notes.husk.org

"Otherwise, Wang poured out his unhappiness. The hackers were required to speak English, the..."

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 17:15:30 +0000

“Otherwise, Wang poured out his unhappiness. The hackers were required to speak English, the international language of technology, as well as an essential for phishing attacks on mostly U.S. targets. But when Wang tried to hone his English skills by reading magazines such as the Economist and Harvard Business Review, his boss rebuked him for reading too much foreign press.”

- China hacker’s angst opens a window onto cyber-espionage - latimes.com (via iamdanw)

"I am told that in Beijing two weeks ago a British delegation was there to discuss the rule of law..."

Mon, 19 Nov 2012 20:55:12 +0000

“I am told that in Beijing two weeks ago a British delegation was there to discuss the rule of law and some of the senior Chinese officials said ‘oh then will you please tell us why Britain is flouting the judgement of the Strasbourg court’. If that has reached Beijing then it stains our fine international reputation of the rule of law.”

- Lord Lester ‘of Herne Hill QC, who sits the Ministry of Justice’s Commission which is drawing up a new British Bill of Rights’, quoted in the Telegraph: Prisoners to get the vote regardless, Government human rights adviser says.

"The depiction of a promise"

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 02:20:56 +0000

Are you familiar with Baidu? The Chinese can’t show satellite images of their cities so they model these detailed axonometric cityscapes.

Baidu shows very beautiful representations, similar to hand-drawn maps. They’re like the depiction of a promise, telling you that it’s a beautiful country to live in, whether it’s true or not.

Michael Stoll interviewed for Domus. Previously, previously.

"They’re planning on going to the Moon, and some people say, oh, we’ve got to get to the Moon, we’ve..."

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 05:41:16 +0100

“They’re planning on going to the Moon, and some people say, oh, we’ve got to get to the Moon, we’ve got to get there in a hurry to prove we can get there before China. It’s like, guys, we were there a long time ago, all right?”

- Mitt Romney on China’s space programme and a return to the moon, quoted in Jeff Foust’s article in The Space Review: Shedding a little more light on space policy.

The whole thing is well worth a read, particularly for noting that, while Presidents and candidates love to talk about NASA, it’s the legislative branch (responding to the Office of Management and Budget’s requests) that shares responsibility for the year-to-year funding of the agency.

lomokev: A worker walks past a pile of iron ore from Australia...

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 20:30:31 +0100

lomokev:

A worker walks past a pile of iron ore from Australia at a port in Tianjin on March 29, 2010. (Vincent Du/Reuters) (via Scenes from China - The Big Picture)

Mmm, cranes.

"Due to sensitivities over government and military installations, only 11 companies in China have..."

Wed, 26 Sep 2012 17:46:32 +0100

“Due to sensitivities over government and military installations, only 11 companies in China have licenses to do comprehensive mapping, and half of those simply exist to support the government.”

- WSJ: Lost in a Sea of Black: Apple Built Special Version of Maps for China. Previously: Baidu Maps and the Edges of the World.

“China Shipping Container Lines Co., Ltd currently...

Fri, 04 May 2012 10:09:43 +0100

“China Shipping Container Lines Co., Ltd currently operates over 80 major routes and feeder services both domestically and internationally. Its service network covers Chinese costal areas and major trade regions in Asia, Europe, America, Africa and Persian Gulf.”

Angry Birds cake, one of a range. This one costs HK$650, or...

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 23:49:06 +0000

Angry Birds cake, one of a range. This one costs HK$650, or about US$80. (via)

Compare and Contrast: Rail Edition

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 18:20:00 +0100

BBC News: China tests Beijing-Shanghai bullet train

Engineers have conducted a test-run of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail link, days before its public launch.

Officials, reporters and company bosses were on board for the 300 km/h (190mph) train’s maiden voyage, which the government has promised will halve the journey time to under five hours.

China is planning to roll out high-speed lines across the country.

But the project has come under fire for its high cost - the Beijing-Shanghai line cost 215bn yuan ($33bn; £21bn).

And the government has earmarked a further 700bn yuan for the rest of the project, which would see 16,000km of track being laid by 2020.

BBC News: Clash over new high-speed rail tunnel in Italian Alps

Police have clashed with demonstrators in the Italian Alps over the construction of a new high-speed rail link with France.

Tunnelling is set to start for a line from Turin to Lyon, which is expected to cut the travel time by nearly half.

Local residents built barricades to prevent heavy machinery from starting work in the picturesque Val di Susa, in northern Italy.

Police used fire hoses and tear gas to disperse them.

San Jose Mercury: Central Valley plan snags on politics

The plan for high-speed rail in California is to start on the Fresno side of the San Joaquin River, between Bakersfield and Chowchilla, and go until the money runs out.

The Central Valley, for many reasons, is a practical place to begin. The land is broad and flat and relatively inexpensive, and the federal government, which is contributing billions of dollars, requires it.

The first section will one day form the spine of a system connecting Los Angeles to San Francisco, officials say. But there is no money guaranteed to build the rest, and the initial tracks, through towns like Wasco and Madera, are conspicuously far from where most people live.

Quingdao, from CHINA 2011 by Phillip Reed.

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 00:11:43 +0100

Quingdao, from CHINA 2011 by Phillip Reed.