Word of the Day: Mammary Men

Men like to assess women by their mammary assets, or their bottoms, and have a preference for one or the other.

But there is another kind of man called 奶嘴男 nai(3) zui(3) nan(2) which means "nipple man".

These men -- or boys -- are like Peter Pan, unwilling to grow up, and even after they marry they look at their wives as an extension of their mothers.

And while we're on the subject of men needing maternal comfort, there's a group of people called "school lingerers", people who have already graduated but still hang out or even continue to live on university and college campuses.

Yang Ming, an advertising design graduate at Dezhou University, Shandong Province, graduated last July. But three months later despite getting a job, she decided to move back to her campus to live with a former classmate who is studying for the National Entrance Exam for Graduate Students.

Apparently the university opens up 100 dorms for graduates who want to study for this exam.

"My salary is enough to pay the rent on a place near my company. But I feel people in the community are not easy to communicate with, and so sophisticated compared with simple students in the university," Yang said.

Despite the longer commute to work, she says she prefers it, at least until her roommate finishes the exam.

Another former student from Hebei University, Chen Hongying, rents a place near her alma mater to take advantage of the school's facilities, particularly the canteen for breakfast and lunch.

"I feel so comfortable and secure walking on the campus I am familiar with," she said. "My two former classmates have been admitted to grad school, and I usually eat with them in the cafeteria. If I stayed at home, I could not imagine what my neighbours would think of me. Maybe they would wonder why I have graduated but am still at home," Chen added.

According to the China News Service, the number of school lingerers in Beijing, Guangzhou and Zhengzhou is in the tens of thousands.

Tang Haibo, vice director of the psychological health center at Central South University in Changsha, Hunan Province says the phenomenon of school lingerers reflects these young people's inability to adapt to new environments.

"After stepping out, the change makes them recall the quiet life on campus and they want to escape from society. They show they are dependent on universities and seek to continue living in an ivory tower," he said.

"But if they indulge in this sense of security the campus provides for them, they will become a frog in a wall, never catching the opportunity to adapt to society."

Apart from living away from home, life in a university campus is very similar to high school, as many professors will care for the students like children. Things are very inexpensive and practically everything is provided for, even though they may not be of a high standard.

For most fresh graduates in China, the transition to real life is a big shock to them, because unlike most kids in North America, they have had exposure to work through summer jobs or part-time jobs.

Reality can be cruel, but it's a rite of passage everyone must go through. Even for nipple men.