Ministry of Education Preliminarily Approved Since December 2012.

Much of the campus' construction has been plagued by information failings and lost or simply ignored requests. Communication between contractors and designers—sometimes between 40 and 50 different groups—was poorly managed, and there was no Chinese government team specifically charged with managing K-STEP's progress on DKU, said Duke project manager Dudley Willis.
Duke committed $ 5.5 million toward design and construction oversight for the project in 2010. The money pays for several private American-based firms, including Gensler, Syska Hennessy Group, Thornton Tomasetti and Jones Lange Lasalle. The latter firm currently has five on-site people—up from three in earlier years. The firms identified problems but did not have the authority to effect change. Although Duke officials visited the campus every two or three months, there was no representative on the ground in China consistently through the first few years of construction.

In planning courses, the committee is on familiar ground in some respects but also will meet unique challenges as a consequence of the campus' location in China, Robisheaux said. The committee will emphasize quality, aiming to make every course offered at DKU similar in difficulty and subject matter to those offered on the Durham campus. The Faculty Committee on Courses is following its usual procedures to approve courses while applying them to the special circumstance of DKU.

Something Must Be Lost in Translation Here

At least, I sincerely hope so.

Submitted by: Unknown

In China, College Degrees Now Dime a Dozen

HANJING, China — Wu Yiebing has been going down coal shafts practically every workday of his life, wrestling an electric drill for $500 a month in the choking dust of claustrophobic tunnels, with one goal in mind: paying for his daughter’s education.

His wife, Cao Weiping, toils from dawn to sunset in orchards every day during apple season in May and June. She earns $12 a day tying little plastic bags one at a time around 3,000 young apples on trees, to protect them from insects. The rest of the year she works as a substitute store clerk, earning several dollars a day, all going toward their daughter’s education.
Many families in the West sacrifice to put their children through school, saving for college educations that they hope will lead to a better life. Few efforts can compare with the heavy financial burden that millions of lower-income Chinese parents now endure as they push their children to obtain as much education as possible.
Yet a college degree no longer ensures a well-paying job, because the number of graduates in China has quadrupled in the last decade.
Mr. Wu and Mrs. Cao, who grew up in tiny villages in western China and became migrants in search of better-paying work, have scrimped their entire lives. For nearly two decades, they have lived in a cramped and drafty 200-square-foot house with a thatch roof. They have never owned a car. They do not take vacations — they have never seen the ocean. They have skipped traditional New Year trips to their ancestral village for up to five straight years to save on bus fares and gifts, and for Mr. Wu to earn extra holiday pay in the mines. Despite their frugality, they have essentially no retirement savings.
Thanks to these sacrifices, their daughter, Wu Caoying, is now a 19-year-old college sophomore. She is among the growing millions of Chinese college students who have gone much farther than their parents could have dreamed when they were growing up. For all the hard work of Ms. Wu’s father and mother, however, they aren’t certain it will pay off. Their daughter is ambivalent about staying in school, where the tuition, room and board cost more than half her parents’ combined annual income. A slightly above-average student, she thinks of dropping out, finding a job and earning money.
“Every time my daughter calls home, she says, ‘I don’t want to continue this,’ ” Mrs. Cao said. “And I say, ‘You’ve got to keep studying to take care of us when we get old’, and she says, ‘That’s too much pressure, I don’t want to think about all that responsibility.’ ”
Ms. Wu dreams of working at a big company, but knows that many graduates end up jobless. “I think I may start my own small company,” she says, while acknowledging she doesn’t have the money or experience to run one.
For a rural parent in China, each year of higher education costs six to 15 months’ labor, and it is hard for children from poor families to get scholarships or other government financial support. A year at the average private university in the United States similarly equals almost a year’s income for the average wage earner, while an in-state public university costs about six months’ pay, but financial aid is generally easier to obtain than in China. Moreover, an American family that spends half its income helping a child through college has more spending power with the other half of its income than a rural Chinese family earning less than $5,000 a year.
It isn’t just the cost of college that burdens Chinese parents. They face many fees associated with sending their children to elementary, middle and high schools. Many parents also hire tutors, so their children can score high enough on entrance exams to get into college. American families that invest heavily in their children’s educations can fall back on Medicare, Social Security and other social programs in their old age. Chinese citizens who bet all of their savings on their children’s educations have far fewer options if their offspring are unable to find a job on graduation.
The experiences of Wu Caoying, whose family The New York Times has tracked for seven years, are a window into the expanding educational opportunities and the financial obstacles faced by families all over China.
Her parents’ sacrifices to educate their daughter explain how the country has managed to leap far ahead of the United States in producing college graduates over the last decade, with eight million Chinese now getting degrees annually from universities and community colleges.
But high education costs coincide with slower growth of the Chinese economy and surging unemployment among recent college graduates. Whether young people like Ms. Wu find jobs on graduation that allow them to earn a living, much less support their parents, could test China’s ability to maintain rapid economic growth and preserve political and social stability in the years ahead.

Leaving the Village
The ancient village of Mu Zhu Ba is perched on a tree-covered crag overlooking a steep-sided mountain gorge in southwestern Shaanxi province, deep in China’s interior, 900 miles southwest of Beijing. The few scarce acres of flat land next to a stream on the valley floor were reserved until recently for garden-size plots of rice, corn and vegetables.
Villagers were subsistence farmers. Every adult and all but the youngest children worked from dawn to dusk, planting, weeding, hand-watering and harvesting rice, corn and vegetables to feed themselves. They also built and maintained three-foot-wide terraces where the sides of the valley began to curve upward before turning into vertiginous, forested slopes that soared into the clouds.
The relentless work left little opportunity for education. Mrs. Cao, now 39, learned to read some Chinese characters at first- and second-grade classes conducted in her village. But later grades were taught at a school in a larger village at the other end of the valley, a seven-mile walk away, and Mrs. Cao dropped out in third grade.
Her husband, now 43, grew up in a similarly poor village on the other side of the mountain and did not attend school at all.
They married early, and Mrs. Cao had just turned 20 when she gave birth to Ms. Wu. The couple earned just $25 a month. As their baby grew into a toddler, they began worrying that she would inevitably drop out of school early if she had to walk so far to classes every day. So like hundreds of millions of other Chinese over the last two decades, they decided to leave their ancestral village and their families.
“All the parents in the village want their children to go to college, because only knowledge changes your fate,” Mrs. Cao said.
By the time Ms. Wu reached middle school, the crystalline mountain air of Mu Zhu Ba was a dim memory. The family had moved to Hanjing, a coal mining community on the plains of northern Shaanxi province, nearly 300 miles northeast of their ancestral village.

A Coal Miner’s Daughter
Mr. Wu built the family’s two-room brick house himself. They bought their first small refrigerator, a coal stove and a used stereo, and a bare light bulb for the living room and another for the bedroom.
The house, on the town’s rural outskirts, was across a two-lane paved road from a small coal mine where Mr. Wu learned to maneuver a shoulder-carried, 45-pound electric drill in narrow spaces far under the earth, working long shifts and coming home covered with coal dust. He earned nearly $200 a month then, providing more money to educate their daughter. In the family bedroom, where calendar posters of the actress Zhang Ziyi had been plastered on the wall for extra insulation, Mrs. Cao carefully kept all of her daughter’s school papers. Wu Caoying was in seventh grade, but her village school was already teaching her geometry and algebra at a level beyond most American seventh graders. She was also studying geography, history and science, filling homework notebooks with elegant penmanship.
The problem was English, an increasingly important subject for students who wanted to qualify for anything but the worst universities.
The village had an English teacher, and Ms. Wu started learning the language in fourth grade. But then the teacher left, so she was not able to study English during fifth and sixth grade.
Ms. Wu resumed English classes in the seventh grade, but her mother was concerned and began hiring substitute teachers as English tutors for her daughter.
Mrs. Cao said that she was convinced that this would help her daughter become the first in the family to attend college. “If we had not come here, she would have needed to stay home, to help cook and cut wood,” Mrs. Cao said.
But their financial sacrifices were only beginning.
For high school, Wu Caoying began attending a government-run boarding school two miles from the family’s house. Many high schools in China are boarding schools, an arrangement that allows local governments to impose hefty fees on parents. Tuition was $165 a semester. Food was $8 a week. Books, tutorials and exam fees were all extra.

Boarding School
Ms. Wu and seven other teenage girls had bunk beds in a cramped dormitory room. She dressed better than the other girls, in a tight blue coat her mother had just given her for Chinese New Year.
She woke at 5:30 every morning to study, had breakfast at 7:30, then attended classes from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30, 1:30 to 5:30 in the afternoon and 7:30 to 10:30 in the evening. For entertainment, there were occasional showings of patriotic movies. She studied part of the day on Saturdays and Sundays. But she also joined a volunteer group that visited the elderly — social work that might help on a college application in the United States but not in China, where the national entrance exam for universities is all-important.

Ready For Your Job Interview?

Submitted by: Unknown (via Classes and Careers)

In China, Betting It All on a Child in College

China’s success in massively increasing college attendance has outpaced corresponding shifts in its job market, producing a growing “ant tribe” of un- or underemployed graduates. In the latest part of the New York Times series ‘The Education Revolution’, Keith Bradsher explains how this raises the stakes for rural parents, some lacking any formal education themselves, who invest everything in an only-child’s education in the hope that his or her future earnings will support them in old age.

Wu Yiebing has been going down coal shafts practically every workday of his life, wrestling an electric drill for $ 500 a month in the choking dust of claustrophobic tunnels, with one goal in mind: paying for his daughter's education.
His wife, Cao Weiping, toils from dawn to sunset in orchards every day during apple season in May and June. She earns $ 12 a day tying little plastic bags one at a time around 3,000 young apples on trees, to protect them from insects. The rest of the year she works as a substitute store clerk, earning several dollars a day, all going toward their daughter's education.
[…] Her parents' sacrifices to educate their daughter explain how the country has managed to leap far ahead of the United States in producing college graduates over the last decade, with eight million Chinese now getting degrees annually from universities and community colleges.
But high education costs coincide with slower growth of the Chinese economy and surging unemployment among recent college graduates. Whether young people like Ms. Wu find jobs on graduation that allow them to earn a living, much less support their parents, could test China's ability to maintain rapid economic growth and preserve political and social stability in the years ahead.

Reading the whole article is strongly recommended.

