https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-15-6525-0_10

Quotes from this book which I curated (I probably downloaded the book from Russia based https://libgen.st ):

• Chinese plows with iron curved mould-board were spread into Japan in the Tang Dynasty and had had a long-term impact on Japan’s agricultural production. In Europe, the plows with wooden vertical mould-board had been used simply for a long time. The kind of plows whose mould-board and share could not be closely combined often carried weeds and soil with them when ploughing, thus hard to be pulled. The plows with iron curved mould-board were not used there until the early eighteenth century, due to the introduction of Chinese plows [16].
• The poor efficiency of a traditional European plow was attributed to its large base, heavy wooden wheels, and large wooden mould-board, which could result in great resistance. In addition, as the plow’s mould-board and plough share could not be closely combined, weeds and soil were often carried with and stuck in its crevice, so the farmer had to stop every few minutes and use a stick to remove the soil and weeds from it. The plow was far less efficient than traditional plows made in China. The traditional seed ploughs made in China were the most advanced drill seeder in the world in ancient times. A modern sowing machine can merely perform in succession its whole functions of ditching, seeding, covering, and compacting, but the three-legged seed plough made in the Han Dynasty of China had already been able to finish the working procedures together. In the sixteenth century, the method used in Europe to sow seeds was still broadcast sowing, which had been the only method to sow seeds by the European farmers for a long time. This method was not only inefficient, but also wasting more seeds. In the eighteenth century, Jethero Tull was the first person in Europe who set forth the theory of dry-land grain sowing in the drill in a systematic and complete way. When it came to the shortcomings of broadcast sowing, Tull said: “The seeds cast on the depressed places may be over ten times more than elsewhere, and there may be few or no seed on the projected places. This uneven sowing reduces the number of effective seeds, as the space with 50 seeds can produce not as much as that with only one seed. In a place densely sown, the plants will not be able to get enough nutrients.”
• Francesca Bray, a famous British expert in technical history, argued that “the key factor in the reform of agricultural technology in Europe in the 18th century was the introduction or development of the plows with iron curved mould-board, drill seed planters and cultivators. Before that, northern China was the only place to use the three together for farming.” She further pointed out: “There is strong evidence that modern European plows as well as their lightweight frames and iron curved mouldboards were directly affected by Chinese plows [17].” In the seventeenth and eighteenth century, Christian missionaries were able to travel more widely in mainland China. Their large number of correspondences and publications greatly improved the understanding of the Europeans of China. The agricultural machinery made in China was also introduced to Europe by the missionaries. Most of the European encyclopedias that were introduced into China cover the information about agriculture and farm tools. Xu Guangqi, together with the western missionaries such as Matteo Ricc and Johann Schreck, co-translated a variety of western scientific and technical works, including the ones on irrigation, water conservancy, and machinery.
• However, there were obvious deficiencies in the early western drill seed planters. The earliest drill seed planter made in Europe was invented by Camillo Torello, and the Venetian Senate granted him a patent in 1566. But the first drill seed planter that was described in detail was developed by Tadeo Cavalina from the city of Pologna in 1602, though it was rather primitive. The first real drill seed planter made in Europe was developed by Jethero Tull. Soon after 1700, the planter had come into being, and the detailed description of it was published in 1731. In Europe of the eighteenth century, James Sharp also invented a better drill seed planter. The planter could only 10 Plows and Seed Ploughs 293 sow in a single row and was too small in size, so it had not been paid enough attention to. The different drill seed planters made in Europe were not only more expensive and unreliable, but also fragile and uneconomical. It was not until the mid-nineteenth century that Europe had a sufficient number of solid drill seed planters of good quality. That means, Europe had failed to make full use of the inherent principle of Chinese seed ploughs for two centuries [20].
• In the late nineteenth century, many officials of the Qing Dynasty visited Europe and the United States, where they came in close contact with and felt the modern science and technology of the West. After seeing the advanced machinery of western agriculture, they were quite surprised to record and comment on them. But the envoys made little account of the plows produced in the West. In 1868, Emperor Tongzhi appointed Anson Burlingame, former U.S. ambassador to China, to lead the Chinese mission to Europe and the United States. Zhi Gang, an official of the Qing Dynasty just in the mission, described in his Records of the First Diplomatic Corps to Europe and the United Statesthe farm tools by animal power that they had seen in New York, such as plows, reaping machine, threshing machine, rice milling machine, etc., but made a simple description of plows as “half of the plows are acute angle-shaped [21].” The plows of the West did not seem to have attracted his attention. Guo Songtao, the first envoy of the Qing Dynasty to Britain and France, paid close attention to agriculture there during 1876–1879. In May of 1877, Guo was invited to visit one machine plant situated at one river mouth about 200 li northeast of London. He made such a record in his journal: “There are three kinds of ploughing machines: two by wheel and one by horsepower.” He made a more detailed description of the steam plows, as they were rather novel and unique to Chinese people [22]. The reason why the envoys made little account of the plows produced in the West was probably that Europe and America were not much more advanced in farming tools than China at that time, so they were not attractive enough [23].
• The plows and seed ploughs technology of China had a crucial influence over the agricultural revolution in Europe. Western scholars have had high assessment of this: “When the plows made in China finally spread to Europe, they were copied. Together with adoption of the Chinese cultivation in row and the seed ploughs, they had a direct influence on the European agricultural revolution. It is generally believed that the agricultural revolution in Europe led to the industrial revolution there, and the West thus developed as a world power. It is an irony, however, that all the results depended on the influence of China, not the intrinsic strength of Europe at all [24].”

