Monday 26 April 2010 at 12:09 am
The Roman Catholic Church in Scotland wants singing sensation Susan Boyle to perform for Pope Benedict XVI during his visit to Britain later this year, a spokesman said Sunday.
Boyle, who was catapulted to global stardom after appearing on a TV talent show, would be a "great asset" to events planned for Benedict's trip in September, said a spokesman for the Church in Scotland.
He said there were hopes a meeting could be held to discuss the involvement of the Scottish singer at a public mass in Glasgow during the papal visit.
"She certainly would be a great asset to the programme on the day and we hope to be able to discuss the possibility of her participation soon," said the spokesman.
There was no confirmed agreement with the star as yet and no formal invitation or approach had been made, he added.
The leader of the world's Catholics will be in Britain on September 16-19. Besides Glasgow, he will visit London and Coventry, where he will beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman, a 19th century theologian.
Boyle -- a plain, single, unemployed 49-year-old -- was discovered in April last year when she stunned judges on the television show "Britain's Got Talent" with her performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" from the musical "Les Miserables".
Although she ended runner-up in the competition, footage of her singing became a YouTube hit, with more than 100 million viewings.
Her first album, "I Dreamed a Dream," was the best-selling debut in British chart history and also topped the US charts.
Boyle, from Blackburn, has become the focus of enormous media attention since her talent show success, with tabloid newspapers dubbing her "SuBo".
Sunday 25 April 2010 at 10:27 am
Former president of Peking University Xu Zhihong said that China has not really world-class university. World-class university with three main criteria: a first-class research in an internationally renowned professor; a large number of human civilization and socio-economic development affect the results; train a large number to make a significant contribution to human civilization, the best students. Some 985 construction projects quick success, building world-class university can not be completed overnight, not even a generation, two generations can be completed.
Mr. Xu Zhihong say the Chinese University of deficiencies, only the size but not content, only the lack of software, hardware, only the quantity but not quality. . .
Figures show that Chinese universities are now in enrollment, enrollment, gross enrollment rate, number of universities and other quantitative indicators, beyond the United States and Europe to become the first. However, China to become world-class universities, as well as the city is the way to go.
First of all, designed to attract the "master" level personnel policy. 22 Harvard University and Tsinghua University president Lowell Yiqi have said something to the old heads, "University of Masters is not building" words of wisdom, the smooth "master" is the only way to improve the quality of university education. Building is now no shortage of Chinese universities, missing is the master. Picking the election "master" level talent, Mr. Cai Yuanpei "inclusive", "freedom of thought" in the study of policy is worth learning. Opening times, Chinese universities need the spirit of renewal that will take a broader view, philosophy extends to form a global talent are all I use situation. This is not idealistic nonsense,
As long as China's universities can provide a "master" are satisfied with the academic atmosphere and the necessary and favorable working and living conditions, why should we worry not lead to Golden Phoenix? In addition, self-liberation through policy release first-class scholars inside and outside the existing commitment of administrative and social duties and resolve of the University of Yamen Inveterate Problems, will be liberated to the line leading scholars to enrich education and research positions. This policy of self-attention it deserves, not only helps to wash away floating in the university officials over the air, a better idea of updating and scholars to form a "excellent learning, teaching," "A Good Education and Research," a new situation.
Secondly, from the developed campus experience, to create a good cultural environment on campus is a necessary means to enhance the quality of higher education. In short, a good cultural environment on campus that is humane, compassionate and harmonious blend of cultural and academic status, which state gathered at the university campus means that students who live on campus is a haven and a paradise for learning. Here, schools, teachers and students are equal subjects of rights, there is no hierarchical control and to be regulated, but both teaching and learning, student relations, and vice versa. Here, the academic character of the building to encourage independent and to provide students with the most extensive knowledge of learning space,
Pay more attention to quality and skills of students in training. In recent years, many Chinese universities abandon the obsolete through the harsh school rules and school through a number of humane provisions of the private right to protect the students (such as marriage and procreation rights, etc.) on the expression of a human consciousness. Prestigious schools in Hong Kong in the Mainland "pinch point" process, the mainland elite has absorbed the experience of Hong Kong's elite. As more and more prestigious overseas and domestic schools face a "battle Enrollment", the harsh competition will force China to build and overseas universities comparable first-class campus university human environment. This doctrine brought under the pressure of competition, will have much less prestigious universities in China and overseas, the gap between first-class.
To improve the quality of education in Chinese universities, but also dare to face their own inadequacy to realize rapid expansion of university education in China, too market-oriented, utilitarian result of the low quality of graduates, less able to adapt to the realities of society. Face enormous psychological pressure on students in school, social cognitive ability is weak, the excessive dependence of the collective unconscious of the "youth infantilism," and so on. Therefore, the Chinese University of how China's national conditions only under the "one-child college students" trained physical health, mental health and good social adaptability of workers, but also reflects the Chinese University of Butterfly from quantity to quality an important symbol.
The most important thing is to build first-class universities, but also willing to invest. Public financial support is not enough to run high-quality universities is fantasy. According to the Ministry of Education issued March 1, "State Reform and Development Plan and long-term (2010-2020)", 2020, when the State, financial education expenditure to GDP to 4%. In the United States as high as 8% in 2007, some proportion of educational investment in developing countries is higher than that of China. Therefore, increased investment in education is an urgent race against time proposition. In this issue, can not hesitate nor mean
delete entry marker
Sunday 25 April 2010 at 09:57 am
PC owners simply eager to learn of radiation star dishes - tomato squid ring
Now the computer is full of life every day, and want to exclude it really be hard, but the computer that is also a bad thing Yehao good Zan not praise him, the province is nothing to crash complacency play, well let's have said said, and radiation big, ruined eyes, is it caused. This is where you win anything is fair, it also overcomes everything, and with the computer that is squid a gram. Relieve fatigue, restore sight and improve liver function; which contains peptides and selenium have anti-virus, radiation effects. So Zan eat squid it!
Tuesday 20 April 2010 at 08:25 am
Jiangnan University in Wuxi, east China's Jiangsu Province, has denied the accusation that it provided recycled industrial waste water that contained a heavy lead content to its campus bathhouses, according to Tuesday's China Daily.
The local TV program First View reported about the "recycled water" after it had received an anonymous letter saying that Wangsheng Hot Water Supply has been recycling waste water from a steel company and delivering it to universities and hotels for bathing.
The program sent an undercover reporter to the university to collect water samples for testing, the result of which showed the water contained excessive lead -- 10 times higher than the normal level.
The TV report received widespread attention from the public since it aired, prompting various posts online, some of which called the case "Steel Water Gate."
The university closed its bathhouses immediately after the TV report and posted an announcement on its website on Saturday, claiming that they would not be put back in use until it receives the outcome of the investigation by local authorities.
Bathhouses at the university reopened on Monday.
"The result has shown that bath water at our university is qualified for use, with no excessive lead content," said Jiangnan University spokesman Wu Zhengguo. "We conduct routine tests each year to ensure the water safety."
According to Wu, the local health bureau conducted its own investigation shortly after the TV program aired. The health bureau examined the whole supply chain involved in the story, including the water source, the supplier and the water tank at the university.
"There is nothing abnormal," he said.
When Wu was asked about the water sample that First View sent for testing, he replied: "They cannot prove the original source of the sample. We have reason to doubt its truthfulness."
In addition to the university, the hot water supplier, Wangsheng Hot Water Supply, has denied the report that appeared on First View.
"I have no idea why they produced such a story," said Tang Chuanwang, the owner of Wangsheng Hot Water Supply. "The water we supply all comes from the local waterworks."
When Tang was asked about First View having filmed a Wangsheng truck waiting outside the Qiangsheng Steel Company, which the program presented as waiting for recycled waste water, he said, "we use the steam facilities at the steel company to heat the water."
Tuesday 20 April 2010 at 08:25 am
It was a chilly early spring Saturday morning. Arriving at 4 am with his tricycle, Hu Tong wrapped himself in a dark blue overcoat, waiting in front of the closed doors to the Panjiayuan Antiques Market with a flashlight in his pocket.
Thirty minutes later, the door opened and the Panjiayuan's early market, also known as the "ghost market", kicked off. Walking past lines of brightly lighted booths, Hu walked straight to the rear of the market, home to a section devoted to secondhand books. Because it closest to neighboring homes, the area was left darkened so as not to disturb the residents.
Holding the flashlight, Hu, 36, passed each booth with a quick and thorough examination of their offerings.
"You should know how to appreciate while being decisive, or the best books will elude you," said Hu. "It is something like fate. If you miss it, it is hard to regain it, and you will never know what you would have met the next second. That is the attraction of browsing secondhand books."
At 7 am, Hu concluded his visit, the flatbed of his tricycle loaded with books. Since 1997, Panjiayuan has been a must-visit for him every Saturday.
"Selling secondhand books is neither an easy thing nor profitable. That's why most books are sold at temporary stalls, like those in Panjiayuan."
The round-faced man with black-framed glasses is the founder and boss of the Booyee secondhand bookstore, which includes a popular online shop, booyee.com.cn. His real name is Hu Bin, but his tight-knit circle of acquaintances in the used book trade know him as Hu Tong.
His chapter in the capital's secondhand book trade started in 1997, when he left his job as an art teacher at a middle school near Linyi in Shandong province. He moved to Beijing for further studies at the Central Academy of Fine Arts.
Obsessed with the books and bookstores, he never returned to Shandong. The secondary book markets at such places as Panjiayuan and the Baoguosi Culture Market become his new haunts.
"Old books, different from new ones, are affable. Inscriptions on flyleaves, notes in margins or lines from a sender to a receiver on the preface catapult them from an ordinary book to one with life and inspiring imagination," he said.
To cover expenses, he tried various jobs, from TV planner to website editor. The only thing never changed was buying books. Ornate printing, favorite publishers, beloved authors or a positive review are enough reason for him to make a purchase.
"And the simplest reason is I don't have it, " he added.
His spending on tomes once left him no money for dinners.
"Fortunately, I have spiritual food," he said.
His 12-sq-m home in a courtyard near the Drum Tower is much like a book warehouse, packed with books stacked from floor to ceiling, with only room for a reading table in the center of one room. Books also occupy his little bed, so he sleeps with them every night.
His bookselling career was triggered by his posting at Tianya's Xianxian Shuhua forum. Called Sanshiniandai, literally meaning the 1930s, Hu's posting listed collection, shared his tales of scrounging around the capital's markets, and profiled old books or authors he appreciated.
"Because I was in Beijing, having access to larger secondhand book resources, I always helped people on the forum browse books or gave them what I had read if they loved them."
His online Booyee bookstore came of age in 2004, adopting the name of a friend, a philosopher. His goal: To make books more affordable.
"However when an interest is changed into a career, it is of joy and pain," Hu said.
"I once didn't read any books for one to two years. Every day was occupied by defining prices, uploading new books, recording accounts, collecting books from door to door. I was so tired by the end of the day that I had to lift my legs onto the bed with my hands."
However, his job gives him satisfaction. "It offers a platform, although small, to bring together people who would have never known each other to talk about a common thing they love."
Historical books such as celebrity biographies and anecdotes are now just part of business, he said.
"They help me enlarge the background knowledge about old books, which helps me judge the value of books and make decisions quickly when collecting."
Hu summarized his affair with books with an adage about relationships: "If you love him, let him manage a bookstore 'cause that's where heaven is. If you hate him, let him manage a bookstore, 'cause that's where hell is."
Monday 19 April 2010 at 07:17 am
Real Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini had words for the ability his players showed to bounce back from last weekend's 2-0 defeat against Barcelona to win two games in a week.
Real Madrid's 2-0 triumph against third placed Valencia on Sunday night allowed Pellegrini's side to move to within just one point of FC Barcelona at the top of the Primera Liga table.
It was a deserved win for Madrid, who outplayed Valencia for most of the 90 minutes.
