Gu Kaizhi’s idea of “expressing the spirit through form” was a principle unchangeable for all time.And Xie He’s “Six Criteria”(liu fa) had been employed all too frequently but remained always fresh. Zong Binge’s required attainment of the state of wo you offered a theoretical foreshadowing for the subjective consciousness of suiting disposition and seeking relief and diversion.Zhang Zao’s dictum:”Externally,learn from Nature;internally,gain from the source of feeling”was truly a knack to be passed on for the endless benift of the accepter.

True,the theories of Chinese painting are in the state described as “a hundred schools contend”,but they stay much the same in spite of changes time and again.”Six Classics(Confucian)”do give me explanations’ I do mine of “Six Classics”,this is rational,and the reasonableness lies in the fact that there are “classics” and there is “I”,too.Though classics will not change eternally,there is life under tips of my brushpens anywhere they make touches.Herein lies the way of development of the theories of Chinese culture,and so does that of the development of the theories of Chinese pictorial art.

flower pot

The Chinese Landscape Painting

Waters,mountains,trees and rocks in pictorial art were intended originally for serving as a foil to the figures.Due to the phenomenal rise of interest,however,in the philosophy and literature related to natural landscape,they in turn aroused the aesthetic charming interest peculiar to the painters.”On the Paingting of Landscapes”written by Zong Bing under the Song dynastic rule in the Southern Dynasties period and “On Painting” written by Wang Meng in the slightly later days were undoubtedly equivalent to the declaration of the landscape painting as an independent genre of art.

Among the extant pieces,the earliest landscape works can be found in Zhan Ziqian’s “Spring Excursion”.Li Sixun and his son Li Zhaodao in the heyday of the Tang Dynasty were the representative artists of maturity.Their early-stage style of landscape paintings was chiefly characterized by the use of blue and green to a new height.Their contemporaries,Wu Daozi and Wang Wei explored the monochrome inkwashes of landscape painting,forming a sort of system which reached its maturity later through the efforts of Jing Hao of the Five Dynasties,whose successors–Li Cheng,Dong Yuan and Fan Kuan–became the sources of various schools by virtue of their different regional styles.

During the two Song dynasties and the Yuan Dynasty,celebrated landscape artists came forth in large numbers and leaped to the position of forming the mainstream of the pictorial art.

The Song dynasties advocated “fa”(norms and laws) while the Yuan Dynasty advocated “yi”(idea and suggestion).Their difference in style and expression in the realm of landscape painting marked the unceasing maturity of this genre of art.The late Yuan Dynasty saw the perfection of the consciousness of self initiation in doing landscape paintings,thus enabling the subjective function as epitomized in the phrases of wo you(literally,”to dream of traveling in bed”) and chang shen (literally,”to let the spirit unfold”) to be carried forward and developed.The landscape paintings executed during the Ming and the Qing dynasties paled before those of the Song and the Yuan by showing constraint somewhat,but their artists were seeking another kind of charming interest beyond “fa” and “yi”as the objective.Because of this,there were not only the so-called “orthodox school”artisits devoted to self-entertainment and self-perfection within the bounds of the old laws and methods,but also the school of blazing new trails who put individuality above everything else and let pen-and-ink execution submit to feelings.Nevertheless,those works,after all,were incapabe to compare themselves with the accomplishments in the preceding ages as to splendour and magnanimousness and,instead,showed the signs of being of the wane and decline.

The Art of Chinese Figure Painting

Early-stage painting works nearly all took figures as the main theme.In terms of the skills of the artisans of the officialdom and the populace,there was a difference between them,meticulous vs. coarse and refined vs. unruly–the former being accurate in depiction,terse and orderly in lines and exquisite and dedicate in coloration,showing extremely good professional cultivation whereas the latter being bold and untrammelled and tending to be coarse and crude in spite of showing some vivacity in the counternance.And the former was the source head of specialized figure painting whereas the latter had all along retain the simple and plain features prevailing among the people.However,in the course of development,both of them influenced each other.

Gu Kaizhi of the Eastern Jin Dynasty was considered as a mature master artist in pushing up the techniques to the theoretical level in figure painting.In the heyday of the Tang Dynasty the extraordinary creative power of Wu Daozi brought prosperity to this genre of art as never before.The gorgeousness of the late Tang paintings,the exquisiteness of the Five Dynasties paintings,the line drawing method of depicting both spirit and form of Li Gonglin of the Northern Song Dynasty,and the free impressionist reduced strokes of Liang Kai of the Southern Song Dynasty–all these displayed the scene of multifariousness in colour and posture.

