The House of Wisdom: How Arabic Science Saved Ancient Knowledge and Gave us the Renaissance

By Jim Al-Khalili

Book Overview

A myth-shattering view of the Islamic world's myriad scientific innovations and the role they played in sparking the European Renaissance. Many of the innovations that we think of as hallmarks of Western science had their roots in the Arab world of the middle ages, a period when much of Western Christendom lay in intellectual darkness. Jim al- Khalili, a leading British-Iraqi physicist, resurrects this lost chapter of history, and given current East-West tensions, his book could not be timelier. With transporting detail, al-Khalili places readers in the hothouses of the Arabic Enlightenment, shows how they led to Europe's cultural awakening, and poses the question: Why did the Islamic world enter its own dark age after such a dazzling flowering?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0143120565
• ISBN13: 9780143120568
• Release Date: March 2012
• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 8.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

An excellent and digestible journey through Arabic scientific history

Kalili is an exceptional communicator. In the west, anything "Arabic " is demonized. This book opens the door to the deeper contributions to our collective history. Easy to follow, personable, straightforward, and thoroughly enjoyable