In 221 B.C., King Yingzheng of Qin finally completed the great cause of unifying the six kingdoms and established the first civilized empire. In order to realize this ambition, he went to great lengths to support scientific and technological inventions and innovations, as evidenced by the three extraordinary achievements he left behind – the range of the Qin Yu far exceeded that of Europe for thousands of years, the craftsmanship of the bronze sword was far ahead of the world, and there was a chromium oxide technology that no one has yet matched.
These three inventions established the immortal scientific and technological status of the Qin Dynasty, and also indicated the great potential of the Chinese nation. By analyzing the origin and impact of the three inventions, this paper aims to firmly believe that the talent base determines everything, as evidenced by the brilliance of the Qin Dynasty.
Ying Zheng's first invention that was thousands of years ahead of the world - Qin Yu
When the Qin army used ordinary bows and arrows on the battlefield, they often got into trouble. Due to the limited range and accuracy, it is difficult to form an effective strike against the enemy. This inspired the design of the Qin technicians, who innovated on the basis of the bows and arrows of their predecessors and developed a new long-range kill weapon, the Qin Yu.
For the first time, this invention made use of the principle of dynamics, using a combination of a bowstring and a crossbow arm, which greatly enhanced the firing power. The special triangular arrow also improves accuracy.
The test results showed that the effective range of the Qin Yu was 300 meters, which was three times that of an ordinary bow and arrow, and its accuracy was also greatly improved. This not only solved the needs of the battlefield, but also strengthened the Qin army when using the sword to conquer the city.
In the process of Yingzheng's conquest of the Six Kingdoms, he was invincible, and Qin Yu made great contributions. Until the 10th century, the range and production technology of crossbow weapons in Europe were still far behind, which shows that the design of the Qin Yu was a thousand years ahead of the world at that time.
This reflects the scientific and technological strength and military power of the Qin Dynasty from one side.
Ying Zheng's second invention that led the world for a thousand years - the bronze sword
The key to Jing Ke's failure to assassinate the King of Qin was the bronze sword worn by the latter. At that time, bronze daggers were generally only about 20 centimeters, which greatly restricted survival and combat.
After repeated trials and research, the swordsmiths of the Qin State finally found the process of making longer and sharper bronze swords - chromium salt oxidation. This new method of adding chromium succeeded in improving the hardness and corrosion resistance of the sword, and a new weapon with a cold handle was born.
At the same time, the length of the bronze sword is also around 75 centimeters, which is much higher than before. Fight an opponent with a long sword and gain the initiative. Therefore, in the standard equipment of the Qin army, this new bronze sword is very popular.
Even Ying Zheng himself wore a long sword that was tens of centimeters long and sharp. In the later Conquest of the Six Kingdoms War, this bronze sword played an irreplaceable role, bringing Qin's goal of unifying the world by force closer to it.
Until modern times, European metallurgical and weapons technology was far from reaching this level. It can be seen that the achievements of the Qin people in the development of bronze swords have been ahead of the world for thousands of years, which once again proves their extraordinary wisdom.
An invention achievement that no one of the Qin people has been able to surpass so far
In 1974, archaeologists obtained a batch of bronze swords of different shapes during the excavation of the terracotta warriors and horses pit of the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang. One of the swords, which was already heavily bent and deformed, bounced back to its original shape as soon as it came into contact with the air, shocking the witnesses.
This sparked a re-examination of the Qin Dynasty's sword-casting skills by experts. After comparative tests and physical and chemical analysis, they were surprised to find that this is a new material that is only defined and used in modern society - chromium.
The Qin people somehow processed this metal more than 2,000 years ago and used it to improve the performance of their weapons. It can be concluded that the metallurgical technology of the Qin Dynasty has reached an unprecedented peak, reaching modern standards.
Otherwise, the special resistance to corrosion and recovery cannot be explained. This is probably the greatest technological advancement in human history, and no one has yet done so. It foreshadows the limitless potential of the wisdom and creativity of the ancient Chinese and adds a rich footnote to the glorious history of the Qin Dynasty.
I believe that with the deepening of archaeology, there will be more similar black technologies in the world, which will impress us.
In conclusion, science and technology come from talents
In the history of the development of science and technology in the Qin Dynasty, the three epoch-making inventions of Qin Yu, the bronze sword and the chromium salt oxidation technology proved the highest level in China and even the world at that time.
They are all hundreds or even thousands of years ahead of the world, leading the trend of an era. This was based on Qin Shi Huang's policy of valuing talent and adopting advice openly.
For military purposes, he did not hesitate to spend a huge amount of money to recruit skilled craftsmen from all walks of life from all over the world, and provided them with favorable conditions to support them to display their talents. In such a context, the emergence of these three inventions is not accidental.
On the contrary, they are only the tip of the iceberg, indicating the unlimited creative potential of the Chinese nation at that time, if it were not for the hasty end of the Qin Dynasty, I believe that the scientific and technological achievements will be even more brilliant.
Thousands of years later, these three inventions still shine brightly. They proved that the talent base determines everything, and the Qin Dynasty never relaxed its emphasis on talents, which made them immortal in science and technology.
It is worth learning from and absorbing this enlightened spirit from people in every era Xi and striving for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.