Editing History of science (section)

== Prehistory ==
{{Further|Science in the ancient world|Protoscience|Alchemy}}

In [[Prehistory|prehistoric]] times, knowledge and technique were passed from generation to generation in an [[oral tradition]]. For instance, the domestication of [[maize]] for agriculture has been dated to about 9,000 years ago in southern [[Mexico]], before the development of [[writing system]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Matsuoka | first1=Yoshihiro | last2=Vigouroux | first2=Yves | last3=Goodman | first3=Major M. | last4=Sanchez G. | first4=Jesus | last5=Buckler | first5=Edward | last6=Doebley | first6=John | title=A single domestication for maize shown by multilocus microsatellite genotyping | journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | volume=99 | issue=9 | pages=6080–6084 | date=30 April 2002 | pmid=11983901 | pmc=122905 | doi=10.1073/pnas.052125199 |bibcode=2002PNAS...99.6080M | doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/science/25creature.html?_r=1 Sean B. Carroll (24 May 2010),"Tracking the Ancestry of Corn Back 9,000 Years" ''New York Times''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830121104/http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/science/25creature.html?_r=1 |date=30 August 2017 }}.</ref><ref>Francesca Bray (1984), ''[[Science and Civilisation in China]]'' '''VI.2''' '''''Agriculture''''' pp 299, 453 writes that [[teosinte]], 'the father of corn', helps the success and vitality of corn when planted between the rows of its 'children', [[maize]].</ref> Similarly, [[Archaeology|archaeological]] evidence indicates the development of [[Astronomy|astronomical]] knowledge in preliterate societies.<ref>{{Cite book | last=Hoskin | first=Michael | title=Tombs, Temples and their Orientations: a New Perspective on Mediterranean Prehistory | place=Bognor Regis, UK | publisher=Ocarina Books | year=2001 | isbn=978-0-9540867-1-8 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book | last=Ruggles | first=Clive | author-link=Clive Ruggles | title=Astronomy in Prehistoric Britain and Ireland | place=New Haven | publisher=Yale University Press | year=1999 | isbn=978-0-300-07814-5 }}</ref>

The oral tradition of preliterate societies had several features, the first of which was its fluidity.<ref name= "lindberg2007a"/> New information was constantly absorbed and adjusted to new circumstances or community needs. There were no archives or reports. This fluidity was closely related to the practical need to explain and justify a present state of affairs.<ref name= "lindberg2007a"/> Another feature was the tendency to describe the universe as just sky and earth, with a potential [[underworld]]. They were also prone to identify causes with beginnings, thereby providing a historical origin with an explanation. There was also a reliance on a "[[medicine man]]" or "[[cunning folk|wise woman]]" for healing, knowledge of divine or demonic causes of diseases, and in more extreme cases, for rituals such as [[exorcism]], [[divination]], songs, and [[incantation]]s.<ref name= "lindberg2007a"/> Finally, there was an inclination to unquestioningly accept explanations that might be deemed implausible in more modern times while at the same time not being aware that such credulous behaviors could have posed problems.<ref name= "lindberg2007a"/>

The development of writing enabled humans to store and communicate knowledge across generations with much greater accuracy. Its invention was a prerequisite for the development of philosophy and later [[Science in the ancient world|science in ancient times]].<ref name= "lindberg2007a"/> Moreover, the extent to which philosophy and science would flourish in ancient times depended on the efficiency of a writing system (e.g., use of alphabets).<ref name= "lindberg2007a"/>