"Sinocism is the Presidential Daily Brief for China hands"- Evan Osnos, New Yorker Correspondent and National Book Award Winner

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India and China have withdrawn troops from their Himalayan face off (Reuters):

India and China simultaneously withdrew troops from camps a few meters apart in a Himalayan desert on Sunday, apparently ending a three-week standoff on a freezing plateau where the border is disputed and the Asian giants fought a war 50 years ago.

The two sides stood down after reaching an agreement during a meeting between border commanders, an Indian army official told Reuters, after the tension threatened to overshadow a planned visit by India’s foreign minister to Beijing on Thursday.

Good news, wish we knew what was behind this latest “incursion”.

The big news on the Chinese Internet has been the resurrection of a 19 year old poisoning case (Offbeat China). The case involves allegations of judicial misconduct and official interference and authorities are now attempting, unsuccessfully, to block discussion of it online. As usual, censorship efforts tend to make things worse, as Emily Parker writes in The New Republic:

On May 4, the popular Chinese actress Yao Chen posted the following message to her 45 million followers on the microblogging site Sina Weibo: “Nineteen years ago, the young Zhu Ling was poisoned. Nineteen years later, this name has again been poisoned.”

Yao Chen is referring to a nearly two-decades old attempted murder mystery. The case has again become so blazing hot on Chinese social media that as of Saturday, the name of the victim, Zhu Ling, was censored in Weibo search results. But it’s too late: The case has now been brought to the attention of tens of millions of Chinese people.

There is even a petition on the White House website, as The Global Times reports:

A poisoning case that permanently paralyzed a former Tsinghua University student has triggered an online petition on the White House’s website, the newest development to a matter that has remained unsolved for 19 years so far.

Today’s Links:

THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT

Netanyahu Heads to China to Discuss Trade Amid Tension – Bloomberg The four-day trip may give Israel an opportunity to present its case before China’s new leaders, while they are still forming their strategic outlook on the region. “The Chinese leadership was recently replaced and it is expected to rule there for the coming decade,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement. “Issues of strategic importance in a variety of fields are expected to be raised in Prime Minister Netanyahu’s meetings with senior leaders of the new administration; new bilateral agreements will also be signed.”

Related: 人民日报-中东和平的正能量 钟声 Zhong Sheng in People’s Daily on positive energy for Middle East peace, as Abbas and Netanyahu are in Beijing this week// 随着综合国力的发展壮大，中国将以更加积极的姿态参与国际事务，努力发挥好建设性作用…通过争取和平国际环境发展自己，以自身发展维护和促进世界和平，二者相辅相成，不可割裂。随着综合国力的发展壮大，中国将以更加积极的姿态参与国际事务，努力发挥好建设性作用，为推动巴以问题等国际和地区热点问题早日解决注入强大的正能量

Why it’s great news that China wants to mediate Israel-Palestine talks–Washington Post– China’s foreign policy transition, of a spoiler exploiting the international system to a stakeholder helping to prop it up, could mean a reduced global leadership role for the U.S. But, for all the anxiety this is understandably causing in Washington, it might not actually be such bad news for U.S. interests. As the scholar G. John Ikenberry predicted in a 2011 article for Foreign Affairs, though we’re accustomed to disagreeing with China on international issues, China’s growing stake in and reliance on the U.S.-dominated system may lead China to share U.S. interests rather than contradict them. At some point, China is better served by preserving the system than undercutting it. And that means, as in the case of moderating in Israel-Palestine, Chinese interests shifting to line up more with those of the U.S.

