Publisher's Synopsis
This reference contains almost 6000 entries dealing with the history of the scientific, technological and medical accomplishments of cultures outside of the USA and Europe. It aims to bring together knowledge of many disparate fields in one place and to legitimize the study of other cultures' science. No superiority is claimed for other cultures, rather the aim is a mutual exchange of ideas. There are inter-cultural articles on a broad range of topics, such as mathematics and astronomy; philosophical articles on concepts and ideas related to the study of non-Western science, such as rationality, objectivity and method, religion and science, East and West, and magic and science; and more factual ones on topics such as China and the Islamic world, where individual scientists are known to us. Readers can compare disciplines across cultures (Chinese mathematics, trigonometry, maps, medicine, geography etc), and cultures across disciplines (for example, Islamic, Chinese, Indo-Malay, African, and native American astronomy). The entries are arranged alphabetically, with many cross-references, and bibliographies enable readers to move on to the scholarly literature.
