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The German-born American physicist Albert Einstein (1879-1955) revolutionized the science of physics. He is best known for his theory of relativity. [ in bahasa ]
In the history of the exact science, only a handful of men—men like Nicolaus Copernicus and Isaac Newton—share the honor that was Albert Einstein’s the initiation of a revolution in scientific thought. His insights into the nature of the physical world made it impossible for physicists and philosophers to view that world as they had before. When describing the achievements of other physicist, the tendency is to enumerate their major discoveries, when describing the achievements of Einstein, it is possible, to say, simply, that he revolutionized physics.
Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879, in Ulm, but he grew up and obtained his early education in Munich. He was not a child prodigy, in fact, he was unable to speak fluently at age 9. Finding profound joy, liberation, and security in contemplating the laws of nature, already at age 5 he had experienced a deep feeling of wonder when puzzling over the invisible, yet definite, force directing the needle of a compass. Seven years later he experienced a different kind of wonder: the deep emotional stirring that accompanied his discovery of Euclidean geometry, with its lucid and certain proofs. Einstein mastered differential and integral calculus by age 16.
Education in Zurich
Einstein’s formal secondary education was abruptly terminated at 16. He found life in school intolerable, and just as he was scheming to find a way to leave without impairing his chances for entering the university, his teacher expelled him for the negative effects his rebellious attitude was having on the morale of his classmates. Einstein tried to enter the Federal Institute of Technology (FIT) in Zurich, Switzerland, but his knowledge of nonmathematical disciplines was not equal to that of mathematics and he failed the entrance examination. On the advice of the principal, he thereupon first obtained his diploma at the Cantonal School in Aarau, and in 1896 he was automatically admitted into the FIT. There he came to realized that his deepest interest and facility lay in physics, both experimental and theoretical, rather than in mathematics.
Einstein passed his diploma examination at the FIT in 1900, but due to the opposition of one of his professors he was unable to subsequently obtain the usual university assistantship. In 1902 he was enganged as a technical expert, third-class, in the patent office in Bern, Switzerland. Six months later he married Mileva Maric, a former classmate in Zurich. They had two sons. It was in Bern, too, that Einstein, at 26, completed the requirements for his doctoral degree and wrote the first of his revolutionary scientific papers.
Academic Career
These papers made Einstein famous, and Universities soon began competing for his services. In 1909, after serving as a lecturer at the University of Bern, Einstein was called as an associate professor to the University of Zurich. Two years later he was appointed a full professor at the German University in Prague. Within another year and a half Einstein became a full professor at the FIT. Finally, in 1913 the well-known scientists Max Planc and Walter Nernst traveled to Zurich to persuade Einstein to accept a lucrative research professorship at the University of Berlin, as well as full membership in the Prussian Academy of Science. He accepted their offer in 1914, quipping:”The Germans are gambling on me as they would on a prize hen. I do not really know myself whether I shall ever really lay another egg.” When he went to Berlin, his wife remained behind in Zurich with their two sons; after their divorce he married his cousin Elsa in 1917.
In 1920 Einstein was appointed to a lifelong honorary visiting professorship at the University of Leiden. During 1921-1922 Einstein, accompanied by Chaim Weizmann, the future president of the state of Israel, undertook extensive worldwide travels in the cause of Zionism. In Germany the attacks on Einstein began. Philipp Lenard and Johannes Stark, both Nobel Prize-winning physicists, began characterizing Einstein’s theory of relativity as “Jewish physics”. This callousness and brutality increased until Einstein resigned from the Prussian Academy of Science in 1933. (He was, however, expelled from the Bavarian Academy of Science).
Career in America
On several occasions Einstein had visited the California Institute of Technology, and on his last trip to the United States Abraham Flexner offered Einstein—on Einstein’s terms—a position in the newly conceived and funded Institute for Advanced Studies in Princeton. He went there in 1933.
Einstein played a key role (1939) in mobilizing the resources necessary to construct the atomic bomb by signing a famous letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt which had been drafted by Leo Szilard and E.P. Wigner. When Einstein’s famous equation E=mc2 was finally demonstrated in the most awesome and terrifying way by using the bomb to destroy Hiroshima in 1945, Einstein, the pacifist and humanitarian, was deeply shocked and distressed; for a long time he could only utter “Horrible, horrible.” On April 18, 1955, Einstein died in Princeton. [The Biography Institute]
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"I have done nothing to make any human being remember that I have lived Yet what I wish to live for is to connect my name with the events of my day and generation, to link my name with something which will be of interest to my fellow men." [ in bahasa ]
These were the words of Abraham Lincoln at the age of thirty two. A series of disappointments brought him to the point of wanting to end his life. Lincoln wrote the above words when he determined to make a fresh start in life. Later, he became one of the best known and best loved presidents of the United States of America. His name is famous throughout the world as the person who ended slavery in America.