"We studied Valencia's style thoroughly, so I am delighted with the victory. I am proud of my men's mental strength and fighting spirit," the coach told the club website on Monday morning, before highlighting his side's effectiveness in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
"We've won 15 of our 16 home games in La Liga and we've also scored an important number of goals. I am very satisfied with what my men do both on and off the pitch. It was very important to win in Almeria and seal that victory with another one here tonight. We are a solid team that scores goal," he highlighted.
"We try to make progress in each game. Our intention is to always win," he said when asked whether or not it was still possible to win the league title.
Monday 19 April 2010 at 07:17 am
Airports at the Finnish cities of Turku and Tampere will be re-opened between 12:00 and 18:00 (0900-1500 GMT) on Monday, after the country's airspace was closed on Thursday due to the volcanic ash cloud.
The temporary re-opening was announced by the country's airport operator Finavia.
Elsewhere, Austria also re-opened its airspace after the ash cloud had forced the closure last week.
Takeoffs and landings will be allowed starting at 17:00 (0300 GMT) on Monday but the Vienna International Airport website indicated that many of the flights still remain canceled after Austria's civil aviation authority Austro Control imposed the airspace restriction on Friday last week.
Germany and other countries in Europe still keep their airspaces closed to flights despite the move by Finland and Austria.
Germany's air safety agency DFS extended on Monday its airspace closure to 1800 GMT. DFS previously announced that airspace would be closed till 1200 GMT.
The air safety agency, however, allowed six German international airports to re-open for limited hours on Sunday.
Volcanic ashes from Iceland, carried by winds, have spread across the skies of most Europe, forcing grounding of most civil aviation flights and closing-down of airspaces.
The ashes are feared to be harmful to jet engines and body frames.
The Jakarta incident was the earliest reported mid-air engine stall as a British Airways Boeing 747 had all four engines stalled after having flown through a volcanic ash cloud over Indonesia in 1982.
A KLM Boeing 747-400 ran into a nearly identical incident seven years later when it dashed into a volcanic ash cloud over Alaska.
In both cases, the crew managed to re-start the engines after their planes were out of the ash clouds.
Civil aviation authorities across Europe had to resort to such extreme measures as closing down airspace and grounding nearly all civil flights for the past few days for air safety.
Sunday 18 April 2010 at 09:14 am
An ash cloud spewing from the erupting Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland continued to affect air travel across Europe Friday, leading to the closure of many airports and the cancellation of thousands of flights.
After at least nine countries announced the closure of airspaces as a preventive measure on Thursday, Switzerland on Friday announced the closure of its airspace as the ash cloud approached, the official Swissinfo.ch news website reported.
The ban began at midnight, when the ash was expected to arrive over Switzerland, and would remain in force until Saturday morning, the civil aviation office was quoted by the website as saying.
The only planes still allowed to fly are those on search and rescue missions, the office said, adding that it was monitoring the situation closely and would decide later whether to extend the ban.
As the cloud was moving south and east, hundreds of thousands of passengers were stranded throughout the continent due to flight cancellations since Wednesday. Airport authorities have suggested passengers contact their airlines to confirm their flight schedules before going to the airport.
In Hungary, the Malev Hungarian Airlines canceled 44 of its 50 departures and Budapest-based discount carrier Wizz Air canceled 66 percent of its flights, mainly because destination airports had already closed their air space. Most flights from Western Europe to Hungary were also canceled.
Hungarian Railways MAV has added extra cars to its international trains to assist passengers who must travel.
At Moscow airports, more than 80 flights have been delayed or canceled, said Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency.
Local media reported that the airspace of Russia's western enclave of Kaliningrad has been closed and flights suspended due to the volcanic ash.
Weather departments from Russia's northwestern city of St. Petersburg said no volcanic ash has so far been observed in the region's airspace, but air traffic there might well be affected in the future.
At least 185 flights were canceled in Portugal on Friday, the country's airports office said.
Portela airport in the capital Lisbon had the most cancellations, affecting 77 flights, including 40 departures and 37 arrivals, the office said in a statement.
In the airport of Faro, Algarve, south of the country, 69 flights were canceled.
The air traffic chaos also disrupted some European state leaders' travel schedules. While Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva is stranded in Prague, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is on her way back home from the United States, will have to stay in Lisbon till Saturday after her flight was forced to land by the ash cloud on Friday.
Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates paid a courtesy call to Merkel after she arrived at the airport. She will spend the night in a hotel under tight security.
The large scale air traffic halt threatens the arrival of world leaders for a state funeral on Sunday for late Polish President Lech Kaczynski, who was killed in a plane crash last Saturday.
South Korean Prime Minister Chung Un-chan' office said the prime minister has called off his scheduled trip for the funeral due to the shutdown of airports in Europe.
Poland, which is shutting most of its airspace, has considered delaying the funeral, but the bereaved family does not want to move the date.
Sunday 18 April 2010 at 09:14 am
Following the exile of former Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev from the country, civil conflicts within the impoverished Central Asian state was somewhat alleviated. Nonetheless there are still a lot of things to do for the interim government formed one day after the riots broke out in the capital city of Bishkek on April 7.
Kyrgyz interim leader Roza Otunbayeva said Friday that she currently has made no plans for the presidential elections set to be held six months later.
"I do not know if I may take part in the presidential election, " said Otunbayeva in Bishkek during a video linkup with reporters in Washington.
She said there were more pressing issues than her political future right now, such as the stabilization of Kyrgyz situations, the elaboration of a new constitution and the definition of the presidential election formula, Russia's Itar-Tass news agency reported.
The U.S.-leased military transit center near Manas airport was also not a priority of the interim government, she added.
Earlier Friday the interim government has announced an automatic extension of the lease by one year.
Also on Friday, former President Bakiyev, who resigned and left the country for neighboring Kazakhstan Thursday under the mediation of Russia, Kazakhstan and the United States, confirmed in a televised address that he was in Kazakhstan.
"I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you for your help and care about me," Bakiyev said to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in the address.
Bakiyev said it was after a telephone conversation with Nazarbayev and other Kazakh officials did he decide to leave Kyrgyzstan, the Interfax news agency reported. The plane carrying him landed in the Kazakh regional center of Taraza on Thursday at around 08:15 p.m. local time (1515 GMT).
It was currently not clear how long the deposed Kyrgyz president would stay in Kazakhstan and what destination he might leave for next.
Nazarbayev, at a news briefing in Astana on Friday, said the Kazakh authorities have facilitated the solving of the political crisis in Kyrgyzstan. He also voiced hope that the Kyrgyz interim government could stabilize the situation in the country as soon as possible.
According to the RIA Novosti news agency, Kazakh officials also denied a possible meeting between Bakiyev and Nazarbayev, saying it was not on the presidential agenda.
Last week, thousands of protesters clashed with security forces throughout the country, driving out local governments and seizing government headquarters in Bishkek. Latest figures from the Health Ministry put the death toll of the riots up to 84.
Bakiyev fled to the south and opposition parties formed an interim government led by Otunbayeva, former foreign minister.
The interim government said Bakiyev and his brothers were responsible for the unrest.
However, in the handwritten and signed letter of resignation submitted to the interim government early Friday, whose copy was posted by Kazakh news agency on its website, Bakiyev said he bore certain responsibility for the events that occurred, but all responsibility for the bloodshed of innocent people "rests with the members of the interim government, who used them for seizing power."
He also said in the letter: "On these tragic days for the Kyrgyz people, understanding all responsibility for the Kyrgyz people's future and for preserving the state's integrity and Kyrgyz statehood, I resign in line with Article 50 of the Kyrgyz Constitution."
Saturday 17 April 2010 at 08:49 am
An ash cloud spewing from the erupting Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland continued to affect air travel across Europe Friday, leading to the closure of many airports and the cancellation of thousands of flights.
After at least nine countries announced the closure of airspaces as a preventive measure on Thursday, Switzerland on Friday announced the closure of its airspace as the ash cloud approached, the official Swissinfo.ch news website reported.
The ban began at midnight, when the ash was expected to arrive over Switzerland, and would remain in force until Saturday morning, the civil aviation office was quoted by the website as saying.
The only planes still allowed to fly are those on search and rescue missions, the office said, adding that it was monitoring the situation closely and would decide later whether to extend the ban.
As the cloud was moving south and east, hundreds of thousands of passengers were stranded throughout the continent due to flight cancellations since Wednesday. Airport authorities have suggested passengers contact their airlines to confirm their flight schedules before going to the airport.
In Hungary, the Malev Hungarian Airlines canceled 44 of its 50 departures and Budapest-based discount carrier Wizz Air canceled 66 percent of its flights, mainly because destination airports had already closed their air space. Most flights from Western Europe to Hungary were also canceled.
Hungarian Railways MAV has added extra cars to its international trains to assist passengers who must travel.
At Moscow airports, more than 80 flights have been delayed or canceled, said Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency.
Local media reported that the airspace of Russia's western enclave of Kaliningrad has been closed and flights suspended due to the volcanic ash.
Weather departments from Russia's northwestern city of St. Petersburg said no volcanic ash has so far been observed in the region's airspace, but air traffic there might well be affected in the future.
At least 185 flights were canceled in Portugal on Friday, the country's airports office said.
Portela airport in the capital Lisbon had the most cancellations, affecting 77 flights, including 40 departures and 37 arrivals, the office said in a statement.
In the airport of Faro, Algarve, south of the country, 69 flights were canceled.
The air traffic chaos also disrupted some European state leaders' travel schedules. While Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva is stranded in Prague, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is on her way back home from the United States, will have to stay in Lisbon till Saturday after her flight was forced to land by the ash cloud on Friday.
Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates paid a courtesy call to Merkel after she arrived at the airport. She will spend the night in a hotel under tight security.
The large scale air traffic halt threatens the arrival of world leaders for a state funeral on Sunday for late Polish President Lech Kaczynski, who was killed in a plane crash last Saturday.
South Korean Prime Minister Chung Un-chan' office said the prime minister has called off his scheduled trip for the funeral due to the shutdown of airports in Europe.
Poland, which is shutting most of its airspace, has considered delaying the funeral, but the bereaved family does not want to move the date.
Saturday 17 April 2010 at 08:48 am
Following the exile of former Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev from the country, civil conflicts within the impoverished Central Asian state was somewhat alleviated. Nonetheless there are still a lot of things to do for the interim government formed one day after the riots broke out in the capital city of Bishkek on April 7.
Kyrgyz interim leader Roza Otunbayeva said Friday that she currently has made no plans for the presidential elections set to be held six months later.
"I do not know if I may take part in the presidential election, " said Otunbayeva in Bishkek during a video linkup with reporters in Washington.
She said there were more pressing issues than her political future right now, such as the stabilization of Kyrgyz situations, the elaboration of a new constitution and the definition of the presidential election formula, Russia's Itar-Tass news agency reported.
The U.S.-leased military transit center near Manas airport was also not a priority of the interim government, she added.
Earlier Friday the interim government has announced an automatic extension of the lease by one year.
Also on Friday, former President Bakiyev, who resigned and left the country for neighboring Kazakhstan Thursday under the mediation of Russia, Kazakhstan and the United States, confirmed in a televised address that he was in Kazakhstan.
"I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you for your help and care about me," Bakiyev said to Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in the address.
Bakiyev said it was after a telephone conversation with Nazarbayev and other Kazakh officials did he decide to leave Kyrgyzstan, the Interfax news agency reported. The plane carrying him landed in the Kazakh regional center of Taraza on Thursday at around 08:15 p.m. local time (1515 GMT).
It was currently not clear how long the deposed Kyrgyz president would stay in Kazakhstan and what destination he might leave for next.
Nazarbayev, at a news briefing in Astana on Friday, said the Kazakh authorities have facilitated the solving of the political crisis in Kyrgyzstan. He also voiced hope that the Kyrgyz interim government could stabilize the situation in the country as soon as possible.
According to the RIA Novosti news agency, Kazakh officials also denied a possible meeting between Bakiyev and Nazarbayev, saying it was not on the presidential agenda.
Last week, thousands of protesters clashed with security forces throughout the country, driving out local governments and seizing government headquarters in Bishkek. Latest figures from the Health Ministry put the death toll of the riots up to 84.
