Unclassified 未分類 on AngeCI’s Blog

Elevator’s Placebo Button

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 17:32:55 +0000

⚠️ Notice

This post is a draft translation from the Chinese version which have not yet been thoroughly proofread.

It’s said that in foreign countries (especially the Western world, and particularly in older elevators), elevator doors don’t always provide a “close” button.

It’s also said that in some places, the “close” button on elevator doors is just a placebo.

However, in Hong Kong, from what I’ve seen, the “close” button on most elevator doors actually works.

From an engineering perspective, adding a “close” button complicates the entire elevator’s design, so sometimes it’s better to not provide one.

From a cultural perspective, perhaps foreign cultures simply don’t care about making the elevator doors close quicker, they’ll close automatically when the time comes, why are you even rushing!

I have an elevator I use frequently, and its close button seems to be a placebo. As soon as someone enters and presses the floor button, the door starts closing by itself.

Promote Chinese Culture

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:30:51 +0000

⚠️ Notice

This post is a draft translation from the Chinese version which have not yet been thoroughly proofread.

💡 Let’s brainstorm!

Do any of you readers have suggestions for additions? Feel free to submit them via email or private messages!

Cutting in line
Urinating or defecating in public
- This is actually an extremely ancient method of marking territory, and similar behaviors have been found in different species, with a history far exceeding five thousand years. See also “The entire world belongs to China”.
Watching TikTok/RedNote loudly in public
- The louder the better to get attention and appreciate the wonders of Chinese culture!
Forcing others to speak Mandarin in a foreign country
- Chinese people like to force others to speak Mandarin when they are in a foreign country, even if the other person does not look Chinese at all.
- When you make games or write comics, if you don’t release Chinese translations, you’re not taking Chinese players into consideration.
Randomly being ruhua’ed
- As the old saying goes: There are three things everyone will inevitably experience in life: birth, death, and ruhua.
Promotion of nucleic acid tests
The entire world belongs to China
- China cannot lose an inch of its territory!

About Chinese Calligraphy Education

Wed, 25 Mar 2026 19:15:43 +0000

⚠️ Notice

This post is a draft translation from the Chinese version which have not yet been thoroughly proofread.

Some people believe that Chinese calligraphy (hereinafter referred to as calligraphy) should be included in the compulsory education system, just like in Japan. Currently in Hong Kong, the Education Bureau has not made any regulations regarding calligraphy education, and most schools treat it as an extracurricular activity rather than part of the unified curriculum. Does this situation seem to be similar in other parts of Greater China?

My personal opinion

It’s true that fewer and fewer people are using pens these days. Many modern people, when asked to pick up a pen, easily forget how to write characters or have illegible handwriting. However, modern people rarely receive systematic guidance on “proper penmanship” in compulsory education, so many are forced to just get by. Consider the ancient imperial examination system: the standards for “proper handwriting” were extremely high (although literacy rates were low then), and illegible handwriting was immediately considered a disqualification. However, from another perspective, modern people really rarely need to use a calligraphy brush frequently. After all, writing in an extremely physically demanding and unergonomic way for extended periods can lead to negative impacts to health (perhaps I’m saying this because I ended up failing to learn the correct way to write with a calligraphy brush?).

Therefore, my view is that it’s necessary to strengthen education in pen calligraphy, but not necessarily brush calligraphy.

Personal experience

My experience in the Hong Kong education system was somewhat irrational, but I don’t know if it qualifies as “strange” (because perhaps my situation is actually the norm, just a distorted norm). Although there was no calligraphy lessons in primary school (and I never attended extra calligraphy classes), something a bit strange was that every now and then everyone would be asked to write something and hand it in, and most of the time I just did a perfunctory job. By secondary school, I had basically never touched a brush pen again, only having some experience with Chinese painting in visual art lessons in junior high. However, my calligraphy foundation was so weak that I couldn’t even write my own name properly with a brush (I mean, the kind that’s barely legible).

Do Mainlanders Still Bind Their Feet?

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 18:46:40 +0000

My parents bought me some shoes from “Hong ×× Ke” in Shenzhen. I tried many shoe sizes but they often didn’t quite fit my feet. They were all narrow on the left and right, but quite spacious on the front and back. I came to the following conclusion: Mainlanders’ feet are different from ours, and they are probably still have the foot-binding practice.