6 December 2014

Gentlefolk,

You must be thinking: "Three posts in a week, what's going on?"  A sudden burst of energy - it will probably never happen again.

The last few days have been windy and cold.  Maximum temperatures of  +2 and +3C. Today it's sunny and calm, forecast max of 6C - positively balmy!

My post today is about a special teaching activity, and a bit more on the American political system, following the comment in the post on 1 December about the very low turn-out rate in the recent Mid-term election.

Love poems with International Trade theme

Recently a former student reminded me of an unusual activity I organised with her class last year. The background is as follows.

I am always on the look-out for new activities which can make the Oral English classes more interesting.  On 21 May 2013 I saw an article in the China Daily titled “Science students calculate formulas for love” describing how science students at Fudan University in Shanghai held a competition to compose short love poems with a science theme.  What a novel idea.

At that time I was teaching two classes of International Trade majors (sophomore classes 1101 and 1102) and I challenged them to do the same, but using international trade terms such as CIF (cost, insurance & freight); FOB (free on board); FAS (free alongside ship); FCA (free carriage); DDP (delivered duty paid); WTO (World Trade Organisation).

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My criteria for the love poems: 3 lines; maximum 15 words; international trade theme.

Some of the more interesting compositions are shown in Table 1 below.

The China Daily published a story about our version of the Fudan University contest.  You will see that in the article the journalist called it a 'wacky idea’, but I prefer to think of it as creative and innovative.  What do you think?

To see the China Daily story, click HERE  or follow this link:  http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2013-07/05/content_16737867.htm  . 

The students certainly enjoyed doing something different, related to their major, and, of course, they are always interested in anything to do with LOVE.

Table 1: Poems by students in International Trade classes 1101 and 1102

CIF (Cost, insurance & freight)
Casually I met you and Fell in love	Convict If you want to be Free, go!		Come here my darling I will give you all my love Forever.
Coffee is lonely without a cup I am lonely without you Forge everlasting love.	Can I love you Forever?		Come to my heart I will hug you Falling in love.
FOB (Free on board)
For me Only one thing I know Be my girl.	First time I saw you “Oh my god” I thought Because had I found my angel.		Forever Our love will go on and on Boy, be mine.
FCA (Free carriage)
First time I met you Calling your name in my heart At that moment I fell in love.	Find you amazing Crazy in love Absolutely.
FAS (Free alongside ship)
Falling in love with you Alone Searching for you in my dreams.		First time I saw you Appealing to my soul Say you love me, please.
DDP (Delivered duty paid)
Darkness or Dawn? Please re-assure me.
General (with trade theme)
FOB, CIF, FAS, WTO           All those crazy acronyms    Now part of my DNA.	You are the buyer FOB, CIF, FAS, whatever My heart is yours.		My love for you Is like China’s trade Forever growing.

...

Western Culture classes

We have just completed Week 13 of this semester.  In my Western (really, American) Culture classes I have covered the following topics: Geography; Economy; History; Political system; and Religion.

I regard these as the foundations of a culture or society.

Before now moving on to a myriad of "Way of Life" topics (such as cars, sport, pets, etc) last week we had a "review" class to catch our breath and look back at what we have covered. I summarised the lectures so far, and then answered written questions.

Most of the questions related to religion and to the American political system.  Table 2 shows selected questions:

Table 2: Selected questions posed by students in the review class last week

  

