Chapter 20 China Wisdom中国智慧
1.China—A Nation of Discoveries and lnventions
In more than a millennium from the Qin Dynasty to the Yuan Dynasty，Chinese science and technology took the lead in the world，and contributed greatly to the progress of the human civilization．Bernard，an English science historian，said，“For many centuries China was one of the great centers of human civilization and science．”Joseph Needham，another English science historian，pointed out，“In many important respects the Chinese made scientific and technological inventions ahead of the legendary figures who created famous‘hopeful miracles’．The Chinese were abreast with the Arabs when Arabs possessed all the cultural wealth of the Western world．Between the 3rd century A．D．and the 13th century A．D．，the Chinese kept scientific knowledge at a level far above that of the western world．”
Robert Temple，a British scholar，stated in his work China—A Nation of Discoveries and Inventions:Probably over half of the inventions the modern world bases on have originated from China．Beside the four Great Chinese Inventions of compass，gunpowder，printing and paper making，many discoveries and inventions with respect to modern agriculture，navigation，petroleum industry，meteorological observation，music，decimal arithmetic，paper money，multistage rocket，submarine torpedo，poisonous gas，gun and cannon，parachute，brandy，whisky，and even the core design of steam engine were made first by the Chinese in the face of nature．These inventions have been the crystallization of Chinese wisdom．
The Four Great Inventions are the very great contributions of the Chinese people of ancient times to the development of the world's civilization．They reflected and represented the brilliance and prosperity of the ancient Chinese civilization．
2.The Four Great lnventions
1)Paper Making
Paper making stemmed from the necessity of cultural development and exchange．Prior to its invention，the Europeans wrote on sheep skin(and it is said that the copy of the Bible needed 300 or more pieces of sheep skin)，the Egyptians wrote on thin barks of stalks of papyri，and the Chinese resorted to animal bones，tortoise shells and bronze and stone wares in the Shang Dynasty and later on silk，wood and bamboo．The earliest Chinese books were made from flat strips of bamboo or wood，inscribed and then threaded together．They were heavy and bulky，inconvenient for reading and carrying．Necessity is the mother of invention．
In the Western Han Dynasty，inspired by the process of silk-reeling，people learned to process silk fiber into thin pieces，called silk fiber paper(which is called“bo”)，which was rudimentary paper making．Because silk was very scarce and expensive，people began looking for a new kind of writing material that is both cheap and available in large quantities．
It was generally believed that paper was first made by a man called Cai Lun，a court eunuch during the Eastern Han Dynasty，which was not exactly true．It should be precise to say that Cai Lun assimilated the previous experiences，and，based on them，carried out many experiments and improved paper-making technique．Eventually he succeeded in inventing a new kind of plant fibre paper，making full use of scrap materials including bark，ramie combings，worn cloth，fishing nets，and other raw materials which were，comparatively speaking，cheap，light，thin and durable．Thus，the source of raw materials was enlarged and the cost was reduced．He popularized this papermaking process throughout the country，thus giving an impetus to the papermaking industry．His new technique spread quickly，and he was recognized by the later generation as the inventor of paper．
