Jing Fang
Music Theorist, Mathematician, and Astrologer
Jing Fang was born in 78 BC in China and died in 37 BC.
Jing Fang studied and worked in China at the Chinese Studies at Oxford.
Jing Fang is famous for many things, these are some of them:
Jing Fang is famous for being intelligent and noticing how closely a succession of 53 just fifths approximates 31 octaves when no one else noticed this. He created a complicated formula of math to support his "music theory". He also believed that the moon did not create its own light but that the light was being reflected from the sun to the earth.
This is one of the crazy equations he used
This is the theory that the moon does not produce its own light
This is an old picture of The Chinese Studies at Oxford
How Jing Fang has benefited the world
Jing Fang has benefited the world by confirming that the moon reflects the suns light instead of producing its own light. He has also helped develop and advance the knowledge of music so that new ideas and theories can be supported by his theory and findings.
2 interesting facts about Jing Fang:
- Jing Fang received an appointment as an official in the Music Bureau under Emperor Yuan of Han.
- Jing Fang was an expert at making predictions from the hexagrams of the ancient Yijing.
A quote by Jing Fang:
"The moon and the planets are Yin; they have shape but no light. This they receive only when the sun illuminates them. The former masters regarded the sun as round like a crossbow bullet, and they thought the moon had the nature of a mirror. Some of them recognized the moon as a ball too. Those parts of the moon which the sun illuminates look bright, those parts which it does not, remain dark." - Jing Fang