Edzer Roger D.

Antolin
edantolin@mmsu.edu.ph
Reflect on the interactions between S&T and society
throughout history;

Synthesized how scientific and technological

developments affect society and the environment

Identify, make and present by group the timeline of the

paradigm shifts in history.
Sumer is located on the
southernmost tip of ancient
Mesopotamia between the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers in the area
later became Babylonia.

Sumerians are known for their

high degree of cooperation with
one another and their desire for
great things.
Cuneiform is a system that utilizes word
pictures and triangular symbols which are
carved on clay using wedge instruments and
then left to dry.

It allowed the Sumerians to keep records of

things with great historical value of their
everyday life. It is also one way of passing
their traditions, cultures, and their legacy.
Uruk City is a great wonder not only because it
is considered to be the first true city in the world but
also for the way it was erected.

The Sumerians were able to build the city using only

mud or clay from the river, which they mixed with
reeds, producing sunbaked bricks.

They used the bricks to make houses that protected

them from the harsh weather and to build a wall
around the city that prevented wild animals and
neighboring raiders from entering.
The Ziggurat, also called the mountain of
god, was built in the same manner that
they constructed the City of Uruk.

The Great Ziggurat of Ur served as the

sacred place of their chief god, where
only priest was allowed to enter.
It was difficult to get water form the rivers; thus, they
could not maintain farmlands. Some groups had
scarce water supply, while others had problems
with flooding caused by the river.

As a solution to this dilemma, the Sumerians

created dikes and irrigation canals to bring
water to farmlands and at the same time control
the flooding of the rivers.

This method was considered as one of the world’s

most beneficial engineering works.
Boats were used to carry large quantities of products
and were able to cover large distances. However, they
wanted to discover faraway lands to settle since the
population was getting larger, and boats were not
enough to accommodate more people and products.

Some resources attribute to the Sumerians the

invention of sailboats to address their
increasing demands. Sailboats were essential
in transportation and trading as well as in
fostering culture, information, and technology.
In the latter part of their history, the Sumerians
were able to invent the wheel since the
specialized tools needed to create it were already
available.

The first wheels were not made for transportation

but for farm work and food process.

With the use of the wheel and axle, mass

production was made easier. Farmers were able
to mill grains with less effort in less time.
The plow was invented to dig the earth
in a faster pace.

As the plow beaks the ground, the

farmer would just drop the seeds and
farm work would already be done
In order to facilitate faster and easier
travel, the Sumerians developed the first
roads. With this work, the flow of traffic
became faster and more organized.

They made the roads with the same

technology they used in making
sunbaked bricks that they laid down on
the ground.
Babylonia was a state in ancient
Mesopotamia. The city of Babylon,
whose ruins are located in present-day
Iraq, was founded more than 4,000 years
ago as a small port town on the
Euphrates River. It grew into one of the
largest cities of the ancient world under
the rule of Hammurabi.

The Babylonians were great builders,

engineers, and architects.
Babylonian civilization emerged
near the Tigris and Euphrates
river because water is one of
their necessities.

With the use of river, they are

able to exchange their goods to
other places and they can also
use it to conquer and also to
escape.
One of their major
contributions is the
Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the
seven wonders of the ancient world.

It was said to be a structure made up of layers

upon layers of gardens that contained several
species of plants, trees, and vines.

However, no physical evidence has been

found to prove the existence of the Hanging
Gardens of Babylon. Its exact location is
unknown.
Ancient Egypt in North Africa was one of the
most powerful and influential civilizations in the
region for over 3,000 years, from around 3100 B.C
to 30 B.C.

The civilization of Ancient Egypt was located along

the Nile River in northeast Africa and they are
known for its stupendous achievements in a whole
range of fields, including art and architecture,
engineering, medicine and statecraft.
Before, they are using tables made
from clay tablets, but they find it fragile,
heavy, and delicate to handle.

Hence, the Egyptian invention of

paper or papyrus was a welcome
development. They were able to
process the plant in order to produce
thin sheets on which one could write
down things.
When Egyptians invented the papyrus
or the paper, engraving ceased to be
used in writing.

As a result, the Egyptians invented ink

by combining soot with different
chemicals to produce inks of different
colors.
Hieroglyphics is not just an ordinary writing
of text, but it also consists of many different
symbols and illustrations that may lead the
scientists’ misinterpretation of data or
meaning.