Lincoln was born in Kentucky, USA, where his father worked as a carpenter. He lost his mother at an early age, but later his father married again. Lincoln and his sister became very fond of their stepmother.
Young Lincoln grew up to be a tall man with very large feet. His clothes did not fit him properly. The sleeves of his coat were too short and his trousers also did not fully cover his legs. At first sight, he did not look at all like the great leader that he was to become.
Lincoln first saw what slavery was really like when he was hired to take a boat load of produce to the city of New Orleans in 1828. Later, on a second visit to this city, he promised himself that he would abolish this practice completely.
Lincoln had not been to school on a regular basis, but he had learned to read and write and later became a lawyer. Although he was considered to be 'a queer fellow' by the people of his area because of the way he looked and dressed, he was well liked by them. This was because he had a good sense of humour and was able to make people laugh. His first and greatest love was said to be a woman named Anne Rutledge, whose father owned the tavern in the neighbourhood where Lincoln lived. It was Anne's father who suggested that Lincoln should enter politics.
Lincoln was first elected to the legislature of Illinois in 1834. In 1838 and in 1840, he was reelected to this office. During this time, he met Stephen Douglas, the man who was to be his rival in love for a short time and in politics for a much longer time. Mary Todd, the woman with whom both these men were in love, was from Kentucky. She chose Lincoln as her husband, but their marriage was not a happy one. In 1842, a year,after his marriage, Lincoln set up practice in law with a man named William H. Herndon. A close friendship grew between these two men, which lasted until Lincoln's death. Later, Herndon wrote Lincoln's biography.
In 1846, Lincoln was elected a member of the Congress. But his membership was not renewed because he introduced a bill for ending slavery in the District of Columbia. Disappointed, he went back to practising law. He lost interest in politics for some time and became well known for his honesty as a lawyer.
However, Lincoln did not stay away from politics for long. In 1854, the issue of slavery made him join politics again. He had to compete with Stephen Douglas, who tried to appease those states in the South, which supported slavery as well as those in the North that opposed slavery. Lincoln did not believe that half of the nation could go on with the practice of slavery while the other half was against it. He felt that the nation could not exist half slave and half free. However, Lincoln was defeated in this first fight against Douglas, for a seat in the United States Senate.
Despite this defeat, in May 1860, Lincoln was named the candidate of the Republican party for the Presidential election. During this time, the Democratic party attacked him fiercely. He was called 'a third rate country lawyer', 'a person who could not speak English properly' and many such names. However, he was elected the President of the United States at the end of it all. Four days after Lincoln was elected President, the Southern states began to pull out of the Union which formed the USA. These states in the South formed a union of their own which they called a Confederacy. Lincoln, who was saddened by this, fought to stop the other states from pulling out as well. Finally, the conflict between the North and the South became so bad that it led to a civil war. Lincoln tried to avoid this war but was unsuccessful in his attempt to do so.
To understand the political background of the American Civil War, it is necessary to describe how the USA came to be formed. In the 17th century, settlers from countries like England, France, Spain, Holland and Germany came to North America, which was then a newly discovered country. Some came to find wealth, others to find religious freedom, and yet others to extend the power of their home country by building an empire. The British King ruled this new land, part of which was also called New England. After the American War of Independence was won, the independent states formed themselves into a federation called the United States of America. Each state of this new federation kept a great deal of its independence in every area of government, although these states also had a common purpose. Thus, certain matters such as defence were given to a common government which acted for all the states.
The southern part of USA, which had also joined the federation, developed its agriculture on a plantation basis with the use of slave labour. The northern part was more involved with trade and industry, although agriculture remained important. There were no slaves in the North. In time, the question of slavery became a hot issue in the new states that joined the Union, since people in those states had not as yet made up their minds on the subject. The United States' constitution stated the right of all human beings to 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness', but it also upheld the right to private property. Slaves were private property. The idea that slaves were private property conflicted with the other idea that slaves were human beings with the right to liberty. This was the basic point which was argued about throughout the land.