---

© Samuel Wade for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013

You Don't Need To Follow The Pack

Submitted by: Unknown

Wire-tapping Wars: The World of Official Espionage

 

Before the Southern Weekly crisis broke out last month, one of the paper’s sister publications, the magazineSouthern People Weekly, published a scathing exposé on the secret world of spying and backstabbing endemic throughout Chinese officialdom. Aside from revelations about Bo Xilai bugging calls with president Hu Jintao, there has been little available information about surveillance inside the Party.
The December article narrates the adventures of Qi Hong, an ex-wire-tapping detective who was so busy debugging the offices of various Chinese officials, he once dismantled 40 hidden wires and cameras in a single week.
The piece is no longer available from Southern People Weekly online.
CDT’s Mengyu Dong has translated the entire article:

Wire-tapping with Chinese Characteristics

Qi Hong grabbed a handrail on a crowded Beijing subway, exposing a deep scar. Others on the train took notice and immediately moved away. The scar was from 23 years ago. Although he had became used to people’s stares after all these years, it nonetheless evoked in him a sense of utter helplessness. He can’t explain what happened to other people. Just like countless other life experiences, this story started with ideals but ended with absurdity.
Qi Hong, about 185 centimeters tall, always appears very stern and alert when not speaking. But when he does speak, one can feel the intensity of his thoughts. I knew about him through a news report published on the front page of Southern Weekly. In the report, he revealed that Daocheng Company (which claimed to be “the third party between the doctor and patient”) bullied their patients, deceived the public, and allegedly committed other illegal acts.
“It’s not ‘revealing’–it’s simply telling the truth,” Qi Hong corrected me. I spent a few days chatting with Qi Hong in a city in Shandong Province. Much of the content of our conversations cannot be told to you at this time. Right now, I just want to tell you that he dismantled more than 300 pieces of wiretapping and video equipment from the cars, offices and bedrooms of over 100 government officials. This happened in 2011.
Wiretapping as Common Practice
The man’s legs went soft and he collapsed to the floor, speechless for a long time–Qi Hong clearly remembers the reaction of the government official when he dismantled a piece of eavesdropping equipment for the first time. He didn’t expect such a reaction. Even more unexpectedly, he started to gain a name for himself among officialdom.
Personal connections are like passing permits. One after another, officials approached him, through acquaintances, to have him look for and dismantle eavesdropping equipment and hidden cameras. They found Qi Hong either because they wanted to be on the safe side, or because they had already sensed something unusual–for example, their wives became aware of their secret whereabouts, or their leaders had given away some “hints” in their speeches. During his busiest week, Qi Hong dismantled over 40 eavesdropping wires.
This whole amazing experience started at a dinner party, during which an official from Shanxidivulged that “wire-tapping was a common practice among officials.” Officials commonly used spying equipment to eavesdrop on each other and gain the upper hand on their rivals in order to ascend from #2 to #1 at the office.
“Nowadays, we hug each other when we meet, taking the opportunity to feel around for spying equipment. Important conversations take place in bath houses,” the Shanxi official said. This astounded everyone at the dinner party. In the areas around Shandong, this was unheard of. People could just not be trusted, they emphatically sighed.
Qi Hong contemplated further. “What consequences will it bring if public servants collect secret info on their colleagues?” He told his friends, “I want to check your security. Let me figure out how to do it. You just wait.” A few days later, he found a set of detective equipment.
Starting out, he conducted his detective work within his circle of friends. “Focal point” persons were his priority, like this one, a mid-level, high profile cadre that had authority over examination and licensing.
“What if my private life is discovered, and my wife doesn’t let me back in the house?” this mid-level cadre joked when Qi Hong proposed helping him look for eavesdropping equipment. But he wasn’t laughing shortly afterwards, when two wires and one pinhole camera were discovered hidden in the air conditioner in his office.
“He gazed straight at the ceiling, and his face immediately turned deathly pale.” Two or three hours later, he regained consciousness and told Qi Hong that the apparatuses couldn’t have been set up by family. But the mistress was “quite adept at scheming.”
After calming down, he set about dealing with the situation. Over the course of the following week, he frequently visited and sent gifts to his superiors. Finally, he got the “suggestion” he sought–a certain deputy head was deemed exceedingly competent and was therefore transferred to a more challenging post. He name was suddenly cleared as he ordered his deputy head to leave.
Very Worried
The spying equipment Qi Hong discovered for his friends was installed by wives, lovers, colleagues, and political rivals. After finding the first 20 or 30 wires and secret cameras, Qi Hong couldn’t help but think: When friends get together, they speak their opinions, comment on politics, and express their shared disgust towards corruption. But what is their image like back in their offices? How do they become one of the “corrupted”?
Initially, he was curious to understand officialdom in China and pry into a different side of human nature. But as he gradually delved deeper into their private worlds, things became unexpectedly awkward.
He mentioned a friend, a bureau-level official, who had always been a decent, eloquent, and insightful man–as he put it, “like a state leader.” During one particular chat, this person said, in a rather tongue-in-cheek way, “Why don’t you check me out and see if I am a good cadre?”
Subsequently, there came a series of turning points. As it turned out, Qi Hong really did find plug-in-style wires in his car. He then saw an extremely distorted face. “Suddenly, it looked like his skin became wrinkled, as if he was radiated by a sudden nuclear explosion.” 20 days later, the friend came to Qi Hong and said, sternly, “I admit, I have two mistresses. I will call off the relationships immediately!”
But why did he specifically confess to Qi Hong? I think Qi Hong also had this embarrassing question in mind. On other occasions, people exclaimed to him, “Damn it! I didn’t take graft!” Others pretended to be calm. But Qi Hong isn’t stupid. He immediately thought, “Why are you reacting so slowly, and why is your expression suddenly so dazed?”
As for that “decent” friend, Qi Hong only remembers feeling embarrassed as he replied, “This is your personal life. If the mistresses make you feel wonderful or full of passion, you can still continue. You can even forget that you ever had a friend like me.” Qi Hong sighed, adding, “That is his freedom,” and continued to tell the story of another bureau chief.
Unlike the former one, this bureau chief swiftly accepted the result,  asserting that the mistress set up the wire. Afterwards, he decisively called off the relationship with her.
“Repulsive.” Bringing up this incident once again, the bureau chief still gnashed his teeth. Having heard so much about how many other officials fell due to their affairs, he even started to be suspicious of his mistress’s background. “Could she be have been planted at my side by someone? Was anyone using her?” Depression and uneasiness haunted him for a long time.
Since the incident with that bureau chief, Qi Hong has witnessed much, much more. Some officials cursed and called people dirty, back-stabbing dogs. Others had heart attacks, worrying day and night… Qi Hong would rush to the hospital and see them laying there, looking pathetic. But Qi Hong couldn’t ask questions of his own accord. Neither could he persuade them to act a certain way. Nobody wanted to broach the problem.
What about those lucky officials who ended up not being wire-tapped? Were they relieved? No! They were very much worried as well, suspicious day and night–could it be that the equipment used to inspect their offices was not advanced enough?
“Should I tell him?” Qi Hong gradually struggled more and more with his conscience as he continued to detect wires and hidden cameras. “If I don’t tell them, what paths will they go down in the future? I don’t want to see miserable things happen. If I do tell them, seeing so many terrible expressions, people becoming sick or just staying silent, I need to comfort them. But I can’t say anything comforting. I can’t just say: What did you do? Confess. Donate your assets.”
Some even eye Qi Hong with suspicion. You offer to test our offices for us… Could you have some ulterior motives yourself? Eh?
No Control of One’s Destiny
Inevitably, “miserable things” happened. A week after Qi Hong discovered one wire, a friend of his (a director at a state-owned capital management office) was detained and interrogated for alleged bribe-taking.
According to Qi Hong’s description, this director was very principled. He treated others with kindness and hated owing money or favors to people. He was the kind of person who would rush to pay the bill after a meal. Qi Hong proposed to help him inspect his office because “it would have been difficult for him to be in cahoots with evil forces, and he presided over a crucial position. Many forces, including his superiors, found it hard to gain interest through him.”
At the time, Qi Hong told him, “You have a great tendency to be viewed as a dangerous dissident, a stumbling block for interest groups.” With regards to the warning, the director merely restated the importance of “principles.”
However, in spite of this reaction, when he saw the wire dismantled by Qi Hong from behind the table lamp in his office, he fell silent.
“Not rage, but silence,” Qi Hong said with an air of thorough understanding of this world–lost, yet indifferent. He thought a great deal about the deeper meaning behind the director’s reaction– until he met him again.
By then, the director was already in jail. “I only took money once, and got into trouble!” He asserted with anger and resentment that the wire-tapping was a scheme and the bribery a trap. The purpose was to get rid of him!
Everything is irreversible. During that meeting at the jail, Qi Hong found out the director was sacked just one week after Qi Hong dismantled the wire. The reason why the director took the bribe, Qi Hong said, was because he could not handle the pressure caused by being in constant discord with his bureau chief. Both those above and below him could “work” smoothly only if he was more in lockstep with the chief. Because of this, the director was regretful–not for taking bribes, but because “it would have been better if I went corrupt much earlier, together with them. In this way, it’s hard to say if I would be sacked or not, because everyone would cover for each other,” the director said.
For a long time, Qi Hong was greatly affected by this. But later, he discovered that this director’s situation was no isolated incident. Another upright man in his eyes–the principal of a university–was also wire-tapped. Out of all of these miserable cases, the principal was the only one who kept calm (but Qi Hong suspected that he might just be a good actor). The principal merely chuckled and said, “Who would have done this to me? Is the Party testing me? Or are my colleagues observing me?”
“Who was using this stuff on him? What was the purpose? If a man like him is sacked and another group of people ascended to power, what would become of the work unit? If such tactics become commonplace in the professional lives of officials, how will it affect their mentality? Will this restrain them and make them perform better, or just make them slier? If this dark force were to come from officialdom, what consequences will it bring?”
Qi Hong didn’t get answers to these questions before he found out that wire-tapping and secret filming were not necessarily from rivals or “dark forces.” Even if a given group of officials were proverbially all in the same boat, they still had to test each other to ensure the security and stability of their collective interests.
“After an apparatus is discovered, the official will immediately check to see if it was installed by the Committee of Discipline Inspection and inform their partners to seek collective security and protection,” Qi Hong said. The next official he mentioned reacted in a similar way to most. After the spying equipment for him was discovered, he tried his best to keep calm and analyze the different chains of interest with which he was involved, consulting with all kinds of channels to determine the origin of the threat.
“Just like a kid who committed some wrongdoings and is afraid of the consequences, he had to ingratiate himself. He immediately turned modest.” After a series of discussions and meticulous investigation, the official involved with this case determined the wire came from colleagues who were taking “preventative measures.” This ultimately strengthened their “sense of loyalty” between them and solidified their alliance.
“No worries–it was from our own side,” the official said when he met again with Qi Hong. By that time, the official’s life was back to normal. Qi Hong saw him and his colleagues having a meal together happily.
Officials, no matter what, would argue in defense of themselves. Most of them lament that they do not control their own destinies. Qi Hong gave the following rough narrative as an example:
“People like me undoubtedly have no serious problems at work. But you know, how could it be possible to not have some minor issues? Nowadays, how could someone be so strict at the workplace? People give you some gifts, then give you a little money for your birthday. Under these circumstances, how could you say ‘no’ to someone like Comrade Jiao Yulu did? It’s impossible. If you do so, it will probably affect your work. All I can say is that it is a kind of necessary socialization, a type of communication. Under the current situation, if you don’t conduct yourself in this way, how can you still be able to work?”
Responses
Most often, officials actively looked for ways to solve their problems. Through witnessing their responses, Qi Hong saw multiple aspects of human nature. Some people ended their underground lives and became more honest in their work; some people became more careful and strengthened their information security; some people requested to install spying equipment as a counterattack on their adversaries; some people realized the importance of forming alliances and sought protection; some people thought to “separate power” in order to strengthen their own troops; some people thought it might be better to find themselves an “agent”…
During one meal, Qi Hong heard a bureau chief say, “People are so jealous nowadays, installing wires and secret cameras. Perhaps there are people following me on my way to and from work. When I lay on my bed, perhaps someone is watching over me. How about I just relinquish my power? But you know, I am a bureau chief. It would be impractical for me to resign. It would affect the interest of the group and arrangements made from above. Things aren’t that simple. So what should we do? In order to reduce jealousy and attacks from others, I’ll divide my power so that nobody hates me anymore.”
“That would simply be self-disguise,” Qi Hong said. Everyone at the table sensed anger in his words. “Without power, how could you still be corrupt?”
As he dove deeper into detective work, Qi Hong started to become used to all of this. He established new standards to decide between right and wrong in order to differentiate the good people from the bad. He said, for those “obvious jerks,” he would resolutely refuse to help them check for wires. However, he’s made mistakes.
He once helped an official dismantle a wire inside a car. The person was unwilling to accept the fact he had been eavesdropped. “I’m an excellent member of the Communist Party. There’s no way this was set on me, because I never say anything that contradicts Party discipline,” he argued.
“Are you sure? Don’t be so conceited. I bet I can make you stop talking like this.” Qi Hong contended.
“Are you going to use a wire?” he asked in reply.
“I wouldn’t use such an elementary measure. I’ll record what you say in some private meeting and play it back to you someday. But you must not sue me. Let’s sign a deal. Do you dare?”
Seeing him roll his eyes and fall into silence, Qi Hong continued. “There are lots of things you don’t know. When it comes to this stuff, I know more than you do. It’s just like how you know more than I about intra-Party affairs, but you know less than me about other things.” Having heard this, the “excellent” official burst into laughter and said he was just joking.
Another bureau chief, after seeing a dismantled wire, stated lightheartedly, “That was set by my wife.” Qi Hong explained, “He thought he was so popular within his work unit that nobody would spy on him, because he was the one who convinced the whole work unit to become corrupt, and every member of his staff had already gained a lot from it.”
Qi Hong reminded him that the there were still laws in this country.
“In our work unit, I have the final say! What I say is the rule!”
In times like this, Qi Hong always feels a quickly-growing sense of utter disgust. Gradually, he totally lost interest in such issues. He once tried so hard for his friends to understand why they were being wire-tapped and secretly filmed. He also hoped to warn officials about this phenomenon before it was too late. But he could wait for those positive results no longer. When someone suggested he should turn this into a career, he chose to step down and gave away all of his detection equipment.
“This is such ridiculous phenomenon. I will do this ridiculous work no more. But I’m glad that I’ve seen all kinds of miserable and terrified reactions from these officials. There’s no need to examine them in-depth. Their facial expressions already tell it all,” Qi Hong said.

