A note on the use of Chinese language in this site

There are two forms of written Chinese in general use. Simplified Chinese is used in Mainland China, while Traditional Chinese is used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore and other areas of the Chinese diaspora. The Chinese expressions here are given first in Simplified form, then in Traditional form, and this is followed by the vocalization in the official Mandarin dialect according to the pinyin system. In some cases, the Simplified and Traditional forms are identical. Vowels with diacritics indicate one of the five tones used in Mandarin Chinese. For example: “dā” is first tone (high and level); "dá” is second tone (starts medium, then rises); “dă” is third tone (starts low, dips to the bottom, then rises toward the top); “dà” is fourth tone (starts at top, then falls sharply); and, “da” is fifth or neutral tone (flat, with no emphasis). Where appropriate, literal translations of some terms are provided.