An article in Slate Magazine from April 10, 1998, by Steven E. Landsburg, discusses the way in which modern economic theory backs up the rabbis of the Babylonian Talmud. How I stumbled across this article about a week ago I really don’t remember, but I’ve been thinking about it constantly ever since.
I just think this article is fascinating. I remember when I learned Masecheth Sukkah (Tractate Sukkah of the Babylonian Talmud, written between 500-700CE) in middle school, and we discovered a reference to pi in the Talmudic literature.
Sometimes I wonder how people today can actually think that we understand the world better today than the ancients? Maybe some things. Maybe like certain big picture things (Earth revolving around the sun, for example) and some subtle nuances (electrons and cell structure come to mind), but the fundamentals were there, and I truly believe that the understanding that at least the intellectual class of the ancient world had was probably was on par with, if it didn’t even surpass, the general understanding of the world that today’s intellectual class has. I mean, think about it – how many of today’s principles are ENTIRELY dependent on discoveries in the ancient world (Hello – Pythagoras???)?
Yes, the Middle Ages were a dark, dark time for Europe and for scientific advancement in general. But even then, other cultures were thriving and making discoveries that we still depend upon today. But I’m not even talking about the Middle Ages. I’m talking about the pre-Medieval period. The “Classical” or Ancient period. There is no question that the ancient world had its share of individuals who had the brains and the platform to discover and spread knowledge that even today we are still trying to prove and/or use for our own purposes.
And yet we constantly question and dismiss ancient knowledge – until we are amazed to discover that they were right all along! It’s like society is in an ever-adolescent state of rebellion.
You can read the full article here.