Hieroglyphics was the language that tells the

history and culture of the ancient Egyptians.
Their records were well-preserved since they
were carved at the walls of pyramids and
other important Egyptian structures.
Although cosmetics in the modern times
are used to improve and highlight the facial
features of a person, their function in
ancient Egypt was for both health and
aesthetic.

For example, Egyptians wore kohl around

the eyes to prevent and even cure eye
diseases. Kohl was created by mixing soot or
malachite with mineral galena.
During the ancient Egyptian
times, wigs were used for health
and wellness rather than for
aesthetic purposes. They used it
to cover their head from the
harmful rays of the sun.
Another important ancient Egyptian
contribution is the water clock or
clepsydra.

This device utilizes gravity that affects the

flow of water from one vessel to another.

This invention also leads to our modern-day

clock through series of improvement done
by the succeeding civilization.
In the 8th century BC, Greece began to
emerge from the Dark Ages which
followed the fall of the Mycenaean
civilization.

Greece is an archipelago in the

southeastern part of Europe. This makes
their country difficult to conquer since it is
an archipelago, they can hide or
ambush the enemy from various island.
Europe is known as the birth place of
western philosophy.

Some of the major achievements of the

Greeks include in-depth works on
philosophy and mathematics.

Greek civilization has contributed much

to the world especially in the fields of
science and technology.
The first proponents of an atomic theory
were the Greek philosophers Leucippus
and Democritus in the field of science.

And on the field of math, they have

Pythagoras who was perhaps the first to
realize that a complete system of
mathematics could be constructed and
later called Pythagorean Theorem.
The first alarm clock was created in Ancient
Greece by Ctesibus, a Hellenistic engineer and
inventor.

This invention according to the scientist resembles

that of the Egyptians but this is more complex but
more accurate.

Much to the dismay of all those who love to sleep

in, Ctesibus cleverly developed an elaborate
system of dropping pebbles onto a gong in order to
make a sound.
Watermills were commonly used in
agricultural processes like milling of grains
which is necessary form of food processing
during that time.

Mass production of rice, cereals, flours and the

like became common with the help of
watermills.

Modern-day watermills also help for converting

mechanical energy into electricity which also
leads to invention of windmill and turbine.
As legend has it, Rome was founded in
753 B.C. by Romulus and Remus, twin
sons of Mars, the god of war.

The Roman Empire was perceived to be

the strongest political and social entity
in the west. Because the Roman Empire
was so large, other civilizations looked
up to it as their model in terms of
legislation and codified law.
The first and only newspaper of the
ancient world was founded by Julius
Caesar in 59 BCE. It was called Acta
Diurna – “Events of the Day”.

They concerned information about the

Senate’s debates, people’s assemblies,
court trials, executions, marine and
military news, and even weddings,
births and obituaries.
Roman architecture adopted the external
language of classical Greek architecture for
the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was
different from Greek buildings, becoming a
new architectural style.

Ancient Roman architecture used new

materials, particularly concrete, and newer
technologies such as the arch and the dome
to make buildings that were typically strong
and well-engineered.
Roman numerals originated in ancient
Rome. There are seven basic symbols: I, V, X, L,
C, D and M. The first usage of the symbols
began showing up between 900 and 800 B.C.

The numerals developed out of a need for a

common method of counting, essential to
communications and trade. Counting on
one's fingers got out of hand or when you
reached 10. So, a counting system was
devised based on a person's hand
China is one of the world's four ancient
civilizations, and the written history of
China dates back to the Shang Dynasty
(c. 1600–1046 BC), over 3,000 years ago.

Huang He Valley (Yellow River

Valley) was the birthplace of ancient
Chinese civilization. The valley surrounds
the principal river of northern China and
is at the center of thousands of years of
Chinese history.
Tea was originally consumed for its
medicinal properties. Used as an herbal
medicine the Chinese added the leaves
to their food to provide nutrients or as an
antidote for poison.

Farmers began growing tea in the

Szechwan district. During the Tang
Dynasty 618 907 A.D tea drinking
evolved into an art form.
Silk is a fabric first produced in Neolithic
China from the filaments of the cocoon
of the silk worm.

