History
/ 3. History of science and technology
Candidate
of biological science, He Vladimir Henhonovich
History of formation of knowledge about mammals
during the medieval period
During the
medieval epoch the fauna was one of the main natural resources on which
production of goods and applied branches of knowledge were based. Optimum
development, the use of the animal population in practical aims demanded
generalization of available data, reception of the new ones from various
geographical regions, their comparison and the analysis. This was favored by
the expansion of trading communications, the search of the new ways to gain
material resources, the development of a colonizer policy of the largest
medieval states. Duplicating and distribution of the collected data became
possible due to the occurrence of publishing in 1440.
Trading
communications of Hindus and Arabs served as the main channel to exchange and
receive the new information at early stages of the Middle Ages. Approximately
in 900 Abu Suleiman delivered
lots of zoogeographical data
from
"The
European school" of naturalists also continues to develop. The Norwegian
work "Speculum of the kings"
(1000) appeared at that period of time. The characteristic feature of this
period was the generalization and critical reassessment of the data contained
in the sources of the Ancient world, also enlarged with the new materials. For
instance, the dominican monk Albert Veliky (1193-1280) in the 26-volume work
generalizes and critically analyzes Aristotel’s works, "The Natural
History" by Thomas Kanteprja (XIII century) and expands them with the
regional zoogeographical data
about Germany, which he received during his own long-term observations. It is
remarkable, that he also describes the geographical zonality of animals
expansion.
The English
scientist Roger Bacon (1214-1292), developing an idea of the Spanish thinker of
the XI-th century Raimund de Sabied
that one should not be content only with Aristotel’s works to acquire the knowledge about
nature. Only the knowledge of the nature can increase the prosperity of mankind,
and for this purpose it should be studied. He drew up some kind of program of
biogeographical investigations consisting of two basic stages: 1) descriptions
of all objects (that now is referred to as inventory of the biological variety)
at a level of species and their biomes
and 2) the explanation of reasons taking place in the nature of
processes, a way of life of the alive organisms, existing interrelations, etc.
In his opinion the investigations should be carried out by the principle: from
particular (facts) to the whole (generalization). The interesting fact is that
the development of the "regional component" in zoogeographical investigations
coincides with the time of the concept of descriptive regional geography
formation in the general geography (Øàëüíåâ,
2000), that proves the closest
interrelations in investigations of the animal population and its value
as one of leading factors in the development of geographical knowledge in
general.
In the book
"the Mirror of the nature" (1258) frenchmen Vikentiy and Bove showed the consequences of the
erosive processes, i.e. transformation of natural complexes under the influence
of the external reasons causing also the changes in the animal population of
the territory, this can be considered as the first description of biocenose
pauperization.
The
revolution of nautical art which took place in the XIII-th century favoured the
development of natural-science knowledge of the described period both technical
(shipbuilding), as well as scientific and technical character (the development
of cartography, invention of a compass, etc.). It allowed to stir up the
travel, to expand geography and navigation for the further distances. One of
the first and thorough geographical descriptions was work "About the
variety of the world ", written by the
Venetian merchant Marko
Polo who had been traveling across
The period
called "the Epoch of Great geographical discoverings" became the most
significant stage of the Middle Ages. Voyages by Hristofor Columbus (in
1492-1504), Vasko da
Gamma (1498), Fernana Magellan (1519) and other seafarers contributed into
creation of the works containing many data on the animal population. Thus, for
example, Klusius (born
in 1526) and
A list of
Literature:
1. Blyaher
L.J. To the history of studying the history of biology in
2.
Likhovid A.A. Spatial vicariation of surface vertebrates'populations in the
Central Pre-Caucasus // Biodiversity and Dinamics of the Ecosystems in
3. Kirikov S.V. The person and the nature of
the Eastern European forest-steppe
in the X-th beginning of the XIX-th century of M.: the Publishing House
“Science”, 1979.
4. Kirikov S.V. The person and the nature of
the Eastern European forest-steppe
in the X-th - the beginning of XIX-th centuries – M.: the Publishing House
“Science”, 1979.
5. Kirikov S.V. The person and the nature of
a steppe zone. The end of the X-th – the middle of XIX century - M.: the
Science, 1983.