There were many sides to this issue. Firstly, was human slavery right? By this time, slavery had been made unlawful in most countries of the world. Many people believed that it was grossly unjust to withhold the freedom of any human being. But the South had spent a lot.of money in buying slaves. Their social, economic and political life was organized around the ownership of slaves. Thus, it was not hard to see how important the practice of slavery had become to them.
There was also a political side to the problem of slave ownership by the Southern states. How practical was it to have a 'Union of states' in which some states were 'free' while others were 'slave'? Yet, this is what Lincoln's rival Douglas wanted. But the Southern states worried that with a larger number of the states in the Union being 'free', slavery would be completely abolished. They felt if this happened, they would be ruined financially, socially and politically. The only answer seemed to be to form two separate unions. But this did not work either.
Shortly after Lincoln was elected the President, the Southern states pulled out of the Union. On 12 April 1861, the South opened fire on the North at a place called Fort Sunter. The Civil War or the 'War Between the States' had begun.
There were great differences between the North and the South. The North had a much bigger white population. They were better at producing industrial goods while the South was better at agriculture. In many ways, the North had a great advantage over the South, but the army of the South was well trained and the greater part of the war took place in the South. Thus they were able to fight better. The war was not won very easily. But as we know, after some defeats, the North finally won the war. While the war was on, Lincoln, who had insisted on having an election at the end of his term of office as President, was re elected to serve another term.
In November 1863, on the battlefield of Gettysburg, Lincoln gave a speech, which became famous for all time. He spoke of “…a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” These words from Lincoln's Gettysburg address speak of the two ideals liberty and equality on which America was built.
Lincoln met with a sudden death. While watching a play with his wife, Lincoln was shot by a man named John Wilkes Booth. His death came at a time when peace had at last been brought to the USA. Perhaps this was the final blow that was needed for the complete ending of slavery in the USA. After his death, Lincoln was recognized as a great man, and the ideals he stood for were upheld by the citizens of the country.
The French scientist and philosopher Blaise Pascal (1623 1662) was a precocious and influential mathematical writer, a master of the French language and a great religious philosopher. [ in bahasa ]
Blaise Pascal was born at Clermont Ferrand on June 19, 1623. He was the son of Etienne Pascal, king’s counselor and later president of the Court of Aids at Clermont. Blaise's mother died in 1626, and he was left with his two sisters, Gilberte and Jacqueline. In 1631 the family moved to Paris.
Young Geometer
When Pascal was 12, he began attending meetings of a mathematical academy. His father taught him languages, especially Latin and Greek, but not mathematics. This ban on mathematics merely served to whet the boy's curiosity. He experimented with geometrical figures, inventing his own names for standard geometrical terms.
In 1640 the Pascal family moved to Rouen. There, still taught mainly by his father, Blaise worked with such intensity that his health deteriorated. Nevertheless, he had arrived at one of the most beautiful theorems in geometry.
Sometimes called by him his "mystic hexagram” it is a theorem concerned with the collinearity of intersections of lines. It does not concern metrical properties of figures but is, in fact, at the very foundation of an important, and at the time almost entirely undeveloped, branch of mathematics -- projective geometry. Pascal then set to work on a book, Essay on Conics, finished in 1640, in which the mystics hexagram was given central importance. It contained several hundred propositions on conitc sections, bringing the work of Apollonius and his successors, and was remarkable not only because of the writer’s age (16) but also because of its treatment of tangency, among other things.
Jansenists and Port Royal
In 1646 Pascal's father had an accident and was confined to his house. He was visited by some neighbors who were Jansenists, a group formed by Cornelis Jansen, a Dutch-born professor of theology at Louvain. Their beliefs were contrary to the teachings of the Jesuits. The Pascals came under the influence of the Jansenists, with resultant fierce opposition to, and from, the Jesuits. Jacqueline wish to join the Jansenist convent at Port Royal. Etienne Pascal disliked the idea and took the family away to Paris, but after his death in 1651 Jacqueline joined Port Royal. Pascal still enjoyed a more worldly life, having a number of aristocratic friends and a little more money to spend from his patrimony. In 1614, however, he was completely converted to Jansenism, and he commenced an austere life at Port Royal.
