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The hand warmer, a small, often square or round mini portable furnace filled with burning charcoal, with a hollow lid on top, is one of the innovative winter heating devices used in ancient China. Usually made of copper or enamel, the hand warmer could fit in the hand or be placed in the sleeve for heating, similar to the heating pads used today.
Chinese people have long known how to use oxen and horses to pull carts, with cattle being the main draft animal. However, it was after Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476 BC), that animal husbandry was rapidly popularized throughout the country, and the frame structure of the plow was basically established in the Han Dynasty (202 BC-220) and continuously improved with the needs of production.
The use of bow and arrow for hunting and warfare dates back to the Paleolithic period in many parts of the world. Thousands of years ago, the crossbow was then invented by Chinese on the basic bow design, expanding the use of mechanical and hand-held weapons, and revolutionizing the battlefield.
As one of the most important grain crops, rice supports more than 50 percent of the global population. Being the birthplace of rice cultivation, China has always contributed its agricultural wisdom to further increase rice production and improve people's livelihood.
?Pottery dating back almost 10,000 years are part of the latest discoveries unearthed at the Xiatang historic site. News of the ancient artifacts was revealed at an archaeological conference held from October 25-27 in Xianju county, east China's Zhejiang province.
The Temple of Heaven is one of the most significant heritage sites along Beijing's Central Axis. As the main structure of the Temple of Heaven, the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests stands on a three-tiered pedestal made of pure white marble, making it one of the tallest ancient buildings in Beijing.
A Chinese video game, Black Myth: Wukong, has become a global sensation. Its latest trailer has an arresting dialogue: "Use powerful methods, but have a compassionate heart and that's your destiny." This reflects the essence of the game's central character, Sun Wukong, or Wukong, a figure with a strong will, a rebellious streak and persistence.
Yongle porcelain, also called sweet white porcelain, was produced during the Ming Dynasty's Yongle period (1403-1424), and features a special glaze giving a smooth and creamy appearance. This kind of porcelain was described in ancient times as "white like congealed fat, immaculate like piled-up snow," denoting the highest level of ancient Chinese white porcelain.
The abacus, a manually operated counting aid that originated in China, was hailed as "the fifth great invention in China" by Joseph Needham, a renowned British biochemist and historian. Before the advent of Arabic numerals, the abacus was a widely used counting tool globally.
A bronze sun-shaped device, unearthed at the Sanxingdui Ruins in Sichuan province, has a history of more than 3,000 years. The circular device, around 84 cm in diameter, has a protruding center like the sun. Five arms are radially connected to the surrounding halo. The circular hole in the center of the device and five equally spaced circular holes on the halo are all used for fixing purposes.
Among the gold masks unearthed at the Sanxingdui archaeological site, one that covers only half a face holds China's record for the heaviest gold object.
The grand statue of a human figure in bronze, on display at the new Sanxingdui Museum in Sichuan province, southwest China, is the tallest and most complete standing bronze figure in existence.
In ancient times, the military deployed a vehicle equipped with a cabin for observing enemy movements from a high altitude, known as the Nest Car because the cabin was suspended high up on a pole, just like a bird's nest.
The world's earliest wind direction instrument, the copper bird, was invented by Zhang Heng (78-139), a renowned scientist in the Eastern Han Dynasty. It resembles a bird made of copper with a short head and a long tail, placed on a straight pole about 16 centimeters high. When the wind blows, the direction pointed by the bird's head is that of the wind.
The water-powered trip hammer is a grain processing tool that uses the power of running water to grind grains, which was invented in the Western Han Dynasty(202 BC-8 AD).
The dragonbone water lift, a milestone invention first made during the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220), is a wooden machine used for irrigation.
To solve the problem of grain transportation, Shen Kuo analyzed the proportion between logistics personnel and soldiers during different marching days, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of using livestock and manpower to transport rations. These analyses were documented in his epic book, Dream Pool Essays.
In his book Dream Pool Essays, Shen Kuo documented an intriguing ancient Chinese practice of using cowhide arrow quivers as both storage for arrows and makeshift pillows. When these quivers were placed on the ground, their hollow interiors allowed people to hear faint sounds of individuals and horses several miles away. The underlying spirit of scientific creativity serves as a wellspring of wisdom and inspiration for modern endeavors.
Legend has it that there was a spring in the present day Yanshan county, Jiangxi province, where the water was not sweet but bitter. Local villagers discovered that through boiling this spring water, they could extract gleaming yellow copper. Intrigued, Shen Kuo (1031-1095) traveled to witness this process and documented it in his book Dream Pool Essays.
?Emerging technologies like AI, big data and the Internet of Things are rapidly reshaping the world in this era of digital intelligence. However, they are also bringing challenges to human rights, which makes joint efforts essential. Science and Technology Daily spoke with international experts on these issues against the backdrop of the 2025 China-Europe Seminar on Human Rights hosted by the China Society for Human Rights Studies and Cátedra China Foundation in Madrid, Spain, on June 25 on the theme "Human Rights in the Era of Digital Intelligence."
A major breakthrough in neurotechnology has been achieved with the successful completion of China's first-in-human clinical trial of an invasive brain-computer interface (BCI) system. With that China becomes the second country in the world to reach the clinical stage in this field.
