Reading questions for Sivin article

1. Page 6: What does Sivin say about the difference between science and history? How does this difference shed light on how we think historically about science in general and, more specifically, about nature, state, and body?

2. Pages 7-9: What was the structure of the Chinese state in the last three centuries BC? How did philosophers view this structure?

3. Pages 12-16: What aspects of the Chinese body, as described by Sivin, seem foreign to you? What aspects seem familiar?

4. Pages 18-25: What is the significance of the terms "macrocosm" and "microcosm"? What do these terms mean in this context?

5. Pages 31-36: The authors discuss seven areas of difference and similarity between Greek and Chinese culture. Which of these do you think is most important? Which do you think is most interesting to study?

6. Does this article give you grounds for thinking about State, Cosmos, and Body in twenty-first century America? In other words, what would it look like if we applied this type of analysis and compared our lives today to the ancient Greeks and Chinese?