Provincial Letters
In 1655 Antoine Arnauld, a prolific writer in defense of Jansen, was formally condemned by the Sorbonne for heretical teaching, and Pascal took up his defense in the first part of the famous Provincial Letters. Their framework is that of a correspondence between a Parisian and a friend in the provinces from Jan. 13, 1656, to March 24, 1657. They were circulated in the thousands through Paris under a pseudonym (Louis de Montalte), and the Jesuits tried to discover the author, whose wit, reason, eloquence, and humor made the order a laughingstock.
The Pensees
Knowledge of Pascal's personal life is slight after his entry to Port Royal. His sister Gilberte tells of his asceticism, of his dislike of seeing her caress her children, and of his apparent revulsion from talk of feminine beauty. He suffered increasingly after 1658 from head pains, and he died on Aug. 19, 1662.
At his death Pascal left an unfinished theological work, the Pensees, an apology for Christianity, in effect, which was published 8 years later by the Port Royal community in a thoroughly garbled and incoherent form. A reasonably authentic version first appeared in 1844. It deals with the great problems of Christian thought, faith versus reason, free will, and preknowledge. Pascal explains the contradictions and problems of the moral Iife in terms of the doctrine of the Fall and makes faith and revelation alone sufficient for their mutual justification.
The Pensees, unlike the Provincial Letters, were not worked over and over by their author, and in style they would not, perhaps, mark him out as a great literary figure. The Letters, however, give Pascal a place in literary history as the first of several great French writers practicing the polite irony to which the language lends itself. The Pensees could almost have been written by another man, for in them reason is ostensibly made to take second place to religion. But they are both, in their different ways, among the great books in the history of religious thought.
Later Mathematical and Scientific Work
Pascal's writings on hydrostatics, relating his experi¬ments with the barometer to his theoretical ideas on the equilibrium of fluids, were not published until a year after his death. His Treatise on the Equilibrium of Liquids extends Simion Stevin's analysis of the hydrostatic paradox and enunciates what may be called the final law of hydrostatics: in a fluid at rest the pressure is transmitted equally in all directions (Pascal's principle). Pascal is important as having forged links between the theories of liquids and gases, and between the dynamics of rigid bodies and hydrodynamics.
Pascal's principal contribution to mathematics after his entry to Port Royal related to problems associated with the cycloid—a curve, with the area of which the best mathematicians of the day were occupied. He published many of his theorems without proof, as a challenge to other mathematicians. Solutions were found by John Wallis, Christopher Wren, Christian Huygens, and others. Pascal published his own solutions under the assumed name of Amos DettonviIle (an anagram of Louis cle Montalte), and contemporary mathematicians often referred to him by this name.
The mathematical theory of probability made its first great step forward when a correspondence between Pascal and Pierre de Fermat revealed that both had come to similar conclusions independently. Pascal planned a treatise on the subject, but again only a fragment survived, to be published after his death. He never wrote at great length on mathematics, but the many short pieces which survive are almost always concise and incisive. [The Biography Institute]
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769 1821) is perhaps one man whose actions have caused a lot of discord among people. People who lived during his lifetime and after his death have been faced with a dilemma about him: Was he a cruel and barbaric person who took pleasure in killing people or was he a great leader who won the hearts of his followers? He is said to have poisoned his wounded soldiers at the end of a battle. Was this because he cared so little for them or was it because he took pity on them and did not wish them to be tortured by those who captured them? He is said to have taken less food on his expeditions than was needed by his arnty. Was this because he was cruel and merciless or because he was being a realist? He might have thought that many soldiers would die in the battle they were to fight and his army would become much smaller Perhaps we shall be able to answer these questions as we read more about him. [ in bahasa ]
Napoleon was born in 1769 on the island of Corsica, which at that time belonged to France. He grew up during the French Revolution when the ideas of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity were spreading throughout the nation. He was sent to French military schools and by 1789 was a young artillery officer. He was recognized as a competent military leader at an early age and was given the command of the artillery in Italy in 1794. When he returned to Paris the next year, he was given command of a part of the French army. There was an uprising of the people against the government, which was in power at that time, and Napoleon took an active part in the military action that marked the real end of the revolution. In 1796, Napoleon married Josephine de Beauharnais. She was the widow of General Alexandre de Beauharnais who had been killed in 1794. Her influence with the government may have helped Napoleon become the commander of the French army, which invaded Italy in 1796.
