Publisher's Synopsis
Egypt and Babylonia is book two in a series of nine books covering the history of math and science. The series is intended to bridge the gap between the too general and the too detailed. It is intended for the general audience but also it contains sufficient information so that it can be used as a top level textbook. Numerous illustrations are presented to help guide the reader through each topic. The names "Babylonia" and "Mesopotamia" are both used in this book to address the geographical area between and surrounding the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, this area corresponds to modern Iraq, Syria, and eastern Turkey. In order to accurately present certain ideas, some algebraic formulas are presented where appropriate (a short algebra refresher is contained in the appendix), however, the material should be of general interest even if the mathematics is bypassed. Also, since math and science were developed over the centuries, the information is provided within the context of an historical timeline. This book covers the civilizations of Egypt and Babylonia from 3300 BC to 500 BC. By 3300 BC what we refer to as "civilization" had developed with a central government, trade with neighbors, religion, writing, agriculture, animal husbandry, systems of measurement, and rudimentary mathematics. The Egyptian timeline is divided into the Old Kingdom c2700 BC during which the famous Pyramids of Giza were built; the Middle Kingdom c2100 BC during which the first mathematical papyruses were written; and the New Kingdom c1600 BC with notables such as Akhenaten, Nefertiti (Queen to Akhenaten), Tutankhamen (son of Akhenaten), and Moses. Egypt, because of its geographic isolation and religious constraints, remained essentially unchanged for thousands of years. In contrast with Egypt, Babylonia was in the crossroads of trade and human migrations which resulted in a diversity of peoples and governments. Babylonia is popularly remembered for the Epic of Gilgamesh (c2000 BC), the Code of Hammurabi (c1758 BC), the Great Ziggurat of Ur (c2000 BC), the twelve signs of the Zodiac (c700 BC), and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon (c600 BC).
