Are There Scientists in Ghana? II

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CITIZEN ONE 11 years ago

If indeed you can start to recruit like minded people of your caliber and tenacity, perhaps you can make a dent in the social and technological advancement of Ghana, for starters.

I admire your writings, you speak for me, ...
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If indeed you can start to recruit like minded people of your caliber and tenacity, perhaps you can make a dent in the social and technological advancement of Ghana, for starters.

I admire your writings, you speak for me, word for word you reason like me thought by thought, thanks.
Kwame Opare 11 years ago

Dr.SAS,
You are always spot on with your ideas, suggestions and observations. I would like to point out one thing- the Ghanaian is not unintelligent by any standard. The problem we have is lack of resources to help people r ...
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Dr.SAS,
You are always spot on with your ideas, suggestions and observations. I would like to point out one thing- the Ghanaian is not unintelligent by any standard. The problem we have is lack of resources to help people realize their dreams. My best friend just graduated from Cornell with magma cum laude. He went through the public school system in Ghana. How did he perform so well at an Ivy league school in the company of some of the best educated students of the world? He told me this at his graduation, " I could solve the puzzle to any mystery just by going to the library". The resource here is a well-stocked library. You can research on the library system and even those at our universities. The materials there are more than fifty years. Lecturers are crying and fighting over book and research allowance. How many of them have their "so called" research published in major journals? We are not realistic. We act with a defeatist mentality but expect a winner's result. We are all to blame. We need to support our towns and cities with libraries. i do not think any chief would refuse the request for a land to build a library for his community.
IDRIS PACAS 11 years ago

This part, lifted verbatim therein, is the plain and dark truth:

They are still looking for modern laboratories...forgetting that when Pythagoras came out with his theorem on triangles, or when Isaac Newton discovered the ...
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This part, lifted verbatim therein, is the plain and dark truth:

They are still looking for modern laboratories...forgetting that when Pythagoras came out with his theorem on triangles, or when Isaac Newton discovered the law of gravity, or when Archimedes found out how much of the king’s gold had been stolen through his principle of fluid displacement, there were no funds nor laboratories available to them.

Doctors who took Hippocratic Oath were reportedly running away from suspected ebola patients! What about those who transported the patient there?

The doctors even organized a press conference to just their behaviour with one the leaders saying that they have families.

Dr SAS, I must add that our numerous professors and doctors of sciences typically do cut-and-paste research and publish their findings to get promoted to those levels. Or as you put it, they do researches whose findings have no bearing on solving our problems both now and for ever.

Thus, the scientists and the other researchers at the universities and polytechnics must justify their continuous enjoyment of research and book allowances.
Kojo T 11 years ago

SAS I agree with you . I do not believe a science person praising Nkrumah will say opponents are eternal destryers as science knows about the constantcy of CHANGE . However it is your NPP that believes in " as it was in the b ...
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SAS I agree with you . I do not believe a science person praising Nkrumah will say opponents are eternal destryers as science knows about the constantcy of CHANGE . However it is your NPP that believes in " as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be" Nkrumaists believe in science and my post talks about using science to solve problems . Nkrumah built KNUST so it will lead in scientific research and innovation. . NPP has turned it into DEAD wood . Ghana can only move forward if we have progressive minded people
Ebibiman 11 years ago

Lost country

Lost country
Godfred Kwadwo Boateng 11 years ago

18 Professors from ""KNUST"", the University of Sceince and Technology of Ghana were told to sit in an airplane. When they were all seated and the plane was about to take off, they were told the plane was made by their own st ...
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18 Professors from ""KNUST"", the University of Sceince and Technology of Ghana were told to sit in an airplane. When they were all seated and the plane was about to take off, they were told the plane was made by their own students.They quickly run out of the plane leaving only one professor who was sitting confidently. When he was asked why he is still sitting, he said..' if the plane was made by our own students, trust me it won't even start.
k, n, a 11 years ago

A ghanaian guy is building his own drones called nn series. He demonstrated it at the airforce base before all the commnders .they took him on a tour of their labs at theairforce base to see if the guy can help them build som ...
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A ghanaian guy is building his own drones called nn series. He demonstrated it at the airforce base before all the commnders .they took him on a tour of their labs at theairforce base to see if the guy can help them build some parts in ghana , through him build ghana made drones and also teach pilots a lot of thing.he was to bring a draft contract for the consideration of the command of the ghaana armed forces and indeed the presidency ofter the guy had engaged a law to bring a first draft and before he submittrd the draft to thecommader of the air force they told him that the ghana airforce had decided to use the services of the israelise.when the guy came into conyact with the military I could see that he had intesfied his research to improve on his drone.he has been able to do certain things as result that drones on the market can not do. But the blow has dampened his spirit.Archemedes was encouraged and the others too. Do not blame ghanaian scientists alone. Blame everybody including yourself. You are writing big english. What have you done towards development of law in ghana? I am not sayi ng what you have written is not true, indeed it is the fact but we are all to blame.
Dr. Derek Dawadah 11 years ago

Trying to be funny, meanwhile you can't spell science. What a shame !

