Dick Teresi freely admits that he began the research for his new book Lost Discoveries: The Ancient Roots of Modern Science--From the Babylonians to the Maya believing he would find little of interest. But in the final product, he shares with readers his “...pleasure of discovering mountains of unappreciated human industry, four thousand years of scientific discoveries by peoples I had been taught to disregard.”
The history of science begins much earlier than most of us think, and teachers, who often look to the Greeks and Europeans for the roots of modern science, need to greatly revise how they teach it. This examination of mathematics, astronomy, cosmology, physics, geology, chemistry, and technology, uncovers information from ancient civilizations including Sumeria, Egypt, China, India, Africa, and Arab nations. The accomplishments of early scientists are described in a clear, understandable fashion.
There are many lessons from this fascinating history that translate easily into classroom activities. For example, the Egyptians used hieroglyphics to do math. Adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing with heiroglyphs would be a great exercise to use in an integrated high school science/math course.
Centuries before Gutenburg started using his press in the fifteenth century, the Chinese were printing thousands of books using movable type. Libraries containing fifty thousand books were not uncommon in China in the eleventh century. The book is filled with fascinating examples like these.
Because many of the sources have never before been translated into English, the author has done a commendable job of making this information available. There is a list of references and notes for each chapter for an individual wishing to explore these areas further. As a teacher of the history of science, this information will be of real value in helping my students understand the contributions of past cultures and civilizations. I also found the book a pleasure just to read, with fascinating information on every page.