Theme	Question
Religion	Isn’t there a fundamental conflict between science and religion? Americans are smart and technologically advanced, yet many believe in religion. Why?
	According to surveys, the proportion of American adults who say they are Christians has fallen from 86% in 1990 to 73% in 2012, and during the same period the proportion who say they have no religion has increased from 8% to 19%.  Why this trend?  Will it continue? Do you think that one day only a few Americans will follow religion, same as in China?
	Christianity has one God, but Buddhism and Hinduism have many. Why this fundamental difference?
	What actual difference does religion make to a person’s life?
	What are the key differences between the beliefs of the Catholic Church and the main Protestant Churches?
Political system	What are the main advantages and disadvantages of the American political system (the 3 branches of government, with checks & balances)?
	How do politics affect a person’s daily life in America?
	Which do you think is better: the American political system, or China’s?
	I watched the TV series “House of Cards”.  It shows system based on ambition and greed. How true is it?  Could someone really kill opponents for political gain?
	Only 36% voted in the recent mid term elections.  How can the Congress elected say it represents the whole country?
War	Some people say that America’s main motivation in getting involved in wars such as WW2 and Iraq was to boost its economy.  What do you think?
	In the American Civil War, was there conscription or did people volunteer to join the Northern and Southern armies?
Economy	Comparing the Global Financial Crisis (2007-9) and the Great Depression (1929-39), what were the main differences and similarities?
	What were the main reasons for the rapid development of the American economy in the 1800s?
	China has a much longer history than America, but America is stronger economically.  Why? Is there any benefit in having a long history?

 From my perspective it was gratifying to see so many incisive and inquiring questions (many difficult to answer!).  Seems that my teaching has provoked thinking, which is great.

A student asked me what changes I would make to the American political system if I could?  Hard to think quickly, but I suggested the following (felt a bit presumptuous for a non-American) :  

• Double the term of House of Representatives, from 2 to 4 years.
• Introduce mandatory voting for all citizens over 18 years of age.
• Change some of the "checks & balances", eg exempt Executive appointments from Senate approval
• Mandatory retirement of Supreme Court Justices at 80.
• Restrict donations to political parties.
• Change the system of electing the President, from Electoral College to popular vote.

What do you think?  Any others?

The Electoral College system to elect the President seems cumbersome.  Wouldn't it be simpler to just count all the votes in the country ('popular vote') and the candidate who got most, becomes President?  

Actually, there have been 4 elections when the candidate who got the higher popular vote did not become President.  The election of 1824 was complex and the House of Representatives made the final decision. The other three elections are clearer - the candidate who won most of the popular vote ended up with fewer Electoral College votes and did not become President. 

We all remember the 2000 Presidential election and the shenanigans in Florida which tipped the result in Bush's favor.

 Table 3: Elections in which the winner of the popular vote did not become President.

Year of election	Winner (became President) / loser	Popular votes (millions)	States won	Electoral College votes
1824	ADAMS / Jackson	0.11 / 0.15	7 / 12	84 / 99
1876	HAYES / Tilden	4.03 / 4.29	21 / 17	185 / 184
1888	HARRISON / Cleveland	5.44 / 5.53	20 / 18	233 / 168
2000	BUSH / Gore	50.46 / 51.00	30 / 20 + DC	271 / 266

...

The intrepid travellers

What's happening with the Roberts family as they wend their way around Australia?

Their latest post (today) has them at Cape Leeuwin, the most south-westerly corner of Western Australia. Click HERE or check out Robertstour2014.wordpress.com

Cape Leeuwin the most south-westerly point of WA. It is named after the Leeuwin ('Lioness') a Dutch ship which surveyed this area in 1622, Mathew Flinders passed here in 1801 and nearby Flinders Bay is named after him.

A more detailed view of the south-western corner of WA.  They have had some wet and cool weather.  Jen became quite maudlin in her blog, because Cape Leeuwin is where they "turn left" and head back towards the East Coast.  The family has been travelling for 4 months, and have a month to go.  They will  have Xmas in Adelaide and then it's back home to Brisbane.

Cape Leeuwin is considered the "border" of the Indian and Southern Oceans. The impressive Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse was built in 1895. 

Tom trying out his new surf board at Bunker Bay.

...


OK, that's it for this post.

Best wishes.  Keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Saturday, 6 December 2014

 

4 December 2014

Gentlefolk,

As you know, I compile a monthly summary of events and news which caught my eye.  

We live in an age of information overload – there is so much happening all over the world that it is difficult to keep track.  I am hoping that these monthly summaries will help me recall the key events which took place that month in China and internationally.

