What You Need to Know about China’s Terra-Cotta Warriors and the First Qin Emperor (Updated April 19, 2024, Smithsonian Magazine) In March 1974, a group of peasants digging a well in China’s drought-parched Shaanxi province unearthed fragments of a clay figure—the first evidence of what would turn out to be one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of modern times. Near the unexcavated tomb of Qin Shi Huang—who proclaimed himself first emperor of China in 221 BCE—lay an extraordinary underground treasure: an entire army of life-size terra-cotta soldiers and horses, interred for more than 2,000 years.
Jon Kuert
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2024年7月4日
In China, Even Stanford Grads Are Fighting for Civil Service Jobs (June 19, 2024, Sixth Tone) China’s intense competition for civil service jobs appeared to hit new heights this week after it emerged that a world top university’s graduate had chosen to take a job with an obscure township government in the eastern Anhui province.
Jon Kuert
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2024年6月27日
Podcast—Peter Hessler On His New Book, “Other Rivers: A Chinese Education” (June 13, 2024, Sinica Podcast) This week on Sinica, the highly-regarded writer Peter Hessler joins to talk about his new book, out July 9: Other Rivers: A Chinese Education. Over 20 years after teaching with the Peace Corps in Fuling (the subject of his first book, Rivertown, Pete returns to China to teach at Sichuan University in Chengdu. He writes about the two cohorts of students, with whom he has maintained extensive contacts, to offer fascinating insights into how China has changed across this momentous period with touching, deeply human stories.
Jon Kuert
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2024年6月20日
A Cartoon Cat Has Been Vexing China’s Censors—Now He Says They Are On his Tail (June 9, 2024, BBC News) On X, unfettered by China’s censors, yet accessible through virtual private networks, Mr. Li’s following grew. But it only really exploded, to more than a million, in late 2022 during the White Paper protests against China’s punishing zero-Covid measures.
Jon Kuert
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2024年6月13日
When studying the current state of Christianity in the People’s Republic of China, Western observers often quickly fixate on the controls imposed by the current government. Only one Protestant church is legally recognized—the Three Self Patriotic Movement—and therefore many Christians have chosen to worship in house churches that are underground. The government regulates baptisms and prohibits or closely monitors contact with foreign Christians and churches. All of this seems so foreign to our Western concepts of religious freedom. But is it China or America that is the anomaly?
Jon Kuert
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2024年6月6日
Everything You Need to Know about Sight (March 7, 2024, Angel Studios) Sight, starring Terry Chen and Greg Kinnear, follows the true story of Dr. Ming Wang, a Chinese immigrant who defies all odds to become a world-renowned eye surgeon. Drawing upon the grit and determination he gained from a turbulent uprising in his upbringing, Dr. Wang sets out to restore the sight of a blind orphan.
Jon Kuert
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2024年5月30日
Laugh in Translation: Shanghainese Comedy Stands Up to the Mainstream (May 17, 2024, Sixth Tone) Amid a surge of interest in local culture, young Chinese are reconnecting with their heritage through stand-up comedy in various dialects. Comedians are now drawing packed houses and even taking their acts overseas.
Jon Kuert
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2024年5月23日
China’s Chang’e 6 Moon Mission is a Game Changer (May 13, 2024, The Diplomat) China’s bid to return lunar samples from the far side of the Moon will have long-term strategic and geopolitical implications.
Jon Kuert
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2024年5月16日
Red Renaissance (May 6, 2024, China Media Project) In early February, Chinese media teemed with stories of cultural festivities in rural villages countrywide. In a “rural bookroom” in Xinjiang’s Ha’ermodun Village, a series of events “enriched the spiritual lives of villagers,” according to a local news release. More than 4,000 kilometers away, in Fujian’s Shuqiao Village, residents held a “Rural Spring Festival Gala” featuring song and dance performances. These and thousands of similar events across China’s vast rural hinterland are part of a concerted push to achieve what the Chinese Communist Party leadership has called the “revitalization of rural culture.”
Jon Kuert
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2024年5月9日
Visa-free policies alone will not revive China’s inbound tourism (April 30, 2024, East Asia Forum)
The decline in China's inbound tourism due to the COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns, leading to the expansion of its 15-day visa-free travel policy to incentivise tourist visits. But further efforts, such as improving travel convenience, addressing structural and ideological barriers and leveraging technological advancements, are required to rejuvenate the sector and meet the needs of international tourists.
周宁
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2024年5月2日
Malatang (麻辣烫) is one of China’s most ubiquitous dishes, found on streets across the country. The ingredients can consist of almost anything the diner chooses, from various meats, vegetables, and noodle varieties. These are all boiled in broth and then served with soup and a choice of sauces.
周宁
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2024年4月25日
Wildest Dream: What Taylor Swift Means To Her Chinese Fans (April 17, 2024, The World of Chinese)
Swift has attracted and influenced her Chinese fans for diverse reasons. TWOC talked to five Chinese Swifties to understand what Taylor Swift means to them. They explained how Swift inspired in them the confidence to travel alone, explore the world beyond their small hometowns, and reevaluate the meaning of feminism.
周宁
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2024年4月18日