Editing Culture of Egypt (section)

==Science==
Egypt's cultural contributions have included great works of [[science]], [[art]], and [[mathematics]], dating from [[Ancient history|antiquity]] to modern times.

===Technology===

{{Main|Ancient Egyptian technology}}

===Imhotep===

{{Main|Imhotep}}

Considered to be the first engineer, architect and physician in history known by name, [[Imhotep]] designed the [[Pyramid of Djoser]] (the [[Step Pyramid]]) at [[Saqqara]] in [[History of ancient Egypt|Egypt]] around [[27th century BC|2630]]–[[27th century BC|2611 BC]], and may have been responsible for the first known use of [[columns]] in [[architecture]]. The Egyptian historian [[Manetho]] credited him with inventing stone-dressed building during Djoser's reign, though he was not the first to actually build with stone. Imhotep is also believed to have founded [[Ancient Egyptian medicine|Egyptian medicine]], being the author of the world's earliest known medical document, the [[Edwin Smith Papyrus]].

===Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt===
[[Image:Alexandria Library Inscription.jpg|thumb|200px|Inscription referring to the Alexandrian library, dated AD 56]]

The silk road led straight through ancient Alexandria. Also, the [[Library of Alexandria|Royal Library of Alexandria]] was once the largest in the world. It is usually assumed to have been founded at the beginning of the 3rd century BC during the reign of [[Ptolemy II of Egypt]] after his father had set up the [[Temple of the Muses]] or [[Museum]]. The initial organization is attributed to [[Demetrius Phalereus]]. The Library is estimated to have stored at its peak 400,000 to 700,000 [[Scroll (parchment)|scrolls]].

One of the reasons so little is known about the Library is that it was lost centuries after its creation. All that is left of many of the volumes are tantalizing titles that hint at all the history lost due to the building's destruction. Few events in ancient history are as controversial as the destruction of the Library, as the historical record is both contradictory and incomplete. Its destruction has been attributed by some authors to, among others, [[Julius Caesar]], [[Augustus]], and Catholic zealots during the purge of the Arian heresy, Not surprisingly, the Great Library became a symbol of knowledge itself, and its destruction was attributed to those who were portrayed as ignorant [[barbarians]], often for purely political reasons.

A [[Bibliotheca Alexandrina|new library]] was inaugurated in 2003 near the site of the old library.

The [[Lighthouse of Alexandria]], one of the [[Seven Wonders of the Ancient World]], designed by [[Sostratus of Cnidus]] and built during the reign of [[Ptolemy I Soter]] served as the city's landmark, and later, lighthouse.

====Mathematics and technology====
{{See also|Greek mathematics}}

[[Alexandria]], being the center of the Hellenistic world, produced a number of great mathematicians, astronomers, and scientists such as [[Ctesibius]], [[Pappus of Alexandria|Pappus]], and [[Diophantus]]. It also attracted scholars from all over the Mediterranean such as [[Eratosthenes]] of [[Cyrene, Libya|Cyrene]].

====Ptolemy====
{{Main|Ptolemy}}

[[Ptolemy]] is one of the most famous astronomers and geographers from Egypt, famous for his work in [[Alexandria]]. Born Claudius Ptolemaeus (Greek: Κλαύδιος Πτολεμαίος; {{circa|85|165}}), he was a [[geographer]], [[astronomer]], and [[astrologer]].<ref>Martin Bernal (1992). "Animadversions on the Origins of Western Science", ''Isis'' '''83''' (4), p. 596-607 [602, 606]</ref>

Ptolemy was the author of two important scientific treatises. One is the astronomical treatise that is now known as the ''[[Almagest]]'' (in Greek ''Η μεγάλη Σύνταξις'', "The Great Treatise"). In this work, one of the most influential books of antiquity, Ptolemy compiled the astronomical knowledge of the ancient Greek and [[Babylonia]]n world. Ptolemy's other main work is his ''Geography''. This too is a compilation, of what was known about the world's [[geography]] in the Roman Empire in his time.

In his ''[[Optics]]'', a work which survives only in an Arabic translation, he writes about properties of [[light]], including [[Reflection (physics)|reflection]], [[refraction]] and [[colour]]. His other works include ''Planetary Hypothesis'', ''Planisphaerium'' and ''Analemma''. Ptolemy's treatise on astrology, the ''[[Tetrabiblos]]'', was the most popular [[astrological]] work of antiquity and also enjoyed great influence in the [[Islamic]] world and the [[medieval]] [[Latin]] [[Western world|West]].

Ptolemy also wrote influential work Harmonics on music theory. After criticizing the approaches of his predecessors, Ptolemy argued for basing musical intervals on mathematical ratios (in contrast to the followers of Aristoxenus) backed up by empirical observation (in contrast to the over-theoretical approach of the Pythagoreans). He presented his own divisions of the tetrachord and the octave, which he derived with the help of a monochord. Ptolemy's astronomical interests appeared in a discussion of the music of the spheres.

Tributes to Ptolemy include Ptolemaeus crater on the Moon and Ptolemaeus crater on Mars.

===Medieval Egypt===
{{See also|Islamic mathematics}}

====Abu Kamil Shuja ibn Aslam====
{{Main|Abū Kāmil Shujā ibn Aslam}}

====Ibn Yunus====
{{Main|Ibn Yunus}}

===Modern Egypt===

====Ahmed Zewail====
{{Main|Ahmed Zewail}}
[[Ahmed Zewail]] ({{langx|ar|أحمد زويل}}) (born February 26, 1946) is an Egyptian [[chemist]], and the winner of the 1999 [[Nobel Prize in Chemistry]] for his work on [[femtochemistry]]. Born in [[Damanhur]] (60&nbsp;km south-east of [[Alexandria]]) and raised in [[Disuq]], he moved to the [[United States]] to complete his PhD at the [[University of Pennsylvania]]. He was awarded a faculty appointment at [[Caltech]] in 1976, where he has remained since.

Zewail's key work has been as the pioneer of [[femtochemistry]]. He developed a method using a rapid [[laser]] technique (consisting of [[ultrashort pulse|ultrashort]] laser flashes), which allows the description of reactions at the [[atom]]ic level. It can be viewed as a highly sophisticated form of [[Flash (photo)|flash photography]]

In 1999, Zewail became the third Egyptian to receive the [[Nobel Prize]], following [[Anwar Sadat]] (1978 in Peace) and [[Naguib Mahfouz]] (1988 in Literature). In 1999, he received Egypt's highest state honor, the [[Grand Collar of the Nile]].

====Egyptology====
{{Main|Egyptology}}

In modern times, [[archaeology]] and the study of Egypt's ancient heritage as the field of [[Egyptology]] has become a major scientific pursuit in the country itself. The field began during the [[Middle Ages]], and has been led by Europeans and Westerners in modern times. The study of Egyptology, however, has in recent decades been taken up by Egyptian archæologists such as [[Zahi Hawass]] and the [[Supreme Council of Antiquities]] he leads.

The discovery of the Rosetta Stone, a tablet written in ancient Greek, Egyptian [[Demotic (Egyptian)|Demotic]] script, and Egyptian hieroglyphs, has partially been credited for the recent stir in the study of Ancient Egypt. [[Greek language|Greek]], a well-known language, gave linguists the ability to decipher the mysterious Egyptian hieroglyphic language. The ability to decipher hieroglyphics facilitated the translation of hundreds of the texts and inscriptions that were previously indecipherable, giving insight into Egyptian culture that would have otherwise been lost to the ages. The stone was discovered on July 15, 1799, in the port town of [[Rosetta]], Egypt, and has been held in the [[British Museum]] since 1802.