Random new word of the day

[Jim]

The one I obsess with when I wistfully look at unlikely new e-bike purchases is 续航 which is the range on one battery charge. There's a nice looking bike that claims over 200km and isn't too pricey and if I ever have the spare cash i fancy getting it to go visiting all the little historic sites nearby but not that near.

[roddy]

能动性 - agency. Not seen that before.

[mungouk]

16 hours ago, Jim said:

a nice looking bike that claims over 200km

 

200km!  Which bike is that?

 

(And should we start a separate ebike thread?)

[Jim]

7 hours ago, mungouk said:

200km!  Which bike is that?

Can't find it now and had the manufacturer's website open a few times, this browser clears its history a bit too ruthlessly. It was in the RMB6000 price range which is why it stood out, see there's a few others on ZOL claiming a similar range but pretty sure none of them are the one I had in mind. Here's one example twice the price: https://ebike.zol.com.cn/701/7017075.html As I understand it it's all down to the battery rather than anything too clever about this or that bike design.

[mungouk]

¥6000 whoah!  I just paid ¥2499 for my little scooter. 

[Jim]

10 hours ago, mungouk said:

¥6000 whoah!  I just paid ¥2499 for my little scooter. 

Think if you juggle around with the specs you could have one not much more than yours that would get a good distance too but not quite the 200km. Really annoyed I can't find that site now, it really was a good-looking bike and al the promotional puff did suggest they had regular commuting use firmly in mind.

[imron]

哈姆雷特猴 - a monkey that can randomly type hamlet.  From here, which lead to here.

[mungouk]

OK since we're allowed chengyu, and following on with the animal theme....

 

骑虎难下     qí hǔ nán xià    if you ride a tiger, it's hard to get off (idiom); fig. impossible to stop halfway

Perfect timing for finishing this textbook in today's lesson.

 

[roddy]

I'm working on a book of stick-like objects*. Today: 标枪 (javelin, harpoon) and 推杆 (putter)

 

*If only.

[Jim]

鏖战 áozhàn hard/fierce battle https://www.zdic.net/hans/鏖战 Seems it can be a verb or a noun.

[Jim]

失温 hypothermia - kept coming up in reports about the deaths on that cross-country marathon.

[Woodford]

I can't remember what book I got this one from, but it's my favorite:

 

对牛弹琴 - duì niú tán qín - "play the lute to a cow."

 

It basically means you're offering something to people who lack the ability to appreciate or understand it. Or, "You're talking over my head!"

[Balthazar]

"Casting pearls before swine". I like that one too

[mungouk]

澳白

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

Flat White (coffee), presumably by association with Australia. 

 

How they got to "Aubergine" ? I've no idea.

 

 

[roddy]

风险敞口, risk exposure.

[大块头]

小粉红

 

Spoiler

"young Chinese cyber-nationalist" (i.e. the sort of person who will wage war in the comments section over questions of China's sovereignty over Taiwan or the superiority of simplified characters)

 

[Tomsima]

苗银, 'Miao silver', as in the kind of silver jewellery worn by the Miao people. Interesting as it seems it's used nowadays to refer to an alloy relatively low in silver, seems to be similar to 白铜, which seems to just be translated as 'paktong', as it's an alloy traditionally found used in China.

 

Note also the similar use of 藏银

[roddy]

比特币。I simply hadn't seen this before, somehow. 

[大块头]

1 hour ago, roddy said:

比特币。I simply hadn't seen this before, somehow. 

 

The more forward-looking 韭菜 have probably transitioned their portfolios to 多吉币 by now.

[Jim]

搁浅 to be beached or stranded, came up in some stories about whales, seems it gets used figuratively too.