指南针理论在中国历史上的演变

指南针产生以后,中国学者对指南针之所以能够指南,从理论上做过探讨.这些探讨大都是从阴阳五行学说出发,结合当时人们对大地形状的认识而展开的.万历年间,传教士来华,带来了西方的指南针理论、地球学说以及相关的科技知识,在这些知识的影响下,中国学者开始从新的视角探讨指南针理论问题.在这些探讨中,阴阳五行的作用淡化了,而从力学角度做的分析却增加了,这是前所未有的.在传教士中,南怀仁的指南针理论最为系统,但他的理论仍然局限在古代科学的范围,并非吉尔伯特的磁学理论.南怀仁的理论在中国影响深远,直到19世纪中叶,仍有中国学者用南怀仁理论解释指南针问题.

The Historical Evolution of the Theory of Compass in China

After the appearance of compass,Chinese scholars began to explore the problem why compass could point to south.Most of their explorations evolved on the basis of yin yang and wu xing theories and the then knowledge of the shape of the earth.During the Wanli period(1573~1620)of the Ming Dynasty,missionaries came to China,bringing along with them the Western compass theory,a theory which states that the earth is in the shape of a ball,as well as some related knowledges about science and technology.Under the influence of those knowledges,Chinese scholars started to discuss the theory of compass in a new light.In such explorations,the function of yin yang and wu xing weakened and the analysis from the view of mechanics increased,which had never existed before.(Among) the missionaries,Ferdinand Verbiest's theory of compass was the most systematic one,but it is still confined to ancient science and actually not the magnetic theory of William Gilbert.Ferdinand Verbiest's theory had a far-reaching influence in China.Even in the second half of 19 century,there were still Chinese scholars who used the theory of Ferdinand Verbiest to explain the problem of compass.