Trying to be funny, meanwhile you can't spell science. What a shame !
shaboo 11 years ago

So scientists in Ghana suck. That is fine. What is your contribution to Ghana in your field. Oh you do not even live in Ghana. Are Ghanaian scientists in the USA also not doing anything. If they are, then the problem is Ghana ...
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So scientists in Ghana suck. That is fine. What is your contribution to Ghana in your field. Oh you do not even live in Ghana. Are Ghanaian scientists in the USA also not doing anything. If they are, then the problem is Ghana and not the scientists. Can you tell what recent discoveries in science this last 50 years that came out of garages.
Joseph Darko-Yeboah Frempong 11 years ago

Shaboo, I think your comments are purely contradictory to what Mr Sarfo wants to disclose to Ghanaians at large. I totally agree with Samuel in the sense that, our brothers and sisters love to have titles; doctor, engineer, l ...
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Shaboo, I think your comments are purely contradictory to what Mr Sarfo wants to disclose to Ghanaians at large. I totally agree with Samuel in the sense that, our brothers and sisters love to have titles; doctor, engineer, lawyer, technician etc. but with no real knowledge of solving problems when the need arises. Ebola situation requires SCIENTIFIC thinking
so Sammy is Damn right to criticize...

Frank Appiah 11 years ago

"They are mostly ideological goons whose minds are infested with hegemonic praise for their idols and tribesmen while spewing eternal condemnation against their perceived enemies".

DR SAS,you have raised some important poi ...
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"They are mostly ideological goons whose minds are infested with hegemonic praise for their idols and tribesmen while spewing eternal condemnation against their perceived enemies".

DR SAS,you have raised some important points but your statement above is a vivid description of your own character.Your blind solidarity for MATEMEHO politicians and your hatred for others is inexplicable.Please,take a deep breath and examine yourself.
James Obeng 11 years ago

Not a single day passes without remembering the great Kwame Nkrumah.The visionary Kwame Nkrumah realised that Science and Technology is the key to uplifting the BLACKMAN,enhancing development in Africa and bringing Africa to ...
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Not a single day passes without remembering the great Kwame Nkrumah.The visionary Kwame Nkrumah realised that Science and Technology is the key to uplifting the BLACKMAN,enhancing development in Africa and bringing Africa to the level of the advanced nations.This is why over fifty years ago,he implemented the following:
1.established Ghana Atomic Energy Commission
2.converted Kumasi College of Technology into a full-fledged university and re-named it University of Science and Technology.
3.founded the University of Science Education at Cape Coast.
4.established the Ghana Academy of Sciences.
5.established Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.
6.established a complete ministry of Science and Higher education.
Kwame Nkrumah lives.
Fred Amoah 11 years ago

Thank you,James,My dad told me Nkrumah had a burning desire to propel Ghana into greater heights by using Science and Technology,so after establishing all those institutions,he encouraged Ghanaians to study science, establis ...
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Thank you,James,My dad told me Nkrumah had a burning desire to propel Ghana into greater heights by using Science and Technology,so after establishing all those institutions,he encouraged Ghanaians to study science, established a separate Ministry of Science and Higher Education,and appointed Mr Kwaku Boateng,one of his astute Cabinet ministers to head the Ministry.
Robert Okine 11 years ago

DR SAS,you were a Science student so you have an advantage and also capable of inventing something or making some discoveries instead of foolishly branding Ghanaian scientists as pseudo-scientists.Over to you,DR SAS.

DR SAS,you were a Science student so you have an advantage and also capable of inventing something or making some discoveries instead of foolishly branding Ghanaian scientists as pseudo-scientists.Over to you,DR SAS.
Mark 11 years ago

DR SAS,Why don't you go to your garage and start some inventions or discoveries,instead of lambasting Ghanaian scientists and describing them as pseudo-scientists?

DR SAS,Why don't you go to your garage and start some inventions or discoveries,instead of lambasting Ghanaian scientists and describing them as pseudo-scientists?
Fred Amoah 11 years ago

DR SAS,if you are living a comfortable life in U.S. with your family,don't overlook the hardships Ghanaians are going through.Does it make sense attacking Ghanaian scientists who can't even afford three square meals a day? Wh ...
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DR SAS,if you are living a comfortable life in U.S. with your family,don't overlook the hardships Ghanaians are going through.Does it make sense attacking Ghanaian scientists who can't even afford three square meals a day? Why do you think Ghanaian teachers and lecturers went on strike recently? Ghanain scientists need a sound mind too. Mind you,Bill Gates,Archimedes,Isaac Newton etc were not struggling to put food on their table.
Julius Apprey 11 years ago

Thank you Fred.I hope DR SAS will read your response.You hit the nail right on it's head.

Thank you Fred.I hope DR SAS will read your response.You hit the nail right on it's head.
J.K 11 years ago

I am also interested to read DR SAS' achievements.I believe it will be an inspiration for everybody.

