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Historical Antecedents in the Course of Science and - located in the southernmost tip of ancient

Technology Mesopotamia
 Introduction - Sumerians were known for their high degree of
• Science and Technology indeed play major cooperation with one another and their desire for
roles in the everyday life. great things.
1. make difficult and complicated tasks easier - They are not contented with the basic things that
2. allow people to do more with so little effort and time. life can offer.
*not just products of people’s imagination or a one-time - This desire pushed them to develop many things
thought process; connected with science and technology.
*brought about by gradual improvements to earlier works from  Cuneiform
different time periods - Sumerians’ first writing system
DRIVING FORCE: desire to raise the quality of life of - a system that utilizes word pictures and triangular
the people symbols which are carved on clay using wedge
ANCIENT TIMES instruments and then left to dry.
- People were concerned with: - this allowed the Sumerians to keep records of things
1. Transportation and navigation with great historical value or their everyday life.
2. Communication and record-keeping  Uruk City
3. Mass production - considered the first true city in the world
4. Security and protection Challenges:
5. Health - no building stones in the location of this city
6. Aesthetics - lumber was limited
7. Architecture - Build the city using only mud or clay from the river,
 TRANSPORTATION mixed with reeds, producing sun-baked bricks
- people were trying to go places and discover new - Used the bricks to make houses that protected them
horizons from the harsh weather
- to search for food - Used the bricks to build a wall around the city that
- to find better locations for settlement prevented wild animals and neighboring raiders from
- to trade their surplus goods in exchange for entering.
things they lacked  The Great Ziggurat of Ur
Navigation systems - also called the “mountain of god”
 COMMUNICATION - “temple whose foundation creates aura"
- to communicate with the natives of the areas they - was built in the same manner that they constructed the
visited so as to facilitate trade City of Uruk è sun-baked bricks
- to prevent possible conflicts - served as the sacred place of their chief god
 RECORD-KEEPING - only their priests were allowed to enter
- Needed to remember the places they had been to - was built during the Early Bronze Age
- To document the trades, they made with each other
- To keep records of their history and culture - (21st century BCE)
- to establish their identities as they tried to - had crumbled to ruins by the 6th century BCE of
- relate with other cultures and civilizations the Neo-Babylonian period, when it was
 WEAPONS & ARMORS - restored by King Nabonidus.
- Important in the discovery of new places  Irrigation and Dikes
- Important in the establishment of new alliances with - Sumerians were challenged to mass produce food
other tribes items.
- Conflicts: - But the elements in the environment seemed
- when people met others with different cultures and uncooperative.
orientation - Difficult to get water from the rivers
- if different groups struggled to control vital resources - è they could not maintain farmlands
- Primary challenge: CONSERVATION OF - Some groups had scarce water supply.
LIFE - Some had problems with flooding caused by the
- Successful in harnessing the rich resources that the river.
world could provide, but their survival posed a great - - Considered the world’s most
problem. beneficial engineering works
- Illnesses and diseases (natural and man-made)  Sailboats
- S & T played a major role in the discovery of cures - Challenge: Transportation
to, if not the prevention of, illnesses. - Boats were used to carry large quantities of products
 ENGINEERING and were able to cover large distances.
- For better transportation - They wanted to discover faraway lands to settle
- Establishment of structures for protection from human since the population was getting larger.
attacks and natural disasters - Boats were not enough to accommodate more people
- Construction of bigger and stronger infrastructure and products.
 ARCHITECTURE - They needed a mode of transportation that did not
- Elaborate designs were signs of technological require much human resource.
advancement of a particular civilization. - Some sources attribute to the Sumerians the
- Considered a status symbol among nations of invention of sailboats to address their increasing
how advanced their technology is. demands
- May also establish the identity of a nation. - Sailboats were essential in transportation and
 BEAUTIFICATION trading as well as in fostering culture, information,
- Not only on infrastructure and surroundings and technology.
- People looked more visually presentable and  Wheel
appealing by adding some features and decorations - The first wheels were not made for transportation but
in their body for farm work and food processes.
CONCLUSION - With the use of wheel and axle, mass production
- Developments in S & T affected the lives of the was made easier.
people. - Farmers were able to mill grains with less effort in
- Developments in S & T were the results of many less time.
prior antecedents.  The Plow
- Out of necessity, people in ancient times were - Food gatherers à farm cultivators
able to discover and invent things that would - Farmers needed a technology which would enable
impact the lives of the modern people. them to dig the ground where seeds would be
planted.
