My Imperial Advisor is ChatGPT

Chapter 73 To Do Scientific Research in the Qin Dynasty, I First Need to Learn

Seven days later, at the Daqin Academy of Sciences, in the chemistry laboratory.

"boom--!"

A loud bang, accompanied by thick smoke and flames, came from the laboratory.

Immediately following was a violent coughing fit.

"Cough cough cough..."

Hu Hai emerged from the smoke, covered in soot and grime. His hair was frizzy from the explosion, his face was patchy with black and white marks, and his clothes had several holes burned in them.

Behind him, three other trainees from the same group also ran out in a disheveled state, one of them covering his nose with blood streaming down his face.

"Young Master! Are you alright?" The guard in charge of watching over him rushed over, but was pushed away by Hu Hai.

"It's alright! It's alright!" Hu Hai shouted excitedly, his eyes gleaming in the smoke. "That formula definitely worked! Look how loud it was!"

The guard remained silent.

Does a loud noise mean it's effective?

So you almost blew yourself up just now, is that "effective"?

"Young Master, this is the third explosion today," the guard said with a bitter face. "If this continues, you'll have to demolish this laboratory."

"What's there to be afraid of!" Hu Hai said dismissively, wiping the dust from his face. "Experiments always involve some sacrifices. Besides, I added new ingredients this time!"

He pulled a small notebook from his pocket, which was filled with various recipes.

"Look, the first time, I only added sulfur and charcoal. It made a sound, but it wasn't loud enough."

"The second time, I added cinnabar, which made the sound louder, but it still wasn't enough."

"This time, I added dog's blood, garlic, and..." He turned a page, his eyes gleaming with even more excitement, "and realgar stolen from the Imperial Medical Bureau!"

The guard was utterly speechless.

Dog blood? Garlic? Realgar?

Are you making gunpowder or performing a ritual?

"Young master, Mr. Wang said that experiments must be conducted according to the prescribed steps, and we cannot add things haphazardly..."

"I know! I know!" Hu Hai waved his hand impatiently, "But following the steps is too slow! Wouldn't it be faster to find the best recipe by adding everything in at once?"

He patted the guard on the shoulder with a look that said, "You don't understand."

"That's called 'efficiency,' understand? One experiment tests all variables, saving time and effort!"

The guard remained silent.

He didn't understand anything about variables, but he knew that if things continued like this, Hu Hai would really blow up the laboratory.

Just then, Wang Jianguo rushed over.

"Hu Hai!" Wang Jianguo's face was grim. "Did you do this again?"

"Mr. Wang!" Hu Hai greeted him excitedly. "You've come at the perfect time! I just conducted another experiment. This time the formula is: two ounces of sulfur, three mace of charcoal, one mace of cinnabar, half a bowl of dog's blood, three cloves of garlic, and one mace of realgar! Look how loud the sound is!"

Looking at Hu Hai's dark face and the still-smoking laboratory behind him, Wang Jianguo felt a throbbing pain in his temples.

This kid is truly fearless.

"Hu Hai, tell me first," Wang Jianguo took a deep breath, trying to keep his tone calm, "what are you trying to test with this experiment?"

"To test the best gunpowder formula!" Hu Hai said matter-of-factly.

"So, do you know which of the many things you just added worked and which didn't?"

"Uh..." Hu Hai was stunned.

He hadn't thought about that question.

In his view, adding these things made the sound louder, so it was "effective." As for which ones were effective and which ones were not, did it matter?

"Don't know?" Wang Jianguo sneered. "Then let me ask you again, if you want the noise to be even louder next time, what should you add?"

"This..." Hu Hai scratched his head, "Then how about adding a little of everything? Or... adding more dog blood?"

Why add melodrama?

"Because...because melodrama looks...more intense?"

Wang Jianguo was completely speechless.

This child has no idea what a scientific experiment is.