By the Jin Dynasty，paper was widely used，taking the place of bamboo slips and silk cloth．At the beginning of the third century，the Chinese paper making technique was introduced into Korea，India，Vietnam，and Japan．It was during the reign of Tang Xuanzong that it reached Arabia，and from Arab countries into Europe and the rest of the world，thus putting an end to the history of writing on sheep skin for the Europeans．In 1150，the first European paper factory was established in Spain，lagging behind Cai Lun's invention by over 1000 years．
The importance of the invention of paper can hardly be exaggerated．It gave a great impetus to cultural progress not only in China but throughout the world．“No matter how highly the effect of the invention of paper making upon the whole course of later Western inventions is evaluated，the evaluation is never an overestimation．”(Derk Bodde:The History of the Westward Spread of Chinese Articles)In the medieval Europe，parchment was still the main carrier of information．Cultural information spread very slowly due to the scarcity of carrier material．The production of paper provided a most advantageous condition for the flourishing of education，politics，commerce，etc．，in Europe at that time．In this sense，“The world has benefited more from Cai Lun than from other more well-known celebrities．”
2)Compass
The compass is an instrument showing the direction．In the process of mining ores and smelting copper and iron，people chanced upon lodestone，which attracted iron and pointed fixedly in a north-south direction．The magnetic property of the lodestone was known to the Chinese as early as the Warring States Period．Making use of its special property，people then invented a variety of south-pointing instruments．The primitive compass was invented in the shape of a spoon cut from an intact piece of natural magnetite．The spoon was put in the center of a level tray and rotated．When the spoon stopped，its handle pointed to the south，its head to the north．
Then the Chinese learned to magnetize the iron and invented the“Pointing-tothe-South Tortoise or Fish”，a piece of thin iron sheet cut into the shape of a tortoise or fish，magnetized in a geomagnetic field and put into water，floating and lying north-to-south．
Another method was that people made iron needles and rubbed them on a piece of natural magnetite，so that they would become magnetized．Then one such needle was hung with a thin thread，or put on something light that floated on the water in a bowl．It pointed south when floated on water or suspended．This was the earliest compass．And finally，the round compass came into being after constant improvements．The legendary compass-guided vehicle in which Emperor Huang Di rode was most probably the result of using the compass on a chariot．Later it was used extensively in navigation and military operations．
The invention of compass was epoch-making in navigation．In the Northern Song Dynasty the mariner's compass was invented．It was made by putting a magnetic needle on a wooden disk called luopan．In the Northern Song Dynasty luopan compass was widely used on merchant vessels plying between China and the Malay Archipelago or India．
