You Can Learn Chinese

John and Jared use research to address issues related to watching movies in Chinese, with and without Chinese subtitles. Find out what the academics say and stick around for the practical advice! Guest interview is with Jeremy Bai, a translator, author, and ENNIE-winning game designer who turned his fascination with Chinese martial arts into a career of translating Chinese novels for a living.  Links from the episode: Factors Influencing the Use of Captions by Foreign Language Learners: An Eye‐Tracking Study, Paula Winke, Susan Gass, Tetyana Sydorenko (​​2013, The Modern Language Journal)To Live / 活着 (IMDb)Mandarin Companion Memes on InstagramMandarin Companion Meme on FacebookMandarin Companion Memes on TwitterThe Garlic Hangover (Sinosplice)Jeremy Bai websiteDeathblade/Jeremy Bai YouTube channel Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcastsand they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebookand catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How do Chinese people feel about a foreigner with a potty mouth in Chinese? Are curse words worth learning? John and Jared talk about swearing in Chinese and what you should be aware of. Guest interview is with Ashleigh Au, who combined her language skills and life experiences to create career opportunities that otherwise would have been unobtainable.   Links from the episode:Swearing in a foreign language is the first step to fluency… [Note: Clickbait title]Profanity: Types by Purpose (Wikipedia)Mandarin Chinese Profanity (Wikipedia) -- WARNING: this includes graphic stuff!Ashleigh Au at Ou & CompanyEducating Girls of Rural China Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcastsand they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebookand catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Reading a Chinese newspaper is a common goal for many learners, but is it the right goal for you? John and Jared talk about what you need to know about the news in Chinese, how to get started, and the options available to you. Guest interview is with Michael Berry, a professor at UCLA who specializes in Chinese literature, cinema, and pop culture. Links from the episode:The Chairman’s Bao (simplified news stories)ARC: Advanced Readings in Chinese (free Substack newsletter)Michael Berry professor at UCLAWuhan Diary: Dispatches from a Quarantined City - translated by Michael BerryKey Word of the Month: 减负 (jiǎn fù) Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcastsand they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebookand catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

John and Jared answer a listener’s question about the rivalry between China’s two most famous cities: Shanghai and Beijing. They discuss culture, history, and language, and even provide one additional view from a mystery correspondent! The guest interview is with William White, a professional simultaneous interpreter in Chinese with decades of experience and stories. Links from the episode:“What are the differences between Shanghai and Beijing?” (Quora.com)“Shanghai vs. Beijing” (Sinosplice.com)“Beijing vs. Shanghai” (Versus.com)Heaven is high and the emperor is far away (Wikipedia)ARC: Advanced Readings in Chinese (Substack)Yangshuo County (Wikipedia)The China in Africa PodcastBio of interpreter William White Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

John and Jared are going to revisit and unpack this classic question posed by Dr. David Moser three decades ago and identify what is hard about Chinese, what is easier now, and whether Chinese really is harder than other languages. The guest interview is with Sarah Kutulakos, a lifetime Chinese learner and the executive director at the Canada China Business Council. Links from the episode:Why Chinese Is So Damn Hard, by Dr. David MoserWhy Learning Chinese Is Hard (Sinosplice)The Princess Bride: "Life is pain, highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something." (YouTube)YCLC Episode #8: Tones, Music, and Confidence, with Dr. David MoserYCLC Episode #39: The Future of Learning Chinese, with Terry Waltz   The Monkey’s Paw (Mandarin Companion Level 1 Graded Reader)The Simpsons: The Monkey's Paw (YouTube) Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Electronic pop-up dictionaries are all the rage! But are they really helping you improve your Chinese? John and Jared take a research-based look at the impact of pop-up dictionaries and answer the question “Can you really click your way to fluency?” The guest interview is with Chris Max, a famous YouTuber you’ve likely never heard of because his videos are in Chinese and made for Chinese audiences. This is a rerun interview from January 2020.  Links from the episode:Research paper: Reading strategies and reading comprehension retention with and without a pop-up dictionary by beginning learners of ChineseResearch paper: The use of e-dictionary to read e-text by intermediate and advanced learners of Chinese Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A dictionary is frequently one of the first things you buy when learning a language. In this episode, John and Jared will give you tips and tricks and do’s and don’ts on Chinese dictionaries, so you can get the most out of them for your learning gain.  The guest interview is with Matt Coss, a Chinese-language educator and Ph.D. candidate who is helping to craft the future of Chinese education.  Links from the episode:Interagency Language Roundtable Language Skill Level DescriptionsPleco Chinese dictionary MDBG Chinese dictionaryYellowBridge Chinese dictionary“Searching Pleco Dictionary Entries with Wildcards” (Sinosplice blog post)“Where We Come From,” by Emily Kwong (an episode in the NPR video and audio series) Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What does it take to pursue a graduate-level degree in Chinese in China? With our resident expert, John Pasden, we’ll pull back the curtain to show you what it takes for a non-Chinese person to get admitted into an all-Chinese university program and what studying in China at a graduate level is like. This guest interview is with Tom Connelly, a multilingual worldwide adventurer who is channeling his passion into teaching others the Chinese language. He’s currently working on a master’s degree at Nanjing University. Links from the episode:Why China for Grad School? (Sinosplice blog post)Classes in Brief (Sinosplice blog post)Chinese Grammar Wiki (Mandarin Companion grammar point reference page) Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

You’ve got the basics down. Sounds like you’re ready to type Chinese! John and Jared talk about how Chinese input methods work and, for the more advanced learners, teach you tips and tricks to make Chinese input less painful and time-consuming.  Interview is with Suzy Williams who learned Chinese fully immersed in Taiwan while serving as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  Links from the episode:Chinese Input Methods (Hacking Chinese)Mandarin Companion graded readers are now available as addons in PlecoZhihu (知乎), Chinese Q&A site (best to find articles via Google searches)Hack Chinese Flashcard platform Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Language is words, so learn enough words and you’ll be fluent, right? As a sophisticated learner, you know it’s not that simple. In this episode, we discuss the subtleties of vocabulary learning, how it is (and isn’t) like Legos, what “high-frequency” means, and how to apply all of this to your studies. The guest interview is with Mischa Wilmers from England. For all of you who wanted to learn Chinese during lockdown, Mischa did it and shares how he achieved proficiency with little interaction with others.  Links from the episode:YCLC Episode #13: The four keys to learning Chinese you need to knowVocabulary as puzzle pieces (Sinosplice article)Great Expectations: Part 1 (Chinese graded reader)SUBTLEX-CH (movie subtitle corpus project)Scientists find 'missing link' behind first human languagesWhy I’m a fan of Chinese graded readers, by Mischa Wilmers Thanks for listening to the podcast! Please write John and Jared a review on Apple Podcasts and they’ll give you a shout-out! They are also taking questions from listeners. If you have a question, reach them at feedback@mandarincompanion.com. Follow them on Facebook and catch their latest Chinese-learning memes on Instagram. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.