What's in a Chinese name? Chinese people have a last name or family name, and a first name. Most of the last names are a single Chinese character that corresponds to an ideogram. The first name are either one or two Chinese characters. It is commonplace to see one-character first name in modern-day China. Each ideogram is phonetically a short syllable, and the four-tone intonation is not encoded in the Chinese Pin-Yin system. You find many similar names that need to be disambiguated.
Let's use an example. An engineer friend is generally referred to as HY. HY's last name is Hu and his first name is Yu. Chinese refer to people as "Last name, First name," and thus refer to my friend as "Hu Yu". This is natural for the those who speak Chinese. Note that this direct reference is not particularly polite in general. It is used only when certain clarity is needed. The same is true in the U.S. cultural.
Since Western conventions and cultures use the "First Name.Last Name" format in email address and other places, it is common to see "yu.hu@company.com" as an email address. It is the U.S. culture to refer to people by their first name when we are reasonably acquainted with them, and therefore we are expected to use "Yu" to refer to this friend . If you insist on calling him "Yu Hu," that would be odd but excusable if you are not a Chinese native ;-) Another colleague once asked me why "Hu Yu" was used by another Chinese engineer, and that confused the hell out of her. Which is which?
In conclusion,
1) Yu - First name, American way, when you are reasonably acquainted
2) Yu Hu - First name followed by last name, American way, not too polite, used only for clarity.
3) Hu - Last name, used occasionally in special circumstance to refer to someone remote.
4) Hu Yu - Last name followed by first name, Chinese way, can be used by superiors.
Remember the problem of the short syllable and one-character first names for this generation? It is likely to have someone with Yu as last name, Hu as first name. Now, you would really have to ask for clarification.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
English with an American Corporate Accent - 020
This is another collection from recent meetings and trips. It works best if you can find a native English speaker with exposure to corporate America to elaborate on the finer points that I cannot cover well here.
* If you decide to peg that process to a CPU, you're screwed. [If you decide to bind that process to a CPU, you're in trouble.]
* We need to have that solution baked in, not as an afterthought. [We need to have that solution designed in, not as an afterthought.]
* It works on one, but fails on the other. I haven't yet found a smoking gun between those two releases. [It works on one, but fails on the other. I haven't yet found any good lead between those two releases.]
*I am trying to get to the Live Meeting; but I'm dead in the water. [I am trying to get to the Live Meeting; but I am not having any success.]
* Craig, if I can interject here, you mean that we won't get the final release until the end of January? [Craig, if I can interrupt here, you mean that we won't get the final release until the end of January?]
* The caveat here is that our deliverables still need to complete ASAP, and stay off the critical path. [The caveat here is that our deliverables still need to complete as soon as possible, and stay out of the critical path for project completion.]
* We don't want to boil the ocean. We just need to make incremental progress. [We don't want to fix every single possible thing. We just need to make incremental progress.]
* The specific actionable tasks will bubble out from that long wordy plan. [The specific actionable tasks will emerge from that long wordy plan.]
* Are these constraints called out in your proposal? [Are these constraints explicitly mentioned in your proposal?]
* I appreciate everyone's help moving forward. [I appreciate everyone's help from this point on.]
* I'll do some scrubbing on it today and send you that document tomorrow morning. [I'll do some cleanup work on it today and send you that document tomorrow morning.]
* Let's meet after the New Year anyway, it's a chance to brush off cobwebs in our heads. [Let's meet after the New Year anyway, it's a chance to clear up our heads after all those parties.]
* If you decide to peg that process to a CPU, you're screwed. [If you decide to bind that process to a CPU, you're in trouble.]
* We need to have that solution baked in, not as an afterthought. [We need to have that solution designed in, not as an afterthought.]
* It works on one, but fails on the other. I haven't yet found a smoking gun between those two releases. [It works on one, but fails on the other. I haven't yet found any good lead between those two releases.]
*I am trying to get to the Live Meeting; but I'm dead in the water. [I am trying to get to the Live Meeting; but I am not having any success.]
* Craig, if I can interject here, you mean that we won't get the final release until the end of January? [Craig, if I can interrupt here, you mean that we won't get the final release until the end of January?]
