The Rise and Fall of Muslim Civilization

By M. Basheer Ahmed

The first revelation of the Quran inspires Muslims to acquire knowledge. "Recite in the name of God who created men from a clinging substance, He taught (the use of) the pen taught man that which he knew not." (96:3-5).

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mary Ethel Eckard
• Release date: Apr 22, 2022
• ISBN: 9798985728712

Book preview

Copyright 2022 © M. Basheer Ahmed, MD. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations for review purposes, no part of this book may be reproduced in any form without prior written permission from the author.

Published by

P37#yIS1

Mary Ethel Eckard

Frisco, Texas

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022902837

ISBN (Print): 979-8-9857287-0-5

ISBN (E-book): 979-8-9857287-1-2

Dedication for Scholars

To the great Muslim scientists, philosophers, and scholars of medieval years. Their contribution to the world’s civilization was a source of inspiration for me to study reasons behind the rise of Muslim civilization and the reasons for closure of great Muslim institutions teaching science, technology, and philosophy. They also motivated me to develop projects that inspire the younger generation to become future scientists and innovators.

Acknowledgement

To my son, Sameer Ahmed.

Thank you for reviewing this manuscript

and for your helpful suggestions.

To Mr. Faizan Mirza and Mr. Sakib.

Thank you for providing the insight and ideas

for the cover design concept.

Contents

Concept of the Book Cover

Foreword Nazeer Ahmed, PhD, MBA, PE

Preface M. Basheer Ahmed, MD

Chapter 1     Rise and Fall of Muslim Civilization Causes and Remedies

M. Basheer Ahmed, MD

Chapter 2     Inspiring and Motivating Young Muslim Students To Become Scientists and Innovators

By Aziz K. Budri and M. Basheer Ahmed MD

Chapter 3     American Muslims’ Practical Guide to Science: The Do’s and Don’ts for Tomorrow’s Scientists

By Professor Pervez Hoodbhoy

Chapter 4     How Does the Future Fare for Muslims? Past Champions of Science and Technology

By Mirza Faizan and Mirza Rizwan

Chapter 5     Bridging the Gaps in STEM Innovation

By Samir Iqbal, PhD, PE, FRSC

Chapter 6     Pancreatic Islet Transplantation as a Treatment for Diabetes and Pancreatitis

By Irum Rahman and Bashoo Naziruddin

Epilogue M. Basheer Ahmed, MD

Bibliography

References Notes

Support IMPMS

Concept of the Book Cover

The book cover reflects the three main facets of the book, The Rise and Fall of the Muslim Civilization and Hope for the Future. To represent these facets, we used three different boxes under the title to represent each element visually.

During the early period of Islam (Golden Age of Islam, 700-1500), due to inspiration of Quranic verses, great Muslim scientists of medieval years contributed to every field of science and philosophy. Their work remained dominant virtually in every field of knowledge for 8 centuries. The first box shows pictures of four great scholars, (randomly selected), Al-kawarizmi, Al-Zahrawi, Ibn Haytham, and Ibn Sina. See below for a brief description of their work in mathematics, surgery, physics, and medicine. For 500 years between the 16th to 20th centuries, Muslims stopped teaching and learning science and philosophy. The European colonialists reintroduced the subjects of science resulting in reawakening of Muslims. The second Box shows the pictures of three Muslim Noble laureates in science: Abdus Salam, Ahmed Hassan Zewail, and Aziz Sancar. Their work is described below. Muslim nations are still educationally backwards, and we need to motivate, inspire, and mentor today’s youth to follow in the footsteps of the Muslim medieval scholars in science. The third box reflects the efforts of a few inspiring Muslims who are trying to bring back the glory days by inspiring the young generation of Muslims to become future scientists.

Brief Description of Medieval Scholars

Al-Khwarizmi (780-850), from Uzbekistan, produced influential works in mathematics and introduced Hindu-Arabic numerals and algebra to European mathematicians. He worked at the House of Wisdom under the caliphate of al-Maʾmūn. He is known as the father of algebra, a word derived from the title of his book, Kitab al-Jaber, which was translated into Latin in the 12th century. Al-Khwarizmi developed the concept of algebra by generating a new method for solving linear and quadratic equations. His books also contain sections on calculating areas and volumes of geometric figures and on the use of algebra to solve inheritance problems according to proportions prescribed by Islamic law. (Please read the detailed description of his work in Chapter 1.)

