Several faculty members and students from our institute participated with various presentations at the 12th International Scientiae Symposium, which was hosted by the Department of the History of Science at Istanbul University between September 16-19, 2025.
On the panel titled “Cross-Cultural-ness of Astronomical Instrumentation Reconsidered,” Dr. Taha Yasin Arslan, Head of the Department of the History of Technology, presented a paper with Dr. Silke Ackermann, Director of the Museum of the History of Science at Oxford University.
Their paper, titled “What do we mean by ‘Islamic Science’ in Museums?,” argued that the term “Islamic science” can isolate Islamic civilization within the broader chronology of scientific knowledge. The presentation emphasized that scientific principles are universal, a point illustrated by scientific instruments from different cultures and periods. Therefore, it was debated that more appropriate phrases like “science in Islamic civilization” should be used when discussing the body of scientific knowledge from this culture.
Research Assistant Afra Akyol presented a paper titled "Cross-Cultural Perspectives on the Front of the Astrolabe’s Mater." Her presentation compared the drawings found on the front plates of astrolabes produced in Islamic civilization and in the West.
Research Assistant Beyzanur Topçuoğlu presented her paper titled “Al-Shāmila as a Sundial: Tracing Its Influence Across Civilizations.”
She focused on the universal history of sundial-making across different periods and geographies by examining the 10th-century astronomical instrument Al-Shāmila, created by Al-Khujandi, from the perspective of its sundial function.
Our graduate student Feyzanur Şaşmaz Akyüz presented a paper titled "Comparative Study on Astrolabe Manuals from the 14th Century Islamic Civilisation and the West."
Her presentation analyzed the similarities and differences between astrolabe manuals written in 14th-century Islamic civilization and Europe.
Dr. Sena Aydın from the Department of the History of Natural Sciences participated in the panel "The Movement of Science: Optical, Astronomical, and Horological Knowledge Across Cultures."
Her presentation, titled "Light-Colour Relationship in Taqi al-Din and His Primary Source Ibn al-Haytham," shared the initial results of a project she is conducting with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Taha Yasin Arslan. The project involves producing replicas of the experimental setups described in Taqi al-Din al-Rasid's (d. 993/1585) work, Kitab nūr ḥadaqat al-abṣār wa nūr ḥadīqat al-anzār. In her talk, she compared Taqi al-Din's conception of the light-color relationship with that of his primary source, Ibn al-Haytham.
