The Scientist in the Early Roman Empire
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Narrated by:
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Richard Carrier
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By:
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Richard Carrier
About this listen
In this extensive sequel to Science Education in the Early Roman Empire, Dr. Richard Carrier explores the social history of scientists in the Roman era. Was science in decline or experiencing a revival under the Romans? What was an ancient scientist thought to be and do? Who were they, and who funded their research? And how did pagans differ from their Christian peers in their views toward science and scientists?
Some have claimed Christianity valued them more than their pagan forebears. In fact the reverse is the case. And this difference in values had a catastrophic effect on the future of humanity. The Romans may have been just a century or two away from experiencing a scientific revolution. But once in power, Christianity kept that progress on hold for a thousand years - while forgetting most of what the pagans had achieved and discovered, from an empirical anatomy, physiology, and brain science to an experimental physics of water, gravity, and air.
Thoroughly referenced and painstakingly researched, this volume is a must for anyone who wants to learn how far we once got, and why we took so long to get to where we are today.
©2017 Richard Carrier (P)2018 Pitchstone PublishingListeners also enjoyed...
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The Dream of Enlightenment
- The Rise of Modern Philosophy
- By: Anthony Gottlieb
- Narrated by: Anthony Gottlieb
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Dream of Enlightenment, Anthony Gottlieb expertly navigates a second great explosion of thought, taking us to northern Europe in the wake of its wars of religion and the rise of Galilean science. In a relatively short period - from the early 1640s to the eve of the French Revolution - Descartes, Hobbes, Spinoza, Locke, Leibniz, and Hume all made their mark. The Dream of Enlightenment tells their story and that of the birth of modern philosophy.
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Enlightenment meets Neuroscience
- By Rodger on 12-05-19
By: Anthony Gottlieb
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The House of Wisdom
- How the Arabs Transformed Western Civilization
- By: Jonathan Lyons
- Narrated by: Jay Snyder
- Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Here is the remarkable story of how medieval Arab scholars made dazzling advances in science and philosophy, and of the itinerant Europeans who brought this knowledge back to the West. For centuries following the fall of Rome, Western Europe was a benighted backwater, a world of subsistence farming, minimal literacy, and violent conflict. Meanwhile, Arab culture was thriving, dazzling those Europeans fortunate enough to catch even a glimpse.
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Missing history
- By Robert on 11-26-11
By: Jonathan Lyons
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Orientalism
- By: Edward Said
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
- Length: 19 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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This landmark book, first published in 1978, remains one of the most influential books in the Social Sciences, particularly Ethnic Studies and Postcolonialism. Said is best known for describing and critiquing "Orientalism", which he perceived as a constellation of false assumptions underlying Western attitudes toward the East. In Orientalism Said claimed a "subtle and persistent Eurocentric prejudice against Arabo-Islamic peoples and their culture."
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We're lucky to have this on audio
- By Delano on 02-27-13
By: Edward Said
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Hitler Homer Bible Christ
- The Historical Papers of Richard Carrier 1995-2013
- By: Richard Carrier
- Narrated by: Richard Carrier
- Length: 14 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Richard Carrier, Ph.D., philosopher, historian, blogger, has published a number of papers in the field of ancient history and biblical studies. He has also written several books and chapters on diverse subjects, and has been blogging and speaking since 2006. He is known the world over for all the above. But here, together for the first time, are all of Dr. Carrier's peer reviewed academic journal articles in history through the year 2013, collected with his best magazine articles, research papers, and blog posts on the same subjects.
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"Call Me Underwhelmed"
- By Ray M on 09-12-16
By: Richard Carrier
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The Devil's Delusion
- Atheism and its Scientific Pretensions
- By: David Berlinski
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Militant atheism is on the rise. In recent years, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Daniel Dennett, and Christopher Hitchens have produced a steady stream of best-selling books denigrating religious belief. These authors are merely the leading edge of a larger movement that includes much of the scientific community. In response, mathematician David Berlinski, himself a secular Jew, delivers a biting defense of religious thought.
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Riddled With Problems
- By Ben on 11-01-13
By: David Berlinski
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Philosophy: 100 Essential Thinkers
- The Ideas That Have Shaped Our World
- By: Philip Stokes
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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This engaging and accessible book invites the listener to explore the questions and arguments of philosophy through the work of 100 of the greatest thinkers within the Western intellectual tradition - covering philosophical, scientific, political, and religious thought over a period of 2500 years.
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Unpretentious, honest, with a big picture
- By Mike S. on 05-29-17
By: Philip Stokes
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Galileo
- And the Science Deniers
- By: Mario Livio
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Astrophysicist and best-selling author Mario Livio draws on his own scientific expertise to provide captivating insights into how Galileo reached his bold new conclusions about the cosmos and the laws of nature. A freethinker who followed the evidence wherever it led him, Galileo was one of the most significant figures behind the scientific revolution. He believed that every educated person should know science as well as literature, and insisted on reaching the widest audience possible, publishing his books in Italian rather than Latin.