Bakiyev fled to the south and opposition parties formed an interim government led by Otunbayeva, former foreign minister.
The interim government said Bakiyev and his brothers were responsible for the unrest.
However, in the handwritten and signed letter of resignation submitted to the interim government early Friday, whose copy was posted by Kazakh news agency on its website, Bakiyev said he bore certain responsibility for the events that occurred, but all responsibility for the bloodshed of innocent people "rests with the members of the interim government, who used them for seizing power."
He also said in the letter: "On these tragic days for the Kyrgyz people, understanding all responsibility for the Kyrgyz people's future and for preserving the state's integrity and Kyrgyz statehood, I resign in line with Article 50 of the Kyrgyz Constitution."
Friday 16 April 2010 at 05:04 am
By Ying Guoliang in Yushu and Guo Qiang in Beijing
If the freezing temperatures, rising death toll and struggle to reach the remote area of Yushu weren't bad enough, rescuers who have made the trip are struggling with another major problem: a lack of oxygen.
The mountainous region of Yushu in Qinghai Province was rocked Wednesday morning by a 7.1-magnitude earthquake that has killed more than 600 people and injured almost 10,000.
But a lingering threat is that caused by the region's elevation, located about 4,000 meters above sea level, or 1,000 meters above where mental and physical alertness begins to suffer, especially during physical exertion, according to information found at altitude. org. And that's exactly what rescuers are doing: lifting and digging through rubble in attempts to find survivors buried alive.
Hou Shike, deputy head of the China International Search and Rescue Team, was quoted by the Xinhua news agency as saying some of his workers had developed breathing difficulties hours after arriving by plane to the region.
And Miao Chonggang, the deputy head of the China Earthquake Administration's quake relief and emergency response department, said Thursday at a press conference that the thin air has impeded the abilities of search dogs to find victims.
Nonetheless, rescue teams persevered Thursday, using shovels and their hands to do most of the digging as aftershock after aftershock further threatened lives. Nearly 800 aftershocks had hit the quake zone by Thursday evening, with the biggest at magnitude 6.3.
At least 617 people were confirmed dead as of last night, and more than 300 others were reportedly missing.
Additionally, officials say, nearly 90 percent of homes in Yushu were destroyed, resulting in tens of thousands of people displaced, evacuating the region or seeking shelter in emergency tents.
Images circulating the Web and shown on TV brought back memories of the 2008 Sichuan quake that killed about 86,000 people in neighboring Sichuan Province.
President Hu Jintao, who was on a visit to Brasilia Thursday for a summit with Brazil, Russia and India, said he would postpone a visit to Venezuela and Chile to return home. Premier Wen Jiabao also postponed a scheduled visit to three Asian countries, arriving at the quake zone Thursday afternoon to oversee rescue work.
Some 5,000 soldiers, police officers and firefighters joined professional search and rescue teams in combing through the debris to find survivors, Xinhua reported.
The temperature dipped to minus 10 C the first night, forcing the majority of survivors to seek shelter in build storyings that hadn't fallen, though a Global Times correspondent said some opted to sleep in the streets with quilts, fearful of aftershocks destroying more buildings.
Snow and rain are expected in the coming days, and the temperature may again fall as low as 10 degrees below zero tomorrow, warned China Meteorological Administration chief forecaster Wang Yongguang.
The cold increases the need for immediate warm tents or other forms of shelter.
"Frequent aftershocks, a shortage of air at high altitude and the cold weather have made rescue efforts very difficult," Yao Honghua, a rescue worker with China International Search and Rescue, told the Global Times Thursday.
Tent hospitals were preparing to receive injured survivors, according to Yao, adding that makeshift medical centers have also been set up at the Yushu sports stadium, county government courtyard and Gyegu Square, where most of the survivors have gathered.
Recalling the ordeal, a 26-year-old man who gave only his surname as Ma told the Global Times that he came to Yushu from his hometown in Gansu Province a week ago, hoping to find a job, and now he is unable to leave.
"We have no tents, food or money. We spent an uncomfortable night in the open amid freezing weather; luckily we survived the ordeal," Ma said.
Domestic and international aid, including tents and medical supplies, have been rushed to Yushu to shelter thousands of homeless.
Zou Ming, director of disaster relief for the Ministry of Civil Affairs, said at a press conference Thursday that about 8,370 tents had been dispatched to the quake zone, and more were expected.
The tents will be enough for about 100,000 people, he said, adding that 120,000 cotton coats, 120,000 quilts and 20,000 camp beds had been sent to the region.
Lending a hand
Qinghai provincial television stations were ordered to stop broadcasting entertainment shows Wednesday to focus on disaster-relief work, according to Jidi Majia, director of the publicity department of Qinghai.
A number of cities and provinces across China, including Shanghai, Heilongjiang Province and Jilin Province, have donated aid.
Hong Kong and Macao compatriots donated HK$4 million ($515,375) to the China Overseas Friendship Association for quake-relief work in Yushu Thursday, officials said.
And the Hong Kong Red Cross promised to donate relief materials worth HK$200,000, while its Macao counterpart allocated 300,000 patacas ($37,527) from its relief fund for quake relief, the Red Cross Society of China said Thursday.
Monks in the Yushu Tibetan Prefecture also joined rescue efforts after the quake.
The international community is also reaching out. The United States Thursday donated $100,000 to help with relief operations, and an assistance team from the Turkish Red Crescent aid society was on its way to China.
Fan Yuquan, a spokesman for the Yunnan Frontier Medical Rescue Team, told the Global Times that the biggest difficulty is a lack of resources, as medicines, medical equipment and supplies are still on the way.
"We lack everything. Without these resources, we can only handle minor injuries, such as dressing minor wounds, but we can't perform operations, which are more needed," said Fan, whose team has helped more than 200 seriously injured people be transported to Xining for better treatment, the capital of Qinghai.
The health ministry warned Thursday of the spread and control of infectious diseases as Yushu is a natural source of marmot plague and infections, according to a notice posted on the ministry's website.
Song Shengxia and Xinhua contributed to this story
Friday 16 April 2010 at 05:04 am
After a rocky 2009 followed by two months of double-digit declines, U.S. retail sales of video game software, hardware and accessories finally saw an uptick in March.
Market researcher NPD Group said Thursday total video game sales climbed 6 percent from the same month a year earlier, to $1.52 billion. Strong sales of Nintendo's gaming systems, new "Pokemon" games and Sony Corp.'s "God of War III" helped boost results.
Software sales jumped 10 percent to $875.3 million, well above what most analysts were expecting. In addition to "God of War," which sold more than a million copies, two "Pokemon" games from Nintendo and "Final Fantasy XIII" from Square Enix were also top sellers. "Battlefield: Bad Company 2" from Electronic Arts Inc. was among the month's strongest-selling games as well.
Industry expectations were for software sales growth of about 3 percent, said Electronic Entertainment Design and Research analyst Jesse Divnich. The higher-than-expected March figures, he added, were driven by Nintendo, whose games sold much better than analysts had predicted.
Hardware sales dropped 4 percent to $440.5 million, in part because game console prices are lower than they were at this time last year. Nintendo's Wii system sold 557,500 units, and its portable DS, 700,800. Once again, the company easily surpassed rival console makers, with Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 selling 338,400 units and Sony's PlayStation 3 selling 313,900.
Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said supply constraints that had squeezed Wii sales in the past couple of months are easing up.
Sales of video game accessories rose 11 percent to $206.8 million.
Year-to-date video game sales were down 7 percent at the end of March compared with the same three-month period last year.
Earlier Thursday, Activision Blizzard Inc. raised its revenue and earnings forecast for the first quarter, citing strong global demand for its top games — "World of Warcraft" and "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2."
The latter is now the second-best-selling game of all time in the U.S. after Nintendo's "Wii Play," said NPD analyst Anita Frazier. "Wii Play" has sold extremely well in large part because it comes packaged with a Wii controller at no extra cost.
Thursday 15 April 2010 at 06:13 am
Chinese across the country, still haunted by the deadly 8.0-magnitude earthquake in Sichuan in 2008, are doing what they can to help the quake-hit northwestern province of Qinghai.
At least 617 were killed and close to 10,000 were injured or are missing after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit Qinghai's Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Yushu early Wednesday morning.
The Beijing's municipal government, the city's Party committee, and the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau have donated ten million yuan (about 1.47 million U.S. dollars) to Yushu, while the provincial governments of Liaoning and Fujian each gave five million, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said in a report on its website.
An additional 3.5 million yuan was donated by Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Gansu and Hebei Provinces.
Beijing has allocated 10,000 tents, 20,000 folded beds, and 100,000 cotton quilts for the quake-hit region, with Jiangxi Province adding in another 10,000 quilts.
Meanwhile, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China raised three million yuan for quake relief, while its affiliated China Youth Development Foundation sent an emergency team with medicine, food, and other relief supplies worth one million yuan to the quake-hit zones.
Thursday 15 April 2010 at 06:13 am
Wang Na, an employee with popular website Tianya, initiated a donation campaign online immediately after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck China's Qinghai Province early Wednesday.
"The quake-hit area urgently needs bottled water, instant noodles, cotton-padded quilts, clothes, tents, flashlights, anti-inflammatory drugs and other medicines," said the notice on Tianya which drew more than 600 responses from netizens within one day after its posting.
"Goods and materials can help quake victims in a more direct and effective way," Wang told Xinhua on Thursday, adding any goods donated will be sent to Qinghai by transport companies as soon as possible.
It is the second time Wang and her company have launched a quake relief campaign, which has been nicknamed "Tianya Love Express."
They managed to deliver more than 1,300 boxes of donated medicine, food and clothes after a 8.0-magnitude quake devastated parts of southwestern Sichuan Province on May 12, 2008.
Wednesday 14 April 2010 at 05:54 am
The creators of the hit videogame franchise "Call of Duty," who were fired by Activision Blizzard last month, launched a new studio Monday and announced a partnership with Activision rival Electronic Arts.
Jason West and Vince Zampella said Respawn Entertainment will assemble a "world-class team of designers, artists and engineers" and has awarded EA "exclusive worldwide publishing and distribution rights to future games."
"Respawn Entertainment marks a fresh start for Jason and me," Zampella said in a statement. "For the past decade we led a great development team and poured our hearts into creating an epic game franchise in the first-person shooter format.
"Today we hope to do it all over again -- open a new studio, hire a great team, and create brand new games with a new partner, EA," he said.
"Now that the team is in control of the games and brands, we can ensure that the fans are treated as well as they deserve," West added.
The launch of Respawn Entertainment, which will be based in Encino, California, comes a month after the sudden and acrimonious departure of Zampella and West from Activision.
In its March 1 annual report, Activision, a unit of French conglomerate Vivendi, did not name Zampella and West but said it was conducting "an internal human resources inquiry into breaches of contract and insubordination by two senior employees" at Infinity Ward, the wholly owned subsidiary which developed the "Call of Duty" franchise.
Zampella and West were dismissed the next day and turned around and filed a lawsuit against Activision accusing it of firing them "before they were to be paid substantial royalty payments as part of their existing contracts."
"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" came out only in November but was still the highest-grossing videogame last year.
It raked in an estimated 550 million dollars worldwide in its first five days to set an all-time entertainment industry record, eclipsing Hollywood's biggest blockbusters.
"Modern Warfare 2" is the sixth title in a "Call of Duty" franchise that has won a devoted following since the first version was released in 2003.
Wednesday 14 April 2010 at 05:54 am
Tianjin: A key player in the Bohai Bay economic zone, a manufacturing and shipping center in North China, with per capita GDP exceeding 62,000 yuan ($9,082) in 2009.
Qingdao: A shipping center and seaside resort city, with per capita GDP exceeding 65,000 yuan in 2008.
Hangzhou: A key player in the Yangtze River Delta, strong in education and financial resources, with per capita GDP of 60,000 yuan in 2009.
Suzhou: Strong in foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade-oriented manufacturing, with per capita GDP of more than 77,000 yuan in 2009, higher than Shanghai.
