a nation�s contributions to Science and Technology

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   Glass Mirrors Islamic Spain early eleventh century.

A variety of mechanical clocks were produced by Spanish Muslim
engineers, both large and small, and this knowledge was transmitted to
Europe through Latin translations of Islamic books on mechanics. These
clocks were weight-driven. Designs and illustrations of epi-cyclic and
segmental gears were provided. One such clock included a mercury
escapement. The latter type was directly copied by Europeans during the
15th century. In addition, during the 9^th century, Ibn Firnas
of Islamic Spain, according to Will Durant, invented a watch-like
device which kept accurate time. The Muslims also constructed a variety
of highly accurate astronomical clocks for use in their observatories.

In 1454, Gutenberg developed the most sophisticated printing press of
the Middle Ages. However, movable brass type was in use in Islamic
Spain 100 years prior, and that is where the West's first printing
devices were made

 In the 1lth century al-Haytham determined virtually everything
that Newton advanced regarding optics centuries prior and is regarded
by numerous authorities as the "founder of optics. " There is little
doubt that Newton was influenced by him. Al-Haytham was the most quoted
physicist of the Middle Ages. His works were utilized and quoted by a
greater number of European scholars during the 16th and 17th centuries
than those of Newton and Galileo combined.

he Chinese developed saltpeter for use in fireworks and knew of no
tactical military use for gunpowder, nor did they invent its formula.
Research by Reinuad and Fave have clearly shown that gunpowder was
formulated initially by Muslim chemists. Further, these historians
claim that the Muslims developed the first fire-arms. Notably, Muslim
armies used grenades and other weapons in their defence of Algericus
against the Franks during the 14^th century. Jean Mathes indicates that the Muslim rulers had stock-piles of grenades, rifles, crude cannons, incendiary devices, sulfur bombs and pistols decades before such devices were used in Europe. The first mention of a cannon
was in an Arabic text around 1300 A.D. Roger Bacon learned of the
formula for gunpowder from Latin translations of Arabic books. He
brought forth nothing original in this regard.

Islam's surgeons were the first pathologists. They fully realized the
nature of disease and described a variety of diseases to modern detail.
Ibn Zuhr correctly described the nature of pleurisy, tuberculosis and
pericarditis. Az-Zahrawi accurately documented the pathology of
hydrocephalus (water on the brain) and other congenital diseases. Ibn
al-Quff and Ibn an-Nafs gave perfect descriptions of the diseases of
circulation. Other Muslim surgeons gave the first accurate descriptions
of certain malignancies, including cancer of the stomach, bowel and
esophagus. These surgeons were the originators of pathology, not
Giovanni Morgagni.