Living and Working in Ancient China by Joanne Randolph

Author:Joanne Randolph
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Enslow Publishing, LLC

The Grand Canal is the longest canal in the world. It is also one of the oldest canals.

HOW CAN WATER TELL TIME?

In 1090, Su-Song was ordered by the emperor to build a clock tower for the capital city. Others before him had used water for time telling, but Su-Song’s clock was more complex and more accurate than the others. To create power, Su-Song constructed a 40-foot-tall (12-meter-tall) tower. Inside the tower was a large bucket-lined water wheel. Water flowed steadily over it. As each bucket on the wheel filled with water, it fell forward, pulling the empty bucket behind it under the spout. The movement set off bells, gongs, or drums every fifteen minutes. These announced the correct time to all who heard them.

GUNPOWDER

Many ancient Chinese alchemists wanted to invent a potion that could make people live forever. Somewhere between 150 and 850, an alchemist cooked up a black powdery mixture. It didn’t make people live forever. Instead, it exploded! The Chinese called this mixture huo yao, or “fire chemical.” Soon after, they began stuffing huo yao into bamboo pipes and paper tubes to make firecrackers to scare away evil spirits. Later, alchemists added more of a chemical called saltpeter to the mixture. Bang! Huo yao became the gunpowder we know today.

By the year 1000, the Chinese were using gunpowder as a weapon. They shot at enemies with arrows armed with firecrackers. Later, the Chinese discovered that if they left the ends of the paper tubes open, the firecrackers would shoot wildly along the ground like rats. This scared the enemy and their horses. Some shot accidentally into the air! It wasn’t long before the Chinese started working on rockets.

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