Before the compass was invented，people had to determine direction by the position of the sun in daytime and the stars at night．When it was cloudy and rainy，this had become impossible．The problem remained unsolved until the invention of the compass．The use of the luopan compass overcame many difficulties connected with navigation on the high seas．In the early Ming Dynasty，the navigator，Zheng He，made seven voyages going as far as the east coast of Africa．For each voyage he brought with him a fleet of 100-200 boats．The compass played an important role in the long distance voyages in ancient China．It is said that China was the first country in the world to use the compass on seagoing ships．Historical records show that in 1099 1102 compass was used on ships sailing to or from Guangzhou．
Compass spread to Arabia in the 12th century，where it was known as“friend of sailors”．The Arabic people learned to use the compass from trading with China，and through the Arabians the compass spread to Europe in the 13th century．From the end of the 15th century to the beginning of the 16th century，European navigators opened many new routes．Without the invention and the application of the compass，the epoch-making ocean voyages，such as the voyage to India by Vasco da Gama of Portugal，Christopher Columbus'discovery of the Western Hemisphere，Ferdinand Magellan's earth-round voyage，and Zheng He's 7 voyages to the“western ocean”，all would be inconceivable．To some degree，the invention of the compass has helped bring about economic and cultural exchanges between various countries of the world．
3)Printing
Known as“mother of civilization”，the art of printing is the technology of producing printed images according to the original script or picture．In 1900 a scroll of Diamond Sutra was discovered in Dunhuang grottos，which was printed at the 9th year of Xiantong in the reign of Emperor Yi(868)in the Tang Dynasty．It consists of seven adhered sheets with a total length of 533 centimeters，clearly printed，showing a superb carving skill．It is the earliest printed matter existent now in the world．The earliest carved plate printed matter with a definite date now existent in Europe is the portrait of St．Christopher in the South of Germany，later than the printed scroll found in China by about 600 years．
Before the invention of printing，the circulation of books depended totally on hand-written copies of manuscripts．This was not only a slow process but was liable to mistakes．The first method of printing in China was the seals—in relief or intaglio．Seals were cut in relief to produce a clear effect—black characters on white paper，but their small size prevented them from printing many characters at a time．Then stone tablets were cut in intaglio，inked and impressions taken off，first on silk and later on paper when it was invented，but the impressions were less clear—white characters on the black background．In the Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Periods，seal-engraving and stone-tablet rubbing were very much in vogue．
This，then，led in the Sui Dynasty to the practice of engraving writing or pictures on a wooden board，smearing ink on it and then printing on pieces of paper page by page．The page was printed when the paper was removed．This was called block printing，combining the two methods used for seals and stone rubbings．In the Tang Dynasty，this technology was already very popular and was introduced successively to countries like Korea，Japan，Vietnam，the Philippines and Iran．Although with this method the speed of printing was much higher than before，the block printing had its drawbacks．That is all the boards became useless after the printing was done and a single mistake in carving would cause a whole board to be wasted．And it was timeconsuming，too，for it would take several years to finish making the blocks for a thick book．