I am also interested to read DR SAS' achievements.I believe it will be an inspiration for everybody.
Captain Canada 11 years ago

garages

garages
Dr. SAS, Attorney at Law 11 years ago

Shaboo,
Ordinarily, I do not dignify contributors who use moniker with answers because I think they are simply cowards parading these pages as apparitions of mischief. But I can address your concerns with gusto. Note that so ...
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Shaboo,
Ordinarily, I do not dignify contributors who use moniker with answers because I think they are simply cowards parading these pages as apparitions of mischief. But I can address your concerns with gusto. Note that somebody has already educated you about inventions that emanated from garages. But concerning my own contribution to Ghana, be assured that there can never be anybody now living that has done more for his people than I have with the little that I have. I say this with full conviction and challenge those in doubt to verify my assertion.
And if you challenge me, I am going to make you a list, and thereafter, you will be the one calling me boastful.

shaboo 11 years ago

Good for you. I can also assure you of my many contributions I have made to mother Ghana. I can also outline several impediments I had to go through even to donate genuine medical equipment to hospitals in Ghana. I can also p ...
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Good for you. I can also assure you of my many contributions I have made to mother Ghana. I can also outline several impediments I had to go through even to donate genuine medical equipment to hospitals in Ghana. I can also point out to you the frustrations one goes through if you have an idea or prototype that will serve Ghana well. My point is a lot of scientists have done things within their capabilities that you may not be aware of. They don't even want money, just encouragement. I tell you that encouragement is zero and frustrations and pull them down are 100%. Believe me, and take that into consideration when writing articles.
Dr. SAS, Attorney at Law 11 years ago

Are you now going back on your inquiry as to what I have done for my country and your question about the inventions emanating from the garage? If so, apologize immediately before I deluge this space with a list of what I have ...
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Are you now going back on your inquiry as to what I have done for my country and your question about the inventions emanating from the garage? If so, apologize immediately before I deluge this space with a list of what I have done.
At the SDA High School in a
Asokore-Koforidua, there is a whole dormitory named after me, and you should ask yourself why.
I am willing to debate with you on any of the issues I have raised in my article, but I am not going to allow you to question my contribution to my country and later sweep your question under the carpet.
Kwame Bediako 11 years ago

DR SAS,I think your list of achievements could be an inspiration to others.

DR SAS,I think your list of achievements could be an inspiration to others.
Dr. SAS, Attorney at Law 11 years ago

1. I founded the SDA High School in the year 2001 of which I was the first headmaster. I donated a bus to that school in 2009. That bus is still in use. You can go to Asokore-Koforidua and verify for yourself.

2. Since I c ...
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1. I founded the SDA High School in the year 2001 of which I was the first headmaster. I donated a bus to that school in 2009. That bus is still in use. You can go to Asokore-Koforidua and verify for yourself.

2. Since I came to the USA in 2002, I have paid the hospital bills of at least thirty people in Ghana, most of whom suffered from hernia, cataract, ulcer and diabetes.

3. I have provided boarding and lodging for at least 11 Ghanaians who migrated to the USA.

4. I have provided initial capital and employment for over fifty people engaged in various enterprises in Ghana.

5. As a lawyer, I have provided pro bono services to over a hundred Ghanaians and people of African origin. I continue to do so on a daily basis.

6. I have paid the school fees and other fees of over fifty Ghanaians in secondary and tertiary institutions in Ghana. I continue to do this.

But the most important thing is that I have never met anybody my age and income bracket that has done more for his country than me; and I will continue to do so until I die. My objective in life is to do the most good to the most people at the most time, and I don't do this because of any stupid notion that I want to go to heaven. I do this because benevolence and righteousness make me a happy person. They comprise the secret potion for a happy life!
But I become angry with this notion that those of us in the diaspora do not contribute anything to our country's progress. The stupid refrain, "What have you done for your country?" is a hollow question best directed at those who ask it.
C'MADE--VA 11 years ago

Well presented and holds water.Keep it up.

Well presented and holds water.Keep it up.
Dr. adumtumi nyansafuo 11 years ago

It is sad, all Ghanaian scientist are in the U.S. publishing garbage journals everyday. It is unfortunate, that our Ghanaian scientist are serving the U.S. instead of their country. I was one of them, then I moved on to the I ...
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It is sad, all Ghanaian scientist are in the U.S. publishing garbage journals everyday. It is unfortunate, that our Ghanaian scientist are serving the U.S. instead of their country. I was one of them, then I moved on to the IT business.
K. Austin 11 years ago

There is no shame in a doctor running from Ebola if you consider the context the statement was made. The doctors were complaining about lack of protective equipment. Do you expect any reasonable doctor to attend to an ebola c ...
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There is no shame in a doctor running from Ebola if you consider the context the statement was made. The doctors were complaining about lack of protective equipment. Do you expect any reasonable doctor to attend to an ebola case without the necessary protective equipment? Or do you expect the doctors to acquire the PEP by themselves, with the money they have received through numerous strike actions? If any doctor chooses to attend to Ebola cases without the necessary PEP, I will consider him/her a dangerous doctor. The problem with Ghana is not one of scientist. You the non-scientist are those who have messed up the country big time. Some even carry with them the love for big titles like preceding their names with "Dr" when they have J.D. degree when US attorneys do not call themselves doctors.
MARCUS AMPADU 11 years ago

One of the casualties of the overthrow of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah was the teaching and learning of science. Ever since the 1966 coup d'état, the passion and the prestige Ghanaians attached to science evaporated into thin air.