Chinese modernization came directly mostly from the Soviet Union, not America or West. It only came indirectly from the West in that modern technology between 1600-1900 is almost entirely of Western origin. And thru colonialism, much of that was first introduced to China via Shanghai. During the Republic of China era, China did develop some operational ability of it, but actual core engineering and manufacturing ability of it remained minimal or close to non-existent.

The Western media really distorts the reality in a strange way. And lots of Chinese are naive enough to believe it. It seems to be out of insecurity, bitterness, and self-delusion that West and its compradors promulgate these massive lies.

As moderator of this Subreddit, I am pleased to present another week-long AMA thread which will end on 2024-11-20. The person being interviewed in this AMA is a member of the organization Sino American Reunion with whom I am in close contact. As a second-generation Sino American who had grown up in Michigan, he worked as a computer-science teacher in Beijing and is now based in the province of Jilin. The following are particular areas where he might be able to offer some expertise:

• The Chinese technological sector. Computing. Semiconductors.
• Chinese cultural dynamics. The process of adjusting to Chinese culture after relocating.
• Learning the Putonghua/Mandarin language.
• Confucianism. Mohism. Four Books and Five Classics.
• Lifestyle and living conditions in China.
• Making friends with the people of China.

This posting was last edited on 2024-11-09 @ 7.14 AM (Beijing).

The /r/exgons Subreddit is run independently of the two main groups for Chinese Americans/Canadians who have relocated to China (or who intend to relocate), namely Journey to the East and Sino American Reunion. Here is how to connect with them:

• WeChat group of Journey to the East. Read their Community page and then send an email to the two email-addresses listed on their Team page.
• WeChat group and Discord server of Sino American Reunion. Send an email with your WeChat and/or Discord username to: support@sar.network

Hey everyone, I made this video explaining some of my reasons for moving to Asia, as well as showcasing some of the cool things I saw during my travels. I would be most curious to connect with you and hear your opinions. https://x.com/ReturnToAsia/status/1812301357124133232

I am a Chinese American currently living in the USA, but hoping to make the move later this year.

Thanks.

Contrary to the widespread media narrative, Deng's denunciation of the Cultural Revolution in 1981 was mostly done with many distortions in order to justify his return to power, and in actuality, it grossed damaged the prestige and political health of CPC and China. I can explain the background of this in more detail in this thread.