The Chinese Journal for the History of Science and technology  NO.4 2009 

On the Manufacture of Bronze Cannon Introduced into China in the 17th Century from the West:

an Analysis Mainly Based on the Xifa Shenji and Huogong Qieyao

YIN Xiaodong

( Capital Normal University，Beijing 100048，China;

Max Planck Institute for the History of Science，Berlin 14195,  Germany)

Abstract This paper systematically explores the production of the bronze cannon introduced into China from the West in the 16th and 17th centuries, in particular recovering the technological processes involved through an analysis of works such as the Xifa Shenji and Huogong Qieyao. It also seeks to establish the knowledge of western cannon technology in these texts based on the premise of Western cannon technology of the time.

Key words Western cannon, firearm-making technology, Xifa Shenji (Western Firearms Masterpieces),  Huogong Qieyao (Basic Skills of Firearms Attack)

Graduate Student Education for the History of Science in China during the 1950’s and 1960’s

ZHAI Shuting

(University of Science and Technology of China, Department of the History of Science

and Scientific Archaeology, Hefei 230026，China)

Abstract　 　This paper introduces the background to the launching of graduate student education for the history of science in China during 1950’s and 1960’s. The education activities of the universities belonging to the Ministry of Education of China and the Research Office on the History of Natural Science of the CAS are discussed, revealing the basic state of graduate student education for the history of science in China in this period.

Key words　 China, pre-Cultural Revolution, education for the history of science, graduate students

A Tentative Discussion on the Role of Policy Factors in the Backwardness of New China’s Aviation Industry

LI Chengzhi

（Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China）

Abstract  The Chinese aviation industry was established on a very weak foundation. 50 years of construction have seen it grow from small scale to large scale, from repair to manufacture, and from license production to independent development. However, the gap between the overall level of our aviation industry and that of developed countries is still very great. This paper provides a brief survey of the development of Chinese aircraft, and analyses the experiences of and lessons to be learned from the Chinese aviation industry, especially the role played by policy factors in its backwardness.

Key words China, aviation industry, achievement, development policies, experience and lessons

An Inquiry into the 28 Lodges(xiu) in Daybooks(Ri Shu) on Bamboo Slips

of the Chu and Qin States

( Center for Joseph Needham Documentation , Shanghai Pudong Huaxia Academy

of Social Development，Shanghai  200090，China )

Abstract The new historical materials concerning the 28 lodges found in Daybooks (Ri Shu) written on bamboo slips of the Chu and Qin states play an important role in investigations into the evolution of these lodges in China from the Warring States Period to the Qin dynasty. This paper lays stress on the material in these sources relating to the so-called ‘old’angular widths of the 28 lodges, dusk and dawn culminating stars, the stellar lodges in which the sun was located, the inequality of the divisions of the sky linked to the four emblematic animals, the number of the 28 lodges and stellar divination based on the 28 lodges.

Sources and Changes of Astronomical and Divinatory Content in Ancient Chinese Agricultural Treatises:

 Observations Centered on the Outline of the Four Seasons

WANG Chuanchao

(Institute for the History of Natural Science, CAS, Beijing 100010, China)

Abstract　 A great deal of astronomical and divinatory content can be found in ancient Chinese agricultural treatises, of which the Outline of the Four Seasons (Sishi Zuanyao) is an example. Through an analysis of the Outline of the Four Seasons and other related materials, this article argues that this content mainly stemmed from the Yueling, ancient astronomical books like the Tianguanshu section of the Shiji, and some divination books. As a result of interactions between those interested in agronomy, the principles of Yin-yang Wu-xing and popular divination practices, such content entered traditional agronomy in the period from the Warring States to Qin-Han, and was then spread and expanded through the methods of commentary and sub-commentary in traditional agronomy texts. There were several reasons for the incorporation of this astronomical and divinatory content. The basic background was the tradition of astronomical observation and official calendar-making. The fundamental function of the astronomical and divinatory content in the arrangement of traditional farm work also enabled it to become a part of ancient agricultural treatises, while the prevalence of divination in the Tang dynasty provided a social foundation for the more systematic inclusion of this content in the Outline of the Four Seasons.

Key words Outline of the Four Seasons (Sishi Zuanyao), astronomy, divination, Han E, traditional agronomy

Li Zijin’s Attitude Toward Western Mathematics and Astronomy 

DI Lihui

(Institute for the History of Natural Sciences, CAS, Beijing 100010, China)

Abstract  Introduced into China by Jesuits in the late Ming and early Qing, Western mathematics and astronomy had a great impact upon Chinese literati at that time, so that the evaluation of Western learning and its Chinese counterpart became a fundamental issue for almost every Chinese scholar. This article discusses the attitude of Li Zijin (1622—1701) toward Western mathematics and astronomy. By analyzing the sources of his works, the article points out that the growing influence of Western learning inspired him to re-examine traditional Chinese mathematics and astronomy.  He attempted to show that traditional methods could be used easily and that their calculations could be precise as well. He believed that scholars should assimilate the Western learning critically in the framework of Chinese learning.

Key words Li Zijin, early Qing, trigonometry, astronomy

The Beginning of the Institutionalization of European Science & Technology: the Establishment of CERN

—A Prosopographical Study on Early Members of CERN

GAO Jie，YUAN Jiangyang

(Institute for the History of Natural Science, CAS, Beijing 100010, China)

Abstract This paper provides a prosopographical analysis of early members of CERN who took part and played important roles in its establishment. The writers point out that CERN served as a broad-based system to improve interaction and integration between the three main research traditions – those of the Cambridge, Copenhagen and Paris schools – in the field of nuclear research in the different European states at that time. The establishment and early development of CERN is an excellent exemplar and points the way for the subsequent process of the institutionalization of “European Science & Technology (EST)”. Furthermore, the establishment of CERN is not only the starting point of the institutionalization of EST, but also the birth of one kind of “supranational sciences” with characteristics different from the so-called “national sciences”.

Key words European Science & Technology，CERN，Institutionalization of Science，Prosopography，Supranational Science

Examination and Selection of the Second Batch of Boxer Indemnity Students Sent

for Study in the United Sates and Related Problems

LI Yuhai

(Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China)

Abstract Using detailed and reliable historical materials, this article narrates the entire process of the two examinations for the second batch of Boxer Indemnity students selected to study in the United States. For the first time it publishes a list of those enrolled for the preliminary examination, as well as a list of enrolled higher science students (i.e., on the waiting list for admission) for studying in the United States after re-examination.

Key words  students studying in the United States, Boxer Indemnity students, education for studying abroad