The momentum of figure paintings in the Yuan Dynasty was on the wane,but there was no lack of excellent pieces executed by Zhao Mengfu,Ren Renfa and Zhang Wo.The figure paintings of the Ming and the Qing days began to be stamped with the mark of being secular in the favour and full of human interest.And the richness in individual styles and the mellow and seasoned techniques were embodied in the works of such figure-painting artists as Dai Jin,Wu Wei,Tang Yin,Qiu Ying and Chen Hongshou.

The Art of Chinese Flower and Bird Paitings

This genre of art originated from a remote past.The patterns of flowers and birds on the primitive coloured potteries,the like designs on the bronze vessels,the phoenixes in the paintings on silk of the Warring States Period,and the roseflinches in the same ones of the Western Han Dynasty–all these constituted the images of flowers and birds,which were characterized by ancient plainness and simplicity,yet adorned with bright colours.

But this genre of art did not become an entirely separate one on its own merit until the mid- and late- Tang Dynasty.Such artists as Bian Luan,Xue Ji and Diao Guangyin had played a decisive role in contributing to the independence of this genre.

Huang Quan under the Xishu dynastic rule and Xu Xi under the Nantang dynastic rule during the Five Dynasties period both added shine to the flower-and-bird paintings with the styles of their own.The Northern Song Dynasty’s artists Zhao Chang and Yi Yuanju instilled vitality into the,and then Cui Bai and Wu Yuanyu endowed the already full-grown and mellow genre of art with still greater charm through their artistic conceptions,which spelled out vivacity,succinctness and profundity.The images they created on white silk could well be mistaken as real flowers and birds.By this time,the techniques of true-to-reality depiction can be said to have reached the peak of perfection.

Then,Zhang Zhong in the Yuan Dynasty put out the pioneering feat of outlining the flowers and dotting the leaves,which was a real eye-opener to people.Thereafter,Xu Wei’s ink splashes,Bada Shanren reduced strokes,and the skills of Yun Shouping,Wang Wu,Hua Yan,Li Shan,Ren Yi and Wu Changshuo,each with his own special style,helped shape up the situation of “a hundred flower bloom”that would compose a flourishing scene all along without any sign of fading.

Great Masters

Four Great Masters of the Yuan Dynasty

It referred to Huang Gongwang,Wang Meng,Ni Zan and Wu Zhen in the Yuan Dynasty.

Four Great Masters of the Ming Dynasty

It referred to Shen Zhou,Wen Zhengming,Tang Yin and Qiu Ying in the Ming Dynasty.

Four Great Masters of Monk in the Early Qing Dynasty

It referred to four painters in the early Qing Dynasty:Shi Tao,Zhu Da,Kun Can and Hong Ren.They were all monk.

Eight Great Masters in Jinling

In the Qing Dynasty,it gathered a group of painter in Nanjing City.Especially Gong Xian,Fan Qi,Gao Cen,Zou Zhe,Wu Hong,Ye Xin,Hu Zao and Xie SUn were the most famous among them.They were honored as “Eight Great Master in Jinling”.It was some difference between their styles,but they appreciated and boasted each other.

Eight Great Masters who have Special Styles in Yangzhou

It referred to the eight famous painters of Yangzhou city in the Qing Dyansty.It included Wang Shishen,Huang Shen,Jin Nong,Gao Xiang,Li Shan, Zheng Xie, Li Fangying, Luo Ping. But with another argument, someone replaced Wang Shishen,Gao Xiang,Li Fangyin with Gao Fenghan, Bian Shoumin,Yang Fa.During that time,there were many painters made a living on selling their style were called by a joint name as “Yangzhou school literati”.Following the unrestrained style of the Ming Dyangsty,their style were individualized and bold and their painting usually executed by spalsh-ink.

Four Great Masters who named Wang in the Early Qing Dynasty

It referred to Wang Shimin,Wang Jian,Wang Hui and Wang Yuanqi in the early Qing Dyansty.They advocated that every painter should model after ancient style and synthesize the merit of it,at last he should create his own style.Their style gave considerable influent to later painters.

Six Great Masters of the Qing Dynasty

It referred to Wang Shimin,Wang Jian Wang Hui,Wang Yuanqi,Wu Li and Yun Shouping in the early Qing Dynasty.They were the outstanding representatives of the orthodox school literati during that time.

chinese food

As a country that pays great attention to courtesy, our cuisine culture is deep rooted in China’s history. As a visitor or guest in either a Chinese home or restaurant you will find that table manners are essential and the distinctive courtesies displayed will invariably add to the enjoyment of your meals and keep you in high spirits!

Respect First

It is really an admirable custom to respect others at the table, including the aged, teachers and guests while taking good care of children.

Chinese people stress filial piety all the time. The practice of presenting the best or fine food first to the senior members of the family has been observed for countless generations. In ancient times the common people led a needy life but they still tried their best to support the elder mother or father who took it for granted.

