What are the main reasons why China went from glory to decline in ancient times?

1. Political system: Long-term feudal rule is the most important factor to curb China's scientific and technological development.

China was the first country to enter and finally get out of the feudal society. The long-term feudal rule full of drawbacks seriously restricted the development of science and technology. China ancient science and technology can be roughly divided into two categories: official science and technology and civil science and technology. Official science and technology means that the emperor called a group of people of insight around him to engage in so-called scientific research to serve himself. For example, the water transport camera invented by Su Song in the Northern Song Dynasty was specially used for the emperor to tell the time. Many alchemists' duty was to study the elixir for the emperor in the palace. Most of these scientific researches were conducted to please the emperor or to complete the emperor's tasks, although most of them had a single purpose and limited achievements. However, the achievements such as the water transport instrument and the observatory are of great value, and the research on mathematics and astronomy has also made outstanding achievements, which has played a very good role in promoting the development of science and technology. However, many achievements can not be applied to the production practice by the people in the first time because of putting up the imperial signboard, which has become an empty theory that cannot be further developed. Civil science and technology is developed by ordinary people who are interested in science and technology (such as Shen Kuo and Li Shizhen) or who have accumulated experience in their daily life and work (such as Bi Sheng). Because there is no certain organization and arrangement, the results are mixed. In addition, because some technologies can only be owned by the royal family, especially astronomy, the research among the people is suppressed or even banned by the government, and there is no hotbed for development. For another example, ancient ceramics were also divided into official kilns and folk kilns, and the technology of official kilns was strictly forbidden to be spread abroad, which seriously affected the technical exchange between official kilns and folk kilns, and then affected the development of ceramics industry. Therefore, in such a political system and social environment, science and technology can not be fully developed at all, and they always rely on the achievements left by their predecessors to be complacent or even complacent. One generation depends on another, and the result can only be more and more backward. Under such a feudal system, even if a group of outstanding scientists emerged in each generation, the overall development of science and technology was deeply affected. China in ancient times was like a man who made great achievements when he was young, but when he was old, he didn't make progress, only appreciated his great achievements when he was young, and finally lost his ability to resist the intrusion of the outside world, which led to a tragic end of being trampled upon by others.

second, the national policy: the serious policy of "emphasizing agriculture and restraining business" makes science and technology dispensable.

the development of science and technology at all times and in all countries must rely on the support of state power and correct science and technology policies. In China's feudal society, the long-term bureaucratic system is the deadly enemy of the democratic system on which science and technology depend for development and prosperity. The ruling class demands that science and technology obey their own interests and implement the policy of "emphasizing agriculture and restraining commerce", and a large number of science and technology related to the development of handicraft production but not related to their immediate needs are ignored or even contained. For example, the book "Heavenly Creations" in the embryonic period of capitalism in the Ming Dynasty was a summary of the production technology of agriculture and handicrafts by Song Yingxing, a famous scientist in ancient China. At that time, it was advanced in the world, but it was not paid attention to and applied in the social system at that time. In the feudal society of China, there was always a self-sufficient natural economy combining planting with cottage industry, and there was little commodity exchange, so there was no need for complicated science and technology to greatly improve productivity. Engels said: "Once there is a technological need in society, this need will push science forward more than ten universities." The demand for science and technology is not as urgent as in the west, which makes advanced science and technology in an embarrassing position of dispensability. Moreover, in the Qing Dynasty, the serious isolation and blind arrogance made science and technology even more unnecessary. When the British envoy went to see Emperor Qianlong and asked for trade, Emperor Qianlong's reply turned out to be: "China has abundant products and everything, so it didn't rely on foreign goods to exchange needed goods." Even Lin Zexu thought at the beginning of the ban on smoking: "I have tens of thousands of miles of land in the Central Plains, and I am rich in production, and I don't borrow money to buy goods. (If China closes its doors to the outside world), I am afraid that all countries will make a living, and I will rest from now on. Without paying attention to commodity exchange, there will be no motivation to improve production, and there will be no need to develop science and technology. With such an attitude, how can you lower your head and learn more advanced technology from the west? There is no desire to develop, no motivation to advance, and no external stimulation, so it is a historical necessity that China's modern science and technology lags behind the times.

third, the education system: the backwardness of the imperial examination system is the direct reason for the backwardness of science and technology.