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Galileo through the mind of Mario Livio
- By Rick B on 06-09-20
By: Mario Livio
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Ibn Khaldun
- An Intellectual Biography
- By: Robert Irwin
- Narrated by: John Telfer
- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) is generally regarded as the greatest intellectual ever to have appeared in the Arab world - a genius who ranks as one of the world's great minds. Yet the author of the Muqaddima, the most important study of history ever produced in the Islamic world, is not as well known as he should be, and his ideas are widely misunderstood. In this groundbreaking intellectual biography, Robert Irwin provides an engaging and authoritative account of Ibn Khaldun's extraordinary life, times, writings, and ideas.
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Issues with accuracy, pronounciation
- By Moh 3aly on 01-02-19
By: Robert Irwin
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Anaximander
- And the Birth of Science
- By: Carlo Rovelli
- Narrated by: Roy McMillan
- Length: 5 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Over two millennia ago, the prescient insights of Anaximander paved the way for cosmology, physics, geography, meteorology, and biology, setting in motion a new way of seeing the world. His legacy includes the revolutionary ideas that the Earth floats in a void, that animals evolved, that the world can be understood in natural rather than supernatural terms, and that universal laws govern all phenomena. In this elegant work, the renowned theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli brings to light the importance of Anaximander’s overlooked influence on modern science
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Father of Science
- By Darwin8u on 10-31-24
By: Carlo Rovelli
What listeners say about The Scientist in the Early Roman Empire
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Nilloc29
- 06-05-21
New Perspective on what led to the Dark Ages
I found this very educational. Great to listen to while driving or hiking. I have become a fan of Carrier's work.
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- Ron
- 06-18-20
Eye opening and easy to follow.
The critical examination of other historians on this topic was illuminating . Thank you Mr. Carrier for an eye opening examination of the precursor to our modern world.
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- John D.
- 10-12-23
Fascinating history of science and the onset of the Dark Ages
I’ve always wondered why humanity went through the Dark Ages and what scientific progress and technological progress looked like before its onset. Now I have a basic understanding and it is both fascinating and saddening.
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- Allan D. Angus
- 11-14-22
I thought I was educated
I have two degrees in science and engineering and I thought I knew a few things about the history of science. Well no.
Dr Carrier disabused me of that fallacy and showed that almost everything I had been told from elementary school forward about science before the Renaissance was claptrap.
Thank you, Dr Carrier, once again, for enlightening me in my old age.
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- James
- 06-15-18
This Book is a Bombshell
This book, by Richard Carrier, is a bombshell. Not only does Carrier correct the common view that Greek and Roman scientists ignored empirical research, but he explains why humanity lost one thousand years of scientific progress.
The belief in modern times that the Roman Empire was a static society is nearly universal. Even French Political Economist Thomas Piketty in his best seller, Capital, alleges that there was no substantial economic growth in Roman times or in any other ancient society.
Carrier shows that there were a great many scientists working in a variety of fields who improved on the theories of earlier scientists. Their work was highly regarded and included the esteem of rulers of Hellenistic states, especially Ptolemaic Egypt. The work of many scientists led to improved inventions by engineers, including a steam engine, a calculating machine or computer, public works such as aqueducts, large public buildings, indoor plumbing and other marvels which were reinvented more than a thousand years later.
There were several factors that led to the decline of science, says Carrier, but foremost was consolidation of power by Christianity, which was hostile to knowledge gained through experimentation and logical thinking.
Beginning in the 3rd Century CE, until more than a thousand years later, there was virtually no scientific development. Where would society be today had it not been for this long scientific dark age? Perhaps our level of scientific development would now be what we expect it to be in 3,000 CE. For the most part, not even sci-fi books and movies speculate that far in the future. Would we have immortality, hundreds of worlds to live on, instantaneous travel? Most likely we can’t even imagine what ever-advancing science will bring us.
If science-hating Christians had remained a small cult, instead of rulers of the western world, we likely would have been spared our thousand years of ignorance. Would science have continued marching forward? For instance, would we have discovered flight and built airplanes in 1003 CE, instead of 1903? Perhaps Carrier, or other historians, would like to make a thorough scientific study of what we lost when this authoritarian cult gained control of peoples’ minds.
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- Anonymous Ed
- 04-09-19
it's a great book; very informative
I really like the way he exposes massive religious written hostility to the pursuit of actual knowledge, using every book that discusses it.
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- vidar lystad johansen
- 09-13-18
A must read for historians
Well written and well performed like his other books. He shows a lot of examples from pagans and Christian sources showing the different views on science and the championing of ignorance over knowledge among the christians.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Rick
- 05-24-19
fascinating
I have thoroughly enjoyed every book by Dr. Carrier that I have listened to. His investigation is comprehensive.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 10-08-21
Carrier did a great job
I didn't know much about ancient scientists aka natural philosophers, this title changed it.
This audiobook is easy to listen despite its length, even for a foreigner.
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