Search

This article discusses China as a growing world power. The article notes that China's economy has grown by leaps and bounds during the 21st century, and speculates as to whether China will eventually challenge the United States as one of the world's leading military powers as well. The article also discusses China's history.

The article profiles several users of social networking web sites like YouTube.com, Facebook.com, and MySpace.com, and discusses how each user has utilized the web sites. Profiled users include Lane Hudson, the first person to break the story of former Florida Representative Mark Foley's inappropriate emails sent to a congressional page. Also profiled are Pakistani photographer Ali Khurshid, signal officer Captain Lee Kelley, and campaign worker S. R. Sidarth.

The article presents the current situation of an armed, nuclear North Korea under the control of leader Kim Jong Il. While wanting to break down Kim's regime, the U.S. and South Korea both acknowledge that it is too risky to attempt a preemptive strike. One popular strategy is to weaken North Korea economically and diplomatically to the point where the North Korean government becomes more predictable. The best plan may be to continue pushing for the six-party talks Kim has so far avoided, or else give in to Kim's wishes of direct talks.

Looks at economic relations between the U.S. and China as of June 27, 2005. Profitability of manufactured goods made in China and sold in the U.S.; Impact of China's political and economic policies on U.S. interests and international relations; View that China's currency policy maintains low priced goods that unfairly compete with U.S. manufacturing industries; Views of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on U.S. relations with China; Discussion of political and social movements toward modernity in China; Efforts of the Chinese government to prevent political corruption and economic inequality.

Describes the efforts of medical authorities to stifle the epidemic associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Effects of SARS on various Asian economies; How hospitals and schools were closed in Beijing, China; Possibility of the imposition of martial law; Overall death rate of SARS; Methods used to control the epidemic; Reference to the research about the coronavirus that causes SARS; Speculation that the microbe has mutated into various strains with multiple symptoms; Views from Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). INSETS: THE SURPRISING IMPACT OF SARS;JUST THE FACTS.

The article focuses on civil unrest in rural China, as economic disparities between rich and poor grow. As China's economy has grown, rural farmers have been excluded from the benefits, and have suffered from increased pollution and corrupt local governments. In January 2006, over 1,000 villagers gathered to protest against the government's seizure of communal farmland in China's southern Guangdong province.

Offers a look at the popularity of cashmere merchandise. Statement that cashmere is capable of bringing opulence to the simplest of garments; Reference to Loro Piana, a company that is one of the largest producers of cashmere apparel, textiles and yarn; Report that Pier Luigi Loro Piana inherited the business from five generations of his forebears. INSET: Spinning Goat Hair Into Gold.

Discusses the efforts of health authorities in China to control the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). How citizens of Beijing, China have gone into seclusion; Speculation that SARS emerged from the southern province of Guangdong, China; Effects of the epidemic on the economy in China; Suggestion that the Chinese government attempted to cover up the SARS outbreak at first; Impact of the misinformation campaign with regard to public health; Role of representatives from the World Health Organization on their visits to hospitals in Beijing. INSET: ANATOMY OF A MEDICAL CALAMITY.

This article discusses Chinese attitudes toward the U.S. and the state of relations between the two countries. As the dominant player in that story for more than half a century, the U.S. occupies a unique place in the Chinese imagination. Chinese mix resentment and admiration, fear with respect, jealousy with the desire to emulate. With China's President Hu Jintao scheduled to make his first official visit to Washington, his nation's love-hate relationship with the U.S. is once again under the spotlight.

This article focuses on Italy's economic difficulties. Manzano used to be a world-capital of beech and oak wood chair production, but they're losing to Chinese competition. Not only is cheap labor in China hurting the Italian industry, sawmills are relocating to other countries. Italy's economy has shrunken 4% since 1999. It's struggling with weak consumer spending, waning productivity, and rising government deficits.

