Scientists who came before us — Nasir al-Din al-Tusi and Alessandro Volta
Curiosity and an open mind are perhaps the most fundamental defining features of a scientist — not lab coats or safety glasses.
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines science as “the state of knowing : knowledge as distinguished from ignorance or misunderstanding.” Those individuals who pursue their desire to extinguish ignorance by following a systematic process of thought and analysis, are scientists. It is perhaps a pithy statement to say that all of us are born with a baseline of curiosity, and have the potential to become scientists if that curiosity is nurtured. Of course, not everyone can become a successful scientist, just as not everyone can become a successful tennis player simply because you can play a set of tennis. As in any other area of life, a variety of factors contribute to some of us pursuing careers in science and being officially labelled “scientists”.
Many scholarly books have been written on the history of science, with a majority of them focused on scientific developments and progress in the west — an emphasis placed on foundations laid down by ancient Greeks. However, this is changing and non-western scientific achievements from centuries ago are now being discussed and written about.
Charles Darwin is perhaps one of the most recognized scientists today and evolution is a hotly debated topic in the US. But centuries before Darwin was born, Nasir al-Din al-Tusi had written a treatise Akhlaq-i-Nasri in which he proposed that the universe consisted of equal amounts of some elements that began to get modified at different rates and developed into minerals, plants and animals. In that work, he even discussed natural selection when he said, “The organisms that can gain the new features faster are more variable. As a result, they gain advantages over other creatures. […] The bodies are changing as a result of the internal and external interactions.”
Nasir al-Din al-Tusi was born on February 18, 1201, 607 years, 11 months, 25 days before Darwin. He was born in north-eastern Iran in the ancient city of Tus, which was destroyed by Genghis Khan’s armies by 1259.
Nasir al-Din al-Tusi was a polymath whose scholarship resulted in contributions to mathematics, astronomy, chemistry and biology.
In recognition of his contributions, Google unveiled a Google Doodle on his 812th birthday, in 2013. However, it’s reach was limited to Arabic speaking countries:
February 18 is also Alessandro Volta’s birthday. He was born in 1745 and is credited with the invention of the electrical battery. In 2015, a Google Doodle to commemorate his birthday was unveiled, and this one had a global reach.
Considering that Google is the most widely used search engine, Google Doodles are a valuable tool to create awareness. Since Nasir al-Din al-Tusi’s contributions were significant and globally relevant, a Google Doodle whose reach extended beyond the middle east would have likely played at least a modest role in changing western perceptions of people from the middle east. This is especially important in a world where countries are becoming increasingly nationalistic.
With Mr. Trump putting strictures on scientists in government agencies, and with appointments of cabinet secretaries who are essentially anti-science, US science is in for a difficult period. Consequently, people who are interested in science and the scientific method — not just scientists — have come together to speak out about the horrors that will befall us if we are muzzled and coerced into abandoning science and the scientific process. Trump will soon be unveiling his budget for the coming year, and from all the actions he has taken this far, funding for science doesn’t look very promising. One has to only look at what happened in Canada and Canadian science under the previous prime minister Stephen Harper to appreciate the urgency to speak out.
No matter how you define progress, to get from point A to point B efficiently, science and/or the scientific method make it significantly easier. Science is not static and leads to continuous refinements — what could be more universally appreciated than the periodic improvements of computers? The computing capacity of the phones countless people carry in their pockets, is orders of magnitude greater than the desktop computers from just twenty years ago. This would not have been possible without the cooperation of scientists from different parts of the world, and an investment in scientific research. What sense does it make to explore ways to enhance longevity if that longer life will be lived in a fractured and dystopic world? Oh, and to enjoy that longer life — we’re going to need sensible science policies and robust funding. We’re also going to need to continue to have an open sharing of scientific findings, because progress in science relies and builds on previous findings. Even Nasir al-Din al-Tusi’s important work Akhlaq-i-Nasri was based on Greek philosopher-scientists who came before him.