Mathematics In An Islam World
...the universe. There is knowledge implicit in language itself. When we express something like “Monday is eating”, we know instantly that the statement does not hold because our prior knowledge tells us that Monday is a day of the week. Similarly when we express in mathematics “2*2 = 22”, we know from the multiplication tables learnt by a student that it is not true. It has already been accepted that “2*2=4”. Similar observations can be made about different branches of sciences that beget several assumptions and propositions, which finally lead to the inferences, and even further propositions. All these point towards the core problem of acceptance without questioning. However, if we begin to question everything we might not develop anything. Assumptions are sometimes essential to understand the world. This is the very limitation of perception – it needs a base to build a structure and is the base is questioned repeatedly then the structure breaks and all we may have around us will be a wreckage of confused thoughts and ideas. Thus, “works that follow” are essential to show us a way or throw a light on the direction or path of thought flow and development of ideas. Unless the base is built up one cannot move further and try to bring about alterations. Following history we find an interesting development, taking place in this respect within the Arab world. While the European nations referred this time period as the dark ages, it was the ginning of a phase of knowledge and cultural development non-European nations like Middle-East countries and also India.
It was a cherished practice of the European scholars that they tend to down play other civilizations and always projected Europe as the father of modern human civilization. To them Greece and Rome were the places where the modern science first took its steps and there after it spread all over the world. With the...
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