The Needham Research Institute (NRI; zh , t = 李約瑟研究所 ), located on the grounds of

Robinson College Robinson College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1977, it is one of the newest Oxbridge colleges and is unique in having been intended, from its inception, for both undergraduate and graduate students of b ...

, in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, is a centre for research into the history of

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...

and

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...

. The institute is named after the biochemist and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

Joseph Needham Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham (; 9 December 1900 – 24 March 1995) was a British biochemist, historian of science and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science and technology, in ...

, who initiated the ''

Science and Civilisation in China ''Science and Civilisation in China'' (1954–present) is an ongoing series of books about the history of science and technology in China published by Cambridge University Press. It was initiated and edited by British historian Joseph Needham (1 ...

'' series. The current director is

Mei Jianjun Mei Jianjun () is an archaeo-metallurgist. As of January 2014, he became Director of the Needham Research Institute, as well as a Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge University. He served as President of the International Society for the His ...

, a noted archaeo-metallurgist. The organization was founded as the East Asian History of Science Trust in August 1968. In June 1983 the trustees conferred the title Needham Research Institute. The Trustees of the NRI is a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

. The institute grew out of Needham's research collection, which was originally housed in

Gonville and Caius College Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

, where he was Master until his retirement in 1976. After several moves, it moved into its current purpose-built structure in

in 1991. The building was designed in the Chinese style, and has been described by its architect as "East Anglian Asian".

List of directors

1983-1990 #

Ho Peng Yoke Ho Peng Yoke 何丙郁, born 4 April 1926 in Kinta Valley, died 18 October 2014 in Brisbane was a Malaya-born historian of Chinese science, whose work in Australia, the UK, and Hong Kong contributed greatly to its understanding in Anglophone academ ...

February 1990-2001 #

Christopher Cullen Christopher Cullen is an English sinologist. He has an MA from University of Oxford in engineering and a PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies in classical Chinese. He is Director Emeritus of the Needham Research Institute and Gene ...

October 2003-December 2013 #

January 2014-

References

External links

Needham Research Institute
{{Authority control Organisations associated with the University of Cambridge History of East Asia History of medicine Research institutes in Cambridge Joseph Needham