New Urbanism and the New Economy
June 26, 2009
A colleague of mine at Lawrence Group’s office in North Carolina is blogging on >Urbanism and the New Economy: Resources and Ideas for Sustainable Communities in the 21st Century.<
I’m linking it here, but also blogrolling it.
I don’t see a Feedblitz subscription option on the site yet, but it’s new. I suggested it to him today, and hopefully he will add that soon.
If you’re interested at all in sustainability, urban planning, city planning, town planning, architecture, quality of life or any related issues, this promises to be good and informative reading. The current post is titled “How do we re-center our suburbs?”
The colleague mentioned is Craig S. Lewis, AICP, CNU. He is managing principal of Lawrence Group’s Carolinas office and professionally affiliated with
o American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), 1999
o Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU)
o Urban Land Institute
o American Planning Association–New Urbanism Division Executive Committee
Careers column reporter for online Wall Street Journal asks, Should Over-50 Job Hunters Join Facebook?
May 29, 2009
Read the whole story > here < and join in the conversation with your comment at the http://online.WSJ.com site, or leave a comment here for your colleagues.
I wonder how many people reading this of any age have a Facebook page that they use for professional networking (including job hunting.) I have an account, but I have not completed any of the information yet.
I plan on doing it soon, and to get the most out of it, I need to tie it in to the other accounts I have, i.e., Twitter, LinkedIn, and these two blogs. So far the blogs, Twitter, and LinkedIn keep me pretty busy.
Share your questions, sucessful practices, comments, etc., here!
Images from nielsen.com via the Web
Composers Datebook for Saturday, April 18, 2009
April 18, 2009
John Zech
The link, above, for Composers Datebook is to a podcast from American Public Media to a daily music program about composers of the past and present, hosted by John Zech.*
I subscribe to Composers Datebook by e-mail, and I receive both a recorded and a written version of it each day. It only takes at most a few minutes to enjoy the content of each one.
It occurred to me that especially for readers in China and other countries where English is a second language that this could be of interest beyond the musical pleasure; that is, having a both a written and spoken version is a help in adding to English vocabulary and cultural knowledge of western musical traditions.
So, the spoken version is linked for you, above, and here is a copy and paste of the written version. If you enjoy this post and would like to have more Composers Datebook posts here from time to time, please leave a comment for me to let me know. Also, if you have any questions about the names and other references in this Composers Datebook, below, I’d be delighted to answer them!
Leopold Stokowski
Of Mice and Maestros: Leopold Stokowski
On today’s date in 1882, a child was born in London to a Polish father and Irish mother—a baby christened Leopold Boleslawowicz Stanislaw Antoni Stokowski.
In 1882, Brahms completed his Second Piano Concerto and Wagner introduced his last opera, “Parsifal”; Gustav Mahler was a promising opera conductor aged 22; Richard Strauss was a young man of 18; Arnold Schoenberg a lad of seven; and Igor Stravinsky still a few months away from being born!
Leopold Stokowski would grow up to become a famous conductor of all those composers’ works. For 25 years, Stokowski led the Philadelphia Orchestra in an astonishing variety of music, ranging from his own dramatic symphonic arrangements of works by J.S. Bach to cutting-edge, avant-garde works of Edgard Varese and dozens of other contemporary composers.
Stokowski cut a glamorous figure on stage and off, hung out with movie stars, and played himself in a 1937 movie, “100 Men and a Girl.” He shook hands with Mickey Mouse in Disney ’s animated classic Fantasia,” and Bugs Bunny did a devastating Stokowski imitation in a famous Warner Brothers cartoon.
For some, his flamboyance was hard to take, but the list of old and new music Stokowski performed before his death in 1977, at the age of 95, remains as impressive as his recorded legacy, which continues to live on via compact disc reissues.