Dalian: The logistics center for Northeast China on the Bohai Bay, strong also in FDI and tourism, with per capita GDP of 73,000 yuan in 2009.
Shenyang: A major industrial base in northeastern China, strong in machinery industry and electrical equipment, with per capita GDP of more than 55,000 yuan in 2009.
Nanjing: Important business city in the Yangtze River Delta, with per capita GDP exceeding 44,000 yuan in 2008.
Xiamen: One of the first special economic zones in China with export-oriented economy, serving as a logistics center in southeastern China, with per capita GDP of more than 64,000 yuan in 2009.
Wuhan: The largest transportation hub in Central China, strong in the metal and machinery industries, with per capita GDP of 47,000 yuan in 2008.
Chengdu: A major city in southwestern China, strong in industry and agriculture, with per capita GDP exceeding 38,000 yuan in 2008.
Chongqing: The largest city in China, strong in the auto and machine industries and also a transportation hub in southwestern China, with per capita GDP of more than 22,000 yuan in 2009.
Jinan: A player in the Bohai Bay economic zone, with per capita GDP of more than 46,000 yuan in 2008.
Xi'an: A historical city in western China, strong in aircraft building and education, with per capita GDP exceeding 34,000 yuan in 2009.
Changchun: The largest auto industry base in northeastern China, also strong in agriculture and food process, with per capita GDP exceeding 41,000 yuan in 2008.
Hefei: A university town in Central China, with per capita GDP of more than 42,000 yuan in 2009.
Hohhot: China's trade hub with Mongolia and Russia, with per capita GDP exceeding 61,000 yuan in 2009.
Changsha: In Hunan province in Central China, most competitive in the cultural and entertainment industries, with per capita GDP of more than 56,000 yuan in 2009.
Foshan: A city in the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong province, known for its light industries, with per capita GDP exceeding 67,000 yuan in 2008.
Changzhou: A business city near Shanghai in the Yangtze River Delta, strong in manufacturing, with per capita GDP more than 56,000 yuan in 2009.
Yangzhou: A rapidly growing city in the Yangtze River Delta, strong in textiles and agriculture, with per capita GDP exceeding 41,000 yuan in 2009.
Wednesday 14 April 2010 at 05:54 am
Ex-cop also receives 16 years behind bars for accepting bribes
CHONGQING - Gang boss Wang Xiaojun was sentenced to life in jail on Monday for crimes including running brothels and gambling websites in this Southwest municipality.
The sentencing came two days before the scheduled judgment of the alleged gang protector - Chongqing's former justice chief and deputy police director Wen Qiang.
The sensational conviction of Wang, coming after a trial filled with horrific and lurid stories, has re-ignited the public's interests in the city's massive gang-crushing operation, which has ebbed and rarely made newspaper headlines in the past two months.
Chief Judge Tang Wei of the ruling court - the No 5 Intermediate People's Court in Chongqing - told reporters on Monday afternoon that the court found Wang had opened a male prostitution den named "Traveler's Harbor" in central Chongqing's Yudu hotel in 2006.
Prosecutors have also said one of the gang's former associates, Song Yu, who owed 2.6 million yuan ($380,000) in gambling debts to Wang's organization, was forced to cut off his left ring finger and little finger last April to get temporary relief from debt collectors.
Prosecutors also accused Wang of having reaped 59 million yuan from organizing hundreds of female prostitutes in his club named "Haocheng" between 2004 and 2009, and gained 20 million yuan from running online gambling websites.
The court decided that Wang intentionally injured people and bribed four senior police officials with 1.28 million yuan - including Wen and another former deputy director of the municipal police bureau - to attain protection for his illegal businesses and to cover up crimes of his gangs.
The court also meted out a 16-year jail term for Li Hanbin, a senior police officer who was convicted of accepting 256,000 yuan from Wang and four other gang bosses.
Local residents said the "atrocious gangsters" deserve severe punishments.
"After today's verdict, I really expect Wednesday's sentence for Wen to be harsh," said a local 28-year-old freelancer Ma Beibei.
"It's just like watching the movie Infernal Affairs, with criminals in cops' uniforms finally getting what they deserve," she said.
Wen's lawyer, Yang Kuangsheng, told reporters that officials from the No 5 Intermediate People's Court in Chongqing informed him that Wen's verdict would be announced on Wednesday, almost eight months after the former justice chief was detained.
Wen, 55, who had served as deputy director of the Chongqing municipal public security bureau for 11 years before becoming director of the city's justice bureau, has been accused of rape, cover-ups and conniving with six mafia-style gangs.
He has also been accused of taking bribes of 15.46 million yuan and possessing 10.62 million yuan of unexplained assets.
Though acknowledging he accepted money from Wang and visited Wang's Haocheng club, Wen in court had denied protecting gangs or creating obstacles for any police investigation.
He said that since some of his peers had previously abused their power while investigating entertainment venues, an investigation should not take place unless a member of the public had first raised an alarm to police.
Wednesday 14 April 2010 at 05:53 am
Houses for accommodating more than 1.37 million quake survivor families in southwestern China have been built with donations from the Communist Party of China (CPC) members, the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee said Tuesday.
The quake zone house rebuilding program, which was finished in late March, has benefited 1.31 million households in Sichuan Province, 58,700 in Gansu, and 4,500 in Shaanxi, Chongqing and Yunnan combined, said the department in a statement.
Thanks to the house reconstruction program, quake survivors are now able to live in an environment featuring improved infrastructure for water conservation, telecommunication and sanitation.
Financing of the house reconstruction program in west China's quake zone totaled 5.4 billion yuan (about 794.12 million U.S. dollars), which was part of the 9.73 billion yuan donated by CPC members across China.
A magnitude-8.0 earthquake struck in May 2008, with the epicenter in Wenchuan of Sichuan Province, leaving more than 86,600 people dead or missing. Shortly after that powerful quake, the CPC members nationwide volunteered to make donations, under a theme of "special membership fees", for quake survivors.
The rest of the donated money has gone for other relief programs in quake zone, including reconstruction of schools, village-level entertainment centers, facilities for correspondence education, as well as health centers and nursing homes, some of which are still under construction, according to the the statement.
Monday 12 April 2010 at 07:13 am
By Guo Qiang
China reported over the weekend a $7.24 billion monthly trade deficit in March, its first in six years, which analysts said would be a short-lived phenomenon given the country's export-oriented economy.
Beijing's exports jumped 24.3 percent, year-on-year, last month to $112.11 billion, while imports surged 66 percent to $119.35 billion, the first monthly trade deficit since April 2004, when the trade deficit was $2.26 billion.
The announcement came after repeated Chinese officials' predictions of a deficit for March. Premier Wen Jiabao and Commerce Minister Chen Deming last month projected the likeliness of a trade deficit for the month, with Wen putting the figure at $8 billion.
Beijing's trade surplus, gained by its export-based economy, has shrunk following the government's efforts to boost imports amid the global financial crisis. The first quarter's trade surplus was $14.49 billion, down 76.7 percent from the same period last year.
The General Administration of Customs (GAC) said in a report that the March deficit is a result of the shrinking exports of labor-intensive products, surging imports and rising commodity prices.
Mei Xinyu, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, attributed the late Spring Festival, cold weather that pushed up energy imports, an increase in raw materials imports and the policy to expand the import of technologies, equipment and resources, as key factors in contributing to the trade deficit.
However, Mei predicted that China would not post an overall trade deficit in 2010 because the processing trade that naturally leads to surplus still dominates China's exports, according to his blog on sohu.com.
Tian Yun, vice president of the China Macro Economics Institute, said March's trade deficit was only a temporary phenomenon and the country will remain a surplus country in the long run.
The March trade deficit is mainly a result of expanded deficits with the Taiwan region, Japan and South Korea, customs figures indicated.
The March deficit with Japan more than tripled over the same month of last year to $6.53 billion, and its deficit with South Korea jumped 76 percent to $6.13 billion. The Chinese mainland's deficit with Taiwan amounted to $7.9 billion in March, up 78.7 percent, year-on-year.
However, China continued to report a trade surplus with the United States and the European Union. The March surplus with the US dropped 3.5 percent to $9.87 billion, year-on-year, and that with the EU fell by 13.1 percent to $6.96 billion, customs figures showed.
The US and the EU have long pushed China to revalue its yuan, which has been pegged at around 6.83 per dollar since July 2008, claiming that the weaker yuan gives an unfair advantage to the country's exports. China argued that a quick appreciation of the yuan could hurt exports, cause unemployment among laborers and hurt social stability.
'Yuan not to blame'
Ministry of Commerce spokesman Yao Jian said Saturday that China's trade deficit in March proves that the exchange rate is not the decisive factor affecting the trade balance.
"China's trade surplus continued to fall, and China even posted a trade deficit in March under a basically stable yuan exchange rate," Yao said in a statement posted on the ministry's website.
US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday paid a brief visit to Beijing, during which he was believed to have held talks with Vice Premier Wang Qishan over the yuan.
Zheng Jianmin, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics, said that the deficit is a result of an adjustment in the division of labor in the post-financial crisis era and will be an overriding trend in China's international trade.
However, he said the trade deficit will not help relieve the pressure on China to appreciate the yuan.
"But China will not bend to the pressure to let the yuan rise too soon. Hot money will come in and hurt China's economy if China rushes to raise the yuan's value," Zheng said.
Song Shengxia contributed to this story
Monday 12 April 2010 at 07:12 am
The Chinese maritime authority said on Monday that no Chinese was found aboard the ship hijacked by Somalia pirates on Sunday near Seychelles.
After contacting its counterparts in European Union, the Chinese Marine Search and Rescue Center (CMSRC) learned there were 26 crew members on the St. Vincent and Grenadines flagged cargo ship, or RAK AFRIKANA, which were hijacked in the Indian Ocean waters near Seychelles. They are Indian, Pakistan and Tanzanian, the CMSRC said on its website.
On Sunday, regional maritime officials in Kenya said all the 23 crew members on the Rak Afrikana are Chinese.
Saturday 10 April 2010 at 10:14 pm
Apple's iPad tablet computer hasn't been out a week yet but there are already over 830 video games that have been developed to suit the large format, high definition, multi-touch screen.
That number doesn't even include the nearly 25,000 iPod Touch and iPhone games that will also play on Apple's latest gadget which is a mix between a smartphone and a laptop but also clearly aims to cater for the growing numbers of gamers.
"The iPad is the fourth step in the gaming evolution," said Gonzague de Vallois, senior vice president of publishing at Gameloft.
"The first being the microcomputer, the second being the game console and the third being smartphones. Each of these platforms revolutionized gaming in its own way."
Apple has already sold over 500,000 iPads and Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty forecasts the tech giant will ship 8 to 10 million iPads this year worldwide.
"Can the iPad sell 5 million devices in the first year without games and apps? Probably," said Kevin A. Wood, vice president and senior analyst of Technology Market Insights at research firm Infogroup/ORC.
"However, Apple's ability to re-define this space of the computing world will be dependent on its ability to sustain excitement. Apps and games redefined what a smartphone was and what it could be used for, and we suspect that will be the same situation for the iPad."
Peter Farago, vice president of marketing for research firm Flurry, said just over a third of the 2,300 plus apps currently available for iPad on iTunes.com are games, with entertainment apps ranking a distant second with 14 percent.
GAMING ON THE GO
He believes that games percentage will rise as Apple sells more hardware and attracts more game makers.
"I think people are going to be blown away by iPad when they actually have the opportunity to interact with it," said Neil Young, founder and CEO of the largest iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad game developer, ngmoco.
"When you play games on the large format, multi-touch fields using two hands it's much more 'Minority Report' than even the iPhone is."
With seven iPad games available at launch, ngmoco is taking advantage of the multi-touch screen by allowing players of games like "Godfinger" and "We Rule" to multitask by literally sliding small game windows aside so they can focus on the bigger playing field and then read the story progression or check out friends' castles in between.
