Semantical Study: An Innovative Methodical Approach for Teaching the History of Science

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* Corresponding author/Sorumlu yazar: Fatima SAADATMAND (MA Researcher), University of Tehran, Institute for the History of Science,
Tehran, Iran. E-mail: saadatmand88@ut.ac.ir ORCID: 0000-0002-1650-3839
Citation/Atıf: Saadatmand, F. (2023). Semantical study: An innovative methodical approach for teaching the history of science. In M. C. Kaya, N.
Özdemir & G. Aksoy (Eds.), The 2nd International Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book (pp. 111-120).
https://doi.org/10.26650/PB/10.26650/PB/AA08.2023.002.007
2. Uluslararası Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin İslâm Bilim Tarihi Sempozyumu Bildiriler Kitabı
The 2nd Internaonal Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book
DOI: 10.26650/PB/AA08.2023.002.007
Semantical Study: An Innovative Methodical Approach for
Teaching the History of Science
Fatima SAADATMAND*
ABSTRACT
This semantical evidence-based study into the history of science attempts to elucidate the lexical relationship among sources by establishing vast
and detailed networks in order to discover the transition of associative meanings throughout history. The present research explains with a large
variety of examples how this approach can enrich the field of source criticism in the case of lexical relationships. It leads historical sources into
diagrams that depict the connections, gradual alterations, and etymology of technical terms in very rare cases. The study is conducted on two
definite levels. In the first step, data is collected for pragmatic goals, extracting as many senses as possible and then classifying and producing a
widespread semantic network after validating the findings. By placing data in that network as a next step, a timeline is automatically performed,
which illustrates the arrivals of sources by anteriority in chronological order. With that insight, semantics as a motivational method in teaching
the history of science is designed to help students think more clearly, discover subtle relations among various sources, and track/trace changes
in order to find and affirm the original works. Moreover, it presents a general introduction to each topic through helpful classified contexts (in
the form of a mind map), and makes it easy and accessible for students to obtain plenty of data by searching among senses and sources. It is
worth noting that the method presented here can be applied at different levels of education depending on the diagram parameters as well as the
network scales.
Keywords: History of science, history of mathematics, teaching, terminology, classification, semantic network, source criticism
Submitted/Başvuru: 27.03.2021 Accepted/Kabul: 15.04.2021
PROCEEDINGS PAPER / SEMPOZYUM BİLDİRİSİ

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The 2nd International Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book
Introduction
One of the most important and fundamental parts of a humanities education, especially in historical fields, is to identify
the available resources and provide a practical and useful classification of them.
Generally, teachers are in charge of introducing students to and providing students with efficient resources. However,
some instructors prefer to follow another strategy, leaving source investigation to students. The process of obtaining
qualified resources and document classification for source analysis is indispensable and requires basic source evaluation,
with notable regard to primary sources, manuscripts, and their origins. Thus, it is worth devoting a portion of the study to
the process of data transformation and transition among historical books or treatises based on documentaries we can collect
from them. A wide variety of classification methods in science and the history of science could be assigned regarding the
subject, author, chronological order, and suchlike.
In this research, we attempt to review a few methods based on semantic networks. Some practical and helpful methods
for studying and arranging sources have been inspired by linguistics. Unlike the usual classifications based on external
components, such as the subject of work, the author’s name, the date and place of modification, and so on, we focus on
internal factors in this method, including the contents of sources and the features which could be extracted from them,
for providing a general category. This educational method is actually part of a detailed article on terminology in Islamic
arithmetic, which is based on a study of about 40 independent arithmetic sources. The main project, as a master’s thesis,
was to provide a lexical dictionary of terms used in Persian arithmetical works.
Purposes
The purposes of this study can be divided into three levels: Terminology, Classification, and Source Criticism. To
accomplish these purposes, the first intention is proposed in two separate sections:
- Pedagogical Objectives: A kind of classification in order to better represent resources and to learn technical terms
as well. This kind of classification presented in this paper has an educational capacity, whether in an assortment or
in utilizing a ready-made diagram, which makes it capable to be used as a fascinating educational material on two
levels: first, preparation of necessary data in form of a corpus-based study with technical terms and the evidence
extracted from scientific/historical sources and as a pedagogical method, and second, by applying a taxonomical
network and the implementation of technical terms as a huge diagram with numerous clusters, it could be transformed
to the short form of searchable data without engaging with the details.
- Research-Oriented Objectives: To study the document sources and classify them to provide a bibliography and
achieve source criticism goals. Source criticism is the process of evaluating an information source through specialized
studies that seek to determine the validation of sources. Critical evaluation of a resource helps us with its credibility,
purpose, and origin. In short, the main purpose of this study is to highlight the content-based method for teaching
the history of science, especially for amateurs and beginners. This purpose requires the provision of a network of
general metadata to access and introduce resources to students with help of technical terms.
Definitions
- Concept map: A concept map or graph database would be formed from a limited set of possible relations. In fact,
a set of concepts that are related to each other is used in descriptive research for creating a general summarization
method as a visual representation of information or knowledge.
- Semantic network: Most semantic networks are cognitively based. They also consist of arcs and nodes which can
be organized into a taxonomic hierarchy. Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.

