Silk is a fine, smooth material produced by silkworms（蚕）. It’s said that Lei Tzu, ruler of China in about 3000 BC, discovered silkworms while she was taking a walk in the garden. At first, only women were responsible for the farming and growing of silkworms and only the emperor’s family could wear clothes that were made of silk. Later,silk was used to make not only clothes, but also fishing lines. During the Han Dynasty, Chinese people began to trade silk with western buyers. They carried silk to the west and brought back things they needed. The road that the traders travelled along was called the Silk Road, because at that time

The Silk Road was over 6,400 kilometers. It started from Xi’an in central China, went past the Great Wall of China, crossed the Middle East, and then ended in Rome.

Without doubt, the Silk Road played an important role in history. Different cultures and ideas spread along the Silk Road. Towns along the road grew into international cities. The exchange of information gave rise to new technologies and inventions that would change the world.

Have you ever heard about automata(机关人偶)? Automata, the ancient art form, look like humans or animals. Actually, the name comes from the Greek word automatos which means “moves on its own”.

Automata were machines produced in ancient times, and how they work hasn’t changed for thousands of years. But in the modern times of technology, there are plenty of electronic products in the market. As a result, automata have attracted(吸引) no more than 10 full-time makers across our country China.

Yu Chenrui is one maker of automata. When he studied at the Communication University of China in Beijing, he first met automata at a fair in 2015. From then on, he falls in love with making them and doesn’t refuse to use modern technology. He has made some amazing works with the help of modern technology. Last year, he made a cycling machine for the Community Art Project in Chengdu. It uses pedal (脚踏板) power to control wheels that “fire” tennis ball-sized objects.

Although the start of automata dates back thousands of years, a fascinating thing about Yu’s works is that they are loved by people of all ages. Adults admire them as art, while children regard them as toys to be played with.

Technology makes it possible to produce plenty of automata and makes the ancient art form more popular. But Yu thinks technology brings automata back to life.

In ancient times, people usually wrote from right to left in vertical columns(竖列). But now, we write from left to right in horizontal rows (横行). Why did this change? This has to do with the writing tools and habits that people had at that time.

Before paper was created, people wrote on bamboos. They wrote from top to bottom on one piece and then another. These bamboos were connected together into one long passage and rolled up. People usually held it with their right hand and opened it with their left hand. Therefore, it is more convenient to start writing from the right-hand side.

In 1917, linguist(语言学家) Qian Xuantong wrote a letter to the New Culture Movement leader Chen Duxiu. He suggested writing Chinese from left to right. He said that if we used our right hands to write, it would be easier to begin from the left and more comfortable to read. However, his idea wasn’t widely accepted.

In the early 1950s, famous overseas Chinese businessman Chen Jiageng and Chinese writer Guo Moruo raised this advice again. They thought that the area seen from left to right was much wider than the area seen from up to down. In this way, writing and reading sideways will reduce eye fatigue(疲劳).

Gradually, newspapers, magazines and books were printed in horizontal rows. And people began writing from left to right instead of writing from right to left. Now people have been used to writing from left to right in rows.