Johnny Coghlan, head of publishing for Chillingo, which has 14 iPad games available, said the Wi-Fi and 3G capabilities allows for all of its games, including "Super Shock Football HD" and puzzle game "Quantz HD," to incorporate Crystal integration. This is the company's social gaming network that enables players to compete against one another and tout high scores.
With its large screen, game makers can offer multiplayer options on a single iPad.
Firemint's "Flight Control HD" offers split-screen competitive and cooperative gameplay for two players to successfully land a never-ending stream of planes.
Gameloft's virtual card game "Uno" allows up to four friends to gather around an iPad and play.
There are hundreds of free iPad games, while other games range in price from $5 to $13. Games range from EA Mobile's ubiquitous "Tetris" to SGN's third-person shooter "EXO-Planet."
Some publishers offer lower-priced iPod Touch/iPhone ports as well as slightly more expensive iPad versions that take advantage of the new functionality.
"By taking an existing iPhone game and modifying it for iPad we believe that it will not only bring a new experience to an existing title, but basically create a new game," said de Vallois.
For example, Gameloft's iPad shooter "N.O.V.A Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance" allows players to use two fingers to curve a grenade toss and offers multi-targeting capabilities with a hand-drawn grid that eliminates all enemies on the screen with a rocket. The game originated on iPhone and iPod Touch.
"I think Apple learned their lesson about the importance of gaming from the iPhone and the iPod Touch," said Young. "It was really that first holiday season for the iPod Touch where Apple recognized and realized gaming was such a huge part of the business and the iPod Touch had found its home as a game machine."
Saturday 10 April 2010 at 10:13 pm
Hundreds of thousands of soccer fans are likely to get their first taste of live 3D viewing during this year's World Cup, the vast majority of them in cinemas rather than at home, according to football body FIFA.
Together with partner Sony, FIFA plans to supply 25 World Cup matches in the immersive 3D technology made popular in cinemas by blockbuster movie Avatar and expected to spread to living rooms around the world this year.
Viewers with 3D television sets who live in a country where the broadcaster with World Cup rights also has 3D capabilities will also be able to watch live in 3D at home -- if they are not put off by the need to wear special glasses.
Currently, Disney's ESPN in the United States, Prisa's Sogecable in Spain and Korea's SBS have live 3D rights. More such deals are expected to be announced "shortly," FIFA's TV Director Niclas Ericson said.
In some countries, home 3D viewing will not be an option. For example, in Britain only BSkyB will have a 3D channel by the start of the World Cup in June, but the rights are held by ITV and the publicly-owned BBC.
Asked at a London media event on Thursday how many viewers were likely to watch World Cup games live in 3D, Ericson said: "We hope it will be at least a few hundred thousand per match," adding that most of the audience was likely to be in cinemas.
Rights for cinemas and entertainment venues are being managed by Swiss-based Aruna Media AG, which plans to broadcast live to about 26 countries and is in advanced discussions with several major markets, FIFA and Sony said.
Sony hopes the tournament will whet viewers' appetite for 3D, an industry still in its infancy, with several competing technologies and very few TV sets in homes. It plans to show 3D promotional trailers in thousands of retail stores worldwide.
The Japanese electronics giant will start selling its own 3D TVs in early June in Japan. Rivals LG, Panasonic and Samsung have all also recently unveiled 3D offerings.
Technology research firm iSuppli expects about 4.2 million 3D TV sets to be sold worldwide this year at an average price of $1,768. That should rise to 78 million sets by 2015, worth a total of $64.4 billion, iSuppli forecasts.
Much is at stake for Sony, which will need to show it can translate its expertise in 3D hardware and film content to the very different environment of sports, where fast-moving action can mean blurry images and even induce nausea in viewers.
"It will be a much richer experience, there's a lot of depth to it. It won't be similar to the Hollywood experience where there's a lot of in-your-face Wow! type of effects," David Bush, Marketing Director of Sony Professional," told Reuters TV.
"What we expect to replicate is the experience of being in the stadium."
The World Cup runs for a month from June 11 in South Africa. The list of matches to be captured in 3D can be read here:
link.reuters.com/waj96j.
Friday 09 April 2010 at 10:47 pm
ZTE Corporation, China's giant telecom equipment producer, said on Thursday its profit surged 48 percent in 2009 as the company rose to be the nation's biggest 3G telecommunications equipment maker last year.
Profit jumped to 2.46 billion yuan (361 million U.S. dollars). Sales revenue was 60.27 billion yuan, an increase of 36 percent from 2008, the company said in its annual report posted on its website.
Friday 09 April 2010 at 10:46 pm
An illegal golf course under construction in an ecological conservation area in Erdos in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region is endangering precious plants beneficial to soil and water conservation in such a parched environment.
The golf course, which is as large as 3,500 mu (233 hectares), is located in Jiuchenggong village, Dongsheng district, 15 km away from Erdos city. Areas near the village have struggled to cope with the twin problems of a severe water shortage and soil erosion since the 1960s, the Economic Information Daily reported on Thursday.
In response to these environmental challenges, in 1998 the Ministry of Water Resources planted seabuckthorn in the area to solidify the sand and improve the local ecology, which has begun to show signs of improvement. However, the construction of the golf course poses a threat to these environmental gains, the report said.
The paper further reported that all of the precious plants beneficial to soil and water conservation have been dug up on the construction site and a cloud of sediment has filled the sky.
"My heart aches when I see these plants being removed. It took great effort to plant them in sandy soil," a local villager was quoted as saying.
So far, 18 holes of the 36-hole golf course have been completed, along with four villas and a hotel.
According to the website of Yitong Coal Co Ltd, the owner of the golf course, the construction of the project's infrastructure is finished and the facility will open in August.
Since 2004, the central government has made it clear to all levels of government that approval should not be granted to any new golf course projects, in order to preserve land and water resources. However, many projects still managed to receive the go-ahead.
Documents from the environmental protection authority in Erdos show that Yitong Coal Co Ltd applied in June 2005 to build an agricultural park, which would serve as a recreation area. No golf course was mentioned in the description of the project.
"The company has changed the use of the land, but we've never received their application," said Guo Xiaoli, director of land use and protection office for the land and resources bureau in Dongsheng district.
Sun Baoping, a professor from the Chinese Society of Water and Soil Conservation, said building golf courses will damage the local environment.
"The area has already suffered from water and soil loss. Without seabuckthorn, the situation will become worse," Sun said.
To run a golf course requires a great amount of water, Sun said. "For an area short of water, the operator has to overuse underground water to keep the business going, which may kill more plants nearby due to a lack of water."
He urged that more effective supervision measures be put in place in small cities and the countryside.
"Currently, only in big cities, such as Beijing, can the ban on building golf courses be effectively carried out. For many regions of the country, the ban has no use at all," he added.
Hundreds of illegal golf courses have popped up across the country since 2004, according to the Ministry of Land and Resources.
With only 1.4 mu of farmland per capita in China, it is "quite ridiculous" to build a golf course that occupies 40 to 50 hectares of land and uses 3,000 cubic meters of water every day just to maintain the grass, Dang Zuoji, director of the ministry's land planning department, said at the end of last year.
Friday 09 April 2010 at 10:46 pm
The second day of emergency rule in and around Bangkok saw a clash between the "red-shirts" protestors and the security forces as the "red-shirts" stormed the Thaicom satellite firm, demanding the uplink satellite station to resume the signal transmission of their TV channel, People's Channel (PTV).
The Thaicom has agreed to reconnect the signal after the confrontation that left altogether 22 injured, including one person with a serious head injury.
All the wounded were admitted to the local hospital.
"Red-shirts" began their scheduled rally in Bangkok Friday morning, defying a emergency decree imposed by government since Wednesday.
Thousands of protestors, by motorcycles and cars, departed from their two major rally sites Ratchaprasong Intersection and Phan Fah Bridge at about 10:30 a.m. They assembled together before heading toward Thaicom's head office in Patum Thani province, about one hour's drive from Bangkok.
The Centre for Public Administration in Emergency Situations ( CPAES), which is in charge of security under emergency decree, was quick to make response.
In a nationally-televised live address, CPAES spokesman Col Sansern Kaewkamnerd said the authorities had to control the situation and the security forces guarding the satellite uplink station have prepared tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannons for possible intrusion by protestors.
The Nation online reported that about 7,000 soldiers and police were deployed to guard the station, which had cut the signal transmission of PTV since Thursday noon follow the government's order.
PM's Office Minister Satit Wongnongtaey confirmed Thursday afternoon that the airing in all the frequencies by PTV had been shut down, citing it distorts information to cause misunderstanding.
The "red-shirts" motorcade arrived at the company at about 1:30 p.m. Friday amid government's tight security measure to safeguard the satellite station.
At the gate, the "red-shirts" co-leader Jatuporn Promphan issued a 30-minute ultimatum, demanding the military to withdraw from inside by 2:40 p.m., or else the "red-shirts" will break in and occupy the Thaicom.
The protesters threw objects at soldiers and the buildings, trying to break into the grounds after the soldiers failed to withdraw on time. When they managed to broke their way through the barbed fence and the closed gate, the security forces tried to stop them with water cannons and tear gas but no avail.
The soldiers were forced to retreat to inside of the building while the police maintained at the grounds to prevent "red-shirts" from advancing.
The "red-shirts" leader Natthawut said in a speech to his colleagues after the break-in that they were calling on officials to come out for talks on putting the PTV back on air.
He demanded the government withdraw soldiers and police from inside the station and get the PTV signal unblocked so that it could resume its broadcast by 4:00 p.m.
It's not long before the police and Thaicom company sent their representatives to talk to three "red-shirts" leaders including Natthawut and Jatuporn Promphan, and at about 5:00 p.m. Natthawut made the announcement that Thaicom will reconnect the signal within one hour.
He also thanked the soldiers for refraining from using force against the red-shirts and urged them to return to the barracks and not be a tool of the government.
The soldiers were withdrawing from the company and the "red- shirts" were moving back to Ratchaprasong Intersection and Phan Fa bridge, leaving only PTV technicians and Thaicom personnel to reconnect the signal.
As the major of protestors have returned their main rally sites, there is no access to PTV signal through either the TV set or the website so far.
Later the day another brief skirmish occurred at the gate of General Police Hospital in Bangkok at about 5:20 p.m., not far away from Ratchaprasong Intersection. Nobody was injured.
Scuffle took place as "red-shirts" were trying to block the gate of the hospital, an exit to the police, whom they believed were about to come out to disperse the protestors at the intersection.
There are seven companies of riot policemen deployed inside the National Police Headquarters, next to the hospital, TV reported.
Before the incident, the "red-shirts" were bracing for anti- riot operation as the riot forces were seen inside the Police headquarters.
"Red-shirts" leaders, Weng Tojirakarn, Veera Musigapong and Kokaew Pikulthong, took turn to rouse the crowds.
Weng urged protesters to act as human shield to prevent the advance of riot forces.
The Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency Wednesday afternoon after the protestors surrounded and raided the Parliament House earlier the day, forcing the Cabinet and parliament meetings cancelled.
The "red-shirts", many of them supporters of the ousted ex- premier Thaksin Shinawatra, have been staging rolling rally in Bangkok since March 14, pressuring Abhisit to dissolve the parliament and hold a snap election.
Friday 09 April 2010 at 10:46 pm
China's business climate index, a major measure of macro-economic outlook, rose slightly by 2.3 points in the first quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Friday.
The quarterly business climate index, based on a survey of 19,500 Chinese firms, climbed to 132.9 points from 130.6 in the fourth quarter last year, the highest level since the second quarter of 2008, the NBS said in a statement on its website.
The index ranges from zero to 200. A reading above 100 shows economic expansion, while a reading below 100 indicates contraction. The survey began in 1998.
All sectors reported business indices above 100 for the fourth straight quarter, which indicated expansion, said the statement.
The index for the industrial sector rose from 128.1 in the previous quarter to 130.1, while for the tertiary sector, the index was back to growth by rising 11.8 points to 130.8 after declining in the fourth quarter last year.
The business climate index for the real estate sector increased just 2.2 points to 147.4 in the first three months this year as the government promised to cool the property market and check the skyrocketing home prices.
