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Indian Journal of History of Science
Number of Followers: 0

Hybrid journal (It can contain Open Access articles)
ISSN (Print) 0019-5235 - ISSN (Online) 2454-9991
Published by Springer-Verlag

[2468 journals]

Planetary nodes and apses in the Sūrya-Siddhānta
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  Abstract: There are a few aspects of Indian astronomy that border on the implausible, and none more so than the nodal and apsidal movements of planetary orbits as specified in the Sūrya-Siddhānta. In this paper we examine some aspects of this data in the light of modern astronomy. Given the very-slow rates of motion specified for these two parameters, we speculate that this data might be heliocentric (as opposed to geocentric), and proceed with that assumption in this paper. It is determined that while this assumption proves true for the outer planets (Mars, Jupiter and Saturn), it does not conform well with the inner planets (Mercury and Venus). It is also determined that while the directions specified in the Sūrya-Siddhānta for these subtle motions are correct, the rates of motion given are slower by a couple orders of magnitude compared to actuality. Further analysis also appears to confirm that the data is genuine, and the epoch of the data is likely many thousands of years old.
  PubDate: 2023-05-17
Technologies of transportation: road, bridge and boat construction in
colonial Punjab
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  Abstract: The road and river transport have laid the foundations of human settlements since ancient times. After annexing Punjab in 1849, the British brought western technologies in road and river transportation for better movement of people and material for consolidation of their rule. The measures included building of roads, bridges and navigation through steam vessels. This paper gives a brief description of the technologies employed by the British in Colonial Punjab for construction of metalled roads, permanent and temporary bridges, native boats and introduction of steam vessels for river transportation. The technologies for road and bridge construction were western and modified as per local requirements. The best example of road construction was in the form of Grand Trunk road which traversed the region from Delhi to Peshawar. Permanent bridges were made using iron and masonry arched techniques. Steam vessels were brought to the rivers of Punjab after being constructed elsewhere. But owing to lack of depth in the rivers, the steam vessels did not succeed and were discontinued. Due to western technologies, the road and river transportation became quick and efficient and also generated employment, thereby impacting the local population.
  PubDate: 2023-05-05
A brief study on history and evolution of time
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  Abstract: Time is a phenomenon of periodic changes in our Earth, solar system, and universe. In our Earth, a day has 24 h; 1 h has 60 min and 1 min has 60 s. These all are well known things. One systematic arrangement of time in history is based upon base 60 or Sexagesimal system. If time of Earth is based on the angle of inclination 60° of the plane for solar system with the plane for Milky Way, then the resultant should be based on base number 60 for formation of a calendar of the years. The astrophysical science and mathematical calculations led to the development of time concept year by year with predictions of all events. Those calculations are done with the help of base 60 number system. More specifically, 60 years is the number of years required for Saturn and Jupiter to regain same positions in the solar plane. The cultural festivals and agricultural operations are also based on base 60 system. At finally, human biological clocks subject to the facts are considered.
  PubDate: 2023-05-05
Institutionalization of agricultural education in the nineteenth century
colonial India: its imperatives and models
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  Abstract: The industrializing nations in the nineteenth century witnessed the expansion of the dominion of new knowledge which was formally produced within institutional sites such as universities, laboratories, academic societies, colleges, museums and many more. These institutional forms were instrumental in the production and dissemination of this knowledge. This new knowledge form not only generated new technologies for modern industries, but informed conventional forms of agricultural practices, transforming it from subsistence forms of agricultural production into cash cropping, shifting from the use of organic manure to synthetic fertilizers and from mass selection to plant breeding. The scientific development of agriculture and the dissemination of new agricultural practices paved the way for the institutionalization of agricultural education. The history of this process in the colonies was inflected by colonial rule, as the ignorance of local agricultural practices conflicted with colonial interests of the maximization of profit through agriculture. The present paper commences with an overview of scientific agriculture and agricultural education in the western world, followed by relationship of colonial state with Indian agriculture and its imperative for introducing scientific agriculture in India.