Although the hosts in China are all friendly and hospitable, you should also show them respect. Before starting to eat dinner, the host may offer some words of greeting. Guests should not start to eat until the host says, ‘Please enjoy yourself’ or something like that, otherwise it suggests disrespect and causes displeasure.

When hosts place dishes on the table, they will arrange the main courses at the center with the supporting dishes evenly placed around them. When the main dishes are prepared in a decorative form either by cut or other means they will be placed facing the major guests and elder people at the table. This also embodies virtue.

On Chopsticks

China is the hometown of chopsticks. The culture of chopsticks has a long history in China. The tradition of using chopsticks as tableware was introduced to many other countries in the world such as Vietnam, North Korea and South Korea.

The invention of chopsticks reflects the wisdom of Chinese ancient people. A pair of chopsticks, though they look simple, can nip, pick, rip and stir food. Nowadays, chopsticks are considered to be lucky gifts for marriage and other important ceremonies.

For more details, please click Chinese Chopsticks.

At Important Moments

To celebrate the birthday is important moment in one’s life. When one is young, usually he will eat noodles before his birthday, because the long noodles indicate the longevity in China, and birthday cake on the actual day. After middle age, his birthday will grander. In addition to the above, peaches in many forms will be added symbolizing the longevity and immortality, as well as delightful couplets and candles.

On the wedding day, it is also customary to serve Chinese dates, peanuts, longan and chestnuts together as wish that the couple will soon have a baby in accord with the Chinese proclamation.

To most Chinese people, returning home after long absence or departure from home are both significant and there are food customs associated with this. The return home is greeted with noodles and off home while a farewell is offered with dumplings. This is especially popular in northeast China.

During the Dragon Boat Festival, though many people cannot reach the river zone to watch the boat race, almost all of them eat the unique food -zongzi, a pyramid-shaped dumpling made of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. The festival on that day it is to venerate the patriotic poet Qu Yuan and the people fearing his lack of food, made the special meal for him. Now the food is made in various shapes and sorts.

On the eighth day of the last month in the Chinese lunar calendar, people will enjoy a nourishing porridge called ‘La Ba Zhou’. In ancient times, monks would kindly share all sorts of food grains with people and made them flavorful porridge on this particular day. People still keep this convention.

In Central China, when a baby is born, the happy father will send red boiled eggs to announce the news. Eggs with a black pointed end and dots in an even number such as six or eight, indicates a boy’s birth; those without a black point and in an odd number like a five or seven will say the baby is a girl.

In addition to these, fish has always been used to suggest the accumulation of prosperity and wealth with meals on New Year’s Eve.

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/cuisine.htm

U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley

INTERLOCHEN, Mich., July 5 /PRNewswire/ — During a two-day visit to Interlochen Center for the Arts, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley called for music and the arts to be a basic part of every child’s education. http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/000705/mi_interlo.html

An Artistic Processes Model that leads to independent musicianship. *There are three Artistic Processes involved in instruction and assessment. Creating, Performing, and Responding Developmentally appropriate goals and objectives at each grade level will give more rounded instruction and assessment, and allow kids to find success in many ways.

Brain Research Resources

• Singing Familiar Songs is Found to Use Spatial Abilities in the brain. By 6 months of age, infants develop a map in the auditory cortex of the phonetic sounds in the native language their mother or caretaker speaks. Depending on the language they either will or will not develop perfect pitch.
• Musical training during childhood may influence regional brain growth
• MUSIC AND BRAIN CONNECTIONS, INTELLIGENCE, MUSIC THERAPY AND NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS
• RESEARCH FINDINGS SHOW MUSIC CAN ENHANCE KEY COMPONENT OF HUMAN INTELLIGENCE – Dr. Francis Rauscher and Dr. Shaw
• MUSIC AND BRAIN CONNECTIONS, INTELLIGENCE, MUSIC THERAPY AND NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS
• The Connection Between Music and Emotions
• The Connection between Music and Neurological Disorders
• Brain Growth and Development
• MUSIC AND BRAIN CONNECTIONS, INTELLIGENCE, MUSIC THERAPY AND NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS – Publications, On Line Journals, and Research on Music and Brain Development.
• Read Music. Music is, demonstrably, a language.
• Rhythm and Literacy
• Rhythm Syllables
• Rhythm Dictation
• Tonal language
  Some researchers think that music and language might have a common evolutionary origin. Some remnant of this tone-based musilanguage exists in tonal languages such as the various forms of Chinese, and in the sing-song of Japanese and Scandinavian languages. Speaking Tonal Languages Promotes Perfect Pitch.
• Musilanguage – prosody the inflections of everyday speech hold the key to understanding the emotional content of music.
• MUSIC CAN ENHANCE KEY COMPONENT OF HUMAN INTELLIGENCE
• MUSIC AND THE BRAIN
• Bottom Line easy to understand summary of some research facts
• Musical training during childhood may influence regional brain growth
• The Connection Between Music and Emotions
• Evolution of Language and Music – See Perfect Pitch
• Arts May Improve Students’ Grade
• Musical training during childhood may influence regional brain growth
• New Study Shows More of the Brain Used When Making Music
• Einstein Playing his Violin
• James Catterall Research suggests that the arts have distinct educational benefits.
• Dr. Gordan Shaw -Keeping Mozart in Mind book comes with CD
• Dr. Rauscher Reply NPR and Mozart Effect
• Mice and Music Experiment
• Mr. Holland Opus – Research – 1994 Gallup Survey April 14, 1997
• Piano Lessons
• Texas All-State Music Students Soar on SAT’s
• How to motivate kids to take music lessons and WHY music education, and all the arts, are BASIC education
• Arts in the Schools Paint Masterpiece: Higher Scores
• Helping City Schools Bring a Taste of the Arts to Students Ms. Rodriguez-Torres said that reading and math scores at P.S. 156, while still relatively low, have improved since the school won an Annenberg grant two years ago that has allowed it to work closely with cultural institutions.

