<i>Kiji, kichi, jizhi</i> : Resourceful creativity as vernacular universals of technoscience

Kiji , kichi , and jizhi are the Korean, Japanese, and Chinese transliterations of the same classical Chinese term, 機智, which we translate here as “resourceful creativity.” We explore the concept of resourceful creativity, which we deem as important in all technoscientific practice, formal and vernacular. We believe that thinking through various vernacular practices of resourceful creativity, in particular, is one way to move beyond the inadequate binaries stemming from the West and the Rest, and converge with growing efforts to reevaluate the dominant narratives that celebrate innovation, productivity, growth, and efficiency in their narrow senses.

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Publication Details

Journal
History of Science
Published
2026-05-30
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1177/00732753251328071
Primary Topic
Chinese history and philosophy
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Kiji, kichi, jizhi : Resourceful creativity as vernacular universals of technoscience

Jung Lee
History of Science
Chinese history and philosophy
article

Kiji, kichi, jizhi : Resourceful creativity as vernacular universals of technoscience

Jung Lee
article en

Abstract

Kiji , kichi , and jizhi are the Korean, Japanese, and Chinese transliterations of the same classical Chinese term, 機智, which we translate here as “resourceful creativity.” We explore the concept of resourceful creativity, which we deem as important in all technoscientific practice, formal and vernacular. We believe that thinking through various vernacular practices of resourceful creativity, in particular, is one way to move beyond the inadequate binaries stemming from the West and the Rest, and converge with growing efforts to reevaluate the dominant narratives that celebrate innovation, productivity, growth, and efficiency in their narrow senses.

History of ScienceVol. 64(2)
Ewha Womans University (KR)
Institut d’études avancées de Paris
Decent work and economic growth
Openalex Percentile: Top 2%
Chinese history and philosophy
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