# # #
*John Zech | Host, Classical Music/Composers Datebook
Minnesota Public Radio
John Zech got started in broadcasting as a news anchor at his high school’s closed-circuit television station (KRUD). At St. Olaf College, his love of classical music earned him his first “real” radio experience at WCAL-FM. After a dozen years doing virtually everything there was to do at a small public radio station, John crossed over into the private sector, doing audio production and narration for a major educational publishing company, managing translation projects for an international communications company, and generally learning what it’s like to work for a living. Having seen the light, John returned to radio in 1992. After deciding his Zen garden was too much of a headache, John looks for enlightenment on the tennis court and the billiard table instead.
© 2009 American Public Media
480 Cedar Street, Saint Paul, MN USA 55101
Image of Leopold Stokowski from LIFE Magazine archives via the Web (Leopold Stokowski conducting the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in rehearsal at Carnegie Hall, New York, NY, USA. Taken in 1947. Photographer: Gijon Mili.)
Managing China program on CNBC World
April 13, 2009
I just watched a program on CNBC World called “Managing China.” If you are interested in doing business in or with China, this program is a great tutorial on the big picture.
Song Zhenghuan
The program is a one-on-one interview format. The segment that I watched was between interviewer (Mr.) Luo Zhenyu and (Mr.) Song Zhenghuan, president of > Goodbaby <, a successful international business in China. The program is conducted in “putonghua,” which translates basically as “the common language,” or, as we call it in the western world, “Mandarin,” with subtitles in English.
The interview is more exploratory than expository, and so a lot of seemingly “softball” questions are asked by the interviewer of Mr. Song; however, that strikes me as part of the Chinese cultural way, and there also were questions asked about aspects of Goodbaby’s business model that would seem to be questioning its basis for success. So what I’m saying is that not all question were softballs.
Sage advice for US business people doing business in China.
If someone in the USA is interested in feeling more comfortable in one-on-one business interactions with their Chinese business counterparts, this program provides a great example of appropriate comportment on the Chinese side. In particular, I think it’s difficult for people from the USA with no direct connection to Asian culture to figure out how to express disagreement in business dealings with the Chinese. This is because one of the things we always hear is that the Chinese “avoid direct disagreement,” and the direct way we handle disagreement in the west would cause our Chinese associates to “lose face.” It leaves us with no explanation of how, then, to handle disagreement.
I think this program shows how one might investigate issues, express doubt, or uncertainty and do it with a politeness and humble approach to which we simple are unaccustomed, and which would seem unclear, perhaps too subtle, seen through the cultural lens here.
Make no mistake that while a harmonious society is a primary Chinese cultural value, the Chinese are tough negotiators and do not always agree among themselves or across the table. They do, however, maintain a surface appearance of harmony, and one of the ways they would handle disagreement is to have a person who acts as liaison from each of the opposing/collaborating teams. This allows the leaders to lay issues on the table while making the expressions of mutual respect and toasting to each other’s success, while the liaisons deliver information about problematic issues and allow the team leaders to work out the problems indirectly, through their liaisons.
This works whether the problem is a large business issue between company heads or a hotel room that is not up to one’s standards. It’s best, if possible, to have a liaison/functionary on your team handle these issues for you with another person on the other “team” similar in status to him/her.
The program today was an excellent study in direct discussion, though, which would be a step up from and riskier way to go than the liaison route, but shows it can be done. Not an exercise for the inexperienced, I might add.
So, those are my thoughts on the program. It was a wonderful discovery this afternoon, while I was working on my blog. If you also have seen this program, please post your thoughts about it here.
AsiaNet information (in English) about Goodbaby
China Daily story (in English) about Goodbaby
Editor’s note: I was unable to find a photo of interviewer Luo Zhengyu.
Sage advice graphic from ChinaSuccessStories.com
Do you check my blogroll?
April 12, 2009
The blogroll is a hand-selected list of other blogs that I think will be of interest to the people who visit my blog.
I added a new link yesterday for a blogroll called “Learning Chinese & Living in China.” The blogger, Mr. Phil Kongtcheu, is a new contact on LinkedIn as a member of the LinkedIn group, Friends of China.