The entrepreneur confidence index, a gauge of the understanding, views and projections of business people, rose 7.8 points from three months ago to 135.5 in the first quarter, said the NBS.
Thursday 08 April 2010 at 05:49 am
German luxury car makers Audi and BMW said on Wednesday that both companies enjoy boom sales in China's mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan during the first quarter of 2010.
Audi said its first quarter sales in China's mainland and Hong Kong rose 77 percent compared with the same period in 2009. It totally sold 51,449 cars to China's mainland and Hong Kong during these three months, which is the best quarterly performance for Audi in China.
The sales of BMW in China's mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan also doubled during the first quarter, said BMW. It altogether sold 36,579 cars including its core brand BMW and its urban Mini cars in these three markets.
Another German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz also see a high rise of car sales in China's mainland and Hong Kong during this period, said the company on its website Tuesday.
It sold a total of 24,100 cars in these three months, increasing 105 percent on a yearly basis, Mercedes-Benz said.
Thursday 08 April 2010 at 05:48 am
Scheduled to premiere in China on April 29, action film Ip Man 2 launched its official website Tuesday afternoon in Beijing. During the launch ceremony, lead actor Donnie Yen explained the reason why his role as Ip Man is so popular: "Most heroes in past action films have the tendency of male chauvinism while Ip Man treasures and takes good care of his family. Audiences love him for being such a counter-traditional character."
Directed by Yip Wai Shun and starring Yen, Huang Xiaoming, Xiong Dailin and Siu-Wong Fan, Ip Man 2 continues to portray the life of kung fu master Ip Man set against the background of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-45). After killing a Japanese army official to defend his honor, Ip Man flees to Hong Kong with his family to start a new life.
According to Yen, the first Ip Man film is about life in a new environment with unfamiliar conditions, in which the hero deals with the problems of the time; while the sequel is about how he tries to find work, sup-port his family and start a new life.
Model-turned-actress Xiong Dailin plays Cheung Wing-sing, Ip Man's wife, who falls pregnant in the sequel. She said that the most difficult part for her was not how to play a pregnant woman but how to reflect the process of growing up from a naive and simple-minded young woman to a strong, understanding and supportive adult.
Thursday 08 April 2010 at 05:48 am
When people watch crosstalk performances - a traditional style of Chinese standup comedy - in teahouses, they usually eat sunflower seeds and applaud if the jokes are really funny.
But when the 25-year-old comedian Gao Xiaopan steps up to the microphone, his audience is usually munching popcorn or KFC snacks and they greet his jokes with screams, just like they would a rock star. The reaction is typical for the Gao and his "Hip-Hop Crosstalk Club".
Dubbed the best-looking crosstalk comedian in Beijing, he has put the old art in a new and trendy package, and made it as attractive as pop music to today's youth.
The rising star describes himself as seriously funny and he told METRO that making people laugh is a serious business.
Gao began to learn crosstalk from Feng Baohua, an experienced crosstalk actor, at the tender age of eight in his hometown in Hebei province. He said that right from the start the learning process was nowhere near as casual or easy as people might think. The teaching followed an old but strict master-apprentice style, and there was no short cut, which meant memorizing and practicing day-after-day what the master taught him.
"Following the old Chinese saying - 'To enjoy three minutes of glory in the spotlight, you need 10 years of perspiration offstage' - really works for us who practice crosstalk," he stated.
After completing his initial training Gao traveled to Beijing to continue his study as a crosstalk major at the National Academy of Chinese Theater Arts.
After graduating, he tried different day jobs including a department store attendant and a painter in a crafts shop, while still performing crosstalk in teahouses at night.
In 2008, he took the risk and founded his own crosstalk club and become a full-time comedian with another 10 aspiring comic performers. It was a difficult beginning because they only made 27 yuan each in the first month. But perseverance paid off and now their tickets are sold out a week or more before the show.
At first he looked to books and the material that his master taught for his comedic inspiration, but he said it is more challenging and exciting now that he performs and runs a crosstalk troupe because he and his team always need to think in the shoes of his audience and think up original material.
His audience is mainly those born after 1980, they grew up watching the Japanese cartoon Doraemon and Stephen Chow's Hong Kong movies, Gao said.
"Except for one actor who was born before 1980, most of our actors are post-80s, so we know what they like," he added.
He and his team look for hot topics on the Internet and use real-life experiences for their crosstalk. "We ensure that every week our audience can see a new program, and they won't miss what's hot on the Internet by coming to our show." Further evidence of how seriously they treat their shows the troupe makes a detailed survey during and after each show to calculate how many people come in, as well as people's reactions, like when people laugh, and when they give a big belly laugh.
"We make a detailed chart actually. No other group does this. But we do it and analyze it very carefully, to make sure that our jokes are relevant to our audience," he said.
They also make use of the Internet for publicity and audience feedback, which few crosstalk clubs in Beijing do. Gao's troupe now has a website, BBS, and six QQ groups to reach their audience and receive feedback. Since last December, aside from giving regular performances in a teahouse near the Drum and Bell Towers, the crosstalk club has now rented a second venue near the East Third Ring Road.
"We have big dreams for ourselves and are achieving it step by step. Besides performing crosstalk, we also plan to make dramas, produce our first movie this year, and make a series of own-branded products in the future, such as clothing," he explained."As it grows big, we need to run it as a company to achieve these dreams. And it is not enough if there is only I myself," he said.
When the 25-year-old comedian talked about this, he was certainly very serious.
Wednesday 07 April 2010 at 07:11 am
Han Han, a Chinese professional rally driver, best-selling author and China's most popular blogger, has been nominated as one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine.
On April 3, Time released the candidates for its annual "World's Most Influential People in 2010" list. Han was on the list as well as Barack Obama, Bill Gates and Lady Gaga.
Every year, Time selects hundreds of people around the world, including the world's greatest leaders, artists, innovators and icons, and encourages its readers to vote for the year's list of the 100 most influential people. The weekly news magazine, which introduced Han as an author and a race car driver, said he was nominated because of his first novel Triple Gate.
"Han's first novel, based on his experience as a high school dropout in Shanghai, became a best seller in China and sparked a debate about the quality of the country's rigid education system," Time said on its voting page.
"An avid rally car driver, he writes a mega-popular blog that pokes fun at prominent cultural figures and incompetent officials," Time said.
By Tuesday night, Han had received 45,325 votes, making him eighth among 200 candidates, much higher than the other Chinese candidates, such as Vice-Premier Wang Qishan and Chongqing Party Secretary Bo Xilai.
The top candidate was temporarily Lady Gaga, with 187,822 votes.
The online voting will be closed on May 1.
Han's fans are excited about his inclusion in the list, but some people question his nomination. Some said that Han's influence does not extend beyond China's border and he cannot have an effect on global trends in art and entertainment.
While his supporters and detractors engaged in a heated discussion, Han himself has been low-key about his nomination.
"It (the nomination) has nothing to do with me. I write books and blogs to express my opinions. I've never thought of changing other people or the world," he was quoted by Qilu Evening News as saying.
According to the report, Han even said: "Time is only a magazine. Why do you take it so seriously?"
Han could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, but his fans take his nomination seriously. In Han's Baidu Post Bar, an online club set up by his supporters, a post that calls people to vote for Han in the Time magazine poll has been placed at the top.
"My English is not good. But here is a picture direction on how to vote. Hope it helps people like me," it said.
Lu Jinbo, a Shanghai-based publisher who has worked with Han on his books, was quoted by the Beijing Times as saying he was happy to learn the news.
"Han is a young guy who dares to speak out. He cares about the people and the truth, which is quite rare among the post-80s writers (writers who came of age after the 1980s). He is not associated with any organizations," Lu said.
However, others cast doubt on the writer's fame.
"Since when does Han have worldwide influence? It's too big a compliment for him," a netizen said.
"Time is really humorous. How can Han's works and personality lead the world's arts and entertainment trends?" another netizen said.
Wuyuesanren, a Beijing-based critic, said Han's nomination shows people really care about China, "because Han is famous for his sharp observation and unmodified comments on social events", he said.
He praised Time's keen observations on Chinese society for involving Han in its 100 list.
"It shows China's importance in the world. The world is looking at China not only from the political leaders' perspectives, but also from people like Han, a literary person who cares about social events."
Wednesday 07 April 2010 at 07:11 am
A Time magazine nominee list of the 100 most influential people in the world of this year has "humbled" Han Han, a controversial Chinese best-selling novelist who appears on the list along with many prominent faces, including Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan, US President Barack Obama and twice Grammy winner Lady Gaga.
"I may not deserve such a title of being 'influential.' My efforts to improve the fate of those who devote themselves to the cultural sector of this country, to raise their status, and to lift the level of freedom of China's cultural sector, have yielded little gains. I feel I'm weak," Han told the Global Times Tuesday.
"Defining how influential a person is should be based on what tangible changes this individual had actually brought about," Han added.
But the 27-year-old outspoken writer, blogger and racecar driver still conceded that "it was not a bad thing" to be on the list, noting that "writers can often be more popular than politicians."
As of late Tuesday, Han was listed at No. 8 among 200 leaders, artists, innovators and icons from around the world, with more than 45,000 votes tallied.
Time magazine will close its online voting for this year's Time 100 poll on May 1 before naming the final 100 based on survey results.
Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, Vice Premier Wang Qishan, and pianist Lang Lang were on the list last year.
In 2005, Zhang Ziyi, a Chinese actress who made her name internationally with the Hollywood blockbuster "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," was also on the list. Her nomination received similar controversy in her home country.
Han is in good company on the list, alongside Chongqing Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai, Baidu CEO Robin Li, and US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. As of Tuesday he topped the list among candidates from China.
Whether Han is qualified to be named among the world's most influential people remains a matter of debate in China.
Time magazine described Han as saying he "initially made his name for the first novel based on his experience as a high school dropout in Shanghai, sparking a debate about the quality of the country's rigid education system."
"An avid rally car driver, he writes a mega-popular blog that pokes fun at prominent cultural figures and incompetent officials," the magazine said.
It is unclear whether the young best-selling writer can succeed in making the final list, but his vast base of online fans has already gone out of the way to solicit votes for him.
In a baidu.com forum, his online supporters posted tips and strategies on how to vote for him to ensure he gets the highest placing possible.
"Time's choice is based on his huge popularity," said Lu Jinbo, the best-selling writer's agent, referring to his client as a "simple and sincere critic and intellectual."
"Ten years ago, he was hailed by a group of students who were seen as bad at school; but now, he is an icon who is outspoken with independent thinking in the eyes of the public," said Lu.
Lu's company earned over 40 million yuan in the past four years by publishing the controversial writ-er's works.
After dropping out of high school, Han published more than a dozen books and anthologies in-cluding 'The Triple Gates.' Later, drawn by car racing, he became a professional rally driver and wrote less often.
Controversial blogs
However, he continues to gain public attention by making sharp comments on current affairs on his blog, which racks up more than 300 million hits, the largest online following of a personal blog in China.
His blog updates have generated widespread discussion.
When the country's information technology watchdog ordered PC makers to install Green Dam on all new PCs sold in China as a means to censor pornography, Han criticized the move, saying the excuse of protecting children from pornography wasn't strong enough to warrant such action.
After the sex diary of a tobacco bureau chief in Laibin, Guangxi Province, was exposed online, Han wrote sarcastically on his blog, calling on Web users to show mercy to the bureau chief and implying that the chief is far less corrupt than some officials whose vicious deeds remain undiscovered.
However, Han is not without his critics, and many have called his Time nomination into question. They believe Han's influence cannot have an effect on trends in global art and entertainment.
Bai Ye, a Chinese literary critic, told the Qilu Evening News Tuesday that Han has a long way to go before he becomes a firm thinker.
"The media has created an inaccurate impression of Han, who has been hyped as a representative of young Chinese people," he said.
Bai and Han were involved in the Han-Bai controversy in 2006. Bai published a blog post entitled "The Status and Future of the Post-80s Generation," criticizing the works of writers born in the 1980s.
