标签：culture

In Praise of the Abacus?

History of Science & Scholarship2007.12.03
In Praise of the Abacus?
Among all the extracurricular skills I learned as a child, abacus counting was by far the most meaningful. The “mental abacus arithmetic” we learned was not just operating an abacus; through long-term training, it was a way of “placing the abacus in the mind” and then doing mental calculation with it. After about two years of training between first and third grade in primary school, three times a day—morning, noon, and evening—even if one did not quite reach the level of a few speed-calculation prodigies, one could at least manage, say, to hear several dozen three- or four-digit numbers in succession, compute their sum, and keep up as fast as…
culture science history of science history
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2007年12月3日
— Lecture Six in the School History and School Spirit Series, “Youthful Peking University, the Splendid Years of Yanyuan”

Life & Notes2007.11.28
<An Interpretation of the Peking University Spirit> — Lecture Six in the School History and School Spirit Series, “Youthful Peking University, the Splendid Years of Yanyuan”
An Interpretation of the “Spirit of Peking University” — Lecture Six in the “Youthful Peking University, Youthful Yanyuan” Series on the History and Present Condition of the University Speaker: Wu Guosheng Lecture time: Wednesday, November 28, 2007, 7:00–9:00 p.m. Lecture venue: Lijiao 109 I went an hour early to grab a seat, only to discover that there were in fact very few people attending, so there was absolutely no need to reserve one. Compared with Mr. Wu’s lecture of the same title three years ago, the audience this time was pathetically sparse. Mr. Wu said this might have something to do with the decline in people’s attention to “spirit” as…
everyday life culture Peking University Wu Guosheng
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2007年11月28日
Notes from Zhongguancun (1)

Life & Notes2007.11.24
Notes from Zhongguancun (1)
Zhongguancun is a wondrous place: Peking University is here, Wan Sheng is here, and so are Yecao, Boyatang, the Third Wave, and Fengrushong. The universities around here are simply too numerous to count. Sweep from north to south on a map: Peking University, Tsinghua University, Beijing Forestry University, China Agricultural University (East Campus), Beijing Language and Culture University, China University of Mining and Technology, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (several institutes), China University of Petroleum, China University of Geosciences, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beihang University, Peking University Health Science Center, Capital University of Physical Education and Sports, Beijing Film Academy, Renmin University of China, Beijing Institute of Technology,…
everyday life culture Peking University modernity
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2007年11月24日
[Repost] Triangle Floor (Ceiling)

Life & Notes2007.11.07
[Repost] Triangle Floor (Ceiling)
鸭梨’s words. Triangle Ground Ceiling @ 2007-11-07 09:25 http://ariela.ycool.com/post.2748610.html On Weiming, there is already a basic consensus on the matter of Triangle Ground: the demolition of Triangle Ground was by no means some premeditated move aimed at student freedom (like the near-mythical seizure of power on Weiming in 2002), but merely a decision hastily made by the leaders in the face of teaching evaluation, in order to tidy up the campus appearance. And yet the contrast between Triangle Ground’s weight in history and in the hearts of Peking University people—or more precisely, the weight it ought to have—and the silent way it has been restored to an ordinary patch…
everyday life culture history Peking University
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2007年11月7日
Keke Forum Lecture 41: Two Kinds of Local Knowledge (November 2)

History of Science & Scholarship2007.11.03
Keke Forum Lecture 41: Two Kinds of Local Knowledge (November 2)
The task of activating KKBBS begins… Last week I tried testing the waters by posting a report, only to discover that there isn’t just a shortage of water there—it’s a complete desert! Where on earth am I supposed to begin………… Let’s be a little honest first and finish the basic task of reporting on each instance of the KeKe Forum~ But this post of mine doesn’t seem to be a news report; rather, it’s a discussion. I think news copy is pretty dull anyway, and besides, I’m not good at writing it. So I might as well keep hurling bricks and see whether I can stir up even a tiny…
philosophy culture science knowledge
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2007年11月3日
[Repost] Funeral Industry Launches Graduate In-Service Training Class; Practitioners Can Attend Peking University to Study Philosophy

Life & Notes2007.10.21
[Repost] Funeral Industry Launches Graduate In-Service Training Class; Practitioners Can Attend Peking University to Study Philosophy
News here; I won’t reproduce it: http://news.qq.com/a/20071020/000050.htm I hadn’t originally thought of commenting, but after seeing it reposted on the department board, and then reposted again to the Joke board, and seeing that classmates’ reactions seemed mostly displeasure or contempt, I couldn’t help but voice my opinion. Below is my reply on the department board: (The person above said: “Reviving Zhou ritual is not something our department would get around to doing.”) Do you all think it’s bad? I, for one, think it’s terrific! Absolutely terrific! This is far more meaningful than opening a traditional-culture class for CEOs. If reviving ritual and music is not something our department is to…
everyday life culture Peking University tradition
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2007年10月21日
[Dutch] J. Huizinga: Man the Player, 35 yuan — ☆

Culture & Public Commentary2007.10.11
[Dutch] J. Huizinga: Man the Player, 35 yuan — ☆
[Dutch]J. Huizinga: Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-Element in Culture, translated by Cheng Qiong, proofread by Wang Zuohong and Chen Weizheng, Guizhou Publishing Group, Guizhou People’s Publishing House, first edition January 1998, second edition August 2007, 35 yuan—☆ Often, just when I am thinking about certain topics, I can promptly find the book I want at a bookstore, and even at the new-books counter…… This book immediately came out in two editions, one of which (the one I chose) is a reprint, and the other is the latest translation by Huacheng Publishing House (the third Chinese translation), Huizinga: 2007, 9th month, first edition. I compared these two books for quite…
culture book reading notes human nature
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2007年10月11日
This Episode’s Music: Azurite (Heroic Age ED)

Life & Notes2007.10.10
This Episode’s Music: Azurite (Heroic Age ED)
The turn from late September to early October is a transitional period: the matters of graduate recommendation, grant papers, and so on have all come to a close, and a new era is about to unfold. At the same time, it also happens to be anime season-change time. Japanese anime is generally broadcast by the season, and many series are one season or two seasons long—around 13 episodes or 26 episodes. During this stretch from late September to early October, I happened to catch the endings of various new shows I was watching in sequence; for about a week before that I watched more than a dozen finales back to…
everyday life culture anime Japan
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2007年10月10日
Is Literature Human Studies? — A Response

Culture & Public Commentary2007.10.08
Is Literature Human Studies? — A Response
This is a response to UNIC; taking this opportunity, I’d like to briefly state my attitude toward conceptual analysis and inquiry. You want to say “literature is human studies,” and that’s fine; I do not object. Of course, this phrase is not your own invention, but already a widely used expression. I looked it up, and its source seems to be Gorky; it has also been used by many writers on different occasions. Every sentence has its context and must be judged within a specific context. Otherwise, a bald assertion dropped out of nowhere cannot be properly understood or assessed. For example, I say “the Earth is round.” Is that…
philosophy culture human nature humanities
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2007年10月8日
What Is “Literature”?

Culture & Public Commentary2007.10.08
What Is “Literature”?
I claim that this year I’m going to make a serious study of literature, so what exactly do I mean? What is literature? Although I understand that I’ll have more of a say on this question only after I’ve read more literary books, if I have no idea what “literature” is, then what exactly am I planning to read? Of course, the simplest method is to follow the categories already made by others and look for books on the literature shelf in a bookstore; that would count as reading literature. But as someone who does philosophy, I really shouldn’t be too lazy. Besides, this topic has come up recently anyway,…
philosophy culture scholarship literature
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2007年10月8日