I'm saying that China did not have a culture that promoted science. Not all of europe did either. Science rose mostly in the protestant north that had learned

I'm saying that China did not have a culture that promoted science. Not all of europe did either. Science rose mostly in the protestant north that had learned that differing arguments are not a threat to the status quo. I'm not saying Chinese were more stupid, or that North-Europeans are smarter than South-Europeans. I'm saying the culture of open discussion, critical thinking and being challenged for ones claims (i.e. testability) are the cornerstones that are necessary to be in place, and that curtailing freedom of speech curtails the progress of science, as much as focusing on eminence instead of evidence does. Technological progress and scientific progress are two different things! China was technologically the most advanced country hands down for a very long time before natural sciences rose. Yet they did not produce a Newton or a Galileo, or, at least the cultural environment was such that their work was forgotten.