Thursday, June 12, 2003

The I Ching and Leibniz (易經與萊布尼茲)

The I Ching and Leibniz (易經與萊布尼茲)
[通訊技術 ]
(2003/06/12)




Enlightened Scientists

Books that relate the history of computers generally credit the digital theory that is the foundation of computer systems to Gottfried Leibniz, who is many times referred to as "the father of the digital revolution". The picture on the left is an illustration of the binary system that Leibniz created, and the picture below is an illustration of the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching. There is not much difference between the two illustrations as the picture on the left merely uses the numbers 0 and 1 rather than the symbols of Yin and Yang.

Editor's Comments:

If computer historians are going to persist in referring to Leibniz as the "Father of the Digital Revolution," then at the very least they should refer to Fu Xi as the "Grandfather of the Digital Revolution." When even Leibniz himself freely acknowledged Fu Xi's prior invention of the binary system, thousands of years ago, does it not seem slightly disingenuous for us moderns to pretend otherwise?

-- Bevin Chu

Explanation: Enlightened Scientists
Illustration(s): Leibniz's Binary System Diagram, I Ching Binary System Diagram
Author(s): David Lee, Joseph Kim
Affiliation: I Ching
Source: http://www.69yinyang.com/ICscience/scientists.html
Publication Date: 1992
Original Language: English
Editor: Bevin Chu, Registered Architect

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