
and a good Muslim is a successful one

you seem to be very interested in this
are you a Muslim?

Answer 4

Study the history of science. Nearly all early scientists were Christian clergy. They believed in cause and effect because they believed a God of order would create an orderly universe. Without cause and effect, it's not worth studying science, because all outcomes would be unpredictable. Their primary motivation was glorifying God by understanding the marvel of His creation. Early scientists did both. They used science to learn about God. They used the Bible to learn about science. A connection with God was fundamental to the early development of science. So, that's not the explanation.