小肥羊卷入羊肉“掺假门”_财经频道_一财网 Yum Brands now appears to have a fake lamb scandal on its hands, involving its Little Sheep Hotpot chain// 日前，据《解放日报》报道，上海工商部门以及食安办在现场发现的出货单显示，可能掺假的羊肉产品流入了小肥羊、傣妹、谭火锅、品尚豆捞、澳门豆捞等知名火锅店。

人民日报-安徽张高平叔侄索赔总额高达702万元，河南李怀亮只希望获赔10万元 冤假错案，国家怎么赔？（新闻看法） People’s Daily on how the government should compensate people wrongly imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. something is going on, more in a growing series of recent stories and commentaries about police, prosecutorial and judicial misconduct 

Related: 河北女子蒙冤被关10年 无罪判决后仍被关20个月|赵艳锦|河北|无罪_新浪新闻  another report of a case of wrongful imprisonment// 为什么无罪判决作出20个月后才放人？ 这是留在当事人及其家属心中的问号，也是中国青年报记者几天来想尽力调查清楚的问题。　有关司法部门解释，这是维稳的需要。但仅此就能置法律于不顾，置公民的人身自由于不顾？

Anatomy of a Protest: Kunming citizens voice concern over chemical plant | East by Southeast Saturday’s peaceful protest in Kunming may be the first of many against a polluting PX chemical plant slated for construction inside the city limits. Nearly 2000 people participated in the well organized protest, and the crowd met zero resistance from the 200+ police and public security officers sent to the site to maintain order. For more than three hours, citizens put on “No PX” face masks and paraded around the protest site waving banners and posters sporting slogans such as “PX project, get out of Kunming” and “I want green!” Different from other protests I’ve seen in China, the organizers divided the site into teach-in zones where crowds of hundreds could listen to those had a message to deliver. In the end, no arrests were made and there were zero scuffles between protesters or with the police.

Related: 昆明大炼油项目背后的千亿GDP诱惑_财经频道_一财网 first financial on the economic temptation behind the proposed Kunming PX plant// 作为中缅原油管道的配套建设，该项目冀望缓解云南油荒，亦构成“GDP诱惑”；如何寻求工业文明与环境承载之间的平衡成地方政府考题。

Unable to walk the walk, Chengdu residents talk the talk | South China Morning Post The presence of thousands of police officers and security agents in Chengdu on Saturday brought back memories of a  “peaceful stroll” in May, 4, 2008. Back then, residents of the city, known as “the land of abundance”, protested construction of a 40-billion yuan petrochemical plant in Pengzhou, a country-level city 20km away from the Sichuan capital.

Related: To Silence Discontent, Chinese Officials Alter Workweek : The Two-Way : NPR Since any attempt to protest would clearly have been unwise, some citizens protested in silence by wearing facemasks. Given the levels of pollution, however, this was ineffective. Others commented wryly that the police show of force represented a new “Chengdu model” of dissent, where the actual marching had been outsourced to the security forces.

China’s CNPC Defends Chengdu Chemical Plant Plan Amid Opposition – Bloomberg China National Petroleum Corp. has “adopted various scientific measures” to ensure there won’t be any negative impact on the environment from the project near the provincial capital Chengdu, an unnamed spokesman in charge of environmental protection at the company said in an interview posted yesterday on Chinawestnews.net, a news portal affiliated with the Sichuan government.

Plans to Harness China’s Nu River Threaten a Region – NYTimes.com BINGZHONGLUO, China — From its crystalline beginnings as a rivulet seeping from a glacier on the Tibetan Himalayas to its broad, muddy amble through the jungles of Myanmar, the Nu River is one of Asia’s wildest waterways, its 1,700-mile course unimpeded as it rolls toward the Andaman Sea.

Pedophiles and a Restrained Media | Sinostand In China we now have not one, but TWO foreign pedophiles. That constitutes an epidemic in any country’s media, but the fact that the Chinese press has shown so much restraint and not played the foreign menace card in this case suggests to me that it wasn’t necessarily their choice. Xenophobia is useful for the government in small periodic doses, but it definitely has its negative consequences and can easily get out of hand. At this point in time, there doesn’t seem much to be gained from such an uproar.In many ways though, I’m disappointed these pedophile stories haven’t received more attention.  Foreign sex offenders coming to teach in China are actually a significant problem. And that problem is just the tip of the iceberg of a much greater social epidemic the whole of China faces.

