
The Banu Musa
Stuff You Missed in History Class
00:00
The Banu Musa's Calculations of Earth's Circumference
This chapter discusses the Banu Musa's calculations in the ninth century to determine the circumference of the Earth, their travels to measure the highest point of Polaris, and their close approximation to the recognized measurement today.
Transcript
Play full episode
Transcript
Episode notes
The Banū Mūsā were three brothers who lived in Baghdad during the Islamic Golden Age. Among their many achievements, they wrote books on math and science, and created a number of automata.
Research:
- 1001 Inventions. “Fountains.” https://www.1001inventions.com/fountains/
- Abboud, Tony. “Al-Kindi : the father of Arab philosophy.” New York, NY : Rosen Pub. Group. 2006.
- Ali, Adam. “The Abbasid Civil War: The War of the Brothers.” Medievalists.net. 9/2022. https://www.medievalists.net/2022/09/abbasid-civil-war-brothers/
- Al-Jazeera English. “Pioneers of Engineering Al Jazari and the Banu Musa.” 10/27/2015. https://www.aljazeera.com/program/science-in-a-golden-age/2015/10/27/pioneers-of-engineering-al-jazari-and-the-banu-musa/
- "Banū Mūsā." Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography, vol. 1, Charles Scribner's Sons, 2008, pp. 443-446. Gale In Context: U.S. History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2830900258/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=143ea436. Accessed 5 Dec. 2023.
- “Banu Musa.” Encyclopedia Iranica. Vol. III, Fasc. 7, pp. 716-717 https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/banu-musa-the-name-applied-to-three-brothers-abbasid-astronomers-whose-father-was-musa-b
- Bir, Atilla. “The Book ‘Kitab al-Hiyal’: Banu Musa bin Shakir Interpreted in Sense off Modern System and Control Engineering.” Studies and Sources on the History of Science Series No: 4. Edited by Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu. 1990.
- Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "al-Amīn". Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Mar. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/al-Amin. Accessed 8 December 2023.
- Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "al-Mutawakkil". Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Nov. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/al-Mutawakkil. Accessed 7 December 2023.
- Daemmrich, Arthur. “Ingenious Devices.” Smithsonian. 11/2/2020. https://invention.si.edu/ingenious-devices
- From: Thomas Hockey et al. (eds.). The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers, Springer Reference. New York: Springer, 2007, pp. 92-24
- Gearon, Amon. “The History and Achievements of the Islamic Golden Age.” The Teaching Company. 2017.
- Hamarneh, Sami. “Al-Kindi, A Ninth Century Physician, Philosopher and Scholar.” https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1033530/pdf/medhist00153-0033.pdf
- "Harun al-Rashid Establishes the House of Wisdom." Global Events: Milestone Events Throughout History, edited by Jennifer Stock, vol. 5: Middle East, Gale, 2014, pp. 144-147. Gale In Context: Global Issues, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3728000720/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=4f7cfce7. Accessed 5 Dec. 2023.
- "Mathematics." World Eras, edited by Susan L. Douglass, vol. 2: Rise and Spread of Islam, 622-1500, Gale, 2002, pp. 415-418. Gale In Context: World History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3034700173/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=cfe1397b. Accessed 5 Dec. 2023.
- Sourdel, Dominique. "al-Maʾmūn". Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Jul. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/al-Mamun. Accessed 8 December 2023.
- Tasci, Ufuk Necat. Banu Musa: Meet the 9th-century orphaned Muslim brothers who reinvented mechanics.” The New Arab. 7/25/2023. https://www.newarab.com/features/banu-musa-9th-century-brothers-who-reinvented-mechanics
- "The Banu Musa Brothers Publish the Book of Ingenious Devices." Global Events: Milestone Events Throughout History, edited by Jennifer Stock, vol. 5: Middle East, Gale, 2014, pp. 152-154. Gale In Context: Global Issues, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3728000723/GPS?u=mlin_n_melpub&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=f0bc972d. Accessed 5 Dec. 2023.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The AI-powered Podcast Player
Save insights by tapping your headphones, chat with episodes, discover the best highlights - and more!