By the end of the 11th century during the Song Dynasty，it occurred to a printing carver named Bi Sheng that block-printing was time-consuming，strenuous，and wasteful，and he was resolved to make innovations．He invented movable type printing，which had a far-reaching influence．Bi Sheng first engraved characters on clay dice and put them in fire to turn hard．He arranged these according to sound and tone in a wooden case divided into many sections．At the time of printing，one needed only to pick out the words as required by the manuscript，have them arranged on iron galleys and daub them with ink．When the printing was finished，the pieces of movable type were distributed and put back in the type case for future use．In this way，book printing was made much easier and both the speed and the quality were greatly improved．One county magistrate of the Yuan period had over 30，000 wood characters carved，with which he printed a book he had written．It was a book of more than 60，000 words，and he finished printing 600 copies in less than a month．
Economical and convenient，the use of these types brought about a revolution in printing．This was the beginning of typography．Later，people also made types with tin，copper and other metal．
Before long，typography spread to Japan，Korea and Vietnam，and then gradually to Europe．The technique of typography emancipated education and learning out of Christian abbeys．From then on the learning centers of Europe moved from abbeys to the colleges in various cities．Typography was a powerful weapon for carrying out Religious Reformation and anti-feudalism campaigns in Europe．It promoted the establishment of the capitalist production mode and the exchanges and dissemination of ideologies and culture．
The printing technology today using movable type made of metal is based on Bi Sheng's clay type．Hence we must say that Bi Sheng has indeed made extraordinary contributions to human cultural development and exchanges．
4)Gunpowder
The Chinese invented gunpowder about 1，100 years ago．
China was a home of alchemy．As a by-product of alchemy，the invention of gunpowder was due to the ancient Chinese Taoists'attempt to make“pills of immortality”or elixir and to turn cheap metals into gold．In their pursuit of impossibilities，the chemists and alchemists found that saltpeter，sulphur and charcoal powder mixed together in the right proportion and heated was explosive．The date of this discovery is unknown since the alchemists liked to operate in secret．The first to record the method of making gunpowder was Sun Simiao，a well-known pharmacologist of the Tang Dynasty，who also tried to make“pills of immortality”．
Originally，gunpowder was used in China for making fireworks and fire crackers for the sake of amusement．Gunpowder was not used for rock-blasting and military purposes until the end of Tang Dynasty and at the beginning of the Five Dynasties，thus bringing about a revolution to the making of firearms．As far back as 904， besieged cities were attacked with what was then called“shooting fire”or“flying fire”，that is，tying a packet of powder to the shaft of an arrow，igniting the fuse and shooting the arrow so as to cause an explosion and set enemy barracks on fire when the target was hit．