网帖翻译

Pinion Pine
Lived in Hong Kong (1960–2009)
As outlined by the monumental works of Joseph Needham, China was technologically more advanced than any of the European nations in all areas of technology from metal working, paper and printing, architecture, astronomy, agriculture, transport, etc. Needham therefore asked the question : Why did China not develop modern science? I believe he asked the wrong question, China never placed importance on technology, technology was looked upon as crafts rather than something of high learning, in the Chinese society, to become scholars and government officials were placed at the top of society, agriculture second, and craftsmen were placed on the third tier, only just above merchants. So all the top minds went into the art of governing and not into the lower perusals of technology, all aspiring minds were devoted to the civil service exams from the Han dynasty until 1911 when China became a republic.

正如李约瑟的不朽著作所概括的那样，中国在金属加工、纸张和印刷、建筑、天文学、农业、运输等所有技术领域都比任何欧洲国家都要先进。因此，李约瑟提出了一个问题：为什么中国没有发展出现代科学？我相信他问了一个错误的问题，因为中国从来没有重视技术，技术在中国被视为工艺而非高深的学问。在中国社会，成为学者和政府官员被置于社会的顶端，农业其次，工匠位于第三层，仅略高于商人。因此，所有顶尖的人才都投身于管理艺术而不是对技术的深入研究，所有有抱负的人才都致力于从汉代到1911年中国成为共和国期间的公务员考试。

Olivier Simon
Looks like what's happening now in France ! We should learn from China's history !

看起来就像法国现在正在发生的事情！我们应该以中国的历史为鉴！
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Fidelis Auve
Are you crazy to mention that china was ahead of the west in Architecture and astronomy. State facts and sources where astronomers discoveries of China which surpass that of the west when the height of a mountain in the moon was calculated by Galilee using a telescope and laws of gravity was put forward. If China had superior architecture then why are they now demolishing Chinese building and erecting new Greece-Roman styles buildings lately.

提到中国在建筑和天文学方面领先于西方，你疯了吗？当伽利略用望远镜计算了月球上一座山的高度并提出引力定律时，你应该陈述一下在天文学方面中国超过西方的事实和来源。如果中国在建筑方面更先进，那么为什么他们最近要拆除中国建筑并建造新的希腊罗马风格的建筑呢？

Daniel R.
Thank you. Did Needham himself suggest an answer to his question?

非常感谢。李约瑟本人是否给出了问题的答案？

Pinion Pine
I think he posed the question to provoke answers from other people, I don't think he has ever had a satisfactory answer. Nor can any answer be satisfactory as it is a wrong question to ask. A satisfactory answer would best be made to this question if we ask (and answer satisfactorily) why modern science and technolgy arose in Europe, rather than asking why it did not do so in China.

我认为他提出这个问题是为了激发其他人的答案，我认为他从未得到过令人满意的答案。任何答案都不能令人满意，因为这是一个错误的问题。如果我们问（并圆满地回答）为什么现代科学技术在欧洲兴起，而不是问为什么它没有在中国兴起，这个问题能得到满意的答案。

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Andrew Roberts，Lives in The United Kingdom
I'll assume you're aware there weren't political entities labelled: China, India or Europe in the 15th century, if not this may be enlightening: World History Maps by Thomas Lessman
Anyway, on the unique technologies, the respective regions posessed:

我假设你知道15世纪没有政治实体被标记为：中国、印度或欧洲，如果不是这样的话，这可个网址能会对你有所启发：Thomas Lessman的《世界历史地图》（链接）
无论如何，在独特的技术上，各地区拥有：

China:
Imperial Civil service exams
A dominant administration (Ming dynasty - Wikipedia)
A pervasive written administrative language
Piston bellows
Multi launch rockets / fire arrows.
Porcelain
Compartmentalized ships
Chain drives
Naval mines
Paper money
Tea cultivation

中国：
帝国公务员考试
一个占主导地位的政府（明朝-维基百科）
一种普遍使用的书面行政语言
风箱
多管火箭/火箭
瓷器
水密隔舱
链条传动装置
海军水雷
纸币
茶树栽培
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Europe
Network of Universities
Mechanical clocks, with main, and coil springs.
Metalic movable type printing
Windows (Crown glass (window))
Eyeglasses
Quadrant (instrument) and Mariner's astrolabe
World Maps / Globes (Erdapfel)
Brace (tool)
Rifles
Mastery of the brick / stone / concrete domes, to span a space, see: Florence cathedral in Invisible Italy 360°, or Pantheon, Rome, Hagia Sophia, …
Commercial / Mercantile states: Republic of Venice, Republic of Genoa, Hanseatic League, …

