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This father explained sci-fi epic The Wandering Earth to his young kids with drawings

Scientist’s hand-drawn explainers go viral on Chinese internet

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This father explained sci-fi epic The Wandering Earth to his young kids with drawings
Karen Chiu
This article originally appeared on ABACUS

Want to get your kids interested in science and technology? Watching a sci-fi movie could be a great idea. But one Chinese father who took his daughters to watch The Wandering Earth went even further, drawing a set of illustrated explainers.

The Wandering Earth, based on a novella by Hugo Award-winning author Liu Cixin, is currently showing in Chinese and US theaters. It’s doing exceptionally well in China, having raked in nearly US$300 million in box office sales in a little more than a week, according to Box Office Mojo.
The Wandering Earth debuted in China on the first day of the Lunar New Year. (Picture: South China Morning Post)
The Wandering Earth debuted in China on the first day of the Lunar New Year. (Picture: South China Morning Post)
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The film is set in a post-apocalyptic future where the Sun is threatening our planet -- so the global government decides that the only way for humans to survive is to propel Earth out of the solar system.

The plot involves quite a bit of astronomy and planetary science, ideas that are difficult for Dr. Wang Yuanzhuo’s young daughters, aged 5 and 10, to grasp. So the Chinese Academy of Sciences researcher decided to explain those concepts with pictures. (It might seem excessive, but this is a guy who builds robots for his kids.)
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We’re going to delve into a few light spoilers here, so you’ve been warned!

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