Ancient Engineering Wonders

Sure. For example, the ancient Greeks hand chiseled a 3300 foot long tunnel under a 900 foot hill on the island of Samos. It was dug from both ends, and I assume the two excavations met roughly halfway across; the surveying methods used to do this, to ensure that the two excavations met, were still unknown as of 2002.

Keep in mind what one pundit wrote several years ago; World War III will be fought with nuclear weapons; World War IV with sticks and stones.

Sure. For example, the ancient Greeks hand chiseled a 3300 foot long tunnel under a 900 foot hill on the island of Samos. It was dug from both ends, and I assume the two excavations met roughly halfway across; the surveying methods used to do this, to ensure that the two excavations met, were still unknown as of 2002.

How can you tell if it was hand chiseled, if they had the technology to allign the 2 ends maybe they had more advanced method of boring.

It is my understanding, based upon (1) available historical records of the work, as well as (2) a comparison of the work-site to other similar engineering artifacts in which the labor techniques are historically documented, (3) historical records of Greek techniques in construction and engineering, and (4) a number of examinations of these artifacts by contemporary researchers is that a very reasonably accurate and prudent conclusion that these artifacts were hand-chiseled is justified.

if so y was it lost .

A classic dissemination issue....

Puma Punku,Tiahuanaco, Baalbeck,Sacsayhuaman,Stonehenge,The Great Pyramind, www. world-mysteries.com. Check it out!

I don't think the technology disappeared. It was just put on the back burner so-to-speak. If sitting on that back burner for too long a time, it might have been forgotten only to be rediscovered ages later. The technology used to build the great wall of China or the pyramids was probably state-of-the-art at the time, but had to stop progress until new technologies like electricity, internal combustion were discovered.

I'm sure this will generate some angry responses...

The ancient wonders are marvelous engineering achievements. They are the product of intelligent people who had a sufficient understanding of the world around them to design and build these structures. Some of these wonders are also the product of many GENERATIONS of careful observation and large labor forces (volunteer, paid, and unfortunately slave labor). Just because we can't imagine a 100+ year project or lifting a stone block without a modern crane, only means WE aren't as smart as we like to think we are.

To attribute these ancient achievements to aliens or some advanced anti-gravity technology that has yet to be re-discovered is silly and an INSULT to our resourceful ancestors.

Some knowledge isn't really lost. It is voluntarily avoided. If you strand a group of (2009) people on a tropical island, which has fresh water and a herd of friendly pigs, many of them would die from dehydration or starvation. Without water from plastic bottles and food from Styrofoam containers, they simply could not cope. A group of people from 200 years ago, placed in the same conditions, would thrive! (They might also burn you at the stake because of your cell-phone witchcraft. ;-)

The more advanced and specialized a civilization becomes, the more easily they can be thrown back into a dark age. It depends on how much of the acquired knowledge is lost (or intentionally suppressed). If the current infrastructure was completely destroyed (large asteroid impact for example), it would be a long and hard road to return to where we are today.

The human animal is basically like all other animals, survival and procreation would initially be the top priorities. Eventually, our insatiable curiosity and capability for abstract thought would re-surface and progress would resume.

I don't know why anyone should be angry with your comment. Perhaps, this could be added to it: Religion, has never focused on staying technologically advanced. If one did stay up with the times in it's fundamentals, all sorts of changes, to which it might have to adapt, would throw it into disarray and put this one or that one, "out of business". Most religions depend on elders for stability, in the immediate community in any case. Older people and the aging process they are subject to, for most make keeping up with the new technology, at least in our age, difficult and to some degree pointless for them. Should the younger "able" try to be patient and try to teach them (I could use some help with Photoshop myself) or be patient and try to learn from them ? Is there a real controversy here ? hn

Mib1962853,

Your point seems to be factual. After all we are comfortably living on the hard work, provisions, technologies and engineering marvels developed by our ancestors and are very comfortably placed. It is rather questionable, whether this generations can work with the same stamina and against hardships of earlier generations. Probably we blame and continue on the strong foundations of older generations. Made weaker by comforts?

You've made an interesting point, and of special interest to us now was we face the potential for pandemic with the swine flu, and also a slower culling if effects of so called, "climate change" create massive substantial new unlivable or unfarmable areas of our planet and population continues to grow because of the "basic survival instinct" toward procreation. What's interesting is that this theme has been looked at at least in metaphor by several science fiction writers, including a favorite of mine, Isaac Asimov, in his "Foundation" series. His "conclusion" was that the breakdown of civilization was inevitable from time to time, though the best plan to deal with that is to set up in place some mechanism in his story a "Second Foundation" so that the recivilization of man could be shortened by several hundreds of years, even though not totally avoided. I wonder what government plans exist to restart technological civilization if a massive die out of mankind occurred, or what some reasonable options/alternatives could be suggested? hn NYC

For example, 40 years ago we went to the moon!

