Historical Antecedents of Science, Technology, and Society

Vocabulary flashcards identifying key concepts, historical inventions, scientific figures, industrial revolutions, and Philippine science and technology developments across four lecture sources.

Cuneiform

The first writing system, developed by the Sumerians, utilizing word pictures and triangular symbols carved on clay tablets using a wedge instrument.

Uruk City

Considered the first true city in the world, built by the Sumerians using sun-baked bricks made from river mud and reeds.

Great Ziggurat of Ur

A sacred structure known as the 'mountain of God' built by the Sumerians as a temple for their chief deity, accessible only to priests.

Codes of Hammurabi

One of the world's earliest and most complete written legal codes, created by King Hammurabi of the Babylonian Empire.

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, supposedly built in Babylonia on split-level stone terraces high above the ground.

Silk Road

A 4,000-mile trade route opened by the Han Dynasty that connected China to the Fertile Crescent in Southwestern Asia.

Bi Sheng

The Chinese inventor during the Song Empire credited as the father of typography for inventing movable type printing.

Cai Lun (T'sai Lun)

A Han Dynasty court official credited with inventing paper using mulberry, bast fibers, old rags, fishnets, and hemp waste.

Harappan Civilization

An ancient Indus Valley civilization identified at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, known for advanced metallurgical works, steatite seals, and urban planning.

Wootz Steel (fūlāḏ)

High-carbon steel produced in ancient southern India using crucible techniques mixing wrought iron, charcoal, and glass.

Ayurveda

A traditional system of medicine originating in India before 2500 BC, documented in texts like the Sushruta Samhita detailing surgical and medical procedures.

Aryabhatta

Ancient Indian mathematician and astronomer who created a symbol for zero, propounded the heliocentric theory, and authored the Aryabhatiya.

Mātrāmeru

The ancient Sanskrit term for the sequence of numbers later introduced to Western Europe by Fibonacci.

Pingala

An ancient Vedic scholar who described the binary number system in his Sanskrit treatise Chandahśāstra.

Chakravala Method

A cyclic algorithm developed by 7th-century CE mathematician Brahmagupta to solve indeterminate quadratic equations such as Pell's equation.

Kanad

Ancient Indian sage who proposed an atomic theory centered on indestructible particles called 'anu' that combine to form diatomic and triatomic molecules.

Papyrus

A light writing material made in ancient Egypt from thin strips of the Cyperus papyrus plant growing along the Nile River.

Hieroglyphs

A formal Egyptian writing system combining logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements totaling around 1,000 distinct characters.

Kohl

An ancient Egyptian eye cosmetic made by mixing soot or malachite with galena, worn for health, protection against illness, and aesthetics.

Clepsydra

An ancient Egyptian water clock that uses gravity to regulate the flow of water from one vessel to another to measure time.

Gazettes

The earliest Roman newspapers, engraved on stone or metal tablets and displayed publicly before paper was invented.

Codex

An early form of bound book created by the Romans by stacking papyrus or parchment leaves and covering them with wax or animal skin.

El Castillo

A Mayan step-pyramid at Chichen Itza, Mexico, constructed as an astronomical observatory aligned with the sun during spring and autumn equinoxes.

Quipu

A record-keeping system developed by the Inca civilization consisting of complex arrangements of knotted ropes interpreted by specialists.

Chinampa

An Aztec agricultural technology featuring artificial rectangular farming islands surrounded by irrigation canals.

Johann Gutenberg

German inventor who developed the movable-type mechanical printing press using metal letter casts and wooden presses.

Zacharias Janssen

Dutch spectacle maker credited with inventing the compound microscope in the late 16th to early 17th century.

Hans Lippershey

Dutch eyeglass maker who applied for the first patent for a telescope in 1608.

Nicolaus Copernicus

Polish astronomer who published 'De revolutionibus orbium coelestium' and proposed the Heliocentric Theory that the Sun is the center of the solar system.

Johannes Kepler

Astronomer who developed the Three Laws of Planetary Motion, establishing that planetary orbits are elliptical rather than circular.

Sir Isaac Newton

English physicist and mathematician who formulated the Laws of Motion, the Universal Law of Gravitation, and co-developed calculus.

Louis Pasteur

French microbiologist who invented pasteurization to kill harmful bacteria in dairy products and developed the first rabies vaccine.

Samuel M. Kier

Inventor who developed petroleum refining to produce kerosene, establishing the foundation of the petroleum refining industry.

Alexander Graham Bell

Scottish-born inventor who patented the first practical telephone in 1876.

Industry 1.0

The First Industrial Revolution starting at the end of the 18th century, characterized by mechanical production powered by water and steam.

Industry 2.0

The Second Industrial Revolution beginning at the start of the 20th century, characterized by electrical energy and mass production assembly lines pioneered by Henry Ford.

Industry 3.0

The Third Industrial Revolution starting in the 1970s, defined by electronics, computers, IT, and automated production.

Industry 4.0

The Fourth Industrial Revolution characterized by cyber-physical systems, IoT, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and autonomous manufacturing.

Green Revolution

An agricultural initiative (1940-1970) led by Norman Borlaug involving high-yielding cereal grain varieties, synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and improved irrigation.