The article reports on protests by farmers against the local government in China, in January 2006. Local farmers in the village of Panlong in Guangdong province protested over its seizure of communal farmland. The local government had leased it to a Hong Kong textile factory. Panlong residents claimed that the compensation they were offered was far below than what the foreign investor paid. The National People's Congress is trying to bring the situation under control.

The article presents information related to the prevention of avian-flu pandemic. Animal virologist Guan Yi and colleagues confirmed that wild birds, generally thought to be immune to the effects of HSN1, were succumbing to die virus. If HSN1 became established among migratory species, it would raise the risk that the virus could be spread across oceans and continents. But, bird-to-human transmission is relatively controllable because diseased flocks can be isolated or, usually, eliminated.

The article reports about the costs associated with Olympics and how Athens in Greece has experienced it. The government spent $3 billion building and upgrading 36 venues for the Games and another $8 billion on infrastructure and security. Greece now has a 6% budget deficit, in breach of the European Union's stability pact, and its economic growth is projected to slow from 4.2% in 2004 to 2.8% in 2005.

The article provides information on Tung Chee-hwa, China's first post-colonial Chief Executive of Hong Kong, who was appointed by the then president of China, Jiang Zemin in 1996. With the coming of Jiang's successor, Hu Jintao, Tung was asked to examine the inadequacies and raise competence in the government. According to the media reports, Tung is to step down as the Chief Executive recently two years prior to the completion of his second term.

The article focuses on air pollution in various Asian countries and the efforts of their government to control it. According to the World Health Organization, two-thirds of the 800,000 premature deaths caused by air pollution globally occur in Asia. Long-term exposure to air pollution can raise the risk of pulmonary and heart disease, irritate underlying respiratory conditions and potentially take months or more off a healthy life span.

The article focuses on director Zhang Yimou and his ambition for perfection. Zhang Yimou is renowned for emotional masterpieces like "Ju Dou," and "Raise the Red Lantern." He is currently working on a project titled "Hero." He can be patient because he seems to have the master reel already filmed and locked away in his head. In his search for perfection, he travels hundreds of kilometers to find the ideal backdrop for each scene. The tireless director remains creative despite being tired.

The article reports that China is concerned with its increasing dependence on imported oil and discusses the steps taken to deal with the situation. China's oil imports doubled over the past five years and surged nearly 40% in the first half of 2004 alone. China has begun building up a strategic oil reserve that it hopes to fill with at least 30 days' worth, and the country has several pipelines planned that would receive supplies from fields in Russia, Central Asia and Burma. INSET: Alternative Paths to Power.

The article discusses the building of skyscrapers in China. Zhang Yongduo, an entrepreneur, wanted to extend his chain of restaurants. He invited architect Raimund Abraham and asked him to design a building which could accommodate several restaurants, two bathhouses, an art gallery, offices and a massage salon. Abraham produced a sketch of a 12-story building. There are many more new buildings which have been designed by architects from all over the world in China.

The article presents information on the assassination attempt on Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian. On March 19, 2004, the final day of campaigning in the presidential election, Chen Shui-bian was waving from the back of an open-topped campaign jeep when he was shot at. He was immediately rushed to a hospital where doctors applied 20 stitches and 12 sutures to a deep, 11-cm-long graze below Chen Shui-bian's navel. INSET: Is China Prepared to Fight?.

The article reports on the eruption of the Avian flu. There are many mysteries on where and when the epidemic originated and how it spread swiftly to many countries. The economic and social fallout will be bad, starting with the deaths of millions of chickens and the resulting loss of jobs and millions of dollars in revenues. But a far more dangerous threat exists, which is the possibility that the avian-flu virus could mutate and mix with human-flu viruses.

This article focuses on world leaders and personalities who matter in 2003. Australian Prime Minister John Howard. Because he performed with equal assurance at home and on the world stage. French President Jacques Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Because Chirac strenuously opposed the U.S.-led war in Iraq and Blair passionately supported it, and because their relationship could have profound implications for the project of a powerful, united Europe.