T ...
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One of the casualties of the overthrow of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah was the teaching and learning of science. Ever since the 1966 coup d'état, the passion and the prestige Ghanaians attached to science evaporated into thin air.

The effort to teach and learn science slackened.
Kweku Donsuro 11 years ago

Needless, useless and hollow article. If you have nothing to do, don't do it here to waste our time.

Needless, useless and hollow article. If you have nothing to do, don't do it here to waste our time.
Kweku Donsuro 11 years ago

This Dr Sarfo is inexperienced and he writes like a child. I pity the type of doctorate he holds which makes him write such puerile and juvenile articles like this on ghanaweb. He is disgracing himself and belittling himself ...
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This Dr Sarfo is inexperienced and he writes like a child. I pity the type of doctorate he holds which makes him write such puerile and juvenile articles like this on ghanaweb. He is disgracing himself and belittling himself because he over-exposes himself as someone puerile and not worth his credentials.

francis kwarteng 11 years ago

Dear Readers,

My contributions here have absoluteky nothing to do with race but rather with the history of science. I merely want to say "science" did not fall from the sky as surelly as the apple did with Isaac Newton (an ...
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Dear Readers,

My contributions here have absoluteky nothing to do with race but rather with the history of science. I merely want to say "science" did not fall from the sky as surelly as the apple did with Isaac Newton (and others).

There is a long history of science (mathematics, etc) before Archimedes, Isaac Newton, Galileo, etc., were born. We have to be careful else we end up unneccesarily exaggerating the intellectua gifts of these great men. They were great nonetheless!

My contributions merely say we Africans (Ghaianains, etec) did it before and can still do it. My contributions supplement Dr. SAS's. I am one of his stuanch supporters when it comes to this series. I am not saying we should dabble in the past at the expense of the present.

I do, however, believe it is important to stress here that the plague which allegedly killed a third or so of Athenians during the Peloponnessian War (5BC) (See Thucydides' "History of the Pelonnesian War") has been been attributed to the Ebola virus by some scholars (others say it is typhoid). Thucydides, 5BC Greek writer, said Ethiopians brought the disease to Greece.

Dr. SAS has implied and even explicitly so in many places why we (Africans, Ghanaians in partcular, have not found cures for ailments afflicting us) have not had cure for Ebola!

Finally, I have included a latest book by Wole Soyinka (in which he discusses medical cases, one in particular, that some of the best hospitals and experts in America could not solve but a Western-trained Ghanaian-based solved.

The patient Wole Soyinka discusses is an American-based Ghanaian he is related to through marriage. The book's title is "Of Africa." The patient in question was paralyzed and was consigned to a wheel chair. No medicine and technology (surgeries) could make him in America, make him walk. See pages 123-126 of the book.

I believe Dr. SAS is doing a great job. We need science and technology to solve many of our problems.

The issues he is addressing are ones I have raised in many of my articles. I tried to do so through the profiles I built on Ghanaian natural/social scientists such as Drs. Victor Lawrence, Yaw Nyarko, etc.

Elsehwere, I have briefly discussed the contributions of Ave kludze, Trebi Ashitey-Ollenu, Daniel Bentill, Francis Allotey, Isaiah Blackson to scientific knowledge. There are several of these Ghanains all over the place. But I did ask in my profiles on these magnificent scientists why the seem to do so well in the West?

I repeatedly ask this very question on my profile on Dr. Victor Lawrence, one of Americal's most cherished academic scientists and acdemic inventors. I have the occassion to communicate with Dr. Victor Lawrence but never had the opportunity to pose this particular question to him.

It seems to me the answer is so obvious, which is exactly what Dr. SAS, I strongly believe, is trying to address in thi series, among others. Again, for instance, how come O'Level and A'Level science adequately prepare Ave Kluzde (who did his O'Level science at Adisco) and Trebi Ashitey-Ollenu (who did both his O'Level/A'Level science) in Ghana for higher theoretical levels of science, eventually putting them on a par with scientists anywhere on the planet?

That is, how is our "falling" educational systems able to lay strong foundations for such great minds (Kludze, Lawrence, Allotey, etc) who seem only to excel in foreign lands?

I grappled with these questions in my series on Ghanaweb and elsewhere. Answering these questions forthrightly is as important as coming close to why we lag behind in natural science, though Africa has contributed to the sciences as any other continent, ancient and modern. This is why I love history and the history of science.

