How STEM built the Chinese dynasties / Hessel-Mial, Michael

"At the dawn of Europe's Scientific Revolution, China was a major world power. With million-person cities, vast navies, and a robust trade in luxury goods, China was a country of marvels. The 'Central Kingdom' was also a country of invention. This fascinating resource explores the science and technology behind China's rise to power: the incredible scope, the unique traditions that supported it, and the reasons for the eventual decline of the dynastic era. Readers will learn of agricultural innovations, massive building projects, elaborate machines, and countless inventions that changed the way the world ate, drank, read, waged war, and traveled"--Provided by the publisher.

"It is common to think of the history of STEM as a succession of great names, moving in a direct line from Archimedes to Isaac Newton to Einstein. China will offer more than enough brilliant figures for us to admire, but that will not be the entire story. Many of China's inventions evolved over great time scales, spread by diffusion, and were anonymously perfected over time. As China's fortunes rose and fell through the centuries, geniuses in science, politics, and warfare would alternate with unknown inventors and workers solving problems. People would debate the most virtuous way to run a state, or simply seize it outright. People discussed China's place in the world, the citizen's role in the country, and the natural world's place in the cosmos. Each of these questions spurred people to discover and invent with STEM--and in the process, shape China's destiny"--Provided by publisher.