Medieval Muslims Made Stunning Math Breakthrough

[Ibn Abi Ahmed]

:sl:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Magnificently sophisticated geometric patterns in medieval Islamic architecture indicate their designers achieved a mathematical breakthrough 500 years earlier than Western scholars, scientists said on Thursday.

By the 15th century, decorative tile patterns on these masterpieces of Islamic architecture reached such complexity that a small number boasted what seem to be "quasicrystalline" designs, Harvard University's Peter Lu and Princeton University's Paul Steinhardt wrote in the journal Science.

Only in the 1970s did British mathematician and cosmologist Roger Penrose become the first to describe these geometric designs in the West. Quasicrystalline patterns comprise a set of interlocking units whose pattern never repeats, even when extended infinitely in all directions, and possess a special form of symmetry.

"Oh, it's absolutely stunning," Lu said in an interview. "They made tilings that reflect mathematics that were so sophisticated that we didn't figure it out until the last 20 or 30 years."

Lu and Steinhardt in particular cite designs on the Darb-i Imam shrine in Isfahan, Iran, built in 1453.

Islamic tradition has frowned upon pictorial representations in artwork. Mosques and other grand buildings erected by Islamic architects throughout the Middle East, Central Asia and elsewhere often are wrapped in rich, intricate tile designs setting out elaborate geometric patterns.

The walls of many medieval Islamic structures display sumptuous geometric star-and-polygon patterns. The research indicated that by 1200 an important breakthrough had occurred in Islamic mathematics and design, as illustrated by these geometric designs.

"You can go through and see the evolution of increasing geometric sophistication. So they start out with simple patterns, and they get more complex" over time, Lu added.

ISLAMIC ACHIEVEMENTS

While Europe was mired in the Dark Ages, Islamic culture flourished beginning in the 7th century, with achievements over numerous centuries in mathematics, medicine, engineering, ceramics, art, textiles, architecture and other areas.

Lu said the new revelations suggest Islamic culture was even more advanced than previously thought.

While traveling in Uzbekistan, Lu said, he noticed a 16th century Islamic building with decagonal motif tiling, arousing his curiosity as to the existence of quasicrystalline Islamic tilings.

The sophistication of the patterns used in Islamic architecture has intrigued scholars worldwide.

Emil Makovicky of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark in the 1990s noticed the relationship between these designs and a form of quasicrystalline designs. Makovicky was interested in particular in an 1197 tomb in Maragha, Iran.

Joshua Socolar, a Duke university physicist, said it is unclear whether the medieval Islamic artisans fully understood the mathematical properties of the patterns they were making.

"It leads you to wonder whether they kind of got lucky," Socolar said in an interview. "But the fact remains that the patterns are tantalizingly close to having the structure that Penrose discovered in the mid-70s."

"And it will be a lot of fun if somebody turns up bigger tilings that sort of make a more convincing case that they understood even more of the geometry than the present examples show," Socolar said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070223/...re_patterns_dc

[habiibti]

Masha Allah.It isnt amazing?

[Nσσя'υℓ Jαииαн]

Wow, that's awesome :D

[Keltoi]

The ancient world was full of strange mathematical and architectural "miracles". From the Druids, Egyptians, Aztecs, Mayans, ancient Chinese, etc.

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[- Qatada -]

No actually, it's all by the will of God. :) Anyway let's not spread hatred around.

[Cognescenti]

Very, very beautiful design. Immensely pleasing to look at but so are Doric columns and the pyramids...so let's not get carried away here :)

I love "Islamic" architecture. I think the Alhambra, for example, is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. It is certainly one of the greatest contributions of the ancient Islamic world.

Also...this apparent link to a some obscure 20th century mathematics is intriguing, but let's be a bit circumspect here.

Paisely designs look strikingly like some of solutions of the Mandelbrot set ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandelbrot_set ) but that doesn't mean Nehru discovered quadratic polynomials :D

Doesn't anyone think it possible that the ancient artists/architects that created these designs arrived at them by experimentation driven by aesthetic concerns?

The tile symmetries inside the rosette groups are absolutely amazing. Fantastic design.

[ACC]

Arabic architecture is very nice. The architecture that remains in Spain is beautiful.

But, it is absurd to think that everything is owed to Arab culture. The Greek's could ask for thanks for what they provided before hand, as well as many other cultures. It seems to me that cultures overall have provided countless great contributions to the advancement of all civilizations.

[MTAFFI]

Arabic architecture is very nice. The architecture that remains in Spain is beautiful.

But, it is absurd to think that everything is owed to Arab culture. The Greek's could ask for thanks for what they provided before hand, as well as many other cultures. It seems to me that cultures overall have provided countless great contributions to the advancement of all civilizations.

I agree 100%

[Joe98]

It seems to me that cultures overall have provided countless great contributions to the advancement of all civilizations.

However in the example above, that partculair mathematics did not spread to the West. If it did it would not have been "discovered" in the 1970's.


The West discovered those mathematics independantly.


In another example, gunpowder has been used in building projects for centuries.

History records the Chinese invented gunpowder. Did they bring it to the West?

No the West discovered it independently. It was late in the 20th century, Western scholars, not Chinese, found the Chinese were using gunpowder before the West. But the Chinese did not contribute to the development of the West ( in terms of gunpowder).



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[- Qatada -]

Look, i've deleted the offtopic posts. If you guys want to argue do it somewhere else. Otherwise if it continues, it might just lead to bans.


Regards.

[north_malaysian]

the arabesque motives are so popular in the muslim world becayse we are forbid to draw/paint the animal/human ... many Malaysian mosques hired Turks and Moroccans to carve arabesque art on these mosque...

[Bittersteel]

I don't know what's so 'Islamic' about the design for which it is called Islamic.maybe because it was done by Muslims.anyways its nice to hear but remember its all history.
Persians also contributed a lot to the Islamic civilization.It wasn't because of the religion,it was because of the quality of the Muslim mind.

[Ninth_Scribe]

Thank you for this wonderful article, Al Madani. I love mathematics. To me, it is it's own art-form.

Ninth Scribe