On Jan 28, 2012 5:32 PM, "gabin kattukaran" <[email protected]> wrote: > > On 28 January 2012 12:45, Udhay Shankar N <[email protected]> wrote: > > On 28/01/12 6:26 AM, Charles Haynes wrote: > >> > >> I would argue for the scientific method, or mathematics. > > > > > > It can be argued that neither of the above would have got any traction > > without the invention of writing, no? > > Language, which allowed communication even before writing should be > considered, no?
Isn't language innate, not "invented?" Don't other species besides humans have language? If you ate willing to accept argument by passive voice it can beer argued that writing is not necessary, but only an efficiency improvement. Mathematics is about abstraction and the manipulation of abstractions. An entirely new way of thinking about the world. The scientific method is about extending mathematical reasoning beyond syllogisms. Going from induction to deduction. Again an entirely new way of thinking rigorously about the world. -- Charles