Events which made the news in China in November 2014

Note: these news items were sourced from The China Daily newspaper in November 2014. Keep in mind that it is a government-run newspaper.  I can't vouch for the accuracy of the statistics, except to say that China used to be a centrally-planned economy and they collected (and continue to do so) data on all manner of things.  

Actual events usually occurred a day or two before they appeared in the newspaper.  Currency is US$, and the exchange rate used this month is US$1 = Yuan 6.1.

Previously I listed the International Events first and then the Domestic (inside China) Events.  But I think you may be more interested in the China list, as you are already familiar with the International events, so I will reverse the order.

I used to include these monthly news summaries in posts with other commentary, but they are actually quite long, so in future I will make them a separate post.

(a) Domestic (in China) events and news

1 Nov	In 2013 inbound tourists numbered 129 million, down 3% on 2012 figures.  75% satisfaction; main concerns: water & air pollution, and safety at tourist sites.
	China has 58,789 people aged 100+; 75% women.  The oldest Chinese is 128.
	150 in 10,000 babies suffer from some defect and about 900,000 babies are born every year with a congenital disease.  The Government is considering re-introducing compulsory pre-marital health checks.
	The Commercial Aircraft Corporation (a state-owned enterprise) is building narrow-body aircraft with 90 and 168 seats. Plans to build wide-body aircraft by 2023, to compete with Boeing and Airbus.
13 Nov	11/11 is promoted as “Singles Day” in China, with lots of e-commerce specials aimed at young people. Estimated total sales of $13.2 billion in 24 hours (about 410 million orders averaging $32 each). Alibaba, the e-commerce giant, represented 71% of total turnover.  Local smart phone company, Xiaomi, sold 720,000 phones in the first 12 hours. Huawei and Heier products also popular.
	The government is stepping up the anti-corruption campaign.  Wei Peng Yuan, Deputy Director of the National Energy Administration, had $33 million in his home in Beijing.  Ma Chao Qin, General Manager of the water company of Qinghuangdao, Hebei Province was found with $20 million cash, 37 kg of gold, and 68 property certificates.
	Lenovo’s revenue for the 3rd Quarter (July – Sept 2014) was $10.5 billion (40% inside China, 60% outside). Shipped 16 million personal computers in Q3. Recently bought IBM’s server unit, and Motorola (smart phones).
14 Nov	2013 Chinese outbound tourists: 880,000 France, 790,000 Australia, 1.8 m USA.
	China Mobile, the largest mobile service provider, has built 470,000 4G base stations around China.  It has more than 50 million subscribers.
	2015 estimate: 300 million households in China will have disposable income of more than $10,000 pa
18 Nov	Tibet: 82,666 hectares planted with trees in 2014 (program now suspended for the winter months).
	Opening of new “Museum of Overseas Chinese” in Beijing (Dong Cheng District Ph 010 6407 0943). 15,000 exhibits in 4 halls.
19 Nov	Contrary to tradition the annual CCTV advertising sales meeting was held in private. Soft market because slowing economy and govt’s austerity drive. Experts say that this year, for the first time, ad spending on ‘new media’ (internet, video streaming, etc) will surpass traditional media (TV, magazines).
	Following ruling by the High Court of Hong Kong, bailiffs backed by police started clearing protest areas in Mong Kok and then other locations, after about 60 days of occuption.  The government has shown great patience; other jurisdictions would have moved much earlier (eg New York dealing with disruptions caused by the Occupy Wall Street movement).
	Microblogger Yang Xiu Yu was sentenced to 4 years in jail and fined $24,000  “for publishing rumours and deleting unfavourable posts for client companies”.
22 Nov	About 60,000 Chinese travelled abroad for medical treatment this year, mainly to USA, Taiwan, HK, Singapore, Europe.  The Mayo Clinic now has 200 Chinese patients pa.
	Jane Goodall, 80 years old, visited for the 20th anniversary of the first Roots & Shoots NGO in China.  Now 600 branches in China; 150,000 world-wide.
24 Nov	6.3 magnitude earthquake hit Kangding, Sichuan Province.  Remote area, 5 dead 54 injured.
	Peking University (Bei Da) sacked Associate Professor Yu Wan Li for affair with a PhD student from Singapore; for brining the university’s name into disrepute.
27 Nov	Fire in Hengda Coal Mine in Fuxin, Liaoning Province: 26 dead, 50 injured.
	Microsoft’s China Office accused of cross-border tax evasion (channelling earnings through Ireland, Singapore and Puerto Rico) and ordered to pay $137 million in back taxes.
28 Nov	The Ministry of Education will assume responsibility for the development of junior soccer from the China Football Association.  Soccer will become compulsory in many schools.  Plan to train 6,000 coaches in the next 12 months.
	According to the Public Security Bureau (Police) there are now 300 million licensed drivers in China, and 154 million ‘civilian vehicles’.
	Gambling is prohibited in China, but there are two nation-wide, legal lotteries.  In October 2014 the Welfare Lottery (started 1987) sold tickets valued $2.9 billion and the Sports Lottery (started 1990) $2.5 billion.  Questions how the proceeds are being used, and the govt has announced an audit of the two lotteries.
	As part of its austerity drive, the Government has established maximum sizes of official’s offices: a Minister’s office should be less than 54 sq metres; Vice-Minister 42 sq m; Bureau Head 24 sq m; Director 12 sq m.
	Beijing subway and bus fares will increase on 28 December 2014. Subway will be $0.50 for first 6 km, then by distance; bus will be $0.33 for first 10 km, then by distance. In 2013 the Beijing subway system carried 3.2 billion passengers; it covers 465 km, with another 208 km under construction.
29 Nov	The Shanghai Stock Market is experiencing a bull run (after 4 years in the doldrums) and the Composite Index hit 2682. It set a new record for a single-day turnover of $114 billion (previous record $99.5 billion was set by the New York Stock Market on 26 July 2007).