In his view, doing experiments is about "trying this and trying that," and if you're lucky, you'll find the right answer; if you're unlucky, you'll try again.

This is a typical example of "metaphysical alchemy" thinking.

"Hu Hai, you come here." Wang Jianguo pointed to a table next to him. "I need to show you something."

There was a piece of paper on the table with a table drawn on it.

The horizontal column contains: sulfur, charcoal, cinnabar, other ingredients, and experimental results.

The columns are: Experiment 1, Experiment 2, Experiment 3...

"Look, this is a standard experimental record sheet," Wang Jianguo said. "Doing experiments isn't about blindly trying things out; it's about systematic testing."

"Systematic testing?" Hu Hai asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Yes." Wang Jianguo pointed to the table, "For example, if you want to test the effect of sulfur content on the power of gunpowder, then you need to:"

"First, keep other conditions constant. The charcoal content remains the same, the cinnabar content remains the same, and all other ingredients remain the same."

"Secondly, only the sulfur content is changed. The first time, use one ounce; the second time, use two ounces; the third time, use three ounces."

"Third, record the results of each experiment. Record the loudness of the sound, the amount of smoke, and the power."

"That way, you'll know whether it's the sulfur that's working, or the other ingredients."

Hu Hai looked at the form, his eyes growing increasingly confused.

"Mr. Wang, isn't this... too much trouble?"

"Troublesome?" Wang Jianguo glared at him. "Do you think it wouldn't be troublesome to add ten ingredients at once, and then not know which ones are effective and which ones are ineffective?"

"And what if you want to replicate this result next time? Do you know how much sulfur? How much charcoal? How much dog blood?"

Hu Hai remained silent.

Indeed, if he doesn't know which ingredient made the difference, then if he wants to replicate the result next time, he'll just have to... try again?

But what if you're unlucky and can't get it?

"Mr. Wang, do you mean I can only change one condition at a time?"

"Yes." Wang Jianguo nodded. "This is called the 'controlled variable method.' It's a fundamental principle of scientific experiments."

"Only by keeping all other variables constant and changing only one variable can you determine the impact of that variable on the outcome."

"It's like..." Wang Jianguo thought for a moment, then found a more vivid analogy, "like cooking. If you put in salt, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, and chili all at once, and the dish becomes tastier, do you know which seasoning made the difference?"

Hu Hai shook his head.

"But if you try adding only salt first, then only sugar, and see the effect. By trying one seasoning at a time, you'll know which seasoning is necessary and which is superfluous."

"I understand!" Hu Hai's eyes lit up. "It's like...like hunting! You can't fire ten arrows at once; you have to fire them one by one to know which arrow hit the mark!"

Wang Jianguo: "..."

This analogy, though a bit strange, is... barely plausible.

"Pretty much," Wang Jianguo said. "However, hunting is like shooting arrows, while experimenting is like testing variables. Essentially, they're the same: changing only one condition at a time and observing the results."

"Alright!" Hu Hai slammed his hand on the table, excitedly saying, "I'll do the experiment again right now! This time, I'll only change the sulfur content; everything else will remain the same!"

He turned to run into the laboratory, but Wang Jianguo grabbed him.

"Wait a minute." Wang Jianguo pointed to the still-smoking laboratory. "Let it air out first. And, given your condition, go wash your face."

"Oh, right!" Hu Hai then remembered that he still had a dark expression on his face, and smiled sheepishly. "Then I'll go tidy up first."

Watching Hu Hai's departing figure, Wang Jianguo sighed.

This child, though impulsive, at least listens to advice.

Moreover, his passion for experimentation is genuine. With proper guidance, he might very well become an excellent scientist.

Of course, that's assuming he doesn't blow himself up.

……

At the same time, in Xianyang Palace, at the Imperial Medical Bureau.

An elderly man with white hair was facing a pill furnace, his brows furrowed.