Via Southern People Weekly. Translation by Mengyu Dong.

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© Little Bluegill for China Digital Times (CDT), 2013

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Can you do this ... ?

Imagine waking up one morning with a nagging compulsion to understand ideas that up to now have been entirely alien to you — concepts like democracy, freedom of speech or separation of powers. Perhaps, the night previous, there were whispers at the next table about a man named "Liu Xiaobo" who harbored "dangerous" ideas of this sort. Liu who?

But, pshaw!, how dangerous can ideas really be?

You reach over to the bedside table and grab your mobile, knowing full well (as an internet literate Chinese "netizen") that the answers are at your fingertips thanks to the miracle of search engine technology.

Let's say, for the purposes of this story, that your first gateway to knowledge and discovery looks like this:

Jike.com is a state-controlled search engine launched in 2010 by the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, and its listed internet arm, People's Daily Online. (You're not aware of this, but Kai-Fu Lee, the former president of China operations for Google.com, the world's leading search engine service, had his social media account blocked a few days earlier after making unfavorable remarks about Jike.com and its president, former Chinese table tennis champion Deng Yaping.)

With a slight blush of guilt you enter your first search term: "separation of powers" (三权分立). Your results come back instantly.

The results are topped by the usual basics offered by the encyclopedia service at Baidu.com, Baidu Baike (百度百科), and the Chinese version of Wikipedia. These give you some decent background on the basic concept. But the meatier results that follow explain why "separation of powers" is a terrible idea for China.

First, there's an April 2009 piece from the official China Central Television under the marathon headline, "Why We Must Cleave to the National People's Congress System and Must Not Do 'Separation of Powers'" (为什么必须坚持人民代表大会制度而不能搞"三权分立"). The piece offers a lengthy historical reading of China's "unique situation" and how it is unsuited to Western political systems:

What political system a country implements is ultimately decided by that country's national circumstances and nature. The democracy talked about in capitalist societies is bourgeois democracy, a democracy that in fact monopolizes capital, no more than multi-party elections, separation of powers and a bicameral system. The national people's congress system in practice in our country is a people's democratic system under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. We cannot put that Western system [into practice].

That sounds reasonable enough. Every country is different, right? You have to do things your own way. The monopolization of capital — how can that be fair?

But this is just one view, and your natural skepticism bids you on. You turn to the next search result, a video from March 2011 in which Wu Bangguo (吴邦国), a senior Party leader and then secretary of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, says categorically that separation of powers and privatization of property are off the table for China because they are not, again, suited to its "unique circumstances."

The next result, an article from China Youth Daily, published by the Communist Youth League of China, reassures you that while your country will not practice separation of powers, "democracy" remains a priority. An interview with a senior Party official from Hunan province, the article ("Not Doing Separation of Powers Does Not Mean Not Doing Democracy and Rule of Law") argues that "the people decide on major matters through the people's congresses at various levels and their standing committees."

[ABOVE: A Chinese internet cafe superimposed with Jike.com search logo. Photo by Kai Hendry posted to Flickr.com under Creative Commons license.]

This article furrows your brow. You've never voted for a single people's congress delegate, and everybody knows they're appointed by Party officials. Where do the people come in at all? This local official must be pulling your leg. You're better off drawing your wisdom from the "center," from the senior levels, where officials are kinder and more mindful of the people's needs than entrenched local tyrants like the one who demolished your uncle's house to build another shopping mall.

Fortunately, just a few search results down — after an article about Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-Shing and "separation of powers" within his family— there is an article from the "theory" section of People's Daily Online. Its original source is the Party's official People's Daily. That should give you a more "central" perspective on this concept.

The article, "There are Fundamental Differences Between the 'Separation of Powers' System and the National People's Congress System" (人民代表大会制度与"三权分立"制度有根本区别), begins with refreshing straightforwardness, cutting straight to its core point:

In order to gain a clear understanding of why we must keep to the people's congress system and not do 'separation of powers,' the problem we first come to is one of how to understand freedom, democracy and human rights.

And, once again, you come up against this irresistible point about cultural relativism:

Under different historical circumstances, in different countries, in different ethnic groups, in different classes, understandings of these problems [of freedom, democracy and human rights] are different.

Well, that must be true, no? Chinese are not Westerners, after all. And the other way around. They eat beefsteaks on separate dinner plates and separate their powers. We keep our powers all mixed together, like Sichuan hot pot.

Scrolling through other pages of search results, you notice most are papers, or lunwen (论文), of a theoretical nature, the majority from official sources or journals. It's time to move on.

You plug "Liu Xiaobo" (刘晓波) into Jike.com. Who is this guy anyway?

It becomes instantly clear to you that Liu Xiaobo isn't just dangerous, he's a convicted criminal, according to result after result thrown up by the Jike.com search engine.

The first news article result, directly from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is a response to the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to this man, which was "an interference in China's internal affairs."

The next result, from China's official Xinhua News Service, vehemently attacks the Nobel Committee, saying that "the awarding of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo is absolutely wrong."

Up next is a People's Daily article re-run by Sina.com, that says "the actions of the Nobel Committee cannot erase the fact of Liu Xiaobo's crimes."

Wait. There is no mention of what those crimes were. . . You scroll through several pages of search results. There are more articles, the bulk from People's Daily online, labeling the Nobel decision a "mistake" and a "joke."

Something's not right. You're on page 10 of the search results and still you can find nothing but one-sided recriminations. There's a Xinhua News Agency article saying Malaysian media have called the Liu Xiaobo Nobel decision a "mistaken choice," but it cites only one Malaysian newspaper. That's a bit dirty. And there's an article from the official government website in Tibet calling both Liu Xiaobo and the Dalai Lama "political games of the West."

There are endless repeats of the response from the foreign ministry. . . But there has to be more.

Now curious about search engines and their limitations, you search Jike.com to learn more. You eventually stumble across this Chinese Wikipedia entry. It mentions that Google.com is the currently the world's leader in the search engine sector. Well, that should give you something.

You plug in "Liu Xiaobo" and suddenly the results look very different. There are news reports and in-depth features from Hong Kong media such as Ming Pao and Apple Daily. There are whole collections available online of Liu's essays. There are open calls for his release. Even the President of Taiwan, Ma Ying-jeou, is talking about his case as an injustice.

Knowing full well that bias can work both ways, you search for the Jike.com results through Google. You add the search term "Ministry of Foreign Affairs" to "Liu Xiaobo" (刘晓波 + 外交部) and right away you get the foreign ministry's official statement saying the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo is an "interference in China internal affairs."

That seems fair. You add Google to your favorites.

Clearly, the first search engine was taking you for a ride. Someone was playing political ping-pong with your search results. For the first and last time, you were Jiked.

