Xi Yuan is currently a Ph.D. candidate of Department of Sociology at University of Virginia. His primary research areas include cultural sociology, historical sociology, and political sociology, with a core theoretical focus on explaining “why people are willing to believe.” His early research was in the field of sociology of education, focusing on issues such as teacher-student relationships and school policies, with related articles published in Higher Education Review, Journal of Education, and Asia Pacific Education Review. His recent main research addresses the political system and political culture changes in China, analyzing state-building and legitimacy construction at different historical stages in China. His secondary research focuses on popular culture, exploring the impact of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence in fields like art and divination. Xi has presented his work at multiple academic conferences and has received funding support from various institutions at the University of Virginia. Additionally, he has independently or collaboratively translated works such as The State as a Conceptual Variable, Comparing Civilizations and Multiple Modernities, and Religion and the Rise of Western Culture, with related translations in preparation and review.

Wang Ruxuan, born in 1994, graduated with a master’s degree from the Department of Fine Arts at Taiwan University of Arts. He is currently an artist and an editor at Art Temper. Wang is based in Taipei, where he both creates and resides. His exhibition history includes a little fable (2022, Zone Art, Taoyuan), 5F, No. 18 (2023, 80 A Gallery, Taipei), Next Door: A Group Exhibition by Lin Junda, Wang Ruxuan, and Chen Yanchi (2023, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu), and Story Teller (2024, WMM Untitled, Taipei).