Did China Beat Columbus?

In his new book, 1421: The Year China Discovered America, British author and amateur historian Gavin Menzies postulates the Chinese discovered America long before the arrival of Columbus and other European explorers. His assertions have drawn criticism from traditional historians, but book sales have been brisk.

Also featured: Millions of people in China starved under the erratic leadership of Chairman Mao Zedong, and countless numbers were “re-educated” in the Cultural Revolution. But when Mao died in 1976, the Communist party began flirting with economic reforms. Can the party survive the introduction of the Internet and China’s increasing integration into the world financial system? Shaomin Li (Old Dominion University) and Gregory Wang (James Madison University) are Chinese natives who emigrated to the United States in the 1980’s. They say political freedoms must be introduced if China is to thrive as a world power.