The document discusses the scientific revolution in Africa, including advancements in fields like agronomy, metallurgy, engineering, textiles, astronomy, physics, and mathematics. It provides examples of scientific and technological developments in various African civilizations and empires in areas such as medicine, mining, metalworking, and architecture. The document then shifts to discussing the information revolution, describing how advances in computer technology and semiconductor led to massive growth of computer and internet networks, changing global communication through advances like fiber optic cables carrying huge amounts of data underwater.
The document discusses the scientific revolution in Africa, including advancements in fields like agronomy, metallurgy, engineering, textiles, astronomy, physics, and mathematics. It provides examples of scientific and technological developments in various African civilizations and empires in areas such as medicine, mining, metalworking, and architecture. The document then shifts to discussing the information revolution, describing how advances in computer technology and semiconductor led to massive growth of computer and internet networks, changing global communication through advances like fiber optic cables carrying huge amounts of data underwater.
The document discusses the scientific revolution in Africa, including advancements in fields like agronomy, metallurgy, engineering, textiles, astronomy, physics, and mathematics. It provides examples of scientific and technological developments in various African civilizations and empires in areas such as medicine, mining, metalworking, and architecture. The document then shifts to discussing the information revolution, describing how advances in computer technology and semiconductor led to massive growth of computer and internet networks, changing global communication through advances like fiber optic cables carrying huge amounts of data underwater.
The document discusses the scientific revolution in Africa, including advancements in fields like agronomy, metallurgy, engineering, textiles, astronomy, physics, and mathematics. It provides examples of scientific and technological developments in various African civilizations and empires in areas such as medicine, mining, metalworking, and architecture. The document then shifts to discussing the information revolution, describing how advances in computer technology and semiconductor led to massive growth of computer and internet networks, changing global communication through advances like fiber optic cables carrying huge amounts of data underwater.
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
Download as docx, pdf, or txt
You are on page 1/ 2
G.
Scientific Revolution in Africa
The applied sciences of agronomy, metallurgy, engineering and textile production
dominated the field of activity across Africa. Plants, whether in terms of legumes, grain, vegetables, tubers, or, wild or cultivated fruits, also had medicinal implications for Africans. Some of these such as hoodia gordonii and combrettum caffrum are being integrated into contemporary pharmaceutical systems. Africa's areas of scientific investigation include the fields of astronomy, physics, and mathematics. Laird Scranton suggests major interconnections between the thought of the ancient Egyptians and that of the Malians of West Africa. Dogon knowledge systems have been explored in terms of their perceptions on astronomy. In the field of Mathematics, Nubian builders calculated volumes of masonry and building materials, as well as the slopes of pyramids, for construction purposes. Nubians of Meroe, who constructed more pyramids than the Egyptians, built steep, flat-topped pyramids. In the field of medicine, Common principles and procedures were hydrotherapy, heat therapy, spinal manipulation, quarantine, bone-setting and surgery. Incantations and other psychotherapeutic devices sometimes accompanied other techniques. Many traditional techniques are still utilized in some areas. Others have undergone change over time, have been revived in recent periods, or have fallen into oblivion. Sudanic empires of West Africa emerged in the context of various commercial routes and activities involving the gold trade. In the North and East, Ethiopia and Sudan were the major suppliers of gold, with Egypt a major importer. The various metal products served a wide range of purposes, including: armor (as in some northern Nigerian city- states), jewelry, cooking utensils, cloth dyeing, sculpture, and agricultural tools. Blacksmiths were often associated with supernatural and psychic powers, as well as technical know-how and expertise of blacksmiths. In various parts of ancient, medieval, and contemporary Africa, building constructions of various dimensions, shapes, and types emerged. Builders integrated the concepts of the arch, the dome, and columns and aisles in their constructions. In the Sahelian region, adobe, or dried clay, was preferred in the context of moulded contours. The principle of evaporative cooling was integrated into building design. H. Information Revolution
Information revolution is a period of change that describes current economic, social and technological trends beyond the Industrial Revolution. The information revolution was fueled by advances in semiconductor technology. Information revolution might prove as significant to the lives of people. Computer technology is at the root of this change, and continuing advancements in that technology seem to ensure that this revolution would touch the lives of people. The information revolution led us to the age of the internet, where optical communication networks play a key role in delivering massive amounts of data. The world has experienced phenomenal network growth during the last decade, and further growth is imminent. The first submarine cable was built in 1858 with a transmission speed of one word per minute. We still use copper to power submarine repeaters, and have added optical fibers during the last decade of the last century. We encode information into phase, polarization, and amplitude of electromagnetic waves. Michael Faraday would be proud, knowing that we send over 10,000,00,000,000,000 bits every second across the Atlantic Ocean in a single strand of fiber. The first edition of Undersea Fiber Communication Systems was published in 2002. The uniqueness of this engineering marvel is a combination of information science, nonlinear optics, electrical engineering, material science, engineering practices, project management, marine expertise, and high reliability standard. Undersea fiber communication systems will continue to serve society. Impact of Information Revolution
E-commerce is the emergence of the Internet as a major distribution channel for goods, services, and jobs. This is profoundly changing economies, markets, and industry structures. It will also change the way we see the world and ourselves in it. Biotechnology and fish farming are just two of many new industries that will emerge, writes David Frum. Frum: Fish farming may change us from hunters and gatherers on the seas into "marine pastoralists" Other new technologies will likely appear suddenly, leading to major new industries, he says. Few of them will come out of computer and information technology, Frum says. He predicts that the Information Revolution will evolve like the Industrial Revolution of the late 1800s and early 1900s, like another tech "revolutions" since 1455.
