Great Compendium of the History of Mathematics in China, Volume 7

Author: Wu Wenjun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-03-01
Features: In 1984, four experts on the history of Chinese mathematics proposed to compile a comprehensive and monumental work on the historical development of traditional Chinese mathematics, titled The Great Series of the History of Chinese Mathematics. These four professors (listed in order of age) are: Professor Bai Shangshu from Beijing Normal University; Professor Shen Kangshen from Hangzhou University; Professor Li Di from Inner Mongolia Normal University; and Professor Li Jimin from Northwest University. Traditional Chinese mathematics has a long and profound history, with its own unique ideological system and developmental path. From ancient times to the Song and Yuan dynasties, it was a major force in the development of world mathematics for a long period. However, since the Ming Dynasty, due to various political and social reasons—particularly as pointed out by Xu Guangqi at the end of the Ming Dynasty—one side saw "scholars who focus on theory neglect the practicalities of the world," while the other side witnessed "superstitious practices falsely claiming that numbers have a divine order." As a result, traditional Chinese mathematics was on the brink of extinction and was later completely overshadowed and dominated by the Western Euclidean tradition. Although there was a brief resurgence during the Kangxi and Qianlong reigns, it was merely limited to the excavation and interpretation of ancient texts. By the mid-20th century, Li Yan and Qian Baocong wrote specialized works on the history of Chinese mathematics to introduce it, ensuring that the ancient Chinese calculations continued to survive. This volume covers a time span from around 1600 to about 1760, approximately 160 years. It includes four parts: the secondary introduction of Western mathematics; the efforts of Chinese mathematicians to integrate Eastern and Western knowledge; Kangxi Emperor and mathematics; and research on traditional mathematics and Western mathematics.