Diqin Designer

Chapter 535: All Due to Aristotle's Incompetence

Aristotle's optical theory had a longer-lasting impact than his geocentric theory, and people firmly believed in it until the seventeenth century, when a certain Lord Bull wanted to verify the theory and placed a prism in the sunlight...

Then, unsurprisingly, an unexpected event occurred, successfully proving that Aristotle's theory was wrong.

Upon hearing the words of the disciple from Xinmo, the other scholars in the Bactrian scholar group all looked at the old man, wanting to see how he would respond.

Why are these Qin scholars refuting Aristotle's theories? Do they have a grudge against Aristotle?
The old man, of course, would not believe a single word from a disciple of Xinmo. He was very unhappy, as the Qin scholars had already refuted the teachings of the great master Aristotle.

The old man said, "White light is the purest light in the world. It is spotless and flawless, which is why it is white. Only when white light is polluted will it turn into other lights, just like water is originally pure and has no other colors. It is only when water is polluted that it takes on other colors."

One of the scholars in the Bactrian group nodded in agreement, reasoning that white light is indeed very pure.

The old man then asked, "You claim that white light is the most impure light. Do you have any evidence to support this claim?"

The disciple of Xinmo said, "As I just said, some things cannot be figured out by just thinking about them, and what we consider to be common sense may not be correct."

"Your idea that other lights are formed from white light pollution is wishful thinking. Have you verified this? You also compare water to light, which is incorrect. Water and light are two different substances."

"As for evidence, I do indeed have evidence!"

The disciple of the New Ink School took out a wooden box from his feet, opened it, and presented its contents to the Bactrian scholars.

They were two transparent, pure triangular prisms, made of a precious jade called "Qiulin" by the Qin people.

Although the materials used to make this thing are very expensive, how can this thing prove that white light is not the purest light?

The disciple of Xinmo said, "In order for this object to work, it needs light, but also a relatively dim environment, so that it can be observed more easily."

This experiment is very simple; it's a dispersion experiment. The main experimental equipment is a prism. When white light passes through a prism, dispersion occurs.

The experiment does not necessarily have to be conducted in a dark room, but it is best to do so because the dispersion phenomenon can be observed more clearly in a dark room.

But now that the theater is in the room, there is no time to turn it into a secret room for experiments. Moreover, Euthydemus I is still here. Why do you Qin people keep the doors and windows closed and create a secret room? Do you have other intentions?
While it's impossible to turn a theater into a darkroom, it's possible to create a partial darkroom.

The disciple of Xinmo smiled and said, "It is not convenient for me to demonstrate here. Please follow me."

After hearing what the disciple of Xinmo said, the old man was the first to stand up: "I'd like to see how you prove it!"

A group of people followed the Qin scholars outside. The sun was shining brightly that day, and Euthydemus I also came outside with the group. He was also eager to see how the Qin people would prove their point.

A Qin scholar brought over a large wooden box. They opened the box, and the disciple of Xinmo took out a triangular prism from it and put it inside. Then, the group gathered around the box and did something.

A moment later, the scholar from the Mohist school of the Qin state closed the box, looked at the old man from the Bactrian scholar group, and asked, "Sir, is the light in the world today white light?"

Although the old man did not want to see the Qin people disprove Aristotle's theories, he also did not want to lie, so he said truthfully, "It is naturally white light."

The disciple of Xinmo laughed and said, "In other words, the light shining in the world right now is what you consider to be the purest white light. Then, please take a look!"

He made way for the old man to walk to the large wooden box. The old man saw that there was a hole in the lid of the box, obviously meant for him to observe the contents of the box through the hole.

This large wooden box is part of the constructed darkroom.

The old man peered through the hole in the lid of the box, his expression froze for a moment, then he became agitated and exclaimed, "Impossible! This is impossible! You must have tricked us! How could white light possibly disperse into other colors!"

From the old man's words, the other Bactrian scholars guessed what he had seen in the box: the white light was dispersed into other colors inside the box.

This proves that white light is not the purest light, but the most impure light, because other colors of light are derived from white light.

The old man continued, "That's right, it must be your triangular prism that polluted the white light, turning it into other kinds of light."

