Takes us on a tour of medieval science through the eyes of one fourteenth-century monk, John of Westwyk, an intrepid crusader, inventor, and astrologer. From multiplying Roman numerals to navigating by the stars, curing disease, and telling time with an ancient astrolabe, we learn emerging science alongside Westwyk and travel with him through the length and breadth of England and beyond its shores. On our way, we encounter a remarkable cast of characters: the clock-building English abbot with leprosy, the French craftsman-turned-spy, and the Persian polymath who founded the world's most advanced observatory. Argues that these times weren't so dark after all and shows how medieval ideas continue to color how we see the world today.
|