The article focuses on the reasons behind the high life expectancy of Asians. The Japanese reaches an average of 81.6 years as compared to 77.1 years attained by the Americans. In Pakistan, there is the geriatric oasis of the Hunza Valley. The people of Pinghan and surrounding Bama county in Guangxi province, China, are exceptionally long-lived. There are several factors that bestow longevity including heredity, diet, exercise, mental attitude, family and societal support.

The article focuses on the rural health system of China, which is too weak to fight a severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)epidemic. The World Health Organization recently issued a travel advisory for Inner Mongolia and Tianjin, after their SARS caseloads rose to 284 and 149 respectively. City dwellers remain better-off, mostly because six in 10 of them have some form of health insurance. Some statistics on the health-care system of China are also presented.

The article focuses on the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic in China in 2003. The role of Chinese government in handling of the problem was found to be irresponsible. The efforts were directed towards hiding the actual number of patients and presenting an illusionary picture in front of the outside world. The top leaders of China were forced to address this health and public-relations fiasco late last week in April 2003.

Discusses a film that is being created in Bhutan. Film that is written and directed by Khyentse Norbu; Role of Khyentse Norby as the reincarnation of a Tibetan saint and one of Himalayan Buddhism's most revered lamas; His experience in the motion picture industry; Complications of making a film in Bhutan; Details of the film; Profile of Khyentse Norbu.

The article profiles designer sisters Tia and Fiona Cibani. Both sisters started out at Ports International, a Canadian menswear company that moved its operations to Xiamen, a small city in southern China. The article discusses inspiration of the designs the sisters make and what their clientele want. Fiona Cibani now designs for Ports International, while younger sister Tia Cibani runs the Ports 1961 line out of New York.

The article focuses on the potential impact of increased petroleum energy use in India and China's growing economies. Currently, Americans are responsible for 20 times the CO2 omissions of the average Indian. The international Kyoto energy treaty does not require developing nations such as China and India to reduce carbon emissions, and the article suggests that the international community must confront the growing human effect on global warming.

Profiles lawyer and gay rights activist Zhou Dan of Beijing, China. Description of social conditions for gays in China; Impact of Zhou's Internet writing on gay rights in Beijing; Role of Zhou in advocating for the legal rights of gay men in China who are subject to discrimination and civil rights violations; Report that Zhou has created a telephone hotline for sexual minorities, and teaches China's first graduate school course in homosexuality; Claim that changing attitudes toward HIV/AIDS in China have allowed Zhou to influence public health and civil rights policies.

The article provides a history of skyscrapers in the U.S. and the impact of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 on the architecture industry. Fifteen years ago, nine of the world's 10 tallest buildings were in the U.S. Now just two are: the Sears Tower in Chicago and the Empire State Building in Manhattan. All the rest are in Asia. A combination of factors--a sluggish commercial real estate market, skepticism about the profitability of very tall buildings even in good times, the rise of urban thinking critical of skyscrapers and the psychological fallout from 9/11--has discouraged today's American developers from going very, very high. More subtly, for some time before 9/11, the tall building had been losing ground as a symbol of power, wealth and importance, at least in Western countries, where museums, shops and restaurants became more significant status indicators. But elsewhere in the world, extreme verticals are still entirely in fashion, especially for developing nations looking to announce themselves. In many places Asia has become the last outpost of Postmodernism, the ornamental style that American architects tried for a while in the 1980s, struggling to link the office tower to older traditions of Western building by tarting it up with Gothic spires and classical pediments. Many Asian clients saw the plain glass-and-steel Modernist box as a Western import, remote from their national traditions. They wanted silhouettes that would recollect local styles. So the Petronas Towers in Malaysia, until recently the tallest buildings in the world, evoke the minarets of a mosque expanded to sky-high proportions. The Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai, by Skidmore Owings & Merrill, is a highly elongated pagoda. So is Taipei 101, a giant knickknack of a building that pushes the Postmodern idea to the edge of kitsch.