(b)  International Events

1 Nov	Sweden became the 9th country to formally recognise “The State of Palestine”, after Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Rep, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Romania and Iceland. The British Parliament (13 October) and the Spanish Parliament (18 November) passed non-binding resolutions urging their Governments to recognise Palestine.  The French Parliament is debating the issue in December and is expected to follow suit. These countries see “Two States” as the only viable solution and are hoping that Israel will stop prevaricating.
	The San Francisco Giants beat the Kansas City Royals in the 7th game to win the baseball World Series.  Madison Bumgarner (pitcher) named MVP.
3 Nov	Ban Ki Moon said “time is not on our side” as UN Panel of climate scientists issued another report asserting that climate change is man-made and calling for action.
	Western Sydney Wanderers beat Al Hilal in Riyadh to win the Asian Champions League.  First Aussie club to be Asian Champs.  The Guardian called it “The Football Story of the year”. The Daily Telegraph said “From a twinkle in the eyes to Asian Champions in less than 3 years!” The Sydney Morning Herald said “Achieved the seemingly impossible!”
5 Nov	Mexico announced that a Chinese consortium won the contract to build a 210 km high-speed train from Mexico City to Queretaro. A few days later the contract was cancelled, and a new bidding process announced.
	A record 37.5 million tonnes of iron ore were shipped out of Port Hedland, Western Australia in October 2014 (of which 31.7 mt went to China). The price of iron ore (62% content) delivered in Qingdao fell to $72 per tonne (down 47% so far in 2014).
	5 – 12 November various APEC meetings in Beijing, hosted by President Xi Jin Ping who spoke of an “Asia-Pacific Dream”.  APEC Leaders agreed to negotiate a “Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific” (FTAAP).
6 Nov	US Mid-term election held on Tuesday 4 November: the Republican Party gained seats and will control both the House of Representatives and the Senate in the 115th Congress.  The turn-out rate was 36.4%.
	A Memorial Service was held in Sydney for former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.
	The USA had a record monthly trade deficit in September 2014 of $43 billion (of which China was 80%). In September US exports to China were $10 b, while imports from China were $45 b.
	Reports that Lee Chong Wei, Malaysia’s badminton star (55 global titles), failed a drug test and was banned for 2 years.
13 Nov	Following the APEC meeting, President Obama made an official one-day visit to China.  Bilateral agreements were announced on:  climate change; a military code-of-safe-conduct; and accelerated talks on a bilateral investment treaty.
	Myanmar hosted the East Asia Summit in its capital Nay Pyi Taw.
	The International Ski Federation banned Vanessa Mae for 4 years because some of her qualifying races to get into the Sochi Winter Olympics were rigged.
15 Nov	USA announced that visas for Chinese for business and tourism (B1 & B2) will now be valid for 10 years.
17 Nov	15 & 16 Nov, G20 meeting in Brisbane hosted by Australian PM Tony Abbott.  Attended by many world leaders including Obama, Xi, Cameron, etc.