Dabbling in the arts boosts students’ math test scores, concludes Canada’s largest long-term study measuring the effects of art, music, drama and dance on student achievement. Math scores jumped 11 points among elementary students at 170 schools across the country enrolled in a program that incorporates art instruction into the regular science and math curriculum, compared to schools without the enhanced arts classes, researchers from Queen’s University reported yesterday. The program, created by the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, brings artists into the classroom to teach children to sing, paint, sculpt and dance during math and science lessons.

Links Off Site TOP

    (__)    Wolfgang Amadeus Moo-zart                  
    (oo)
   / \/       _____________
  /   \===~__|Ascii Art circa 1990    |
 _|___ /\  |______________|
|=====|| |  |            |
I     I| |  |            |
I     I~ ~  |            |

“If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?” – Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Sandra Trehub is one of the authors of a noted study on musically untutored babies, showing that they prefer harmony to dissonance.

2007 EVERY ENGLISH SCHOOLCHILD GRANTED A FREE TICKET TO A CLASSICAL MUSIC CONCERT
England’s eight top symphony orchestras are jointly promising that they will give every schoolchild free entry to a classical music concert. The goal is part of a 10-year plan to promote classical music, which includes a prize for budding composers. The organizers fear that with a crowded curriculum and tight budgets, music easily gets squeezed out of timetables. They say it enriches children’s lives, teaches the value of sustained effort and can help disruptive youngsters. The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra’s principal conductor, Marin Alsop, said: “When I was a kid, I was a bit of a troublemaker. Then I started taking violin lessons. What it did for me was it gave me a feeling of self-esteem because I did something that was unique. A spokesperson for the Department for Education and Skills agreed that as well as being a worthwhile activity for its own sake, music was “a powerful learning tool which can build children’s confidence, teamwork and language skills”. “A better musical education for pupils can also help them hit the right note in their studies,” a spokesman said. Among other things, the government has announced significant new funding to boost music education, especially school singing, both in and out of school hours.

2005 Hearing and Language

Research – Mozart Effect and much much more!

MUSIC AND INTELLIGENCE AN INTERDISCIPLINARY MODE

Making the arts a central part of the curriculum and applying rigorous standards not only improved students’ learning of art, but other subjects as well, says an evaluation of an experimental program. From 1987 to 2001, the National Arts Education Consortium, with organizations based in California, Florida, Nebraska, Ohio, Tennessee and Texas, has developed, tested and designed professional development and curriculum programs that stress the comprehensive approach to arts education. Westat, Rockville, Md.-based researchers, found that the arts program also supported other schoolwide reform efforts. Song and Dance boost grades in Math, Science National 11/27/2002
‘We knew it worked’: Study measures effects of music, drama, art

First, while it is my intent to provide a skeptical view of chi it is not my intent to disrespect proponents of chi. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I am happy to listen to anyone’s point of view, theories, etc., but I will not accept them at face value. I won’t believe something just because you say something is true. I usually need a little bit more evidence than that.

The reason I think this way has to do with my profession: I teach information literacy skills to hundreds of college students each year. Quite simply it is part of my job to evaluate information and teach others to do the same. Information literacy is simply “the set of skills needed to find, retrieve, analyze, and use information.” Included in information literacy is “analysis” which is nothing more than critical thinking. Now academia has many different ways to think critically, and in writing this post I struggled on how to succinctly convey a method to you, the reader.

