It's about that time that you "the clueless lot" should know that you don't eat a plate of fried rice or any rice that's being served on a plate with a pair of chosticks.

Jerry Seinfeld made a fuss about the chinese and thier invention of chosticks. Grrrrrrrrrrr.

Shhh, spoilsport. You'll ruin one of the very few free pleasures the Chinese have.

HAHA Chosticks

It amazes me that the Chinese who gave the world lots of great inventions should choose to eat their food with two sticks.

Would you care to list a few? AFAIK the list of things the Chinese have invented is like a book of French military heroes. Pretty short list after you've mentioned the obvious one...

chopsticks are impossible to use anyway !

Ah but you must eat chinese food the chinese way, put rice and whatever stuff come with it in a small bowl, bring it close to your mouth and shove in food quickly, that way it works perfectly well. Rice ought to be a bit sticky as well.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Gr..._ancient_China
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lostempires/china/age.html

Umm, okay. Total of four. Wow.

1. Compass. There's not much evidence that the Chinese were using floating magnetic needles to determine direction. The Wiki article you cite mentions that.
2. Gunpowder. It's well known that gunpowder was discovered during attempts to find an elixir to extend the life of the emperor indefinitely. How ironic.
3. Papermaking. No contest.
4. Printing. Yes, though it's interesting to note what the Chinese published against what Europe published. :wink:

Four inventions (or discoveries) does not count as 'a lot' when compared to other cultures.

I would have thought this was one of the greatest efficiency moves in history:

The West:
- Two hands needed to cut and shovel food.
Result: extra time required for turning pages of newspaper, changing tv channel, making designs for latest Western inventions. Extra space required for those unable to control elbows.

The East:
- Food designed to require no cutting. Process of eating reduced by 50% by using only one hand to pick things up.
Result: all those amazing inventions (for those who can write with one hand and chopstick with the other), ability to fit many people round a small table without the need for elbow space... perfect for a densely populated city...

If you can't eat it with a spoon, don't bother.

I think chopsticks are perfect for weight watchers ...I can get tired before stuffing myself.

Remeber that many of those of US origin already eat with just an inverted fork...
there was quite a funny discussion of this in one of Bill Brysons books...

dave

I'd like to see a list of historically significant inventions classified by "culture".

Depends upon which cultures you are comparing them with.

Chopsticks are only a problem if you don't know how to use them.

But don't forget fireworks, chess, umbrellas, wheelbarrows, and apparently whiskey and brandy as well.

Exactly. That's the way .. uh huh uh huh to do it uh huh uh huh.

Anyway, the best chinese invention has to be noodles before the italians stole it, repackaged it and called it spaghetti.

I'm surprised that none of our Irish contingent has jumped on you for saying whiskey was invented elsewhere .

Should fireworks and gunpowder be classified separately? the invention of fireworks is closely tied with the invention of gunpowder no?

Lets not forget that Chinese also invented seismic/earthquake detectors... doesn't anyone watch discovery channel?

It is also rumored that Chinese invented ship rudders and sails. Though I'm not sure.

Here's a thought for those who think the use of chopsticks is nonsensical... I watched the other day as a couple struggled to balance a few peas on the back of their forks without them falling/rolling off... took a good 2 minutes before the peas managed to reach their mouths... I wanted to walk over and ask "Why not just stab them?" (of course having said that, one does not stab with chopsticks either... it's just etiquette) and is it so wrong to eat with the inside curve of the fork? Not that I was staring or anything...

The chinese invented far more than those four things, and amusingly, much to the consternation of the general populous here, actually invented cuckoo clocks!!