18 Nov	Following the G20 meeting Xi Jin Ping made an official visit to Australia (then on to New Zealand and Fiji).  This was his 5th visit to Australia; the first was in 1988 when he was Deputy Mayor of Xiamen in Fujian Province. He has now visited every Australian State. Xi addressed Parliament in Canberra; and opened the Chinese Garden, a gift from Beijing for Canberra’s centenary (they are sister-cities). In Hobart he witnessed the signing of an MOU on cooperating on Antartica. In Sydney he attended the inaugural Australia – China State & Provincial Leaders meeting, and the opening of the China Cultural Centre. After lengthy talks Australia and China announced finalisation of a Free Trade Agreement.  Two-way trade in 2013 totalled almost $130 billion (heavily in Australia’s favour).
20 Nov	Kobe Bryant scored 28 points in the Lakers win over the Atlanta Hawks.  He has now scored more than 32,000 points in regular season games.
21 Nov	Main countries of candidates sitting the GRE (Graduate Record Examination) in 2014 for graduate study in the USA: America 336,367; China 44,100; India 42,098.
22 Nov	UK Independence Party (UKIP) won a 2nd set in the House of Commons (for the Rochester & Stroud Constituency).
24 Nov	Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick when Barcelona beat Seville 5 – 1, and broke the La Liga record of 251 goals set by Telmo Zarra in 1955. He also holds the European Champions League record with 74 goals (in 91 games). Ronaldo from Real Madrid is second with 71 goals (in 108 games).
25 Nov	The Oxford Dictionary word of 2014 is ‘vape’ (or vaping = to smoke an e-cigarette).  Their word of 2013 was ‘selfie’.
	Switzerland (anchored by Roger Federer and Stan Wawarinka) beat France to win the Davis Cup for the first time.
	Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, to take out the 2014 F1 Championship (he won once before, in 2005, with McLaren).
26 Nov	A Grand Jury cleared policeman Darren Wilson for the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, St Louis, on 9 August 2014.  Big demonstrations in many cities.
	Chuck Hagel resigned as US Secretary of Defence.
28 Nov	25 year old Aussie cricketer Phillip Hughes died after being hit in the head by a cricket ball (bouncer).
29 Nov	Indonesia’s new President, Joko Widodo, has instructed govt officials to cease extravagant entertaining and spending.  Last weekend he flew economy-class to Singapore, which produced many positive comments.

Keep well, and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Thursday, 4 December 2014

1 December 2014

Gentlefolk,

This post starts with some photos taken in the last couple of weeks, then a bit about Breaking Bad, and finally a comment on Voting in the USA.

On Friday 28 November 2014 a cold change, windy & wet, arrived; the first really cold spell so far.  Apparently there has been lots of snow up north and out west already and winter has now reached our little neck of the woods too.

Today, 1 December, the maximum was +2C (with a nasty wind) and the minimum now as I type this post is -4C.  Time to break out the long-johns. The central heating on campus started on 13 November - works well - and we are cosy in our new apartment.