The holiday is over, and here's some news to bring you right back to down to earth. Or even further down underneath the earth where its apparently pretty smelly. The front page of the Strait Times (海峡都市报) from Fujian province today reports that the groundwater of 90% of Chinese cities is polluted to some degree, and that of around 60% is "severely polluted". These depressing findings were recently uttered by an official from the China Geological Survey (中国地质调查局) at an international groundwater forum.
Strait Times today also reports on the Weibo river campaign recently launched by Deng Fei on his microblog, and one man who took Deng's campaign a step further by promising openly to give the head of a city environmental protection office 200,000 yuan if he swam for 20 minutes in a polluted river.
Strait Times also note a separate report from Xinhua of a study of 118 cities in China which found that the groundwater of 64% of cities is severely polluted, while that of 33% is mildly polluted. Only a measly 3% of cities have clean groundwater. An official from the Beijing Public Environmental Research Center summed up the full significance of this: the sources of drinking water in China's cities have been polluted, and especially so with what he described as heavy metal contamination (金属污染) containing organic matter pollution that is extremely difficult for traditional water treatment methods to process.
Strait Times also reports today on the brouhaha kicked off on 12 February by the activist Deng Fei, who launched a tirade on his microblog accusing a number of chemical and paper companies in two cities in Shandong province of using high-pressure wells to pump sewage water 1,000 meters underground without the authorities knowing anything about it.
The accusations kicked up by Deng Fei on the Internet initially got scant  responses from the relevant authorities in the two cities, yet on the 17th of February one of the cities, Weifang, belatedly responded when an official in the city told Xinhua that an investigation had been launched in the city on the 15th. By the 17th a total of 715 companies had been investigated, but no transgressions were found. This response, however, met with some suspicion online with various people questioning how 715 companies could have been effectively monitored in only three days.
The same Deng Fei recently posted a message on his microblog asking people to upload pictures of the rivers in their hometowns (see Tea Leaf Nation for more details on Deng Fei's campaign and how the Internet censors became involved). Various pictures were uploaded of rivers both clean and polluted, but one man from Hangzhou took Deng's campaign  a step further. On 16 February, the chairman of a company manufacturing spectacles in Hangzhou in Zhejiang province named Jin Zhengmin (金增敏) noted on his Sina Weibo microblog that a river in Ruian (瑞安市) in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, was badly polluted. He himself grew up in Ruian and remembers when the river was clean enough to do laundry in. So Jin challenged the head of the environmental protection office to swim in the river for 20 minutes, and if he did, Jin would give him 200,000 yuan. On the 17th, the Ruian official in question, Bao Zhenming (包振明), told reporters that the river was really only contaminated with domestic garbage, not industrial waste. So I guess that made it OK? Apparently he still hasn't taken the swim.
Links and sources
Strait Times (海峡都市报): 城市地下水只有3%基本清洁; 企业将污水排到千米地下?; 企业家悬赏20万请环保局长游泳
Tech in Asia: Deng Fei Launches Weibo Campaign to Share Images of Water Pollution
Tea Leaf Nation: Chinese Activist Web Users Take Aim at Water Pollution, and Censors Strike Back

China: Only 3% of underground water not polluted

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Astonishing figures from the China Geological Survey show how badly underground water in China has been polluted.
Underground water makes up one third of China’s water resources. Yet 90 percent is not drinkable, with 60 percent badly polluted. According to monitoring data from 118 cities, underground water in nearly 64 percent of the cities is severely contaminated, 33 percent mildly polluted, while only 3 percent of the water is generally clean.

Although North Korea depends on China for aid and trade, and despite repeated declarations of friendship by both sides, the North Koreans that I knew really did not like the Chinese, whom they regarded as rude, bullying, fond of eating the most disgusting things and with unfortunate personal habits. I once asked a friend whether they minded working with foreigners. They replied that they liked western foreigners, and found them polite and good company. "Not like Chinese", they said, shuddering.

A strident editorial in the Global Times, a Communist Party-backed newspaper, said yesterday that while China believed North Korea should shelve its nuclear programs, Pyongyang should not be punished by the US, Japan and South Korea.

China-NoKor Ties Turn Sour Amid Nuke Anxiety

• Marauder armored vehicle dazzles in Swarovski crystals and gold in Abu Dhabi
  
  

  
  The pumped up vehicle Marauder got a blingy makeover. While, we loved a dash of gold on a Lamborghini Murcielago, Maybach, and BMW M5. However, turning a tough vehicle like Marauder is actually a fashion blooper. The robust car, which is known to for its rugged ballistic protection was covered in Swarovski crystals and gold, chrome and bronze camouflage. The car was bedazzled as to response to the growing public demand of the consumer friendly version of the car. Gavin Rajah, couture designer to the stars including Beyoncé, and Cameron Diaz, remodeled this designer version of Paramount Group's 16 tonne Marauder.
  

  
  The gold Marauder was exhibited at Paramount Group' at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre in Abu Dhabi; accompanied by model in matching ballgown. Well, this is a true example of "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Gets Blingy!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  [Emirates247]
  

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  An armor-plated BMW is under making for the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall »

• The Fortress by Doettling: World’s Safest Safe

  Doettling is considered to be one of the foremost names in luxury safe manufacturing. The German company has come out in the past with very well received creations like The Guardian from Doettling, which was the world’s first security luggage and the Doettling Colosimo, which was made exclusively to keep your expensive timepieces safe. Their latest creation is The Fortress, which they have dubbed as the safest luxury safe in the world.
  So what makes The Fortress, a nightmare for burglars? It comes in the certified security class range of VdS/EN 3 to advanced VdS/EN 5. It is connected to a burglar alarm, which is a silent alarm feature as well. The safe consists of 8 watch winders that have been configured using a special software. The programming allows for infinite number of rotation options, including rotation’s direction. This safe also comes with an insurance cover of upto a $1 million. To ensure that all the items kept inside the safe are not damaged over time, the interiors have a humidor made out of Spanish cedar, wired with a humidifying system controlled electronically. The safe is also fitted with Wempe’s hygrometer and barometer, which provides accurate information about the humidity and air pressure.
  
  
  The exteriors have been upholstered with black quilted calfskin. The Fortress also includes Colosimo’s two door safe on top to keep six of your most expensive timepieces. The people at Doettling do stick to their word, for this kind of insurance cover wont be possible if the insurance people weren’t sure of the safety levels of this safe. Most of us trust the bank safe with our precious jewels but for those rich folks who want to keep their prized possessions close to them can definitely opt for The Fortress. For most of us however, the price of this safe might be more than the value of all those possessions combined!
  
  

  iWatch

  iKnow, we all waiting in anticipation for something spectacular to come forth and the iWatch rumors are pretty strong. So if we were to indulge in fantasy for a minute, then this is how Esben Oxholm thinks the Apple team would design the phone/watch. Heavily inspired by the look of the iPhone 5 and sporting a minimalistic, sleek look, the watch is crafted with black aluminum on the outside and a thin layer of soft matte rubber on the inside.
  It has got the highly recognizable round home button as the only physical button. The rest of the fun happens on the newly developed slightly double curved touch screen. The iWatch can be fitted to your liking, by removing or adding spacers in the lower part of the bendy bracelet.
  Designer: Esben Oxholm
  
  

• Swiss Alps Panorama Knives will bring a dose of Swiss luxury to the designer kitchens
  On a beautiful, clear morning, one creative idea emerged to a viewer viewing Säntis, the tallest mountain in the Alpstein massif of northeastern Switzerland. The very fine idea was to harness the unrivaled, breathtaking beauty of the Swiss Alps and other mountain ranges, and to point to beautiful things in this world in the forms of knives as picturesque as real as seen by eyes. And, the resulting product is Panoramic Knives which can be well described as part functional bread knives and part display piece, a panoramic view, a review, and reminder of something beautiful that is not always immediately available. Impressively mimicking the silhouettes of peaks in various sections of the breathtaking Alps, these Panoramic Knives are available in three variants, including the one displaying the Lake Constance panorama, another Saas Fee Panorama and the third one mirroring the Berner Oberland Panorama. However, we have also earlier seen some fancy knives for the likes of discerning individuals including the William Henry's bejeweled knives, the Wenger's Porsche Design Knives, the world's finest chef's knife, and the most expensive diamond-studded kitchen knife, to name a few.
  

  
  Swiss Alps Panorama Knives will bring a dose of Swiss luxury to the designer kitchens

  Knives are available with two types of handles: rosewood and plastic, whil! e the sides of the blade come labeled with markings for each peak, along with the name and its particular elevation as well.
  The manufacturer of these Panorama Knives is a relatively new company, which looks forward to develop some more panoramas quite soon, including the ones inspired by the the Valais with the Matterhorn, Lucerne by Pilate on the Titlis to Rigi and Zurich, which boasts a wonderful view of the Glarus Alps.
  Lake Constance Panorama
  

  
  Lake Constance Panorama Knife

  One of the largest on the continent of Europe, the Lake Constance which connects Germany with Austria and Switzerland is the inspiration behind this knife. It mirrors the Alpstein which combines the views of the villages and cities of Constance, Konstanz, Meersburg, Immenstaad, Hagnau, Friedrichshafen, Lindau or Langenargen. But also from the Thurgau and from the canton of St. Gallen, the solid forms with the Säntis as the center a wonderful setting.
  Via: PanoramaKnife
• Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection is inspired by vintage sports cars and racing tracks
  After the iconic British sports car brand Aston Martin took the creative services of the London's finest silversmiths Grant Macdonald to come up with an exclusive silverware collection dubbed 'Silver by Aston Martin' that celebrates the very best in contemporary British design, now the legendary French fashion brand Hermes introduced its brand-new tableware collection dubbed Rallye 24 a few weeks ago in the museum of vintage sports cars at the Maison & Object in the French Capital. Notably, Hermes which recently came up its geeky Tie Collection inspired by computer technology, rolled out the vintage-style porcelain collection that sports the brand's 2013 "A Sporting Life' theme, and is designed by Benoît-Pierre Emery, who has previously created carré silk scarves for Damian O'Sullivan and the French brand. Besides, the renowned French fashion designer Christian Lacroix also introduced first porcelain line which is a mix-and-match offer with four colorful themes, including a parade of butterflies and watercooler stripes.
  

  
  Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection is inspired by vintage sports cars and racing tracks

  
  Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection is inspired by vintage sports cars and racing tracks

  Inspired by the "Chaine d'ancre" link style used on straps for certain of Hermès' leather goods, the impressive Rallye 24 collection available in 6 colors and 17 different shapes reflects the sporting life, boasting a design that resembles a colorful racing track on 49 different tableware pieces.
  

  
  Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection is inspired by vintage sports cars and racing tracks

  Notably, the cacophony of a day at the races, the checkered flags smacking the air, the chorus of humming engines, the blazing colors jockeying for position has been distilled into the sport's most streamlined, eye-pleasing essence.
  

  
  Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection is inspired by vintage sports cars and racing tracks

  
  Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection is inspired by vintage sports cars and racing tracks

  Check the gallery! here:-</! p>
  

  Picture Gallery
  Hermès tableware Rallye 24 collection

  Via: Barneys / NYTimes
• An armor-plated BMW is under making for the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall
  
  

  
  We've covered a couple of posts on armored cars built for political icons like President of India and South Korean President too, not forgetting President Barack Obama's Beast. Renowned car brand – BMW had, in 2011, announced its 7 Series High Security, a high-tech cruiser that ensures the security of its owners. Now again in 2013, the luxury brand is rumored to have gone a step ahead, building an armor-plated high security vehicle for Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall. Nicknamed the 'uber technical land yacht' by experts in its field, and still at its testing phase at Scotland Yard, the BMW new entrant claims to be the ultimate high security vehicle.
  

