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103

In the Kingdom of Mao Bell (selected excerpts)

1994

3
terms
2
notes

about internet connectivity in China. not bad, but really dated, and no real takeaways

Stephenson, N. (2012). In the Kingdom of Mao Bell (selected excerpts). In Stephenson, N. Some Remarks: Essays and Other Writing. William Morrow, pp. 103-118

(adjective) easily flexed / (adjective) lithe / (adjective) nimble

103

He is accompanied by a lissome escort

—p.103 by Neal Stephenson
confirm
7 years, 6 months ago

He is accompanied by a lissome escort

—p.103 by Neal Stephenson
confirm
7 years, 6 months ago
105

I was carrying an issue of WIRED [...] In one corner were three characters in Hanzi [...] I'd heard that they formed the Chinese word for "network."

Whenever I showed the magazine to a Chinese person they were baffled. "It means network, doesn't it?" I said [...]

"Yes," they said, "this is the term used by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution for the network of spies and informers that they spread across every village and neighborhood to snare enemies of the regime."

lol

—p.105 by Neal Stephenson 7 years, 6 months ago

I was carrying an issue of WIRED [...] In one corner were three characters in Hanzi [...] I'd heard that they formed the Chinese word for "network."

Whenever I showed the magazine to a Chinese person they were baffled. "It means network, doesn't it?" I said [...]

"Yes," they said, "this is the term used by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution for the network of spies and informers that they spread across every village and neighborhood to snare enemies of the regime."

lol

—p.105 by Neal Stephenson 7 years, 6 months ago
105

[...] modern information technology is to totalitarianism what crosses are to vampires. Skeptics might say it's just a coincidence that glasnost and perestroika came just after the photocopier, the fax, and the personal computer invaded Russia, but I thnk there's a connection, and if you read WIRED, you probably do too. After all, how could any country whose power structure was based on controlling the flow of information survive in an era of direct-dial phones and ubiquitous fax machines?

—p.105 by Neal Stephenson 7 years, 6 months ago

[...] modern information technology is to totalitarianism what crosses are to vampires. Skeptics might say it's just a coincidence that glasnost and perestroika came just after the photocopier, the fax, and the personal computer invaded Russia, but I thnk there's a connection, and if you read WIRED, you probably do too. After all, how could any country whose power structure was based on controlling the flow of information survive in an era of direct-dial phones and ubiquitous fax machines?

—p.105 by Neal Stephenson 7 years, 6 months ago

(noun) a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II

107

If you thought zaibatsus were creepy

—p.107 by Neal Stephenson
unknown
7 years, 6 months ago

If you thought zaibatsus were creepy

—p.107 by Neal Stephenson
unknown
7 years, 6 months ago

(noun) a large number or quantity

111

He buys scads of high-bandwidth technology from the West

—p.111 by Neal Stephenson
uncertain
7 years, 6 months ago

He buys scads of high-bandwidth technology from the West

—p.111 by Neal Stephenson
uncertain
7 years, 6 months ago