During the Song period，the making and use of gunpowder reached a new level．Different formulas were already in use for the making of different kinds of powder as a result of constant experiments and weapons involving the use of gunpowder，including the thorn fire ball，the smoky fire ball and the cannon，were invented．Towards the end of the Northern Song Dynasty，weapons with even higher explosive power were made，such as“thunderbolt cannon”，“sky shaking cannon”，ect．The Song，Jin and Yuan armies all used these weapons in war．
In the 13th century the Yuan troops used various kinds of weapons in the war with the Arab countries in Central Asia，spreading firearms and their manufacture to these countries．Arab military primers of that time recorded the primitive guns and handgrenades used by the Mongols．In this way，gunpowder was introduced to the Arab world．During the medieval times Europeans translated many Arabic books from which they learned about gunpowder．In 1325 the Arabs attacked a Spanish city using a projector to fire“flaming balls”which sounded like thunder．The Westerners became familiar with gunpowder and started studying and manufacturing it．Some European countries began to make gunpowder weapons with methods they had learned from the Arabians．By the 15th century cannons using gunpowder were being invented by the Europeans．
It was a tremendous impetus to the progress of European history，because the application of gunpowder made feudal separation impossible，thus speedily leading feudalism to its doom in Europe．The invention of gunpowder meant a far-reaching technological revolution that transformed heat energy into mechanic energy，greatly promoting the progress of the global civilization．
3.Other Contributions by China
In addition to these four great inventions and what have been mentioned in the first paragraph，China，in the past chronological dynasties，also invented earthquake detector，porcelain，scull，water-tight ship compartment，stern axial rudder，axial turning rudder，balance rudder，holed rudder，distance-recording chariot，armillary sphere，running horse lantern(embryo of gas turbine)，abacus，silk，plough，lunar calendar，acupuncture，oracle，and so on and so forth，all of which have been great contributions to the world civilization and to the development of science and technology of the world as well，which truly proves the fact that“The ancient Chinese were great creators．”In the countless inventions lay the wisdom of the Chinese nation．
Today the cultural value of the four great inventions is universally acknowledged． Decker Hyde，an American scholar，said，“If there were no paper and no typography we would still be living in the medieval times．If there were no gunpowder，the world would probably suffer less，but the medieval European knights in helmet and armor would still act as lords in their moat-surrounded castles，and our society would still be subject to the feudalistic slavery．Finally，without the compass the era of great geographical discoveries would never have arrived．It was these discoveries that stimulated the material and cultural life of the Europeans and brought them knowledge of the world yet unknown to them，including our America．”
Compass，paper making，gunpowder and printing were great technological achievements that the Chinese nation dedicated to the world，which altered the historical course of the human being．They reflected and represented the brilliance and prosperity of the ancient Chinese civilization．