Alibaba Seen Avoiding Facebook Flop With IPO Below $100 Billion – Bloomberg A more reasonable valuation might be about $62.5 billion, the median of 8 estimates by investment banks and research firms since February, data compiled by Bloomberg show. That’s 84 times the estimate of last year’s net income by Morgan Stanley analysts. Facebook’s IPO valued the company at 107 times the previous year’s net income, data compiled by Bloomberg show. “If investors want to buy into the future, Alibaba’s growth potential and dominant status in China’s e-commerce business is irreplaceable,” said Alex Wang Tingting, a Beijing- based analyst at Internet consulting group iResearch. “Investors will find Alibaba very attractive.”

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

China’s Services Sector Has Its Worst Growth In Nearly 2 Years – Business Insider The latter was indicated by the HSBC China Services Business Activity Index recording 51.1 in April. Down from 54.3 in March, the services survey headline index signalled the weakest expansion of service sector activity since August 2011.

Increasing Tax Burden Becomes Chineses SMEs’ Top Concern, Survey Shows-Caijing “High tax burden has even replaced financing to become the top problem for SMEs in 2013, endangering the survival of many small businesses,” said Qin Rongsheng, the institute’s associate dean. The average tax rate for SMEs could reach more than 40 percent, Qin said, citing the survey. That includes taxes such as income tax, value-added tax, turnover tax and stamp tax, as well as some hidden contributions by the companies.

温州不良贷款率持续攀升 银行远离民企_财经频道_一财网 bad loan ratio increasing in wenzhou, banks there staying away from private enterprises// 温州银监局最新统计显示，今年3月末，温州银行业不良贷款率为4.01％。这是自2011年6月至今，温州不良率首次超过4％。

Department Stores Adapt in Order to Survive – Economic Observe Summary：Shopping malls and department stores in China’s first tier cities are suffering because of the economic downturn and the young generation’s flight to online shopping. In response, they’re shaking up their layout in order to bring a more unique and enjoyable shopping experience.

Major Chinese trade fair sees rebounding turnover – Xinhua | English.news.cn The 113th session of the Canton Fair, which closed on Sunday, received 202,766 overseas purchasers, up 7.06 percent from the previous session held last October, fair spokesman Liu Jianjun said. Liu, who is also deputy director of the China Foreign Trade Center, said the value of trade deals struck at the biannual event reached 35.5 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 8.8 percent from the last session. The number of overseas purchasers and the total trade value, however, came in at 3.8 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively, lower than that of last year’s spring session, Liu said.

The Man at the Center of Solar-Panel Maker Suntech’s Fall – WSJ.com Today, negotiations continue with local officials over whether a local government-controlled company, Wuxi Guolian Development Group Co., will buy a majority stake in the business, say people familiar with the matter.

Chinese solar panel maker flames out – The Washington Post But China’s government has not rushed to the rescue. Last month, another Chinese solar panel maker, LDK, defaulted on a loan payment, citing cash problems. And Chen Yuan, the outgoing head of the China Development Bank, declared in March that the bank should curtail its solar lending.

对话肖建华：一个自认被高估的巴菲特中国门徒|肖建华|巴菲特|明天系_21世纪网 21st Century Herald interviews Xiao Jianhua // 核心提示：肖建华和他的明天系，是这个矛盾时代的产物，更是中国畸形资本市场的制度性产物，需要透明化、阳光化的或许不止于他个人。

 

POLITICS AND LAW

John Garnaut returns: Fairfax seeks new China correspondent | Crikey Fairfax will soon announce a replacement for celebrated China correspondent John Garnaut, who will return to Australia in June after almost six years in Beijing. Garnaut, the son of economist and former China ambassador Ross Garnaut, will take up a senior role at The Age in January after time off to finish a book on China’s Communist Party princeling// big shoes to fill, one of several excellent foreign journalists leaving China in coming months

Shedding some light on the dark world of party discipline | South China Morning Post While many mainlanders, angry about rampant corruption, harbour little sympathy for how officials are treated under shuanggui, an increasing number of legal professionals and media commentators have begun to question the secrecy surrounding the process, particularly the harsh interrogation techniques, arguing that they contravene the country’s efforts to push for rule of law. While anti-graft interrogators have shown no intention of lifting the veil of secrecy, a short news story in the Beijing Evening News last month has provided a rare glimpse into how the interrogators go about their business.

