Abstract
The “ancient times” in this book, refers to a period of about 6000 years from the beginning of the Bronze Age until the European Renaissance in the 14th century. This section describes: (1) the three stages in using tools by ancient humans, and (2) the three main regions in ancient machine development.
Why had China been more successful than Europe in gaining scientific knowledge and applying it for human benefit for 14 centuries? And, given this lead, why did modern science originate only in Europe?
—Joseph Needham (British scientist, historian and sinologist, 1900–1995)
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Zhang, C., Yang, J. (2020). Ancient Machines. In: A History of Mechanical Engineering. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-0833-2_2
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