The disciple of Xinmo laughed and said, "Does Your Excellency mean that the prism simultaneously pollutes white light into seven colors?"

The old man stubbornly insisted, "It's not impossible that your triangular prisms are made of a peculiar material and can simultaneously pollute white light into seven different colors."

The old man knew that what he was saying was unreasonable, but in order to uphold his beliefs, he had to say it, even if it was unreasonable.

He devoted his life to studying the teachings of Aristotle and believed in them wholeheartedly. But now the people of Qin want to overthrow Aristotle's teachings, which is tantamount to destroying the faith he has held for most of his life.

Upon hearing this, the Xinmo disciple shook his head and did not immediately respond to the old man. Instead, he looked at the other Bactrian scholars and said, "You may also come forward and take a look!"

Euthydemus I laughed and said, "Let me see for myself!"

He walked to the wooden box and looked inside through a hole in the lid. He saw a beam of white light shining into the box through an opening on the side, illuminating the triangular prism made of jasmine. Then, a strange phenomenon occurred.

When the white light shone on the triangular prism made of chrysanthemum, it was dispersed into seven colors by the prism and projected onto the other side of the box.

No wonder the old man was so excited. Either the triangular prism was faulty and polluted the white light, or the white light itself was a mixture of other colors of light, meaning that white light was the most impure light.

After reading it, Euthydemus I exclaimed, "Amazing! Truly amazing!"

After he left, the ministers and Bactrian scholars who had accompanied him came forward to see: the Qin people had used a triangular prism to break down the white light.

After examining the paper, a Bactrian scholar asked the disciple of the New Ink School, "Sir, I find the colors similar to those of a rainbow in the sky. Is there any connection between the two?"

The disciple of Xinmo replied, "The reason for the formation of rainbows is the same, except that rainbows are formed when sunlight is dispersed into colors by water droplets in the sky. Rainbows often appear after rain when the sky is clear, and this is the reason."

"The sky is full of water droplets after it has just rained, and the sun is shining when it is sunny, which is just the right condition. As long as this principle is followed, rainbows can be created on ordinary days, such as by sprinkling water when it is sunny."

A Bactrian scholar said, "I see. No wonder I saw a rainbow one day when it didn't rain." Hearing these discussions, the old man felt uneasy. If, as the Qin scholar said, water droplets could also break down white light into other colors, then wasn't he wrong to say that the Qin scholar's triangular prism was flawed?
But given the current situation, he can only continue to be stubborn, saying, "A rainbow may not necessarily be caused by water in the sky scattering white light. The sky is so high and far away, who knows what the situation is? It's possible that the white light is polluted in the sky, which is why a rainbow is formed."

Seeing that the old man was still stubborn and unwilling to admit that the white light was not pure, the disciple of Xinmo smiled and said, "You believe that it is because the prism pollutes the white light that it turns into other colors of light. Then can we assume that in your opinion, the prism only pollutes the white light and makes it no longer pure?"

The old man keenly sensed that there was something wrong with what the disciple of Xinmo said, but he couldn't say no. If he said no, it would mean that he was contradicting himself.

Moreover, he couldn't think of anything else the triangular prism could do to white light besides polluting it into other colors. It couldn't possibly reassemble white light that had already been transformed into other colors.

Since the purpose of the Qin people's triangular prism was to pollute white light, it could no longer have the function of purifying white light.

After thinking for a moment, the old man felt there shouldn't be any problem and nodded, saying, "That's exactly right!"

The scholar from the new ink school smiled, did not answer him, opened the wooden box again, and placed another triangular prism into the box under everyone's gaze.

After working on it for a while, the scholar of new ink closed the wooden box again and said to the old man, "You may take another look!"

When the old man saw the disciple of Xinmo take out the second triangular prism, he knew something was wrong. When the disciple told him to look again, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and walk to the wooden box with a nervous heart, looking inside through the hole in the lid.

This time, the old man didn't excitedly question it loudly; instead, he seemed to have lost his soul after reading it.

The old man opened his mouth, as if to say something, but found it difficult to speak, because he knew that the people of Qin could refute any of his questions.

This made Euthydemus I and others very curious about what the Qin scholars had done this time.

