This week on Sinica, co-host Tianyu Fang makes his debut on the show to join me in interviewing his Stanford classmate and talented writer Jasmine Sun, who studies the anthropology of disruption. This summer, she took a trip to China with a group of friends with different levels of China experience, from people raised in the country to total novices. She reflects on how it hit, and how a group of young people reckoned with the reality of Chinese hypermodernity, which she wrote about in a terrific essay titled "america against china against america: notes on shenzhen, shanghai, and more."
06:10 – Getting to know the new co-host: Tianyu Fang
07:17 – Meet the guest: Jasmine Sun
08:47 – Is there really an “American Vibe Shift” in how people see China?
13:56 – The stories nations tell: America vs. China
18:26 – Why that title for the essay?
21:05 – Surveillance, awe, and future shock: China vs. San Francisco
28:19 – Chinese tech’s power to surprise (and scare) + U.S.–China perceptions
34:34 – China vs. Silicon Valley: patriotism and motivation
39:51 – The involution phenomenon: China vs. U.S.
45:41 – China’s public services and the U.S. gap
52:33 – What U.S. cities could learn from China
56:13 – Guests’ tips for understanding China
Recommendations:
Jasmine: Yunnan food
Tianyu: Mad Men(Tv series)
Kaiser: The Origins of Political Order and Political Decayby Francis Fukuyama
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