  
  The $464,000 worth rider, though shares a few advanced features with its 7 series brethren, is pumped up with additional features: removable bulletproof windscreens, anti-kidnap remote locking mechanism, and an anti-terrorist device enabling the engine to be started from 150 yards to avoid explosions. Apart from these, the car is equipped with poisonous gas detector that automatically shuts down windows and doors activating the oxygen supply.
  [Independent]
  

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• Opera Consonance Isolde turntable is for the classy audio lovers
  With an impressive goal to reproduce music in the most natural and enjoyable manner to the human ear, especially for all who are discerning and in pursuit of finer things, the China-based manufacturer of high-end audio products Opera Consonance has now created the Isolde turntable which is named after a Wagner Opera character. Especially designed for those distinguished customers who like a classical style but doesn't like all the set-up work, the Isolde actually continues with the high-quality character just like all other Opera Audio turntables. Notably, this classy turntable reminds us of some of the world's most expensive turntables, including the Clearaudio's high-end Ovation turntable with chassis made of bulletproof-wood, the Kronos world's first counter-rotating dual platter suspended turntable, the AMG V12 turntable which is a new chapter in the world of vinyl playback, and the Hartvig TT Signature turntable which represents pure Danish hand-craftsmanship, to name a few.
  

  
  Opera Consonance Isolde turntable is for the classy audio lovers

  Consisting of a super accurate, highly-advanced DC motor, a point-to-point low noise bearing and a solid plinth, with an air ball damping system to make the reproduced sound full and more relaxing, this state-of-the-art! turntable produced for the classy audio lovers boasts a matched carbon fiber T8 9" tone arm that has very simple set-up and adjustment features.
  

  
  Opera Consonance Isolde turntable is for the classy audio lovers

  The user only needs to attach their own cartridge, set the recommended stylus weight and VTA and the turntable is ready to play.
  Via: OperaConsonance
• 
  
• Marc Jacobs designed Coca-Cola cans unveiled
  
  

  
  We already spoke about this man throwing off his shirt to celebrate his newest role as Diet Coke's Creative Director. This time its the well-designed cans that we are more keen to discuss about. Fashion designer Marc Jacobs marks the 30th anniversary of Diet Coke with three designs, each one inspired by a different decade since the drink's launch. Each design pays tribute to the fashion trends of the '80s, '90s and 2000, and features an illustration of a model from that era. The can that represents the 1980 era features a burst of bow-ties with a woman dressed in a tuxedo. The '90s can plays with birds fluttering around a woman posing in a pink and purple bustier dress, stilettoes and a hat. Lastly the can from 2000 is showered with polka dots and highlights a modern woman sporting a short hair cut and standing tall in a trendy monochrome striped outfit.
  

  
  WWD reports that. 'The first cans and bottles are slated to arrive next month in 11 European markets including the U.K., France, Benelux and Iceland.'
  [Wwd]
  

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• Brangelina venture into Winemaking
  
  

  
  They "made it large" in Hollywood and now are set to mash it and bottle it up! As though raising a toast to themselves; only this time with a blend of their rosé, the celebrated tinseltown duo: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie introduce Miraval Côtes de Provence, a product of their own vineyards in Correns, France. Back in 2008, Brangelina were leasing the 1000-acre property, originally impressed by its 35-bedroom estate. Now they own the property, and furthermore, have planned a long term venture into winemaking. Teaming up with Marc Perrin, a renowned figure in the Provence for winemaking, the couple is currently starting of with rosé, but will soon be ready with its white and red wines by the end of summer and next year. respectively.
  

  
  Claiming himself to be an equal partner in the Brangelina winemaking venture, Perrin would share space along side the "Jolie-Pitt" branding on the back label of the bottles.
  
  
  [Bloomberg and Telegraph]
  

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  « Armani to convert iconic Admiralty Arch into a luxury hotel in London

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  Marc Jacobs designed Coca-Cola cans unveiled»
• Armani to convert iconic Admiralty Arch into a luxury hotel in London
  
  

  
  Giorgio Armani, one of the biggest fashion icons, now wants to give a makeover to the prestigious Admiralty Arch in London. After building luxurious Armani Hotel in Milan and Dubai, the Italian designer has set his sight on London. The landmark Admiralty Arch, which lies between The Mall and Trafalgar Square in memory of Queen Victoria, will now transform into $155 million luxury hotel. The iconic hotel will house 80 to 100 guestrooms, including royal and presidential suites. It will also include a restaurant and bar for public with official Armani shops selling the luxury label's goods.
  

  
  
  The bid for Admiralty Arch to the British government has not been made public, but apparently, the deal is at an advanced stage. It was touted earlier that the Government has leased the landmark to Rafael Serrano, a Spanish entrepreneur, who desired the Bulgari Hotel in Knightsbridge.
  
  The Armani – Admiralty Arch luxury hotel is expected to start operation from December 2015.
  [Standard and Daily-Mail]
  

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  Brangelina venture into Winemaking»
• Rare Ruhlman piano that sailed aboard the legendary 1930s ocean liner SS Normandie goes for sale
  Meticulously crafted from Macassar ebony and painted oak with an American walnut veneer, a rare and grand Ruhlman piano which impressively boasts piano keys and ivory marquetry, with a beautiful patinated bronze lyre-shaped pedal suspension and sabots, is now up for grabs as the auction highlight of auctioneer Sotheby's 20th Century Design auction, scheduled to be held in New York on March 6th. Described to be one of 6 known Ruhlman pianos, and one of just 3 in similar style, this majestic, ultra-rare art deco piano is the one that sailed aboard in the ladies drawing room of Saint-Nazaire's built iconic 1930s ocean liner SS Normandie, also known as Queen of the Seas which was famous for its ultra-luxurious interiors which were literally comparable to rooms at the kingly Palace of Versailles. Expected to fetch as much as $600,000, this piano after crossing the auction block will join the league of historic, sought-after, high-prized pianos crossed the auction blocks, including the Casablanca piano which was expected to fetch as much as $1.2 million, the sale of Lady Gaga's one-off Steinway Piano, the Beatles piano, and the Elvis Presley's Grand Piano 1930 on eBay for $250,000.
  

  
  Rare Ruhlman piano that sailed aboard the legendary 1930s ocean liner SS Normandie goes for sale

  
  Rare Ruhlman piano that sailed aboard the legendary 1930s ocean liner SS Normandie goes for sale

  Designed for an anonymous family by Emile-Jacques Ruhlman, a renowned French designer of furniture and interiors, epitomising for many the glamour of the French Art Deco style of the 1920s.
  

  
  Rare Ruhlman piano that sailed aboard the legendary 1930s ocean liner SS Normandie goes for sale

  Historically, the founders of The Buffalo News, the noted Butler family of Buffalo, New York, then purchased this piano in the 1940s, when the ship's content were first sold, and since then it has remained part of their opulent mansion.
  

  
  Rare Ruhlman piano that sailed aboard the legendary 1930s ocean liner SS Normandie goes for sale

  Via: Sothebys
• Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica / PAM00446 echoes the history of the watch brand Officine Panerai
  Noted for being the exclusive supplier of high-precision instruments to the Royal Italian Navy in the early 1900s and the creators of the first underwater military watch, the Italian watchmaker Officine Panerai offers exclusive horological creations that are a natural blend of Italian design, Swiss technology and passion for the sea. This internationally renowned haute horlogerie watch brand which earlier impressed us with its Ferrari two-counter chronograph, the red and yellow dial watches for the Ferrari Scuderia collection and the Panerai Radiomir limited-edition watchbox set has now created the special-edition pocket watch Tourbillion GMT Ceramica / PAM00446. Water-resistant and guaranteed to a pressure of atmospheres (30 metres), this exclusive pocket watch limited to 50 units, impressively combines the state-of-the-art technical content of contemporary and advanced haute horlogerie with echoes of Florentine-based brand's history.
  

  
  Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica / PAM00446 echoes the history of the watch brand Officine Panerai

  
  Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica / PAM00446 echoes the history of the watch brand Offi! cine Panerai

  The Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica consists of a 59 mm Radiomir case in ceramic made from zirconium oxide, inside which is the P.2005/S movement with tourbillon regulator, which is further enhanced by the sophisticated skeleton structure which impressively showcases the distinguished technical aspects of this in-house developed movement.
  

  
  Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica / PAM00446 echoes the history of the watch brand Officine Panerai

  With a power reserve of 6-days, the pocket watch's movement offers an extraordinary feature where the tourbillon cage makes two rotations per minute, so as to compensate for running errors due to gravity.
  

  
  Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica / PAM00446 echoes the history of the watch brand Officine Panerai

  Further, the chain of this pocket watch which is inspired by that of a nautical chain, is attached to the case by a skelton device shaped like the characteristic bridge that protects the winding crown of the Panerai Luminor, and it too is made of black ceramic. And once the chain has been removed, the Pocket Watch Tourbillon GMT Ceramica can then be impressively transformed into a table clock.
  Also, the haute horlogerie watch brand Officine Panerai at the opening ceremony of exhibition O'Clock - time design, design time in the CAFA Art Museum in Beijing will present an installation devoted to th! e design ! of its watches devised by Patricia Urquiola.
  Via: Panerai
• Scott Devon, founder of Devon Motorworks speaks on Luxurylaunches
  
  

  
  Based in LA, Scott Devon is the man behind Devon brand as a designer, creative director and conceptual artist. He started his journey by designing the exclusive Devon GTX supercar that set a one lap record at Laguna Seca. This was followed by the invention of Tread 1 watch which is fitted with a patented system of Interwoven Time Belts. Recently he took time out to share his insight and vision on Luxurylaunches.
  

  
  Tell us about the inspiration and the process involved in materializing your vision.
  At Devon Works Lab our inspirations on design come from a variety of influences. As designers we usually have multiple design studies around a particular project. And some of those ancillary designs become products we actually develop. This is exactly how the Devon Tread 1 came into existence.
  While Jason Wilbur was presenting a new car concept to Honda he showed the design team members a number of concepts that influenced his car design with one of them being Tread 1. One of the design team members said "forget the car, make the watch!"
  
