Source: Department of Philosophy
Written by: Zhu Yiwen
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

The seminar “Rethinking Modes of Teaching and Transmitting Knowledge from the Perspective of Intercultural Philosophy”, sponsored by the Public Platform of Humanity Sciences of Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) and undertaken by the Department of Philosophy of SYSU, was held successfully in Xichang Building of Department of Philosophy on August 6, 2014.

At 9:30 in the morning, Professor Ju Shier, Director of Department of Philosophy and Institute of Logic and Cognition at SYSU, made an opening speech. Ju Shier stated the impact of revolution of science and technology on human society from the perspective of philosophy, and the necessity for doing research on history of science. Furthermore, he stressed the Department of Philosophy has always paid attention to the study of history of science.

This seminar has two remarkable features: first, the discipline directions of speakers are various, and all presentations share a same theme, which reflects the characteristic of interdisciplinary research; second, speakers benefit each other and boost their own study by communication, which is just the production mode of modern scholarship. Moreover, what has to be stressed is that each talk has been peer-reviewed by scholars in China and other countries though various ways before it is presented in this seminar.

The seminar has 6 presentations in total: 3 in the morning and 3 in the afternoon. Each presentation occupies 1 hour, half hour for presenting, and half hour for discussion. ZHENG Cheng, assistant professor in the Institute for the History of Nature Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, firstly gave a talk entitled “How the European Firearms were Indigenized in China in the 16th & 17th Centuries”. Based on three cases, ZHENG Cheng discussed the copy and application of European Firearms in 16th and 17th century, analyzing the condition and restriction for transmitting knowledge, and the interplay between foreign technology and local tradition.

JIANG Lu, lecturer in the Department of Philosophy of SYSU, presented “Transformation of a Logic Textbook: The Chinese Translation of Coimbra Commentary on Aristotle’s Organon”. This talk analyzed how this textbook of logic was used in the Western Society of Jesus, and its Chinese translation made by LI Zhizao and Francisco Furdado. JIANG Lu further discussed the medium role of translation during knowledge transmission.

CHEN Zhihui, lecturer in the Institute of Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia Normal University, talked about “The Permeation of Astronomical Calculation into the Civil Examinations in the Qianlong and Jiaqing Periods”. This talk stated under the prevalent backdrop of text criticism of Qianlong and Jiaqing reign, how the astral and mathematical knowledge was used in the civil examinations and how the kind of knowledge was transmitted in the circles of friends and teachers.

In the afternoon, ZHU Yiwen, lecturer in the Department of Philosophy of SYSU gave a presentation “Two Modes of Teaching Mathematical Knowledge in 7th Century China”. This talk stated that in the six schools of the Imperial University in Tang dynasty, besides School of Mathematics, mathematical knowledge was also taught in School for the Sons of States, Supreme School, and School of the Four Gates. Moreover, the ways of teaching are different from it was in the School of Mathematics. ZHU Yiwen compared Tang scholars’ commentaries respectively on Mathematical Procedures in Five Canons and Ceremonies and Rites, and detailedly analyzed the difference between the two.

PAN Dawei, lecturer in the Department of Philosophy of SYSU, presented “Acceptance of Innovation Within China’s Medical Society of the 1920s: Zhang Xichun and the Readers”. Based on the correspondences between Zhang Xichun and the readers of his book, namely Records of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Combination with Western Medicine, PAN Dawei analyzed the readers’ reflection towards this book. Furthermore, she discussed the acceptance of Western medicine within China’s medical society at that time.

WANG Xiaohu, lecturer in the School of Public Administration, South China Normal University, gave a presentation “The Form of Almanacs and Its Impact on The Transmission of Time Information”. In this talk, WANG Xiaohu took tables of annals in Chinese almanacs as the research object, pointing out the subtle psychology when ancients used almanacs and its cause of formation.

After all talks were presented, scholars had a general discussion. Participants all agreed that several research directions still needed to be further studied and had the possibility to be extended. We looked forward to holding similar seminars in the near future.