Ancient Chinese civilisation

 

                                                                  

 

 

 

 

 

RESEARCH QUESTION

 

 

 How did the ancient chinese inventions influence the rest of the world?

 

          Welcome                            

 

 

 

 

RESPONSE TO RESEARCH QUESTION

 

 

 The ancient chinese largely influenced the rest of the world with compasses, gunpowder, print, paper...

The compass, while now used in cars, were invented in 200 AD .

The gunpowder, in around the third century AD. The print, and paper was invented in the early 7th century AD.

 

This is my research:

 

 

 

Ancient Chinese Inventions

Introduction

Compass

 

 

-Points always to the north

-Magnetic medal needles align themselves in a North-South orientation

-Discovered at the end of the Han dynasty around 200 AD

-While the Chinese knew about this compass, the Western people did not know about magnetism, much less about compasses until the 15^th century

http://www.wavespring.com/justin/china/compass.html

Gunpowder

-         Developed during the late part of the Han dynasty about the third century AD

-         Gunpowder was mainly used in the rocket, which was used either for launching fireworks into the air, or as a means of delivering an explosive shell at an enemy

-         Gunpowder is made from sulfur, potassium nitrate, and carbon (usually in the form of fine charcoal)

-         Western people came and discovered the gunpowder, and soon adapted to the weapons it is used in

http://www.wavespring.com/justin/china/gunpowder.html

Print and Paper

-         Paper was invented in China some 3,000 years after the ancient Egyptians used papyrus for writing

-         Mixing the bark of a mulberry tree and bamboo fibers with water, draining and drying the mixture on a flat bamboo frame

-         Hemp paper, hide paper, bamboo paper, and xuan paper made from a kind of pine tree was used particularly for calligraphy

-         Block printing, or xylography, was used in China by the 7th century and the earliest known printed text, a Buddhist scripture, was printed in 868 AD.

-         Movable type in printing was invented during the Song Dynasty

-         Movable Chinese characters were carved from wood, which could be arranged as needed and even reused

-         During the Ming Dynasty, the wooden movable type was refined and books were printed using the two-color printing process

-         The word of the new Chinese printer and paper soon spread to the west.

http://www.discoverychannel.co.uk/ancient_china/inventions/paper/index.shtml

http://members.aol.com/TeacherNet/AncientChina.html

 

The silk road

 

-Han Dynasty ( 202 BC - AD 220) in the first and second centuries AD

-Often small Central Asian tribes would attack these caravans hoping to capture the traders' valuable commodities. As a result, the Han Dynasty extended its military defenses further into Central Asia from 135 to 90 BC in order to protect these caravans.

-Chan Ch'ien:first known Chinese traveler to make contact with the Central Asian tribes,later came up with the idea to expand the silk trade to include these lesser tribes and therefore forge alliances with these Central Asian nomads. Because of this idea, the Silk Road was born.

-grew with the rise of the Roman Empire because the Chinese initially gave silk to the Roman-Asian governments as gifts

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- 7000 mile route spanned China, Central Asia, Northern India, and the Parthian and Roman Empires

-connected the Yellow River Valley to the Mediterranean Sea

-passed through places such as Chinese cities Kansu and Sinkiang and present-day countries Iran, Iraq and Syria

-silk was a lucrative product of the Chinese Empire

-trading relationship between the Chinese and the Indians grew stronger with increased Han expansion into Central Asia

-the Chinese silk trade played a minor role in the Chinese economy

-increase the number of foreign merchants present in China under the Han Dynasty, exposing both the Chinese and visitors to their country to different cultures and religions

-Buddhism spread from India to China because of trade along the Silk Route

-760 AD, during the T'ang Dynasty, trade along the Silk Road had declined

-revived tremendously under the Sung Dynasty in the eleventh and twelfth centuries when China became largely dependent on its silk trade

- trade to Central and Western Asia as well as Europe recovered for a period of time from 1276-1368 under the Yuan Dynasty when the Mongols controlled China

-overland trade became increasingly dangerous, and overseas trade became more popular, trade along the Silk Road declined

-by the end of the fourteenth century, trade and travel along the road had decreased

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT

 

 My project is a powerpoint presentation that I made.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RESOURCES USED

 

 

 Justin"Compass"May 15 http://www.wavespring.com/justin/china/compass.html

Material for this site was gathered from various sources. A list of the web sources can be found on the Links Page. Information from Mr. Tayloe Wise's East Asian Civilization class was invaluable. The textbook for the class, East Asia, A New History, provided some information.

 

Justin"Gunpowder"May15http://www.wavespring.com/justin/china/gunpowder.html

 Material for this site was gathered from various sources. A list of the web sources can be found on the Links Page. Information from Mr. Tayloe Wise's East Asian Civilization class was invaluable. The textbook for the class, East Asia, A New History, provided some information.

 

Dicoverychannel Inc. "Paper and Printing" May15 http://www.discoverychannel.co.uk/ancient_china/inventions/paper/index.shtml

Channels: Animal Planet | Civilisation | HD | Home & Health | Kids | Real Time | Science | Travel & Living | Turbo

 

Think quest library. " The Silk Road" May 26 http://library.advanced.org/13406/sr/

A Thinkquest project by team 13406.

Tradelinks Across the Worldwebsite presents an indepth look into four of the world's international trade routes: The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, the Trans-Saharan Trade, the Silk Road, and the Roman Roads system. These routes serve as windows on the civilizations they connected. By studying trading systems, one can understand a civilization's customs, how people lived and their major concerns.

 

Silkroad foundation." Marco Polo and his travels" June 10 www.silk-road.com/art/marcopolo.shtml

 

This page was prepared by Ian, Grade 8, Riverdale Junior Secondary School."Marco Polo" http://www.yesnet.yk.ca/schools/projects/renaissance/marcopolo.html   June 10

1. Hart, Henry. "Marco Polo." Grolier Electronic Publishing, Inc., 1995.

2. Lomask, Milton. Great Lives. New York, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1988, pp. 220-228.

3. "Caledonia." World Book Encyclopedia. 1981, vol. 3, pp. 650-651.

 

Discovery Science ."Ancient Chinese Inventions"http://www.veoh.com/videos/v2982536ZTMNWqS   Video. June 10

 

This page was prepared by Ian, Grade 8, Riverdale Junior Secondary School

"MarcoPolo"http://www.yesnet.yk.ca/schools/projects/renaissance/marcopolo.html

June 16

 

Nova "China's Age of invention"

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lostempires/china/age2.htmlInterview with professor Yates

June 18