Ideas,Stirrd

Bar-based lecture series are becoming increasingly popularin the capital，attractingstudentsand workers lookingto learn and find community outside of traditional educational spaces

邊喝酒，邊聽課，這屆年輕人愛上“學術酒吧

0 naSundaynightinBeijing，doctoral candidate DingJiayi stands before an audience of 4O people—all nursing cocktails-and walks them through the particulars of traditional Chinese medicine. Though her slides are dense with historical texts and scientific findings，many of them drawn from her own research， she quips throughout her talk， often pausing to poke fun at the mystique surrounding TCM.

“Oh，” she laughs， stopping abruptly halfway through her lecture.“I'm actually pretty hungry. Let me eat a snack， OK？” She opens a pack of crackers，and heraudience breaks into applause.

This is the first of14April lectureshosted by Universe Salon，aprogram that invites academics and industry experts to discuss topics of their choosingat bars across Beijing. The particular venue-ECubed，whereUniverse Salonbeganespeciallysuits the program'sname.Sixteen stories above the Haidian district， its golden stage lights twinkle like stars.Ding's enthusiasm for TCMis infectious，and her audience clings to her every word with rapt wonder.

Overthe last year， academic bars have exploded in popularityacrossBeijingand other major Chinese cities.For many students， recent graduates，and workers， these events promise specializedknowledgeand communityoutside the classroom.For lecturers，they provide access to eager and diverse audiences who bring surprising new insights to their disciplines.

Zhang Jianchen， the founder of both Universe SalonandECubed，hasalwayswanted tocreate aspaceforinformalacademicdiscussion.After four years of working as a bartender， the 2O-yearold opened E Cubed in 2023.His first lecture was a collaborative effort between a group of Beijingbased undergraduate students and professors， who had proposed hosting their own event. Inspired bythecamaraderiebetweenstudents andprofessors，ZhanglaunchedUniverseSalonin the summer of 2024.

Sincethen，UniverseSalon'steamhas welcomed dozens of professors，students，industry professionals，and evenmembersof government to talkatbarsacross the city，resultinginavast

\"Academic discussions usually happen behind closed doors， resulting in echo chambers. IfI don’t put in the effort to attend events like this， it's quite hard to hear from people outside my field.\"

repertoire of lecturesacrossnumerous fields.His requirements for lecturersare looser than those of other academic bars across China， which may onlyconsiderlecturersholdingPhDsortenured positionsat prestigious universities.“We look for teachers who have specialized knowledge and who know how to teach an engaging class to a diverse student body，”Zhang tells TWOC. “Other qualifications don't matter as much.\"

Hisvisionofafunandaccessibleacademic spacehas paidoff，earning features innumerous publications on Beijing's nightlife and weekend scene，along with a strong following across social media platforms.“We've struggled with audience overflow on several occasions，\" Zhang tells TWOC.“It's hard to predict which subjects will drawinbiggeraudiences，since they're all popular.”Thoughheasks interested attendees to confirm participation on Xiaohongshu， or RedNote，audience members may show up without warning， standing when there is no room to sit.

Now，Universe Salon offersmultiple lectures simultaneously，hosted at E Cubed'smany partner barsacross the city's central districts：ona single night， followerscanchoosebetweena talkon artificial intelligence inXicheng，aclass onHan dynasty music in Dongcheng，oralecture on traditional ChinesemedicineinWudaokou.

\"Who can tell me what qi really is？\" Ding asks，promisinganE Cubed coupon to whoever answerscorrectly.But there isnoneed for

suchan incentive：halfadozenaudience members leap to respond.Ding engages with eachanswer earnestly，before joking that all of the respondents—a physics student，a computerscientist，andadoctoralcandidate inphilosophy—shouldjoinherteamof TCM researchers.“Traditional Chinesemedicine isn'talwaysconsideredacredible field，\"she tells TWOC afterward.“It's too abstract for many people.\"In exchange for explaining TCMin a simplified andaccessiblemanner， shereceivesa slew of new insights from her audience members， most of whom work in different disciplines. \"Academic discussions usually happen behind closed doors，resultingin echo chambers，\" she says.“IfIdon'tputin the effort to attend events like this， it's quite hard to hear from people outside my field.\"

Zhang first asked Ding to speak after seeing one of her posts on Xiaohongshu，offeringher a share of theprofitsfrom the event.As someone whohadalreadyattendedseveralUniverse

Salon events， she eagerlyaccepted and is just as excited to return in the future.When not conductingresearch，she teachesclasses to an online audience.But she much prefers the energy of an academic bar， where people usually approach her lectures with curiosity rather than criticism.“It's easy to be attacked online，”she says.“Some netizens doubt the efficacy of TCM， and others disagreewith my specific findings.It can get prettybrutal.\"While itis common for her in-person lectures to instigate discussions and debates，Ding says theaudience tendsto bemuch morerespectfultowardherandeachother.

