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This book explores how and why exchanges across civilizations have come to enrich science today. The dialogical dimension of the history of science has long been marginalized by an excessive concern on why modern science emerged in Europe, but not in any of the advanced civilizations of the East. This focus upon what has been called Joseph Needham's "Grand Comparative Question" ignores his other project, focused on showing how dialogues between civilizations have nurtured science. Needham's "Grand Dialogical Question" – if we may call it that by parity – has directly or indirectly inspired a vast body of literature showing how interconnections of civilizations over the last three thousand years, and exchanges of cosmological, mathematical, geographical, physical, biological and medical technologies, techniques, practices and knowledge, have been woven together to produce current science. Bringing together scholars whose research range across multiple civilizations and disciplines, this book investigates the scope and limits of Needham's dialogical vision for science.
Arun Bala challenges Eurocentric conceptions of history by showing how Chinese, Indian, Arabic, and ancient Egyptian ideas in philosophy, mathematics, cosmology and physics played an indispensable role in making possible the birth of modern science.
In this study Arun Bala examines the implications that Niels Bohr’s principle of complementarity holds for fields beyond physics. Bohr, one of the founding figures of modern quantum physics, argued that the principle of complementarity he proposed for understanding atomic processes has parallels in psychology, biology, and social science, as well as in Buddhist and Taoist thought. But Bohr failed to offer any explanation for why complementarity might extend beyond physics, and his claims have been widely rejected by scientists as empty speculation. Scientific scepticism has only been reinforced by the naïve enthusiasm of postmodern relativists and New Age intuitionists, who seize upon Bohr’s ideas to justify anti-realist and mystical positions. Arun Bala offers a detailed defence of Bohr’s claim that complementarity has far-reaching implications for the biological and social sciences, as well as for comparative philosophies of science, by explaining Bohr’s parallels as responses to the omnipresence of grown properties in nature.
The European 'dark ages' in the millennium 500 to 1500 CE was a bright age of scientific achievements in China, India and the Middle East. The contributors to this volume address the implications of this seminal era of Asian science for comparative and connective science studies. Although such studies have generally adopted a binary perspective focusing on one or another of the Asian (Chinese, Indian, Islamic) civilizations, this study brings them together into a single volume within a wider Eurasian perspective. Moreover, by drawing together historical, philosophical, and sociological dimensions into one volume it promotes a richer understanding of how Eurasian connections and comparisons in the millennium preceding the modern era can illuminate the birth and growth of modern science. Contributors are Arun Bala, Andrew Brennan, James Robert Brown, George Gheverghese Joseph, Henrik Lagerlund, Norva Y.S. Lo, Roddam Narasimha, Hyunhee Park, Franklin Thomas Perkins, Hans Pols, Kapil Raj, Sundar Sarukkai, Mohd. Hazim Shah, Geir Sigurðsson and Cecilia Wee.
The essays presented here reflect recent widespread interest in reconsidering the political, geographical, and cultural boundaries conventionally observed by area specialists and others. They intentionally range widely through time and space, dealing with diverse issues and contexts, but each highlights the very general theme of cross-cultural interaction. Although they draw heavily on area studies, the contributors seek to put previously separate bodies of scholarship in dialogue with one another by exploring those interactions that have historically linked world regions. Four general themes are especially prominent in this volume, and the essays develop sophisticated positions on each. On the issue of agency and structure, they offer useful guidance toward recognizing the importance of both human agency and historical structures in historical processes. On the theme of states and their roles in cross-cultural interactions, they acknowledge that states do not entirely control their own destinies but nevertheless deeply influence the development of these exchanges, sometimes decisively so. Regarding the theme of the global and the local, they emphasize the reciprocal influence of global dynamics and local circumstances and agree that analyses must take both into account to be successful. Finally, all of the essays allow that the theme of cross-cultural interaction is crucial to understanding the world and its development through time. Contributors:C. A. Bayly; Sven Beckert; Jerry H. Bentley; Renate Bridenthal; Charles Bright; Michael Geyer; Alan L. Karras; Adam McKeown; Colin Palmer; Stephen H. Rapp, Jr.; Caroline Reeves; John O. Voll; Kären Wigen; Anand A. Yang.
In turbulent global times, your study of this subject is increasingly necessary and urgent. Featuring a new chapter on critical theories, and revised to take a less Eurocentric approach to concepts and case studies, this new edition allows you to tackle global politics' important concepts, debates and problems: -How can theories help us to understand the politics of a global pandemic? -Do we live in a 'post-truth' world of 'fake news' and disinformation? -Does international aid work? -Does the United States remain a global hegemon? -What is the Anthropocene and how does it shape global politics? -Are global politics constrained by a 'North-South' divide? -What are the possible futures of global politics – and the politics of outer space? Delving into topics as diverse as anarchy, intersectionality, Confucianism, and neoconservatism, boxed features give you confidence in political analysis: -Focus on: learn more about the global colour line or the tragedy of the commons -Key figures: discuss the ideas of Hans Morgenthau, Frantz Fanon or bell hooks -Debating: argue whether the United Nations are obsolete, or whether nuclear weapons promote peace -Global politics in action: apply your learning to the migration crisis in Europe or the Arab Spring -Approaches to: consider human rights or the Covid-19 pandemic from the perspective of realist, liberal, postcolonial, Marxist, feminist, constructivist and post-structuralist theory -Global actors: understand the significance of Black Lives Matter, Amnesty International or the International Monetary Fund. Spanning the development of global politics, from the early origins of globalization through to the return of multipolarity in the twenty-first century, this is an essential text for undergraduates studying global politics and international relations.
Having spent decades teaching and researching the humanities, Wm. Theodore de Bary is well positioned to speak on its merits and reform. Believing a classical liberal education is more necessary than ever, he outlines in these essays a plan to update existing core curricula by incorporating classics from both Eastern and Western traditions, thereby bringing the philosophy and moral values of Asian civilizations to American students and vice versa. The author establishes a concrete link between teaching the classics of world civilizations and furthering global humanism. Selecting texts that share many of the same values and educational purposes, he joins Islamic, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, and Western sources into a revised curriculum that privileges humanity and civility. He also explores the tradition of education in China and its reflection of Confucian and Neo-Confucian beliefs. He reflects on history's great scholar-teachers and what their methods can teach us today, and he dedicates three essays to the power of The Analects of Confucius, The Tale of Genji, and The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon in the classroom.
This volume brings together essays from leading thinkers to examine what role Asian traditions of knowledge played in the rise of modern science in Europe, the implications this has for the epistemology of science, and whether pre-modern Asian traditions can provide resources for advancing scientific knowledge in future.
This book begins with a critical survey of current debates on the "clash of civilizations", goes on to discuss classical and contemporary approaches to civilizational theory, and concludes with an outline of a conceptual framework for comparative analysis.