Word Bank
navigation航海
meteorological气象的
arithmetic算术，计算
papyrus〔复数papyri〕(古埃及人等用以造纸的)纸莎草
rudimentary基本的，初步的
assimilate吸收(思想、食物、文化等)，同化
ramie苎麻
exaggerate夸张，夸大
impetus动力，促进
parchment羊皮纸
smelt冶炼
lodestone磁石
magnetize把……磁化
chariot古代双轮马拉战车
ply(船等)来往于，往返于
in relief浮雕
in intaglio凹雕
seal-engraving印章雕刻
stone-tablet rubbing石刻
smear涂，抹，敷
block-printing木版印刷
movable type printing活字印刷
typography排版印刷
emancipate解放
dissemination传播，散布
alchemy炼丹术，炼金术
alchemist炼丹术士，炼金术士
参考译文
1.中国——发明与发现的国度
从秦朝到元朝的1 000多年间，中国的科学技术水平一直走在世界的前列，为人类文明的发展进步做出了极大的贡献。英国科学史学家贝尔纳说:“许多世纪以来，中国一直是人类文明和科学的伟大中心之一。”另一英国科学史家李约瑟也指出:“中国人在许多重要方面有一些科学技术发明，走在那些创造出著名的‘希望奇迹’的传奇式人物的前面，和拥有古代西方世界全部文化财富的阿拉伯人并驾齐驱，并在公元3世纪到13世纪之间保有西方世界望尘莫及的科学知识水平。”
英国学者罗伯特·坦普尔在《中国——发明与发现的国度》一书中指出，现代世界赖以建立的基本发明创造可能至少有一半以上源自中国，除了指南针、火药、印刷术、造纸术是人们广为知晓的中国四大发明外，现代农业、航运、石油工业、气象观测、音乐、十进位计数制、纸币、多级火箭、水下鱼雷、毒气、枪炮、降落伞、白兰地、威士忌，甚至蒸汽机的核心设计部分，都是中国人在面对自然挑战过程中发现和发明的。这些发明是中国人民智慧的结晶。
中国古代的四大发明是中国人民对世界文明发展的杰出贡献，反映和代表了中国古代文明的辉煌灿烂。
2.四大发明
1)造纸术
造纸术的出现是文明发展、交流过程中的一项必然产物。造纸术发明之前，欧洲人在羊皮上书写(据说一本羊皮纸的《圣经》至少需要300多张羊皮);古埃及人在纸莎草茎做成的薄片上书写;古代中国人曾在商朝时把字刻在甲骨、金石和青铜器上，后来又尝试把竹木薄简、丝帛作为书写材料。中国最早的书籍是刻写在竹简或木片上，然后用线穿在一起而成。这种书籍笨重庞大，非常不方便阅读和携带。
西汉时期，人们从缫丝中得到启发，使用丝絮制造出一种薄片叫作絮纸。这是造纸术的开端。由于丝絮昂贵来源又有限，人们开始寻找价格低廉又原料充足的新型书写原料。
人们都认为105年东汉时期的蔡伦是第一个造纸的人，这种说法不太准确。应该说蔡伦吸收了前人造纸经验，在这些经验的基础上经过反复试验，改进了造纸方法。最终他成功地利用树皮、苎麻、破布、渔网以及其他原料等制造出一种价钱相对便宜、轻薄耐用的植物纤维纸。这种新的造纸方法大大扩充了造纸原料的来源，大大降低了成本，因而很快地被推广开来。蔡伦就成为后世所传的纸的发明人。
晋朝时，纸张取代了竹简、丝帛，被人们普遍使用。公元3世纪初，造纸术传入朝鲜、印度、越南、日本等国。751年，唐玄宗统治时期，造纸术传到阿拉伯，又从阿拉伯国家传到了欧洲，再逐渐传遍世界，这样才使欧洲人结束了用羊皮书写的历史。1150年西班牙建造起欧洲第一家造纸厂，此时已比蔡伦的发明晚了1 000多年。
无论如何评价造纸术发明的重要性都不会有夸大之嫌，因为它不仅对中国而且对世界的文明发展起到极大推动作用。“纸对后来西方发明整个进程的影响无论怎样估计都不会过分。”(德克·卜德:《中国物品西传考》)中世纪的欧洲，流行以羊皮作为信息的物质载体，文化信息的传播因材料的限制速度极为缓慢。纸的生产为当时欧洲蓬勃发展的教育、政治、商业等方面的活动提供了极为有利的条件。从这一意义上来说，“世界受蔡伦的恩惠要比许多更为知名人士的恩惠大得多。”
2)指南针
指南针是指示方向的工具。中国人在开采矿石、冶铜、炼铁的过程中，发现了一种能够吸铁和指示南北方向的天然磁石。早在战国时期中国人就已经懂得天然磁石有指示方向的作用。古代人们根据磁石的这种特性，发明了各种指南工具。最先造出的指南工具以天然磁石磨制而成，状如勺形，置于平底的盘中使其转动，转动停止，其勺柄自动指向南方。
后来人们设法使铁人工磁化，制成指南龟和指南鱼，漂在水中，两头分指南和北。
人们又制造了铁针，把这些铁针在磁石上摩擦，使它们具有磁性。然后用根细线把针穿吊起来或者将它们置于可以漂在一碗水上的物体上。无论是漂着还是吊着，针尖都是指向南方。这就是最早的指南针。传说中黄帝乘坐的指南车，大概就是指南工具应用在战车上的结果。后来指南针广泛地应用在古代的航海事业和军事行动中。
指南针的发明，是世界航海业中划时代的事件。北宋时期人们把磁针嵌入一个叫作罗盘的木质圆盘中，发明了航海指南针，广泛用于往返于中国和马来群岛或印度之间的商船上。指南针发明之前人们在大海上航行只能白天依靠太阳、晚上凭借月亮来判断方向。遇到阴雨天，人们就束手无策了。这种靠天辨别方向的状况直到发明了指南针才得以改变。在波涛汹涌的大海上航行，使用罗盘指南针克服了航海中数不清的困难。明代早期的航海家郑和7次下西洋，最远曾到达非洲的东海岸。每次出海他的船队都由100到200只海船组成。指南针在中国古代的远程航海中的重要作用是不言而喻的。中国是第一个在海船上使用指南针的国家。据历史记载，早在1099年到1102年，中国人就在来往于广州的海船上使用了指南针。
指南针在12世纪传入阿拉伯，被尊为“水手之友”。阿拉伯人是在和中国人做生意的接触中学会使用指南针的。随后于13世纪由阿拉伯人传入欧洲，从15世纪末到16世纪初，欧洲航海家们新开辟了多条海路。没有指南针的发明和应用，那些划时代的航海冒险，比如，葡萄牙航海家达·伽马远航印度、哥伦布发现新大陆、麦哲伦环绕地球航行乃至郑和下西洋，都是不可想象的。从某种程度上讲，正是指南针的发明促进了世界各国间的经济和文化交流。
3)印刷术
被称为“文明之母”的印刷术是一项按照文字或图画原稿制成印刷品的技术。1900年，敦煌千佛洞发现了一卷唐懿宗咸通9年(公元868年)印刷的《金刚经》，长约533厘米，由7个印张拼接而成。此卷雕刻精美，刀法纯熟，印刷清晰，是目前世界上最早的印刷物。欧洲现存最早的有确切日期的雕版印刷品，是德国南部的《圣·克利斯托菲尔》画像，大约比中国晚600年。
印刷术发明之前，人们必须用手抄来复制书籍，这种方法不仅速度慢，而且很容易出错。最初印刷的方法是效仿印章的浮雕和凹雕。在印章上用浮雕形式刻出清晰的字样，印在白纸上呈现深色字迹。但印章太小，一次刻不了几个字。然后人们就在石板上刻凹雕，刷上油墨，印在丝帛上，后来当纸发明后便在纸上印，但是这些黑底白字不是很清晰易辨。春秋战国时代，刻写图章和拓印碑文等方法是很流行的。
到了隋朝，人们就像刻写图章一样，先将文字或图画刻在一定规格的木板上，涂上油墨，然后再在纸上一页一页地印。把纸揭下来就印好了。这就是木版印刷术，它综合运用了印章和石刻技术。唐朝时期，这种木版印刷术已经非常普及，并相继传到朝鲜、日本、越南、菲律宾、伊朗。这种方法虽然可以提高印刷的速度，但它也有不尽如人意之处:印完以后，大量的刻板就没有用了，而且万一刻错了一个字，整块木板就浪费了。另外，这种印刷方法很费时，如果要印一本厚点儿的书，光制作木版就得花上几年工夫。
到11世纪末宋朝年间，有个刻字工人叫毕昇，他感到刻板印刷术费时、费力又费料，决心进行改革。他创造了活字印刷术，具有非常深远的影响。毕昇首先把字刻在一个个用细胶泥制成的大小相同的泥块上，用火慢慢加热烧硬，就制成了一个个活动的字体。再按照字的声、韵的顺序排列在木格子里。印书的时候，只要依照稿本拣出所需要的字，排列在一块块板上，涂上油墨，就可以印刷了。印完后，把活字一个个拆下来放回木格子里，下次还可以用。这样，书籍的印刷工作就更加简便了，印刷的速度和质量也大大提高。元朝的一个地方官刻了30 000多个木活字，用来印刷他自己写的书。这本书有60 000多字，他一个月内就印了600册。