Napoleon started his Italian campaign by invading Piedmont in Northern Italy. He gained control of Nicea and Savoy. Then he took Milan by defeating the Austrian army. By 1797, the French had gained complete control of Northern Italy. Napoleon then turned from Italy towards Vienna and forced Austria to surrender. A treaty was signed between Austria and France, which gave France control of the Ionian Islands, and in return, Venice was given to Austria.
When Napoleon returned to France, he found that the government had run into difficulties. On being asked to help, Napoleon once again organized a coup, which ended the political crisis. However, Napoleon's popularity as a great general womed the government. They wanted him out of France. He was asked therefore to invade England. But Napoleon decided to attack the British in the Mediterranean and landed at Alexandria in 1798. The British navy, commanded by Horatio Nelson, destroyed the French fleet at the Battle of the Nile. Napoleon had to leave his troops behind and escape to France. His soldiers finally surrendered to the British and Turks in 1801. It was France's first major defeat.
When Napoleon returned to France in 1799, the country had lost many battles by then. The people were unhappy and the government was unpopular. Napoleon called in troops and sent away all defiant members of the government. With this success came the beginning of a new era. A new constitution, which gave power into the hands of three Consuls, was drawn up. As an outstanding soldier and the First Consul, Napoleon became the1eal ruler of France. Within the next few years, he climbed the remaining steps to power. In 1802, he was chosen, Consul for life. By 1804, he became the Emperor. The Frenchmen were fired of the troubles and the many changes in the constitution that the country had been through. They accepted Napoleon as a dictator as he seemed likely to give them the much needed law and order.
From the time he became the Consul, Napoleon started making many important changes. Of these, codifying the French law was considered the most important. Napoleon knew that in order to bring peace and unity to France, the religious problem had to be settled. His feelings about religion were purely political. He needed the support of the peasantry, which remained firmly Roman Catholic, although the early revolutionary government had tried to abolish Catholicism. Napoleon felt he had to come to an agreement with the Pope, and in 1801 he initiated this change. Pope Pius agreed to some government role in religion - bishops were to be appointed by Napoleon, and parish priests were to be appointed, by the bishops.
In 1804, Napoleon invited the Pope to his coronation as Emperor at the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. But he insisted on crowning himself at the ceremony because he thought no one in the world was good enough to crown him. Napoleon then made plans to become the ruler of Italy. When the Pope went against Napoleon's plans, he annexed the Papal States to the French empire and took the Pope into captivity in France. He held him there for five years.
For Napoleon, the main reason for education was to train for the service of the state, especially the army. He planned a system of four grades of schools. He did not return to the Church to control it had over education before. the Revolution. Although Napoleon's educational plans were never completely put into effect, by 1813, French secondary education was the best in Europe.
Napoleon had to deal with war once more. Britain (lid not trust him. The fact that France continued to have control over Holland alarmed Britain. In 1805, Britain formed a coalition against France. This coalition was made up of Russia, Sweden, the Kingdom of Naples and Austria. Already angered by attacks on him in the British press, Napoleon decided to put down Britain by an invasion. But the French fleet was badly beaten by the British in the Battle of Trafalgar. Nevertheless, Napoleon continued fighting both the Austrian and Russian armies at Austerlitz. He then went on to defeat Prussia at the Battle of.Jena and in the following June, he defeated Russia at Friedland.
In taking control of Europe, Napoleon invited the members of his family to rule in the lands he had conquered. His brother Joseph was made the king of Naples, and another brother Louis, the king of Holland. His brother in law was given a German dukedom, while a son of the Empress Josephine by her former marriage was made the Viceroy of the Kingdom of Italy. In 1910, after divorcing Josephine, Napoleon married the Austrian Emperor's daughter Marie Louise. She gave him the son that he longed for, who was later made the king of Rome.
Despite his success on the battlefield and in ruling his country, Napoleon's power was already showing signs of diminution. Britain's military strength was on the rise, but Napoleon.overlooked this fact. People hated being forced into military service. The unpopularity of his many relatives in high positions and the rise of feelings of nationalism in the states that had been captured by France also brought about his loss of control over Europe.
In Russia, Czar Alexander did not trust Napoleon. Both the rulers wished to spread their influence in Central Europe and the Mediterranean. Each feared the other, and Napoleon decided to strike first. In June 1812, Napoleon advanced into Russia. His army of more than 600,000 men had less Frenchmen than other Europeans. The Russian forces kept pushing back, thus forcing Napoleon's army to advance. After a fierce battle by the river Moskva, Napoleon entered Moscow only to find it empty. The Czar refused to make a deal with him and the city was set on fire. This forced Napoleon to face a far more terrible enemy, the Russian winter. He began his return journey in October. There was no food for his men and horses and many soldiers ran away from his army. Napoleon's army was defeated and he went back alone to Paris.