Can't complain: we've had 3 great months, September, October and most of November.  Many sunny, nice days; lots of good bike rides around the bay.

Recent photos

A huge setting sun - photo taken near the university's iconic gymnasium.

Teachers take it in turns to host fortnightly dinner on Sunday night.  This time it was Paul's turn - he prepared some delicious pasta dishes.  From left: Paul Finkbeiner, Vera, Steve McCune & Amy, and Michael Christensen.  Unfortunately we see little of the other two American teachers, Katie Cwiakla and Andros Hernandez.

I came across this group of kids while cycling around Tang Dao Wan bay.  I think they were filming a TV commercial.




I have really enjoyed riding my bike around this district.  But it is now getting colder and I will soon have to hang up my helmet until Spring arrives next March or April. 

Lunch with two of my favourite students: Liu Xiao Li (Lily) and Fan Jian Yi (Tony). They are International Trade majors, now seniors.  I taught them Oral English two years ago.  Lily has been admitted into a Masters program (Economics) when she graduates next year and Tony has found a job with a shipping company in Shanghai.

Vera with one of her foreign student friends: Martha from the Central African Republic.  Martha is in the second year of a Petroleum Engineering degree.  There are close to 1,000 foreign students at UPC now. 



On 15 November a speech competition organised by the International Students Union. The learned judges were, from left: Sherry (China); Sheba (Uganda); Stefan (Pakistan); Steven (US); and me.   All names starting with 'S' - except mine!  There were 24 competitors (19 foreign students and 5 Chinese students).  They had to speak  for 5 minutes on the topic "Times are tough, but so are you". The top three placegetters were all from Zimbabwe. Whatever is in the water in Zimbabwe, I want some!

On 24 November a student, Liu Fang Qiang (Oliver), and I visited the Naval Museum in Qingdao City.  Some interesting displays, including old airplanes and a couple of old destroyers.  Unfortunately the submarine was being refurbished and not open to the public.

  

An old sea plane - what a monster!

Old tanks.

We were able to inspect two 'retired' destroyers, but only the outside. One was built in the Soviet Union in 1940 and the other was built in China in 1974.  

Oliver spent 4 months in the USA last year on a "work & travel program'.  I invited him to discuss his experiences and impressions of America with my Western Culture classes - his presentation was very well received by the students.  

Breaking Bad



I didn't think anything could top House of Cards, until we were introduced recently to Breaking Bad. 

Oh dear!

For those of you who haven't seen this series, it is highly recommended. The writing is brilliant, as are the acting and photography (the series has won 108 Awards). A complete package.

Breaking Bad is an American crime drama.  It comprises 26 episodes over 5 seasons (2008 - 2013).

The main characters are: The White family (Walter, his wife Skyler and their son Walter Jr.); Skyler's sister Marie who is married to Hank Schrader (a DEA agent); Walter's partner-in-crime Jesse Pinkman; and drug lord Gustavo (Gus).

The story: Walter is a High School chemistry teacher.  He is diagnosed with terminal cancer and decides to 'cook meth' to pay for treatment (the cancer is too far gone, but his wife insists) and to secure his family's financial future. 

At the beginning Walter comes across as a very decent guy, a dedicated teacher and family man.  We watch, fascinated, as his persona slowly changes as he becomes more and more involved in a world of drugs and crime.

The show's creator, Vince Gilligan, said that his intention was "to change Walter from Mr Chips to Scarface, from protagonist to antagonist". He succeeded.



Breaking Bad from left: creator Vince Gilligan; RJ Mitte (Walter Jr); Aaron Paul (Jesse); Anna Gunn (Skyler White); Bryan Cranston (Walter White); Dean Norris (Hank Schrader).

Breaking Bad - something for everyone!  Highly recommended.

Voting in America

Last week I discussed the American political system with my Western Culture classes.

Something that struck me was the low turn-out rates in elections. 