* The caveat here is that our deliverables still need to complete ASAP, and stay off the critical path. [The caveat here is that our deliverables still need to complete as soon as possible, and stay out of the critical path for project completion.]
* We don't want to boil the ocean. We just need to make incremental progress. [We don't want to fix every single possible thing. We just need to make incremental progress.]
* The specific actionable tasks will bubble out from that long wordy plan. [The specific actionable tasks will emerge from that long wordy plan.]
* Are these constraints called out in your proposal? [Are these constraints explicitly mentioned in your proposal?]
* I appreciate everyone's help moving forward. [I appreciate everyone's help from this point on.]
* I'll do some scrubbing on it today and send you that document tomorrow morning. [I'll do some cleanup work on it today and send you that document tomorrow morning.]
* Let's meet after the New Year anyway, it's a chance to brush off cobwebs in our heads. [Let's meet after the New Year anyway, it's a chance to clear up our heads after all those parties.]
Monday, January 3, 2011
Gift Giving - The Cultural Differences
December is a Holiday season. In the United States, it gets identified mostly with the Christmas celebration. There are other holidays celebrated at this time as well. The eight-day Jewish holiday, Hanukkah, and the weeklong celebration honoring African-American heritage, Kwanzaa, are two examples.Christmas is more like a Chinese New Year celebration in its spirit and festivity. On the other hand, the Thanksgiving Day celebrated in the North America is a true New World invention that is celebrated by all Americans. It transcends religious boundaries.
The Christmas celebration is now so secularized that the Christians find its connections to consumerism not particularly palatable. How can one include Christ in the parties and buying sprees? And what is the meaning of "Salvation" in the context of the birth of Jesus Christ? If you dare ask, many people will give you a puzzled look without saying explicitly "what's that?"
A significant portion of non-essential and luxury spending takes place between the Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas Eve celebrations. Business is doing everything to entice the customers to spend, with huge sales and new nifty products. It is the defining season for many retail businesses.
Gift exchanges for Americans are reassuring acts of love and care. No one in their right mind will risk damaging relationships, any relationship. The American gift exchange custom suffers from the order of N square complexity, if I may use the computer science jargon. Give N people in a group, you need N*(N-1) gifts to meet the needs of all exchanges. Obviously, business likes this phenomenon.
[What is Christmas to the Chinese?]
It is not hard to understand that the nativity scenes of the Christmas celebration are foreign to most Chinese. Many of my
Chinese friends like the tranquil, snowy "silent night" images of the Christmas season. They appeal to many, and they really transcend cultural boundaries and religious experiences. But the parties and gift exchanges learned from the movies and TV programs from the mega-consumerist USA are picking up steam in the Chinese perceptions of Christmas. The family traditions and religious experiences tend to impress and penetrate the Chinese thinking at a much lower level. Chinese Christians account for around 3 percent of the population. Estimates are difficult to get for the less structured Protestants and many underground "house churches." The official government census points to 1 percent of the population, which is surely a low estimate, because religious affiliations are not viewed positively by the atheistic government.[Socially and Politically Correct Gift Presentation or Exchange]
Normally, opening gifts is the high point of giving and receiving. Surprises and happiness and whatever is socially required need to be expressed appropriately. This is true for Americans. The Chinese tend to view this as impolite and imprudent .
It is important to give gifts to people who can influence your career and promotion. This almost borders on "appeasement" and "bribery" for the Americans. It is also common practice to present gifts in public. I have seen more than once that the grateful Chinese visitors present a gift at the end of workshop or meeting to the host in the US. But, this public act is awkward for many company officials in the US. Accepting gifts can be a serious problem for US government employees. Legally, government employees must follow a guideline in receiving gifts such as, "A gift valued at $20 or less, provided that the total value of gifts from the same person is not more than $50 in a calendar year."
Gift exchanges are not that familiar to the Chinese. Chinese gift giving has quite a different meaning. The substance is more important than the appearance. Thus, gift wrapping is not that critical as long as what's inside has good value. Giving gifts is a show of appreciation and gratitude. Thus, the notion of love and sharing is not really there in the traditional Chinese gift-giving mentality.
