A photo posted by a Sina Weibo user shows her listening to the sound from a watermelon. (Photo/Sina Weibo)
The art of picking a ripe watermelon has sparked a heated discussion on China's social media.
The discussion, which thousands of people contributed to on the Chinese micro blogging site Sina Weibo, began when a Chinese social media user posted the below picture of a sign on an Italian supermarket asking customers not to knock on the watermelons.
The viral photo was originally posted by a user who calls himself "Isolated Guardian". He is believed to be a Chinese man living in Milan.
The sign, which can be seen sticking out of a cart of watermelons in what seems to be an Italian supermarket, reads: "Please stop knocking on the watermelons, they will not respond to it!!!"
The photo was widely shared after Chinese media outlets reported that the notice was aimed directly at Chinese customers.
Chengdu Commercial Paper, for example, posted the following blog:
"An Italian market set up a sign for Chinese customers: 'Dear customers, please do not tap the watermelons again. They really will not respond!!!' If you are there, what do you want to say to the Italian supermarket?"
The Chengdu Commercial Post post alone was shared 7,700 times within a day. Many netizens found the picture amusing and shared photos of themselves listening for a response from watermelons:
"Knocking before the eating is the basic respects we show to watermelons, like saying to them: 'Are you ripe? Are you ready to be eaten?" joked one netizen.
"We have been communicating with watermelons for thousands of years, we can hear their life story with a simple knock," another netizen remarked.
While some netizens seemed to have fun participating in the "melon discussion", many others simply wanted to know the truth behind the news reports, asking: "Excuse me, which word means Chinese?"
A few netizens are angry at the media for spreading rumors. One netizen writes under the Chengdu Commerical Paper post: "If this sign is aimed at Chinese customers, it should have been written in Chinese. Shame on you."
"Isolated Guardian" removed his post later on June 19, claiming the photo of the Italian market was an old one and not taken by himself.
A quick search online reveals that Chinese shoppers are not alone in tapping on watermelons and listening for a hollow sound. A lot of videos and blogs with advice on how to pick a ripe watermelon can be found on Google. Such as this piece on problem-solving website wikiHow, which suggests a ripe watermelon should give a "full sound" rather than a "dull and deep one" if one taps it with the knuckle.
It even appears in an episode of a Russian cartoon called "Nu, pogodi", as BBC reported.
There was also a smart phone app developed by a group of Chinese students to help you find a good watermelon. The app named "Ting Xi Gua", or "Listen to the Watermelon", picks up the sound when you tap on a watermelon, analyzes it and decides whether the watermelon is ripe enough.
