China and Global Technology
A discussion that begins with some preliminary
distinctions and characterizations about technology, invention and engineering.
The status of these activities is related to culture and civilization and then
specifically to China.
It is well known that technology in
China has a long history, essentially as long as China itself. Most people are
aware that many of the world's most decisive and influential technological
innovations originated in China. The question of why, given such a
technological heritage, China was slow to modernize is sometimes answered by
suggesting that Chinese technology lacked the underlying scientific foundation
that came to characterize technology in the West. This theory can be supported
by various texts in classical Chinese
philosophy.
This blog will
comprise a series of entries that try to address these and related questions.
The issue is philosophical in the sense that it probes the meaning of culture
and human purpose. These entries are conceived as a preliminary draft or notes
for a book on the existential and ethical importance of technology as China
modernizes and becomes perhaps the dominant influence in the global community.
Readers are encouraged to
offer comment, correction and critique.
Posted: Tue - December
14, 2004 at 06:10 PM