On science and the construction of identities: Remembering Ibn al-Haytham (965–1039) Authors Mònica Rius-Piniés Area d’Estudis Àrabs Universitat de Barcelona Keywords: history of science, Arabic science, Islam, optics, International Year of Light (IYL 2015) Abstract Ibn al-Haytham (965–1039), best known as Alhazen, is one of the main figures of medieval Arabic science. He worked on mathematics, astronomy, optics, logic, philosophy and medicine, and, as a “modern” scientist, questioned previous theories, challenging, for instance, the Ptolemaic theory of vision. His works on light and optics, based on experimentation, established the basis for the development of Newton’s physics. Due to his great influence on the development of human knowledge, especially on the fields related to light, Ibn al-Haytham must be remembered during the commemorations of the United Nations International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies 2015. [Contrib Sci 11(1): 95-102 (2015)]Keywords: history of science · Arabic science · Islam · optics · International Year of Light (IYL 2015) Downloads PDF Issue Vol. 11 No. 1 (2015) Section Research reviews License This work is subject, unless the contrary is indicated in the text, the photographs or in other illustrations, to an Attribution —Non-Commercial— No Derivative Works 3.0 Creative Commons License, the full text of which can be consulted at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/. You are free to share, copy, distribute and transmit the work provided that the author is credited and reuse of the material is restricted to non-commercial purposes only and that no derivative works are created from the original material.