  PubDate: 2023-05-05
Revisiting the traditional medicine of the tribals in the Jungle Mahals,
1947–2000
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  Abstract: This paper deals with the medical system of the tribals (Santals, Oraons, Sabar and Birhors) of Jungle Mahals in eastern India. It also discusses the indigenous system of knowledge about the collection, preparation and medicinal practice highlighting the socio-cultural and ecological context of medicinal plants. The region faced excessive pressure from over-exploitation and the growing demand for forest resources resulting in biodiversity loss and species extinction. In the post-independent period, there was a major transformation in treatment methods among the healers. Most of the healers left the practice of exorcism due to increased awareness on witchcraft practices. This study found low levels of overlap in medicinal floras, even in the case of tribal communities who closely related linguistically, culturally, and ecologically. The efficacy of the medicine depends on the extent to which the healers properly followed the rules for the collection of medicinal plants, drug preparation and application. This medical practice is popular among the poverty-stricken tribal communities as they could not take facilities of western medicine because of their poverty and the high cost of allopathic medicine.
  PubDate: 2023-05-05
Historical profile of Nardostachys jatamansi: an ancient incense &
aromatic medicinal herb from Kumaon, Uttarakhand
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  Abstract: Nardostachys jatamansi or jaṭāmānsī from India was known to the Mesopotamian, one of the earliest civilizations of the world. Its name was found in their cuneiform script. It was exported to Assyria, in the Arabian countries and to Egypt, where it was known as Sumbul-e-Hind and, in Greece under the name Nardus. The plant is also mentioned in the Bible as Spikenard. In Germany, it was known as Nardus indica. It was a reputed as costly incense-herb, perfume, and used as a nerve tonic in hysteria, epileptic fits, palpitations of heart, etc. in the middle-east countries since time immemorial. Its botanical identity, history and use are mentioned in the ancient Ayurvedic & Unani literature. In India, this herb’s distribution is naturally restricted to the state of Uttarakhand, where its use as incense and medicine originated. This plant is not only mentioned in the folk tales of the state but also forms part of their cultural affinity. Despite being part of their culture, this herb is endangered in Uttarakhand. Therefore serious efforts should be made by the state government for its conservation and cultivation.
  PubDate: 2023-04-27
Calculation for ‘chain-reduction’ in the
Triśatībhāṣya
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  Abstract: The Triśatībhāṣya is an anonymous commentary on Śrīdhara’s Triśatī. ‘Chain-reduction’ (vallīsavarṇana) is a rule for unifying quantities expressed in several units into the highest one, but the usage of the rule in the Triśatībhāṣya is slightly different. The present paper tries to explain, by comparison with the procedures illustrated in other arithmetic texts, why the commentator applies the ‘chain-reduction’ in an irregular way.
  PubDate: 2023-03-29
Science and religion in India: beyond disenchantment by Renny Thomas, New
York, Routledge, 2022. ISBN 9781032073194, pp. 203
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  PubDate: 2023-03-09
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00079-z
Indigenous poison healing traditions in Kerala
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  Abstract: Prior to the emergence of modern medicine as a universal method for all diseases across cultures, and geography—specific methods of treatment existed in various regions. It is not to argue here that these cultural particularities in the treatment of diseases totally disappeared. Under the pressure of modern medicine, pre-modern methods reformed, reformulated and re-emerged as a hybrid system to survive and sustain. The history of snake poison healing in Kerala is sufficient for this argument. The modern and indigenous (consisting of textual and folk) poison healing methods have simultaneously been in existence in the state. The viṣavaidyam (poison treatment), an anti-snake venom treatment practiced by different sections of people with known herbs is plural in nature. However, Ayurveda takes second place in authority and hierarchy of treatments because of the textualization of the treatment methods. Other methods lack such authority. However, due to the presence of poisonous reptiles all over Kerala, the practice of different treatment methods by different castes and communities’ points to the inclusiveness of the poison healing system. In this paper, an attempt has been made to present an overview of the native poison healers and their healing systems in Kerala, with special attention to their traditions and present condition.