Getting into the nitty gritties of the history of science, for instance, is just as important. The history of science (as well history of knowledge, history of philosophy, etc) clearly shows science is not the exclusive province of any race or continent.

I am not saying this is what Dr. SAS is implying. The issues he's raising are bigger than my simplistic and overgeneralized rantings.

For instance, there are many who don't even know Issac Newton's Second Law of Motion had been presged by Rene Descartes, the French mathematician and philosopher, the man after whom Cartesian geometry is named, nor do some even know Isaac Newton, a man who used his position as President of the Royal Society (of Science) to bully a prominent scientist-member of the Royal Society, thereby illegally obtaining reliable data to test his theories, a controversy Dr. Stephen Hawking describes in his best-selling and difficult-to-read book ("A Brief History of Time"; remember Stephen Hawking held Cambridge University's "Lucasian Chair of Mathematics" as Isaac Newton, etc).

Let me also add that Isaac Newton thanks credited ancient Egyptians (Africans) whose views/writings on cosmology, for instance, anticipated his revolutionary theories. In other words, his exposure to ancient Egyptian science partly forms the basis of his radical scientific discoveries.

Isaac Newton made these observations in his three-volume books "Philosophae Naturalis Principia Mathematica." Stephen Hawkings has even shown Isaac Newton's "apple falling from a tree" to be a self-serving myth. This revelation is hardly taught in Western educational institutions (This is why I have for the most part argued strongly against Eurocentric education).

Even the modern calender we use today is a revision of African calender (ancient Egyptian). NASA scientist (astrophysicist" Dr. Thomas Brophy and Egyptologist Dr. Robert Bauval have shown in their books "Imhotep the African: Architect of the Cosmos" and "Blak Genesis: The Prehistoric Origins of Ancient Egypy" how Black Africans laid the foundation for waht most people attribute to Europe. They show in the former book how Imhotep, a Black African, was as great as Michelangelo, Issac Newton, Galileo, and Da Vinci combined!

And Pythagoras Theorem is misnomer. Pythagoras sttued mathematics, science, and philosphy in ancient Egypt where the ancient had invented the theorem 1500 years before his birth.

Still, after Pythagoras studies in Egypt he continued his studies with the Babylonians who, interestingly, had invented the theorem 1000 years before his birth. How then is the theorem named after him? Many have not seen a relation between the so-called Pythagoras theorem to Egyptian pyramids, for instance. Those interested in understanding this question can read Richard J. Gillings' authoritative book on ancient Egyptian mathematics "Mathematics in the Time of the Pharoahs." Ancient knew and worked with fractions, etc.

Furthermore, the ancient Egyptians were also masters of series and sequences,algebrai equations, mensuration (formulas to measure volumes and areas of solids such as spheres, cones, triangles, etc. They had also calculated pi (22/7) almost to what we have today before the Greeks even knew what pi was.

Yet the West had assigned these attributions and several others to the Greeks, despite the fact that ancient Greek writers, students, and scholars who spent time studying and exploring ancient Egypt unanimously attributed these innovative ideas to Black Africans (See Herodotus' "The Histories," partcularly books 11/111; Cheikh Anta Diop's "Civilization or Barbarism: An Authentic Anthropology" and "African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality"; all three sources should give you a list of primary sources as to what ancient Greek themselves had to say how about Greek and therefore Western science, philosophy, mathematics, etc., originated from Africa. Diop lists Greek names and which original idea originated with Africans).

Furthermore, the concept of zero, algebra, and the so-called numeral system (Arabic numerals), to name but a few, are not Western in origin. Dr. Chandra Kant Raju explores these questions in his Kindle ebook "Is Science Western in Origin?" Moreover, the most important instruments which Galileo Galilei used in his famous experiments did not come from Rome, they came from ancient Egypt.

And no one can talk about science, sociology, philosophy, mathematics, etc., without mentioning the huge contributions Arabs and Africans made to European science even before men like Issac Newton and Galileo Galilei appeared on the scene, 8th centuty onwards. Anyone intereted in Muslimized African/Arab contributions to science can read Dr. Ivan Van Sertima's "Golden Age of the Moors" and Stanley-Lane Poole's "The Moors in Spain."

Readers may have to recall that the Muslim world I am dealing with here was an assortment of races and ethnicieties, Africans, Persians, Jews, Arabians, etc. For instance, very few know "evolution" which includes the concept of "natural selection" did not originate with Charles Darwin or Alfred Russel Wallace, two of the foremost thinkers associated with the modern concept of evolution. In fact, Al-Jahiz, the famed Afro-Arab, of East African and Arab parentage, had written a books Kitab al-Hayawan ("Book of Animals") in which he discussed "natural selection," etc., hundreds of years before the birth of Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace. Such writings and several others ended up in Europe (some during and others after the Crusades).