In the end–and to reach the widest audience–I chose methods outlined in Carl Sagan’s Demon Haunted World. Sagan had the ability to convey complex science to the layperson. This skill is rare in scientists which is one of the reasons why he is one of my heroes. Anyhow, when considering supernatural notions like “chi”, I would encourage you to use Sagan’s methods for “baloney detection”. They are:

• Wherever possible there must be independent confirmation of the facts (a second party should be able to recreate the event)
• Encourage debate on the evidence by knowledgeable proponents of all points of view
• Arguments based solely on authority carry little weight (e.g., xyz is true because Joe is a 9th dan)
• Spin more than one hypothesis – don’t simply go with the first explanation. Always consider others.
• Try not to get overly attached to a hypothesis just because it’s yours. In other words, prepare yourself to give up long-held beliefs. (harder than it looks)
• Quantify, wherever possible (numbers are generally more accurate).
• If there is a chain of argument every link in the chain must work.
• “Occam’s razor” – if there are two hypothesis that explain the data equally well choose the simpler. i.e., the more fanciful hoops you have to go through to make something true, the more likely it is to be bunk.
• Ask whether the hypothesis can, at least in principle, be falsified (shown to be false by some unambiguous test). In other words, it is testable? Can others duplicate the experiment and get the same result
• Conduct controlled experiments – especially “double blind” experiments where the person taking measurements is not aware of the test and control subjects.

The point in all of this is to lay down guidelines that can be used to test fantastic claims. A common misconception is that skeptics are out to just rain on peoples’ parades. While there are some skeptics with axes to grind (e.g., hate religions, etc) or those who have personal agendas, true skeptics and scientists generally tackle a topic objectively. In fact, most would be pleased if you could scientifically prove something supernatural using the tools of science. Simply put, the scientist doing so would probably win a Nobel Prize and be on easy street for the rest of their career (lectures, books, etc).

Now before discussing chi there is one other misconception that I must cover: People often think that science works in absolutes. For example, Martial Development’s challenge of proving chi to be “scientifically impossible” may be an example of this. What science does is operate in terms of probability based on the evidence. A good example that we are all familiar with is the weather forecast. Meteorologists use science to predict the weather and they assign a probability that a certain weather event will happen (e.g., 40% chance of rain). The better the evidence the higher the probability that a weather event may or may not happen. Science also develops a notion from a hypothesis to a scientific law. This process is called the scientific method and in some cases can take decades.

Lay people often misinterpret the language used by scientists. And for that reason, they sometimes draw the wrong conclusions as to what the scientific terms mean.

Three such terms that are often used interchangeably are “scientific law,” “hypothesis,” and “theory.”

In layman’s terms, if something is said to be “just a theory,” it usually means that it is a mere guess, or is unproved. It might even lack credibility. But in scientific terms, a theory implies that something has been proven and is generally accepted as being true.

From a scientific perspective, “chi” has not made it past the hypothesis stage:

This is an educated guess based upon observation. It is a rational explanation of a single event or phenomenon based upon what is observed, but which has not been proved. Most hypotheses can be supported or refuted by experimentation or continued observation.

In fact, most scientists would argue that based on the evidence chi is not even a good hypothesis. In other words, the probability that chi exists is quite low, based on the current scientific evidence.

Chi or Ki: In the martial arts world chi is thought to be some sort of mystical life force that, after years of training, the martial artist is able to control. Once this mastery is achieved the martial artist (depending on the dogma of their particular martial art) is alleged to be able to do all sorts of wondrous things. Ideas range from meditative calm and focus, to channeling chi into deadly strikes that can break bone, wood, or concrete; to such extreme ideas as “no-touch” knock-outs or “iron skin” where the martial artist can withstand blows that would kill a normal person.

In fact, there are numerous videos on the Internet that can be used to examine these ranging views of chi:

• 1. Meditation
• 2. Science of breaking
• 3. No-touch knock-out
• 4. Combat ki

I would challenge you to watch these videos then apply Sagan’s rules for baloney detection and my weather forecast analogy. In other words, after watching them can you think of a more probable alternate explanation than chi? I know I can:

