We recently created a flash presentation to provide some guidance to new users on how to use ChinesePod. As many of you will agree a little instruction was long over due. So how to draw attention to this new resource? Put a link on the homepage. But not just a text link, that would be too simple, add a graphic. You would be amazed how many people at ChinesePod think they are graphic designers. After much discussion, and way to much time, we finally gave creative control back to the real designers and the graphic you see on the homepage is what they came up with. I would have never thought of this in a million years. But to a person born and raised in China it was an all to obvious choice.

So what is this thing? To the untrained eye it would appear to be a spoon resting on a rather interesting table. Actually, this is one of China’s Four Great Inventions - a compass or sinan 司南。More information about the 司南 and the other Three Greats can be found here.

Matt Park 段伟