【舒立观察】有危机意识才能避免危机_杂志频道_财新网 Hu Shuli’s latest editorial, need to have a sense of crisis to be able to avoid crisis, need to push faster and harder on reform //  勿需在意外资看空中国，但要充分认识当前中国经济的内在风险，反思与总结此轮金融危机以来的应对政策。重启改革议程，回归改革导向

Fang Lizhi uses posthumous autobiography to deny any role in Tiananmen protests | South China Morning Post Fang Lizhi was not a “black hand” behind the pro-democracy movement in 1989, he says in a newly published posthumous autobiography. Rather, it was his innate character as a scientist – perseverance in pursuing the truth – that led him to be named China’s most-wanted man and forced him into exile, he writes.

重庆红歌研究会停摆 会长已不再唱红_财经频道_一财网 Chongqing Red Song Research Group has closed down, former head no longer sings red songs. Was Bo Xilai subsidizing them, but the money has run out?// 时至今日，红歌研究会已经停摆近一年。张树森说，这一年来，他再没有涉足红歌的活动。不过，他知道很多地方都有人在唱红歌，“这是一种历史记忆，是历史的烙印”。

一周人事任免：陈世炬任中央办公厅副主任 – 新华时政 – 新华网

周恩来侄子忆伯父：有涵养、很随和 吃饭从不剩饭 – 新华时政 – 新华网 图为在江西井冈山出席“朱毛红军井冈山会师85周年”纪念活动的周恩来大侄子周秉钧。 刘占昆 摄 “伯伯对我们很随和，从不批评我们，只给讲道理”，在江西出席“朱毛红军井冈山会师85周年”纪念活动的周恩来大侄子周秉钧，接受记者专访时表示，“在国家利益和个人利益之间，周恩来总是选择个人利益服从国家利益。”

胡耀邦之子：改革需大智慧大气魄大胸怀大慈悲_网易新闻中心 中新社井冈山5月5日电 “改革需要大智慧、大气魄、大胸怀、大慈悲”，胡耀邦的三子胡德华日前在江西井冈山接受中新社记者专访时表示，“我们不能躺在30年前的改革成果上睡大觉，而是要在此基础上不断创新、开拓思路。”

别在被放大的网络舆情中误读中国-中国青年报    有必要明白，网络上的中国也不是真实中国的全部。拓展多元的表达途径，让人们有话有处说，有理有处讲，有更多的地方去表达，在人大表达，在媒体表达，在法庭上表达，当一个社会不那么过度地依赖网络，不是什么都逼到“到网上发个帖子”、“到微博上吸引关注”时，也许网络才不会那么亢奋。//interesting China Youth Daily piece on overestimating the importance of Weibo, misunderstanding China

 

FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS

Japan never had smooth ties with China: Deputy PM Taro Aso – The Economic Times TOKYO: Japan has never in the past 1,500 years had a smooth relationship with China, Japanese deputy prime minister Taro Aso was quoted Sunday as saying during a visit to India. // 日本副首相：日中1500多年来未曾有圆满历史_新闻_腾讯网

The New Triangular Diplomacy: India, China and America at Sea | The Diplomat As in the Cold War, so in the current power play between the United States and China, the rest of Asia will simply not submit itself to the discipline of a bipolar framework. Asia will actively shape and be shaped by the emerging strategic dynamic between Washington and Beijing–C. Raja Mohan is a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi

Manmohan extends Japan trip, sends a strong message to China – The Times of India Under fire from the opposition for its “soft” foreign policy in the face of Chinese incursion in eastern Ladakh, India has finally started to show some teeth to Beijing. The initiative has come from PM Manmohan Singh himself who, in a not so subtle message to Beijing, has decided to extend his visit to Japan later this month by a day.

