What country, civilization, culture, or race do you think has contributed most to modern society?

Page 3 - Seeking answers? Join the AnandTech community: where nearly half-a-million members share solutions and discuss the latest tech.
Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
Schadenfreude

Schadenfreude

Lifer
Dec 28, 2001
11,391
3
0
I'd want to say the Chinese for the invention of paper, the greatest invention on Earth; and gunpowder as well, but the clock (Egypt) is a mean feat as well - not to mention computers (US), planes(US), automobiles(Germany), the numeral zero (Indian, since they were the ones who brought it to world-wide use), philosophy(Greece-Germany-China-India), mathematics(?), physics(?), etc. . ..

I dunno :confused:
 
S

sobriquet

Senior member
Sep 10, 2002
912
0
0
Originally posted by: ed21x
Originally posted by: ts3433
Tell a person in Nepal how great Bach is. Or tell a person in India how great Wagner is. Just because they don't know about these people doesn't mean they contributed any less. I'm sure a person from Russia will tell you how great their musicians are.
Click to expand...

In the context of the music of the Western world (with which the majority of us here are connected much more directly than with the East), the Nepalese and other Asian peoples did, in fact, contribute much less (perhaps nothing at all). I don't believe you can try to connect or relate the European classical tradition to other musical traditions outside the West, especially considering that until recently there would never have been any practical means for the two traditions to mingle much. As for Russia, it became connected with the European classical tradition in the latter part of the 19th century; before then, Russia was a cultural backwater of sorts.

Edit: Removed comment based on something that I obviously didn't read thoroughly enough.
Click to expand...


yeah, as much as I respect western classical music and hold it in high regard, many westerners don't understand that the world doesn't necessarily share this same level of respect or regard. In Asia, you'll see that the musical style and influence that everything is based off of is from China, and that has spread to Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, etc... Classical music has contributed very little to this sphere, and vise versa.
Click to expand...

There have been numerous instances of musical mixings between the East and West throughout history. Arabic music heavily influencing Spanish music via the Moors, Spanish and Portugese music influencing South American music via the conquistadores, and then of course huge Asian influences on European music via colonial projects. Debussy, for example, drew directly from colonized South Asian culture.

Asian, specifically Chinese and Japanese, art music traditions have been deeply affected in recent years by European traditions. Tan Dun in China and Toru Takemitsu in Japan both drew IMMENSELY from Western styles.

As for the prominence of German composers in the European tradition, most of it traces back to the establishment and institutionalization of historical musicology in the 19th century (Musikwissenschaft). The discipline, practiced by Germans, defaulted to demonstrating the "greatness" of German musicians. Americans, drawing both musicological practice and cultural sensibilities from the Germans, came to understand German composers as "great." Had it not been for the likes of Mendelssohn with the Bach revival, we might not think the same way about Beethoven and his gang nowadays. Consider that there might not be anything inherently "great" about German music beyond what we have been instructed to consider "great."
 
P

Playmaker

Golden Member
Sep 17, 2000
1,584
0
0
Originally posted by: aidanjm
our concept of democracy pretty much had it's beginnings in ancient Greece
Click to expand...

Agreed. They set the tone for western culture. It has to be the Greeks followed by the Romans. You can argue all night about the rest.
 
K

kogase

Diamond Member
Sep 8, 2004
5,213
0
0
Originally posted by: ed21x
yeah, as much as I respect western classical music and hold it in high regard, many westerners don't understand that the world doesn't necessarily share this same level of respect or regard. In Asia, you'll see that the musical style and influence that everything is based off of is from China, and that has spread to Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, etc... Classical music has contributed very little to this sphere, and vise versa.
Click to expand...

I don't think that's true. Particularly in China, Japan and Korea (very much and increasingly westernized countries) western music has made a huge impact. This most translates itself into pop/rock music, but western classical music is also held in very high regard (consider the large number of virtuoso Chinese classical musicians). Traditional Asian music is pretty much like "Japanese classical" in Japan.
 
