By Dr. Yarub Al-Douri

The fear of science, though however common, is an unjustified one, especially when science is solely blamed for the world problems. Nevertheless, there are undeniable tensions between science and religion in some parts of the Islamic world that must be addressed. Anti-scientific attitudes are easy to find in Islamic countries and are now flourishing with thousands of elaborately designed Islamic resources which purport that the Quran Kareem predicts the big bang, black holes, and quantum mechanics. The problem is that many Muslims see modern science as a secular, even atheist, western construct and have forgotten the many wonderful contributions made by Muslim scholars over a thousand years ago. They are unable to separate science from religion and therefore, do not see modern science as indifferent or neutral with respect to the Islamic teachings. Many Muslims today completely reject the notion that science and religion are compatible. In fact, given the current climate of tension and polarization between the Islamic world and the West, it is not surprising that many Muslims feel indignant when accused of not being culturally or intellectually equipped to raise their game when it comes to scientific achievements. To remind both Muslims and non-Muslims of the time when Islam and science were not at odds in a very different world is crucial for science to flourish once again in that part of the world.

Currently, there are over billion Muslims in the world. They include some of the world’s wealthiest nations, some of the poorest, and some that are growing steadily in comparison to the West. The leaders of many of these countries understand that economic growth, military power, and national security intrinsically rely on technological advances. Even though we often hear the rhetoric of the need to have concerted efforts in scientific research, it was found that for the last two decades, the Islamic world spent less than 0.5% of their GDP on research and development compared with 2.5% of GDP spending on scientific research in the developed world. Islamic countries have fewer than 10 scientists, engineers and technicians per 1000 of the population compared to the world average of 40 and 140 for the developed world.[1]

In reminding the Muslim world today of the likes of al-Kindi, al-Khwarizmi, ibn Sina and ibn al-Haytham and their rich scientific and scholarly heritage, and how current understanding of the natural world has been due in no small part to the contributions of Arabic science, that sense of pride can be instilled which could propel the importance of scientific enquiry back to where it belongs. A renowned Pakistani physicist, Pervez Hoodbhoy, highlighted the current problem. He argued[2] at the Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad, that the constraints he encountered are typical of those in many Pakistani public-sector institutions. Quaid-i-Azam University has several mosques on its campus but no bookshop. This is one of the leading research universities in the Islamic world. Contrast this with al-Mamun’s obsession with books and the many wonderful libraries in the medieval Baghdad, Cairo, and Cordoba.

It would be a gross mistake to single out religious conservatism alone for the lack of scientific progress in the Islamic world. Far more telling are the antiquated administrative and bureaucratic systems that many Islamic countries inherited from their colonial occupiers and that have still not been replaced due to a chronic lack of political will to reform, tackle corruption, and overhaul failing educational systems and institutions.

Scientific researchers require more than just the latest, shiniest equipment and political rhetoric. Simply spending vast amounts of money will not be enough to reignite and rebuild the scientific culture in the Islamic world. Additionally, a clear separation of science from theology must be ensured[3]. A scientific renaissance will not happen overnight and requires not only the political will but also understanding of meaning of both academic freedom and scientific method. But if the Islamic world managed to be the torch-bearers of science in the past, it can surely do so again.

Image (a): Credit © Islam.ru

Image (b): Credit © Museum of the History of Science

References:

[1]) M. A. Anwar, A. B. Abu Bakar, Current state of science and technology in the Muslim world, Scientometric 40 (1997) 23-44

[2]) Perves Amirali Hoodbhoy, Science and Islamic world – the quest for Islamic countries, Physics Today 49 (2007) 49-55

[3]) J. Al-Khalili, Pathfinders – the golden age of Arabic science, Penguin Books, London, (2010).

Scientists from the University of Birmingham have identified “hotspots” around the globe where crop wild relatives – species plant breeders use to develop new crop varieties that are more resistant to climate extremes, pests and diseases – could be protected on the ground. That would help secure future global food resources.

Globally, these wild relatives are most concentrated in the region known as the “Fertile Crescent”, which arcs around the Arabian desert and includes Jordan, the Palestinian territories, Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Iran.

Conflict in some of these countries – with parts held by extremist Muslim groups – makes in-situ conservation very difficult in practice, Nigel Maxted, lead investigator from the University of Birmingham’s School of Biosciences in Britain, told Thomson Reuters Foundation.

“It won’t necessarily speed up extinction of the species, but the problem is access,” he said. “If Islamic State takes over an area, then we don’t have access to the (plant) material there.”

Syria is a case in point. Two of the most important sites in the world for wild relatives of crops – including wheat and sugar beet – are located in the war-torn country, according to Maxted.

The International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) has been forced to duplicate a globally unique collection of crop genetic resources, that were kept at its gene bank in Aleppo, in Syria, by shipping seeds to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway where they can be kept safe.

Government support needed

The Birmingham university team is joining with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), to plan and implement effective conservation of crop wild relatives for the first time in the countries where they are found around the world, as well as taking samples and placing them in gene banks as a back-up.

They plan to negotiate with governments in the Fertile Crescent to highlight the plight of the species, and to try to implement conservation in the hotspot areas. But Maxted said it won’t be possible in Syria for the time being.

Another challenge is, that these wild relatives of crops are concentrated in developing countries, which often lack the skills and resources to protect them properly, Maxted said, stressing the need for new funding for such efforts.

They are increasingly important because the growing risks to crops from climate change means, there is rising demand from plant breeders for resilient traits that are found in wild relatives.

For example, Saccharum arundinaceum, a relative of sugar cane, can survive very low temperatures, and Prunus ferganensis, a wild relative of peach, is tolerant to drought conditions. A wild relative of wheat, Aegilops tauschii, is resistant to Hessian fly, a pest of cereal crops.

But research at Birmingham shows that 12 per cent of crop wild relatives are threatened with extinction, and all are likely to be already suffering a loss of genetic diversity for reasons including habitat destruction and alteration, conflict, intensive agriculture and urbanisation.

Conserving them in the locations where they are naturally found is important because it means they can continue to adapt to changing climatic conditions, as well as threats from pests and diseases, Maxted said.

“If we combine global population growth with the prospect of climate change decreasing crop yields by 2 per cent per decade, crop wild relatives may be one solution to this food security threat – but not if we don’t have access to them or the species are extinct,” he said.

Source: eco-business.com