Chinese find India a potential partner unlike Japan – The Economic Times The Ladakh conflict, however, is seen as very different. Very few Chinese citizens feel there are tensions between India and China, to the extent that awareness of this incident is extremely low. Furthermore, the strategic importance of the Ladakh region or other border areas such as NEFA seems far lower than the Diaoyu Islands. They do not fit into China’s plan for Tibet, and the massive, forbidding heights of the Himalayas make the regions difficult to access and develop.

Internet Explorer zero-day exploit targets nuclear weapons researchers (Updated) | Ars Technica “The target of this attack appears to be employees of the Dept of Energy that likely work in nuclear weapons research,” Invincea researchers wrote in a separate report published Wednesday. The report went on to cite this technical analysis from security firm AlienVault. It found indicators in the command servers Poison Ivy contacted that the attack was carried out by “DeepPanda,” a group of hackers believed to be located in China and carry out espionage attacks on other countries.

陈毅之子陈昊苏：中国外交该强硬时会强硬_新闻_腾讯网中新社井冈山5月4日电 (柳俊武 刘占昆 王姣)“中国有句古话叫树欲静而风不止。”陈毅之子、中国人民对外友好协会原会长陈昊苏日前在井冈山接受中新社记者独家专访时表示，“中国外交的本质是友好外交，但该强硬时会强硬。”

罗援：军队确实存在腐败现象 要先从高官整治_新闻_腾讯网 日前，著名军事专家罗援少将做客环球网，就当前复杂的周边局势、网络舆论、军队治腐等问题，与环球网网友进行了交流探讨，下面是对话实录。// Global times interview with Luo Yuan, always entertaining, he uses the interesting term 师夷长技以制夷 //师夷长技以制夷 – 维基百科 师夷长技以制夷是由清代著名思想家、新思维倡导者魏源首先提出，该思想见于其著作《海国图志》。师夷长技以制夷的完整揭示即为“学习西方的先进技术从而抵抗西方列强入侵”。长技乃是确定并非万事皆从师于西方，仅仅学习西方先进的军事技术，师夷便是向西方学习。这一观点与数千年来高高在上的天朝大国万全不同，在当时是要冒很大的政治危险。 值得一提的是，魏源师夷长技以制夷的思想对后世有很大的影响，19世纪末的洋务派运动提出的“中学为体，西学为用”便是由此深化而来。

In pictures: Frigate Yueyang commissioned for S China Sea fleet – Xinhua | English.news.cn Frigate Yueyang was commissioned for the South China Sea fleet of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy in Sanya, south China’s Hainan Province, May 3, 2013.

China-Japan Island Dispute Could Become Flashpoint | Defense News | defensenews.com Hua’s statement was deleted from the official transcript issued by China’s Foreign Ministry. “It is on the tape,” said Bonnie Glaser, senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “However, when the transcript was issued, that sentence was deleted. The transcript remains the official account. Obviously, someone believed it should not have been said.” “China is cautious in using the term ‘core interest,’ ” said Su Xiaohui, strategic studies research fellow, China Institute of Inter­national Peace, Beijing

Asian Leaders’ Tough Talk Hides Failure of Leadership – Bloomberg If Abenomics turns out to be more sizzle than steak, as the economist and Japan watcher Richard Katz argues, economic setbacks at home will make Abe assume a more aggressive posture with his neighbors. Nationalism remains, despite decades of economic and cultural globalization, the default escape mode for politicians in trouble; and, as the events of 1914 proved, populist amplifications of it can quickly destroy the geopolitical equilibrium achieved by deeply interdependent economies. Certainly, as the centenary of World War I approaches, some extra caution will become imperative for “politicians and polemicists,” who, as Murakami wrote, “lavish us with this cheap alcohol and allow things to get out of control.”

