Introduction

Abstract

The purpose of this book is six-fold: . to introduce the technical advances and historical development of selected irrigation-based, hydraulic societies of the pre-Columbian New World (Peru, Bolivia, and Guatemala) and describe their contributions to the history of the hydraulic sciences; to record the final testament from sites now destroyed by modern development or natural erosion processes that contain information on technology achievements . to address open questions in the archaeological literature regarding hydraulic and hydrological issues for Old World, New World, and South- East Asian societies with new information and research results from computational Xuid dynamics (CFD) computer modelling studies; to present Wndings relevant to hydraulic sciences from sites not previously reported in the literature . to introduce new findings from analysis of selected water systems of the ancient Old World and South-East Asia (specifically Petra, Ephesos, Priene, Aspendos, Caesarea, Angkor Wat, and Bali) related to innovations in hydraulics technology . to present mathematical models and examples of the working dynamics of New World hydraulic societies that show that their underlying actions are based on logical economic and engineering principles that maximize food resources commensurate with population growth and climatic challenges . to show that ancient NewWorld societies installed and managed urban and agricultural water systems based on sound engineering principles that took into account climate variations (floods and droughts) and developed defensive hydraulic strategies to combat their negative effects . to provide insight into the thought processes of the technocrats of ancient societies responsible for agricultural development and use of land and water resources through application of engineering principles (as they understood them); to discuss facets of their administrative structure and political economy, and show that technical innovation altered the historical development of societies through increased economic advantages. One path in the development of history of technology originates from discovery processes that utilize archival historical and archaeological resources. From these sources, early scientific and engineering principles that form the technology foundation of modern societies are uncovered, analysed, and categorized and then shown to be early steps to later useful, modern inventions. An alternative, but less deterministic, path originates from the viewpoint that while some engineering developments may serve a society dealing with survival and economic development issues, they represent an empirical trial-and-error process with no real understanding of underlying scientific principles and thus hold only academic interest with minor relevance to the history of science.