Al-Zahrawi (Abulcasis) (936 -1013), from Cordoba, Spain, was considered to be the greatest surgeon of the Middle Ages. He has been referred to as the "father of modern surgery and founder of medieval surgical and medical instruments. His principal work is the Kitab al-Tasrif, a thirty-volume encyclopedia which was translated into Latin and became the standard textbook in Europe for the next five hundred years, extending into the Renaissance, evidenced by al-Tasrif’s frequent reference by European surgeons. In the encyclopedia, he introduced his collection of over 200 surgical instruments, many of which were never used before. He pioneered the use of catgut for internal stitches, and surgical devices for Caesarean sections and cataract surgeries. His surgical instruments are still used today to treat people. Al-Zahrawi also pioneered neurosurgery and neurological diagnosis. He is known to have performed surgical treatments of head injuries, skull fractures, spinal injuries, hydrocephalus, subdural effusions, and headache. Pietro Argallata (d. 1453) described Al-Zahrawi as without doubt the chief of all surgeons. (Please read the detailed description of his work in Chapter 1.)

al-Haytham, (Alhazen) (965- 1040), from Basra, Iraq, was known as the father of optics and describer of vision theory. He is the first scientist who discovered that light does not originate from the eye but enters the eye, and the retina is the center of vision and the impressions that it receives are transferred to the brain by the optical nerve, in order that afterwards, the brain creates a visual image in the symmetrical relationship for both retinas. Al-Haytham concludes that, what we perceive is actually the object which is a certain distance from the eye which has a certain shape and size, and vision itself is the result of intervention by the visual material received by the brain and stored information from previous experiences. He stated that vision is the result of impression which light leaves on the sight sense. He supported this based on the experience that the eye retains an image.a Al-Haytham made a thorough examination of the passage of light through various media and discovered the laws of refraction. He also carried out the first experiments on the dispersion of light into its constituent colors. In addition, he invented the camera obscura, the earliest version of the modern camera. It is this understanding of vision that led to the invention of the modern camera. He is often referred to as the world’s first true scientist, due to his emphasis on experimental data and reproducibility of results. (Please read the detailed description of his work in Chapter 1.)

Ibn-Sina [Avicenna] (970–1037), from Uzbekistan, was the most eminent Muslim physician, philosopher, great thinker, and a versatile genius. He is regarded as the father of early modern medicine and clinical pharmacology. He memorized the entire holy Qur’an before age 10. William Osler (1849-1919) noted, the Al-Qānūn fī al-ṭibb, (The Canon of Medicine), which is among the most famous books in the history of medicine, has remained a medical bible for a longer period than any other work; the contributions of Ibn Sina have helped set the standard for current medical practice. The Canon of Medicine introduced the concept of a syndrome as an aid to diagnosis, and it laid out an essential framework for a clinical trial. The Canon was the standard textbook on medicine in the Muslim world and Europe until the 17th century. Ibn Sina also created a philosophical encyclopedia. Very few people knew that he invented an instrument for observing the coordinates of a star and stated that the stars were self-luminous. One of his famous quotes is, The human mind draws its strength from the strength of the soul, and this is a force that is not insignificant.

Three Muslim Noble Laureates were Recognized in the Second Box

Abdus Salam (1926 –1996) became the first Muslim Pakistani to win the 1979 Nobel Prize for Physics for formulating the electroweak theory, which explains the unity of the weak nuclear force and electromagnetism. His work laid the groundwork for the 2012 discovery of the Higgs boson, or the God particle, responsible for giving all particles mass. He obtained a PhD in theoretical physics from Cambridge University. He took a position as a professor of mathematics in Cambridge University, and in 1957, he took a chair at Imperial College, London. Salam saw his religion as a fundamental part of his scientific work. He once wrote that, The Holy Quran enjoins us to reflect on the verities of Allah’s created laws of nature; however, that our generation has been privileged to glimpse a part of His design is a bounty and a grace for which I render thanks with a humble heart.

Ahmed Hassan Zewail (1946 -2016), first Muslim Arab Egyptian to win a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1999, invented femtochemistry for showing that it is possible with rapid laser technique to study in slow motion how atoms in a molecule move during a chemical reaction. After completing his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, Zewail did postdoctoral research at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1976, he became the Chair in Chemical Physics at California Institute of Technology. Zewail participated in President Barack Obama’s Presidential Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

Aziz Sancar (born 1946) MD, PhD, the Sarah Graham Kenan Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the UNC School of Medicine, is a Muslim Turkish molecular biologist awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2015 for the mechanistic studies of DNA repair. Aziz Sancar, a physician specializing in DNA repair, cell cycle checkpoints, and circadian clock, showed how certain protein molecules and repair enzymes, repair DNA, damaged by ultraviolet (UV) light.