It became a staple source of income for

small farmers and, as weaving
techniques improved, the reputation of
Chinese silk spread so that it became
highly desired across the empires of the
ancient world.
Gunpowder is a mixture of saltpeter
(potassium nitrate), sulfur, and charcoal.
Together, these materials will burn
rapidly and explode as a propellant.

Chinese monks discovered the

technology in the 9th century CE, during
their quest for a life-extending elixir.
The Middle Ages or the Dark Ages
Johann Gutenberg was able to invent the
printing press, a more reliable way of printing
using a cast type.

This general invention soon evolved to be the

mechanical printing press which was
eventually used all over the world.

The printing press was invented to address the

need for publishing books that would spread
information to many people at a faster rate.
The development of the microscope
allowed scientists to make new insights into
the body and disease.

It's not clear who invented the first

microscope, but the Dutch spectacle
maker Zacharias Janssen (1585) is
credited with making one of the earliest
compound microscopes (ones that used
two lenses) around 1600.
While there is evidence that the principals of
telescopes were known in the late 16th
century, the first telescopes were created in
the Netherlands in 1608. Spectacle makers
Hans Lippershey & Zacharias Janssen
and Jacob Metius independently created
telescopes.

Galileo Galilei did not invent the telescope but

was the first to use it systematically to observe
celestial objects and record his discoveries.
Since wars were widespread during the
Middle Ages, great development in the
weaponry technology also occurred.

Medieval weapons varied from simple tools,

like arrows, to complex engines of emerging
medieval warfare technology, like cannons.

The most used weapons were daggers, axes,

clubs and spears, while swords and their
retainers were typically only used by knights or
by men wealthy enough to afford them.
1590s- 19th Century CE
Louise Pasture, a French biologist,
microbiologist, and chemist, found a
way to solve the problem in food
contamination.

He invented pasteurization, the

process of heating dairy products to
kill the harmful bacteria that allow
the milk so spoil faster. Through this
process, milk could be stored and
consumed for a longer period.
Samuel M. Kier was able to invent kerosene by
refining petroleum.

Kerosene was later on referred to as the “illuminating

oil” because it was used at first to provide lighting to
homes. After some time, it was applied for heating
purpose.

Nowadays, kerosene is still present as still used by

many people for powering automobiles, factories,
and power plants, among others.
Pascaline, also called Arithmetic Machine, the first
calculator or adding machine. The Pascaline was
designed and built by the French mathematician-
philosopher Blaise Pascal between 1642 and
1644.

The creation of modern-day calculator did not

only pave the way for easier arithmetic
calculations, but also resulted in the development
of more complex processing machines like
computer.
One of the Filipino innovations is the addition
of a sidecar to a motorcycle, transforming it
into a tricycle to accommodate more
passengers.

H2O Technologies headed by Dominic

Chung and Lamberto Armada, together
with Chief Designer Victor Llave, was able
to invent the Salamander, an amphibious
tricycle that can cross not only flooded streets
but also rivers and lakes. It may also be utilized
to travel from island to island.
A young Filipina inventor named Aisa
Mijeno was able to invent a lighting
system that utilizes a material abundant
in the Philippines – saltwater.

She invented the Sustainable

Alternative Lighting (SALt) lamp, an
environment-friendly light source that
runs on saltwater.

The SALt lamp is safer as it poses no risk

of fire and emits no toxic gases.
Dr. Fe del Mundo, a Filipino pediatrician,
devised a medical incubator made from
indigenous and cheap materials which did
not run on electricity.

The incubator was made by placing a

native laundry basket inside a bigger one.
Hot water bottles were inserted between
the baskets to provide warmth and a
makeshift hood to allow oxygen
circulation. Its main purpose was to
maintain conditions suitable for a newborn.
In 2010, the Department of Science
and Technology – Industrial
Technology Development Institute
(DOST-ITDI) was able to introduce the
Mosquito Ovicidal/Larvicidal Trap
System, also known as the OL Trap.

This trap system is made of natural

ingredients that are lethal to mosquitos
but safe for humans and the
environment.
The diesel-powered jeepney produces
large quantities of black smoke, and is
usually a major contributor of noise
pollution due to its primitive exhaust
system. To counter these disadvantages,
the electric jeepney (eJeepney) was
developed.

This modern type of transportation utilizes

electricity instead of the more expensive
diesel. It is environment-friendly since it
does not emit any smoke and noise.
Do you have any
questions or
clarifications?
Thank you for listening!
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