The Chinese invented the suspension bridge, the fishing reel, the stirrup, the parachute, paper money, playing cards, the decimal system, the seismograph, the blast furnace and mustard gas. The Chinese were also the first to chart the heavens, discover the circulation of the blood, and even isolate sex hormones. Based on the Science and Civilisation in China series by Cambridge scholar Joseph Needham, the book is arranged by invention. The endpapers detail the various time lags between Chinese inventions and their adoption or recognition in the West. The text also includes illustrations and quotations from contemporary Chinese sources.