Amy Chua, author of "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother," packed the well-regarded book store Poetry & Prose tonight.
While the Wall Street Journal excerpt generated a firestorm of criticism, Amy in person is clearly the loving, caring mother of 2 daughters who have blossomed into accomplished young women.
Amy's book delineates the differences between American and Chinese childrearing and is worth reading in full.
A Chinese businessman is giving University of California, Riverside, $10 million for clean-energy research, the largest single donation by an individual in the university's history.
"The goal is to invent all-electric vehicles so efficient and convenient that they will replace gasoline-powered vehicles," he said.
Winston Chung is the inventor of the rare-earth lithium yttrium battery, which his Shenzhen, China-based Winston Global Energy manufactures.
I guess it goes without saying that Chung would have a near global monopoly on the manufacture of the power systems for any inventions created by the U.S. researchers.
Hey, if Chinese engineers aren't quite capable of the creative R&D required to boost one's company into a global empire, for a few million bucks American researchers will be happy to help grow a China-based company.
Excellent PRI radio segment on China's changing education.
"China’s Ministry of Education is trying to change China’s public schools. It aims to combine the discipline and rigor of the Chinese approach to education, with the creativity of the Western approach.
"It’s part of the government’s effort over the past decade to transform China into a more innovative nation, one that can create its own processes and products, rather than just manufacturing those of other countries."
That move to innovation nation can be seen in my new documentary - www.WinInChinaMovie.com
Most Americans believe China is A) woefully behind America in innovation and creativity, and B) their K-12 education system perpetuates that problem, and therefore C) America's economy and standard of living is not at risk in the 21st century.
I do NOT subscribe to any of points A, B or C above. I have seen first hand that Chinese people can be highly creative and I have invested in several globally innovative Chinese companies - e.g. - BYD Electric Auto.
The Chinese are playing a brilliant game right now in global warming, industrial growth and clean-tech - regardless of your ethical standards their cunning is to be admired.
Pleading to the OECD that "we are but a developing country", the Chinese continue to strip the earth of raw materials and build high-carbon polluting factories. When challenged, their retort is "the West has done this for over a century, don't try to hold China back with your new morality" - a valid argument.
When asked to adopt new, cleaner technologies from the West, the Chinese reply is, "we are but a poor country, the wealthy West should help us pay to use these technologies." Since the west insists on referring to China as a developing country - our arguments are hollow.
Finally, where do the Chinese put their advanced R&D money and manpower resources in this field - they are pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into CLEAN-TECH - fully realizing they can't sustain the polluting system of today and using the dodge of "help us pay" as a head fake to distract and befuddle
China is taking the lead in innovation and in manufacture of green technologies at a pace that exceeds every other country on earth. Thomas Friedman captures this in todays' NY Times article The New Sputnik.
From now on, we should think of Communist China not as RED but as Green:
Martial arts shows? American re-runs? Chinese talk shows?
NOPE, it is ENTREPRENEURSHIP.
What is hot on Chinese TV is a show called Ying Zai Zhongguo or Win In China - a blend between a collegiate business plan competition, Survivor and The Apprentice.
And the payoff for the winner is not some lackey job with Donald Trump. It is $1.3 million in start-up capital to start their own company. By contrast the MIT Business Plan competition winner gets a measly $100,000. The Communists understand it takes more capital these days to launch an entrepreneurial venture, I guess.
Some of the finalists of the first season of Win In China, winnowed down from an initial 3,000 entrepreneurial business plans.
Quite a few Americans, including several venture capitalists, are involved in Win In China - a few of their comments (only slightly scripted, but no gun to their heads), including the CEO of NASDAQ, are HERE
The show airs on CCTV - the Communist controlled television. Here's how several contestants and broadcast officials describe the goal of Win IN China:
“Chinese culture does not facilitate creativity as much as we need.... the show will introduce the “positive power” of entrepreneurship."
Contestant Ms. Zhou said she hoped potential entrepreneurs would learn the importance of both perseverance and passion.
“After the final episode, a friend called and said: ‘I have to quit my work unit and my company! I have to be an entrepreneur, because I want a new life.’”