This is an alchemist from the Imperial Medical Bureau, surnamed Xu, known as "Alchemist Xu". He has been practicing alchemy for over forty years and is one of the most famous alchemists in the Qin Dynasty.

But today, he encountered a problem.

"Strange, why are these pills different from the last ones?" Master Xu picked up a freshly refined pill, smelled it, and said, "The smell is wrong too."

"Master," an apprentice beside him said cautiously, "could it be... a problem with the heat?"

"The heat control?" Master Xu shook his head. "I've been using the same heat control all along. This shouldn't be happening."

"Could it be... a problem with the medicinal herbs? The cinnabar we bought this time seems to be a bit darker in color than last time."

"Vermilion?" Master Xu picked up a handful of vermilion and examined it carefully. "Indeed, the color is a bit darker. But a darker color shouldn't affect the efficacy of the medicine, right?"

He wasn't sure either.

Alchemy is a skill that sometimes succeeds and sometimes fails. No one can say for sure why.

It could be that the heat was too low, the herbs were wrong, the timing was wrong, or... fate was against us.

This is the difficulty of alchemy.

Everything depends on "feeling" and "experience".

But feelings and experiences are not replicable.

Success this time doesn't guarantee success next time. Failure this time doesn't guarantee failure next time.

"Master," the apprentice hesitated for a moment before saying, "I heard that Mr. Wang from the Academy of Sciences taught a new method called... 'the controlled variable method.' He said that when conducting experiments, you only change one condition at a time, and that way you can determine which condition affected the result."

"The controlled variable method?" Xu Danshi was taken aback. "What's that?"

"I don't know either," the apprentice shook his head, "but I heard from the students at the Academy of Sciences that this method greatly increases the success rate of experiments."

Xu Danshi remained silent for a moment.

He had heard of Mr. Wang from the Academy of Sciences.

I heard he's an extraordinary person who can fall from the "sky" and possesses some strange and unusual knowledge.

However, how can something like alchemy be explained using "science"?

This is clearly metaphysics.

It is the way of Heaven.

It requires understanding and insight.

"Forget it," Master Xu waved his hand. "Let's refine our pills and ignore their nonsense."

He looked back at the alchemy furnace and began preparing for the next round of alchemy.

But for some reason, a voice in his head kept asking:

If we could really use that method to find out exactly which condition affected the result, wouldn't that allow us to...

How to increase the success rate?

……

Three days later, at the Daqin Academy of Sciences, in the chemistry laboratory.

Hu Hai rushed into Wang Jianguo's office with an excited expression.

"Mr. Wang! Mr. Wang! I did it!"

Wang Jianguo was grading homework when he heard Hu Hai's voice and looked up.

"What did you succeed at?"

"Gunpowder formula!" Hu Hai pulled a notebook from his pocket, filled with tables and records. "I used the controlled variable method you mentioned to test the sulfur content!"

"The first time, one ounce of sulfur was used; the sound was quiet and the smoke was minimal."

"The second time, two ounces of sulfur were used, producing a moderate sound and a moderate amount of smoke."

"The third time, three ounces of sulfur, a loud noise, a lot of smoke!"

"The fourth time, four ounces of sulfur..." Hu Hai's expression suddenly turned somewhat awkward, "It exploded."

Wang Jianguo: "..."

This child, as expected, couldn't resist adding too much.

"However!" Hu Hai quickly added, "I now know that the best effect is achieved when the sulfur content is between two and three ounces!"

He turned to another page in the notebook, where a simple diagram was drawn.

The horizontal axis represents sulfur content, and the vertical axis represents "power rating".

Although the drawing is rough, a trend can indeed be seen: as the sulfur content increases, the potency first increases and then decreases.

"Furthermore, I also tested the charcoal content!" Hu Hai continued excitedly, "I discovered that there's an optimal amount of charcoal! It's not that more is better, nor is it that less is better!"

Looking at Hu Hai's excited face, Wang Jianguo felt a pang of emotion.

The child finally understood.