Reports on evidence that suggests that North Korea is advancing its nuclear-weapons plans. Belief that Pyongyang could test a nuclear weapon; Options for the United States, including war; Belief that the regime in Pyongyang could sell its nuclear material to other rogue states or to terrorists; Attempt to restart talks among the U.S., China, and North Korea; Debate over how to handle North Korea; Role of U.S. President George W. Bush's administration. INSET: BUILDING THE BOMB.

Reports on the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, in China. Indication that many people with the contagious disease are crammed in You'an Hospital in Beijing; View that China is handling the SARS epidemic rather secretly, in light of being the host to the Beijing 2008 Olympics and the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, and is also under-reporting the deadly pneumonia; Origination of SARS in Guangdong province in November 2002; Other provinces with cases of SARS virus; Examples of health workers who are speaking out about the government coverup; Impact of the information blackout of SARS news; Concern of the government for social stability rather than medical care.

The article focuses on the landscape design of China's pre-eminent landscape architect Yu Kongjian. In 1998, the architect founded Turenscape, the first private landscape-design firm in the country, and set out to find places such as the city of Zhongshan where officials were willing to try a different look from the alikeness that has spread throughout Chinese cities. Yu emphasized the need for a new system that would express the changing relationship between land and people.

The article reports that the inability of Chinese government to curb intellectual-property theft is distancing its trading partners. The U.S. companies complain that the Chinese piracy, extending from brand product and software to business processes and ideas threatens legitimate enterprises everywhere. The U.S. Customs Department reports that 63% of all counterfeit goods seized by the department in 2004 came from China.

The article reports that with the death of the most liberal leader of China's Communist Party Zhao Ziyang, vision of political changes in China are grim as Chinese President Hu Jintao hardens the Party line. Many Chinese had hoped that their current leader Jintao would someday invoke Zhao and nudge China toward an opening of its political system. As Party chief, Zhao worked to limit the Party's interference in institutions of government. Hu's approach is quite different.

This article focuses on the possible spread of the avian-flu outbreak, with the potential for a pandemic. This virus has had months to roll through the chicken population, possibly mutating and becoming more pathogenic as it goes. In an effort to curtail the current avian-flu outbreak before any killer mutations can occur, public-health officials, epidemiologists and virologists are now scrambling to figure out the origin and genomic sequence of the flu strains in the affected countries.

This article focuses on the space program of China. On October 15, 2006 after decades of fitful starts and failures for China's space program, Lieut. Colonel Yang Liwei roared into the heavens to become China's first man in space. During his 21-hour journey in the heavens on board the Shenzhou V capsule, he took photographs, took naps, and at one point produced a tiny Chinese flag -- the iconic image was broadcast to 1.3 billion fellow citizens back home.

The article discusses the campaign carried on by the people of Hong Kong, China, for their rights. A basic law worked out by China and Great Britain in 1980s granted Hong Kong permission to remain a part of China with its unique set of laws and courts for another 44 years and allowed people of Hong Kong to Cross into Chinese territory. They are now protesting in favor of a combined general election in 2007 to bring democracy in a greater way in China and Hong Kong.

Reports on the making of a Quentin Tarantino motion picture, 'Kill Bill.' Details of the 32nd day of shooting at the Beijing Film Studio in China of the film that is due out in late 2003; Background on director Tarantino and some of his films such as 'Vengeance'; Discussion of the complexities of martial arts scenes; Plot of the 'Kill Bill' movie.

Discusses Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa's loss of popularity. Reasons for public disapproval; Chinese reaction to his political performance; Outlook for the future of Tung and the government of Hong Kong.