Napoleon's defeat in Russia was so great that it made his enemies come together in trying to defeat France. He raised an army again and marched into Germany. But the forces of the coalition were too strong and after a victory at Dresden, Napoleon lost the Battle of the Nations at Leipzig. Although deserted by his commanders, he fought the allies for every inch of the French territory. He finally abdicated in 1814 and was exiled to the island of Elba.
Ten months later, Napoleon escaped to France to be received gladly by the people. He organized his army again, using returned prisoners of war, and invaded Belgium. After some victories, Napoleon was finally defeated at Waterloo in 1815 by the British and the Prussians. This time he was exiled to St. Helena, a small island in the Atlantic. There he wrote his life story. He died in 1821. According to recent findings, he was poisoned by his servant.
Napoleon Bonaparte was a very competent military leader. He brought accomplishment to France. Frenchmen considered him to be the most successful ruler in their history. He stopped any return to the old order and, at the same time, did not allow the government to become disorganized. The Napoleonic pattern of centralized middle class government was copied by other European states. To this day, the army, administration, education, and law in France maintain the pattern Napoleon had set up. [The Biography Institute]
At the golden era of medieval, Moslem civilization invested a fame surgeon master into history, whose had significantly contributed to the medical surgery achievement. He had invented methods and procedures of modern surgery, and also invented a lot of surgery tools and technology. No wonder that he was wellknown as The Father of Surgery. [ in bahasa ]
The inventor of the modern surgeon Al-Zahrawi was born in 936 M. The west world known him as Abulcasis. He was known as a fenomenal surgeon of the time. His works and thoughts had adopted a lot to the west medical. “His modern surgeon principles once was standard sylabus of the universities in Europe,” wrote Dr. Campbell in History of Arab Medicine.
The noble surgeon original name was Abu al-Qasim Khalaf ibn al-Abbas Al-Zahrawi. He was born in 936 A.D. in Zahra, small city located 9,6 km suburb of Cordoba, Spain. Al-Zahrawi was an Arabic descendant of Ansar tribe resided in Spain. It was in Cordoba he had schooled and then gave his medical lectures, gave his public health services, and develop surgeon technology to his death.
There is so little about his youth history was revealed. In case, his hometown Al-Zahra had burned out over the wars. The history of Al-Zahrawi then written-up when Andalusia’s scientist Abu Muhammad ibn Hazm (993M-1064 A.D) enlisted him as one of a noble surgeon master of Spain in Al-Humaydi’s Jadhwat al Muqtabis a book written six decades after his death.
Al-Zahrawi dedicated some fifty years of his life to surgeon and medical teaching. His noble was brought him to the royal services of kingdom in the era of Al-Hakam II khalif of Andalus. He had not traveled a lot just like other moslem scholars of the time. His concern and focus dedication was on accident and war victims.
His colleagues confessed his genius on surgery, his ventures on medical and surgeon was so immense, his ‘treasures’ of invaluable medical bible Al-Tasrif li man ajaz an-il-talil—was an encyclopedia of medical science since then. His 30 volume books then became a standard syllabus to Europe medical school of the time.
It was the book in which he’d been in detail descripted on surgeon, orthopedic, opththalmology, farmakology, and standard medical chapters. It was also descripting about cosmetics, and more chapters include deodorant, hand lotion, hair care and hair coloring which then derivated to our modern day cosmetic products.
His day of popularity were radiant over Europe, patients and students from all parts of Europe came to him for treatment and advice. Will Durant wrote, at the time, Cordoba was a favourite for Europeans for surgery. There was more than 50 hospitals giving prime services in Cordoba.
He was a lecturer who love his students. It was then revealed in Al-Tasrif, how he care about his students queries. Al-Zahrawi ever reminded his students about necessity on building good relationships with the patients. He also reminding that a doctor should dedicated to any patients at best no matter what the social status they have.
To give their services, it is important a doctor gave a closed observation to their patients, especially on personal cases. To give such services, for sake of diagnose accuracy and possible services of the best. To hold on doctor ethics, is not to make money by doing a doctor.