Phil Kongtcheu
Mr. Kongtcheu’s profile presents a most fascinating and learned person, studying at several universities, including Tsinghua University Language & Culture School (Beijing, China),
Tsinghua University Library, Beijing, China
I am an inventor and entrepreneur with special focus on derivatives pricing, hedging, trading and risk management; I have developed the concept of BICs (Basis Instruments Contracts*) to facilitate the resolution of critical issues arising therein, with substantial consequences in mathematics, economics, engineering and wider philosophical issues. I am fluent in English, French, Chinese and the Ghomala and Pidgin languages of Cameroon; I have basic communication skills in Spanish, Italian and German.
His blog is substantive and beautifully done.
Editor’s note: I have also been to the Tsinghua University campus in Beijing, China. I was not there as a student, unfortunately; I was there as a visitor, and I bought several books in the university bookstore. I also bought a baseball cap with the university logo on it as a souvenir for my husband. He wears it often, and he has met many people in St. Louis from China, who recognize the logo. It has begun many enjoyable conversations!
*BICs links to his book on Amazon on these theories, especially of interest now, with the recent worldwide economic events
Please remember to visit the blogroll!
April 11, 2009
Bloggers
I add other blogs to it from time to time on topics of interest to my readers here. Those blogs also update their content. So don’t forget that in addition to what I hope is interesting content here for you, this site is also a gateway to other sites with related material. The blogroll is in the sidebar. Just click on any of the blogs with links you see (but please come back to mine again!!)
I would like to see comments posted if you visit. Let me know if there is some question I can answer for you!
You can answer a question for me: What’s on YOUR blogroll?
Image from Guy Burstein, who blogs for Microsoft
中国 拐角 | 美国 拐角
April 6, 2009
Chinese Corner
中国朋友, 我想请 你們 来 这 博客, St. Louis 中国 拐角
你們 的 美国 的 朋友,
丹哪 歌玛诗
Zhongguo pengyou, Wǒ xiǎnɡ qǐnɡ nǐmen li zhe boke, St. Louis Zhongguo Jiejao
Ninmende Meiguo pengyou,
Dan-na Ge-ma-shi
Image of Chinese Corner from Confucius Institute, London, England, United Kingdom
Image of English Corner from Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China
Ideas about aging and care of the elderly are very culturally specific things, are they not?
In the USA, where independence and individuality are part of our national character, studies show that the vast majority of senior citizens here desire to “age in place.” This means they wish to stay in their communities near family and friends and to stay in their own homes living independently for as long as possible. Some opt to “downsize” by moving into a smaller home, once their children are grown, and some may move into retirement communities, where they have options for a continuum of care that range from independent living to assisted living to skilled nursing care on the same campus.
Most, however, do not live their last years in nursing homes, according to the stereotype of aging in the USA. Neither do most live with their grown children late in their lives, as has been the tradition in China, although that arrangement is not entirely out of the question in the US. Today, in both countries, however, ideas about privacy and personal space may make it less desirable to have multi-generational households.
There is a network of Agencies on Aging throughout the USA that provides information and assistance on a wide range of issues for our elders. The Mid-East Area Agency on Aging (MEAAA) serves four counties in the St. Louis region, and one of their programs delivers a nutritionally balanced mid-day meal to participants. These seniors may be disabled, or homebound in the short term due to illness, injury or recovering from a stay in the hospital.
Mayors for Meals 2009
The meals are prepared in a commercial kitchen and delivered by a roster of dedicated volunteers. Often the meal is the primary nutrition for the participant, if they live alone and are unable to shop and prepare their own food. Often the volunteer is the only person the participant will see during the day, and so this program feeds the body and spirit.
Each year MEAAA works with area Mayors to get them involved in the meal delivery process. Here is a link to photos from “MEAAA Mayors for Meals 2009.”
Here is a link to the Web site for MEAAA, with information on their programs and services assisting adults through the journey of aging.