China, ASEAN fully capable of safeguarding regional peace: FM – Xinhua | English.news.cn China and ASEAN members have reached consensus that the two sides are fully capable of maintaining peace and stability in the region, including on the South China Sea, visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Sunday before wrapping up a five-day visit. In a joint interview with Chinese media outlets, Wang said the shared idea was the most important consensus achieved during his four-nation tour which took him to Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei.

China and Brunei Darussalam issue joint press release – People’s Daily Online Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi paid an official visit to Brunei Darussalam on May 4, 2013. The two sides issued a joint press release. The text is as follows:

中国军网_中国科研团队再破量子通信难关 成功验证了星地之间建立安全量子信道的可行性，从而为全球化量子网络的建立奠定了技术基础 PLA Daily on China making another research breakthrough in quantum communications

海军航空兵进行海岛攻击训练 提高战机打击能力_网易新闻中心 North Sea Fleet exercise practices naval aviation attack on an island // 据央视报道近日，海军北海舰队航空兵某部组织了一场大强度综合武器实际射击训练，提高飞行员对海岛目标的打击能力。战机综合武器对海岛目标攻击训练，由于使用武器种类多、战机飞行高度低、射击时机转瞬即逝，是海军航空兵训练的高难科目。

尼克松外孙携夫人重走当年“破冰路线”_网易新闻 Christopher Nixon Cox’s wife Andrea Catsimatidis has made a splash, especially with her choices of revealing red tops…enough to make even an aging red guard swoon…pictures

Crovitz: A Darkening Digital Future – WSJ.com “The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business” by Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen // The book classifies government Internet filtering systems into three tiers: “the blatant, the sheepish, and the politically and culturally acceptable.” The most blatant is China, which they call “the world’s most active and enthusiastic filterer of information.” Beijing employs hundreds of thousands of functionaries to post pro-communist comments, and it cuts off many websites from outside the country. The authors confirm media reports that Beijing has even rerouted traffic: “More than a few times, Google’s web address has mysteriously directed people to www.Baidu.com, China’s local search competitor.”

Lessons in US-China Diplomacy: Parsing the Special 301 Report | China Hearsay Here’s the first bit of the China section from this year’s report. I’ve added emphasis to some of the language to better illustrate what I consider to be a too-careful, diplomatic effort to be nice. To me, the diplo-speak is so obvious, I can almost hear the sarcasm.

 

TECH AND MEDIA

[视频]【消费新动向】指尖的力量_新闻频道_央视网 Sunday’s CCTV Evening News dedicated the first three minutes of the broadcast to a story about surging smartphone use and the benefits to China’s economy from the increasing consumption that the mobile Internet is expected to drive. // 央视网消息(新闻联播)：微信聚会、手机导游，如今手机的应用是五花八门，也许您没有意识到，当指尖在手机屏幕上轻点时，您和众多手机使用者用指尖汇聚的力量，正在成为拉动经济增长的新动力。

Zhou Hongyi Wants Qihoo to Go Global, But Could it Ever Happen?  How else can you compete with the BATs (Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent) these days? Zhou just takes them to a new level, while building a very interesting business and staking out a strong position in the exploding mobile market through his security products. but good luck getting anyone in developed world internet markets to trust his products// It’s a lofty goal, but is it an attainable one? That depends in part on the proposed timeline, but anytime in the near future I think Qihoo is going to face huge obstacles in any attempt to expand beyond China and perhaps the overseas Chinese diaspora. Among them:

工信部表态：不干预微信收费 新型业务纳入监管_科技频道_凤凰网 MIIT says will not interfere in Weixin free or free debate, will regulate emerging services // 本报讯（记者薛松）对微信是否收费的争论还在持续，工信部出台的《试办新型电信业务管理办法》(征求意见稿，以下简称“意见稿”)指出，对新型电信业务（包括微信等OTT业务）实行备案管理。不过，这一监管举措引起了多方争论，赞成者认为应该多促进微信这样的业务创新，规范和引导其发展。但反对者认为将一些互联网业务列为通信范畴并不妥，这些业务根本就难以管控，也没必要管理。

