1. The Many Contributions of Ancient India Vaishali Oza

2. VEDAS Vedas in Sanskrit means knowledge Rig Veda - medicine Sama Veda – fine arts Yajur Veda – weaponry Atharva Veda – business/ commerce The Vedas hold a lot of information in these four subjects and are still read by scholars today

3. GENERAL SCIENCE Used what we now call the scientific method to answer questions about nature Theorized that all objects are made of tiny particles (like atoms)

4. ASTRONOMY Calculated future eclipses and duration Calculated the Earth’s circumference Realized the force of gravity on all objects Discovered that the Earth rotates around the sun Discovered how many planets are in our solar system 360o in a circle Estimated 360 days in a year Used compass roses

5. MEDICINE Performed surgeries The Rig Veda mentions many herbal medicines to control various ailments such as high blood pressure, depression, amnesia, acidity, and apnea Various types of yoga were also mentioned to help some of these same problems

6. MATHEMATICS Concept of zero Decimal system Geometry and Trigonometry – measurement of angles, Pythagorean theorem, called Gyaamitiand Trikonamitiin Sanskrit Estimated π at 3 and then 3.15 Concepts we use in algebra and calculus 300 years before Newton Exponents

7. FINE ARTS Study of sound and phonetics Ancient dances Paintings using various colors from different natural sources

8. OTHER FACTS AND FAMOUS PEOPLE One of the first universities was in Ancient India; it was called Takshashila Used smelting to combine different metals Had a 54 letter alphabet Aryabhatta – first astronomer of India; he made many significant contributions in the areas of astronomy and mathematics Panini – a Sanskrit grammarian who contributed in the areas of phonetics, phonology, and morphology. He is considered the founder of the language and literature

9. WORKS CITED "Ancient India's Contribution to Astronomy - Unexplained – In Search for Truth" Unexplained. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://istina.rin.ru/eng/ufo/text/329.html>. "Ancient India’s Contributions in Mathematics, Art, and Architecture (Part 2), by SoumyaMurag | Tattva." Hindu YUVA | Youth for Unity, Virtues and Action. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://www.hinduyuva.org/tattva- blog/2008/02/ancient-india-contributions/>. "Contributions of Ancient India to the World of Science 1 : Roop_910 Blogs on Sulekha, History Blogs, Roop_910 Blog from India." Roop_910 Profile on Sulekha.com. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://roop- 910.sulekha.com/blog/post/2007/04/contributions-of-ancient-india-to-the- world-of-science.htm>. "People of Ancient India,Famous People of Ancient India - Panini,Aryabhata,Ashoka,SamudraGupta,ChandraguptaMaurya." India News, India, History Of India, Culture, India Map, India Pictures, Indian News, India News Headlines, India News Updates. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://www.thisismyindia.com/ancient_india/people-of-ancient- india.html>. "Science, Medicine, Technology in Ancient India - Crystalinks." Crystalinks Home Page. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://www.crystalinks.com/indiascience.html>.