These writings paved the way for Europe to establish centers to translate these wtitings in Latin. This is how the modern university in Europe was born, the first being in Spain (where Africans/Arab conquered first and ruled for nearly 800 years (See Ivan Sertima's "African Presence in Early Europe" and "Golden Age of the Moors").

In other words, the translation centers became the earliest universities in Europe. The University of Timbuktu competed with these universities. Besides, there is a strong little-known conection between knowldge production at the University of Timbuktu and those early European Universities. Translations and transliteration of manuscripts (hundreds of thousands) is still ongoing at the University of Tinmbuktu. We should know the full scale of Africa's medieval contributions to human knowldge once this work is done. So far, what has come out is shocking, with the National Geographic (i have forgotten the edition), for instance, featuring one manuscript which had African scientists and philosophers at the University of Timbuktu discussing women's right in the Midddle Age before the idea became fashionable in the West in the 20th century.

Here are a few references, refernces our teachers, scholar's, leadesr of our institutions, and politicians should read:

1) Martin Bernal

a) Black Athena: Afroasiatic Roots of Classical Civilization (Volume 1: The Fabrication of Ancient Greece)

b) Black Athena: Afroasiatic Roots of Classical Civilization (Volume 2: The Archeological and Documentary Evidence)

c) Black Athena: The Afroasiatic Roots of Classical Civilization (Volume 3: The Linguistic Evidence)

2) Ivan Van Sertima

Blacks in Science: Andcient and Modern

3) Theophile Obega

African Philosophy: The Phaoronic Period (2780 - 330 BC)

4) George G.M. James

Stolen Legacy

5) Richar Poe

Black Spark, White Fire

6) Wole Soyinka

Of Africa

Again, my contributions do not necessarily have to do with race. They are to fill some of the gaps in the narrative as far as the history of science is concerned.

We need to understand how science began and who (and where) laid the foundation for the likes of Galileo, Newton, Diop, Descatres, Trebi-Ashitey, Archimedes, Coppernicus, Kludze, Allotey, etc. The bases of what had been attributed to Newton, Archimedes, Pythagoras, Einstein, etc., mostly ancient and Medieval Europeans, had been there already.

We should not forget Indians, Africans, Persians, Arabs, Chinese, etc., when we discuss the history of science. These should go a long way to disabuse the minds of those who have always thought the Isaac Newtons, the Archimedes, the Galileos were superhuman. They were not. Others had thought for them across several generations and by many societies and human beings.

Moreover, any student of world history and European history in partcular should know how these scientists collaborated with others across Europe, with some getting financial assistance from private individuals/patrons/monarchies and organizations, etc. Greek science, mathematics, philosophy, etc., was transmittted throught what has come to be called "The Mystery System," where a group of privileged students received instructions in the sciences, mathematics, etc.

"The Mystery System" evolved out of ancient Egypt. The Greeks who studied in ancient Egypt carried this mystery system to mainland Greece. In fact, the "Mystery System" served as universities in ancient Egypt. What I am saying is that scientific discoveries, ancient and modern, have not absolutely been achieved by individuals but by groups, communites, nations, continents.

Enabling environments, right thinking (critical thinking, etc) appropriate remuneration for scientists, appropraite research (research apprpriate to our particular situation, like finding cures for Ebola and Malaria), encouraging the youth (and girls) to take up science and mathematics, cutting down on reliogisity, local scientists collaborating with their peers outside Africa, etc., are things we need to work on. This also means students should have a strong foundation in the humanities/liberal sciences! This was why the ancient Greeks and ancient Egyptians and seveeral other anciens did not separate science from philosophy per se. I guess knowldge has expanded to a level where it has become neccessary to opt for compartmentalization (specialization).

Let's ait and see what Dr. SAS has to add in later series.

All errors are mine.

Thanks.
Dr. SAS, Attorney at Law 11 years ago

Bro. Francis,
I am just making a demand on our scientists to think scientifically. I have defined what I mean by scientific thinking in paragraph four of my essay. Is it too much to ask this basic function of our scientists ...
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Bro. Francis,
I am just making a demand on our scientists to think scientifically. I have defined what I mean by scientific thinking in paragraph four of my essay. Is it too much to ask this basic function of our scientists?
And yet see the type of excuses and blame game going on here.
As to the credits for the origination of scientific ideas, I have no doubt that they belong to all humankind. Remember I said this in my article titled " the Holy Grail of Afrocentric Culture" in which I argued the universality of global epistemology, much to the chagrin of many readers. Besides, many of these pioneers agree that they were not alone in bringing about their scientific accomplishments. Remember Isaac Newton himself stated that if he had been able to see thus far, it was because he stood in the shoulder of giants. Thus wise men agree that they don't achieve feats alone, all by themselves, except of course your idol Kwame Nkrumah who you credit with Ghana's independence!
But more seriously, the danger we face as a country is simply the massive investments we have made training scientists who cannot reason logically or think critically...... People who say that doctors are not protected enough so they can abandon Ebola patients without asking why there is no intelligent innovation to go around the problem!
'
francis kwarteng 11 years ago

Dear Dr. SAS,

I was not questioning your core views at all--far from it. I agree with the issues you have raised thus far in both essays, Brother SAS. I believe they are the kind of questions we should be discussing and at ...
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Dear Dr. SAS,

I was not questioning your core views at all--far from it. I agree with the issues you have raised thus far in both essays, Brother SAS. I believe they are the kind of questions we should be discussing and attempting to answer as a nation.