  PubDate: 2023-02-20
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00076-2
An intellectual history of P.C. Ray’s papers on the nitrites of
mercury
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  Abstract: Prafulla Chandra Ray’s contribution to the birth and development of an ‘Indian school of chemistry’ is well documented. But much of this recognition is situated in the realm of the social history of science. My aim in this essay is to view Ray through the lens of intellectual history and, above all, to shed fresh light on his actual contribution to the chemistry of the nitrites of mercury. Toward this end the focus here will be on five of Ray’s earliest papers on this family of compounds. We will see that the received narrative that Ray discovered mercurous nitrite is problematic. Examining the texts of his early papers it will be seen that Ray’s main contributions to the nitrites of mercury were (i) his apparently serendipitous discovery of a method of synthesizing mercurous nitrite; and (ii) the identification of and solutions to a series of interrelated Kuhnian normal science problems pertaining to this family of compounds. Furthermore (iii) the tools of intellectual history will help discern an underlying ‘plot structure’ informing the tenure of his work; and finally (iv) we will see that the centre-periphery model that attends the social historiography of science in colonial and post-colonial India plays no role in illuminating Ray’s early creative work on the nitrites of mercury.
  PubDate: 2023-02-16
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00078-0
Science in the forest management in colonial Assam (1826–1947)
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  Abstract: Since ancient period human beings have been dependent on forest and forest products, which gradually led to the evolvement of indigenous forest management system. The indigenous rulers and people revered the forest and forest products in form of sacred groves, trees and plants. Jhum or shifting cultivation is one such traditional method of cultivation which was favourable for the climate of Assam. Guha and Gadgil argued that in hilly and forestry land, where the plough could not penetrate, led to the adaptation of shifting cultivation in large expanses. For the first time the commercialization of forest products was started by the colonial administrators and for maximum production, science was introduced in the forest management. The application of science could be identified with forest plantation, silviculture, taungya and regulation on forest fires, grazing, wild animals, climbers, insects, parasitic plants and so on. The training programme for British foresters was also introduced. Under the taungya system indigenous people were allowed to cultivate along with the plantation. It firstly, allowed the colonial government to earn revenue and secondly, avoid any rift with the indigenous people. The forest legislations were used as an instrument for the maximum use of forest products by the Colonial Government and to debar the indigenous people’s rights over the access of forest and forest produces. However, the experiments by the colonial ruler led to the transformation of jungle (natural forest) into a more regulated modern forest. The brief report examines the development of scientific forest management practices in colonial Assam.
  PubDate: 2023-02-13
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00077-1
Food, water and intoxicants in the battlefield practices of Rajasthan
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  Abstract: This discussion brings about the niceties of some interesting practices related to food and water management that had their origin in the battlefields and military traditions of Rajasthan. From the strategic perspective, the logistics of food and drinks in the battlefields ought to be time saving, soldier friendly and followed by ease of supply. This scientific enquiry systematically unearths the rationale behind these practices and is pertinent to the logistics and strategies and relevant for the contemporary defense science too. Some of these practices could be of great help for an individual soldier as survival tricks too. The prominent food traditions and practices and high incidence of consumption of opium in the present state of Rajasthan trace their historical roots in the battlefields of the past.
  PubDate: 2023-02-06
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00072-6
Use of animals in the health management of elephants in medieval period of
Assam, India
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  Abstract: There was a tradition of catching, taming and training elephants in medieval Assam for warfare, transportation, carrying loads etc. Many manuscripts known as the hatiputhi in Assamese language recorded a lot of information about capture, training and treatment of various diseases of elephants. Unfortunately, most of these manuscripts were destroyed or lost due to various reasons. We managed to collect digital versions of four unpublished manuscripts from four different places of Assam written in the old Assamese language using kaitheli script, a common script prevalent at that time. The manuscripts transliterated from kaitheli to modern Assamese script reveal a large number of traditionally used medicines to treat various diseases of elephants. These hatiputhi manuscripts mention the use of 61 ethnozoological animals alone with treatment methods for 21 diseases and deficiencies of elephants.
  PubDate: 2023-02-06
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00073-5
From forest to plantation: a brief history of the rubber tree
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  Abstract: This article describes how the rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) (Willd. ex A. Juss.) (Müll. Arg., family–Euphorbiaceae) which grows wildly in the Amazon forests, came under global focus due to industrial revolution. From 1860 to 1913, since the tree was found only in the Amazon forest, the entire world depended on a few business magnates of that region for rubber. These rubber barons enslaved many local people to extract rubber from the wildly growing trees in the forest since the efforts to grow rubber as plantations failed mainly due to a devastating fungal disease. The rubber slaves recruited to collect rubber latex from the wildly growing trees in the forest went through untold misery. The economy of towns in the Amazonas such as Manaus and Belém, which were located strategically for exporting the extracted rubber by ships, boomed. This monopoly of Amazon’s rubber trade crashed due to the British which itself is an intriguing story. The ‘travel’ of the rubber tree from the Amazon forest to the then Southeast British colonies to be grown as plantations encompasses many fields including biology, sociology, industry, economics and environment.
