 |
Ibn Al-Haytham on Eye and Brain, Vision and Perception |
|
By: Professor Charles G. Gross, Fri 28 September, 2012 |
|
Professor Charles G. Gross Ibn al-Haytham was the major figure in the study of optics and vision in the Middle Ages and his influence was pervasive for over 500 years. In this article, Professor Charles G. Gross, a renowned neurophysiologist of vision, outlines his original theory of vision and describes aspects which are less well known, namely Ibn al-Haytham's insights into visual physiology and visual perception. Professor Gross concludes that, although Ibn al-Haytham's unique synthesis of physics, mathematics and physiology into a new theory of vision and its historical importance have been recognized, his insights into the psychology of perception and their influence remains an important and potentially fertile area of research.
|
|
Ibn al-Haytham: An Introduction |
|
By: Nader El-Bizri, Sat 11 June, 2011 |
|
Nader El-Bizri This presentation focused on the historical and epistemic bearings of the scientific legacy of the celebrated polymath al-Hasan ibn al-Haytham (known in Latin as Alhazen). A particular emphasis was placed on his remarkable revolution in optics, while situating his research in the broader context of his ingenuous investigations in geometry, his development of the methodological rudiments of scientific experimentation, and his mathematization of the principal notions of classical physics and natural philosophy. This line of inquiry accounted for the channels of transmission, adaptation, and expansion of his research in optics, within the European intellectual milieu, and up till the seventeenth century, while also revealing the multilayered nature of his tradition in underpinning the scientific investigations of Franciscan mediaeval opticians, and of guiding the theoretical debates of Renaissance artists and architects over the best methods of constructing pictorial perspective.
|
|
Ibn al-Haytham and Psychophysics |
|
By: Dr. Craig Aaen-Stockdale, Fri 10 June, 2011 |
|
Dr. Craig Aaen-Stockdale The famous scientist Ibn al-Haytham (‘Alhazen') has rightly been credited with many advances in optics and vision science, but recent spurious claims that he is the ‘founder of psychophysics' rest upon unsupported assertions, a conflation of psychophysics with the wider discipline of psychology, and semantic arguments over what it is to ‘found' a school of thought.
|
|
Reflections on the Optics of Time |
|
By: Dr. Charles M. Savage, Mon 30 May, 2011 |
|
Dr. Charles M. Savage Based on the outstanding achievement of Ibn al-Haytham's work in optics, which paved the way for the "Optics of Space," Dr. Charles M. Savage develops in this stimulating article a vibrant plea for the need for a complementary understanding of the "Optics of Time." The reflection argues that time is ripe for a mature and open appreciation of the gift of life on this planet, otherwise we stand the risk of abusing one another and the richness of the resources nature has stored up for us. In so doing, we can implement a vision of a "sustainable history," an important concept introduced by Prof. Nayef al-Rodham. This will require our reflective abilities to co-create a "sustainable future" as well.
|
|
Book Review of Dr. Toygar Akman's “Cybernetics” |
|
By: Cem Nizamoglu, Fri 25 March, 2011 |
|
Cem Nizamoglu "Cybernetics: Past, Present, Future" published by Toygar Akman, a renowned expert in the field, retraces for the Turkish readers the history of cybernetics and presents the state of the art in this revolutionary scientific field. The author, an admirer of al-Jazari, the Muslim engineer of the early 13th century, devotes a section to describing his outstanding, early contribution to the history of robotics
|
|
Taqi al-Din ibn Ma‘ruf and the Science of Optics: The Nature of Light and the Mechanism of Vision |
|
By: FSTC Limited, Mon 30 June, 2008 |
|
In this article, some aspects of Kitab Nūr hadaqat al-ibsār wa-nūr haqīqat al-anzār (Book of the Light of the Pupil of Vision and the Light of the Truth of the Sights) of the renowned Ottoman astronomer Taqī al-Dīn ibn Ma‘rūf, who lived in Istanbul in the 16th century, is discussed in detail in order to show the high level and quality of the scientific research carried out during the reign of the Ottoman Empire.
|
|
Kamal Al-Din Al-Farisi’s Explanation of the Rainbow |
|
By: FSTC Limited, Fri 23 May, 2008 |
|
This article focuses on a critical presentation of the arguments put forward by Kamal al-Din al-Farisi about the formation of the rainbow. This optical phenomenon was explained simultaneously but independently by two scientists, Kamal al-Din al-Farisi and Theodoric of Freiberg. Surprisingly, their theories of the rainbow were nearly correct in some respects and somewhat similar to our present understanding. This study reveals that Kamal al-Din al-Farisi was well ahead of his time in his assumptions related to most of the above mentioned topic.
|
|
The Balance : The Core Mental Model of the Islamic Science of Weights |
|
By: FSTC Limited, Fri 17 November, 2006 |
|
This article includes the recent work by Professor Abattouy and his co-workers. The work has revealed the enormous wealth of Islamic literature on the science of weights. Their findings established that there is much larger account than usually assumed in history of science.
|
|
The Arabic Transformation of Mechanics: The Birth of the Science of Weights |
|
By: FSTC Limited, Mon 13 November, 2006 |
|
The paper brings out the contribution of Muslim scholars in the subject of mechanics; a subject hitherto little known. It analyzes historical significance of the Arabic science of weights.
|
|
CHILDREN'S ACTIVITY: How to Make a Pinhole Camera |
|
By: FSTC, Thu 16 March, 2006 |
|
Would you like to make a wonderful camera in just five minutes? This short exercise will help you to create your very own pinhole camera! Just follow the simple steps in this exercise and you will be able to see the world in a whole new way.
|
