Net Nobility, Peer Pressure, Continent in Canton, and Designing Deities

Lets face it， we live in cyberspace now. Its where we maintain friendships， share experiences， and we now simply live our daily lives through an internet connection. In China—which has arguably the most isolated social media sphere in the world—those who are elevated to the peculiar status of internet celebrity find themselves in a strange whirlwind to fame. They， like others， fall from grace， but they dont so much collapse into sin and vice as open a successful Taobao store or fade into non-entity; it all depends on their followers. In the odd， ruthless world of online shame and fame， its the followers that lead （page 28）.

From the internet to academia， we look at Chinas recent troubles with scientific credibility. Everything is for sale in the realm of learning—be it names on papers or buying off peer-reviewed journals. Several high-profile busts have left Chinese scientists looking a bit unreliable， so the question remains： how will China get its credibility back？ More importantly， how can China prevent any further harm to its scientific clout （page 42）？

As science gives way to superstition， we also look at Chinas ethnic gods and how theyve been repackaged and repurposed to suit the needs of tourism. These local gods had humble origins in ethnic communities around China and have come to embody the ideals of the nation itself. While these gods may have been designed for a different job， they perform capably， far from their culture of origin （page 48）.

In that same vein， Guangzhous Little Africa is also a culture far from home. Chinas political and economic ties to many nations in Africa， from Zimbabwe to the Democratic Republic of the Congo， run deep. However， some of that culture has come home to China， a cultural soup of many African and Middle Eastern nations， all looking for a home in the Middle Kingdom and doing their very best to keep it （page 36）.

Besides all that， weve got the usual news， views， and reviews youve come to expect from us there at TWOC. If youve got a hankering for history， you can check out Time Machine where we explain the interesting inner working of Chinas first telegraph system （page 70） or our Made in China where this issue we look at one of the earlier attempts to resurrect Confucianism at the turn of the century （page 24）. If your tastes run a little more modern， feel free to run on over to our Group Think section for a look at moms obsessed with pop stars （page 68） or check out our interview with comedy sensation Jesse Appell whose songs have had us laughing for years now （page 86）. And， dont forget your language fix in Social Chinese which teaches you how to fake it until you make it （page 72） as well as our On the Character which explains how the color red can make you famous （page 90）.

The worst of the winter is over and we here in Beijing very much look forward to bringing you the sights and tales of yet another Chinese spring.