Cover PageII. IntroductionIII. Discussion of the history of physics through the centuriesIV. ConclusionV. Works Cited In order to attempt to trace the origins of the modern science that we now refer to as physics, we must begin with the origin of the term itself. Taken from the Greek word physika meaning growth or nature, physics most obviously began as the intelligent study of the human environment (Webster 393). From superstition and religious practices, the foundation of all other sciences was born. These concepts have subsequently grown into what we regard today as physics.It can be easily argued that the earliest evidence of mankinds scientific assessment of the physical world can be traced to the Babylonians. In all probability, the Babylonians had the first written language (Neugebauer 7). If for no other reason then these written records, we consider Babylonians to exhibit the first known efforts to understand things in a scientific method.The ancient Babylonians developed standards of weights and measures to ensure fair trade. They implemented a system of counting that was in many ways superior to our present system. Ancient Babylonians are credited with originating the studies of the sun, moon and stars that we base our calendars on to this present day (Spangenburg 5). Most important to this discussion of the origins of modern physics is the fact that some ancient Babylonian math tablets show that the Babylonians had ideas about Pythagoras Theorem one-thousand years before Pythagoras lived.Archeological evidence certainly supports that physics as an intelligent, scientific study of matter and energy dates back to the earliest existences of human civilization. As long as human beings have been organizing themselves, they have apparently been studying the physical world in which they lived..Because much of what we know about ancient civilizations like Babylon, Egypt, Maya and Aztec was rediscovered after a certain amoun...
