Babylon a Science Civ? Why? (Not complaining - this is a question!)

[tempshemps]

I was reading a strategy guide about Civilization V somewhere, and someone wrote in it about Babylon that it "obviously leans toward the sciences" or something to that effect - presumably a reference to the Babylonian Civilization's ability to spawn great scientists in Civilization V.

This got me wondering - why does Babylon "obviously" lean toward the sciences? What knowledge of history does this guy have (that I am honestly oblivious to) - that makes him assume Babylon will be a science/tech-oriented Civilization?

If anyone here is a history fan and wants to fill me in on the backstory here, I'd appreciate it.

[Magic_Hotdog]

It's one of the 2 things that they are good for. The other is the bowman rush.

[istry555]

Wiki 'Babylonian astronomy' which has been called one of the first Scientific Revolutions.

[Magic_Hotdog]

Actually, what I'm wondering is why Firaxis decided to make Korea the Asian-flavored Babylon. The redundancy really irks me.

[Lathieza]

Its funny how you need: "(Not complaining - this is a question!)", in the topic title. It gives away the current game state/general view on game by customers/willingless to listen and provide for community.

[BINARYGOD]

Its funny how you need: "(Not complaining - this is a question!)", in the topic title. It gives away the current game state/general view on game by customers/willingless to listen and provide for community.

its says much less about the game than is does about the community. You can find such things on other game forums that are not considered "broken" by the playerbase... the game being broken, not the forum lol

[tempshemps]

Sorry, but I think you guys are misinterpreting my question. I'm not asking why there are two science Civs. I actually like both of them! Big fan of both Korea and Babylon, and I like having both for some variety. I think there's too many strong Civs oriented toward conquest victories... not enough for other types of play.

But that aside, my question was more along the lines of "what is the historical reason" that Babylon is considered a science-oriented Civilization? I see one of you mentioned something about Astronomy, so I'll be sure to check that out.

[player1 fanatic]

You can find some interesting things in wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylon...lonian_culture

Literature

There were libraries in most towns and temples; an old Sumerian proverb averred that "he who would excel in the school of the scribes must rise with the dawn." Women as well as men learned to read and write, and in Semitic times, this involved knowledge of the extinct Sumerian language, and a complicated and extensive syllabary.

A considerable amount of Babylonian literature was translated from Sumerian originals, and the language of religion and law long continued to be the old agglutinative language of Sumer. Vocabularies, grammars, and interlinear translations were compiled for the use of students, as well as commentaries on the older texts and explanations of obscure words and phrases. The characters of the syllabary were all arranged and named, and elaborate lists of them were drawn up.

Medicine

The oldest Babylonian texts on medicine date back to the First Babylonian Dynasty in the first half of the 2nd millennium BC. The most extensive Babylonian medical text, however, is the Diagnostic Handbook written by the ummânū, or chief scholar, Esagil-kin-apli of Borsippa, during the reign of the Babylonian king Adad-apla-iddina (1069-1046 BC).

Along with contemporary ancient Egyptian medicine, the Babylonians introduced the concepts of diagnosis, prognosis, physical examination, and prescriptions. In addition, the Diagnostic Handbook introduced the methods of therapy and aetiology and the use of empiricism, logic and rationality in diagnosis, prognosis and therapy. The text contains a list of medical symptoms and often detailed empirical observations along with logical rules used in combining observed symptoms on the body of a patient with its diagnosis and prognosis.

Astronomy

Tablets dating back to the Old Babylonian period document the application of mathematics to the variation in the length of daylight over a solar year. Centuries of Babylonian observations of celestial phenomena are recorded in the series of cuneiform tablets known as the 'Enūma Anu Enlil'. The oldest significant astronomical text that we possess is Tablet 63 of 'Enūma Anu Enlil', the Venus tablet of Ammi-saduqa, which lists the first and last visible risings of Venus over a period of about 21 years and is the earliest evidence that the phenomena of a planet were recognized as periodic. The oldest rectangular astrolabe dates back to Babylonia ca. 1100 BC. The MUL.APIN, contains catalogues of stars and constellations as well as schemes for predicting heliacal risings and the settings of the planets, lengths of daylight measured by a water-clock, gnomon, shadows, and intercalations. The Babylonian GU text arranges stars in 'strings' that lie along declination circles and thus measure right-ascensions or time-intervals, and also employs the stars of the zenith, which are also separated by given right-ascensional differences.

[Jahren]

thanks for the info player 1
thats a good find

[Hawk]

Babylonians also excelled in Mathematics, such as they used geometry and algebra.

I think they had much more of a religious focus though, when it came down to it. They started the belief in the zodiac, and they influenced religions around them, and that came later, with the belief of the immortality of the soul, and belief in a triad god (Sin, Shamash and Ishtar).

[MxM111]

I think Firraxis have missed opportunity to honor the contribution of Babylon into modern law. They could have had courthouse with huge bonuses instead of walls, which kind of useless...