Jethro Tull

English agriculturalist who invented the horse-drawn seed drill and horse hoe in 1731.

John Bennet Lawes

British scientist who initiated the scientific investigation of fertilization in 1843 and created the first commercial fertilizer manufacturing process.

Robert Hooke

English scientist who invented the maritime semaphore system in 1684 using flag or arm positions based on an alphabetic code.

Samuel Morse

American inventor who created Morse code in 1836, representing letters with long and short light or sound signals.

Christopher Latham Sholes

Inventor of the primary practical typewriter, developed alongside Frank Haven Hall, Carlos Glidden, and Samuel W. Soule.

Herman Hollerith

Inventor of the IBM Punch Card System in 1890, used for census data processing and later in World War II.

Guglielmo Marconi

Italian inventor who created commercial radio transmission in 1920.

Philo Farnsworth

American inventor who, along with Charles Francis Jenkins, invented the electronic television in 1925.

Ulrich Steinhilper

German engineer credited with inventing the word processor.

Robert Kahn and Vint Cerf

Computer scientists recognized as co-inventors of the Internet and TCP/IP protocol suite.

VA Shiva Ayyadurai

Inventor who created an interoffice electronic mail system named EMAIL in 1965 at the age of 14.

Ward Cunningham

Computer programmer who created the first Wiki software, named after the Hawaiian word for 'fast'.

Charles Darwin

British naturalist who wrote 'On the Origin of Species' and developed the theory of evolution by natural selection.

Sigmund Freud

Austrian neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis who divided the human mind into the id, ego, and superego.

Id, Ego, and Superego

The three components of the mind according to Freud, representing unconscious primal instincts (id), conscious reality (ego), and subconscious morality (superego).

Aristarchus

Ancient Greek astronomer who proposed that the Sun was at the center of the universe 1,750 years before Copernicus.

Eratosthenes

Ancient Greek mathematician and astronomer who made the first accurate measurement of the Earth's circumference.

Hipparchus

Greek astronomer who created the first known star catalog, defined star brightness scales, and calculated the distance from Earth to the Moon.

Tycho Brahe

Danish astronomer who built an observatory producing precise pre-telescopic observations and proposed a hybrid planetary model.

William Herschel

Astronomer who discovered Uranus, two of its moons, two moons of Saturn, and mapped polar ice caps on Mars.

Johann Elert Bode

German astronomer who published Bode's Law predicting planetary distances from the Sun and predicting the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Edwin Hubble

Astronomer who formulated Hubble's Law proving that galaxies recede at speeds proportional to their distance, supporting the Big Bang Theory.

Jan Oort

Dutch astronomer who measured the distance to the center of the Milky Way, calculated its mass, and hypothesized the Oort Cloud.

Banaue Rice Terraces

An ancient engineering feat built by pre-Spanish Filipinos in Ifugao using stones and mud for hillside farming.

Galleon Trade

A 250-year trade route (1565-1815) between Manila and Acapulco, Mexico, utilizing 110 galleons (102 built in the Philippines).

Sampan Trade

The maritime trade system connecting China and Manila during the Spanish colonial era that supplied goods such as silk, porcelain, and jade.

Dr. Fe del Mundo

Pioneering Filipino pediatrician, first female student admitted to Harvard Medical School, and inventor of a non-electric bamboo medical incubator.

Aisa Mijeno

Filipino engineer and inventor of the Sustainable Alternative Lighting (SALt) Lamp, an eco-friendly lamp running on salt water.

Salamander Amphibious Tricycle

An amphibious vehicle created by Dominic Chung, Lamberto Armada, and Victor Atoy Llave that can traverse flooded streets, rivers, and lakes.

eJeepney

An electric utility vehicle introduced by Robert Puckett in 2007 as a noise-free and smoke-free alternative to traditional diesel jeepneys.

Roberto del Rosario

Filipino inventor who patented the Karaoke Sing-Along System in 1975.

Leonardo Sarao

Filipino entrepreneur who modified surplus American military jeeps from World War II into the iconic public jeepney.

Eduardo San Juan

Filipino mechanical engineer who served as NASA project leader in developing the Lunar Roving Vehicle (Moon Buggy) in 1968.

Gregorio Y. Zara

Filipino scientist who invented the two-way television-telephone (videophone) in 1955.

Ramon C. Barba

Filipino scientist recognized for discovering a method using potassium nitrate to induce flower blooming in mango trees year-round.

Alfredo M. Anos Sr.

Known as the Godfather of Filipino Inventors, who created the 3-in-1 Fire Truck functioning as a rescue vehicle, fire truck, and ambulance.

Harmonized National R&D Agenda (HNRDA)

The Philippine government's 2017-2022 research and development policy framework aligned with AmBisyon Natin 2040 and structured across five primary sector agendas.

AmBisyon Natin 2040

The Philippine government's 25-year long-term vision based on three pillars: Malasakit (enhancing the social fabric), Pagbabago (transforming for growth), and Kaunlaran (increasing growth potential).

Indigenous Science

A body of traditional knowledge, ethno-biology, ethno-medicine, and farming methods guided by community culture and environmental stewardship.