L

Legend

Platinum Member
Apr 21, 2005
2,254
1
0
Most recently (past 500 years), the Germans have contributed a huge amount to science and music.

Even after World War II, the paperclip operation pretty much boosted our research in space flight and ICBMs.


we've been to the moon biatch!
Click to expand...

We sure did...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wernher_von_Braun



In ancient times, Rome/Greece. However much of their advances were lost and rediscovered. In terms of culture, probably England. I don't think any other country has had as much global influence as they did. Remember they occupied about 25% of the world about 100 years ago.

In the near future, I forsee China, America, Japan, Korea, and a united Europe contributing the most.
 
X

xSauronx

Lifer
Jul 14, 2000
19,586
4
81
Originally posted by: Kelvrick
Originally posted by: necine
Romans.
Click to expand...

I think Romans were amazing and probably accomplished the most on their own, but for total contributino, I don't know...

They did collapse and basically take all of their advances with them only to be discovered later, so I don't know how much they actually contributed.
Click to expand...
REG:
Yeah. All right, Stan. Don't labour the point. And what have they ever given us in return?!
XERXES:
The aqueduct?
REG:
What?
XERXES:
The aqueduct.
REG:
Oh. Yeah, yeah. They did give us that. Uh, that's true. Yeah.
COMMANDO #3:
And the sanitation.
LORETTA:
Oh, yeah, the sanitation, Reg. Remember what the city used to be like?
REG:
Yeah. All right. I'll grant you the aqueduct and the sanitation are two things that the Romans have done.
MATTHIAS:
And the roads.
REG:
Well, yeah. Obviously the roads. I mean, the roads go without saying, don't they? But apart from the sanitation, the aqueduct, and the roads--
COMMANDO:
Irrigation.
XERXES:
Medicine.
COMMANDOS:
Huh? Heh? Huh...
COMMANDO #2:
Education.
COMMANDOS:
Ohh...
REG:
Yeah, yeah. All right. Fair enough.
COMMANDO #1:
And the wine.
COMMANDOS:
Oh, yes. Yeah...
FRANCIS:
Yeah. Yeah, that's something we'd really miss, Reg, if the Romans left. Huh.
COMMANDO:
Public baths.
LORETTA:
And it's safe to walk in the streets at night now, Reg.
FRANCIS:
Yeah, they certainly know how to keep order. Let's face it. They're the only ones who could in a place like this.
COMMANDOS:
Hehh, heh. Heh heh heh heh heh heh heh.
REG:
All right, but apart from the sanitation, the medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, a fresh water system, and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?
XERXES:
Brought peace.
REG:
Oh. Peace? Shut up!
Click to expand...
 
lozina

lozina

Lifer
Sep 10, 2001
11,709
8
81
Originally posted by: Molondo
Bosnia

Goddamn that ****** is damn good.
Click to expand...

hehe, yeah cevapi are awesome. There's a balkan meat store near me that sells it. Over the summer I buy it all the time and grill it. They also sell ajvar there to go on top of the cevapi
 
L

Lonyo

Lifer
Aug 10, 2002
21,939
6
81
Originally posted by: xSauronx
Originally posted by: Kelvrick
Originally posted by: necine
Romans.
Click to expand...

I think Romans were amazing and probably accomplished the most on their own, but for total contributino, I don't know...