[Altruism, Sharing and Giving can be learned]
Children in the US are taught to share from an early age. I still remember my children had to bring toys to school to do show-and-tell and to share with other kids in the class. Giving and sharing can be learned, and is easy when one is or feels self-sufficient. Although Christian institutions have less control nowadays over their herds, it is evident everywhere that the Christian faith influences day-to-day living. This sort of altruism, unconditional love and giving is quite unusual to the Chinese.
Chinese tend to be very practical when it comes to gift giving or doing good deeds. The influence of Buddhism leads people to do good primarily to accumulate virtues and credits for good future lives. And it could also be a penance for some wrong-doing in a past life. Christians have a long history of similar ideas, without the notion of cyclic incarnations. On the other hand, Christian faith has a deep tie-in to the sinfulness of human nature. Chinese have hard time believing the notion of "original sin." Religions, as they were, have hard time thriving among modern intellectuals, because they have hard time wrapping themselves into a system of axioms and perpetual cycles.
[Communal and Family Gift]
It is only in recent times that children receive gifts other than the "red packet (with cash in it)." Even so, gift giving is still somewhat a communal and family thing. The gifts tend to be practical, such as new school outfits to replace the old ones. Family members give to each other the things they need as a family. Toys and other intangible items were just too much of a luxury in the past, but they start to appear as Chinese society gets more affluent. Come to think of this practicality matter, the most appreciated precious metals is "gold" still. The gold chains, pendants and bracelets are all good for jewelry and as expensive gifts, yet they are particularly useful when economical hardships hit. Can this explain why diamonds were not that popular in the past?
[Gift Recycling - Green by accident? ;-)]
Gift recycling is not unusual at all for the Chinese, especially in the two most important gift-giving seasons, the Chinese New
Year and the mid-Autumn Festival. Non-perishables like expensive cigarettes and liquors can change hands many, many times. You'll hear some stories that people find a good sum of cash in the cigarette carton when someone finally opens the gift. It is also common in China that your work unit or company gives some gifts to employees during Chinese New Year and the mid-Autumn Festival as a token of appreciation. It is a type of bonus.[Gift to the Unknowns - Philanthropy]
The ultimate challenge to Chinese society, or any society for that matter, is to see the rise of philanthropic activities. The willingness to give and share unconditionally is part of a great and mature civilization. Chinese often like to talk about and hope to become a dominant force on the world stage. I would say that when acts of philanthropy start to unveil, then I shall believe that a universal and all-embracing culture is maturing, and that it will become the light and envy of the world.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
English with an American Corporate Accent - 019
This is another collection from recent meetings and trips. It works best if you can find a native English speaker with exposure to corporate America to elaborate on the finer points that I cannot cover well here.
* The issue is very clear. Let's go out and execute. [The issue is very clear. Let's get started and work on it.]
* Our boss likes big iron and let's give him that. [Our boss likes big machines, and let's give him that.]
* Any questions? Shoot me an email. [Any questions? Send me an email.]
* Let me move right from the gecko (get go). [Let me move right from the start.]
* Paul, thanks for letting me pipe in with my concerns. [Paul, thanks for letting me have the opportunity to express my concerns.]
* Because our key developer left the job, we lost six months of runway here. [Because our key developer left, we are six months behind now.]
* Do you have a call-out for what we have to track for this issue? [Do you have an explicit reminder item for what we have to track for this issue?]
* The rub now is that they insist on an earlier software release. [The difficulty now is that they insist on an earlier software release.]
* Let's cut to the chase and get to the point now. [Let's cut it short and get to the point now.]
* "Joe, you have any more to add to this discussion?" "No, I am good." ["Joe, you have any more to add to this discussion?" "No, I don't have anything."]
* That piece of news is critical to our project. Let's have a hallway huddle about this. [That piece of news is critical to our project. Let's have a quick meeting in the hallway about this.]
* It is a slippery slope. If you lose the rope, I cannot imagine what would happen. [It is a slippery path. If you run into any problems, I cannot imagine what would happen.]
* The issue is very clear. Let's go out and execute. [The issue is very clear. Let's get started and work on it.]
* Our boss likes big iron and let's give him that. [Our boss likes big machines, and let's give him that.]
* Any questions? Shoot me an email. [Any questions? Send me an email.]
* Let me move right from the gecko (get go). [Let me move right from the start.]
* Paul, thanks for letting me pipe in with my concerns. [Paul, thanks for letting me have the opportunity to express my concerns.]
