Abstract
When discussing the images of science in traditional Chinese culture in the previous chapter, there seems to be one important part missing - some concrete examples of traditional scientific achievement. This seemingly simple task actually places me in a dilemma. ‘Whether or not there was science in ancient China’ has been a quandary that has bothered modern scholars. In fact, ‘what counts as science’ became an issue only after the Chinese had met the West. There was no generic term for science in ancient China, though there were activities and knowledge in Chinese history that would be called ‘scientific activities and knowledge’ today. For example, astronomy and calendrical science were highly developed in ancient China and the ancient Chinese people made systematic records of celestial observations which included eclipses, sun-spots, comets, novas, super novas, meteor showers, and aurora. The much-mentioned ‘Four Inventions’ (gunpowder, compass, paper making and printing) are believed to be the most important contributions that Chinese people made to the world. There were also achievements in the field of agriculture, ceramics, textile, and architecture.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Sense Publishers
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Ma, H. (2012). When the Chinese Meet the West. In: Ma, H. (eds) The Images of Science Through Cultural Lenses. SensePublishers, Rotterdam. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-942-8_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-942-8_3
Publisher Name: SensePublishers, Rotterdam
Online ISBN: 978-94-6091-942-8
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawEducation (R0)