3000 Years of Unscientific Science

Medicine & Health

• 2nd Cen BC: circulation of the blood; circadian rhythms in the human body; & science of endocrinology
• 3rd Cen AD: deficiency diseases
• 7th Cen AD: diabetes; use of thyroid hormone
• 10th Cen AD: immunology

The Physical Sciences

• geobotanical prospecting - 5th Cen BC
• First Law of Motion - 4th Cen BC
• hexagonal structure of snowflakes - 2nd Cen BC
• 2nd Cen AD: seismograph; spontaneous combustion; & "modern" geology

I could go on, and on. There's the field of mathematics, there's transport and exploration (including the parachute in the 2nd Cen BC), sound and music (food for a later article, as well), and, of course, warfare.

Where To Now?

So what's my point? Well, considering the fact that the traditional Chinese approach to medicine is noninvasive (they did not believe in dissecting, i.e. humans, animals, etc.), they managed to discover some rather remarkable things in the field of medicine. Their approach to science, if philosophical by western standards, also gave them a considerable jump on the Europeans in most other areas as well. So my point is, perhaps with a little more "eastern style" science and a little less "western" science, we just might solve some of our modern technological problems a little faster.

What do you think?

P.S. Spouting Bowls and Standing Waves

According to Robert Temple in his book, The Genius of China... (1986) (greatly referenced in this article), "strange objects known as spouting bowls...are some of the most impressive artifacts of ancient Chinese science. They are bronze bowls which are so precisely proportioned that when just the right amount of water is placed in them, and the two handles are rubbed at the correct rate, water spouts appear...Apparently the spouts can be teased up to three feet high by an expert."

As to standing waves, he says: "The subject...is one of the most intriguing questions in physics. Looked at from one point of view, a standing wave is a product of the collision of two equal and opposite waves. There is a modern mathematical theory showing clearly that only certain wavelengths may exist in standing waves inside vessels. Perhaps the ancient Chinese had some empirical grasp of this theory."

Yes, perhaps they did! :)

NEXT UP: The Sounds of Silence

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