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Intermediate - Murder in the Red Chamber
Aug 08, 2011
Show notes
Of the twelve beauties of Jinling, only six remained. The first deaths had seemed accidental if strangely prophetic. Yet the discovery of the latest victim hanging from a tree in the Grand View Garden had changed everything. And while the murders were grim, who or what malevolent force could be behind them? And what connection - if any - could the killings have to the mysterious family heirloom which had disappeared?
Elementary - A Letter from the Cat
Aug 01, 2011
Show notes
Mildred's relationship with her cat had taken a significant turn for the worse in the past few months, degenerating to the point it had started treating her with open resentment. In recent days the creature would sit on its perch by the window surveying her with a sullen contempt, an attitude that settled into begrudging acquiescence only when she ventured to change its litter or feed it a snack.It was hard to say when exactly the shift had occurred, but it probably dated to the cessation of her academic leave and the reversal of her and her husband's schedule. Even since March she had been working routinely from her downtown office while Philip spent most of his time at home handling domestic matters and working on his home business. But even if that was the cause of the change, what exactly had triggered it. Feelings of betrayal, or loneliness?
Elementary - The Hottest Hotpot in Beijing
Jul 27, 2011
Show notes
Every now and then someone writes us asking for the "hottest hotpot in Beijing", which is actually one of the easiest questions to answer: if you're a glutton for punishment go to Guijie and check out a restaurant called Kong Liang (孔亮). This restaurant is across the street from Little Sheep and its hot broth tastes like nothing so much as molten rock, so if you're looking to impress someone or simply want to end it all, this is your best bet.And a note of warning... today's Chinese podcast is towards the upper-end of our difficulty spectrum when it comes to elementary lessons. If you're new to Chinese you'll have trouble understanding everything the first time around: our dialogue pushes forward at native speed and has a lot of colloquial expressions. That said, the sentences themselves are fairly short, so once you know what is going on, you should find it easy to follow along.
Absolute Beginners - Friends in China
Jul 21, 2011
Show notes
Given that Friends was such a popular sitcom in the United States, you probably won't be surprised to hear the show picked up a massive following in China as well. But how much of the show did its Chinese audience really understand? While we're not ready to say that everything got lost in translation, we'll be blunt: when we sent our voice actors into the studio to give us an intermediate dialogue inspired by the show, this is what they came up with....Learning Chinese? While we normally like beginners, God help you if this is your first Chinese lesson ever. Our dialogue today is good for learning how to greet friends in casual mandarin, and how to make suggestions in a less formal tone than you might be used to, but if you're just getting started you might find the pace a bit fast. And yet there's no need to panic. If this is too fast for you just dig through our archive of easy Chinese lessons for something a bit slower.
Elementary - The Beijing Ikea
Jul 20, 2011
Show notes
Much like swimming in the surging waters that flushed out the Augean Stables, shopping at IKEA in Beijing means surrendering yourself to divine will and being carried helplessly along in a wave of Chinese shoppers intent on clearing out everything in their path. Sofas, dining sets, mattresses and jigsaw-shaped foam carpets? Nothing stands a chance once the doors of Beijing's furniture behemoth swing open to the milling crowds. And good luck getting home delivery....Learning Chinese? While we assume you're here because you don't want to sound inarticulate in mandarin, it never hurts to know exactly how to sound inarticulate like a native. And that's why Brendan and Gail take to our studio today to share their own disaster stories about furniture shopping in Beijing, and pass along some tips on how to buy time in Chinese when you're not sure what to say next.
Intermediate - Captains of Finance
Jul 15, 2011
Show notes
Veronica had been chairing Solomon Brothers' hiring committee for several months, and while she had interviewed countless candidates from the nation's leading schools, none of the recent graduates seemed to possess the killer instinct required in investment banking. And yet today's candidate seemed different. While his attire was certainly unorthodox, his near vivisection of one the downstairs guards suggested a certain ruthlessness that might be useful to the firm.Learning Chinese? In today's intermediate Chinese podcast, Echo and David talk a bit about the difference between sincere and insincere compliments in China. There are plenty of situations where this will come in useful, and its nice to be able to pick up on the subtle signals Chinese people use to signal approval or disapproval when describing others. So if you're learning Chinese listen in and let us know what you think. And if you have suggestions on other topics we can cover, write anytime at service@popupchinese.com.
Absolute Beginners - Alternatives to the X-Ray
Jul 12, 2011
Show notes
An older gentleman who began his medical career during the cultural revolution, Doctor Li had been always been slightly suspicious of imaging technology. Which was why the doctor stared at the X-ray with uncertainty. The image seemed to show a hairline fracture running the length of the patient's radius, but who could really be sure? Perhaps it was better to test his hypothesis a bit more directly.Learning Chinese? Our Chinese podcast for today introduces some critical language involving pleasure and pain. By the end of this podcast you'll be able to tell people where it hurts, and will know some of the simplest sentences you can make in Chinese. And when you're done, click through to our Chinese lesson archive for hundreds upon hundreds of more great lessons that will have you speaking mandarin in no time.
Intermediate - A Taste of Silicon Valley, China
Jul 08, 2011
Show notes
Robert Lee regretted his trip to California. Although the young Chinese developer was accustomed to the vagaries of doing business in China, he had found his brushes with American capitalism even more frustrating: his meetings had been constantly interrupted, postponed or cancelled, while his counterparts had shown an astonishing lack of knowledge about technology developments in non-American markets.The experience had spurred his hasty return to Beijing, where the entrepreneur now found himself surveying the high-tech district from the towering windows of Zhongguan Securities. The crowds far below surged through the streets like nothing so much as electricity pulsing through a computer circuit. It was not such a bad place for a tech company to start out, he mused. And with that thought the conference doors opened and Robert turned to meet the team....
Elementary - Crime and Cryptocurrency
Jul 05, 2011
Show notes
Bring us your tired, your poor, your huddled cryptocurrencies built on artificial hashing algorithms and stochastic probability measures. Bring us your illicit profits from online drug and kidney trades, international money laundering, and late-night poker sessions conducted in furtive retreat from the prying eyes of Internet censors. And long live this entire peer-to-peer thing: we think China could use a lot more of it.Learning Chinese? Our Chinese podcast for today is an elementary lesson intended for anyone with an interest in digital currencies, or an abiding dislike for particular family members. That said, the content in our podcast is (mostly) true. If you're a bitcoin fan we're happy to share news that you can now use the currency to upgrade your account on Popup Chinese. Send us an email and we'll arrange for your upgrade at the prevailing market rates.
Absolute Beginners - A Calculated Risk
Jun 30, 2011
Show notes
"You say you've never played before," Gerard struggled to maintain his composure. The date had been going well until that point: he had leveraged possession of South America to seize control of North America. And he had just been poised to cross into Europe when his date placed armies in Kamchatka and moved across the straits, striking a fatal blow to his plans for world domination.Want to learn Chinese? Our lesson for today is designed for Absolute Beginners to the Chinese language. This means that even if you don't know any mandarin at all, you'll still be able to pick up some of the basics from our podcast and transcript today. So take a listen and check it out, and when you're ready for more signup for a free account and explore our Chinese lesson archive, which has hundreds upon hundreds of more great lessons.
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