Scholarship and education

No space to speak, or simply no one listening?

ESWN has translated a number of articles describing a heated Phoenix TV debate concerning the pseudoscience question. Guests question each other's credentials, the audience nearly erupts into physical violence, and everyone leaves frustrated.

Well, almost everyone. Outsider mathematician Jiang Chunxuan was satisfied with his appearance on the program:

For a person like Jiang Chunxuan, there had never been any opportunity to speak out in public. He Zuoxiu, Fang Zhouzi and Sima Nan controlled the opinions, talked rubbish and trashed us. We can now speak out and therefore they are scared and want to divert attention.

This was my first opportunity to participate in this kind of program. I thought that the Phoenix TV program was very good. It provided an opportunity for us and for everyone in the whole world who does not understand this matter to find out about what is going on.

It's interesting that Jiang Chunxuan feels that his voice is being stifled. True, he's not part of the establishment, like He Zuoxiu (with CAS) or Sima Nan (a journalist and CAST collaborator), but people within the establishment have been championing his cause for years. Song Zhenghai, the CAS science historian who is attempting to eliminate the term 'pseudoscience', has held Jiang up as an example of the sort of Chinese scientist who is internationally recognized but domestically ignored. In a defense of Jiang and other outsider scientists written in 2003, Song blamed the Chinese science world itself for this willful oversight - established scientists are afraid that if Jiang's conclusions were to be accepted, the whole system would be up-ended. Hence their decision to ignore him completely.

However, today's wired world gives scholars more opportunities for expression. Much of Fang Zhouzi's influence, for example, comes from his New Threads website, which he has leveraged into columnist spots in the mainstream media. Song Zhenghai's petition gained its traction online as well.

Outsider scientists ought to be able to do the same thing - New Media was supposed to be an equalizing platform, one where anyone could start a webpage or a blog to communicate their ideas to a wider audience. Why is it that Jiang Chunxuan felt voiceless until his opinions were aired on a television program?

Links and Sources
 
There are currently 2 Comments for No space to speak, or simply no one listening?.

Comments on No space to speak, or simply no one listening?

I am Chen I-wan (cheniwan@263.net), advisor, Committee of Natural Hazard Prediction for China Geophysics Society, advisor, Committee of Disaster Historical Studies for China Disaster Prevention Association. The white hair person who strongly supported Jiang Chun-xuan based on my careful study since 2003 on Jiang's outstanding work in establishing the foundation of Santilli's Iso-mathematics for Hadronics, which has accomplished revolutionary breakthrough in modern physics, chemistry and nuclear physics.

I am the one issued the warning 2 hours before Tsunami struck our coast. I was appreciated by several scientists and seimiologist from many country for my simple instrumental mecanisim to warn the earthquake before it makes heavy damage. For full details you can contact me.To know about my knowledge on earth science simply type A.Ganapathy India in google search.

Post a comment

All comments are moderated and subject to review by Danwei contributors and editors, but well-grounded and articulate comments will be published regardless of which way they lean. Because comments published on any website ultimately contribute to the character of that website, we may decline to publish comments that are irrelevant, redundant, or that do not adhere to generally accepted standards of courtesy; if you are looking for a fight, there are plenty of other venues available online.


Some useful html: <b>bold</b>, <i>italic</i>,
<a href="http://www.danwei.org">link</a>

Danwei Model Workers
laomo2008fpA.jpg
Recommended blogs and new media
China Media Timeline
Major media events over the last three decades
Books on China
Leslie_Chang_Factory_Girls_s.jpg
To die poor is a sin: An excerpt of Factory Girls by Leslie T. Chang.
In Wang Shuo's No Man's Land: Geremie Barme addresses Wang Shuo's 千万别把我当人.
Swimming with Mao, a memoir essay: This memoir piece is by Xujun Eberlein, author of the new short story book Apologies Forthcoming'.
Front Page of the Day
A different newspaper every weekday
From the Vault
Classic Danwei posts
+ Some questions about SARFT's full-stop for Red Question Mark (2007.09): SARFT axes Red Question Mark (红问号). He Dong (何东) responds.
+ Paper tigers, whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears (2008.02): An article originally published in 1999 by Geremie Barmé about newspapers in China and how they have changed since the Cultural Revolution.
+ What's wrong with Thirteen Princess Trees? (2007.03): The movie Thirteen Princess Trees (十三棵泡桐) directed by Lu Yue (吕乐) is delayed for a second round of review by the China Film Bureau.
Danwei Archives
Danwei Feeds
Via Feedsky rsschiclet2.png (on the mainland)
or Feedburner rsschiclet.gif (blocked in China)
rsschiclet2.png rsschiclet.gif Main posts: All main page posts
rsschiclet2.png rsschiclet.gif Top Links: Links from the top bar
rsschiclet2.png rsschiclet.gif Danwei Jobs: Want ads
rsschiclet2.png rsschiclet.gif Danwei Digest: Updated daily, 19:30