  Is designing a team effort or a concept born in one man's mind?
  Jason's concept was inspired by the conveyor belts of the industrial revolution but more specifically when he saw a custom motorcycle with numbers on the exposed belts of the bikes drive system.
  Our design process generally begins with an idea or concept then we do some raw sketches or discuss the conceptual merit of the idea. Our Chief of Engineering, Jeff Stephenson is involved earlier in the process along with our Managing Director, Ehren Bragg. I am working with a new designer at Devon, Marko Petrovic from Serbia who is extremely talented. Marko's computer imaging ability is the best I've seen and our final designs look exactly like the renders.
  We just invested in a state of the art prototype machine at the lab that Jeff is working with that we are excited to have. This will enable us to create one offs and expedite our product development abilities.
  At Devon, design concepts have started with either Jason, myself, or Marko as designers but Jeff also is on the original patent for Tread 1 because he needed to design the inner workings of the watch. We are somewhat unique in how we view advanced engineering as equal too if not more important than conceptual design. I am amazed how we are able to replicate and materialize initial conceptual designs without compromising the original design intent.
  I prefer a lot of feedback on our design concepts. This is somewhat different than in the past where designs were guarded in close secrecy. I have a network of personal friends in the design world whose opinions I hold in high regard. There are also industry experts, collectors, bloggers, and retailers whom we run concepts by.
  And I'm also not opposed to posting some preliminary concepts on Facebook to get reactions. My thought process is this feedback can gauge responses before we commit hard dollars on production. Our designs and movement also have a global patent so that offers us protection as well.
  So if we work hard on the egg we don't have to worry about the chicken!
  
  Scott, what inspired you to venture into designing lifestyle products after shaping a Devon GTX supercar?
  Without the Devon GTX Super Car project I would have never met Jason Wilbur and most likely the Tread 1 would never have been made. While working on my car, Clive Hawkins, the owner of Aria in Newport Beach, California a renowned builder of concept cars introduced me to Jason whom was working for Honda. Clive knew of my desire to develop luxury products and thought I'd be interested in talking to Jason about his watch concepts. I was traveling at the time and Jason sent me his designs. I immediately thought one of his watch designs was a masterpiece and told Clive I don't even have to meet this guy I need to make this watch! However I didn't know that everyone in the watch industry already said it couldn't be made!
  I told Jason I wasn't interested in making a few mechanical watches that would cost 500k anyway. So my thought was to look into the hybrid concept of electro/mechanical movement to power the watch and make it "somewhat" affordable.
  Hybrids of course were all the rage at the time in automotive and Henrik Fisker was also working on his Fisker Karma at Aria at the same time I was working on the Devon GTX and Jason was at Honda. So the cross pollination of design ideas were in play.
  Our big break came when we found a small boutique aerospace electronics company north of LA that was willing to do a feasibility study for us on the movement.
  We formed a partnership with them and I have to say the US Aerospace Industry are more challenged to make the impossible possible than most. So we were fortunate to find them.
  
  What has been the common factor between designing a speciality vehicle like GTX super car and the cutting-edge Tread 1 watch?
  The common or "uncommon" thread at Devon Works Lab is that we view advanced engineering as important as design. And that's what creates breakthrough products. We are willing to take on more complexity than most design companies.
  The same business model or theory enabled the Devon GTX to set world lap speed records at the famed Laguna Seca and Willow Springs race tracks.
  For the GTX team we had a member of the famous University of Michigan solar car team, a retired top Ford engineer, a leading aerodynamics professor, and a former Le Man's champion driver.
  
  While creating the Tread 1 what did you enjoy the most? And what was the most challenging?
  The biggest challenge in taking on complex projects is the development costs and time it takes to validate testing over and over. So you have to have a tolerance for risk and disappointment. However, my thought pattern is that there is always a solution to every problem and when you are able to accomplish difficult tasks the satisfaction and rewards are even greater.
  Shortly after we debuted the Tread 1 we were nominated for the prestigious Grande Prix Horlogerie de Geneve for watch concept. We remain the only American brand ever nominated.
  Another break came early when one of the world's greatest collectors, bloggers, and historians Dr. Bernard Cheong of Singapore reviewed our creation with such glowing terms as "historical, epic, and revolutionary".
  The watch industry is filled with companies with long histories, how hard is it for a new company to break through into the tightly guarded circle?
  Initially we didn't expect traditional watch collectors to embrace our watch as a must have collectible timepiece. Since we considered ourselves more of an Apple spinoff than say Patek Philippe. Many collectors wrote to us saying our watch gets the most attention in their collection and they enjoy demonstrating the movement to the delight of amazed onlookers.
  I think it would be difficult to compete against Historical Swiss brands without something revolutionary. Although controversial we have been accepted by the establishment. Mainly by the other avant garde watchmakers whom have shown respect for our efforts. I believe even among the traditionalists we have added excitement and interest rather than direct competition.
  Let us know more about your journey from a car to a watch and the direction you are headed after creating the two. In what other lifestyle fields are you planning to make a statement?
  We continue to make new design studies in other luxury goods categories. But also some in technology. We are developing software for an iPhone and Android OS App that I am excited about. We also have some thoughts on luggage, eyewear and accessories that we could develop internally or license our designs. But most of our current work is focused on new watch concepts.
  We have been patient with Tread 2 and have made some nice improvements to the initial design. Production on 2 begins this June along with another special edition of Tread 1 called "Exoskeleton". Tread 2 is important for us as an entry level to the brand. It will be around 10k US, and a smaller, sleeker version of Tread 1. We have already begun design work on two new concepts for 2014/15 both of which I believe challenges what is possible for our movement.
  As a designer, what has been by far the most challenging role for you
  My most challenging personal role is remaining focused and disciplined. I tend to want to overreach and want 2015 designs today. Ehren does a great job of knowing how to nurture luxury brands primarily from his background working at Ferrari and Lamborghini.
  Has being based in LA been an advantage?
  Being based in LA has been a definite advantage for us. It is a creative melting pot of different cultures and ideas. We are obviously in the center of the film and entertainment industry. And the aerospace and computer industry isn't far away. We have a growing list of famous celebrities and athletes that are fans of the brand and help us promote our products as Ambassadors. We are even going to be in the new "Pitbull" video next month. His Youtube hits average over 200 million!
  Your views on Luxurylaunches.
  We view sites like Luxury launches as cutting edge to influential early adopters and vital to our global branding initiatives. And we are extremely pleased that you are including us on your site and are thankful to share our story with your influential audience.
  

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• Calvin Klein Collection of Celebs: Michelle Chen at Fall 2013 Show
  
  Michelle Chen at the Calvin Klein Collection presentation. Love the pop of fuchsia rose on her lips!
  
  The futuristic silver sheen of Chen's sleek strapless number was very flattering against her fair complexion. Note how the dress was given shape with a skinny black metallic belt
  Shaking up New York Fashion Week was Taiwanese megastar Michelle Chen, who mingled with Hollywood A-listers Jessica Chastain and Olivia Wilde at Calvin Klein Collection's Fall 2013 runway show.
  
  Olivia Wilde was also a front-row seater. The discerning style icon reportedly told the press that this show would be the only one she would be attending at NYFW, because she only "wanted to see clothes that I know I'll want to wear"
  Also spotted at the New York presentation was the otherworldly Olivia Wilde, who stood out in a Spring 2013 black silk A-line dress from Calvin Klein Collection, overlain with an intricate electric blue netting.
  Cinched waists seemed to be the de rigueur for the celebrities dressed at the event - like Chen, Wilde was also sporting a metallic skinny belt that drew attention to the "House" actress's enviably petite frame.
  
  Jessica Chastain looking like a very posh society lady. Style trivia: Chastain was wearing a Calvin Klein Collection creation when she accepted her Golden Globe earlier this year for her stellar performance in "Zero Dark Thirty"
  Also making a much-hyped appearance was Oscar nominee Jessica Chastain, who was the very picture of proper ladylike elegance in a lovely Pre-Fall wool flannel shift that was stained a deep autumnal rust.
  The Golden Globe winner brought her look together by wearing patent pumps that were a rich burgundy, making the auburn-haired up-and-comer a stylish study in mixing shades of red with aplomb.
  
  Michelle Chen posing backstage with the man of the hour, Calvin Klein Collection's women's creative director Francisco Costa
  
  Costa's Fall 2013 looks were quintessential Calvin Klein: clean and urbane, with textural accents like glossy patent panelling on snug alpaca and shorn shearling. Statement buckled belts with gold plaques added luxurious sophistication to the otherwise pared down looks
  
  The Fall 2013 show was marked by a season-appropriate palette of black and forest green, with flattering yet strong silhouettes. This form-fitting leather coat-dress was one of our favorite looks
  Calvin Klein Collection
  Image Credits: © 2013 Dan Lecca,© 2013 Billy Farrell & Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Reinventing the (Ferris) Wheel: Dubai Eye to be World's Tallest
  
  The futuristic cityscape of Dubai will soon be adding another landmark to its skyline
  Roll aside, Singapore Flyer: Dubai is set to commence construction on the Dubai Eye, billed as the world's largest ferris wheel in a city already chock-a-block with large man-made monoliths.
  Here's a roll call of some of the wheels the so-called Dubai Eye will have to beat to call itself the greatest: the Singapore Flyer at 541 feet; the Star of Nanchang in southeastern China at 525 feet; and the London Eye at 443 feet. If all goes according to plan, the Dubai Eye will easily tower over them all, at a palm-sweating, acrophobic 689 feet.
  
  Artist's rendering of the Bluewaters Project with the unmissable LED-lit Dubai Eye
  The wheel is the centerpiece of the ongoing Bluewaters Project, an integrated resort island project off the Jumeirah Beach Residence coastline that will be home to fine dining restaurants, a five-star hotel and retail boutiques.
  Riders on the Dubai Eye will get a heart-stoppingly majestic view of the glittering Dubai coastline, as well as tick off a laundry list of landmarks like the sail-shaped hotel Burj Al Arab, the Palm Jumeirah and the Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure in the world.
  Oh, and if you're wondering about price, the Emirates News Agency says the entire project will cost US$1.5 billion. Dubai, truly a city of superlatives.
  
  The base of the Ferris wheel will double up as an entertainment zone with a promenade, waterpark and amphitheatre
  via [WAM Emirates News Agency]
• Forever Bright, Forever White: La Mer The Whitening Facial
  
  La Mer's Blanc de la Mer line
  For beauty snobs, La Mer's Miracle Broth needs no introduction. Now the luxury skincare brand is launching a new formulation containing this potent ingredient.
  The latest addition to the brand's Blanc de la Mer line, The Whitening Facial will fulfil the dreams of those who are on an never-ending quest to be whiter every day. A gentle yet potent two-step, two-zone mask designed especially for sensitive Asian skin, it is said to combat the three major influencers for skin discoloration by lifting grey dullness from the skin, reducing redness and disminishing brown spots.
  The powerful cocktail of ingredients include The White Algae Ferment, The Miracle Broth, The Smoothing Ferment and The VibraWhite Ferment, each working in unique ways for a crystal clear complexion.
  The Miracle Broth was conceived by aerospace physicist and founder of La Mer Max Huber half a century ago, when he suffered burns in a lab incident. Ever the optimist he turn the tragedy into an opportunity and began a quest to transform the look of his skin. After 12 years and 6000 experiments, the Miracle Broth was born. Essentially a sea-kelp concoction, the powerful elixir contains such ingredients as vitamins C, E and B12 as well as citrus, eucalyptus and alfalfa oil, and is chockfull of positive ions. It soaks the skin in moisture, before soothing sensitivities and renewing radiance.
  Meanwhile, the White Algae ferment acts as a tyrosinase inhibitor to help stop the formation of age spots and shield the skin against future discoloration.
  The Whitening Facial will be available at La Mer outlets from February 2013.
  