  PubDate: 2023-02-06
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00071-7
Object-numerals as listed in Nijaguṇa Śivayogī ’s
Viveka-Cintāmaṇi
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  Abstract: Nijaguṇa Śivayog ī was a Liṅgāyata Indian philosopher who flourished sometime between 1250 and 1655 CE. He composed the Viveka-Cintāmaṇi in Kannaḍa. The fifty-nine object-numerals listed in this work by him under the heading gaṇita-sañjñe (mathematical notations) are studied in this paper. Every object-numeral is a bearer of deeply rooted thought in ancient Indian society, be it from the Vedic, paurāṇika, epic, Jaina or Āyurvedic culture. Some of those object-numerals such as vararatna (3), haravaktra (5), artha (6), rājyāṅga (7), sabhāṅga (7), anusvāra (0), nāsti (0), etc. are unusual as their use in ancient and medieval Indian mathematics and astronomy has not yet been reported. The paper also reports the use of object-numerals by the Indian business community in the past.
  PubDate: 2023-02-06
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00074-4
History of an observatory on the Agasthiyar hill top
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  Abstract: Remarkable feats of the past often leave behind historical pointers leaving us mesmerised. One such episode is that of the establishment of a magnetic and meteorological observatory on the peak of the Agasthiyar mountain 6200 feet above the sea level on the western Ghats in the year 1855 by John Allan Broun under the princely state of Travancore. It had facilities far ahead of its times representing the commitment to scientific universalism by its patrons. Broun established the observatory on the Agasthiyar mountain peak and undertook a meticulous study overcoming daunting geographical constrains. Broun was awarded the Keith Medal from the Royal Society of Edinburgh for the period 1859–1861. He received the Royal Medal from the Royal Society of London in 1878. He passed away in 1879. Remnants of the magnetic observatory which earned Broun scientific acclaim remain undiscovered, clouded within the Agasthiyar mountains.
  PubDate: 2023-01-24
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-023-00070-8
Hundred years of geophysics (1834–1933)
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  Abstract: Geophysics is relatively a new discipline in comparison to physics or geology. Contrary to general perception as an ancillary to geology, the discipline has been developed with a distinct focus of using the principles and methods of physics for the earth processes. Geophysics was born in the nineteenth century as a necessary element of theoretical geography. Academicians and researchers in the field of geography played chief roles from its birth to its present level of maturity. Historical scholarship in this paper provides an account of the development of the discipline over hundred years from its inception in the early nineteenth century. The article covers, how the discipline was conceptualised and what necessary steps were taken, such as establishing learned societies, publishing technical journals and text books, endowing university chairs, opening up departments and course curriculum, and most importantly, appearing as a primary discipline to cater to exploration for mineral resources.
  PubDate: 2023-01-17
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-022-00069-7
Gaṇitagannaḍi: An astronomical text of 1604 CE in Kannada by
Śankaranārāyaṇa Joisaru of Śṛngeri, translation with mathematical
analysis by B.S. Shylaja and Seetahrama Javagal [Navaratnakara
Publications Pvt. Ltd., First published 2021, Second Print: 2021,
iv + 220, price: ₹ 350/ (India) US $ 25 (abroad)]
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  PubDate: 2022-11-29
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-022-00067-9
Perspective and retrospective of the Indian Social Science Academy,
Allahabad, India
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  Abstract: We present here a brief historical note on the Indian Social Science Academy (ISSA), Allahabad, the only academy for social sciences in India. This academy has been established in 1974 at Allahabad, India. The aim of this note is to bring out information about the history of the ISSA and its academic activities to the scientists, educationists, researchers, engineers and policy makers during this 75th year of our independence.
  PubDate: 2022-11-21
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-022-00064-y
Lalit K. Gurjar M.Sc.
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  PubDate: 2022-11-14
  DOI: 10.1007/s43539-022-00066-w