The Ilham Winter 2010

5THE ILHAM A Journal of Contemporary Digital Policy THE GREATEST PHILOSOPHERTHEWORLD HAS NEVER KNOWN Within the realm of academia, many scholars consider Ibn Khaldun, the great Muslim philosopher and thinker, the Father of Social Sciences. Khaldun, who lived during the 1300s, wrote the seminal work called the Muqqadimeh – a text that is still read today for its insightful view of learning and assessment of knowledge. Written in 1377,Khaldun’s Muqqadimeh lays out a unique,far-sighted view of learning and discovery,taking its author into fields as varied as astronomy,the science of history, economics,sociology and the scientific method itself,centuries later refined by Western scholars such as Leonardo diVinci and Sir Isaac Newtown. In the Muqqadimeh,Khaldun openly criticizes “idle superstition and uncritical acceptance of historical data” – a radical view for the times in which this great mind lived. The renowned British historian, Arnold Toynbee, referenced Khaldun’s Muqqadimeh as “a philosophy of history which is undoubtedly the greatest work of its kind that has ever yet been created by any man in any time or place” quite a review from a man who lived well after the coming of the Age of Reason.Toynbee recognized that Khaldun’s Muqqadimeh creates the foundation for the basic principles of the modern scientific method in which testing, evaluation of data, logic and reason are the tools that move civilization forward. SCIENCE IS DISCOVERY Khaldun recognizes the dangers of personal bias in the evaluation of social sciences,such as economics,and empirical sciences such as chemistry and biology. He realizes that thinkers bring to their studies inherent biases based on cultural beliefs,religious indoctrination and societal mores.Further,Khaldun identifies the roles of cultural bias and the negative impact these views have on standards of evaluating scientific evidence. Indeed,we can cite numerous examples of how cultural,religious and societal biases have diminished the value of empirical data, and impeded the dissemination of this information. For example,when Leonardo diVinci put forth his helio-centric theory of the solar system,the powerful Catholic Church forced diVinci to recant his theory and placed this great philosopher and “Renaissance” man under house arrest to prevent him from spreading what the Church considered blasphemy. Like Ibn Khaldun, Leonardo was a devoutly religious man, but also a man who recognized the importance of unbiased research and, just as importantly, the engagement of others in the exchange of ideas. Being placed under house arrest prevented the aged philosopher from engaging others in discussions of differing points of views and different theories of how the natural and social worlds function. BIAS IS SELF-LIMITING Khaldun,in the Muqqadimeh,addresses the negative effect of bias in the development of scientific data: “All records,by their very nature,are liable to error,” he writes.We see this today in all areas of both empirical and social sciences.Khaldun warned against partisanship of “creed or opinion,” and ignorance of laws governing the “transformation of human society.” In the mind of this Muslim thinker, these biases diminish the value of knowledge and the study of both the physical and sociologic spheres. Ibn Khaldun recognizes that personal bias has a negative impact on the interpretation and use of data, however it is gathered And today,within the Muslim world,we see similar points of view,especially among the youth of the Muslim world who passionately seek out discussion and exchange. ISLAM AND SOCIAL MEDIA Would Ibn Khaldun have a Facebook profile?