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The 2nd International Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book
- Taxonomical Classification: a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical clustering, in which objects are
organized into differnet and specified categories. A taxonomy can be used to organize and index knowledge so that
teachers provide students with classified information, and also because it is searchable, which makes finding the
sought information easy.
In a systematic approach, a Semantic Network Analysis can be considered a method for visual text analytics which
can be organized into a taxonomic hierarchy. Semantic lexicons are made up of lexical entries. These lexical entries are
interconnected with semantic relations, such as synonymy.
Figure 1: Concept map of arithmetical terms
Method
The aim of this study is to take inspiration from a method of studying language in linguistics, semantic networks, to
analyze ancient texts more accurately and use a new classification method based on context and textual characteristics.
To reiterate: A semantic network is a diagram that represents the semantic relations among words. The main question is
thus: How should a semantic network for such a purpose be built?
These networks are generally comprised of nodes and edges. In semantic networks, nodes are representative of terms.
Edges are used to depict the relationship between terms and sources. They, in fact, represent the source to which a term
belongs. Nodes should consist of keywords. Keywords are the technical terms, or our distinct entries in the lexicon. Edges
present the relationship between terms and sources. Statistical data, such as their frequencies and time priority at first
appearance, should be the most important factors in their selection.

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The 2nd International Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book
Applying Method
Encountering the method, three questions may arise:
- What terms and from where can they be extracted?
- How do we collect and organize the data?
- Who is the intended group of this method?
Data: Gathering the data is the first step to designing an appropriate network. The manner of collecting necessary data
and making a table is at the discretion of the teacher, which is determined according to the level of the student and the
purpose of the teaching.
Data should be extracted from the target sources by the student. This level of work can be defined as a research project or
regular homework. The second and most significant level of this method is to distinguish between related conceptualiztions
of several possible meanings of the technical terms. The present step can be done under the supervision of an advisor or
a teacher. Finally, classifying the results and drawing a network should be undertaken by the students alone.
Target Students: This method can be applied to a wide array of learners. Because learners come from diverse backgrounds
and have different knowledge of history, this innovative method helps them to extract thematic packages to study and
research the resources by providing comparative tables.
Depending on the type and level of education, a simple diagram or some complicated networks can be designed. If the
history of science is the main field of study, the instruction could be offered on two levels: 1) collecting technical terms
from corpus-based research and 2) the implementation of those technical terms in semantic networks. In other cases, only
providing networks and their components is recommended. This is especially true for amateurs in history and beginner
students of the history of science, or even for researchers from other disciplines.
The present method can also be tested for different languages. In addition, by extracting the suitable and correct
vertices, it is even possible to find the equivalents of each language as well. Moreover, by depicting equivalent terms in
the same diagram, the roots of resources in transferring knowledge from one language to another during the translation
will be specified. Depending on the place of the technical terms in the network, we can assign and locate these terms in
a final hierarchical diagram in chronological order. Examples of the types of analyses that can be conducted include: the
examination of the terms individually, examining the information that can be extracted from each of the tables, checking
several tables together, and examining the synonyms of a term in different versions of a treatise. We have randomly selected
these few terms of arithmetic operators to examine the networks and represent their fascinating features.

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The 2nd International Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book
Figure 3: Semantic network of arithmetical terms
The first and main condition is that the selected terms should appear at a noticeable frequency in all the studied
treatises. Variety and dispersion of selected terms from treatises can be assumed as a helpful way of learning history from
multilateral aspects or supposed to be only a comparative analysis of the text development in lexical concepts. In this
paper, the similarity between arithmetic treatises and the hypothesis that these treatises had nothing new to say served as
a motivation to gather the data from them.
Analysis
Generally, we need to have several semantic networks to make an analysis. In some cases, it may even be necessary to
go beyond terminology and examine the text and the texture of the text again. An example of such could be referring to
prior evidence. We can either analyze our networks individually as only a single graph or in proportion to other networks
and their components as a multi-graph.
In the single-graph analysis, components such as the frequency of the term or the date of its first appearance in textual
sources should be separated by sources according to the specific term used. There are complementary steps, such as
comparing the structures and determining the originality of the work or identifying the original language of the content,
as well as performing the cross-textual commonalities of the works.
In the multi-graph analysis, by providing more plats and comparing more diagrams, their influence on each other and
their connections become more obvious. Also, in this case, it is possible to draw resource distribution charts to determine

