Stars over Ancient Babylon

Stars over Ancient Babylon from Kerry Magruder on Vimeo.

Join the ancient Babylonian astronomer Kidinnu for a survey of the origin of mathematical astronomy in Ancient Mesopotamia. Babylonian astronomers were sources for Greek astronomy. Without the Babylonian contributions, later Greek astronomy such as we find in Hipparchos (150 BC) and Ptolemy (150 AD) would not have been possible.

Written and produced by Kerry Magruder, narrated by Candace Magruder. Not polished, but hopefully better than a PowerPoint. I apologize for the poor audio narration – Candace and I recorded it in the wee hours one morning to get it ready in time for my class that week.

Interpretation: Questions for discussion (brief video).

Script, discussion questions, instructor notes, and true/false questions: download pdf.

Related pages on my history of science survey course website are:

• Week 2 index page: Science in Ancient Mesopotamia.
• Starting Assumptions (brief video).
• Topic 1: Stars Over Ancient Babylon orientation.
• Topic 2: Origins of Ancient Astronomy (brief summary video); The Shape of the Earth.
• Interpretation: What does it mean to you? (brief video)