Royal Asiatic Society Beijing – Prof. Richard de Grijs on 17th Century Chinese Exploration – 19/12/17

Prof. Richard de Grijs on 17th Century Exploration

How do we know where we are, or what time it is? In this era of smartphones and GPS, it’s hard to imagine how 17th century intellectuals answered such basic questions.  Even how they communicated with one another – largely through letters – was different in the days before scientific journals. Prof. Richard de Grijs’ new book combines excerpts from many of these letters for the first time in a single volume, exploring how the uptick in world trade in the 17th  and 18th  centuries gave determinations of location and time strategic importance. In discussing his book “Time and Time Again: Determination of Longitude at Sea in the 17th Century”, de Grijs will lead us on a journey through time, back to when Europeans scrambled to measure positions at sea, following in the wake of Chinese admiral Zheng He’s voyages across the Indian Ocean.

WHAT: Prof. Richard de Grijs on 17th century exploration
WHEN: Dec. 19, Tuesday, 7:30-9:00 PM
WHERE: The Courtyard Institute, , 28 Zhonglao Hutong, Dongcheng District, Beijing (see map)
HOW MUCH: RMB 30 for RASBJ members, RMB 50 for non-members
RSVP: email communications.ras.bj@gmail.com by Dec. 18 and write “de Grijs” in the header