All US citizens aged 18 and over have the right to vote in elections, but voting is not compulsory (to vote, you have to register first - that is, get your name on the electoral roll).  The 'turn-out rate' is the proportion of the total who could have voted, who actually voted.

The hoopla surrounding Presidential Elections means that the turn-out rate is higher for Presidential Elections (blue line on graph below).  The turn-out rate in November 2012, when Obama beat Romney, was 58.2%.

The turn-out rate in the Mid-term Election held on 4 November 2014 was only 36.4%.   

Turn-out rate in US Presidential elections (blue line) and Mid-term elections (orange line).

I find it very strange that only about one-third of eligible voters actually bothered to vote in this election three weeks ago. Isn't it a responsibility to practice our democratic right to vote?

My American friends say mandatory voting (as in Australia) sucks - they say it should be everyone's personal right to make the decision on whether or not to vote.

I don't agree.  It just seems wrong that less than half of the citizens elect their law-makers. I like that in Australia about 95% of citizens over 18 years of age actually cast a vote.

"Approval" of Congress has been very low for some time (see above Gallup survey).  It rose marginally, to 15% in September 2014, two months before the Mid-term elections. So if the vast majority of Americans are pissed off with how Congress is performing (or, rather, isn't performing), why didn't they see the election on 4 November 2014 as a chance to change things?

When the new Congress takes over in January 2015, the Republicans will have majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. And the President is from the Democratic Party.  It sounds to me like two years of acrimony and blame coming up.  Not a happy prospect.

Time for mandatory voting?

...

That's it for this post.

Keep well, and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Monday, 1 December 2014

24 November 2014

Gentlefolk,

As you know, I try to do a post each week, usually on the weekends.  I started working on exam papers and just ran out of time last weekend.

I have started to compile the Western Culture exam papers for the final exams on 4 January 2015. I have to prepare a Paper A and a Paper B (Paper B is held in reserve in case Paper A 'leaks' in which case they can quickly substitute the reserve paper).

We normally need to get the exam papers in a month before the exam, so I am early, but they always take longer than expected to compile.  At least I I broken its back, and will finish the job next weekend.

Today's post is about left-handedness in China ... read on ...

Left-handedness

During the recent G20 meeting in Brisbane some journalists noted that several of country leaders were left-handed, especially President Obama and Prime Ministers Cameron and Abbott.

Our son is left-handed and this subject has been of interest to me.

From my research on google it appears that 9% - 10% of Americans / Westerners are left-handed. 

Some articles suggested that the brains of left-handed people process information in a slightly different way: “wider scope of thinking”; “more visual”; “more complex reasoning”.  The articles said that a disproportionate number of left-handed people are high-achievers, Nobel Prize winners, and creative (such as writers and artists).

Left-handed people are also above-average communicators and negotiators, if their success in American politics is anything to go by.

A remarkable 7 of the last 14 American Presidents have been left-handed or ambidextrous.  Furthermore, in the 1992 and 1996 Presidential Elections, all the serious candidates were left-handed: Bush, Clinton, Perot, and Dole (Note: Dole’s right hand was injured when young and he had to learn to use his left hand – so perhaps he wasn’t a real ‘southpaw’). 

In the 2008 US Presidential Election, both major candidates, Obama and McCain, were left-handed.

I checked Britain, Canada and Australia and found that the preponderance of left-handed political leaders in America was not replicated in those countries. In Britain there have only been three left-handed Prime Minsters since 1940 (Winston Churchill, James Callaghan and now David Cameron).  

Regarding Canada, I could not find evidence of any left-handed Prime Ministers for at least the last 30 years. 

Australia’s current Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, is left-handed.  I contacted the Australian Prime Ministers Centre (part of the Museum of Australian Democracy located in Old Parliament House, Canberra) for information on past Prime Ministers. 

The APMC had to go back more than 70 years to find an Australian Prime Minister who was left handed.  Arthur (Artie) Fadden was PM for just 40 days, from 29 August to 7 October 1941.  He was an accomplished boxer and records show that he was a ‘southpaw’ which means he was probably left handed.  

