In the tradition of Daniel Boorstin, the co-founder of
Omni delivers an original work of history that demonstrates why modern science rests on a foundation built by ancient and medieval non-European societies.
Lost Discoveries explores the mostly unheralded scientific breakthroughs from the ancient world - Babylonians, Egyptians, Indians, Africans, New World, and Oceanic tribes, among others, and from the non-European medieval world. By example, the Egyptians developed the concept of the lowest common denominator and the Indians developed the use of zero and negative numbers. The Chinese observed, reported, and dated eclipses between 1400 and 1200 B.C. The Chinese also set the stage for later Hindu scholars, who refined the concept of particles and the void. Five thousand years ago, Sumerians were able to assert that the earth was circular. Islamic scientists fixed problems in Ptolemy's geocentric cosmology. The Quechuan Indians of Peru were the first to vulcanize rubber.
This first comprehensive, authoritative, popularly written, multicultural history of science fills in a crucial gap in the history of science.
Lost Discoveries is also available in print from Simon and Schuster.