And we yet to return.

Hi...

Yes, in one of my project the civil engineering counterparts were hard pressed in trying to correctly water proof a deep foundation where all lubricating systems had to be installed several meters below ground level.

At that time i visited the Taj Mahal in Agra a 375year old monument standing on the banks of the Yamuna river. What wondered me was that the graves of the old Muslim rulers were located several meters below ground level and the water proofing done in those days was effective till date!!! There was'nt any seepage. Maybe, the modern day water proofing contractor could learn a few tricks from these old monument builders.

Anil Tiwari / New Delhi

hello,

also there was reference of batteries being used in olden days.something like that was excavated and is now placed in a british museum.the chineese taoist storied tells about flying machines.there was also some reference to the places now submerged ,that connects the southern tip of india with srilanka,australia etc.

i also belive there were some more branches of science which we have not thought about till today.a indepth study about conciousness was done in an ancient university in india called nalanda.there were great scholars in all countries and they trained themselves with techniques which enhances there concentration,memory ,will power thought power etc.now we we know very little of that.such techniques were know in europe and may be its centre was eygpt.

we now sees the remainings of buildings only ,thats y we think in ancient days civil engineering,architecture were developed to an atmost level and nothing else .that may not truth.even now for construction we relay or make use of different technologies ,equipment etc.may what we know about past may be the tip of an ice burge .

Hi..

Rockets were first used in battle by Tippu Sultan a south Indian chieftain against the East India Company troops led by one Colonel Wellington (This Col. Wellington later became Lord Wellington who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo). The English forces were aghast at this new weapon system. However, they mastered it and used rockets against the Americans who had rebelled against British rule in the American war of Independence. Thereafter it is history. According to the locals in Mysore, the old manuscripts were taken by the Germans and the philosophy was used by them to develop the V-2 rockets towards the end of the great war.

Although there are a number of likewise examples the credit must go to our modern society for developing these techniques to the current high level in such a way that most of our society is able to draw maximum benefit from its use.

Anil

"Rockets were first used in battle by Tippu Sultan ... "

Those battles of which you speak occurred in 1792 and 1799, and it is recorded that his father used rockets in 1788, but rockets were used in battle long before that. There is an accurate record of rockets being used in battle in China in 1045, however other controversial records regarding "fire arrows" date to about 300 BC in China.

Kind regards ...

Hi..

Yes, China had rockets earlier but it was Tippu Sultan who developed rockets with a guiding mechanism (sort of slide way used in V-1 of WW II) and a capacity to explode on contact. He was able to sustain a barrage of rockets with a range longer than the cast iron cannons of that time. We can call these battles pre-modern day battles. Tippu had even sent an emissary to the Czar of Russia for military intervention but lost the war before hand. The seige of Mysore was laid by the Madras Regiment and they still display some war trophies in their Staff College Mess at the town of Willington near Ooty in the Nilgiri mountains of South India.

Knowledge is based on contemporary inputs and update available technological status.

Most of the engineering marvels are conceived and promoted by persons with inquisitive drive to understand truth and not to any book are social values.

The religions were truly barriers in the wake of accepting new values and had their dominant prepositions to suppress new ideas found in contrast to their standings.

As religions were losing grip in the wake of scientific knowledge, the industrialized world started capitalizing new concepts.

And again the intensity of need levels and development of possible and impossibility aspects of science are critical factors responsible for developments.

The main influential factor being level of scientific knowledge developed and the level of education widespread with respect to historical clock.

for the knowledge to last ages it needs continuous study.only if there are establishments for organised learning in a systematic way the higher studies are possible.now students learn engineering after 12 or 14 years of basic learning.then only they can understand even the fundamentals of engineering.after many years with many changes in politics ,leading to disorder ,anarchy etc schools and colleges may not be there.at that time even if the higher engineering (or other banch of science ) books of today are available ,the contents cannot be understood .then again a renicessance may follows and historians may tell something like we do say about ancient times.but there may be floklores ,country side tales thats ancient people had used planes ,internet etc.for them the ancient people are we all who lives now.

i dont know what u call that type of people who dont recongnise or accept the new developments and advocates and preaches all this is bad and the old bullok cart age was the best,heaven.and they use all type of modern equipments to preach.they exists in many countries may be everywhere .they are well organised too.organisations name may be different in diffenent countries.in middle east they may be some religious organisations ,india the so called communist party ,cpim, somewere they are the nature lovers.they are the miss leading factors ,their followers are cheifly the fustrated less brilliant people who cant tollereated the learned persons.