One of the main sticking points I have with Chinese culture is how rooted in the past it is. China is the center of all things to Chinese. When they come to foreign soil, they bring China with them. The food, shops, traditions, they all germinate here. That is good - who needs another strip mall? But the Chinese tendency to believe the wisdom of their ancients is hurting them. Not only does it make for atrociously bad TV (think “Crouching Tiger” meets “Land of the Lost.”) but it also prevents them from fully accepting the Scientific method. Imagine ten thousand “truths” brought over to fester and hold back another generation of homo sapiens.

Besides the uniquely Chinese “Having too much sex makes you look old” and “You can’t move into a new house while pregnant” comes my favorite, “put on that tshirt, sweater, and cardigan, or you’ll catch cold.” While that’s not particularly Chinese (my own mom and grandma are guilty of it too,) they do take it to a new level.

I like to argue against this - my friends like it considerably less. Here is finally the voice of reason. The answer is: we don’t know the answer for sure, but the virus that causes the cold probably cares little about your choice in clothes.

I’d like to run a study - let’s look at the data around sudden cold snaps in urban areas. Do the number of hospital visits for cold and flu symptoms go up?? Are doctors busier? Does the sale of Sudafed and Theraflu and Delsym increase? Those numbers, if measured correctly, may start pointing us in the right direction. Please, please, please, can we PLEASE reacquaint ourselves with the Scientific Method? And China? How about some Anatomy classes in grade school? would that be too much to ask?