Again, the acupuncture case allows one to assess the precise role of explanation. Both Chinese and Western accounts present themselves as offering causal explanations. Both ostensibly match observations, though there are limits to what can be observed. Both have been revised through time. Although the Western account is well articulated and has been part of a deepening of knowledge about the perception of pain, it has not contributed to the practice of acupuncture.
Western findings have yet to benefit or extend traditional treatment methods.
It is worth noting that considerable Western research has been done by native scientists in China itself. Indeed, some of the experiments noted above were done even before the U.S. was introduced to acupuncture in 1971. The Chinese, at least, do not seem to find stifling contradictions in the two sets of explanations. More generally, the Chinese have adopted Western medicine, though not exclusively. Western and traditional Chinese systems exist side by side.