SUMERIAN CIVILIZATION Benefits:
Sumeria
1. Farmers would just drop the seeds (and farm work - Kohl – created by mixing soot or malachite with
would already be done) - mineral galena
2. Farmers could cultivate larger parcels of land faster. - They also believed that a person wearing make-up
3. Enable them to mass produce food without taking so was protected from evil and that beauty was a sign of
much effort and time. holiness.
 WIG
 Roads - worn for health and wellness rather than for
- In order to facilitate faster and easier travel - aesthetic purposes
- The flow of traffic became faster and more - used to protect the shaved heads of the wealthy
organized. - Egyptians from the harmful rays of the sun
- Very useful especially during the rainy season - wearing a wig was better than putting a scarf or any
when traveling in soft and muddy roads proved other head cover since a wig allowed heat to escape.
to be too difficult.  WATER CLOCK / CLEPSYDRA
- Made of sun-baked bricks that they laid down on - utilizes gravity that affects the flow of water from
the ground. - one vessel to the other.
- The later poured bitumen, a black sticky - the amount of water (or its height, depending on the
substance similar to asphalt, to smoothen the method used) remaining in the device determines
roads. how much time has elapsed since it is full
BABYLONIAN CIVILIZATION - in the process, time is measured
- Emerged near the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers - widely used as a timekeeping device during the
- Great builders, engineers, and architects - ancient times.
 Hanging Gardens of Babylon GREEK CIVILIZATION
- A structure made up of layers upon layers of gardens Greece
that contained several species of plants, trees, and – an archipelago in the southeastern part of Europe
vines. - known as the birthplace of western philosophy
- King Nebuchadnezzar II built the gardens for his wife,  ALARM CLOCKS
Queen Amytis. - made use of water (small stones/sand) that
- However, no physical evidence has been found to prove - dropped into drums which sounded the alarm.
the existence of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. - Plato was believed to have utilized an alarm clock to
- Its exact location is also unknown. - signal the start of his lecture.
- People have been debating about the existence of the - Plato’s version of the alarm clock:
said mythical place. - used 4 water vessels lined up vertically.
- many said it was just a product of the creative - the upper vessel supplied the water which
imagination of the great King because it lacked - dropped to the vessel below it, which was set to be
documentation or archeological evidence. filled in a given time.
- If it really existed, it must have been destroyed by war, - major contributions: philosophy mathematics
erosion, or an earthquake. coliseums Olympics
- If it were true, it may be considered as one of the - once full, water was siphoned off at a faster rate into
greatest engineering and architectural achievements the 3rd vessel which would cause the expulsion of
of the world that is almost impossible to replicate. contained air, creating a whistling noise
EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION - è then, this vessel would empty towards the bottom
- Located in North Africa vessel for storage and reuse.
- Infrastructures established by the pharaohs  WATER MILL
 PAPER or PAPYRUS - commonly used in agricultural processes like milling
- Papyrus – a plant that grew abundantly along the Nile of grains
River in Egypt - better than mills powered by farm animals
- Lighter and thinner than clay tablets - è they required less effort and time to
- è easier to carry and store - operate since the farmer did not have
- The sheets were also less breakable. - to raise animals
- A major accomplishment in Egyptian record- - only required access to rivers or flowing water.
- keeping and communications - a large wheel with small “buckets” of water
- People then were able to send letters or - attached to it.
correspondences anywhere in the world since the pieces ROMAN CIVILIZATION
of paper were very light that they could be carried and - Roman Empire
delivered by birds. - the strongest political and social entity in the
- Record-keeping was no longer a problem. - west
- è documents would not take huge storage spaces - the cradle of politics and governance during
- Easier to keep them away from raiders who often - that period
- destroyed records of the nations they invaded. - became the model of other civilizations
 INK  NEWSPAPER
- They invented ink by combining soot with different - one of the major contributions of the Romans
- chemicals to produce inks of different colors. - gazettes – the 1st newspapers
- Characteristics: - contained announcements of the
- Must withstand the elements of nature since it was used - Roman Empire to the people.
to record history, culture, and codified laws. - made before the invention of paper
- Must also be tamper-proof so that people could not - engraved in metal or stone tablets, and then
simply tinker with those written down by authorities. publicly displayed
 HIEROGLYPHICS - When paper was invented, it became easier for the
- A system of writing using symbols Romans to “publish” matter that needed the
- adapted from the early writing system established attention of the Roman citizens.