Three Future Scientists are Recognized in the Third Box

Aroush Fatima (right), Aarifa Fatima (center), and Ashaz Haq (left) are inventors of the Sea Pressure-based Projectile Launch System, which launches high-speed projectiles using only deep-sea pressure. They made this innovation while competing as 4th graders at the NASA Ames Space Settlement Design Challenge – 2017. This innovation received worldwide second prize in their category, competing against 6,700 participants from 21 countries. Later, when they filed their innovation for a patent, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) referred to this system as an Innovation of National Security Importance.

In the year 2019, these same three students identified that, in case of an emergency, many patients suffer and/or die because of ambulance delays due to traffic. They developed an artificial intelligence system that prevents traffic-related ambulance delays. This system is currently patent pending with the US and India patent offices.

Aroush, Ashaz, and Aarifa are expecting a grant for a patent for their 2022 innovations. Aroush plans to study medicine with a special interest in Genomics. Ashaz says he wants to become an aerospace engineer. Aarifa wants to be a mathematician and science fiction writer.

Foreword

Nazeer Ahmed, PhD, MBA, PE

This book must be read. It is an important book at a critical time in Islamic history. Anyone interested in the perspectives of contemporary community leaders in America on the question of Muslim contributions in science and technology will find valuable insights within.

We live in extraordinary times when human progress is limited only by the speed of light. Riding on the wings of technology, humankind probes the limits of space, time, and the origin of the universe. Inventions appear at a dizzying pace, transforming human culture, profoundly altering our self-perceptions as well as our relationships with others.

If an astronaut from outer space were to visit the planet earth today, he would discern that this epochal transformation is driven by only a few nations while others are passive spectators. Those who are in the forefront of technology benefit from it, thrive and prosper while the others languish in poverty and misery. Among the billions who are left behind are the Muslim masses who constitute some 25% of all people on earth.

It was not always so. If another astronaut had visited our planet a thousand years ago, he would have concluded that the Muslims were in the vanguard of technological change, far ahead of the rest of the world.

How did a civilization that was the front-end engine for technological change end up as the last bogey in this train? This is an important question, and it is the question that the author of this book, Dr. Basheer Ahmed, asks and sets out to find answers.

Dr. Ahmed is eminently qualified to be a seeker on this arduous path. A distinguished physician with high credentials, he is a well-known community leader in North America and a champion of interfaith dialogue. The question of how the Muslims lost their technological pre-eminence is not new to him. For decades he has been seeking answers to this question, doing research, giving lectures, organizing seminars, and listening to scientists, professors, and religious scholars alike. It was at one such conference organized by Dr. Ahmed in Dallas in 2003 where I first met him. I was deeply impressed with his passion for truth and his dedication to the community. Dr. Ahmed has continued his efforts through the years to draw the attention of the community to this important issue, encourage the youth to think creatively, and take up careers in science, technology, and mathematics (STEM).

The author is anguished at the condition of the Muslims. War, occupation, and poverty have taken their toll. Ignorance keeps Muslim societies in darkness. Extremism gnaws at the internal fabric of societies and creates external enemies.

Asserting that the societal ailments are a result of their technological backwardness, the author takes us on a journey through history. Inspired by the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet, the early Muslims learned from the East and the West, added to the reservoir of human knowledge, established new disciplines, and made discoveries in mathematics, astronomy, physics, and the biological sciences. Algebra, chemistry, the decimal system, agronomy, and surgery were their gifts to the world. Robotics, the 2-axis gimbal, and the camshaft were their inventions.

The nascent Islamic civilization was confident, open, progressive, inclusive, cosmopolitan. At the Baitul Hikmah (the House of Wisdom) in Baghdad, founded by the Caliph al Mansur (714-775), scholars gathered from the Byzantine Empire, India, Iran, and China to translate works from Sanskrit and Greek, Aramaic, Farsi, and Chinese. They were Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, and Zoroastrian and collectively, they were called the Mu’tazalites. The early Abbasid Caliphs, enamored of the rigor and precision of Greek rational thought, adopted it as their own.

The light from Baghdad spread to the far-flung provinces. Similar houses of learning were established in Cordoba, Kairouan, Damascus, Isfahan, Herat, Samarkand, and other cities, patronized by local rulers, governors, and potentates. Political consolidation fostered commerce and the free flow of ideas. The Islamic world from Amu Darya to the Pyrenees Mountains shone like a lantern with a thousand points of light.

Dr. Ahmed briefly mentions the names of the luminaries who illuminated the Islamic landscape during its Golden Age: Jabir ibn Hayyan, Al-Khwarizmi, Al-Kindi, Al-Batani, al-Razi, al-Farabi, al-Masudi, al-Zahravi, al-Haitham, al-Biruni, ibn Sini, al-Khayyam, al-Idrisi, ibn Rushd, al-Tusi, ibn Batuta and ibn Khaldun, to mention but a few.