谁是中国的娱乐之王：王长田还是王中军？_股票频道_一财网 王中军，1960年生人，华谊兄弟传媒集团老板。部队大院里长大的北京顽主。当过“洋插队”，干过美术师，卖过宝马车。现在，他越来越像一个好莱坞大亨。 王长田，1965年生人，光线传媒有限公司创始人。出生于大连附近的一个村庄。曾经是中国最好的报纸和电视记者之一，精明勤勉，事必躬亲。现在，他越来越像一个苦行僧。

Amazon Appstore Opens in China, Leaps Final Hurdle Before Kindle Fire Launch–TechInAsia– In a surprise move, Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) has opened its Android-oriented Appstore in China today. That’s despite the fact that China wasn’t listed on Amazon’s Appstore expansion roadmap last month, in which the company took its service into 200 new countries

被人忽视的事实：十个月间，小米专利从0到300+-看点-@虎嗅网 xiaomi has applied for 336 patents, received 297, from 0 ten months ago // 但仅仅过去十个月，如果今天再对小米进行专利检索，你会发现小米的专利申请已超过336个，其中发明专利297个，也就是说超过88%的申请是发明专利，其中大部分的申请集中在2012下半年，仅2012年第四季度就申请了161个。这似乎说明从2012年下半年开始，小米突然对知识产权异常重视起来，很明显的可以看出小米在努力冲刺专利申请的数量，而且，其中90%以上都是自己主动要求提前公开的。

Web China: Crowd funding fueling creative projects in China – Xinhua | English.news.cn Launched in July 2011, Demohour is China’s first crowd funding website. It has been followed by dozens of others, including Musikid.com for music projects, Tmeng.cn for movie producers and Emielife.com for designers.

 

SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY

Hot Docs Interview: Inigo Westmeier on Dragon Girls | Next Projection Inigo Westmeier is a filmmaker’s documentarian, not= a journalist with a shakey-cam, but a cameraman, a cinematographer, someone who understands the medium first and his subjects second. I talked to him about his feature debut, an exquisite portrait of young girls training in martial arts at China’s prestigious Shaolin Tagu Kung Fu School.// Watching Dragon Girls

Sotheby’s – Overview Early photographs of China and Taiwan are another highlight of this sale. Focusing on two lots: the first is a group of 18 photographs taken by Felice Beato in 1860 during the Second Opium War, among which is the first photograph panorama taken inside the city of Beijing. The second is an important album of photographs by John Thomson, a Scottish photographer who travelled extensively in China in the 19th century. The 71 photographs show views in and around Swatow (Shantou), and Amoy (Xiamen) in China, together with some of the first photographs taken in Taiwan.

 

ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH

China rapid in response to bird flu: Nature – Xinhua | English.news.cn China deserves credit for its rapid response to the outbreaks of H7N9 avian influenza, and its early openness in the reporting and sharing of data, a prestigious scientific journal has said. “Today, some commentators view its reaction to H7N9 with mistrust. But from all the evidence so far … China’ s response to the virus is next to exemplary,” London-based Nature said in an editorial in its online edition on April 24.