* Because our key developer left the job, we lost six months of runway here. [Because our key developer left, we are six months behind now.]
* Do you have a call-out for what we have to track for this issue? [Do you have an explicit reminder item for what we have to track for this issue?]
* The rub now is that they insist on an earlier software release. [The difficulty now is that they insist on an earlier software release.]
* Let's cut to the chase and get to the point now. [Let's cut it short and get to the point now.]
* "Joe, you have any more to add to this discussion?" "No, I am good." ["Joe, you have any more to add to this discussion?" "No, I don't have anything."]
* That piece of news is critical to our project. Let's have a hallway huddle about this. [That piece of news is critical to our project. Let's have a quick meeting in the hallway about this.]
* It is a slippery slope. If you lose the rope, I cannot imagine what would happen. [It is a slippery path. If you run into any problems, I cannot imagine what would happen.]
Thursday, November 4, 2010
English with an American Corporate Accent - 018
This is another collection from recent meetings and trips. It works best if you can find a native English speaker with exposure to corporate America to elaborate on the finer points that I cannot cover well here.
* One can surmise that they would not commit to that. [One can guess that they would not commit to that.]
* I can always be trumped by Joe and Bill. [I can always be overruled by Joe and Bill.]
* I can only keep them at arm's length for now. [I can only keep them at a short distance for now.]
* We need more input from testing. I like to see testability is a "fore-thought", not an "after-thought". [We need more input from testing. I like to see testability is considered beforehand, not as a thing thought of afterward.]
* These technical nuances got be totally boiled down; otherwise, Joe will be lost. [These technical details have to be explained thoroughly; otherwise, Joe will be lost.]
* Let me try to dial down a bit; otherwise, it will be too complicated. [Let me try to simplify a bit; otherwise, it will be too complicated.]
* Is it OK for me to tell Amy that we have connected the dots here with her back-door request? [Is it OK for me to tell Amy that we have figured out the relationship and connections here with her sneaky request?]
* I suspect that they'll come out of the woodwork if we decide to present the case to the council. [I suspect that they'll come out of hiding if we decide to present the case to the council.]
* I am up to my eye balls now. I cannot handle any more new request. [I am completely occupied now. I cannot handle any more new request.]
* I understand the general statements of performance improvement, but I am still teasing out the concrete cases. [I understand the general statements of performance improvement, but I am still trying to figure out the facts for the concrete cases.]
* I got busy with something else, and I am still working head down. [I got busy with something else, and I am still working hard.]
* So you are running tests and kicking tires for that new delivery. [So you are running tests and sanity checking for that new delivery.]
* One can surmise that they would not commit to that. [One can guess that they would not commit to that.]
* I can always be trumped by Joe and Bill. [I can always be overruled by Joe and Bill.]
* I can only keep them at arm's length for now. [I can only keep them at a short distance for now.]
* We need more input from testing. I like to see testability is a "fore-thought", not an "after-thought". [We need more input from testing. I like to see testability is considered beforehand, not as a thing thought of afterward.]
* These technical nuances got be totally boiled down; otherwise, Joe will be lost. [These technical details have to be explained thoroughly; otherwise, Joe will be lost.]
* Let me try to dial down a bit; otherwise, it will be too complicated. [Let me try to simplify a bit; otherwise, it will be too complicated.]
* Is it OK for me to tell Amy that we have connected the dots here with her back-door request? [Is it OK for me to tell Amy that we have figured out the relationship and connections here with her sneaky request?]
* I suspect that they'll come out of the woodwork if we decide to present the case to the council. [I suspect that they'll come out of hiding if we decide to present the case to the council.]
* I am up to my eye balls now. I cannot handle any more new request. [I am completely occupied now. I cannot handle any more new request.]
* I understand the general statements of performance improvement, but I am still teasing out the concrete cases. [I understand the general statements of performance improvement, but I am still trying to figure out the facts for the concrete cases.]
* I got busy with something else, and I am still working head down. [I got busy with something else, and I am still working hard.]
* So you are running tests and kicking tires for that new delivery. [So you are running tests and sanity checking for that new delivery.]