They did collapse and basically take all of their advances with them only to be discovered later, so I don't know how much they actually contributed.
Click to expand...
REG:
Yeah. All right, Stan. Don't labour the point. And what have they ever given us in return?!
XERXES:
The aqueduct?
REG:
What?
XERXES:
The aqueduct.
REG:
Oh. Yeah, yeah. They did give us that. Uh, that's true. Yeah.
COMMANDO #3:
And the sanitation.
LORETTA:
Oh, yeah, the sanitation, Reg. Remember what the city used to be like?
REG:
Yeah. All right. I'll grant you the aqueduct and the sanitation are two things that the Romans have done.
MATTHIAS:
And the roads.
REG:
Well, yeah. Obviously the roads. I mean, the roads go without saying, don't they? But apart from the sanitation, the aqueduct, and the roads--
COMMANDO:
Irrigation.
XERXES:
Medicine.
COMMANDOS:
Huh? Heh? Huh...
COMMANDO #2:
Education.
COMMANDOS:
Ohh...
REG:
Yeah, yeah. All right. Fair enough.
COMMANDO #1:
And the wine.
COMMANDOS:
Oh, yes. Yeah...
FRANCIS:
Yeah. Yeah, that's something we'd really miss, Reg, if the Romans left. Huh.
COMMANDO:
Public baths.
LORETTA:
And it's safe to walk in the streets at night now, Reg.
FRANCIS:
Yeah, they certainly know how to keep order. Let's face it. They're the only ones who could in a place like this.
COMMANDOS:
Hehh, heh. Heh heh heh heh heh heh heh.
REG:
All right, but apart from the sanitation, the medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, a fresh water system, and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?
XERXES:
Brought peace.
REG:
Oh. Peace? Shut up!
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

But the Romans didn't invent all those :p
 
S

Skyclad1uhm1

Lifer
Aug 10, 2001
11,383
87
91
The Chinese.

Wars have been the great technology boosters, and the Chinese developed gunpowder. Without that we'd still be using bows and arrows.
 
C

Cristatus

Diamond Member
Oct 13, 2004
3,908
2
81
Originally posted by: Schadenfreude
I'd want to say the Chinese for the invention of paper, the greatest invention on Earth; and gunpowder as well, but the clock (Egypt) is a mean feat as well - not to mention computers (US), planes(US), automobiles(Germany), the numeral zero (Indian, since they were the ones who brought it to world-wide use), philosophy(Greece-Germany-China-India), mathematics(?), physics(?), etc. . ..

I dunno :confused:
Click to expand...

I would and the Kamasutra to India as well (or Literature). Read the first line here. Oh yeah, and, not to mention: I think one of the, if not the, first planned city in the world (from around 2600 BC according to this article), and they had better sanitation than anybody in the world then (I believe the Romans got theirs at some time in AD? could be wrong). Hell, it's supposed to be better than sanitation at the moment in some un-developed countries (though I hate using the phrase "undeveloped countries" because it's so vague.).
 
0roo0roo

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,862
84
91
Originally posted by: Legend
Most recently (past 500 years), the Germans have contributed a huge amount to science and music.

Even after World War II, the paperclip operation pretty much boosted our research in space flight and ICBMs.


we've been to the moon biatch!
Click to expand...

We sure did...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wernher_von_Braun



In ancient times, Rome/Greece. However much of their advances were lost and rediscovered. In terms of culture, probably England. I don't think any other country has had as much global influence as they did. Remember they occupied about 25% of the world about 100 years ago.

In the near future, I forsee China, America, Japan, Korea, and a united Europe contributing the most.
Click to expand...

well no sh*t, but the russians also had their share of german scientists and a good chunk of v1-2 rocket tech that we couldn't cart off before they took over east germany. fact is he did it for america, and we are a nation of immigrants after all. von braun was instrumental but he didn't do it alone. it took a huge chunk of our resources and money during those years to actually pull off that moon landing. a mission we had to complete to fulfill the promise of a fallen president. course one can play the game of denigrating achievements by saying it was based on this or that or he was originally from here or there until it becomes meaningless.

and yes england. ithink the french are bitter still lol:) look at the english speaking world. us/canada/uk/australia/new zealand.... no wonder they are so afraid lol:)
http://www.members.tripod.com/The_English_dept/esc.html
 
0roo0roo

0roo0roo

No Lifer
Sep 21, 2002
64,862
84
91
Originally posted by: manohartvs
Originally posted by: TheoPetro
mayans in south america they developed the comcept of zero
Click to expand...

LOL! Mayans? HAHAHAHA ZERO??? HAHAHA
Click to expand...

yea before that if u said i gots nothin people would say thats unpossible!;)
%#@ mayans didn't even have the wheel. the wheel for f**ks sake...wtfs with that? arghh...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom