[Betsy Telle]

Thank you for sharing your pictures. What a truly remarkable difference in a year. It is fascinating how quickly cities in China explode in size. Looking at the maps of the growth presented in the slides, I imagine it would be like going to a brand new city for you to visit now, despite your 6+ months of being there before.

[Betsy Telle]

I really liked the comparison of Ryakuchu Ryakugai and the Nolli Plan of Rome. I have been working on creating a lesson plan on City Planning for my students. Seeing the comparison of the two city depictions is a great addition to this lesson. I like the contrast of art versus utility. I would love to have students spend time comparing the two approaches and discuss what they find more pleasing. I coul have the students use the Ryakuchu Ryakugai as an inspiration to create an artistic map of the city they plan for the lesson project.

[Betsy Telle]

It is disappointing to learn how few women are in managerial positions in Japan. The article mentions that many women are not able to continue in management tracks because they are not able to work the long hours once they have a child. It seems that in Japan they see the issue with having to choose between family and work. It does not seem like they perceive the required 12+ hour work days as an issue. These required hours not only make it impossible to be a mother caregiver and employee, but that means that there are countless absentee fathers who are not able to be caregivers to their children.

[Betsy Telle]

I think that Christianity in Korea is an interesting point of study. Christianity had an influence in Korea that was not seen in other parts of Asia. I had knowledge of Christianity's large base currently in Korea. I appreciated learning more about the history of Missionary work in Korea. It makes sense that the nontraditional approach of providing Western care and education, rather than proselytizing, was an attractive force. I found it very surprising that the Missionaries also supported the Women's rights and empowerment movements, as Christianity is often opposed to those movements.

[Betsy Telle]

This is a really great idea as a student activity. I went to a Christian college and this was a very real debate that occured frequently on campus, but from the "saviour" side of things. I like the idea of what would we want from an alien visitor. This was a creative idea that I think the students would enjoy and help them understand the differences.

[Betsy Telle]

I loved learning about the villages in China and their architecture. I live next to a small hiking hill here in Los Angeles. I love being able to see the hill, trees, and birds just behind my urban house. I love that Chinese villages were intentional about having the same thing. Even though there is a need to live in close quarters does not negate the need to also be connected and close to nature.

 

I also enjoyed the round community buildings. I feel that there is a lot to learn from them, in light of our world’s increasing housing crisis.

[Betsy Telle]

I feel that I must have a very Eastern sensibility when it comes to City Planning. The planned cities of China and Japan are similar to the cities I used to design in SimCity. I love the grid pattern that they used and the progression to the Palaces. Although they did not have squares like in Europe, I feel that having the communal meeting places as the streets themselves could allow for a better sense of community, since it was all around you rather than a defined place. I feel like learning about Chinese and Japanese city planning will also be interesting to my students. I have a project where students design their own town. I look forward to adding information from this lecture to the lesson.

[Betsy Telle]

I found it interesting that when highlighting various buildings in China and Japan, a Stadium was highlighted for both countries. I think there is a fascinating comparison to these stadiums to stadiums in the United States. I had never thought of stadiums as reflections of culture, but the Eastern examples helped me see how much all stadiums are a reflection of the values of their society. With the stadium in Japan there was such intentional connection to the countries values. There was intention in staying connected to its unique history as a country. In China, although it is an increasingly urban and industrial, the stadium reflects the value nature still plays in Chinese culture. In contrast, stadiums in the United States show the country’s value of profit and technology. Selling naming rights is almost as important as the building itself. And each new stadium displays new amazing features, one after another.

[Betsy Telle]

I had no idea there were these water cities in China either. They look absolutely amazing. It is interesting that the concept arose in both Europe and East Asia. These cities remind me of Bruges, Belgium as they are all excellently preserved. It says so much about our Global priorities that the building could survive centuries but it is the water that is in jeopardy. We protect what we create, at the peril of our own environment.

[Betsy Telle]

My name is Betsy Telle. I teach 8th Grade Science at Dr Julian Nava Learning Academy for LAUSD. This is my third year as a teacher. I am currently teaching 100% remotely from home. Pre-Covid I travelled quite a bit. I thankfully was able to travel quite a bit last year before the shutdown. Since quaratine, I have begun hiking a trail near my house several days a week. I've been trying to eat healthier and excercise more. I started a garden during the shut down from seeds leftover from vegetables from cooking.

[Betsy Telle]

I have travelled to Tokyo several times. I knew a little about current Japanese culture, but was severely lacking in my knowledge. I really enjoyed learning about the history of Edo from both Professor Pitelka and Professor Wills' lectures. It was interesting learning how it transformed from an old small fortress to a massive city with a complex societal structure. And over time the city had phases of modernization that were necessary, due to fires and wars, but resisted by some.

[Betsy Telle]

This session made me very curious about the lasting effects of the fires on Tokyo and Japan's approach to housing. I have learned that in Japan they put very little value in the actual house itself. Japan is one of the few places in the world where houses depreciate rather than appreciates. The value is in the land rather than the building. I was curious that if the expectation of fires led to this attitude, as it seems like if you know that the building is likely to burn and you will need to rebuild, you would be less value in that building itself.

[Betsy Telle]

I found this lecture absolutely facinating. I think that my students would love to learn about this as well. It is so interesting that Edo lived with the reality of constant fires for 200 years. There are so many aspects to look at with students. From a Science stand point we can look at the chemical and physical changes of the fires, as well as the effect of the roofing materials on flamibility. That allows for in Math to look at the economics of builiding costs versuses loss expenses due to fires. Students could look at how the residents adapted and survived, major themes in my class.

[Betsy Telle]

I really enjoyed reading Lin Zexu's letter. I found it so damning on the UK and Western countries that they knew to make Opium illegal. They knew the damaging effects of Opium addiction. And yet they purposely exported to other countries, knowing full well that the countries will be harmed. Lin Zexu mentions that Queen Victoria appreciates China craftmanship. He points out the hypocrisy of wanting the result of China’s success, while also trying to cut it down. While I think calling the recipients of his letter Barbarians, I feel that he makes many valid arguments that the UK should stop exporting Opium to China.

[Betsy Telle]

While teaching health, it would be interesting to have students look at Opium trade, usage, and response in China. We could spend some time comparing it the current drug crisises in the recent US history. The students could look at the trade aspect of the Western world using Opium trade to exploit China and how the US and Reagan administration used drug trade to their advantage. There's also comparisons to the legality vs illegal smuggling. A focus could very much be the response to addiction. I find it informative the response of China to address addiction. I see a lot of similarities between their response and the War on Drugs. The United States has yet to have an effective response and for students to learn about what was successful and not could be useful for the future in the United States.

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