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Reading "Pride and Prejudice"
Nothing beats reading a good book, or in my case, finishing listening to a good audio book. I recently completed the classic "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen. I previously watched the movie, but movies have real difficulty in capturing the subtleties, complex emotions and reflections in the limited 2 hours.
It will be difficult for me to judge how much prejudice I have. This introspection process will not be easy. But, I can see that I have prides in me, various sorts. Some are good to keep and some are not. Some prides help us to build trust and character, but some are making our own lives unnecessarily complicated and convoluted. At this stage of my life, empty nested, having peace of mind and going easy with life along with its demands is a good thing. I don't want to have too many of those unnecessary "principles".
As far as the book goes, I realized that the usage of the English language is not modern-day American. Instead, it is from the world of early 19th-century Britain. I like the language and many words employed in that period. I decided to jot down some of the less familiar words when I could. Some of them are not in use today in America by the populace. But, many of them are the words used by the better educated and more articulate individuals. So, it is a list to let us see how many we know the meaning of and how many we actually incorporate into our conversation and writing ;-)
-----------------------
abominable
affability
anecdote
balm
casino
countenance
conciliatory
condescending
consolation
dejection
elopement
formidable
felicity
forbearance
fortnight
frivolous
gaiety
grandeur
governess
glazing
gentile
impertinent
imprudence
insipid
insulin
lamentation
magistrate
mortification
obsequious
perusal
purview
reconciliation
reproach
rupture
trifle
trepidation
twelvemonth
odious
parsonage
rousing
scold
sickly
shew
vestibule
vex vexation
vulgar
----------------------
It will be difficult for me to judge how much prejudice I have. This introspection process will not be easy. But, I can see that I have prides in me, various sorts. Some are good to keep and some are not. Some prides help us to build trust and character, but some are making our own lives unnecessarily complicated and convoluted. At this stage of my life, empty nested, having peace of mind and going easy with life along with its demands is a good thing. I don't want to have too many of those unnecessary "principles".
As far as the book goes, I realized that the usage of the English language is not modern-day American. Instead, it is from the world of early 19th-century Britain. I like the language and many words employed in that period. I decided to jot down some of the less familiar words when I could. Some of them are not in use today in America by the populace. But, many of them are the words used by the better educated and more articulate individuals. So, it is a list to let us see how many we know the meaning of and how many we actually incorporate into our conversation and writing ;-)
-----------------------
abominable
affability
anecdote
balm
casino
countenance
conciliatory
condescending
consolation
dejection
elopement
formidable
felicity
forbearance
fortnight
frivolous
gaiety
grandeur
governess
glazing
gentile
impertinent
imprudence
insipid
insulin
lamentation
magistrate
mortification
obsequious
perusal
purview
reconciliation
reproach
rupture
trifle
trepidation
twelvemonth
odious
parsonage
rousing
scold
sickly
shew
vestibule
vex vexation
vulgar
----------------------
Sunday, October 10, 2010
My first Caltrain rides - Sunnyvale to San Francisco
I went to the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) 2010 at Masconi Center in San Francisco. I have attended the IDF in Taipei and Beijing in the past. But, this was my first time attending the Forum in San Francisco. The conference had a different feel to it, because the crowd and culture are different. I did not want to drive to the city and have to worry about parking and traffic congestion. I decided to take Caltrain. In part, I wanted to have the first-hand experience of riding public transportation from the South Bay to San Francisco. Here is a photo of the ticket booth for Caltrain.
From Sunnyvale to San Francisco, the one-way fare is $6, which is not bad compared to how much I would have had to spend for the gasoline if I had made the one-hour drive. The daily parking cost me $3 at the Sunnyvale station.
The next photo is the Sunnyvale station on that early September morning.
The train is quite sleek and nice. This is one of them on that early morning.
Inside this double decker, the construction is sturdy, functional, comfortable, and quite pleasant to look at. From the photo, you can see that the train is n
ot too crowded at all. That's a big problem in the US. Mass transportation is not popular because it is not convenient enough. This is a chicken-and-egg problem. Our society and various levels of government should address this in a serious way. We could not be competitive at all in the future world that mandates an energy-efficient society.There is a car for people to transport the bicycles. It is quite neat, isn't it?
When I arrived in the city, I took a photo of the San Francisco station. The walk to the Mascone Center took me only 15 minutes with ease. What a pleasure to do this!
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