欧洲：
大学网络
带主弹簧和螺旋弹簧的机械钟
金属活字印刷
窗户（低色散光学玻璃（窗户））
眼镜
象限（仪器）和水手星盘
世界地图/地球仪
摇把（工具）
步枪
精通砖/石/混凝土穹顶以跨越一个空间，请参见：佛罗伦萨大教堂或万神殿或圣索菲亚大教堂…
商业/商业国家：威尼斯共和国、热那亚共和国、汉萨同盟…

India
Use of opium as a pain killer
Textiles: Calico, Muslin, …
Textile dyes: indigo, …
Wootz steel - Wikipedia
War elephants
Games: Ludo, Snakes and Ladders, Kabaddi, …
Diamond polishing.
Pepper cultivation.

印度
使用鸦片作为止痛药
纺织品：印花布、平纹细布…
纺织染料：靛蓝…
乌兹钢-维基百科
战象
游戏：Ludo、Snakes and Ladders、Kabaddi…
钻石抛光
辣椒种植

Which on their own comprise a pretty meaningless set of lists, so a means to compare how effective, and prent, both the shared, and unique technologies were in the period, which say the relative per capita productivities would indicate. Unfortunately only estimates exist for the period, but if we accept Angus Maddison’s numbers they suggest Europe was marginally ahead, though some questions his analysis:

它们本身包含了一组可以用来比较这一时期的共享技术和独特技术的有效性和流行程度的列表，因为这意味着相对的人均生产率。但不幸的是，对这一时期只有估计值，但如果我们接受Angus Maddison的数字，他们认为欧洲略微领先，不过有些人质疑他的分析：

The lack of a central administration, and common tax base prevented Europe, and India rivaling the vanity projects, such as the Ming Great Wall. Which required industrial levels of brick, mortar, and iron production, agriculture expanded, to create surpluses to feed the hundreds of thousands of conscxted workers, which in turn required a massive, authoritarian, central administration, to secure the resources, coordinate their distribution, via new logistic networks, to get them to their destinations. Though supply issues would see tens of thousands of the conscxts die. The network of Canals constructed in Europe, to similiarly permit the bulk transport of grains, ores, fuel, stone, …, more than a few km from their source, were on a smaller scale to those in China, but sea travel was encouraged to span the gaps, while largely prohibited in the other two, and would be key to future prosperity. The hydraulic engineering in Europe was also likely ahead, eg. Basilica Cistern - Wikipedia, as was the construction of the world's tallest erections. Though the unique Universities, metalic movable type printing, and naval technologies would see Europe accelerate away in the following 5 centuries, but in the period European literacy is estimated as being anywhere from an Indian 2–3%, to 16%, and likely averaging out around a Ming dynasty 10%, if not slightly below. While the Portuguese carracks that navigated the globe, were far smaller than the laid up Chinese treasure junks, and less numerous than the Islamic Dhows that plied West and South Asia.

由于缺乏中央行政管理和共同的税基，欧洲和印度无法与诸如明长城这样的虚荣项目相媲美。这需要工业水平的砖、砂浆和铁的生产，需要扩张农业以创造盈余来养活数十万被征召的工人，而这反过来又需要一个庞大的、专制的中央政府来确保资源供应，并通过新的物流网络协调资源的分配，以将它们送到目的地，否则供应问题会导致数万名应征入伍者死亡。而在欧洲建造的运河网络，同样允许在距离源头几公里的地方对谷物、矿石、燃料、石头等进行大宗运输，其规模比中国小，但鼓励在其他两个国家基本禁止的海上运输抹平了这些差距，因为这将是未来繁荣的关键。欧洲的水利工程也可能领先（例如大教堂蓄水池-维基百科（链接）），建造世界上最高的建筑也是如此。尽管特有的大学、金属活字印刷术和海军技术将使欧洲在接下来的5个世纪里加速发展，但欧洲的识字率据估计在印度的 2-3% 到 16% 之间，在明朝的平均识字率的10%左右（如果不是略低的话）。而在全球航行的葡萄牙人的大帆船远小于闲置的中国宝船，数量也少于遍及西亚和南亚的伊斯兰独桅帆船。