Chao Center for Asian Studies

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Chao Center for Asian Studies

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09/03/2026

📣 Just 1 week away!

🌏 Marta E. Hanson (Research Associate, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg,
CAS-E (Center for Advanced Studies-Erlangen, Germany),
ANR-DFG (Agence Nationale de la Recherche & German Research Foundation)) will present: “Knowing Hands: Hand-memory techniques and Handy Knowledge in Ming (1368-1644) Daily-use Encyclopedias”

📅 Thursday, September 10, 2026
🕓 1:00 PM CT
📍 Zoom — Open to the public
💻 Zoom registration: https://loom.ly/Z5g98rw

This talk explores the concept of "knowing hands" in pre-modern China through two main dimensions: hand-memory techniques that aided cognitive processing, and "handy knowledge" embodied through physical practice like medical care, martial arts, and divination, as illustrated by daily-use encyclopedias from the Ming dynasty (1368–1644).

Hosted by Chang Xu | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

08/27/2026

📣 Join us for this Transnational Asia Speaker Series event!

🌏 Marta E. Hanson (Research Associate, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg,
CAS-E (Center for Advanced Studies-Erlangen, Germany),
ANR-DFG (Agence Nationale de la Recherche & German Research Foundation)) will present: “Knowing Hands: Hand-memory techniques and Handy Knowledge in Ming (1368-1644) Daily-use Encyclopedias”

📅 Thursday, September 10, 2026
🕓 1:00 PM CT
📍 Zoom — Open to the public
💻 Zoom registration: https://loom.ly/Z5g98rw

This talk explores the concept of "knowing hands" in pre-modern China through two main dimensions: hand-memory techniques that aided cognitive processing, and "handy knowledge" embodied through physical practice like medical care, martial arts, and divination, as illustrated by daily-use encyclopedias from the Ming dynasty (1368–1644).

Hosted by Chang Xu | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

07/10/2026

NEW ISSUE RELEASE | Transnational Asia
https://transnationalasia.rice.edu

We are thrilled to announce the publication of a new special issue of Transnational Asia: An Interdisciplinary Journal, hosted by Rice University.

Guest-edited by Justin B. Stein, this special issue, titled "Transpacific Networks and Religious Circulations Spanning East Asia and the United States," brings together research exploring the complex ways religious practices, beliefs, and political alignments shift and transform as they cross transpacific borders.

Explore the complete collection of open-access articles:

"Transpacific Networks and Religious Circulations Spanning East Asia and the United States: An Introduction" - By Justin B. Stein

"A Chinese American Node of Healing: Taiji, Acupuncture, Qigong, and Buddhist Medical Arts" - By Kin Cheung

"Global Ties and Local Divides: How an Austin Buddhist Temple Responded to COVID-19 and its Implications for Transnational Buddhist Communities" - By Natasha Mikles

"Conversion and Making the Anticommunist Body of Christ during the Korean War" - By Sandra H. Park

"Transnational Politics and Korean Evangelicalism: Affective Infrastructure and History" - By Minjung Noh

"Eddies in the Stream: Networked Flows of Spiritual Commodities in Global Shinto" - By Kaitlyn Ugoretz

A huge thank you to our guest editor, authors, and reviewers for their vital contributions to this compelling collection. Read the full open-access issue at https://transnationalasia.rice.edu

04/17/2026

📣 Happening TODAY!

🌏 He Bian (Associate Professor, History and East Asian Studies, Princeton University) will present: “The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China”

📅 Friday, April 17, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Sewall Hall 303 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/gpUu9nE)

The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China explores how the Qing court used multilingual lexicography and natural history to codify a vast biological world, ultimately transforming the Manchu language into a powerful tool for imperial organization and cultural authority.

Hosted by Chang Xu | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

04/16/2026

📣 TOMORROW!

🌏 He Bian (Associate Professor, History and East Asian Studies, Princeton University) will present: “The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China”

📅 Friday, April 17, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Sewall Hall 303 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/gpUu9nE)

The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China explores how the Qing court used multilingual lexicography and natural history to codify a vast biological world, ultimately transforming the Manchu language into a powerful tool for imperial organization and cultural authority.

Hosted by Chang Xu | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

04/10/2026

📣 Just 1 week away! UPDATED LOCATION

🌏 He Bian (Associate Professor, History and East Asian Studies, Princeton University) will present: “The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China”

📅 Friday, April 17, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Sewall Hall 303 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/gpUu9nE)

The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China explores how the Qing court used multilingual lexicography and natural history to codify a vast biological world, ultimately transforming the Manchu language into a powerful tool for imperial organization and cultural authority.

Hosted by Chang Xu | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

04/09/2026

📣 Happening TODAY!

🌏 Dr. Aimée Froom (curator, Art of the Islamic Worlds, and co-Director, World Faiths Initiative, at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston) will present: “Looking East, Looking West: Safavids, Ottomans, and Mughals in the Age of Empires at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston”

📅 Thursday, April 9, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Herring Hall 100 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/OjCLR6o)

This talk utilizes the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s extensive collections to show how the Safavid, Ottoman, and Mughal empires maintained unique imperial identities and integrated diverse global influences despite sharing a common Islamic aesthetic.

Hosted by Lisa Balabanlilar | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

04/08/2026

📣 TOMORROW!

🌏 Dr. Aimée Froom (curator, Art of the Islamic Worlds, and co-Director, World Faiths Initiative, at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston) will present: “Looking East, Looking West: Safavids, Ottomans, and Mughals in the Age of Empires at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston”

📅 Thursday, April 9, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Herring Hall 100 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/OjCLR6o)

This talk utilizes the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s extensive collections to show how the Safavid, Ottoman, and Mughal empires maintained unique imperial identities and integrated diverse global influences despite sharing a common Islamic aesthetic.

Hosted by Lisa Balabanlilar | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

04/02/2026

📣 Just 1 week away!

🌏 Dr. Aimée Froom (curator, Art of the Islamic Worlds, and co-Director, World Faiths Initiative, at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston) will present: “Looking East, Looking West: Safavids, Ottomans, and Mughals in the Age of Empires at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston”

📅 Thursday, April 9, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Herring Hall 100 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/OjCLR6o)

This talk utilizes the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s extensive collections to show how the Safavid, Ottoman, and Mughal empires maintained unique imperial identities and integrated diverse global influences despite sharing a common Islamic aesthetic.

Hosted by Lisa Balabanlilar | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

03/24/2026

📣 Join us for this Transnational Asia Speaker Series event!

🌏 He Bian (Associate Professor, History and East Asian Studies, Princeton University) will present: “The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China”

📅 Friday, April 17, 2026
🕓 4:00 PM CT
📍 Herring Hall 100 — Open to the public, no registration required
💻 Also available via Zoom (🔗: https://loom.ly/gpUu9nE)

The Manchu Mirrors and the Knowledge of Plants and Animals in High Qing China explores how the Qing court used multilingual lexicography and natural history to codify a vast biological world, ultimately transforming the Manchu language into a powerful tool for imperial organization and cultural authority.

Hosted by Chang Xu | Presented by the Chao Center for Asian Studies | Supported by the Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

Address

6100 Main Street
Houston, TX
77005

Telephone

+17133485843

Website

http://chaocenter.rice.edu/, http://linktr.ee/ChaoCenter

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