A guzheng is a specific kind of Chinese string instrument; the thin strings of nanomaterial in many ways mimic the strings of a guzheng. More important, however, is Shi’s focus on the particulars of bodily experience (namely, when the ship’s crew will sleep). And it is also worth taking in the geopolitical significance of an American general giving a Chinese policeman Cuban cigars—the old wounds of the Cold War, while not healed completely, seem a thing of the distant past.