From top left: Barack Obama; John McCain; Ronald Reagan; Albert Einstein; Al Gore; Bill Gates; Lee Hsien Long of Singapore; George W H Bush; Bill Clinton.

Five of the last seven American Presidents were left-handed.  From left: Gerald Ford; Jimmy Carter; Ronald Reagan; George W H Bush; Bill Clinton; George W Bush; Barack Obama.

Barack Obama and David Cameron, playing ping-pong left handed.

Tony Abbott, Australia's first left-handed Prime Minister is more than 70 years.

Scarlett Johansson signing autographs.  Other famous lefties: Marilyn Monroe; Nicole Kidman; Angelina Jolie; Oprah.

Rafa Nadal in action.

What’s the situation in China?

Actually, it is much more difficult to identify left-handed people in China.  Everyone here writes using their right hand.  In four years here, I have only come across two students, both foreign (one Iranian, the other Brazilian), who write Chinese characters using their left hands.

Occasionally I have seen students eat holding chopsticks in their left hands. Many left-handed students told me that their parents preferred them to hold chopsticks in their right hands and they had done so since an early age.  I was also told that a book on etiquette published in the Zhou Dynasty stipulated that eating with the right hand was ‘proper’, so this tradition is centuries old.

The best way is to watch them play a racquet sport such as table tennis or badminton.  Then a person’s handedness quickly becomes obvious.

Each semester I ask my students how many are left-handed.  The samples are small, usually between 200 and 300.  From these little surveys, it appears that 4% - 5% of students are left-handed (about half the incidence in Western countries). This semester of the 267 students in my classes, only 6 said they were left-handed (2%), but the previous semester the proportion was close to 5%.

Students assured me that there is no social stigma attached to being left-handed in China or using the left hand (as is the case in some Moslem countries).

In fact, students commented that in China left-handed people are generally regarded as ‘clever’, based on the belief that they used the right side of their brains (language & logic) more than right-handed people.

The most famous left-handed Chinese sports person is Lin Dan who is probably the best badminton player ever.  He is a national hero in China and of course everyone knows that he plays left-handed.

The only Chinese leader I have been able to identify as left-handed was ex-Premier Wen Jia Bao.  The China Daily had a picture of him playing badminton with Korean students, and he held the racquet in his left hand. 

Badminton champion Lin Dan in action at the recent Asian Games in Incheon,  5 times World Champion; 5 times All England Champion; Olympic Gold in 2008 & 2012.

  

Wen Jiao Bao, ex-Premier of China (2002 - 2012), playing badminton.

So, where does all that leave us?

Left-handed people certainly exist in China, but they are not as obvious as in Western countries because they all use their right hands when writing and most also use their right hands when eating. 

Based on my limited research, the incidence of lefties in the Chinese population appears to be about half the incidence in the West (4-5% compared to 9–10%), although that needs to be verified by proper scientific research.

Postscript  

A couple of other bits of trivia I picked up while researching ‘handedness’. 

Famous lefties have included:  Alexander the Great; Julius Caesar; Leonardo da Vinci; Michelangelo; Benjamin Franklin; Napoleon Bonaparte; Gandhi; Albert Einstein; Buzz Aldrin; Paul McCartney; Osama bin Laden; Bart Simpson.

There is a Left-handed Club, and August 13 is promoted as “International left-handed day”.

In 1946 the Government of China decreed that all cars drive on the right side of the road.  Prior to that, cars in Southern China drove on the left side, influenced by the British system in Hong Kong.  In fact, even now traffic in Hong Kong and Macau drives on the left, while the rest of China drives on the right.

Traditionally, writing in China was vertical, from right to left.  Following the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, the new Republic of China instituted a ‘cultural modernisation program’ part of which included adopting the Western style of writing - horizontally, from left to right.

...

Well, folks, that's all for this post.

Keep well, and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Monday, 24 November 2014