Islamic Sciences

It has been generally accepted that the beginnings of tin-based opacification of ceramic glazes is associated with the white glazed wares excavated in Iraq and western Iran and dated to the ninth century AD (so-called 'Samarra-type' pottery). This paper focuses on an earlier stage in the technological development of tin-opacified glazes, that is, the yellow and white glazed wares produced from the eighth century AD in Egypt and the Levant. In addition, the compositional data was extended for the subsequent spread of tin-opacified glazes into Mesopotamia in the ninth century and Northern Iran and Central Asia in the tenth century. Using SEM-EDS and SR-Micro-XRD, the chemical composition and microstructure of eighty-five samples of opaque yellow and white glazed wares from Egypt (Fustat), the Levant (Madaba, Aqaba, Al-Mina and Raqqa), Mesopotamia (Samarra, Kish, Basra and Susa), Northern Iran (Takht-i Suleiman), and Central Asia (Nishapur, Merv and Samarqand) were investigated. These data confirmed that the yellow and white glazes were opacified by lead-tin-oxide (PbSnO 3) and tin oxide (SnO 2) particles respectively. Replication experiments were then conducted to imitate typical compositions of the analysed opaque yellow and opaque white glazes. Overall, the results posited the beginning of tin-based opacification of glazes in the eighth century in Egypt and the Levant, and provided explanations as to how the production of opaque yellow and white glazes in the Levant and Mesopotamia might have been technologically linked.

With economic relations and conquests, Muslims have spread to a very wide geographical area. Consequently, they have encountered many different cultures. Muslims have had great interest and curiosity towards new cultures especially those of Byzantine (Helen / Greek), Iran and partly of the Indian cul tures. Especially, the conquest of cities such as Alexandria, Harran and Jundīshāpūr and the scientific tradition in these cities had great influence on Muslims. After these conquests, Muslims not only studied Islamic sciences but also began the activities of translation into Arabic to get familiar with ancient tradition of thought and culture. These first translation activities, which are extremely important in terms of Islamic civilization and the history of science, have been studied extensively to date. However, it is observed that during the studies performed, the only information mentioned were usually the names of the translated works, the domains of study they were written for and the names of interpreters. This study aims to shed light on the first translation activities in the History of Islamic Science, as well as the fields in which these translations were done, the knowledge and the accumulation of Muslims in these fields before translation activities and the contribution of translation activities in develop- ment or change in these fields by providing examples from Muslim scientists in different centuries, whose works are also known in the West. The golden era of Muslims in science and technology between the 8th and 11th centuries and some important scientific activities carried out within this period are analyzed in three periods; “acquisition of the information”, “systematization of the information” and “production of original information”.

In many computer vision applications, segmenting and extraction of moving objects in video sequences is an essential task. Background subtraction, by which each input image is subtracted from the reference image, has often been used for this purpose. In this paper, we offer a novel background-subtraction technique for real-time dynamic background generation using color images that are taken from a static camera. The new algorithm, which is based on 'temporal median filter with exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) filtering', is presented that effectively implements a temporal mode operation. The proposed method has the advantage that the parameters of the algorithm are computed automatically. In addition, the new method could start its operation for a sequence of images in which moving objects are included. The efficiency and robustness of the new algorithm is confirmed by the results obtained on a number of outdoor image sequences.

Review article discussing Ahmad S. Dallal 2018  Islam without Europe: Traditions of Reform in Eighteenth-Century Islamic Thought; Wael Hallaq 2018 Restating Orientalism: A Critique of Modern Knowledge; and Elias Muhanna 2018 The World in a Book: al-Nuwayri and the Islamic Encyclopedic tradition.

An accurate description of the fluid flow and heat transfer within a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), for the safety analysis and reactor performance is always desirable. In this paper a mathematical model of the fundamental physical phenomena which are associated to a typical PWR is presented. The mathematical model governs the fluid dynamics in the reactor. Using commercial software CFX, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code, a three-dimensional flow distribution in the downcomer and the lower plenum of the reactor was also calculated and a valuable analysis of the reactor performance is given. Due to computational limits, simplifications of the core, downcomer and the lower plenum of the reactor are introduced. Nevertheless, it has been shown that computational fluid dynamics and in particular appropriate usage of CFX software improves our understanding of fluid flow distribution, velocity distribution and heat transfer in different parts of the reactor pressure vessel, in particular, in the downcomer and the lower plenum.

