Modern Science
“Modern science is a Western European creation, originating in the ‘scientific
revolution’ of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and owing nothing to other
cultures or times”.
The above statement clearly states modern science as Western European; it is not
questionable that modern science did develop out of Western Europe yet the fact
that no other contributions were made by other parts of the globe is not so
convincing. This essay will highlight and relocate the origins of science from early
centuries in China, India, Arab, Egyptian, and Greek cultures of science to the
centuries of modern science. It will show how the several cultures like Indian, Arabic
and Egyptian influenced the Copernican Revolution, which played a major role
towards the emergence of modern science.
Modern science is observing and experimenting the behaviour together with the
structure of the natural and physical world and its surroundings. Joseph Needham’s
question is based on why did modern science not develop in China rather than in
Europe as China was more advanced technologically and scientifically until the 15 th
century than Europe was. Needham focuses and is mainly concerned with the
universality of science and believes that modern science did not come out of nothing
even though it can be regarded as uniquely originating from Europe it is universally
cultural.1
According the Bala’s Dialogue of civilization in the birth of modern science, Ronan as
quoted in Bala is highly critically of Chinese contributions towards modern science
but does acknowledge the fact that China was more technologically and scientifically
advanced than Europe was. Ronan is highly dismissal of any contribution by other
non-Western European cultures towards modern science, in his arguments he
unwarily does acknowledges scientific development in these cultures yet chooses to
not recognize the role they played into the emergence of modern science. Ronan
explains the factors that hindered the development of modern science in China as
the state bureaucracy, Confucianism, lack of exploration and they did not value
knowledge. However, the Confucianism emphasis was on fostering knowledge
growth by inquiring thoroughly and systematically over things, bureaucracy that was
1
Raj, Kapil, Relocating Modern science, (UK, Palgrave Macmillan,2007) 2.
“Modern science is a Western European creation, originating in the ‘scientific
revolution’ of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and owing nothing to other
cultures or times”.
The above statement clearly states modern science as Western European; it is not
questionable that modern science did develop out of Western Europe yet the fact
that no other contributions were made by other parts of the globe is not so
convincing. This essay will highlight and relocate the origins of science from early
centuries in China, India, Arab, Egyptian, and Greek cultures of science to the
centuries of modern science. It will show how the several cultures like Indian, Arabic
and Egyptian influenced the Copernican Revolution, which played a major role
towards the emergence of modern science.
Modern science is observing and experimenting the behaviour together with the
structure of the natural and physical world and its surroundings. Joseph Needham’s
question is based on why did modern science not develop in China rather than in
Europe as China was more advanced technologically and scientifically until the 15 th
century than Europe was. Needham focuses and is mainly concerned with the
universality of science and believes that modern science did not come out of nothing
even though it can be regarded as uniquely originating from Europe it is universally
cultural.1
According the Bala’s Dialogue of civilization in the birth of modern science, Ronan as
quoted in Bala is highly critically of Chinese contributions towards modern science
but does acknowledge the fact that China was more technologically and scientifically
advanced than Europe was. Ronan is highly dismissal of any contribution by other
non-Western European cultures towards modern science, in his arguments he
unwarily does acknowledges scientific development in these cultures yet chooses to
not recognize the role they played into the emergence of modern science. Ronan
explains the factors that hindered the development of modern science in China as
the state bureaucracy, Confucianism, lack of exploration and they did not value
knowledge. However, the Confucianism emphasis was on fostering knowledge
growth by inquiring thoroughly and systematically over things, bureaucracy that was
1
Raj, Kapil, Relocating Modern science, (UK, Palgrave Macmillan,2007) 2.
