This is not a question.  Read the following then answer questions in 4.2.        

(1) I hope I've made it clear that the Chinese navy was far better equipped for long-range sailing in the 15th and 16th centuries than any Western navy that had been assembled.  The Chinese ships were sturdier and more seaworthy -- the Chinese were the first to divide the holds of ships into watertight bulkheads -- and their captains and navigators were equipped with onboard magnetic compasses that European sailors had not yet mastered.          

(2) Now that we've seen how much more able the Chinese navy was than its European counterparts, it's important to answer one very important question:  why didn't the Chinese begin colonization and empire-building before the Europeans?           

(3) To answer this question, we'll deal first with prevailing Chinese philosophies of the day, and then consider how these ideas affected the voyages of the Chinese Imperial navy.           

(4) The first, and perhaps most important, element of 15th century Chinese political philosophy to consider is extreme pride in it self-sufficiency as a nation.