This research aims to analyze and examine the practices of Prophetic Medicine in the paradigm of Information Technology. Prophetic medicine is considered as an alternative medicine which is inexpensive as well as an effective way of treating the ailments which are sometimes considered as curable by other modes of medicine. The research design is cross sectional while assessing the current status of Prophetic medicine among traditional medicines and is based on content analysis. The research also identifies the obstacles in the development of Prophetic medicine among health informatics. It also proposes that how further development can be made to enhance healthcare in lives of people. The Informatics applications in Prophetic medicine are insufficient and are not participating as an active ingredient of medical guidance with IT despite of its potential as it is in a form of mostly e-health applications and websites that focus more on Prophetic traditions, spiritual healing, and Islam...

The tribe Sophoreae sensu Polhill [9,10] is a large and diverse assemblage comprising the ancient and primitive ancestral stocks of Papilionoideae. The most frequent chromosome basic numbers in this tribe are x = 11 and x = 9 but chromosome numbers range from x = 8-14 are also known. In this study chromosome numbers and karyotype variation of Iranian members of tribe Sophoreae are reported. Iranian taxa in the Sophoreae are Sophora alopecuroides ssp. alopecuroides L., S. alopecuroides ssp. tomentosa (Boiss.) Yakovlev, S. pachycarpa Schrenk ex C.A. Meyer, S. mollis ssp. griffithii (Stocks) Ali, S. mollis ssp. mollis Graham, Ammothamnus lehmanni Bunge and Ammodendron conollyi Fische. S. alopecuroides and S. pachycarpa are 2n=36 and exhibit wide variation in chromosome size within karyotypes. The other taxa are 2n=18. The two subspecies of S. mollis show relatively little variation in chromosome type within the karyotype. Ammodendron conollyi had the smallest mean size of chromosome an...

In the modern age, the conflict between science and religion manifests itself in the debate between evolution and creation. If we adopt a creationist's reading of the Qur'an, we discover an interesting anomaly. Reading the Qur'an literally does not necessarily provide the foundation of creationism. Creationists usually have in mind the concept of creatio ex nihilo, or 'creation out of nothing'. However, in the Qur'an, one of the words used for creation, khalaqna, has the root khlq, which means 'to split' or 'to divide'. This root word may even apply to the biological process of cell division. Therefore, from a scientific perspective, using the word khlq to describe this physical process is not problematic. In addition, with close textual analysis of the Qur'an, we realize that the word for creation 'be' (kun) does not truly describe the moment of creation, but rather that of 'being'. The Qur'an separates the notion of creation from being, which poses the question as to what the text constitutes as the ontological nature of the human being and the universe. Therefore, even if we do adopt a literal reading of the Qur'an, we find that it does not necessarily support a worldview that endorses creatio ex nihilo.

Realism and constructivism in philosophy of science are incompatible rivals at least in their radical versions. While the former puts the entire emphasis in knowledge on discovery, the latter considers construction as the main characteristic of human knowledge. However, who advocate constructive realism (e.g. Wallner 1994 put forward a combination of realism and constructivism. Even though each one of these attempts has its own particularity, a common core can be considered for the strategy of constructive realism in general. This common core consists of providing a room for scientists' speculations in terms of their cultural backgrounds in developing hypotheses which are, in their turn, put across the experience. While constructive realism keeps the relationship with reality by means of appealing to experience and experiment, he refrains from reducing scientific endeavor to mere observations. According to this standpoint, science puts one of its feet on reality and observation and the other on culture and speculation.

The research investigated the topic of "debt by debt sale" from a jurisprudential perspective. The opinions of the jurists, their evidence and suspicions about this type of sale were collected. The opinions of many contemporary jurists that it is permissible to sell debt for debt are discussed and refuted The research concludes that debt for debt sale is not valid as many contemporaries claim. It contravenes the consensus of jurists on its prohibition, and the invalidity of their arguments and their failure to advance it in contravention of the evidence of the jurists and their unanimity on the prohibition of selling debt for debt. The study also explains the wisdom behind the prohibition of selling debt by debt, in terms of its relationship to gambling, the existence of ambiguity, and occupying the debts of the two parties without interest or benefit. This sale contravenes the legitimate purpose of the contracts, which is the profit.