- in Mesopotamia as a result of trade between - è minutes of the proceedings of the Roman
- civilizations - senate were done in shorthand
- Egyptians believed that this writing system was - è these documents were edited and published
- provided to them by their gods. on
- was the language that tells the modern world of - the same day that they were recorded.
- the history and culture of the ancient Egyptians.  BOUND BOOKS or CODEX
- their records were well-preserved since they - CODEX – first books
were carved at the walls of pyramids and other - Literature also changed form from CLAY TABLETS
important Egyptian structures. to
 COSMETICS - PARCHMENTS OF PAPER.
- for both health and aesthetic reasons. - Julius Caesar started the tradition of stacking up
- Egyptians wore Kohl around the eyes to prevent and - papyrus to form pages of a book.
- even cure eye diseases. - Later, they were able to provide covers to protect the
- papyrus. - was the PRIDE OF THEIR LAND and their
- Earlier covers – were made of WAX - CROWNING GLORY.
- Later – animal skin è stronger and long-lasting  GUNPOWDER
 ROMAN ARCHITECTURE - one of the most interesting inventions in China.
- one of the most visual contributions of the - originally developed by Chinese alchemists who
- ancient Roman Empire to the world. - aimed to achieve immortality
- considered a continuation of Greek architecture, - they mixed charcoal, sulfur, and potassium
- hence, the resemblance - nitrate
- regarded as pioneering since the Romans were able - instead of creating an elixir of life, they
to adapt new building and engineering technology accidentally invented a black powder that could
on architectural designs established actually generate large amounts of heat and gas
- in the past. in an instant.
- è they were able to preserve great and - ironically, instead of prolonging life, it is widely
- elaborate architectural designs used to propel bullets from guns and cannons
- è sturdier and stronger infrastructures which cause countless deaths.
- able to creatively redesign old architectural - gunpowder-propelled weapons are
- patterns to adapt to the new trends at that time - preferred by raiders who plan to attack at a
- fully supported and funded by the Roman distance.
- government - also used in fireworks during important
- è implement major projects: - celebrations in China.
a) large churches (cathedrals and basilicas)
b) aqueducts
c) coliseums
d) amphitheatres
e) residential houses
- the quality is seen by the way they withstood
- time and the harsh elements of the environment.
 ROMAN NUMERALS
- Old systems could not keep up with high calculation
- requirements.
- è due to the increasing rate of
- communication and trade among nations
- Although, no longer widely used today, others would still
use it over other more popular number systems due to its
aesthetic and historical value.
CHINESE CIVILIZATION
- the oldest civilization in Asia
- also known as the middle kingdom
- China is located on the far east of Asia
- Famous among other ancient civilizations because of
its
- silk trade
- Little is written about ancient China
- due to its distance from other civilizations
 SILK
- naturally produced by silk worms
- the Chinese were the ones who developed the
technology to harvest the silk and process it to
produce paper and clothing.
- The silk trade opened China to the outside world
- making way for cultural, economic, and
- scientific exchanges.
- It bridged the gap between the western world and the
middle kingdom.
 TEA PRODUCTION
- Tea – a beverage
- produced by pouring hot or boiling water
- over crushed or shredded dried tea leaves.
- The 1st tea was drunk by a Chinese emperor.
- An unknown Chinese inventor created a machine
that
- was able to shred tea leaves into strips.
- was done using a wheel-based mechanism with
sharp edges attached to a wooden or ceramic pot
- Chinese were able to increase their production of tea
- and trade with other nations.
- Tea was one of the most popular beverages in the
- world today.
 GREAT WALL OF CHINA
- once considered the ONLY MAN-MADE structure
- that could be seen from outer space
- the largest and most expensive infrastructure that the
nation built.
- was constructed to keep out foreign invaders and
control the borders of China.
- made with stone, brick, wood, earth, and other
materials
- showcased the extent of Chinese engineering
- technology at that time.
- was so massive and strong that it was said to have
literally divided China from the rest of the world.
- the wall’s construction put China among the
- powerful civilizations during the ancient times.

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