1. On meditation: Lots of good science being done here and it’s making its way into academic journals. There is good scientific evidence that through meditation we can alter our own body states. The first video shows that monks can alter their body states. However, it’s probably not supernatural. Just something that science has not yet fully explained.
2. Breaking is easy. Good ‘ole physics explains it: Force= Mass X Acceleration. A 150 lb body accelerating to 20 mph generates 3,000 lbs of force. Most bone is thought to be 40 times denser than concrete. Ergo, through training and techniques a martial artist can break all sorts of things that an untrained person could not. Bill Wallace was clocked kicking at speeds of 60 mph. Factoring in physics and bone density, that speed is enough to break all sorts of materials and also kill a person.
3. Dillman’s infamous “no-touch” knock-out. Nerdy scientist 1. Dillman 0. I think the video speaks for itself. I’m guessing that those people who Dillman alleges to knock out “no-touch” style are his students, are probably highly suggestible, and just plain don’t want to make their sensi look bad. Also notice how Dillman back-pedals with a an ad hoc hypothesis? (i.e., “An ad hoc hypothesis is one created to explain away facts that seem to refute one’s theory.”) after failing the scientist’s first test? Give me a break! A tongue or toe positioning can stop his dim mak chi strike? Well if it’s that easy to counter what does this say his martial art? Regardless, besides the nerdy scientist, the best test Dillman could use to redeem himself is to enter into a UFC match and knock out an MMA fighter “no-touch” style. Good luck on that.
4. Finally, combat ki. The simpler explanation is desensitization to pain. To varying degrees, all martial arts teach this. Boxers learn how to take a shot that would stop a normal person. Karatekas work their way up to withstanding almost full power blows on unpadded bodies, as well as conditioning their fists with the makiwara board. Finally, taekwondoists practice kicking each other while wearing their hogu vests in something called hogu drills. At low ranks the kicks are light but as they progress in rank so do the power of the kicks. All of these techniques are designed to train the martial artist to withstand blows that would slow or stop an untrained person. I would submit to you that the more reasonable and rational explanation for combat ki is extreme body desensitization through extreme training methods, not ki.

Now what about pressure points and the disruption of chi via certain “meridians”? I’ll grant you that the ancient Chinese were onto something. However, science eventually caught up and again offers a more rational and reasonable explanation than chi. Namely, certain nerve clusters on the body can be struck or pinched in such a way as to cause pain or unconsciousness. Again, nothing magical here, it’s just your body’s natural response to having one of these target areas struck. Certain modern fighting systems like Krav Maga or PPCT teach these pressure point tactics. In fact, when I worked in the prison system I had to qualify annually in the latter system.

Brachial plexus tie-in – Located on the front of the shoulder joint, a strike to this point can cause the arm to be ineffective. Multiple strikes may be necessary to ensure total dysfunction of the arm and hand.

Once during certification I was punched in my brachial plexus tie-in so hard that my entire left arm went numb and my fingers tingled. Supernatural? Hardly. It is the typical response to a blow by a cluster of nerves that medical science had long since discovered. The same goes for the brachial plexus origin: The infamous karate chop to someone’s neck does indeed work and science can tell you why.

Does all of this disprove chi with 100 percent certainty? Of course not. However, outside of certain historical facts or the field of mathematics, rare is anything that can be proved (or disproved) with certainty. So, while I may have not debunked chi I hope I’ve at least given you an alternate explanation to consider. Moreover, I personally do not believe that science makes the martial arts any less magical. In fact, it seems to me that using chi to explain what many martial artists spend years training their bodies to do, only does a disservice to their training and dedication.

However, I suppose I could be wrong.

Posted by Bob Patterson

The government has cleared a 4 trillion-yuan ($586 billion) investment package till 2010 to spur domestic demand and boost the slowing economy.

A State Council meeting, presided by Premier Wen Jiabao, has resolved that it is necessary to adopt “proactive” fiscal and “moderately loose” monetary policies now, Xinhua reported on Sunday.

The Nov 5 statement marks an end to the previous “prudent” fiscal and “tightening” monetary policies because the economy now faces an increasing risk of slowing down further.

“This is the right shot for the economy. Consumption and exports are unlikely to pick up in the short term,” said Zhang Xiaojing, an economist with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The nation’s economic growth has been slowing for five consecutive quarters. It dipped to 9 percent in the third quarter of this year, the first growth rate below double digits in five years.

Worries over an excessive slowdown have been rising recently, especially because a rebound in overseas demand is nowhere in sight and domestic businesses and consumers have started tightening their purse strings.

Zhou Xiaochuan, the central bank governor, said over the weekend that the economy could slow down further – from 9.9 percent in the first three quarters of this year to between 8 and 9 percent in 2009.

On Friday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reduced its 2009 forecast for global economic growth to 2.2 percent, down 0.8 percentage point from its October projection.

To counter the global slowdown, it urged governments to “stimulate their economies”.

But even before the IMF suggestion, policymakers at the State Council meeting had decided to carry out investments “swiftly and powerfully”, to meet the situation.

The government plans to put it into major infrastructure, social welfare and environmental protection projects, as well as to reconstruct areas devastated by natural disasters.