The surgeon is not an all men profession. Al-Zahrawi ever remind all people not to do surgery with non-recommended paramedics or doctors. Only certified doctors were recommended to provide surgery. It was then we knew the urgency of specialist surgery doctors (surgeon) for our modern world.
“Undoubtably, Al-Zahrawi is the master of surgeon. the Father Of Surgery” said Pietro Argallata. The book of Al-Tasrif he had written were translated into Latin by Gerard of Cremona in 12 A.D., the book which delicated with illustrations, and had been the resources of medical school syllabus and doctor or surgeon references of Europe for five centuries of the medieval.
Zahrawi’s profile and principles was so fascinated among colleages and surgeon students of Europe. In the century of 14 A.D., a French surgeon namely Guy de Chauliac had compiled Al-Tasrif mostly in 200 references of his journals. Since then Al-Tasrif was a medical handbook of European surgeon society which had delivered a Renaissance era to the West on the later day. History written until sixteenth century whereas a French surgeon, Jaques Delechamps (1513 -1588 A.D.) made Al-Tasrif a reference source.
Al-Zahrawi widely known in Europe as al-Qassim or Abulcasis was passed a way in Cordoba in 1013 A.D.—just two years after the hometown invaded and destroyed by the Crusaders. Cordoba was no longer a Moslem state today, though his name had carved to be a street name of ‘Calle Albucasis’ boulevard in Spain. There is a house of number 6 was used to be Abulcasis once stayed. The house which was a historical record of the world surgeon history stamped in Spain.
The Inventor of modern surgeon science.
During fifty years dedicated his life to develop medical science, specifically in surgeon, Abulcasis invented tens of surgery modern tools. It was in Al-Tasrif medical bible, ‘the master’ created and introduced more than 200 collection set of his surgeon tools, were never been in use by predecessors medical masters.
It was recorded, during his career Abulcasis had invented at least 26 original surgery tools, they are catgut (to sew internal body organic) which is still in use in our modern surgeon today; forceps (used to lift the dead embryo. Illustrations were given in the medical bible of Al-tasrif, he was also introduced how to use ligature (the wound sewing string) to fix artery veinal bleed, surgeon needles and more medical and surgery inventions, including scalpel (surgeon knives), curette, retractor, surgical spoon, surgical hook, surgical rod, and specula. Abulcasis were also invented tools to work on uretra, on throat, on ears, etc. His contributions on medical and surgeon inventions were recorded in history.
[The Biography Institute]
resources:
www.medarus.org
www.cardenashistoriamedicina.net
www.oftalmo.com
lib.hku.hk
Alauddin (died 1316) was the second sultan of the Khalji dynasty of Delhi in India. His rule marked the beginning of the sultanate and the rise to power of native Indian Moslems. [ in bahasa ]
Not much is known of the early life of Alauddin. He was appointed governor of Kara by his uncle and father in law, Sultan Jalaluddin Khalji, 1292. Three years later he conquered Malwa, and Bhilsa, a wealthy commercial center, and drew up plans to usurp the sultanate. In 1296 he became the first Moslem conqueror to penetrate the Vindhya Mountains into Deccan and, after defeating the Hindu raja of Devagiri and cracked the enemy troops he released the surrenders but took over their booty that contained 17,250 pounds of gold, 200 pounds of pearls, and 28,250 pounds of silver. Supported by cracked troops and armed with these riches, he conquered his father in law and proclaimed himself the sultan of Delhi in 1296.
For the next 15 years Alauddin reign grown up. By 1303 the western Hindu kingdom of Gujarat, Ranthambhor, Chitor, and Rajasthan had been subdued. During the next 3 years he checked the advance of the Mongol into India and restored tranquility to India’s northwest frontier. In 1305 he overran central India, bringing under his domination Malwa, Ujjain, Chanderi, and Mandawar. Two years later he made a second attempt on Devagiri, and by 1309 his army had reached the southernmost tip of India at Cape Comiron. By 1311 he was the richest sultan in the history of Delhi, and issuing coins referring to himself just like Alexander the Great did.
Alauddin instituted rules under his control to quell rebellions, of course the conquered Hindus were not allowed to posses weapons, but he did not insist them to convert their faith. Private property limitation was controlled. He revised the taxation system, reorganized the army, and stamped out corruption in the supplying of horses for the cavalry by requiring that they be branded. All residents (whether Hindus or Moslems) should pay taxes to provide the country’s security guarantee. It was logical that Moslem residents paid taxes lower than the conquerees. The prices of all the necessities of life were controlled.
