Science and technology of the Han dynasty | Wikipedia audio article
Channel: wikipedia tts
Date: 2018-12-27

This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_and_technology_of_the_Han_dynasty


00:04:12 1 Modern perspectives on science and technology during Han
00:06:55 2 Writing materials
00:09:02 3 Ceramics
00:11:42 4 Metallurgy
00:11:52 4.1 Furnaces and smelting techniques
00:14:09 4.2 Use of steel, iron, and bronze
00:15:59 5 Agriculture
00:16:08 5.1 Tools and methods
00:17:28 5.2 Alternating fields
00:20:13 5.3 Pit fields
00:21:33 5.4 Rice paddies
00:22:37 6 Mechanical and hydraulic engineering
00:22:48 6.1 Literary sources and archaeological evidence
00:27:47 6.2 Uses of the waterwheel and water clock
00:30:31 6.3 Seismometer
00:33:34 7 Mathematics and astronomy
00:33:44 7.1 Mathematical treatises
00:35:33 7.2 Innovations in the treatises
00:37:45 7.3 Approximations of pi
00:39:38 7.4 Musical tuning and theory
00:39:48 7.5 Astronomical observations
00:41:09 7.6 Han calendars
00:42:10 7.7 Astronomical theory
00:43:41 8 Structural engineering and public works
00:46:55 8.1 Materials and construction
00:48:58 8.2 Courtyard homes
00:51:41 8.3 Chang'an and Luoyang, the Han capitals
00:51:52 8.4 Underground tombs
00:54:03 8.5 Boreholes and mining shafts
00:55:06 8.6 Ceramic model buildings
00:58:52 8.7 Roads, bridges, and canals
01:01:22 9 Medicine
01:02:49 10 Cartography
01:06:12 11 Nautics and vehicles
01:09:56 12 Weaponry and war machines
01:14:03 13 See also
01:17:22 14 Notes
01:21:14 15 References
01:22:58 16 External links



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SUMMARY
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The Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE) of ancient China, divided between the eras of Western Han (206 BCE – 9 CE, when the capital was at Chang'an), Xin dynasty of Wang Mang (r. AD 9–23), and Eastern Han (25–220 CE, when the capital was at Luoyang, and after 196 CE at Xuchang), witnessed some of the most significant advancements in premodern Chinese science and technology.
There were great innovations in metallurgy. In addition to Zhou-dynasty China's (c. 1050 – 256 BCE) previous inventions of the blast furnace and cupola furnace to make  pig iron and cast iron, respectively, the Han period saw the development of steel and wrought iron by use of the finery forge and puddling process. With the drilling of deep boreholes into the earth, the Chinese used not only derricks to lift brine up to the surface to be boiled into salt, but also set up bamboo-crafted pipeline transport systems which brought natural gas as fuel to the furnaces. Smelting techniques were enhanced with inventions such as the waterwheel-powered bellows; the resulting widespread distribution of iron tools facilitated the growth of agriculture. For tilling the soil and planting straight rows of crops, the improved heavy-moldboard plough with three iron plowshares and sturdy multiple-tube iron seed drill were invented in the Han, which greatly enhanced production yields and thus sustained population growth. The method of supplying irrigation ditches with water was improved with the invention of the mechanical chain pump powered by the rotation of a waterwheel or draft animals, which could transport irrigation water up elevated terrains. The waterwheel was also used for operating trip hammers in pounding grain and in rotating the metal rings of the mechanical-driven astronomical armillary sphere representing the celestial sphere around the Earth.
The quality of life was improved with many Han inventions. The Han Chinese had hempen-bound bamboo scrolls to write on, yet by the 2nd century CE had invented the papermaking process which created a writing medium that was both cheap and easy to produce. The invention of the wheelbarrow aided in the hauling of heavy loads. The maritime junk ship and stern-mounted steering rudder enabled the Chinese to venture out of calmer waters of interior lakes and rivers and into the open sea. The invention of the g ...