Rather, I was merely trying to draw a connection between how some societies have succeeded in the area of science and scientific application and what it is we as Africans (Ghanaians for that matter) can do to catch up today. My primary concern is today (not about race or yesterday per se).

Further, I want us to address part of conundrum on why there is a marked discontuinity between scientific African of old and Africa today. Why is it that we cannot do today what we did yesterday?

Why is it that American, unlike African, scientists are still interetsted in studying Egyptian mummies to understand how cells can survive thousand of years when modern science has no explanation?

How can Ghanaian scientists come up with Ebola vaccine when they cannot make simple attempts to understand how a mummified cell, for instance, works, like Americans are doing?

How is that Japanese, unlike African engineers and architects, engineers and architects are interetsted in understanding how Egyptians built pyramids that have stood the test of time? Why can't Ghanaian storey buildings are falling apart after a couple of years?

Is it any wonder NASA astrophyscists like Dr. Thomas Brophy (whom I mentioned earlier)have been contracted by NASA to study Egyptain achitecture, their relationship to the architecture universe, etc., so as to enhance space technology?

Elsewhere, I also tried to raise another question, why there is no continuity between elementary science and advanced science (in terms of scientific discoveries, etc) in Africa (i.e. Ghana). I chose the example of Ave Kludze and Trebi Ashitey-Ollenu, to name but two.

The ultimate question is, why am I raising these examples and those in my earlier commentary: Like I said before, I merely want to us to understand another way by which to push science and scientific discoveries in Ghana and elsewhere in Africa.

On the other hand, I brought the example of Wole Soyinka to suggest why we need not throw away traditional knowldge of science (herbal science, for instance). Western pharmacology, for instance, had been traditionally based on plants until a few decades ago when synthetic formulas based on structural similaries to their botanical versions were found. Thus we need to push the lid of science a bit wider!

A chunk of this plant-based pharmacology the West obtained from Africans during the colonial era and even after. For instance, a seven-year-old child in South Africa knew the names and functions (uses) of literally hundreds of plants during White colonialism there, yet today the same coloniasm destroyed this knowledge-base that (herbal science) had kept the ingenious people of alive for generations. We therefore need a hybrid of traditional knowledge and scientific ones.

Wole Soyinka, for instance, discusses American-based Nigerian scientists who have made pharmacoligical discoveries for skin cancer (plant derived from Nigeria). These scientists and their French counterparts are yet to conduct clinical trials to establish its efficacy.

The other point is also that some of our important local scientists have done some useful work (published in prestigious international journals) but have no relevance to local problems. On the other hand, if we can scientifically learn to make even generic drugs, then we can extend that knowledge/scientific technique to drug discoveries. This is what India and China have done.

Food for thought: Resources, unbridled curiosity, drive, intellectual freedom (democracy), collaboration (local and international), economic boom, examples from other places and across time, accountability from scientists, improving the pedagogy of science and mathematics via early stages of primary education, etc., are some of the implied theories behind my earlier commentary.

Finally, we need not forget that scientific discoveries are not always book-based or even knowledge-based. Neither is it always based on degrees or formal education. I am not saying you said those. I am merely saying we should look at the bigger picture.

Now, regarding scientific discoveries and inventions, the field of microbiology has many examples of accidental discoveries, especially in the area of antibiotics. Alexander Fleming discovered Penicillin by accident. Thus, epiphany and luck are part of the equation of scientific discoveries.

Michael Jackson is an inventor thought he has no hardcore science training in science or engineering. There so many inventors like that (Bright Simons, Bill Gates, Mark Zuberberg, etc). Let us therefore look at all avenues. Again, creativity pe ser is not necessarily a linear function of science or even of advanced scientific training. We need to inculcate these in our students. Our educated scientists and medical researchers need to collaborate with traditional herbalists whose knowledge may sometimes be useful to our Western-educated medican doctors and medical scientists.

That is we don't have to teach students that discoveries are always functions of formal education or advanced degrees. That is also why we need to strengthen the humanities/liberal arts to make the knowldge our students acquire broad.

I hope I have adequately corrected the wrong impression I may have made in my earlier comentary. Let us undersand the bigger picture first and implement the suggenstions, both explicit and implicit,you raise in your beautiful essays.

That said, Brother SAS, I believe I am on the same page with you. Therefore, my earlier commentary was not meant to undermine your central thesie. I merely wanted to supplement it.

All errors are mine (like I said, I hardly proofread my comments).

