China — Circa 2637 BC
Relativity and the Emperor’s dragon
According to an article circulating on the Internet, the legendary First Emperor Huang-Ti (the “Yellow Emperor”, who instituted the calendar that survives in China to this day for festival dates, and is said to be the ancestor of all Han Chinese) had a “dragon” named Changhuan, that could move through space at enormous velocities. One ancient writing mentioned that it “originated in the land where suns are born,” and was over 3,000 years old. Its enormous speed had an effect on the movement of time, affecting the ageing process, a surprising early reference to the relativity of time, 4,400 years before Albert Einstein. Huang-Ti is said to have manufactured 12 gigantic mirrors of unknown nature and used them “following the Moon,” as well as miraculous tripods about 4 meters high. The legends of ancient China said that the “tripods” depicted “dragons, flying in the clouds.” We have not been able to verify these statements or to consult the sources listed, which appear to come from the late scientist and orientalist Igor Lissevich (magazine “Asia and Africa Today”, 1974, No. 11, in Russian). Lissevich also presented his scientific findings at the 1975 Zelenchuk SETI Symposium (“Problem of SETI”, Moscow
Source: Case: W453