The government has allocated 100 billion yuan for investment in the fourth quarter of this year and 20 billion yuan for reconstruction projects next year. These are expected to trigger an overall investment of up to 400 billion yuan.

The government has decided to extend the value-added tax (VAT) reform to the entire country, too, which could cut business costs by up to 120 billion yuan.

The pilot project for VAT reform began in 2004. It allows the deduction of VAT on input for fixed-asset purchases and thus encourages corporate investment in equipment renovation.

The falling profit margins of enterprises and declining demand had prompted an increasing number of businesses to seek an extension of VAT reform across the country. Some analysts say the government could also introduce further cuts on individual income taxes later.

The government has announced a series of measures to fend off the credit crunch impact. It has cut the interest rate thrice in the past two months, increased tax rebates for exporters and introduced incentives for homebuyers.

The central bank is monitoring the market to decide its next interest rate move, Zhou said at a meeting of G20 finance ministries’ officials in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Saturday.

“China will try to maintain its economic growth and domestic demand. If it can maintain its internal demand, I think it will be good for stabilization (of the global financial market),” he said.

“We are closely watching the developments of the financial crisis We are also paying attention to the falling inflation rate (at home). We will put them together to decide what we should do,” Zhou said when asked if China would keep following the global trend of lowering the interest rate.

China is in ‘good position’

World Bank President Robert Zoellick, who too was in Sao Paulo, said China is in a good position to have a strong fiscal expansion.

“China is in a very good position to have a strong fiscal expansion. The Chinese authorities spoke of that aspect,” he told a press conference.

G20 finance ministries’ officials began a two-day meeting on Saturday to find ways to tackle the global financial crisis.

Zoellick compared China’s situation with other developing countries that cannot raise their expenditures so much. He said China’s decision to make large improvements in its infrastructure in the last few years was “very wise”, and could be used as a model by other countries.

China benefited from high liquidity in the global market during the past few years, which proves that the injection of resources taking place in the financial market can be an opportunity for many countries to overcome the crisis, he said.

The World Bank president stressed that the G20 meetings have changed their focus in the last few months from the need for homogeneous fiscal policies to implementation of expansion policies in order to fight the threat of global recession.

Xinhua contributed to the story

WRONG AMOUNT OF QI – WRONG RATE OF FLOW

Disturbance in the flow of Qi, organ over-or-under activity, and external Qi invading the body are all considered pathological imbalances. They will result in too much or too little Qi (local or systemic) or an erratic flow. Improper flow and amount is the nutshell description of illness in Chinese medicine. But explanations and models of how those two factors come to be are many.

There are three general classes of the causes of illness in Chinese medicine. Internal Pathogenic Qi, External Pathogenic Qi, and Trauma. Internal pathogens are organ dysfunctions, external pathogens are Qi from outside the body which enter the body, and trauma is trauma.

TRAUMA
Trauma damages the main and subsidiary channels causing Qi and Blood to leave the normal currents of flow and accumulate in local tissues. This accumulation is termed stagnation and the pain which usually accompanies trauma is defined as a consequence of stagnation. If the stagnation’s effect is prolonged then other parts of the body which are “downstream” will be suffer from the lack of Qi.

THE INTERNAL PATHOGENS
Internal pathogens are the hyperfunction or hypofunction of the internal organs and the emotions. The role of the organs will be more apparent after you read the Functions of Organs: Zang Fu Theory section.

The emotions are the Five Element emotions. Each emotion has a specific affect on the organs of it’s element. Anger causes Liver Qi to stagnate. Joy and shock scatter the Heart Qi. Sadness consumes the Lung Qi. Both short and long periods of of emotion can affect the Qi as can intensity of the emotion.

THE SIX EXTERNAL PATHOGENS
External Pathogen Qi has six types. They’re often called the Six Climatic Pathogens because they’re named after weather phenomena which possess similar characteristics. The six types are Wind, Heat, Cold, Damp, Dryness, and Summer Heat. Wind is a good example. When Wind enters the body (via the pores in the skin) it attempts to go where it wishes. Invariably this is contrary to the body’s healthy flow of Qi and so a struggle arises between the two which impairs or stagnates the Wei Qi.

Wind
You’ve seen trees in the wind. Wind can appear and disappear very quickly or it can blow steadily. If it’s the Lung Qi which is disordered there will be intermittent coughing or paroxysmal coughing. Wind can gradually burgeon in force and speed. And it moves from place to place. When the Wei Qi is disordered “flu aches” can occur and move from joint to joint. Sometimes a gentle breeze flutters the leaves and sometimes a gale bends the tree over and holds it there. Wind can also cause tremors or paralysis.