Flu papers spark row over credit for data : Nature News & Comment On 31 March, China reported the first human cases of infection with a new H7N9 avian flu virus. The same day, a team at the Chinese National Influenza Center (CNIC) in Beijing uploaded to a research database the genetic sequences of viruses isolated from the first three human cases. But Nature has learned that in the days that followed, Chinese scientists and officials grew increasingly concerned that China might lose credit for its work in isolating and sequencing the virus. The sequences were placed in the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) database. According to the database’s rules, scientists who use sequences from it must credit those who deposited the data and, where possible, propose collaborations with them

Poultry trade may be spreading killer H7N9 virus | South China Morning Post Poultry workers moving between wet markets and farms are probably responsible for the wide geographical spread of the deadly new bird flu virus on the mainland, says a Hong Kong expert invited by the World Health Organisation to investigate the outbreak. Cages, vehicles and personnel handling birds were likely to be taking the H7N9 virus with them as they moved around, spreading the disease to many provinces

5 samples test positive for H7N9 in E China – Xinhua | English.news.cn Five samples taken from poultry and the environment in three east China provinces have tested positive for the H7N9 avian flu virus, the Ministry of Agriculture said on Sunday. The virus, which has killed at least 27 people thus far, was detected in three samples of the environment taken from Shandong Province and two samples of chicken from Jiangxi and Guangdong provinces.

Interview: Historical responsibility of developed countries unevadable: China’s chief negotiator – Xinhua | English.news.cns  global representatives gathering at German city of Bonn for a new round of UN climate change talks, China’s Chief Negotiator Su Wei warned developed countries that their historical responsibility for climate change is unevadable. Su urged the developed countries to increase their mitigation ambition and implement their pledge for assisting developing countries.

 

FOOD AND TRAVEL

Chinese drive to create vast vineyards spark concern | South China Morning Post In January, authorities in Shaanxi released a plan to build 18,000 hectares of vineyards at the foot of Qin Mountain. And last year Sichuan invited winemakers from countries such as France, Spain, Australia and the United States to visit Chengdu and take a tour of prefectures such as Liangshan , Aba and Ganzi – all regions that are officially recognised as natural habitats of giant pandas.

China wine blog: Grape Wall of China an excellent resource for all things wine in China

Sale of 40 tonnes of diseased pork sparks police investigation | South China Morning Post Two people hired by a county government in Fujian province to destroy pigs killed by infectious diseases have been detained for allegedly processing the carcasses and selling the meat in neighbouring provinces.

Ginger farmers abuse toxic pesticide: report — Shanghai Daily AUTHORITIES have started confiscating a highly toxic pesticide after it was found to be widely used in ginger fields in Weifang City, Shandong Province, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday. A CCTV investigative program (山东潍坊：管不住的“神农丹” ) found some ginger farmers illegally used shennongdan, a pesticide made from aldicarb, a carbamate insecticide. The farmers spread it together with fertilizer in ginger fields and abandoned the toxin-laced packages everywhere, the report said.

 

BEIJING

Three dead in knife attack in downtown Beijing – Xinhua | English.news.cn A knife-wielding man stabbed two people to death and injured another in downtown Beijing Saturday, local police said. The assailant also died from injuries suffered while resisting police arrest. The man attacked vehicle drivers and passengers with a knife on a ramp of a road near Guangqumen Bridge at about 2 p.m., the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau said in a statement. // keep your doors locked when driving

 

BOOKS AND LITERATURE

The China Diaries: Globe and Mail: Amazon.com: Kindle Store Veteran Globe and Mail Beijing Correspondent, Mark MacKinnon, who has been covering China for the past four years, joins forces with staff photographer John Lehmann in a journey across China, reporting from the far reaching corners of a fascinating country at the very moment in history when it is experiencing extraordinary growth and transformation.

 

JOBS AND EVENTS

Director of SOAS China Institute – Times Higher Education Jobs  SOAS, University of London, (School of Oriental and African Studies) will launch the SOAS China Institute (SCI) in Autumn 2013. The SCI will be at the forefront of a major strategic initiative, designed to confirm and strengthen the position of SOAS as the UK’s foremost centre of research, teaching, and outreach with reference to China. The Institute will be an interdisciplinary “knowledge hub” bringing together the expertise of the largest community of China scholars housed under one roof in the Western world. It will promote independent, critical analysis of China, provide new and exciting opportunities for postgraduate training and postdoctoral research, and produce scholarly work of the highest international quality.

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