Such rigid price controls and the wealth that poured into the sultan’s treasury after the conquests in southern India enabled Alauddin to undertake cultural and architectural activities on a lavish scale. Literati, physicians, astronomers, and historians thronged Delhi –many from Baghdad and Central Asia, which had been sacked by the Mongols. Delhi became the metropolis of the Moslem East under Alauddin, and architecture was its greatest cultural achievement. Delhi’s Jamaat Khana Mosque is highly ornate, spacious, and crowned by an immense dome.
But the excesses of a luxurious life made Alauddin an invalid, and he became dominated by Malik Kafur, his most successful field commander. Alauddin died in January 1316, and the Khalji dynasty came to an end only 4 years later.
[The Biography Institute]
Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, called Gandhi the greatest son of India, after Gauthama the Buddha. Einstein, reflecting on Gandhi's life, said that people would one day wonder whether a person like Gandhi actually walked the earth. Winston Churchill, the then Prime Minister of Britain, called him the 'Naked Fakir'. Who was this man who aroused so much of admiration as well as fury? [ in bahasa ]
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born in 1869 and lived through almost half of the twentieth century. He was born in Gujarat, India and lived some years in England, where he studied law, and in South Africa, where he practised as a lawyer. He returned to India from South Africa to join the Freedom Movement against British rule.
Gandhi was one of those people who, from an early age, felt deeply about life and questioned its values. He had to know and experience life deeply. As he went through life, a pattern emerged and he was constantly searching for answers to his questions. He called his autobiography My Experiments with Truth. In fact, his whole life was centred around the search for truth and how to put it into practice in one's daily life.
He began his working life as a lawyer in South Africa, where he came across racial prejudice for the fIrst time. Once, on a train journey to Pretoria, Gandhi was asked to leave a first class compartment even though he had a ticket for this. The white train conductor insisted that a non-white passenger could not travel in a fIrst class coach. But Gandhi refused to accept this and insisted on travelling in the compartment he had paid for. For this defIance, the conductor pushed him out of the train so that he was left behind on the platform of a small station.
It is said that this was one of the incidents that started him off on his search for justice. He reflected on how people could overcome injustice without using violence. It was in South Africa that Gandhi fIrst developed the idea of Ahimsa or non-violence, and taught the Indians living there how to use Ahimsa to overcome the many injustices they suffered. His method was also called passive resistance or non-cooperation with the person who did the injustice. Gandhi believed that, with non-cooperation, the opponent would fInally realize his mistake and correct the injustice.
Gandhi was successful in many of the campaigns he carried out in South Africa. However, the time came for him to return to India where a vast movement for independence from British Rule was in progress. He felt it was his duty to join the movement and contribute to the final objective of a free India. Gandhi taught his followers in India the principles of Ahimsa and how to apply the principles to the freedom struggle.
As the movement progressed, Gandhi himself continued with his search for truth and formulated a strategy to meet the enemy. He called it Satyagraha- the force of truth. Gandhi believed that the power of one's own truth and suffering would change the heart of the enemy. Satyagraha was thus used extensively and effectively in the freedom struggle. A point came in this struggle when the British could no longer hold out against the masses of people who stood up to them, non-violently demanding freedom. However, Gandhi was a firm believer in training and every campaign was led by people who were personally trained by him in the methods of Satyagraha, and it was this discipline and training that contributed to the success of the struggle.
Gandhi lived to see India gain her independence from the British, but he was greatly saddened by the division between Muslims and Hindus, and all the massacres that took place as a result of the Partition. Because of his unshakable belief in the brotherhood of man, he resisted the idea of separation for a long time, but finally had to give in. India became divided into a predominantly Hindu but secular state named India and a Muslim-dominated state called Pakistan, which was further divided into East and West Pakistan. The last years of Gandhi's life were filled with sorrow because his idea of Satyagraha could not prevent hatred between Hindus and Muslims and the partition of India. In 1948, Gandhi was assassinated at a prayer meeting by a Hindu fanatic who did not agree with the idea of the brotherhood of man advocated by Gandhi.
[The Biography Institute][Oranee Jansz]
The German-born American physicist Albert Einstein (1879-1955) revolutionized the science of physics. He is best known for his theory of relativity. [ in bahasa ]
