Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
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Notes -
One theory is that they got stuck in a high level equilibrium trap where the economy was efficient enough that the initial capital expenditures to get the industrial revolution started wouldn't be profitable, unlike in Britain where the there was a significant mismatch in damand/supply (partially to do with the after effects of the bubonic plague) that encouraged capital investments in worker productivity.
Other explanations are lack of competition and cultural explanations either inherent to chinese culture or a shift from Taoism towards Confucianism.
Likely it was a combination of factors such as cultural, geographical, technological and economic.
Perhaps a better question is why did the industrial revolution start in Britain and why did it take so long for it to spread to the rest of Europe?
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