Delegation of divorce and its revocation is an important issue in the discipline of Muslim family law, which especially highlighted by Muslim scholars in Pakistan after the legislation of Muslim Family Law Ordinance 1961 in this regard. Actually, the legality of the issue in the classical Muslim jurisprudence is not questionable due to its institution by the legal texts of the Holy Quran and Sunnah. But the Muslim scholars distinguish between pre- and post-contract delegation of right of divorce to the wife. As for as concerned the Pakistani Muslim family Law ordinance 1961, which legalized that right to divorce may be delegated to wife at all. We have tried to study in this article the real status of the issue in the light of Quran and Sunnah and opinions of the early Muslim Jurists in this regard. This study is based on the comparison between the practically applied law in Pakistan and legitimate position of the said case in Islamic Law.

This study was conducted to evaluate the probable prophylactic potential of gum Arabic (GA) as lipid lowering agent in donkeys. Three groups of donkeys each of six were either: drenched with gum Arabic at dose rate of 25 g/day (PG1) or 50 g/day (PG2) for seven successive days, or left without treatment as control group; animals then were subjected to five successive days fasting to induce hyperlipemia. Blood samples were collected before, and during: GA supplementation, fasting and post fasting periods to evaluate the response of treated animals to the induced hyperlipemia. During GA supplementation triglycerides concentration in the three groups showed fluctuation with no significant (P>0.05) change. Significant increase (P<0.05) in triglycerides and cholesterol level was observed in the control and the PG1 during the 2 nd , 3 rd , and 4 th days of fasting, while the level increased significantly (P<0.05) only at the 4 th day of fasting in PG2 to a level that was considered to be low when compared with that of the control and PG1. The level returned to normal by the end of the experiment. Urea concentration increased significantly (P<0.05) in the three groups during fasting period and returned to normal level by the end of the experiment. Alanine transaminase (ALT) activity was significantly (P<0.05) increased during fasting in the control and PG1, while the increase in PG2 did not reach the level of significance. Significant increase in Aspartate transaminase (AST) activity was observed only in PG2 during fasting period and the level returned to a no significant change by the end of the experiment. It is to be concluded that daily intake of gum Arabic at dose rate of 50g/day for seven successive days delayed the increase in triglycerides as well as cholesterol concentration, and hence induction of hyperlipemia, that considered to be of value in controlling hyperlipidemia in donkeys.

The holy book Quran is revealed by Allah Almighty and it is truly the literal word of Allah Almighty several evidences on this claim has been provided in the holy Quran itself with sane reasoning not only this but Allah Almighty has challenged in the holy Quran all the creations that if anyone claims that this holy book Quran is not the literal word of Allah Almighty or if someone thinks that it has been fabricated then why don’t those people try to bring something like Quran. It has been more than fourteen hundred years that challenge has remain unbeaten and during all those years nobody has ever come up with such a perfect book which tells you all about the entire system of the universe and in fact beyond the system of universe. This challenge by Allah Almighty in the holy Quran has made everyone helpless, even in the modern age of information technology where access to any sort of information is just few clicks away. This actually is the miracle of the Holy prophet (peace be upon...

The composition of the essential oil from Umbelliferae species of Iran-Laser trilobum (L.) Borkh.-Obtained by hydrodistillation was analyzed by GC and GC-MS. α-pinene (34.6%) was the main component among the twenty-two constituents characterized in the oil of Laser trilobum, representing 92.4%of the total component detected.

“The Islamic Musical Sciences and the Andalusian Connection: Juan Andrés’ «Letter on Arabic Music» (1785)”, Journal of Usuluddin, 2021, vol. 49, num. 1, pp. 151-182. [DOI: https://doi.org/10.22452/usuluddin.vol49no1.6]

Abstract:

Music was an essential part of the philosophical knowledge in the classical antiquity and then in the medieval era. Music provided tools to foster a global speculative knowledge, and the classical Islamic thought developed different musical sciences. This paper tries to describe the different approaches to the musical phenomenon from an Islamic perspective, and the feasible transmission of this knowledge to Western music via al-Andalus. In doing so, the paper places attention in the Italian «Letter on Arabic Music» written by the Spanish Jesuit Juan Andrés in 1785, one of the first documents attesting this connection.