The imperial examination system has been used to select talents for a long time in China's history, but it serves the rulers, so it focuses on politics and ethics, ignoring natural science, and the examination content is limited to Confucius and Mencius, Confucianism, and rarely involves science and technology, which is a great drawback. If you don't put your energy into the imperial examination, you can't be surprised. Therefore, many scholars spend their whole lives on the imperial examination, so how can they study mathematics and physics? Moreover, even if you get fame, it is a "model" without thinking and practical ability. Where can you afford the burden of scientific research? On the other hand, those who take the stereotyped writing examination are famous, and those who engage in scientific research can't get policy and economic support even if they are interested, and they have become poor scholars. Where can they afford scientific research? This series of reasons has led to a serious shortage of scientific research talents in the whole country. Without such talents, it is fatal to the development of science and technology. At the same time, compared with the progressive education system in the west, it is natural that the traditional science that China once had an advantage in the world gave way to the western natural science in modern times. When Galileo, Copernicus, Newton and Leibniz appeared in the west, who appeared in China? So what about China's long history and China's advanced science and technology in ancient times? Compare it with its current strength. It is a historical necessity that China's science and technology and mode of production have not been substantially improved for a long time, and if they do not develop, they will be overtaken.

fourth, thinking concept: ignoring science and technology and the lack of logical system hinder the development of science and technology.

Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty "ousted a hundred schools of thought and respected Confucianism alone", Confucianism has always been the orthodox thought in China's feudal times. Confucianism values humanities over science and engineering, and ideology over practice. The main purpose of learning is to cultivate one's morality, keep one's family in order, govern the country and level the world. However, the man who really promotes the development of science and technology is "not ashamed of the scholar-officials", so Mr. Yang Zhenning thinks: "The conservatism of Confucian culture is the biggest reason why China resisted western scientific thought for three centuries." Excessive contempt makes the progress of science and technology difficult. On the other hand, it is obvious from the scientific and technological achievements in ancient China that most of them pay attention to intuitive summary and experience induction, but lack rigorous thinking and logic. This is also reflected in the classification of science. So that when Mr. Needham compiled The History of Science and Technology in China, he had to use the classification method of modern science to extract the contents related to science and technology, which made the world know the great achievements of science and technology in China. In other words, we don't even know what we have achieved, but foreigners helped us find it, not ourselves. For example, Shen Kuo's Meng Xi Bi Tan, Song Yingxing's Tian Gong Kai Wu, Sun Simiao's Shui Jing Zhu and Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica are of great value, but they all stay in practice and record, and it is difficult to make a qualitative leap in thinking without reasoning and deduction. Therefore, Nine Chapters of Arithmetic in China has not been upgraded to Geometrical Elements, and the sky is round. Although it is not feasible to engage in theory alone, if practice and recording have not reached a new height in theory for thousands of years, there will inevitably be no broader space for development. Therefore, it is not surprising that western powers can find us with our invented compass and open our country with our invented gunpowder, because at that time, we were using compass technology to make a compass to look at Feng Shui, and using gunpowder as firecrackers to make crackling sounds to render a festive atmosphere.

fifth, academic atmosphere: the conservative and silent academic atmosphere hinders the development and dissemination of science and technology.

The centralized autocracy practiced by Qin Shihuang and the "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone" by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ended the era of contending for a hundred schools of thought with the most active thoughts, the strongest academic atmosphere and the most fruitful results in China's history. Influenced by Confucianism for thousands of years, China people are cautious and modest in terms of words, actions and academic viewpoints. They dare not say anything, dare not do anything, stick to the "golden mean", are not good at thorough research, and are not good at disagreeing with previous views. In this lifeless atmosphere, even if it develops, it will move step by step. In sharp contrast, the great strides made by the west at the same time, the Renaissance produced modern natural science, the Enlightenment enhanced the scientific consciousness, and the scientific and technological revolution pushed this development to a climax. In addition, at this time, western universities are rising rapidly, especially the establishment of world famous schools such as Cambridge and Oxford, which have played a role in fueling the development of science and technology in the West. China, on the other hand, not only did not attach importance to learning from the West, but also only a few movements, such as the Westernization Movement, were strongly obstructed by conservatives, thus making intellectuals more silent.