This is a study of the long-standing question of why modern science arose only in the West and not in the civilizations of Islam or China, despite the fact that, by the Middle Ages, Islam and China were more scientifically advanced. To find an explanation the author examines the differences in religious, philosophical, and legal institutions of the three civilizations, focusing on the legal concept of 'corporation', which is unique to the West and gave rise to neutral space and free inquiry, concepts integral to modern science.