Heat & Cold
Heat and Cold are a bit more literal. Both manifest with their actual temperature sensations. They also produce colors in parts of the body; red face, red rashes, red tongue, rusty or red colored urine, and red swellings all indicate the presence of Heat. White, gray or clear indicate the presence of Cold.

Summer Heat
This is a subset of Heat which occurs predominantly during the summer. It’s traits are severe heat signs.

Damp
This is moisture. Identifying charateristics are heaviness, thickness, moves downward. Damp excells at blocking Qi.

Dryness
Lack of moisture decreases flexibility in many things. Dryness makes stuff brittle. Paper and bread are two good examples of this. Often bits and pieces of the dry object flake away.

Although these pathogens were identified long before the technology of climate control modern city dwellers are still at risk. Sleeping or working under a vent subjects you to wind. Automobile AC/heat systems set on high create Heat or Cold in extremes to quickly affect a small space. Living in Seattle or south Georgia exposes you to damp and winter in the southwest U.S. subjects you to dryness.

There are two other forms of poetry perhaps even more popular than the code verse which have given birth to what we call the poetry of the Chinese people. One is the gu ti, old style, or gu shi, old poetry. It is old, as compared with the modern styles of the Tang Dynasty which include the code verse. It differs from the code verse in that it drops the parallelism entirely except where the poet purposely reintroduces it to enhance a particular mood. In a long poem of the old style the rhymes can be changed almost at any place, as a rule from even to inflected tones or vice versa. Much more liberty can be taken with the tonal order within a line. In fact, the sequences between the even and the inflected may here be governed by individual temperament. Poems in this style can be in fove, six, or seven-syllable lines, or Chang-duan-ju , i.e., long and short verses, your free verse but with rhymes.

The other one form jue ju—-the curtailed or frustrated verse, does not mean to tell a story but to create a mood. It does in the most frugal way imaginable, and with a high tone. The impression one gets is much like that from a symphony orchestra where a solo instrument takes up the theme. A jue ju has only four lines of five or seven syllables each. The patterns may be represented as follows:

The moon goes down, a raven cries, frost fills the sky.

River maples, fishing lanterns,–facing sadness I lie.

Outside of Gu Su City is the Han Shan Temple,

At midnight a bell rings; it reaches the traveller’s boat.

Dongpo rou (???) Fried pork belly stewed in soy and wine

Pork is generally preferred over beef in Chinese cuisine due to economic, religious, and aesthetic reasons; swine are easy to feed and are not used for labour, and are so closely tied to the idea of domesticity that the character for “home” (?) depicts a pig under a roof. The colour of the meat and the fat of pork are regarded as more appetizing, while the taste and smell are described as sweeter and cleaner. It is also considered easier to digest. Buddhist cuisine restricts the use of meats and Chinese Islamic cuisine excludes pork. ^[1]

The philosophical origins of Chinese medicine have grown out of the tenets of Daoism (also known as Taoism). Daoism bases much of its thinking on observing the natural world and manner in which it operates, so it is no surprise to find that the Chinese medical system draws extensively on natural metaphors. In Chinese medicine, the metaphoric views of the human body based on observations of nature are fully articulated in the theory of ?Yin-Yang? and the system of ?Five Elements?.

The direct meanings of yin and yang in Chinese are bright and dark sides of an object. Chinese philosophy uses yin and yang to represent a wider range of opposite properties in the universe: cold and hot, slow and fast, still and moving, masculine and feminine, lower and upper, etc. In general, anything that is moving, ascending, bright, progressing, hyperactive, including functional disease of the body, pertains to yang. The characteristics of stillness, descending, darkness, degeneration, hypo-activity, including organic disease, pertain to yin.

The function of yin and yang is guided by the law of unity of the opposites. In other words, yin and yang are in conflict but at the same time mutually dependent. The nature of yin and yang is relative, with neither being able to exist in isolation. Without “cold” there would be no “hot”; without “moving” there would be no “still”; without “dark”, there would be no “light”. The most illustrative example of yin-yang interdependence is the interrelationship between substance and function. Only with ample substance can the human body function in a healthy way; and only when the functional processes are in good condition, can the essential substances be appropriately refreshed.

The opposites in all objects and phenomena are in constant motion and change: The gain, growth and advance of the one mean the loss, decline and retreat of the other. For example, day is yang and night is yin, but morning is understood as being yang within yang, afternoon is yin within yang, evening before midnight is yin within yin and the time after midnight is yang within yin. The seed (Yin) grows into the plan (Yang), which itself dies back to the earth (Yin). This takes place within the changes of the seasons. Winter (Yin) transforms through the Spring into Summer (Yang), which in turn transforms through Autumn into Winter again. Because natural phenomena are balanced in the constant flux of alternating yin and yang, the change and transformation of yin-yang has been taken as a universal law.