  La Mer's The Whitening Facial
  La Mer
• Watch This Star: Simon Baker Scores at Hollywood Walk of Fame
  
  Good on ya, mate: Aussie all-star Simon Baker posing with his plaque
  'Grats, mate: Aussie superstar and Longines ambassador Simon Baker has earned the distinction of being the 2,490th star in the constellation that makes up the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  Perhaps best known for his leading role as a psychic criminal consultant in the police procedural drama series "The Mentalist", Simon Baker was gussied up for the event last week in a spiffy steel-grey notched lapel suit and black lace-ups, with a striking Longines HydroConquest timepiece on his tanned wrist.
  This particularly handsome stainless steel chronograph is Longines' latest diving watch. Water-resistant to 300m, its stunning azure-hued dial - all the better to complement Baker's intense cornflower blue peepers - is embellished with a "big12" and SuperLuminova-coated luminescent indices.
  
  Reference L3.644.4.96.6
  In a statement congratulating the actor and friend of the brand, Walter von Känel, President of Longines said: "Simon Baker is an important member of the Longines family and we couldn't be more pleased that the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce recognized in him the same qualities that we admire."
  Simon Baker can be seen in the current Longines campaign. The final part of the advertising campaign will be revealed soon with a series of exclusive images of the dapper actor, so "watch" this space.
  Longines
• Fashionably Fizzy: Marc Jacobs Diet Coke Cans
  
  The colorful trio of Coke cans by Marc Jacobs
  With the warmer months fast approaching, grab a Diet Coke and quench your thirst without the calories - and from a can designed by Marc Jacobs himself, to boot. The American fashion titan was tapped by Coca-Cola to come up with designs for Diet Coke's 30th anniversary. The result is an inspired trio of silver cans, each representing a decade leading to the noughties.
  The covetable cans - already destined to be collector's items - kick off with the "I Heart '80s" version, which trains the spotlight on Broadway and the global debut of the zero-calorie soft drink in 1982. The nineties exude a glamorous vibe, with the can featuring an illustration of a woman swathed in a fuchsia gown, magenta heels and a head-turning statement hat.
  
  The design we like best: the "I Heart '00s" can
  Meanwhile, this current decade showcases a cheeky, eclectic ensemble composed of a nautical striped top, striped booties and a houndstooth bikini bottom worn over skintight mustard-and-white leggings.
  "I feel very privileged to be the new Creative Director of Diet Coke and put my stamp on the 30 th Anniversary campaign. Diet Coke is an icon… and I love an icon," Jacobs said in a press statement.
  All three cans will be available from late February, and will include an exclusive code which you can use to score a Marc Jacobs tote. Which design's your favorite?
  Marc Jacobs
• First-Class Upgrade: Visit Coach Singapore's New Website
  
  We love the new Coach.com Singapore's beautifully animated guides
  Now that your pockets are flush with red packet cash, treat yourself to a lovely new bag from Coach - but first, do your research by browsing the brand new Singapore website to short-list the items you want.
  The Singapore site is chockfull of delightfully useful and entertaining sections: you get to indulge in a spot of star-gazing with galleries of A-list celebs brandishing their own Coach bags, and peruse style guides showing you how to carry off the latest beauties like the petite Penny purse, with its whimsical oversized tassels.
  Take a look for yourself at Coach.com, and have fun browsing the latest summery selections!
  
  The Penny Purse, available in a delicious smorgasbord of bright juicy hues
  Coach Singapore

Hublot Classic Fusion Skeleton Tourbillon Black Ceramic

Swiss watch manufacturer Hublot have created the Classic Fusion Skeleton Tourbillon Black Ceramic, which will be limited to a production of just ninety-nine numbered pieces. With a sleek, slim profile, this watch has a polished black ceramic case and a graphic, hand-wound skeleton tourbillon produced in-house by Hublot. The design of the hands is similar to the first Hublot watches, and the band is made from black alligator leather stitched onto black rubber. This timepiece is water-resistant to thirty meters and has one hundred twenty hours of power reserve.

Most Expensive Cake Worth £32.4 million! Any Takers?

This six tier cake is worth around £32.4 million and contains more than two thousand diamonds adding up to a whopping 2046 carats! The brains behind this cake are jewelers Russell and Case. They are based from Bling Bling Street in Liverpool. Yes, I smiled at the name of the street too. The cake makers are Tim and Jules Smith of CAKE based in Chester, who say they jumped at the opportunity to make this special cake. It over one and a half meters high and has these diamonds sprinkled all over it, like the proverbial icing on the cake. The cake that last held this title was valued at $20 million and was made in collaboration with Mimi So Jewellers and cake designer Nahid La Patisserie Artistique from the US.

This cake will be on display on 3rd March at the BT Convention Centre, Echo Arena in Liverpool. Some lucky ones will be able to taste it too. Laura Davies, Marketing and Events Manager for The National Gay Wedding Show said: “We wanted to do something huge for The National Gay Wedding Show, and this cake really is huge!” Indeed! I wonder how they will serve it, with the sparkly icing or will they scrape it off. Would not want someone to choke on the diamonds.

A Ferrari 250 GT That Was Driven to Victories in 1960 Sold for £7 Million

Collectors of vintage cars have a special liking for Ferrari cars. As a result some of them have managed to create records for the most expensive classic cars sold at auctions. Another iconic classic Ferrari has become one of the most expensive cars ever sold in Britain after changing hands for a consideration exceeding £7million. The Ferrari 250 GT SWB bearing chassis number 2119 is amongst the most important Ferraris as it was raced to many victories in 1960 by Sir Stirling Moss. The car achieved three more victories in 1961 with Mike Parkes behind the wheel. The iconic car was owned by businessman Nigel Corner since 2003.

DK Engineering Who Maintained the Car Handled the Sale

Classic cars are valued like rare works of art and often sold and acquired privately. The Ferrari 2119 GT was also sold about six weeks ago behind closed doors and the news about the transaction has just surfaced. DK Engineering, a Hertfordshire based vehicle acquisition specialist handled the sale but refused to confirm the price or the identity of the buyer. Another Ferrari car of the same model was auctioned in the US last month and had fetched £5 million. The experts in the industry believe that 2119 GT has gained additional value because of its successful history at the races. Its racing track record in the 1960s makes it the most important Ferrari car in existence.

A Ferrari 250 GT Has the Original Engine and Gearbox

The 2119 GT was originally made against an order by Rob Walker who wanted the car for Moss to drive in the Tourist Trophy. In fact Moss was doubtful as he had suffered an accident earlier that year. The documents in the history file of the iconic car reveal that Walker had sent a telegram to Ferrari to confirm that Moss was fit and the car would be needed for the race on August 20, 1960. The 2119 GT became the first Ferrari to win the Tourist Trophy and Moss won the race in style by almost two laps. DK Engineering restored the car in great detail in 1980s, however the engine and the gearbox are both original. It is a 3-litre V 12 engine and gearbox, which enables the car to accelerate from zero to 60 miles per hour in barely 6.2 seconds. The car is capable of a top speed of 152 mph and one of the greatest and most significant Ferraris in existence.

TOP VIDEOS

Warning: Graphic Images

“People have chosen to ignore the genetics of intelligence for a long time,” said Mr. Zhao, who hopes to publish his team’s initial findings this summer. “People believe it’s a controversial topic, especially in the West. That’s not the case in China,” where IQ studies are regarded more as a scientific challenge and therefore are easier to fund.
[…] But critics worry that genetic data related to IQ could easily be misconstrued—or misused. Research into the science of intelligence has been used in the past “to target particular racial groups or individuals and delegitimize them,” said Jeremy Gruber, president of the Council for Responsible Genetics, a watchdog group based in Cambridge, Mass. “I’d be very concerned that the reductionist and deterministic trends that still are very much present in the world of genetics would come to the fore in a project like this.”
Mr. Zhao is a phenomenon in his own right. In addition to his genetics wizardry, he says his near-fluent English is self-taught. His career as a geneticist began quite humbly—with the cucumber. In 2007, he skipped afternoon classes at his school in Beijing and started an internship at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
He cleaned test tubes and did other simple jobs. In return, the graduate students let him borrow genetics textbooks and participate in experiments, including the sequencing of the cucumber genome. Mr. Zhao was 15 years old; when the study of the cucumber genome was published in Nature Genetics in 2009, he was listed as a co-author.

The traits — thicker hair shafts, more sweat glands, characteristically identified teeth and smaller breasts — are the result of a gene mutation that occurred about 35,000 years ago, the researchers have concluded.
The discovery explains a crucial juncture in the evolution of East Asians. But the method can also be applied to some 400 other sites on the human genome. The DNA changes at these sites, researchers believe, mark the turning points in recent human evolution as the populations on each continent diverged from one another.
[…] About 93 percent of Han Chinese carry the variant, as do about 70 percent of people in Japan and Thailand, and 60 to 90 percent of American Indians, a population descended from East Asians.

---------- Forwarded message ----------

Scientific SIFCO. How does this work

Animated visual aid, how to construct and operate a variety of mechanisms.

Many thanks to comment! SIFCO corrected with Maltese mechanism with internal combustion piston engine.

Scientific gifki.Himicheskie reactions and physical processes.

Maltese mechanisms are the external and internal gears, and usually with the number of slots from 3 to 12.
The main application of the mechanism was in cinema projectors as Skachkova mechanism for intermittently moving film on a step frame. Mechanism converts uniform rotation of the drive shaft in an abrupt rotation of the driven, which is enshrined Skachkova drum directly involved stick-film.
Maltese mechanism has a much larger size and weight, rather than grab Skachkova mechanisms. However, by comparison, provides a smaller and more uniform effect on the perforation of film at a higher efficiency.Due to less stress on the perforation and, consequently, less wear on film copies, compared with grab, Maltese mechanism is used in most projectors, designed to film a 35-mm and 70-mm.

▼ Stiff neck? Set it on fire!

• Tokyo Area Residents Shocked by Miracle Salon's Flyer
• The Transformation of the Lonely Mr. Sato: Can a New Haircut Change a Loser's Luck in Love?
• Panasonic Developing 24-Fingered Hair-Washing Robot
• A Spa for Crocodiles? Well, They Do Have Pretty Scaly Skin…
• Horn Dogs Dash to Get Drilled by Dainty Dentists

Where are you, Xiaoxiao?

