Abstract
China’s Keshan Disease Theory Dispute between Manchukuo’s Science & Mass Science (1935-2000) Mark Lin Abtract Keshan disease is an endemic disease in China. In 1935, the first disease outbreak in Manchuria, was noticed by the Manchukuo’s scientists. After 1949, Keshan disease became a serious disease in the People’s Republic of China. Once it spread across sixteen provinces, and threatened more than a hundred million lives. In Manchukuo’s science, Dr. Hara（原亨）believed Keshan disease is caused by chronic carbon monoxide poisoning. He used laboratory instruments and animal model to verify his theory. Dr Hara’s theory is important in Manchukuo, and became Manchukuo’s public health policy. After PRC being established, the Chinese’ society rose a new kind of science, called “Mass science” which is inspired by the Mao’s ideas. Mass science rejected laboratory science, and encouraged the people to join science researches. Mass science believed Keshan disease had nothing to do with carbon monoxide poisoning, but caused by dietary deficiency of selenium. This research has two objectives: First, I try to compare the scientific community difference between Manchukuo’s science and Mass science, and explain why two scientific communities have large different views about the cause of Keshan disease. Second, I also try to use this case to classify Mass science, which is still strange in today’s science. In Conclusion, I believe that Manchukuo’s science community was influenced by modern science and believed that Chinese society is inferior and filthy, and Keshan disease must be caused by its’ own underlying factors. On the contrary, Mass science which was related to the Chinese’s local people and resisted to follow Japanese’s idea did not accept the filthy factor as the cause of Keshan disease. Instead of carbon monoxide poisoning, they used dietary deficiency of selenium, an environmental factor. At last, I believe the forms of science community lead to different views of Keshan disease, and even its cause of the disease.