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The 2nd International Prof. Dr. Fuat Sezgin Symposium on History of Science in Islam Proceedings Book
the share of each source of specialized terms. If the graphs are drawn in chronological order, the first uses of words, their
sources, and their shares in each century are also determined. As such, the greater the number of both types of diagrams,
the more connections there are that could be found among sources, and the more confident the results are when they’re
compared to unknown sources.
Table 1: Different Kinds of analysis
Single-graph Analysis Multi-graph Analysis
Studying the terms individually and the information that can be
extracted from each of the tables.
Extracting the statistical data such as terms frequencies and time of
their first appearance.
Examining a single source by a definite term and tracing its roots.
Recognizing the terms from other languages and the process of their
formation or transformation during translation.
Specifying independent sources in unique cases.
Recognizing copied and mixed writings.
Adapting a similarity measure for anonymous resources.
Examining the synonyms of a term in different versions of a treatise
through manuscripts.
A graph is drawn for each technical term and the term with the highest frequency is selected as the main entry. In this
type of diagram, we categorize based on synonymous terms and form clusters of resources in each to recognize the most
textual relationships.
The following results are some examples of single-graph analysis in the form of associative meanings of the arithmetical
term “Division” (Figure 4):
The equivalent of “subtraction” in Persian is “tafrῑq.” Here, the act of subtraction means division and decomposition,
which never means subtraction by itself. This term could thus be assumed as a clue to the uniqueness of the source Risāla
fi al-ḥisāb in which the term “subtraction” appears in a very rare meaning.
For example, what follows is the first appearance of this term in primary sources. The term “division” was equivalated
to the terms “baxšῑdan” and “baxš kardan” that have a Persian root and were used in two very earlier sources: al-Tafhīm
and Šumārnāma.

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Figure 4: Diagram of associative meanings
Depending on the place of the technical terms in the network, we can assign and locate them in a final hierarchical
diagram in chronological order. It should be pointed out that the distribution of the technical terms in a chronological
chart would be crucial to forming a descriptive model. For further analysis, we need to produce such a chronological plat,
which is termed a “Plate.” By comparing and checking several plates with each other, we specify a selection (assumed
book) and match it to all. This provides us with significant results from a book that must have been influenced, as well
as its place among the other sources.

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Figure 5: Distribution of sources in chronological order
The turning points of the chart are essentially important when they provide more information about the originality of
the sources, such as where it is indicated that it is not a transcript and is a new, or that it could be an independent source
or at least a mixed one. We can also find out that the desired sources may be a translation from the original references or
that they have been composed by their own author.

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Method’s Advantages
From our first three attitudes in terminology, classification, and source analysis, we can count the advantages of the
present method:
Table 2: The advantages of the method
Classification Fascinating way to classify resources and identify key categories based on content.
Capability to evaluate resources and the ability to identify privileged and unique resources.
Taxonomical charts and easy to memorize: a principled taxonomy based on chronological networks keeps
the general outline of the texts in mind.
Terminology Getting introduced to technical terms as a key to entering a specialized field for research or study.
Specifying metamorphosis of terms, especially the translated ones.
Source Analysis Optimization of time and energy: a representative for considering resource texts and rarely having to refer to
the text or pieces of evidence.
Particularly useful for unknown treatises: by comparing the terms of the unknown treatise with the main
network, more information is obtained.
Identifying mixed writings which sound collected from other sources.
In the case of other types of original work such as compendium, mixed writings, redaction, translation, and
so forth: Reveal the original language of the work (Arabic, Persian, Turkish, etc.).
Finding similar treatises on the structure and use of technical terms.
Conclusion
To sum up: The methods which follow a kind of concept network fasten the word learning pattern to the mind and thus
help with content-oriented instruction. While other methods are based on external information, this method is content-
based, with the student therefore becoming familiar with a large number of texts, or at least the context of a specific text.
Sometimes it is a matter of learning mathematics through the historical evidence that requires a holistic view, and
sometimes it is a matter of addressing the nuances and differences with the historical approach. For the second intention,
we need to study a large volume of sources and compare texts (for example, paragraph by paragraph or section by section)
to determine which parts are duplicated and related or belonging to other works. Such a study requires a lot of time and
energy, but by establishing a semantic network, we provide a representative for considering resource texts which limits the
necessity to refer to the text or pieces of evidence. In addition, the connection between technical terms and the connection
between the resources in sequence are easily recognized and imprinted in the student’s mind. Other advantages to this
method include specifying mixed writings which sound collected from other works, as well as assembling similar treatises
on the structure and use of technical terms. When comparing the results to the anonymous texts, it would be obvious how
the number of diagrams is greater, more connections could be found among sources, and the results are more confident.
On the other hand, comparison among all prepared networks leads us to draw a general conclusion about the condition
and originality of those references as well as their individual structures and probable distinct dialects.
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