The authors translate and comment a digression from the Kitāb al-Āṯār al-Bāqiya on several hydraulic and hydrological subjects. The passage reveals al-Bīrūnī’s understanding of fluvial regimes, water physical behaviour, and of a handful of peculiar natural phenomena. Al-Bīrūnī departs from a discussion of weather forecast and seasonal fluvial regimes of the Tigris, Euphrates, Oxus, and Nile. The main concern of al-Bīrūnī is to defend the principle that water moves only downwards in absence of external forces. In doing so, the Khwarazmian scientist touches on the origin of salinity of the seas, the functioning of syphons related hydraulic machines, and relates a report of an artificial phenomenon, that he dismisses as result of faulty observations, that could be recognized as a hydraulic jump. In addition, the passage contains much relevant information on al-Bīrūnī’s understanding of the inhabitability of subequatorial regions, the possibility of the void, and the water cycle.

Wan Fariza alyati Wan zakaria ABSTRAK Revolusi Industri Keempat merupakan satu perubahan yang berlaku secara drastik kepada peradaban manusia di mana dunia menyaksikan penggunaan Internet of Things (IoT) dan perkembangan teknologi tanpa batas sempadan. Penggerak utama kepada Revolusi Industri Keempat ini iaitu sains dan penciptaan teknologi berasaskan IoT serta Artificial Intelligence (AI) merubah makna menjadi manusia (post-humanism). Sains dalam tamadun Islam muncul sebagai hasil daripada pandangan alamnya yang syumul, justeru sains era Revolusi Industri Keempat kini tidaklah boleh diterima kebenarannya secara membuta tuli kerana asas epistemologi dan metodologinya yang asing daripada asas epistemologi dan metodologi Islam. Berdasarkan premis di atas, umat Islam memerlukan sains yang tersendiri, hasil daripada pandangan hidup dan nilainya yang sejati. Karya ini meneliti premis epistemologi dan metodologi sains Islam berdasarkan kaedah analisis dokumen yang terkandung dalam penulisan beberapa orang pemikir Islam seperti Ziauddin Sardar, Alparslan Acikgenc dan Osman Bakar secara umum. Ia pada akhirnya merumuskan bahawa sains dan teknologi Islam mempunyai kerangkanya yang tersendiri dan menjadi alternatif kepada sains dan teknologi Barat. ABSTRACT The Fourth Industrial Revolution is a great transformation that radically changes human civilisation through the application of Internet of Things (IoT) and advancement of technology without borders. The main driver for the Fourth Industrial Revolution is science and technology based on IoT and artificial intelligence (AI) that transform the meaning of being human to post-humanism. Science in the Islamic civilisation emerged as the result of its comprehensive worldview; therefore the science of the Fourth Industrial Revolution should not be accepted based upon its claim of truth purely because of its alien foundation in epistemology and methodology from the worldview of Islam. Based upon the abovementioned premise, the Muslim ummah needs itw own science that originated from the worldview of Islam and its own sets of values. This article studies the Islamic science premises in epistemology and methodology based upon document analysis method founded in the writings of some contemporary Muslim scholars namely Ziauddin Sardar, Alparslan Acikgenc and Osman Bakar. Finally, it synthesizes Islamic science and technology within its own framework and set to be an alternative to Western science and technology.

This paper reviews manifestations of racism in European and American histories of Arab and Persian astronomy from the eighteenth century to the present day. Its first section discusses representation of Islamic astronomy from Adam Smith to late Victorian writers, particularly tracing ideas of Arab unoriginality and scientific incapacity. The second section first relates the appearance of scientific racism in the early twentieth-century historiography of astronomy, then how the rise of scientifically and linguistically competent scholarship in the latter twentieth century provided much-improved information on Islamic achievements in astronomy. The paper's conclusion underlines the importance of avoiding ethnic supremacism and integrating research on Islamic astronomy into teaching and publishing on the history of astronomy.