WangSixuan，who hasattendedUniverse Salon'slecturesformonths，believesthatthe audience's diverse perspectives and disciplines， which draw from shared curiosity toward the world，are precisely what make academic bars soappealing.“Interdisciplinary discussionis often the launching point for new scientific frontiers and policies，”he tells TWOC.Wang， who is currently visiting Beijing on an extended business trip，spends most of his time working in anti-smuggling policymaking in Guangdong province，wherehe and many of his colleagues areusually focused on their immediatework.“If I discuss social issues，history，or literature，I tend to be considered an outsider，”he continues.He was electrified bytheatmosphere inECubed， where audience members engaged in discussions on everything from philosophy to“dreams about changing the world.\"

Barownersand researchersaren't the onlyones tappingintothepotentialofacademicbars.Zhou Yuan， the founder of Bowen Travel and Tourism， aBeijing-based travel company， recently decided to organize similar eventstoraiseawareness and foster enthusiasm toward aspects of China's traditional culture.Her company currently offers several travel itineraries，suchascitywalksin the capital，ancient mural tours in Shanxi，and trips toJapan'scultural heritage sites，but she sought toaddarelativelyaccessibleandlow-commitment option to herroster.This March，she reached out to variousbars，looking for venueswilling to host academic lectures，and putoutacall forlecturers on Xiaohongshu.

FangYuan，adoctoral candidateattheChina AcademyofArts，respondedto Zhou'scall.Within a month，the two organized their first event at Taodan Bar. The bar，located just outside Beijing's Yonghe Temple，isa fitting venue for the topic at hand—EmperorQianlong's18th-century rule— given thathewasborn there.“Canyou think ofa contemporarycountrythatdoesn'ttaxitscitizens？ sheasksheraudienceof 3O，whositbefore her on foldout chairs.“For many years， the Qianlong Emperor didn't tax his subjects.”Her audience murmursinappreciationas she walks them through the emperor's love for calligraphy and his system for appraisingartworks.

“There aren't that many opportunities for the average person to learn about ancient history，\" Fang tells TWOC.Many of the educational

\"People loosen up over alcohol and tend to offer more sincere insights. We might be learning about a serious subject， but there's none of the pretense that you'd find in a classroom.\"

eventshostedbymuseumsand libraries fall during workinghours，conflicting with students' and workers'busy schedules.Fang had not expected her audience to be so enthusiastic about her subject， nor to have so much fun lecturing.After her talk， she engagesher audience membersindiscussions，recommending books anddocumentariestomoreavidattendees. While neither Fang nor Zhou have earned any profits fromhosting academic bars，since all

drink revenue goes to thebar， Zhou does get an opportunitytopromote thecultural tripsoffered byher company. Zhou aims to continue hosting academicbartalksaboutChina'straditional culture everymonth，hopefullyata variety of bars across Beijing.

Ming Yilan，who requested to be interviewed undera pseudonym，was one of the guests atFang's first lecture.A graduate of Peking University who now works in education，he hasspentalmosta decade in the city，where he gained a deep appreciation for its culture.He tells TWOC that Beijing's long history and density of universities mean that it is uniquely positioned asabeacon for more inquisitive individuals，who are likelier to spend their free time attending such lectures.Like Wang， the regularatUniverse Salon， Mingbelieves thatitis the company of these individuals，and the conversations that ensue after thelectures， thatarethemaindrawofacademic bars.“People loosen up over alcohol and tend to offer more sincere insights，”he says.“We might be learningabouta serious subject，but there's none of the pretense that you'd find ina classroom.\"

While people of all backgrounds are welcome toattendacademicbars，almostalloftheaudience arewhite-collar professionals or students.Universe Salon's venue-a1O-minutewalk from the nearest metro stationand situated squarelybetween Tsinghua University's south gate and Peking University’s campus—makes it a convenient location for students looking for an evening activity. Meanwhile， Taodan's location in central Beijing is typically frequented by middle-class patrons.At both bars，attendees must purchase at least one drink， ranging anywhere from 60 to 9O yuan.

“For 60 to 90 yuan a lecture，Iwouldn't go very often，” saysDiDi （pseudonym），a recent college graduate in social work.“Imight attend a lecture once every month or two，depending on how interesting it looks.”After graduating，Di Di turned to books，discussionswith friends，and free online content as her primary means of gaining newknowledge.

Wang Junying， who completed her master's degree at Tsinghua University before beginning work in outdoor education，agrees that attending academic barsmaybea costly pursuit for recent graduates.“So much of the access to urban communities and knowledge these days requires money，”Wang tells TWOC.“Sometimes，it feels like I'm trading one hour of work [income] for one hour of fun.”According to the higher-education consultancy MyCOS， the average income for China's graduating class of 2023 is 6，050 yuan per month.Though Wang understands the value of academic bars，she says that she would onlyattend them sparingly， depending on whether the subject piquedherinterest.

Still， academic bars are one significant step toward democratizing educationinan increasingly specialized world.Zhang，founderofUniverse Salon，believes that they will only become more popularaspeople seek out the communities and access to knowledge that they lostafter graduating from college.“We hope people can form friendships with each otherand the lecturers throughthese events，\"hetells TWOC.‘Atthe end of the day， everyone needs an outlet for their curiosity.\"