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And Finally

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Give us a break

Viewers are vexed by ‘embedded ads’ in TV shows
Jan 18, 2019 (WiC 437)

Think of a popular historical television drama in recent years. Downton Abbey, perhaps, or Outlander. Now imagine that mid-way through an episode, one of the main characters turns to the camera and promotes a shampoo or a credit card. It ...

Letting off steam

Hotpot in focus after gourmand’s TV critique
Jan 11, 2019 (WiC 436)

Some historians say hotpot originated as early as the Three Kingdoms (220-280) when people used bronze cauldrons to cook. Others claim that hotpot was already popular in the Han Dynasty (206-220BC), when it was common to cook food in ...

What featured in the latest listings of China’s top terms for 2018?
Dec 14, 2018 (WiC 435)

It’s that time in the calendar when language fans announce the most influential words of the year. For the UK’s Oxford English Dictionary the choice was ‘toxic’, while America’s Dictionary.com has gone for ‘misinformation’. Both ...

Ride-hailing firm Yidao in kowtow controversy
Nov 30, 2018 (WiC 434)

The physical act of the kowtow – bowing so low the forehead touches the ground – was a sign of respect and reverence in ancient China. During the Qing Dynasty the ruling Manchu made prostration an elaborate yet everyday form of ...

Getting the runs

Another great escape from a Hong Kong toilet
Nov 23, 2018 (WiC 433)

Yip Kai-foon was dubbed by Hongkongers “the robber king”. The name stuck until he was arrested in 1985 and sentenced to 18 years in jail. Four years later he escaped from a hospital toilet after faking an illness. On the run, Yip became Hong ...

Wanda scion brings home a gaming world title
Nov 16, 2018 (WiC 432)

China’s fuerdai – the second generation rich – tend to get a bad rap. Earlier this year, we reported that Wang Sicong, the only son of billionaire Wang Jianlin, was banned from Sina Weibo’s ‘hot searches’ function for three ...

Unappetising dish

The world’s largest radio telescope is having a problem hiring people
Nov 9, 2018 (WiC 431)

It took just three years for China’s privately-funded aerospace sector to develop its first solid fuel rocket, chasing Space X, Elon Musk’s firm, which has used one of its own rockets to transport a Tesla sports car closer to ...

Getting a bear hug

China promises new pandas after Abe visit
Nov 2, 2018 (WiC 430)

In the summer of 2010, a giant panda called Xing Xing, on loan from China to a zoo in Kobe, died on the operating table during an artificial insemination procedure. The Chinese ordered that Xing Xing’s body be secured until the arrival of a ...

The captain’s table

Gorging guests blamed for cruise liner’s retreat
Oct 26, 2018 (WiC 429)

The Chinese dama first made their name internationally in 2013, with some frenetic buying in the gold market. Since then the dama – middle-aged women with an eye for a deal and a disposition for dancing (see WiC345) – have ...

Alipay pays out giant prize in Koi contest
Oct 19, 2018 (WiC 428)

The fish has always been associated with good fortune in China. Pronounced as yu, it sounds similar to words that mean “abundance” or “surfeit” in various dialects. Koi fish, in particular, are a favourite of feng shui ...

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