China
35 posts · all topics
[book] A Short History of Chinese Philosophy
Notes on A Short History of Chinese Philosophy by Feng Youlan — key ideas from Confucianism, Daoism, and beyond.
MITM Proxy to see my phone's traffic
China is looking at my phone traffic?
[book] Ball Lightning by Liu Cixin
Review of Ball Lightning by Liu Cixin, a Chinese sci-fi novel about a boy obsessed with understanding static lightning after tragedy.
Breaking refrigeration anxiety
The New York Times ruined an otherwise fascinating overview of refrigeration in China by spinning it as an article about climate change ("What Do Chinese Dumplings Have to…
Another difference between China and the rest of the world
From Evan Osnos’ new book Age of Ambition, quoting the work of Yingiang Zhang and Tor Eriksson: They found that in other developing countries, parents' education was the…
Chinese cities bigger than Los Angeles
My favorite way to give a sense of the size difference between the US and China is to ask this question: the biggest city in California is the…
[book] How Asia Works by Joe Studwell
View on Amazon Long-time journalist Joe Studwell ( The Economist , Far East Economic Review , etc.) and now "mid-career PhD at Cambridge University” (what I’d love to…
The argument for regulating information
When Nobel Peace prizewinner Liu Xiaobo was imprisoned by Chinese authorities, his captors were unafraid that he alone, a single individual without guns, an army, or even military…
[book] Wealth and Power
View on Amazon I read this because, with all the recommendations I'd received, well, I had to. When I first moved to China and was looking to start…
A Bite of China
After months of recommendations, I finally watched my first episode of the CCTV documentary A Bite of China (舌尖上的中国) and I was not disappointed. It’s a well-produced, professionally…
The Great Firewall really censors trade
My favorite weekly China-related podcast, Sinica, answered one of my questions on their latest episode, "Revenge of the Call-in Show". Hosts Kaiser Kuo and Jeremy Goldkorn, who are…
[Book] Restless Empire by Odd Arne Westad
View on Amazon This is one of the best books I've read about China in a while. It helped me think about China’s modernization as a long, still…
Comparing China and 70’s high-growth Japan
Interesting chart via Financial Times Alphaville from a presentation by C.H. Kwan at Nomura's Institute of Capital Markets Research: The right-hand column (ICOR – incremental capital output ratio)…
LINE and more Facebook/Twitter Asian Competition
Before you start to think Facebook will take over the world, look again at new competitors emerging in Asia, including this one originally from Japan and now boasting…
Decentralization in the ancient world
The Terra Cotta warriors of ancient Xi’an are an impressive legacy of the early centuries BC, and they better be: during that period, something like 10% of the…
(Almost) leaving China
Bubbles are fun! I lived in Tokyo for most of the late-80s and early-90s, Silicon Valley during the dot-com days, Seattle during the real estate peak of the…
Asymco's Dediu in China
Horace Dediu's asymco.com (Twitter: @asymco ) is one of the best mobility analysis sites out there, so I was excited about his recent trip to China, hoping that…
Mike Daisey and the fight to keep people in crummy jobs
I listened to the riveting This American Life podcast retracting its January episode "The Agony and Ecstasy of Steve Jobs", featuring the dramatist Mike Daisey, who misrepresented himself…
The Fat Years [Book]
View on Amazon China deserves to be number one. That's an unstated premise of this book, which is all the rage among intellectuals and others interested in what…
What little we know about China
An observer from Outer Space might raise eyebrows at the apparently irrational way that Americans pick their Presidents, but at least the process itself is transparent. Does China…
[Book] 1493
View on Amazon The New World was created, not discovered, says Charles C. Mann . The impact of Columbus’ historic trip was felt worldwide, ushering in the Age…
The Chinese Twitter (English version)
Now available on the US App Store: Sina Weibo 微博 download here: http://itun.es/igk6zp then follow me at http://weibo.com/2140336255 and see why 200M users like it. Note: to create…
Hard to know for sure
I keep running into this problem of the limitations of knowledge. Today, a professor friend of mine reminded me how the one thing you take away from earning…
You’ll never understand China
This week’s Sinica podcast notes how a foreigner will never be accepted as a China expert, that Chinese people will always claim that true understanding of China is…
Weibo: The Chinese Twitter++
I bet at least 50% of my work friends check Facebook every single day. For those under age 30 it's probably closer to 100%. Twitter isn't nearly as…
“The Fat Years”
Chan Koonchung (陈冠中) author of 2013, The Fat Years (盛世：中国2013年) spoke at the Beijing ex-pat bookstore, The Bookworm recently. The book’s premise of a dystopian near-future where China…
Anonymous Exchange
Human progress depends on specialization, which in turn requires successful cooperation, often among people far away and unknown to each other, referred to by the economist John Nye…
You're fired
In 1841, the Chinese negotiator Qishan was ordered dismissed and executed for agreeing to a treaty that ended hostilities with the British in exchange for Hong Kong and…
Banned in China
I’m not sure most of my non-China friends (whether “real” or “Facebook”) understand what those of us in China must do when we get on the internet. Here…
Re-reading James Fallows and China
I re-read parts of James Fallows’ short book of China essays Postcards from Tomorrow Square because I was trying to remember his conclusions. I respect Fallows because I…
Alvin Toffler predicts China's impact on the future
CNReview summarizes the China implications from Alvin Toffler's 40 predictions for the next 40 years . Prediction No. 2 Nation-state power around the globe will be increasingly ‘multi-polar’…
Having a bad day
The sheep in this video, taken during our trip to Harbin last week, probably woke up thinking everything in his life was going great: plenty of food, attention…
Treason by the book
View on Amazon A few thoughts about China in the 1700s while reading this excellent book by Yale Professor Jonathan Spence. First, note that China in those days…
[Book] When China Rules the World
View on Amazon I don't recommend this book. The author, a journalist, read widely about China and I appreciate his excellent summary of sources at the end of…
Is it safe to drink Beijing tap water?
The water in our Beijing apartment looks, smells, and (yes I risked it) tastes just fine. But is it safe to drink? Nearly everyone I know -- foreigners…