Ibn al-Haytham

Scientific  

/ ĭb′ənĕl-hī′thəm /

1. Arab mathematician who wrote almost 100 works on mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, and medicine, but who is best known for his book on optics, which became very influential in Europe after it was translated in the 13th century. It contained a detailed description of the eye and disproved the older Greek idea that vision is the result of the eye sending out rays to the object being looked at.

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Example Sentences

If Ibn al-Haytham offered plenty of real experiments, medieval philosophy is also full of thought experiments designed to test the implications of theories.

From Literature

Scientists investigating the hydrology of the Nile are likely to have heard the story of their tenth-century predecessor, mathematician and physicist Ibn al-Haytham.

From Nature

Al-Hasan Ibn al-Haytham transformed the study of light and optics.

From Economist

Dr. Kudair al-Tai, head of the technical department at Ibn al-Haytham Hospital, the country’s main eye hospital, is one of those waging the campaign.

From New York Times

A similar point may be made about the work of Ibn al-Haytham.

From Literature