A Nation of Nerds

The word 'nerd' was coined in the 1950's but was not in popular use until much later. When I was in high school, those who studied hard were 'squares.' I was a square. Today, I would be called a nerd.'

In a Chinese university, everyone is a "nerd." Studying hard is part of the campus culture. Not all students like to study, nor are they all equally good at all subjects, but they work at it. Someone who did not study hard would feel out of place. At any hour of the day hour, you'll see groups of kids sitting around on campus, totally silent as they pour over books. Impressive.

Freedom of Information

The Chinese believe in information control. They even offer degrees in this area. "This page cannot be displayed" pops up much more than at home. Sites with certain keywords are likely to be blocked: Political, God and Bible, to name a few. I'm told it's also hard to find online pornography, but I haven't checked this out.