Han responded critically with his online article titled "The 'Literary Circle' Is Bullshit, Don't Act Smart."
Sun Hong, 56, a retired editor, attributed Han's appearance on the ranking to the writer's outspoken form of expression.
"Han's perspectives on the government have drawn the attention of foreigners, and his way of expression is in compliance with foreigners' values," she said.
His rebel spirit, writing talents and pursuit of freedom have a deep impact on young Chinese people, she added.
Tuesday 06 April 2010 at 05:50 am
A grassroots movement to rediscover the bicycle has spawned alleycat racing in China, which dovetails neatly with Shanghai's plan to green the city for Expo 2010 and promote bike use, Matt Hodges reports from Shanghai
Tyler Bowa moved to Shanghai last year to teach English, not spark a revolution or redesign the social fabric of a hyperactive youth culture that is starting to go nuts for bikes.
Things just panned out that way.
The company he founded, People's Bike, has evolved into a community of cycling enthusiasts, a grassroots movement that dovetails with the municipal government's push to build a greener city for Expo 2010, where bike rental depots are commonplace.
"Next year China is going to become the cultural hub of fixed-gear biking," says Bowa, fully bearded but barely out of university. "When I moved here 12 months ago I couldn't find one shop selling these kinds of bikes (in Shanghai). Now there are six or seven. It's becoming much more affordable."
With China's increasingly fashionable and bike-friendly youth warming to the idea of new sports like "bike polo" and alleycat racing, Bowa predicts the number of riders nationwide will triple by next March, led by progenitors in Guangzhou who pick up trends from nearby Hong Kong.
"In the past 12 months everything has skyrocketed out of nowhere," Bowa says. "Maybe, what we are seeing now is the start of a professional alleycat circuit in China."
Alleycat racing has riders plot the fastest way around a city by navigating their way from checkpoint to checkpoint. There are usually 10-15 racers spanning a distance of roughly 30 km. It's been around for some 20 years but has been big business in the United States and Japan for the past four or five years.
Bowa, the foreign figurehead of the sport here, began by sending out tweets last year looking for other bored biking enthusiasts. Then he organized "bike polo" matches on Saturday afternoons among friends.
These quickly blossomed into BBQs and social events, with more than 100 Chinese and expats turning up to hammer homemade mallets through traffic cones and drink beer.
Together with his business partner Karl Ke, Bowa organized Shanghai's first-ever alleycat race, in November, taking their cue from alleycat's China debut six months earlier in Beijing.
"Alleycat is usually an underground sport restricted to fixed-gear bikes, but we opened it up to all models and all ages," the 22-year-old says at a coffee shop in Tianzifang, a labyrinth of Bohemian cafes and shops in downtown Shanghai.
"We got some critiques afterward from big websites around the world that we went overboard, but then people started coming to us for advice saying they wanted to copy our model in other cities.
"I guarantee there will be two more cities (joining the circuit) this year."
Meanwhile, a sports media company that is big in Asia made an offer to buy People's Bike last week and hire the Canadian to apply his management model to a dozen websites it owns, spanning everything from skateboarding to marathon running. Bowa declined.
The speed with which the activity is catching on in southern China, where electric and pedal-powered bicycles are increasingly giving way to cars, has left most of the embryonic fixed-gear biking industry shell-shocked.
"It's still relatively small in China compared to other cities worldwide, but it's growing fast," says local enthusiast Mattias Erlandsson.
Racers at the Shanghai event included one 55-year-old French lady, who finished runner-up in the women's category. Highlighting its sub-culture appeal, the "track" wound its way from a famous graffiti wall in Moganshan Road to a tattoo shop near the Bund.
It is this kind of broad appeal and growing demographic that is making sports brands like Puma and Adidas vie to sponsor future races, of which there will be at least a handful nationwide this year, including in Hangzhou and Guangzhou.
"Fixed-gear culture aligns with youth values of freedom, self-expression and simplicity," says John Soloman, director at design firm Enovate, which targets China's youth market.
"As the government and organizations continue to focus on the environment, we believe biking will become an important way for youth to take action."
A raft of new measures has been introduced in recent months to promote the culture of cycling and the ecological advantages it brings to the city, which used to play home to the world's largest bicycle industry.
The "Good to Shanghai - 01Cool Bike" program has installed vast tracts of new bike lanes in the city, while the Shanghai Forever Bicycle Company plans to rent bikes out during the six-month Expo.
Local companies have picked up the thread and built sightseeing trips around two-wheeled entertainment. China Outside Adventure organizes tours of neighboring cities; while Shanghai Sideways provides historic tours of the city from the comfort of a vintage 1930s-style motorbike sidecar.
While older Chinese are glad to ditch their bikes and wash their hands of what for many symbolizes centuries of poverty, "a lot of people in their 20s are organizing trips by themselves, riding from city to city or going mountain biking up in the hills", says Fiona Li, owner of China Outside Adventure.
"What people soon realize about fixed-gear biking is that it's not just fashionable, fun to customize, a little bit edgy and dangerous, or even healthy," Bowa says.
"It's also the most practical way of getting around. For example, I can get from the French Concession to the Bund, or anywhere within the inner ring road, in less than 10 minutes. Try doing that in a taxi."
Tuesday 06 April 2010 at 05:50 am
Impression Dahongpao, the fifth of director Zhang Yimou's open-air Impression shows, premiered in Wuyi Mountains, Fujian province, on March 29.
While the audience waited with bated breath for Zhang's new live show to unfold, the press, including reporters from Taiwan - which Zhang has hinted may be the location of an Impression show in future - gathered to ask about the backstage stories.
The buzz was that Wang Chaoge and Fan Yue, the other two members of the so-called "golden-triangle directing team", sent Zhang a video of the show so he could do some homework before answering questions about the show's inspiration, presentation and techniques.
Zhang was seeing the show for the first time that night. Despite carrying his name, he has had little to do with the show, apart from visiting the site when the local government of Wuyi Mountains commissioned his team last year and, maybe, a couple of discussions with Wang and Fan about the approach the show should take.
Zhang admitted as much before the premiere: "We (three had an understanding) from the first Impression show that we (would) discuss the key ideas and difficult technical problems together, but they would work on the sites and allow me to be away to direct my movies."
The breakthrough innovation of Impression Dahongpao is that the 2,000-seat auditorium can revolve. In 70 minutes, the auditorium makes four rounds, letting the audience get a 360-degree view of the 16 different scenes on stage.
"The mountains, rivers, trees, everything in the natural environment is what inspires us to do such live shows. From the Lijiang River and Yulong Snow Mountain, to the West Lake and Hainan's seashore, whenever we settle on a site, we hope to make full use of its scenic landscape. But every time we have to decide on one fixed stage," Wang says.
But this was not an easy decision to make after the team visited the Wuyi Mountains, Dawang peak, Jiuqu brook and some ancient buildings. All of them made equally good settings.
"In theater, we can have a revolving stage, but here, we cannot move the mountains and rivers. In Impression Lijiang, we let the performers dance around the auditorium to make audience members turn around sometimes to see what was going on.
"This time, we decided to move the audience," Wang adds.
Another highlight of Impression Dahongpao is its open-air cinema feel, created through the use of 15 screens scattered along a 2-km forest, beside a river running in front of the stage.
"We live in a time of visual art. Avatar has shown how magical visual techniques can be. Wang and Fan follow the trend and cleverly blend the movies into the live show. They make use of the foggy forest night and hi-tech to create a dreamy fairy tale," Zhang says.
Every Impression show celebrates the local culture. Impression Dahongpao is named after a treasured tea that has been grown for centuries on the Wuyi Mountains, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
"For the Chinese, tea is not simply a drink, but a lifestyle. In Wuyi, this is especially evident in people's attitude toward life. They are not rich but are happy and really enjoy their simple lives. They entertain friends and visitors with tea. They have their discussions over the tea table," says Fan Yue who is responsible for the setting and technical details.
Watching the show, you will be amazed not only by the natural scenes highlighted by the LED lights, but also by the passion of the performers. More than 85 percent of the 270 performers are local villagers. They have neither silver tongues, not do they speak standard Putonghua; some even look very new to the stage but they more than make up for all this with their natural acting abilities. Since it is their lives that are being portrayed, they are excited to share them with the audience.
Although the Impression shows have aroused much controversy, with doubts being raised over whether scenic tourist destinations need such live shows, and critics claiming destruction of the natural environment and some even slamming Zhang's aesthetic conception, the three directors have made it clear they will not stop.
Wang's ambition is to promote Chinese culture through the Impression label. "We now have invitations from the United States Canada and South Korea, which means one day Impression shows will become a world-renowned culture and entertainment label, like Disney or Cirque du Soleil," she says.
Sunday 04 April 2010 at 10:27 pm
I know, I promised you thirsty kittens with the dirt behind the local fashion scene, but by then I had not predicted Ricky Martin's Monday declaration on his official website:
"I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man."
I understand that look on your face that reads: "Hasn't he come out of the closet already?" but being obviously gay is one thing, having the guts to step up and openly admit it is another, especially for a sex symbol like he is, or used to be.
So, a round of applause to Mr Martin (or Ms?), unless you are one of those homophobic fans and now weeping for the lost lamb, the Latino pop sensation inspired me to come up with a list of five local homosexual celebrities who are so well hidden in the closet that some of the names are going to knock your socks off, stars that appear almost as heterosexual as Tom Cruise and John Travolta.
My personal friend, fashion magazine editor and gossip lover Charlotte Hse has kindly contributed to the list and the real names of people and events below have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent, namely me.
JH: actor who is best known for the tough-guy figures he has created in a number of blockbusters. Though he first became known for starring in a homosexual-themed film, I would never have questioned his sexual orientation if I had not seen him flirting with his male assistant in his dressing room. Rumor has it that he enjoys sadism and masochism, with witnesses having worked with him swearing to have seen his assistant coming out of his room in bruises and pain. Well, at least that coordinates with his screen image;
XMH: leading local young actor who is often reportedly, or fakingly, involved with Taiwanese actresses or models. To me, he is either homosexual or of no sexual orientation but simply using sex as a weapon to climb his way up, just like you do not define Madonna as homosexual or straight;
YL: actor who is known for his boy-next-door roles in his earlier works. I'm not sure which comes first, being gay or sexually exploited by male directors, but paying for same-sex sex is a little over the top, considering the fact that he is married with a wife and child, but don't they all have seemingly steady families? - an issue I will cover in future columns;
BRJ: member of a boy duo and rising actor who entered the showbiz scene by winning a local reality show. Fans usually fantasize about him and the other duo member (noth-ing physical of course), a popular culture originating in Japan and South Korea to pair band members, but the truth is that they are actually on really bad terms in private;
ZQL: local top model who appears masculine and athletic. He once slipped his secret during a talk show saying that "he loves pretty boys" but the scene was later cut before being broadcast.
Sunday 04 April 2010 at 10:26 pm
Rescuers on Friday heard the sound of knocking on pipes at a flooded north China coal mine where 153 miners have been trapped for five days.
Pan Zengwu, deputy chief of the Shanxi provincial coal geological bureau, said rescuers heard what they believed to be the trapped miners making the noise at 2:15 p.m..
The rescuers knocked on the drill pipe to respond, Pan said.
He said the rescue team sent 300 bags of glucose, each 200 ml, down the 250-meter pit.
Rescuers have been drilling holes to pump out water and send down food.
An iron wire was found attached at the end of a drill pipe when it was lifted to the surface at 3 p.m..
Pan said this was apparently tied on by the trapped miners.
At about 1:40 p.m. Sunday, underground water gushed into the pit of Wangjialing Coal Mine, which was under construction, when 261 miners were working underground. Altogether 108 were lifted safely to the surface.
About 3,000 rescuers are racing the clock to pump water and reach the trapped miners.
The water level underground had dropped by 2.6 meters by Friday noon after a total of 57,900 cubic meters of water had been pumped from the shaft.
Rescuers said the trapped miners were working on nine different platforms, and four platforms had not been totally submerged, making it possible that some workers could have survived.
