re: #131 FurryOldGuyJeans

Ok. I still think improving something is the key, especially if that makes for greater usage, not who invented it. The Chinese were not known for the former.

As has been pointed out by others (including VDH, I think), ironically the Chinese probably stagnated precisely because they had a relatively unified nation state. The constantly-warring European statelets kept the pressure on each other to innovate, particularly in weapons and tactics.