Google Tech Talk: Casey Wilson on microfinance in China

Casey Wilson of Wokai appears for a second time at the Googleplex to discuss microfinance and the future of China.

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Military excercises and another hit-and-run incident

Southern Metropolis Daily focuses on the military tensions on the Korean peninsular, especially the military exercises held by the US and South Korea.

City Evening News has the alarmist title US Aircraft Carrier Flaunting Power In Yellow Seas and a picture of an US aircraft carrier.

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Google, Wikileaks and an anonymous U.S. Embassy “contact”

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The latest Wikileaks data dump of confidential cables from U.S. embassies and consulates has so far produced one China story that is being widely circulated:

China’s Politburo directed the intrusion into Google’s computer systems in that country, a Chinese contact told the American Embassy in Beijing in January, one cable reported. The Google hacking was part of a coordinated campaign of computer sabotage carried out by government operatives, private security experts and Internet outlaws recruited by the Chinese government. They have broken into American government computers and those of Western allies, the Dalai Lama and American businesses since 2002, cables said.

Unfortunately, the cables do not yet seem to be available to the public on Wikileaks’ website, nor on the websites of media organizations like the Guardian and New York Times that have worked with Wikileaks to publicize and analyze the leaks.

However, judging from the reports about the leaks, the information about the Google hacking comes from an anonymous U.S. Embassy “contact”. It is impossible to judge how reliable such a contact might be without any further information.

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Today’s dose of the paranormal: Stargates and UFOs

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Yangtse Evening Post, November 26, 2010

Right below a top headline about a Xinhua editorial condemning the situation that leads to poor engineering projects, today’s Yangtse Evening Post fulfills its responsibility to educate the public and quash rumors by clearing up some misconceptions about a “Stargate” in the Gulf of Aden:

Internet users have recently been concerned with news about a “Gulf of Aden Stargate.” Rumors claim that as early as December 9, 2009, a spiral of blue light, like a computer-generated image, suddenly appeared in the sky over northern Norway. About a month after the spiral disappeared, a massive magnetic field that appeared in the Gulf of Aden opened up a wormhole or “Stargate.” The rumor said that the multinational military escort in the Gulf of Aden, ostensibly there to fight Somali pirates, is actually working to explore the Stargate and distant galaxies a million light years away.

Professor Wang Sichao of the Purple Mountain Astronomical Observatory, an authority on UFO research in China, said of the phenomenon: “The ‘Stargate’ theory is not credible. It has no basis in astronomy or the facts.”

Reports state that on December 9, the entire northern part of Norway could see a peculiar phenomenon. A blue spiraling light suddenly appeared in the sky, looking like it was a computer-generated image. Simultaneously, a blue ray of light shot out from behind a mountain and began to revolve. After a few seconds, the massive spiral covered practically the entire sky. Then a ray of green light shot out from the spiral’s center. Between ten and twelve minutes later, the spiral disappeared. This “Stargate” opens up a wormhole through which humanity can travel through time.

Rumors revolve around Aaron McCollum, a self-identified former group leader with the U.S. Coast Guard, who alleges that a multinational military force is exploring the Stargate in the guise of fighting Somali pirates. Other rumors allege that NASA recently released information about a new black hole to divert attention from the Stargate.

Wang Sichao told the newspaper that although the blue spiral in Norway was quite likely a spiral UFO, the magnetic vortex in the Gulf of Aden was most certainly not a Stargate.

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Tai Yangli – freelance peasant inventor

A profile of inventor Tai Yangli, produced for this year’s TEDx Beijing forum. See more video from the event at Mandarin Film.

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At 13.09 seconds, Liu Xiang returns as the king

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Southern Metropolis Daily, November 25, 2010

Today’s papers are splashed with Liu Xiang’s victory — and third gold medal — yesterday at the Asian Games. The 110m hurdler had limped out of the 2008 Olympics and was heralded a champion and a king after he successfully beat his opponents with the Asian Games record of 13.09 seconds.

The Southern Metropolis Daily goes with an animated picture of Liu, together with the characters for Guangzhou and a Nike logo. The China gold medal count is at 173 as of yesterday, which is more than the last Asian Games.

The main headline of the paper denotes that any plans to change the price of gas has been deferred by the Guangdong Price Bureau, after Guangdong citizens are worried about rising prices following what have happened in other cities.