This editorial discusses the political and social significance of the election of Barack Obama as the first African American president of the U.S. The role of race in the election is considered in terms of the difficulties faced by previous African American candidates including Shirley Chisholm, Al Sharpton, and Jesse Jackson. The author also believes that Obama will need to govern by consensus in order to effectively lead the country.

This article discusses the reasons for placing filmmaker Tyler Perry on the "Time" magazine list of the world's 100 most influential people. The author describes the work of Perry as a force in the redefinition of filmmaking for urban, primarily African-American, audiences. It also discusses the role that religious faith plays in Perry's films.

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to article in previous issues, including "The Myth About Boys" in the August 6, 2007 issue, an article about Democrats and religion in the July 23, 2007 issue and an article about the Karbala attacks in Iraq by Mark Kukis in the August 6, 2007 issue.

This article describes South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki Moon and discusses his prospects to become the next head of the United Nations. With the 192-nation General Assembly likely to vote on the next head of the U.N. this week, Ban has emerged as the clear favorite to replace outgoing Secretary-General Kofi Annan. As South Korea's Foreign Minister, Ban is a key player in the six-party talks aimed at finding a diplomatic solution to the dispute over the North Korea nuclear program. A test would likely lead to a renewed U.S. push for sanctions against North Korea.

This article discusses the political and social impact of the television program "Super Girl" in China. China's State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television issued laws governing competition-inspired television shows. The author speculates that television shows allowing viewers to vote for contestants may encourage Chinese citizens to want to vote for political officials as well.

This article focuses on power-generating system provided by the Nature Conservancy (TNC) being used in China's Yunnan province. The TNC provides rural households with a pigpen, toilet, greenhouse, underground tank and some rubber tubing. Waste from the pigpen and the toilet ferment in the underground tank, heating the greenhouse and producing a steady stream of methane to power stoves and lamps.

Focuses on artist Hung Huang. How she became interested in art and fashion; Her involvement in the magazine "I-Look"; What readers in China want to see in magazines.

Focuses on the popularity of cosmetics in China. How sales of cosmetic products have increased; History of the cosmetics industry in China; Way that Chinese women equate beauty with pallor.

Focuses on semiretired military surgeon Jiang Yanyong, who sent an open letter to the media exposing the Chinese government's cover-up of the SARS outbreak in April 2003. His belief that he would not be punished, even after his denouncement of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre; Disappearance of Jiang and his wife Hua Zhongwei, who were apparently taken into custody by military and party officials; Release of Jiang's wife; Implications of the SARS disclosures for the Chinese government; Jiang's refusal to change his opinions.

The author reports on the controversy surrounding a new infertility treatment involving techniques similar to those used in cloning. Depending on whom you ask, the experiment announced at a Texas medical conference last week was a potential breakthrough for infertile women, a tragic failure or a dangerous step closer to the nightmare scenario of human cloning. There's truth to all these points of view. Infertility was clearly the motivation when Chinese doctors used a new technique to help one of their countrywomen get pregnant. Using a technique developed by Dr. James Grifo at New York University, Dr. Zhuang Guanglun of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou took the patient's fertilized egg, scooped out the chromosome-bearing nuclear material and put it in a donated egg whose nucleus had been removed. In this more benign environment, development proceeded normally, and the woman became pregnant with triplets who carried a mix of her DNA and her husband's--pretty much like any normal baby. What has some doctors and ethicists upset is that this so-called nuclear-transfer technique has also been used to produce clones, starting with Dolly the sheep. The only significant difference is that with cloning, the inserted nucleus comes from a single, usually adult, cell, and the resulting offspring is genetically identical to the parent. Concern over potential risks is why the Food and Drug Administration created a stringent approval process for such research in 2001--a process that Grifo found so onerous that he stopped working on the technique and gave it to the researchers in China, where it was subsequently banned. The bottom line, say critics, is that perfecting a technique that could be used for human cloning, even if it were developed for another purpose, is just a bad idea--an assertion Zhuang rejects.