这样，书籍的印刷工作变得既经济又简便，可以说在印刷业引发了一场大的变革。这是排版印刷的开始。后来，人们便用锡、铜等金属制成活字。
活字印刷术产生不久，旋即传入日本、朝鲜和越南，然后再逐步传入欧洲。印刷术在欧洲的出现，把学术、教育从基督教修道院中解放出来。从此，欧洲的学术中心由修道院转移到了各地的大学。印刷术的出现为当时欧洲的宗教改革运动和反封建斗争提供了有力的武器，对资本主义生产方式的确立和思想文化的交流传播起了巨大作用。
今天的活字铅印技术，就是在毕昇的胶泥活字印刷的基础上发展而来的。毕昇对人类文化交流和发展所做的贡献的确是非常了不起的。
4)火药
大约1 100年前，中国人就发明了火药。
中国是炼丹术的故乡。火药是炼丹术的副产品，人们在长期炼制“长生不老药”和妄想把普通金属炼成金子的过程中发现了火药，这是它的名称中有“药”的原因。炼丹方士本来是想炼出长生不老的金丹仙丸，不料却发现把硝石、硫黄和木炭按照一定的比例混合然后烧炼就会产生爆炸效果。因为这些炼丹方士炼丹制药都是秘密进行的，所以火药发明的确切时间尚难断定。最早记录火药制作的人是唐朝的药学家孙思邈，他本人也曾力图炼制长生不老药。
火药在中国大多用来制作娱乐用品，如烟火、爆竹等。从唐朝末期、五代初期开始，火药被用于军事目的，遂在武器制造领域引发一场变革。早在公元904年，军队曾经使用“火箭”或“飞火”攻城，就是在箭杆上扎一个火药团，点着导火线，用弓箭发射出去，引起爆炸，火烧敌营。经过不断的试验，到宋代火药制造达到了一个新水平，已调配出各种不同配方，制作出多种火药武器，诸如蒺藜火球、烟球和火炮等。北宋末年，已经研制出“霹雷炮”“震天窗”等爆炸力较强的武器。宋军、金兵和元军都在战斗中使用这种武器。
13世纪时，元军在中亚与阿拉伯国家交战时使用了多种不同武器，这样就把武器和火药的制造方法带到了阿拉伯。在阿拉伯国家的军事入门书上记载了蒙古人最早使用的枪械和手雷等武器的情况。这样，火药逐渐传入阿拉伯。在中世纪时期，欧洲人就着手翻译一些阿拉伯文献，从中了解到有关火药的信息。阿拉伯人于1325年强攻一座西班牙城市，其间就使用投掷器投射了震耳欲聋的“火球”。14世纪，欧洲人熟悉了火药，欧洲一些国家开始用从阿拉伯人那里学来的方法制造火药武器。到15世纪，欧洲人已经发明制造出使用火药的火炮了。
火药传入西方后，对欧洲历史的发展起到了极大的推动作用，由于火药武器的应用，使得诸侯的封建割据变得不可能，也就大大加速了欧洲封建主义的衰落和灭亡。火药的发明，意味着人类把热能转变成机械能、把热能转变为动力的伟大技术革命，对世界文明进步有着重大影响。
3.中国的其他贡献
除以上介绍的四大发明和首段提到的其他发明以外，中国在历史上还发明了地震探测仪、瓷器、橹、水密隔仓、船尾轴向舵、轴向转动舵、平衡舵、开孔舵、记里鼓车、浑仪(天文观测仪)、走马灯(燃气轮机雏形)、算盘、丝绸、犁耙、农历、针灸、甲骨文等，所有这些发明对世界文明和科学技术的发展做出了巨大贡献，真正证实了“古代的中国人是伟大的创作者”，中华民族的聪明和智慧也正隐藏在这无数的发明中。
时至今日，四大发明的文化价值仍为世界所公认。美国学者德克·海德说:“倘使没有纸和印刷术，我们将仍生活在中世纪。如果没有火药，世界也许会少受点痛苦，但另一方面，中世纪欧洲那些穿戴盔甲的骑士们可能仍然在他们有护城河围绕的城堡里称王称霸、不可一世，而我们的社会可能仍然处在封建制度的奴役之下。最后，如果没有指南针，地理大发现的时代永远不会到来，而正是这个地理大发现的时代刺激了欧洲的物质文化生活，把知识带给了当时人们还不了解的世界，包括我们美国。”
可以说，指南针、造纸术、火药和活字印刷，是中华民族奉献给世界并改变了整个人类历史进程的伟大技术成果，反映和代表了中国古代文明的辉煌灿烂。
Exercises
Section A Thought-provoking questions
1．What do you think contributed to the blooming of the flowers of wisdom among the ancient Chinese？
2．How would you explain the exclamation of“the ancient Chinese were great creators”by the Jesuits who landed on China between the 16th and 17th centuries？
3．What have you obtained from this chapter？What have you been made to think at this very moment？
Section B Decide whether the following statements are true or false
1．“Orientation of pragmatism”and“preponderance of empiricism”contributed to the blooming of the flowers of wisdom among the ancient Chinese，though they limited to a certain extent the development of science and technology．
2．Another great invention of the Chinese people，paper making，is known as“mother of civilization”．
3．The Syllabus of Medical Herbs，Encyclopedia of Farming，and Technical Wonders completed in the Ming Dynasty were three works of the highest level in the fields of Chinese medicine and pharmacology and agriculture and technology．
4．It was generally believed that paper was first made by a man called Bi Sheng in 105 during the Eastern Han Dynasty．
5．In 1150 A．D．，the first European paper factory was established in America．
6．Rudimentary paper making referred to the fact that people learned to process silk fiber into thin pieces，called silk fiber paper．
7．The invention of gunpowder was due to the ancient Chinese Buddhists'attempt to make“pills of immortality”and to turn cheap metals into gold．
8．The magnetic property of the lodestone was known to the Chinese as early as the Tang Dynasty．
9．Papermaking stemmed from the necessity of cultural development and exchange．
10．The method of powder making was introduced into the Arab world in the 12th century and then into Europe in the 14th century．