Combining the history of China and the West, tell us why there were no scientific inventions in ancient China.

China's ancient science and technology has long been the world's leading, why after modern times lagged far behind the West, this phenomenon is known as the "Joseph Lee problem". Chinese and foreign scholars have put forward their own views on this issue, summarize the broadly have the following seven views: 1. Mathematics lack of theory. German philosopher and mathematician Leibniz in 1697, "China's recent affairs," said: "It seems that the Chinese lack of the great light of the mind, ignorant of the art of proof, and contented with mathematics acquired by experience, as our craftsmen have mastered that kind of mathematics." As for China's failure to attain great attainments in science, "the simple reason is that they lack one of the European's wisdoms, namely, mathematics." [1] Albert Einstein also said, "The development of Western science was based on two great achievements: the invention of the system of formal logic by the Greek philosophers (in Euclidean geometry), and the discovery that it was possible to find out the relationship between cause and effect by means of systematic experimentation (during the Renaissance). It seems to me that the Chinese sages did not take these two steps,......."[2] Joseph Lee similarly argues that "it is only when the fusion of the natural sciences with mathematics becomes universal that the natural sciences can become the *** same wealth for all mankind. " However, he found that "Chinese mathematical thought was basically algebraic rather than geometric" and that the beginnings of modern science depended on geometry, for example, Isaac Newton "did not use calculus when he wrote Principia Mathematica, and he proved every theorem by geometrical methods, very similar to those in Euclid's books. Euclid's book." 2. Cultural constraints theory. According to the American scholar Cheng Zhongying, "A new physical science must begin with a new mathematical creation and finish with the birth of a new logic." "We can even claim that modern science and the model of the law of cause and effect are the crystallization of Western metaphysics and the mainstream of Western civilization" "The transcendental theology of the Jewish and Christian traditions, complemented by the mechanistic model of Democritus's atomism, * * * together created as the basis of modern science the Standard Model of the Law of Cause and Effect. ...... Without these cultural traditions as the basis of scientific knowing, Western science could not have arisen." In China, however, religious consciousness is weaker. Instead, "the place of philosophy in Chinese culture has always been comparable to the place of religion in other cultures. In China, philosophy is associated with intellectuals. In the old days, if a person was educated, he was enlightened with philosophy". And Chinese philosophy is characterized by the fact that "on the surface, Chinese philosophy focuses on society, not the universe; on human life, not on hell and heaven; on man's present life, not on man's afterlife" 3. Linguistic determinism. In the book "Theory of Customs", Voltaire argues: "If one were to ask, since China has been unceasingly devoted to all kinds of skills and sciences for such a long time, why is there so little progress? There may be two reasons for this: one is that the Chinese have an incredible reverence for what has been handed down to them by their ancestors, and believe that everything ancient is as good as it can be; the other reason lies in the nature of their language - language is the first element of all knowledge." The first reason, as stated by Voltaire, falls under the category of cultural factors. The second reason, on the other hand, points to the problem of language. 4. Attitudinal determinism. According to Yang, "Later on, throughout the Qing Dynasty, some great scholars such as Dai Zhen and Ruan Yuan continued to play on the 'Western learning from China' theory. Because of their influence, Chinese scholars did not really absorb the science and technology of the Westerners during the three hundred years of the Qing Dynasty. ...... I think that the 'Western Learning in the Middle Ages' theory of the Qing Dynasty had a very bad influence." China during the Qing Dynasty had lost the big heart of tolerance to foreign cultures that it had displayed during the Han and Tang dynasties due to its strong self-confidence. 5. The Mohist theory of extinction. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, among the hundred schools of thought, the doctrines of the Mohists made considerable contributions to many fields of science, such as the view of space and time, such as geometry, such as mechanics, such as atomism, such as optics, and so on. The death of the Mohist that is, in addition to the foundation of science and technology, so there are documents that the Mohist eventually become extinct is the main reason why modern science was not born in China. 6. Social system decision. Mr. Zhu Kezhen, an educator, pointed out before the birth of new China: "In the final analysis, the institutions of Chinese rural society and feudalism made it impossible to produce natural science in ancient China." 7. Geographic location determinism. The English philosopher Hume argued in his Essays that nothing could be more conducive to the improvement of upbringing and learning than a number of neighboring and independent states, united by trade and policy. It is precisely in this respect that China has been very defective, so that what might have been the development of a better and more complete upbringing and science has gained very little in the course of many centuries. Externally, the cause of this was the absence of more objects of foreign trade. But internally, it was due to the fact that China was under a state of one great position, speaking one language, ruled by one law, and favoring the same way of life; and the propaganda and reverence for authority caused a loss of courage. The Jesuit Bartholomew believed that one of the reasons for the stagnation of science in China "was the absence of stimulus and competition, both inside and outside. If there were an independent kingdom in China's neighborhood, which studied science, and whose scholars were able to expose the errors of the Chinese in astronomy, the Chinese might be able to wake up from their lethargy, and the Emperor would become concerned to promote the advancement of this science. ......" Below I will talk about my own understanding of the backwardness of science and technology in modern China. Backwardness of a few points of understanding: (a) social transformation is delayed, affecting the development of modern science and technology. (ii) The government did not pay enough attention to science and technology. (iii) The backward education system restricts the development of science and technology. (D) social unrest affects the development of science and technology.