Science, Technology and Industry in the Ottoman World

Scholarly interest in the scientific activities caried out in various geographical areas of the Ottoman Empire between the 14th and the 20th century yielded a growing number of studies in recent years. The initial findings of these studies led scholars to question the view that Islamic science went into a decline after the 12th century, and to argue that Ottoman science constituted a new episode in Islamic science. The present volume begins with a survey on the Ottomans' transition from the Islamic to the European scientific tradition. This survey is followed by research papers dealing with: the introduction of modern science and technology to Turkey in the 18th and 19th centuries as regards the military technical training, the first railway line in Asiatic Turkey and the teaching of modern botany; the introduction of modern medicine and Darwinism in Egypt; Bonaparte's expedition to Egypt from the viewpoint of history of science and technology; and the mathematical activities in the Maghreb in both pre-Ottoman and Ottoman periods.