The mine, which straddles Xiangning County, of Linfen City, and Hejin, a county-level city within Yuncheng City, covers about 180 square kilometers.
The mining zone was estimated to have more than 2.3 billion tonnes of coal reserves, including 1.04 billion tonnes of proven reserves, according to the company's official website.
The mine, affiliated to the state-owned Huajin Coking Coal Co. Ltd., is a major project approved by the provincial government. It is expected to produce 6 million tonnes of coal annually once in operation.
If the trapped workers cannot be saved, the accident will be the China's worst mining disaster in more than two years. In August 2007, a total of 181 workers died at two flooded coal mines -- 172 at one mine -- in Xintai, eastern Shandong Province.
Meanwhile, the death toll from a gas explosion at a coal mine in central China's Henan Province Wednesday had risen to 19, and about 24 people were believed still trapped underground, local authorities said Friday.
Sunday 04 April 2010 at 10:19 am
Four Chinese law-enforcement departments have jointly issued a circular to further protect the rights of children and women, making the sale of one's child a crime.
Parents who sell their own children for profit are in violation of laws designed to prevent the trafficking of women and children, the circular said.
But the circular recognized that some parents give away their babies because they cannot afford to raise the child or because they would prefer a boy rather than a girl, and such acts are not to be considered trafficking of women and children.
The circular also clarifies the charges the buyers of children and women may face.
The circular, released by the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Public Security, was published on the website of the Public Security Ministry Friday.
Sunday 04 April 2010 at 10:19 am
China needs to expand the Renminbi, or yuan, cross-border settlement efforts when conditions allow, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) said Friday.
"It is necessary for China to seek appropriate timing to expand the cross-border yuan settlement to more cities, enterprises and overseas pilot areas," said an international financial market report released on the central bank's website Friday.
But the report did not detail the conditions for appropriate timing.
The foreign trade volume settled in yuan is still small compared with China's total foreign trade volume, said the report, without specifying figures.
Official figures from China's General Administration of Customs showed that the country's exports in 2009 stood at 1.2 trillion U.S. dollars, down 16 percent from 2008.
China's State Council, or Cabinet, announced in April 2009 a pilot program to allow exporters and importers in five cities -- Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Dongguan -- to settle cross-border trade deals in yuan.
The latter four cities are all in south China's Guangdong Province.
The Bank of China (BOC), China's largest foreign exchange bank, announced on July 6 last year that its Shanghai branch had received the first cross-border yuan trade settlement deal from the BOC (Hong Kong).
The government is considering enlarging the scope of cross-border yuan settlement from commodity trade into service trade, said the report.
Yuan settlement was in accordance with the market demand, said Cao Honghui, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, but increasing the yuan's global acceptance would be decided by factors such as the country's economic development and the financial system development.
Sunday 04 April 2010 at 10:18 am
Supporters outnumbered opponents Sunday in an online poll on introducing a real-name system to online retail registration after China's commerce authority issued a draft to solicit public opinion.
The State Administration for Industry and Commerce released a draft regulation on its website Friday, saying personal information of people applying to start an online store, including their real names and address, would be required when registering with the e-commerce agents.
It also said eligible retailers would be approved by the e-trading agents, and the move would regulate trading behavior and protect consumers' rights and interest.
As of Sunday, a total of 3,727 netizens, or 48.9 percent, were in favor of the regulation in an online survey launched by China's leading web portal, Sina.com., while 43.8 percent of the total 7,608 respondents were opposed.
The poll signalled the real-name system would be officially introduced, which would raise the registration threshold, said an unnamed representative of Chinese e-commerce giant, Alibaba.com. Corp.
"It is a good news for consumers as it will help prevent Internet trading fraud and encourage online retailers to improve their services," said Chen Jiao, a 27-year-old regular online buyer.
But opponents expressed concern that the measure could increase retailers' costs.
"It may incur license fees after registering with real names, which would strain many small e-retailers' finances and curb their development given the backdrop that most of the e-store owners operate on thin profit margins," said Tan Yan, who has run a clothing store in Asia's biggest e-commerce website Taobao.com for three years.
The draft did not mention whether e-store applicants would have to apply for licenses.
At present, online retailers are not required to provide their real personal information when registering e-shops.
Data from China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) showed the number of the country's online shoppers jumped 38.9 percent year on year to 87.88 million as of last June. The volume of online shopping in the first half of this year reached 119.5 billion yuan (17.5 billion U.S dollars).
Sunday 04 April 2010 at 10:18 am
Beijing will adopt another vehicle restriction rule after the current one expires next week, municipal authorities have said.
A new two-year vehicle restriction will become effective on April 11, right after the current one-year restriction ends, a spokesman with the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau said Friday.
The new restriction will be identical to the current one, he added.
The current restriction bans private cars in Beijing's urban areas one work-day a week.
The restriction is based on the last digit on the license plate. For example, vehicles with a last plate digit of 2 or 7 must be off the road on Monday. Details of the restriction can be found in a bulletin posted on the website of the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau (bjjtgl.gov.cn).
More than 90 percent of 2,562 surveyed Beijing residents, including 1,549 car owners and 1,013 who didn't own a car, supported the restriction, according to a recent survey of polling company Horizon Research.
Among the car owners, 87.6 percent approved of the restriction, while the approval rate of non-car owners was 94.8 percent, the survey showed.
Most of the surveyed supported the restriction because it helped to relieve traffic jams and benefits the environment, according to the survey.
The average driving speed in Beijing at rush hours has risen by about 15 percent after the vehicle restrictions were implemented, said Guo Jifu, head of the Beijing Transportation Research Center.
Friday 02 April 2010 at 08:34 am
About 1.63 billion yuan (240 million U.S. dollars) of public funds were saved last year by cutting the number of government and Party officials' overseas trips, down 37.6 percent from the previous year, China's National Bureau of Corruption Prevention says.
The number of public-funded overseas trips decreased by 49 percent from the previous year, according to the bureau's website.
China has intensified the crackdown on unnecessary public-funded overseas travel among government departments and Communist Party officials. The bureau said disciplinary bodies dealt with 165 such cases and punished 187 officials involved, with 9.88 million yuan retrieved.
Serious cases included former leading officials of the coal industry bureau of northeastern Jilin Province frequently arranging overseas tours paid for by the public, officials in Yan'an of northwestern Shaanxi Province using public funds to cover overseas sightseeing tours under dubious pretexts and officials of the Beijing customs asking enterprises to cover their overseas trips.
Friday 02 April 2010 at 08:34 am
I know, I promised you thirsty kittens with the dirt behind the local fashion scene, but by then I had not predicted Ricky Martin's Monday declaration on his official website:
"I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man."
I understand that look on your face that reads: "Hasn't he come out of the closet already?" but being obviously gay is one thing, having the guts to step up and openly admit it is another, especially for a sex symbol like he is, or used to be.
So, a round of applause to Mr Martin (or Ms?), unless you are one of those homophobic fans and now weeping for the lost lamb, the Latino pop sensation inspired me to come up with a list of five local homosexual celebrities who are so well hidden in the closet that some of the names are going to knock your socks off, stars that appear almost as heterosexual as Tom Cruise and John Travolta.
My personal friend, fashion magazine editor and gossip lover Charlotte Hse has kindly contributed to the list and the real names of people and events below have been altered or abbreviated to protect the innocent, namely me.
JH: actor who is best known for the tough-guy figures he has created in a number of blockbusters. Though he first became known for starring in a homosexual-themed film, I would never have questioned his sexual orientation if I had not seen him flirting with his male assistant in his dressing room. Rumor has it that he enjoys sadism and masochism, with witnesses having worked with him swearing to have seen his assistant coming out of his room in bruises and pain. Well, at least that coordinates with his screen image;
XMH: leading local young actor who is often reportedly, or fakingly, involved with Taiwanese actresses or models. To me, he is either homosexual or of no sexual orientation but simply using sex as a weapon to climb his way up, just like you do not define Madonna as homosexual or straight;
YL: actor who is known for his boy-next-door roles in his earlier works. I'm not sure which comes first, being gay or sexually exploited by male directors, but paying for same-sex sex is a little over the top, considering the fact that he is married with a wife and child, but don't they all have seemingly steady families? - an issue I will cover in future columns;
BRJ: member of a boy duo and rising actor who entered the showbiz scene by winning a local reality show. Fans usually fantasize about him and the other duo member (noth-ing physical of course), a popular culture originating in Japan and South Korea to pair band members, but the truth is that they are actually on really bad terms in private;
ZQL: local top model who appears masculine and athletic. He once slipped his secret during a talk show saying that "he loves pretty boys" but the scene was later cut before being broadcast.
Thursday 01 April 2010 at 05:05 am
Online games are all the rage among Beijing office workers, who are turning to the Internet, rather than traditional props markets, for their April Fools' Day high jinks.
Renren.com, a Beijing-based social networking website that is popular with college students and white-collar workers, last week launched a tricky game.
Users can throw virtual garbage, such as rotten tomatoes or cream cakes, at their friends, who can see the barrage of rubbish coming their way on their computer screens.
"The game is special for April Fools' Day and it will end April 1," said Song Tiantian, a spokeswoman for the website. Renren.com has more than 150 million users in China.
Song said the game has attracted more than five million daily players who toss an average of more than 100 pieces of garbage.
Many white-collar workers did not hesitate to join in the tomfoolery. Many took up the silly sport as early as the week before April Fools' Day.
"I noticed the game as soon as the game was launched and I feel very happy to throw garbage at my friends because the blow cannot hurt them and all of us can get fun out of the game," said Li Qilin, 25, who works in Beijing.
Li said every day he has thrown more than 20 items of garbage at his friends. As his level in the game was increasing, Li can throw more web-offensive objects such as smelly socks and slippers.
Other websites, including www.ce.cn and www.it.com.cn, have joined renren.com in the April Fools' Day shenanigans. The most common trick is changing the sound or screen images on computers.
But for the vendors of physical trick props such as fake spiders and screaming rubber chickens, the rising popularity of Internet fun is going down as well as a flat whoopee cushion.
"My business is not very good those days because the tricky props have been sold for several years and are not fresh any more," said Jiang Qianyong, who sells props and toys out of a shop in the Tianyi market, the largest wholesale market in Beijing.
Jiang said he sells about 50 props every day. Because he is a wholesaler that number is unsatisfactory.
Business was worse than it was several years ago, although he is one of the only two shops in the market selling such wares.
Two women who work in a nearby office visited Jiang's shop on noon Wednesday but did not buy anything.
"We just want to find some new ideas to trick our friends with tomorrow, but unfortunately the props here are all old-style," said one of the women, surnamed Li.
Thursday 01 April 2010 at 05:04 am
The once-terrifying "Black Widows" seem to have come back again, and police in Russia were hunting after them.
"Black Widows" refer to female Chechen suicide bombers whose husbands or brothers were rebels killed in the two Chechen wars since 1994. Having lost the will to live on, they plunge into revenge and become suicide bombers.
Another explosion killed two people and injured another Thursday in Caucasus region of Dagestan in Russia, news agencies reported.
Only a day earlier, two blasts killed 12 people in the Dagestani Town of Kizlyar. While on Monday, two female suicide bombers killed 39 in attacks in the Moscow subway system, and the authorities have linked the explosions to militants from the North Caucasus.
The bombers who have blown away 39 lives, including their own, were considered typical Black Widows.
Doku Umarov, leader of Islamist militants in Chechnya and other Caucasusian regions in Russia, said in a video posted on a website that Monday's two attacks were revenge for the killing of Chechen civilians by Russian security forces, according to the Associated Press.
In his video, Umarov threatened Moscow with more bombings. Russia's Federal Security Service said its agents were investigating the possibility that the two women were part of a 30-member terror team dispatched by Umarov, according to USA Today.
In recent years, the black-clad women have blown up two airliners, detonated at a rock concert and attacked the Moscow metro twice. They were among the band of Chechen terrorists who died along with at least 130 hostages in a Moscow theater in 2002, USA Today said.
A human right observer noted that their return is a sign that conditions have deteriorated in the North Caucasus.