I understand what "control variables" are.

I understand what a "systematic experiment" is.

I understand now. Science isn't about luck, it's about methodology.

"Very good." Wang Jianguo nodded. "Then do you know why the sulfur content can't be too low or too high?"

"Uh..." Hu Hai scratched his head, "I don't know. Can you tell me?"

"Okay." Wang Jianguo stood up and walked to the blackboard. "This involves the basic principles of chemical reactions..."

He began to explain the chemical reaction principles of sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter.

Hu Hai listened attentively, occasionally taking notes in his notebook.

Although he couldn't fully understand many concepts yet, at least he learned one thing:

Conducting experiments is not about blindly trying things out.

Instead, it requires a method, logic, and purpose.

Only in this way can we find the true patterns.

Instead of relying on luck.

……

At the same time, at the Imperial Medical Bureau.

Master Xu stood outside the alchemy room, hesitant.

He has been standing here for half an hour.

He held a piece of paper with some experimental record formats written on it.

He got it from a distant nephew at the Academy of Sciences.

My nephew said that recording the alchemy process in this way would make it clearer which step went wrong.

Xu Danshi originally didn't want to use it.

How could alchemy possibly be a science?

This is art.

It requires understanding and insight.

However, recently his success rate in alchemy has been decreasing.

Previously, ten furnaces could produce five furnaces; now, ten furnaces can only produce three.

If this continues, let alone His Majesty's elixir of immortality, he won't even be able to refine ordinary pills.

"How about... we give it a try?" Master Xu muttered to himself.

He looked at the paper in his hand, then at the alchemy furnace in the alchemy room.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and went into the alchemy room.

"Let's give it a try! At worst, it'll just be a waste of a batch of medicinal herbs!"

He began to record according to the format on the paper:

date:……

Medicinal ingredients: 3 taels of cinnabar, 1 tael of sulfur, half a tael of realgar, 1 mace of mercury...

Cooking temperature: Gentle heat, for one hour...

Step 1: First, add cinnabar...

Step 2: Add sulfur...

Step 3: ...

He recorded everything one by one, his movements much slower than usual.

Because we need to record things, we need to observe more carefully.

Upon closer observation, he discovered details he had never noticed before.

For example, cinnabar changes color when heated. It changes from bright red to dark red, and finally to black.

For example, different batches of cinnabar change at different rates.

For example, if the heat is too high, the cinnabar will turn black prematurely, affecting its medicinal efficacy.

"So that's how it is..." Master Xu murmured to himself.

Previously, he only knew that "cinnabar should be refined in this way," but he didn't know why.

Now, he's starting to understand.

I understand now, what "control variables" means.

I understand now, what "observing details" means.

I understand now, what a "systematic experiment" is.

Although he couldn't fully grasp it yet, at least he saw hope.

We have seen the hope of improving alchemy through scientific methods.

……

Evening, at the Daqin Academy of Sciences, in Wang Jianguo's office.

Wang Jianguo is organizing his teaching notes for today.

The course on the method of controlling variables has been held for three days.

The results were better than he had expected.

Although many trainees still don't understand, at least they now know this principle.

I understand. Conducting experiments isn't about blindly trying things out; there needs to be a method.

"Mr. Wang," came Fusu's voice from outside the door.

"Come in," Wang Jianguo said.

Fusu pushed open the door and entered, holding a report in his hand.

"Mr. Wang, this is the experimental record statistics for this month." Fu Su placed the report on the table. "As you can see, since we started teaching the controlled variable method, the number of explosions in the lab has decreased by 60%, and the success rate of experiments has increased by 40%."

Wang Jianguo picked up the report and looked at it carefully.

Indeed, the data is very intuitive.

In the past, when trainees conducted experiments, they would "try this, try that," and explosions were commonplace.

Now, although there are still explosions, the frequency has obviously decreased.

Moreover, successful experiments are replicable.

This is the power of the scientific method.