During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, traditional science and technology still occupied the leading position in the world. A prominent feature of traditional science and technology is that a series of scientific and technological works have been published one after another, and some research achievements in this period still occupy the leading position in the world, such as the four great inventions.
However, during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, there was no new breakthrough in the traditional science and technology that adapted to the feudal natural economy. At the same time, in the west, with the emergence and development of capitalist relations of production, the Renaissance came into being, people's thoughts were greatly liberated, and modern natural science came into being and developed at a faster speed. The productivity brought by modern science greatly exceeds that brought by traditional science and technology. Western modern science and technology have surpassed China in quality.
The concrete academic expression of the summative characteristics of science and technology in China in Ming and Qing Dynasties;
First, Ming Tian Gong Kai Wu in Song Dynasty is a summary of agricultural handicraft production technology in feudal society of China.
Second, Xu Guangqi's Complete Book of Agricultural Administration in Ming Dynasty is a summary of traditional agriculture.
Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica in Ming Dynasty is a summary of traditional Chinese medicine.
Fourth, The Golden Mirror of Medicine edited by Qianlong in Qing Dynasty is a textbook of traditional Chinese medicine, which is concise and practical, and has a summary nature.
5. The traditional porcelain-making technology in China really reached the most mature stage in Qing Dynasty.
6. The Engineering Practice of the Ministry of Industry, officially revised by Yongzheng in Qing Dynasty, is a summary of the traditional wooden structure construction technology in China.
Seven. Bibliography The Catalogue of Sikuquanshu, officially revised by Qing Qianlong, is a master of Chinese classical bibliography, with the most perfect style and the greatest influence.
Eight. The Biography of the Universe compiled by Ruan Yuan in Qing Dynasty is the first pure history of science in China. See Introduction to the History of China published by Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House in 1980s.
Huang Zongxi's Case of Confucianism in Ming Dynasty is the first formal and systematic history of academic thought in China.
The whole Song and Yuan learning cases in Qing Dynasty are more progressive than the Confucianism cases of Huang Zongxi in Ming Dynasty. See Liang Qichao's Academic History of China for Nearly 300 Years. The history of science and academic thought is a summary of the development of science and culture in the past.
Reasons for the lagging development of modern science and technology in Ming and Qing Dynasties;
1. First of all, judging from the soil of scientific development in China, the system of ancient feudal society in China was gradually unfavorable to scientific and technological progress.
Hierarchical development and feudal absolutism suppressed the development of modern science and technology. During the feudal society of China, with the development of social economy, commerce and cities, centralization was constantly strengthened. In the Qin Dynasty, books were burned to bury Confucianism, in the Han Dynasty, "a hundred schools of thought were ousted and Confucianism was the only one", and in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, there was even an "stereotyped writing test", which greatly bound people's minds. 2. China's ancient academic thought paid more attention to the way of being human.
Human morality. Zhu even put forward the idea of "grasping things to grasp knowledge". For technology, the ruling class regards it as "strange skill and cunning." China's sages pay more attention to inner cultivation, but lack interest in the way of real natural science. 3. China ancient science and technology lacked experimental methods and logical methods. Einstein pointed out: "The development of western science is based on two great achievements.
Dacheng is the foundation, that is, the formal logic system developed by Greek philosophy, and it is a method to find out the causal relationship through systematic experiments. In my opinion, it's not surprising that Tessa of China didn't take these two steps. "The observation and experience methods commonly used in ancient Chinese science can play a very good role in early technological inventions, but they can't give a good hint of the inherent laws of things.
4. In the process of western learning spreading to the east in Ming and Qing Dynasties, western learning did not play a good role. The rulers of China hold the western science and technology.
Hold a skeptical, contemptuous and hostile attitude. They believe that "Western laws and practices were stolen from China" and that "the foundation of the country" is more etiquette than power.
The fundamental picture lies in people's mind, not in skills. "Middle school is the body and western learning is the use". Western learning also had a great collision with China's decadent traditional thought.
5. The style of study divorced from reality in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties hindered the development of science and technology, with the "Ganjia School" as the representative and the textual research of ancient books as the industry.
Achievements, divorced from reality, divorced from production, study the laws of nature.
Western learning spread to the east:
In the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, western learning gradually took shape.
At that time, Matteo Ricci, Tang Ruowang, ferdinand verbiest and Aleni all brought western science and technology while preaching. At the same time, through them, China's ancient thoughts on science and technology, humanities and humanistic science and technology also spread to the west.
Matteo Ricci introduced the principles of solar and lunar eclipses, the comparison between seven astronomical points and the volume of the earth, the funny stars in the west, and the manufacture of astronomical food. Emmanuel Diaz explained the principle of astronomical phenomena in "On Heaven".
Sabbathinus de Ursis is the author of the book "Level Ruler", which explains in detail the usage of the level ruler and the simple method of measuring the sun shadow timing.
Ferdinand Ferdinand verbiest and others also made great contributions to the development of calendar science in Ming and Qing Dynasties. (See China History of Science and Technology, 188, Science Press, 1982).
In western mathematics, Euclidean geometry, arithmetic pen algorithm, logarithm and trigonometry were introduced, and geometrical features's Chinese translation.
Missionary Muniting introduced logarithm.
In addition, Matteo Ricci brought a map of the world, his "telescope" was introduced into western optics, and Deng's "illustration of western wonders" and so on.
The introduction of western scientific and technological knowledge took place under special historical conditions. The introduction of science and technology is accompanied by the deep-seated purpose of missionary work, and it only spreads among senior intellectuals when it is introduced. So its influence has great limitations.
The whole society is closed, various social undertakings are stagnant, the development of capitalism is slow, and China's science and technology also lacks the motivation to advance. Finally, the Opium War broke China's heavy lethargy, and China began the painful modernization process.