Bowing avoid bumping heads. The kowtow is the highest sign of reverence in Han Chinese culture, but its use has become extremely rare since the collapse of Imperial China. In many situations, the standing bow has replaced the kowtow. However, in modern Chinese societies, bowing is not as formalized as in Japan, South Korea and North Korea. Bowing is normally reserved for occasions such as marriage ceremonies and as a gesture of respect for the deceased, although it still sometimes used for more formal greetings. In China, three bows are customarily executed at funerals including state funerals, ancestral worship, and at
Judith A. Boss with the US Fish and Wildlife Services. An avid traveler, she has traveled with students from the University Of Rhode Island and Brown Medical School to work with underserved, indigenous people in Guatemala and Mexico. Her favorite travel destination, however, is Antarctica. Boss earned a PhD in Social Ethics in 1990 from Boston University, a MSc in Human Development from the University of Rhode Island in 1991, and BA in Philosophy from the University of Western Australia in 1969. She was on the faculty of the Department of Philosophy at the University of Rhode Island from 1988 to 1995 and