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Jilin has nothing to fear from the DPRK

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East Asia Economy and Trade News, November 24, 2010

In a cover feature on the artillery fire exchanged between North and South Korea yesterday, Changchun’s East Asia Economy and Trade News reassures its readers that they are not at risk.

The top headline reads “DPRK, ROK Exchange Fire: More than 300 artillery shells fired; 2 deaths and 16 injuries in the ROK.” A smaller subhead reads, Experts: Residents of our province on the DPRK border need not fear war.

The south-eastern part of Jilin Province borders the DPRK, which shelled Yeonpyeong Island yesterday afternoon, killing two ROK marines and setting fire to buildings.

China’s response, covered in the left-hand sidebar, expressed concern for the situation, and urged the parties involved to preserve stability on the peninsula.

At the bottom of the page is a headline worth quoting in full:

Going through nearly 50,000 RMB in lottery tickets without a win;

Man says “Got no money,” and runs off.

Fleeing the lottery agent, he left behind his ID card. The agent made two reports to the police, who declined to accept the case, calling it a civil matter. Lawyer: the man may be guilty of fraud.

The front page also includes a small photo of a tragic stampede in Cambodia that left 350 dead on Monday (down from earlier reports of 378 deaths).

Similar photographs were carried in other newspapers, including the Wuxi Business News, whose tasteless front page showed rows of corpses beneath a headline reading “Coffins urgently needed” (急需棺材).

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St Petersburg tiger summit and China

Kathy Lally in The Washington Post:

The tale of the magnificent Siberian tiger, and its unfinished fight for survival, should be a compelling one for the 500 conservationists and world leaders arriving for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s tiger summit this weekend.

The summit on the fate of the tiger has been convened in St. Petersburg as the singular chance to keep the world’s last 3,000 or so wild tigers from extinction, and the near-death experience of Russia’s big, beautiful animals informs how they can be saved elsewhere.

Beijing-based environment correspondent for The GuardianJonathan Watts was there, and had this to say:

Putin may be the tiger’s champion, but China will decide the species’ future

Premier Wen’s vague words at the tiger summit do little to inspire confidence in the country that drives a gruesome trade…

The Amur tiger population in Russia has bucked the global trend by making an impressive recovery from fewer than 30 in 1945 to about 500 today. It is evidence that the animal can recover if supported by political will and public awareness.

China, by contrast, has not only seen its own population of tigers decline precipitously in the past 50 years, its consumers have also boosted demand for illegally-poached tigers from overseas…

…Premier Wen was the only one of the five national leaders at the summit who did not deign to attend the “press conference” (where no questions were allowed). In the summit, he stressed the need for greater enforcement. “All countries should crack down on poaching and illegal trade of tigers,” he said. For conservationists, it was a disappointingly vague statement from the country that drives the main demand for tiger products.

There is one Chinese organization fighting for tigers: Save China’s Tigers, run by former Gucci executive Li Quan. One of the organization’s main activities is ‘rewilding’ tigers or training zoo-kept tigers for re-introduction into the wild. The training is currently taking place in South Africa.

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New Express readers to vote for “Eight Sights” of Guangzhou

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New Express, November 23, 2010

The New Express, based in Guangzhou, announced a competition for setting the new “Eight Sights” of Guangzhou. It was launched to coincide with the Asian Games, and now the decisions are near. The last time that the “Eight Sights” of Guangzhou was declared was 2002. It included Baiyun Mountain and the Pearl River. The new campaign, which lists historical sites places like Lychee Bend (荔枝湾), has explored parts of the city that are worth mentioning, asking athletes competing in the Asian Games to vote. The title of the front page applauds the newspaper’s own competition saying that Famous people give power to choosing eight new sights.

By famous people New Express means the Party Secretary of Guangdong’s Jinan University (暨南大学), who said that “Because of the Asian Games, Guangzhou really is more beautiful” and fully endorses the paper’s aspiration to pick new sights.

The newspaper used 给力 for “give power” in the headline, as the phrase that first started on the internet as a meme has recently exploded with popularity amongst newspapers.

On the lower half of the page is a juxtaposition of 110m hurdler Liu Xiang (刘翔) with Lao Yi (劳义), who won gold for the 100m race at the Asian Games in Guangzhou.

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Kedong County: a documentary by Chinageeks

Kedong County, a documentary about a village in Heilongjiang Province by Chinageeks.

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