Thanks.
Kojo T 11 years ago

Thanks Bra Francis . This is the kind of thinking we should be focusing on earlier I had said If egyptians could store food in granaries , why do we condemn Nkrumah for building Silos and call that a " communist" idea. They u ...
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Thanks Bra Francis . This is the kind of thinking we should be focusing on earlier I had said If egyptians could store food in granaries , why do we condemn Nkrumah for building Silos and call that a " communist" idea. They used ploughs and dams from the Nile to feed themselves for ages and we could not learn from them?
francis kwarteng 11 years ago

Dear Brother Kojo T,

How are you? Long time, no see.

Please next time I will make sure I don't beat you to it. Hahahahaha...

Have a great day.

Thanks.

Dear Brother Kojo T,

How are you? Long time, no see.

Please next time I will make sure I don't beat you to it. Hahahahaha...

Have a great day.

Thanks.
mumbrukum 11 years ago

Ghana doctors only want bigger pay, tittles,good living and societal recognition. They were not ashame for declaring that they would run away from ebola patients. What a mouth, mouth profession

Ghana doctors only want bigger pay, tittles,good living and societal recognition. They were not ashame for declaring that they would run away from ebola patients. What a mouth, mouth profession
Concerned 11 years ago

It was the American and Russian governments which decided tbey wanted to go to space and commission the scientists as wel asl provided the resources and support needed to do just that. All those scientists you mentioned made ...
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It was the American and Russian governments which decided tbey wanted to go to space and commission the scientists as wel asl provided the resources and support needed to do just that. All those scientists you mentioned made discoveries which were then given practical applications by a conscious effort by government or society as a whole. Ghana does not lack creative scientists but their effort is not taken to the next level. Examples include many of our local medicines which can be made more potent and then prescribed by local doctors.As for the ebola issue, it has nothing to do with science. If the doctors are not given protective clothing of course they have to run. Would ypu ask your child to approach someone with ebola without protection? They are e doctors not stupid
Kofi Gasu 11 years ago

Blame all these problems on our leaders over the past years.After Nkrumah, all we have had are these visionless leaders who glamorize consumarism. What a pity Ghana continues to export all unprocessed agricultural products fr ...
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Blame all these problems on our leaders over the past years.After Nkrumah, all we have had are these visionless leaders who glamorize consumarism. What a pity Ghana continues to export all unprocessed agricultural products from cocoa to Kwadu.? Tweah!!!!
Fred Amoah 11 years ago

CONCERN,you are absolutely right.The first Republic set the pace and created favourable conditions for our scientists.The overthrow of Nkrumah was a major setback for all Africans.

CONCERN,you are absolutely right.The first Republic set the pace and created favourable conditions for our scientists.The overthrow of Nkrumah was a major setback for all Africans.
One mosquito screen at a time 11 years ago

Ghanaians have not shed their pastime of story telling. This conclusion is derived from a survey of three hundred Ghanaweb articles. Sir, why don't you build a lab in Ghana?

Ghanaians have not shed their pastime of story telling. This conclusion is derived from a survey of three hundred Ghanaweb articles. Sir, why don't you build a lab in Ghana?
Koo Nimo 11 years ago

Sam, to answer your question, it's NOOOO!. We only have vision-less politicians, fear-monger and clue-less economists, doom and gloom prophets and pastors, power hungry but solution-less opposition, clue-less incumbent gover ...
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Sam, to answer your question, it's NOOOO!. We only have vision-less politicians, fear-monger and clue-less economists, doom and gloom prophets and pastors, power hungry but solution-less opposition, clue-less incumbent government, scientific-less academics leading a people that were once Africa's pride. How did we get here? To answer this question, we need to go back in time and not restrict our reflections to NDC/NPP era. Is there scientific reasoning in Ghana? Your guess is as good as mine.
YAW 11 years ago

Scholars behaving like boats..making the loudest noise when in a fog.Maybe Dr,SAS, can single-handedly prove to us, the Tesla,Fleming,Brunel or the Edison in him.Some of us are not scientifically inclined.The science scholar, ...
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Scholars behaving like boats..making the loudest noise when in a fog.Maybe Dr,SAS, can single-handedly prove to us, the Tesla,Fleming,Brunel or the Edison in him.Some of us are not scientifically inclined.The science scholar, wrote a stinging satire on Ghanaian politics in the 50"s and 60"s.He is no different from the Enlightened & Eminent Dr,SAS, calling those who appreciate what Nkrumah did as " Worshippers,donkeys,sheep and dogs.
Captain Canada 11 years ago

and apostles of churches. Mind you they are not scientists in the western sense. They are scientist in Ghanaians sense. Which means magic and miracles. No test tubes or lab coats need. Just painting your face and yelling gibb ...
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and apostles of churches. Mind you they are not scientists in the western sense. They are scientist in Ghanaians sense. Which means magic and miracles. No test tubes or lab coats need. Just painting your face and yelling gibberish is all you need. In the case of the apostles, wearing suit and yelling is all that is needed. In Ghana scientists exists just as unicorns exists.

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Are There Scientists in Ghana? II

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