Leading Bi-Cultural Lives | Asian American Poll

LEADING BI-CULTURAL LIVES
(Updated Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 05:24:27 PM to reflect the 100 most recent valid responses.)

Is it possible to embrace both American and Asian cultures and find social acceptance with both Americanized and non-Americanized groups of friends?
Yes | 77%
No | 23%

Which of the following factors is most important in facilitating a successful bi-cultural life?
Familitarity with both cultures | 32%
Family upbringing | 28%
Fluency in both languages | 16%
Security in one's identity | 24%

Which of the following factors most discourages bi-cultural lives for U.S.-raised Asian Americans?
Inability to speak Asian languages | 28%
Outmarriage to non-Asians | 14%
Fear of seeming too Asian | 30%
Concern for kids' image with peers | 28%

Which segment of the Asian American population currently has the greatest positive impact on American society?
American-Born | 56%
Foreign-born, American-educated | 44%

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WHAT YOU SAY

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MLK,

-Asian: individual with an identity which is accepted as Asian identity among Asians.

-immigrant: indvidual who has adapted to an environment with a foreign cultural background.This adaptation causes a cultural gap between the immigrant and those who have stayed in their homecountry.

-Westerner: individual with Christian humanist background;also a derogatory term for white-washed people or those who are alienated from their heritage.

-Asian common sense: This is definetely different from Western common sense.One good example: pleasant Asians avoid eye-contact,pleasant Westerners search eye-contact.Or body-contact: compare Japanese with Italians when they greet people.(But don't argue that "Nordics" are different again,I know that these are strange people who have superficially something in common with North Asians,but they remain strange.)

-subculture: I don't know much about the Asian subcultures which are practiced by other people,but examples for a Western subculture may be hip-hop subculture, hippy subculture,"new age" subculture... Many subcultures have sectarian characteristics, like voodoo subculture, or Falun Gong which AC Dropout mentioned.Subcultures are officially looked down upon.

I have a feeling that you're of South Asian heritage. Am I right? I'm a typical North Asian. This could be one reason for that we are so different from each other.
rare stuff Friday, July 26, 2002 at 06:38:30 (PDT)

MLK and AC Dropout,

I was quite enjoying reading your discourse on Buddhism and Physics, very interesting!

I've been reading a great book called "Watching the Tree: A Chinese Daughter Reflects on Happiness, Tradition, and Spiritual Wisdom" by Adeline Yen Mah. She says that "Every Chinese wears a Confucian thinking cap, a Taoist robe, and Buddhist sandals". The book is kind of a "Chinese Culture 101" for Westerners. She talks about the I Ching, the Tao, Confucius, Buddhism.

Anyway as I know that you are both Chinese, what do you think of Confucianism? From this book it sounds as though it is deeply ingrained in the Chinese culture and mindset. I'd like to hear your thoughts.
curious girl Thursday, July 25, 2002 at 17:43:55 (PDT)

To NDN girl

The word "Akash" is interchangeably interpreted as sky or space in different languages. But when they talk in Sankrit about "Panch Mahabhoot" ie The Earth, The Water, etc, Akash often implies space. Another common word for space is "Antariksh".
Akash Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 16:50:09 (PDT)

MLK
"
"...transfer of info that is neither momentum nor energy"

If it's not energy and it's not momentum, then what is it?
"
Well it is just the "information". Let me explain how. Say you and I are two mass particles separated by 100s of light years. Also assume that the only way we can interact with each other is through gravity waves. Thus if one of us moves from his/her position even slightly, this would create a disturbance in the gravity field. This disturbance in the gravity field would spread from its point of origin in the manner you see a ripple wave spreading when you drop a stone in the water. Now gravity is a form of energy and this disturbance wave is essentially an energy transfer. Thus the maximum speed that it can have is "c" or the velocity of light. Hence I would "feel" this gravity wave only after 100 year; or in other words I will realize that you moved 100 years after you actually did.

Now what if somebody, say a third person could directly "inform" me about your motion before this "knowledge" could actually reach me through a gravity wave. This would not be a transfer of energy or momentum although it is an "information" nevertheless. As incredible as it seems, this is what quantum mechanics predicts about two particles in a quantum entanglement though separated by a large distance. This transfer of "information" is instantaneous and not through a disturbance in the energy field that would take a finite time to reach.

Feynman said in 1960s that a lot of people think that they understand quantum physics but in reality nobody does. It is very crazy. At subatomic level, the reality loses its concrete, well defined nature and is smeared out in a probabilistic world, full of uncertainities and haziness.
PS Yes, I am from India.
Akash Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 16:47:01 (PDT)

Akash,

I find those physics interpretation all relevent to subatomic particals. But their implication on larger systems is somewhat dubious.

The classic quantum mechanic paradigm is that one is unable to observe the location and vector of an item instaneously. However, I see things and know their general vector all the time to function properly in the real world.

Given the properties of sub-atomic particles to instaneously react with one another over a distance. Does not mean we larger more complex human systems exhibit those qualities.
AC Dropout Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 15:53:26 (PDT)

NdNGurl!,

But biomass (carbon base life forms) on the planet has also been increasing.
Assuming the earth is a close system to souls. We need more souls to explain the increase in biomass on the planet.
AC Dropout Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 15:32:51 (PDT)

MLK,

I win, you lose? Oh I'm not letting you off that easy with a gimme. No taking dives in this forum.

Why do you feel it necessary to hide your nerdiness. When I grew up I had whole school building of nerds. Nothing to be ashamed of.

It also nothing to be ashamed of playing up sexual appeal in work force.

Assests are to be ulitilized; not hidden away.
AC Dropout Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 15:30:43 (PDT)

[Cut off due to server error.],

Yes I agree.

Yes I was brought up Lutherian.......
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AC Dropout Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 15:22:04 (PDT)

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