Trust me. I'm a chow chow named Xiao Xiao

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BBC BREAKING NEWS! Lightning Strikes Vatican on day of Pope's announcement to resign





The Situation Is Excellent: The Week That Was At Beijing Cream
» Society » Source

He is the very model of a Mao-born major general.

Not cool to make personal attacks. Regardless of how ineffective or has-been the person in case is, the title "Fat ass" and tone is just wrong and horrible. It's a shame, I thought Beijingcream was classier and wittier than this. I'll be unsubscribing soon and letting my friends know.

Netizens exposed children in public hot lead on a stool in the aircraft cabin aisle (Figure)网友微博曝儿童当众在飞机客舱走道上大便引热议(图)

图据网友微博

Nine days after the Spring Festival the return passenger sustained peak some confusion also occur frequently. Yesterday, microblogging users reflect the D3214 train seriously overloaded in near Ningbo parking, railway authorities then responded by saying that the train only stopped due to failure. The journey travelers uncivilized manners exposure, one of the parents actually condone child in the cabin aisle stool make countless friends stunned.
EMU travelers are required to transfer the Express
16:44 yesterday afternoon, microblogging users @ insect mosquito king and @ melon dad to reflect the D3214 train (Xiamen - Hangzhou) at 16 o'clock in Ningbo East Station Parking, conductor require some passengers to get off to the opposite Platform Express train ride in the same direction Redskins.
The two friends said, the train is because severe overcrowding rather Parking. Microblogging users posted a stop hanging out late announcement: "D3214 Train severe overcrowding, late undetermined, travelers to the window a refund or for 改签."
The many netizens message said that during Spring Festival traffic is high, but the railway authorities can not sacrifice operational security to deal with.
Yesterday evening, Ningbo Operations Section of the Shanghai Railway Bureau official microblogging respond that D3214 train to stop because of equipment failure and 17:37 from Ningbo East Station, the train was delayed 1 hour and 34 minutes. This argument, many users does not endorse, and hope that the competent authorities to investigate. Insiders explained that the sale of motor car without seat tickets strictly limit the proportion of stations along the Definitive allocation impossible unrestricted ticket, do not usually severe overload situation.
When the plane landed, the passengers call
Yesterday afternoon, the Civil Aviation Resource Net also collects and disseminates the uncivilized behavior of some civil aviation people and tourists, reflected in microblogging Spring Festival travelers on the aircraft.
Microblogging users @ chicken rice, beef noodles "Post said on February 8: the day the 3U8878 flights, aircraft last 10 minutes into port, the height of about two thousand meters or so passengers the phone rings, sound judgment cottage, from seat up to inspect a circle, and an uncle on the phone, instant not awed the New Year, and eager to go home can understand the feelings, but safety first ah. "
The microblogging users "@ the feng shui charming" also reflects: "New Year's Eve, flying to Shenzhen, a flight, a male passenger is allowed to open the safe exit, known as a breath of fresh air, his behavior led to flight delays, and he is taken away by the police. '
The parents condone child in the cabin stool
February 16th, the microblogging users "@ a flight captain" post Tucao: that three toilets aircraft, parents even let their children on the center aisle of the cabin stool, seems to have been no small children. The microblogging also comes four passengers photo, you can see a child wearing a green T-shirt in public squatting on the seat next to the stool, after it's happened, the parents also help wipe the ass.
Thread comments, many users are "awed", and called on the Civil Aviation should improve legislation to punish uncivilized behavior such affect the cabin environment.
www.aboluowang.com 

网友微博曝儿童当众在飞机客舱走道上大便引热议(图)

春节已过9天，返程客流持续高峰，一些混乱现象也频频发生。昨日，有微博网友反映D3214次列车因严重超载在宁波附近停车，铁路部门随后回应称，该列车是因故障而停车。旅途中一些旅客的不文明举止被曝光，其中一位家长竟纵容孩子在机舱走道上大便，令无数网友目瞪口呆。

动车旅客被要求换乘特快

昨天下午16时44分，微博网友@虫蚊大王和@瓜爸来了均反映，D3214次列车(厦门-杭州)于16时许在宁波东站停车，列车长要求部分旅客下车去对面月台乘坐同方向的红皮特快列车。

据两位网友称，该列车是因为超员严重而停车。微博上还有网友贴出了一张车站挂出的晚点公告："D3214次列车严重超员，晚点未定，请旅客到窗口退票或办理改签。"

不少网友留言表示，春运客流量虽然高，但铁路部门不能牺牲运营安全来应对。

昨天傍晚，上海铁路局宁波车务段官方微博回应称，D3214次列车是因为设备故障而停车，17：37已从宁波东站开出，列车晚点1小时34分钟。对此说法，许多网友表示不认可，并希望主管部门进行调查。也有业内人士解释说，动车出售无座票有严格的比例限制，沿途各站的票额均进行过分配，不可能无限制售票，通常不会出现严重超载情况。

旅客在飞机降落时打电话

昨天下午，民航资源网也收集并发布了一些民航人士与旅客在微博中反映的春运旅客在客机上的不文明举止。

微博网友"@鸡肉米饭牛肉面条"于2月8日发帖称："当天3U8878航班，飞机最后10分钟进港，高度大概两千米左右，旅客电话响起，声音判断是山寨机，从座位上起来巡视了一圈，一个大叔在打电话，瞬间被雷到不行。过年了，急切回家心情可以理解，但是安全第一啊。"

微博网友"@风水旖旎"也反映："除夕夜，飞深圳某航班，一位男性旅客擅自打开安全出口，称为了透透气。结果，他的行为导致航班延误，自己也被警方带走。"

家长纵容孩子在机舱内大便

2月16日，微博网友"@某航机长"也发帖吐槽：这架飞机上有三个厕所，家长竟然让孩子在客舱中间的走道上大便，孩子看上去已经不小了。微博还附带了4张旅客提供的照片，可以看到一位穿着绿色上衣的孩子当众蹲在座位旁边大便，完事后，家长还帮忙擦了屁股。

跟帖评论中，很多网友都表示"被雷到了"，并呼吁民航应尽快完善立法，对于此类影响客舱环境的不文明举止进行严惩。

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Local authorities in China are accused of protecting polluting companies.

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Residents queue up next to fire engines for water after a river is contaminated in Songjiang District, Shanghai, Jan. 11, 2013.

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• China: Fragile Superpower, by Susan Shirk.  This book examines "the tensions on the fault-lines of China's national security structure."  I have not read this book so I cannot comment.
• Designated Drivers: How China Plans to Dominate the Global Auto Industry, by G.E. Anderson. According to Cormack, "this book is a marvelous introduction into Chinese economic policy and the numerous actors – and just because several are state actors does not mean that they are homogenous – behind the scenes, through the prism of the car industry." I have not read this book either, but I have read a lot of G.E. Anderson and I have many friends who know him well.  From my readings and from my friends, I have absolutely no doubt that this is a superb book. Anderson clearly knows China and he clearly knows its auto industry.
• When China Rules The World, by Martin Jacques.  I have read this book and it is okay.  Jacques makes some excellent points and has some deep insights into China.  In particular, this book is a great way to see China from a perspective different from that usually presented by the Western media.  But in the end, this book is too much a leftist paean to a China that does not exist and will never exist.
• The China Twist, by Wen-Szu Lin.  Amazon describes the China Twist as "the firsthand story of two Wharton MBAs who brought a beloved U.S. food franchise to China and encountered outrageous obstacles that will make anyone in business laugh, cringe, and think twice about doing business in Asia."  Cormack says that "Every single entrepreneur or businessperson thinking about entering the Chinese market should first read this." I also have not read this book, but I plan to do so.  A couple people have read it to me and it is just the sort of book I tend to like.
• The Party: The Secret World of China's Communist Rulers, by Richard McGregor.  If you want to better understand China's government, this is the book.
• On China, by Henry Kissinger.  I hate to admit that I have not read this book, though I have read many excerpts. Not surprisingly, Cormack thinks it an important tome on US-Sino relations.
• Behind the Red Door: Sex in China, by Richard Burger.  According to Cormack, Burger "takes the reader through a whirlwind tour of attitudes and practices, from the permissive Tang to the ludicrously repressive Maoist epochs, and divides subsequent chapters into useful sections, like The Family", "Homosexuality", "Dating and Marriage", "The Sex Trade" and does so without ever being prurient.  Burger is a friend of mine and one of the best China bloggers ever, writing masterpieces at Peking Duck since 2002! I plan to read this book because I am certain it is excellent.

• When A Billion Chinese Jump, by Jonathan Watts.  Definitely a worthwhile read.

• China's Urban Billion: The Story Behind the Biggest Migration in Human History, by Tom Miller.  I have heard good things too, but not read it.

• China Airborne, by James Fallows.  I consider Fallows to be one of the best writers on China in our era and I also recommend his other book, Postcards from Tomorrow Square: Reports from China

• The Great Rebalancing: Trade, Conflict, and the Perilous Road Ahead for the World Economy, by Michael Pettis.  I have not read this book but I am a Pettis fan as he is one of the few real economists out there covering China 24/7 and writing about it.

• What Chinese Want: Culture, Communism and the Modern Chinese Consumer, Tom Doctoroff.  This is one of the best books I have read on the Chinese consumer.  I reviewed this book last year, in a post entitled, "What The Chinese Consumer Wants. Hint: They Were Not "Born In The U.S.A."

• The Fragile Bridge: Conflict Management in Chinese Business, by Andrew Hupert.  G.E. Anderson (see above) goes so far as to say that if you are serious about doing business in China, you need this book.  Only if you think it important to know China business tactics/psychology.

• China in the 21st Century, by Jeffrey Wasserstrom. This is the best China beginner book I have read. It is accurately subtitled "What Everyone Needs to Know" and it consists of a blissfully short and easy 192 pages. It is meant to be basic and it is, but it is not in any way simplistic.

• Out of Mao's Shadow: The Struggle for the Soul of a New China, by Phillip Pan.  I like books that help me to better understand what influences present day China.  This book accomplishes that in spades and it is beautifully written to boot.

• If you have not read a Peter Hessler book, you absolutely should/must. Hessler is a great writer and reading his books is both a pleasure and a learning experience.  Pick from Oracle Bones: A Journey Through Time in China, River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze, or Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory.

• Chinese Lessons: Five Classmates and the Story of the New China, by John Pomfret.  My comments about Out of Mao's Shadow hold true with equal force regarding this book.

• Though somewhat dated, I still also highly recommend James McGregor's One Billion Customers: Lessons from the Front Lines of Doing Business in China or Tim Clissold's Mr. China: A Memoir for those looking for China business books.

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