Here is a link to the Web site from the State of Missouri on the origins of the Agencies on Aging across the United States. If you have not heard of the Agencies on Aging, please take the time to learn about them and never hesitate call on them to assist your family as your elder members require services to remain independent for as long as they desire. There is an Agency on Aging to serve every area of the USA.
Do you Baidu?
December 21, 2008
Have you ever used Baidu?
Or Acoona?
How about Sohu?
Yisou?
According to one source, these are a few of the most popular Chinese language search engines. A complete list of the “most popular” ones from that same source includes:
Baidu www.baidu.com
Acoona www.accoona.cn
Sohu www.sohu.com
Yisou www.yisou.com
Sogou www.sogou.com
Google China www.google.cn
Sina www.sina.com.cn
3721.com www.3721.com
Yahoo cn.yahoo.com
NetEase www.163.com
I was messing around on Baidu this evening, and I found a nice translation tool you might like to know about, especially if you are learning Chinese language. The tool is called Pinyin Annotator. The tool takes any Chinese characters and translates them into pinyin. This has been helpful to me. If I can get the pinyin, I can at least read the passage aloud, and I might even understand some of it.
Here’s an example of how it works. I pasted the following into the annotator,
下载谷歌拼音输入法
Google谷歌 拼音输入法 谷歌拼音输入法五大特色: 智能组句:选词准确率高,能聪明地理解您的意图,短句长句都合适。 流行词汇:整合互联网上的流行词汇、热门搜索一网打尽,词组丰富强大。 网络同步:您可以将使用习惯和个人字典同步在 Google …
maps.google.com/ime/pinyin/ 2K 2008-10-29 - 百度快照
I clicked on the “annotator” button, and here is the result I got,
Xiàzài下载gǔgē谷歌pīnyīn拼音shūrùfǎ输入法
GoogleGǔgē谷歌 pīnyīn拼音shūrùfǎ输入法 gǔgē谷歌pīnyīn拼音shūrùfǎ输入法wǔ五dà大tèsè特色: zhìnéng智能zǔ组jù句:xuǎn选cí词zhǔnquè准确lǜ率gāo高,néng能cōngming聪明dìlǐ地理jiě解nín您de的yìtú意图,duǎnjù短句cháng长jù句dōu都héshì合适。 Liúxíng流行cíhuì词汇:zhěnghé整合hùliánwǎng互联网shàng上de的liúxíng流行cíhuì词汇、rèmén热门sōusuǒ搜索yīwǎngdǎjìn一网打尽,cízǔ词组fēngfù丰富qiángdà强大。 Wǎngluò网络tóngbù同步:nín您kěyǐ可以jiāng将shǐyòng使用xíguàn习惯hé和gèrén个人zìdiǎn字典tóngbù同步zài在 Google …
maps.google.com/ime/pinyin/ 2K 2008-10-29 – Bǎidù百度kuài快zhào照
Pretty cool, huh? There is a feature to have the characters translated into zhuyin (bopomofo), in addition to pinyin.
Pinyin Annotator is in beta, and user suggestions and comments are welcomed.
We probably all immediately think and say, “Of course not!”
Officially in the USA and in China it’s considered bad form to be biased against a person’s ethnic background and culture of origin. Looking at these photos of adorable children, how could anyone be biased against them? Ah, but they grow up, don’t they? And isn’t it harder to maintain that open-mindedness in the adult world when dealing with others who are not doing things “our way”?
So, I wonder how often in speaking our mind on this subject we give the official answer but with a small, dissonant voice in the back of our minds thinking the opposite? Or, are we so conditioned to the official line that when we speak our mind on this we don’t acknowledge or really even know our mind on it?
This test from the Harvard University Web site can help point to conscious-unconscious divergence in this matter. Take the Implicit Association Test, or IAT for short, and see what you can learn about yourself.
https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/
PS According to the site, “Data exchanged with this site are protected by SSL encryption, and no personally identifying information is collected. IP addresses are routinely recorded, but are completely confidential.”
I love that geek talk!
PPS I will confess to my own bias in another area: I was a psychology major, so I love this stuff.