Judging from the old man's expression, he had clearly seen something that was undermining his beliefs.

The disciples of Xinmo said, "You may all come forward and take a look!"

Euthydemus I was the first to step forward after the old man. He saw two triangular prisms placed in the box, but because of the extra triangular prism, the light displayed on the box wall was no longer a rainbow of seven colors, but a white light.

In other words, after adding another triangular prism, the white light that was originally dispersed into other types of light by the triangular prism was recombined.

This indeed overturns Aristotle's theory that white light is the purest light and other lights are not pure enough.

But why is that? Why could the triangular prism made of chrysoprism by the Qin people disperse white light and then recombine it to produce white light again?

Other Bactrian scholars felt their previous understanding was overturned after reading it, and many of them looked at the Qin scholars with complicated expressions.

Although it is hard to admit, the level of knowledge of the people of Qin was indeed far superior to that of others. Qin was the true country of scholars and civilization!
Just then, several guards who had been sent by Euthydemus I to conduct the "free fall experiment" ran over, looking excited as if they had made a great discovery.

Seeing the excited expressions on the faces of the group, the old man who was studying Aristotle's teachings felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over his head, chilling him to the bone.

He wanted to avoid the guards and not hear the news they brought back, but he couldn't tear himself away and still wanted to know the result.

A guard bowed to Euthydemus I: "Great Barthelus, we have completed the task you entrusted to us and have returned to report to you!"

Euthydemus I asked, "What was the result?"

The guard replied, "The facts are as the Qin scholars said: regardless of the weight of the balls, they all landed at the same time."

Upon hearing this, the old man's anxiety finally subsided, and yet another of Aristotle's doctrines was overturned.

The guard continued, "But when we tested them with objects of equal weight but different shapes, we found that they landed at different speeds."

Things of equal weight and the same shape and volume fall at the same speed, but things of different shapes and volumes fall at different speeds. Why is that?
Euthydemus I and the Bactrian scholars looked toward the new Mohist disciples.

The disciple of Xinmo explained with a smile: "This is because of their different sizes, and the resistance they encounter during their fall is different. You are all familiar with the existence of resistance in the world. When I wave my hand like this, you can feel something or some force hindering us."

The disciple of Xinmo stretched out his right hand and waved it forward, saying, "Objects also experience this kind of resistance during their fall, and this resistance varies depending on the size of the object!"

Upon hearing this, the Bactrian scholars seemed to understand. No wonder they required objects to be the same size and shape during the experiment; it was to ensure that the objects experienced equal resistance during their fall, thus eliminating the interference of resistance.

But it's still strange that objects of equal weight land at the same time. Why didn't the heavier object fall faster than the lighter one?

A Bactrian scholar asked the question, and the New Mohist disciple replied, "Although we know that the speed of falling is unrelated to the weight of an object, we do not yet know the specific reason."

Bactrian scholars believed that the disciples of the New Mohist school were deceiving them, and that the Qin people certainly knew the reason but simply did not want to tell them.

In the past, they were the ones who blocked knowledge from other countries; they never imagined that one day they would be blocked by others.

A sense of "resentment and shame" arose in the hearts of the Bactrian scholars, and even Euthydemus I and others felt embarrassed.

Before the Qin delegation arrived, they worried that the Qin delegation would steal their knowledge and technology. However, it turned out that the Qin people looked down on their technology and instead imposed a blockade on them.

It was their scholars' incompetence that led to this humiliation. Even Aristotle, Alexander's teacher, had his doctrines pointed out as flawed by the Qin people.

Aristotle was incompetent, and his actions led to the loss of sovereignty and national humiliation!

After a moment of silence, a Bactrian scholar said, "I once heard a theory that the buoyancy of an object in water is not related to the object's weight, but only to the size of the object in the water. Could it be that the resistance an object experiences when falling is also like this?"

These words drew the attention of the Qin scholars. It was surprising that the Western countries had such capable people who knew that buoyancy was related to the volume of an object in water.

A disciple of Xinmo asked curiously, "Which scholar from your country proposed this?"

The Bactrian scholar said, "I also heard from others that the scholar who proposed this theory was not from our country, and his name was Archimedes."

(End of this chapter)