How did Europe become the richest part of the world?

Re:How did Europe become the richest part of the world? by woodandsteel on Friday February 17, 2017 @05:42PM (#13672363)

I guess the answer is complicated, but clearly one factor is the Arab golden age of science ended when it was suppressed by islamic conservatives, but modern science was then adopted by the West.

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Re:How did Europe become the richest part of the world? by jcranmer on Friday February 17, 2017 @07:59PM (#13673023)

The Islamic Golden Age is usually considered to end after the Mongol sack of Baghdad, back in 1258. The main rise of Islamic conservatism doesn't really start until after the Ottoman Empire starts to decline, about the loss of the Battle of Vienna in 1683. Even then, it should be noted that the Islamic fundamentalism doesn't really arise until the 20th century.

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Re:How did Europe become the richest part of the world? by fallingfrog on Saturday February 18, 2017 @08:58AM (#13674804)

Right. I think one important factor is that western europe was spared from the mongol conquest and genocide- china and the Middle East were not.

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