Reprinted at https://muslimheritage.com/white-supremacism-and-islamic-astronomy/ 

Discussion at https://filling-space.com/2019/03/01/racialization-obscures-islamic-astronomical-tradition/

Th is research aims at fi nding out the remedies for the disease of arrogance/pride that has been rampant among the people in contemporary Muslim world, particularly Nigerian Muslim society. Th e analysis is not on words and terms, but rather on meaning and ideas with analysis and explanations given by the " Mufassirun " and other scholars. 'Uthman bin Foduye emerged in nineteenth-century with the mission to revive the Sunnah, and to eradicate innovations in Hausaland (West Africa) caused by the deviant teachings. Th is is the reason why he wrote on spiritual diseases in his book related to healing of the soul. 'Uthman bin Foduye was infl uenced by al-Ghazali and particularly his book on " Ihya' 'Ulum al-Din " (Revival of the Religious Sciences). He wrote this treaty in order to make it easier for the people to know the destructive evils of the heart, so as to do what Allah loves and accepts, since pride is one of the attributes of Allah alone. Th e appearance of the British destroyed the Sokoto Caliphate in Northern-Nigeria and burnt many of Uthman bin Foduye's books, including the " Shifa 'al-Nufus " (Healing of the Soul), for fear that his works will inspire his followers people to rise against the oppressors. KEY WORD: Diseases and remedies, arrogance and pride, Uthman bin Foduye, healing of the soul, al-Ghazali, revive the Islam, West Africa, British, and rise against the oppressors. ABSTRAKSI: " Penyakit dan Pengubatan Al-Kibr (Kesombongan/Kebanggaan Diri) dalam Cahaya Shifa 'al-Nufus (Penyembuhan Jiwa)-nya Uthman bin Foduye ". Kajian ini mau mencari tahu ubat bagi penyakit sombong/bangga diri yang telah berleluasa di kalangan rakyat di dunia Islam masa kini, terutamanya masyarakat Islam Nigeria. Analisis ini tidak disenaraikan dalam kata-kata dan istilah, tetapi pada makna dan idea dengan analisis dan penjelasan yang diberikan oleh Mufassirun dan ulama yang lain. 'Uthman bin Foduye muncul pada abad ke-19 dengan misi untuk menghidupkan semula Sunnah, dan untuk membasmi amalan bid'ah di Hausaland (Afrika Barat) yang disebabkan oleh ajaran sesat. Ini adalah sebab mengapa dia menulis mengenai penyakit rohani dalam bukunya bersabit penyembuhan jiwa. 'Uthman bin Foduye dipengaruhi oleh al-Ghazali dan terutamanya buku " Ihya 'Ulum al-Din " (Kebangkitan Ilmu-ilmu Agama). Beliau menulis risalah ini untuk membuat ianya lebih mudah bagi rakyat supaya tahu keburukan yang merosakan hati, untuk melakukan apa yang Allah suka dan menerima, kerana kebanggaan diri setakat milik Allah semata-mata. Kemunculan British telah menghancurkan Khilafah Sokoto di wilayah Utara-Nigeria dan British pula telah membakar banyak buku karangan Uthman bin Foduye, termasuk " Shifa 'al-Nufus " , kerana British takut bahawa karya-karya Uthman bin Foduye ini akan memberi inspirasi kepada para pengikut dan kaumnya untuk bangkit melawan para penindas. KATA KUNCI: Penyakit dan pengubatan, sombong/bangga diri, Uthman bin Foduye, penyembuhan jiwa, al-Ghazali, menghidupkan semula Islam, Afrika Barat, British, dan bangkit melawan penindas.

Here we mention some opinions of Orientalists in Arab-Islamic sciences and philosophy, such as: Amil Filex Qotii, Rudyard, Renan and others, who said that the so-called Arab culture, which highlights the phenomenon of the genius Arab civilization does not has its existence at all. It is -in their opinion- created by other nations - such as Persians and Sabians, had their cultures before Islam. Arab race did not contribute to its establishment, but only poorly, which almost can not be mentioned. In fact, the Arab Science is a product of a society emerged after Islamic conquests, had the house of Islam (Dār al-Islām) its common homeland, its language was Arabic and blended the different cultures, that melted into the wisdom of Persia, India, the science of Greece and teachings of Islam, so a mediator nation grew up, which combined between the consideration, action, the scientific theory and its practice. Then the science became a collective project in that Muslim city, every effort was done to make the knowledge delivered and accessible to all people, ignoring their differences in their social classes, even their religions. It was a spacious human look and behaviour intended to disseminate the knowledge among human beings.