User Comments - WillBuckingham
WillBuckingham
Posted on: Getting a Sexual Health Check-up
March 05, 2016, 07:01 AMImpressive lesson — really nicely done!
Posted on: 中国哲学 Chinese Philosophy
March 05, 2016, 06:33 AM吾曰：「有關哲學課来，不亦樂乎？」 (向孔子道歉)
Posted on: Fix My Cold
January 23, 2016, 11:16 AMGreat lesson. A quick question. In the dialogue, the sentence:
那怎么行，我每隔两个星期就要吃一次烧烤，不吃浑身不舒服。
Appears as
那怎么行，我每两个星期就要吃一次烧烤，不吃浑身不舒服。(without the 隔).
So my question is whether 每两个 and 每隔两个 are totally interchangable? Or is there a subtle difference?
Posted on: Teleshopping 生机精华萃取机
November 04, 2015, 03:00 AMThanks, Gwilym!
Posted on: Teleshopping 生机精华萃取机
November 03, 2015, 02:59 AMI'm totally won over by the new video content — I'm finding it incredibly engaging and useful.
However, it might be useful to have video and audio lessons more clearly marked as such on the dashboard (and also perhaps in the app and in lesson RSS feeds) so that when on the go, it is possible to easily track down which is which.
Posted on: Chatting on the Moon
October 19, 2015, 09:20 AMMy patience was un-strained. But I have a weakness for anything that takes place where mythology meets with whimsy...
Posted on: Chatting on the Moon
October 19, 2015, 12:33 AMWildly entertaining. "The God Hack" sounds like the title of a particularly ambitious self-help text.
Posted on: Simplified vs Traditional Characters
December 11, 2014, 07:38 AMInteresting dialogue.
I did not know about the legal restrictions on 繁体字 on the mainland, and the special cases where it is allowed.
I did a bit of digging and found this on lawinfochina.com, which might interest people. It is article 17 of theLaw of the People's Republic of China on the Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language (中华人民共和国国家通用语言文字法).
All the best,
Will
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Article 17 Where by the relevant provisions of this Chapter are concerned, the original complex or the variant forms of Chinese characters may be retained or used under the following circumstances:
第十七条 本章有关规定中，有下列情形的，可以保留或使用繁体字、异体字：
(1) in cultural relics and historic sites;
（一）文物古迹；
(2) the variant forms used in surnames;
（二）姓氏中的异体字；
(3) in works of art such as calligraphy and seal cutting;
（三）书法、篆刻等艺术作品；
(4) handwritten inscriptions and signboards;
（四）题词和招牌的手书字；
(5) where their use is required in the publishing, teaching and research; and
（五）出版、教学、研究中需要使用的；
(6) other special circumstances where their use is approved by the relevant departments under the State Council.
（六）经国务院有关部门批准的特殊情况。
Posted on: The Lure of Being Smuggled Abroad
October 17, 2014, 08:56 AMThere some interesting background here on the Chinese government's increasing efforts in this respect. http://www.humantrafficking.org/countries/china.
(I should add that this article also makes clear the reality of sex-trafficking, as well as bonded labour and other practices.)
Posted on: Women's Day Special
March 08, 2016, 10:13 AMAnother great lesson, and happy international women's day! (I said to my girlfriend this morning that women hold up half the sky — 妇女能顶半边天. She said that's true, but they just get paid less to do it...)
Just a quick question. What is the reason for the derogatory meaning of 三八, which I presume predates IWD?