Brief history of modern scientific research into
acupuncture systems: a path from static anatomic
structure of particles to dynamic dissipative
structure of electromagnetic field
Chang Lin Zhang
College of Life Science,
Zhejiang University,
Hangzhou, China
Department of Music and Music Education,
Siegen University, Hochstrasse 57,
Siegen D-57076, Germany
E-mail: zhang.biophysik@musik.uni-siegen.de
Abstract: To understand the mechanism of ancient acupuncture system in the viewpoint of
modern science is a big challenge to scientists and science today. In the last 16 years, a great
amount of research work has be done by many scientists all over the world, in different aspects
such as anatomy, histology, cell biology, physiology and physics. The effort to find a
corresponding anatomic structure to acupuncture system was unsuccessful, although the
physiological phenomena exist. However, the objective measurements of physics into
acupuncture are quite successful with good reproducibility, in particular the electrical and
acoustic measurements. A further study into the background of these results of
electrical and acoustic measurements reveals an invisible and dynamic dissipative structure of
electromagnetic field, which generally exists in all living systems, which has a lot to do with
some mysterious old medicines such as acupuncture meridians, charkas and homoeopathy.
What is more, a scientific and quantitative way of evaluating the degree of coherence in living
systems is developed during the research of the electric measurement on human body.
Keywords: acupuncture meridians; charkas; homoeopathy; electromagnetic field; dissipative
structure; chaotic standing wave; interference pattern; holography; coherence.
Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Zhang, C.L. (2008) ‘Brief history of
modern scientific research into acupuncture systems: a path from static anatomic structure of
particles to dynamic dissipative structure of electromagnetic field’, Int. J. Modelling,
Identification and Control, Vol. 5, No. 3, pp.176–180.
Biographical notes: Chang Lin Zhang is a Former Professor of Biophysics of Zhejiang
University in China and now a Visiting Professor in the University of Siegen in Germany.
Since 1991, he has been working in the scientific background of acupuncture, music therapy,
homoeopathy, etc. He found that there is a dynamic dissipative structure of electromagnetic
field in living systems, which could be some common background of many holistic medicines
and a new chapter of physiology. Meanwhile, he also develops a mathematical method to
quantitatively evaluate the degree of coherence in living systems.
_______________________________________________________________
1 Introduction: ‘function’ versus ‘structure’
Nowadays, there is a ‘fever’ for oriental medicines in
Western countries. The natural consequence and
requirement is that of making modern scientific research to
investigate the exotic ancient medicines such as
acupuncture.
At first glance, the topic ‘modern scientific basic
research of acupuncture’ makes one look for the
explanation of mechanism of the old medicine in terms of
modern science. However, the real meaning of this is a
kind of exchange and merger between the Eastern and
Western cultures. In other words, the task of the modern
scientific basic research of acupuncture is to try to
understand the exotic Oriental medicine in the viewpoint of Western people and culture, since modern science and
the conventional Western school of medicine were
developed in and based upon the Western culture.
But what on earth is the difference between the Eastern
culture and the Western culture? There are a lot of
differences, of course, even within the special area of
medicine. To make a long story short, one of the big
differences is that Eastern medicines, in particular the
practice of acupuncture and theory, pay much more
attention to the ‘function’ than to the ‘structure’, based on
such a deep belief that as long as a medicine works it is a
good one; whereas, Western medicine pays much more
attention to ‘structure’ than to ‘function’ based on the
belief that ‘man is machine’ expressed by French
philosopher René Descartes. This belief is that human
Although he did not say anything in detail about the new
balance system, he was the first physiologist who clearly
announced that the background of acupuncture system
could be an unknown new structure and a completely new
chapter of physiology.
3 Quantitative evaluation of the degree of
coherence of a body-mind system through
electric measurement
The revelation of the invisible dissipative structure of
electromagnetic field in living systems is not only a big step of recognition of acupuncture system and
alternative medicine, but also a new chapter of physiology
and physics as well. Besides, it offers a completely
new method to evaluate instant status, namely the degree
of coherence of a body-mind, holistically and
quantitatively.
It is well known that there was a deep holistic view in
many ancient medicines before development of modern
science. However, the basic thinking in science, at least at
the beginning of modern science was reductionism,
that is, dividing a system into many small parts and
studying them one by one. Reductionism was and is
the base of the Western school medicine along
with the René Descartes’ ‘man is a machine’. This leads to
dissect a body into smaller and smaller pieces, from
organs to tissues, from tissues to cells, from cells to
molecules until the bottom of reductionism – the molecule
biology.
We have to admit that reductionism was extremely
successful in the development of allopathic medicine,
which saved countless lives. However, when we have
arrived at the summit of reductionism and allopathic
medicine, we find that we do not know how to be ‘fit as a
fiddle’ or how to achieve the ‘wellness’ of a body-mind
system as a whole. Although we have known almost all
elements of the body, we have missed the understanding of
the relationship between these elements. Human beings
have emotions and consciousness, which machines do
not have. What is more, all these elements and
consciousness have to work together in harmony in order
to achieve the real wellness.
Fortunately, the real situation is not so hopeless as it
seems. The development of the concept of coherence in
physics offers some practical ways to understand the
wholeness scientifically and quantitatively.
Originally, the word coherence meant being united,
consistent or sticking together. In the development of laser
technique, the word coherence was defined as being in the
same frequency and in the same wave phase. In the study
of living systems, the word coherence has been defined by
C.L. Zhang as a state in which all elements keep their
independence and have all possibilities to cooperate with
others.
It should be stated that the two definitions of coherence
in lasers and in living systems can be optically or
electronically measured and mathematically calculated.
And the definition of coherence in living systems is
quite close to the old concept of harmony and the
modern concept of wellness of a body-mind system
as well.
In the light of the dissipative structure of
electromagnetic field in living systems, the cooperation
between elements in a system could be practically
measured by means of evaluating the changes of wave
spectrum through the increase of the number of beating frequencies which come from the couplings between
oscillators, since most elements in a living system
are oscillators permanently emitting electromagnetic
waves forming the dissipative structure (He et al., 1999;
Zhang, 1987, 1995, 1996a,b, 2000; Zhang et al., 1994,
1996a,b).
4 Conclusion
Therefore, the so-called ‘modern scientific basic research
of acupuncture’ is by no means a simple authorised
explanation of the ancient Eastern medicine in the
framework of the existing knowledge of Western
conventional school medicine, such as anatomy,
physiology, immunology, cell biology, microbiology,
molecule biology and so on, but a tough challenge to our
present knowledge of school medicine and biology. If we
are to face the challenge and take this challenge seriously
and work hard for it, it would be very fruitful to enrich our
knowledge in medicine and in biology as well and both
Eastern medicine and Western medicine will be greatly
benefited from this research.
In 1950s and 1960s, many well-educated chemists with
calling ventured into the area of biology and medicine in
order to know more secrets of life. Because of their
endeavour, scientific community had seen the golden
period of biochemistry and molecule biology. Nowadays,
we have ample knowledge of the mysterious genetic
code, the three dimensional structure of protein and the
structure of cell in the level of nanometer. That is, we have
ample knowledge in the aspect of particle pattern of living
systems. However, we are so ignorant in the aspect of
wave and field pattern of living systems. Therefore, we
need many well educated physicists to venture and explore
into this marvellous unknown area of living system, in order to meet another golden period of biology and
medicine.
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