Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
At first glance, the animals in the photographs do look like pandas and tigers. On second glance, however, it probably looks suspicious to see a pretty woman walking a panda on a leash, and a tiger with its tongue hanging out and teeth that are way too short. That’s because the pandas are actually chow chow dogs, and the tiger is a golden retriever. Welcome to China, where the latest trend in pet dog ownership amongst the more affluent is to have their pets dyed to look like exotic and endangered animals. It is true that China has had a long history of raising dogs for nutritional and medicinal purposes (it’s still used for those purposes in some parts of the country). But attitudes towards owning pets, dogs in particular, have changed dramatically in recent years. At least among Chinese who can afford to keep pets. And this new fad is one new way Chinese dog owners can show pride in both their beloved pets and their nation’s symbolic animals, by making their dogs look like the symbolic animals. It’s both kind of weird and kind of cool, even though we’re pretty sure dyeing a chow chow puppy to look like a panda won’t make it any more inherently fluffy, cuddly and sweet. (Global Post/The Rice Bowl – Pretty Panda Puppies)
Continue reading
It does sound like a double standard. China’s government is notorious for its rigorous, sometimes harsh, internet censorship standards. You have likely heard stories about how access to anti-Chinese-government web content and to foreign websites like Facebook and Twitter is monitored and usually blocked. The “fairness” of China’s restrictive internet access policies has always rested in the fact that everyone in the country, both Chinese citizens and foreigners, was affected. However, the city of Chongqing, one of China’s four government direct-controlled municipalities, now plans to offer unrestricted internet access as a way of attracting foreign companies and investment to its Cloud Computing Special Zone. This “zone” is currently under construction, and is intended to be a showcase and development center for Chinese cloud computing technologies. The irony of restriction-free internet access has not been lost on those who monitor China’s government and technology markets. Further irony rests in the fact that apparently Chinese government censors have begun demanding the removal of news reports about both the cloud computing zone and stories related its intended internet access policy. (Computerworld – Uncensored China Internet)
Continue reading
“Stories of upper-class Chinese women flying to the United States in style and staying at private clinics to have their babies to take advantage of citizenship laws soon began to appear in the news cycle.” Anchor babies. It’s a term that was not very common up until the very heated debates of the last few years on American immigration reform. And as the article at the link correctly sums up, in the minds of most Americans the term anchor baby is most commonly associated with illegal, impoverished Latino immigrants and their often dire need for social services from the state. But apparently, anchor babies have become a way for affluent parents from mainland China to establish American citizenship for their new children, often as a way to circumvent China’s “One Child” policy or give their kids access to better education and lifestyle opportunities. And these parents are doing everything by the book, applying for the proper visas and paying the required fees, in order to secure legal U.S. citizenship for these kids. Problem is, due to China’s current policy on dual-citzenship (it isn’t allowed), these fully Chinese anchor babies may have serious problems leading lives split between their parents’ homeland and their own. (NBC News Behind the Wall – Affluent Chinese Anchor Babies)
Continue reading
For most of us, traveling abroad to exotic foreign lands is not the prohibitively-expensive “once in a lifetime” dream vacation that it was for our parents. But jetting off to China, Europe or Japan for any decent length of time is still a fairly pricey prospect compared to, say, shuffling off for a weekend in Vegas or Manhattan. Yet, there are deals to be had if you want to break out your passport and go steep yourself in Asian culture for a time. And if you’ve had hopes of going to China, we found a pretty good deal for you. At the link, you’ll be able to read numerous details about a 10-day China tour offered by a company called smarTours. Depending upon how you pay for the package, you can get 10 days in Beijing and Shanghai for as little as $899, which includes airfare and lodging. Pretty cool, but you only have until July 12th to book your tour so you better move on this quickly. (smarTours – Amazing China Deal)
Continue reading
“Wang Xiao Kang stunned his colleagues and upset the security guards with his impromptu showing at the ZTE campus in Shanghai.” Well, showing up to work dressed as a metal superhero seemed like a good idea at the time. And based on the media attention and press coverage Mr. Wang is getting for his stunt, the 25-year-old worker for the ZTE telecommunications corporation was right. At the link, you’ll see video of Wang showing up in his homemade MK 1 suit to warm and enthusiastic responses from his coworkers. Even though this is Shanghai, showing up at work in an Iron Man suit and getting friendly attention for it are not your typical, everyday things. We think it would have been pretty cool to be at work there that day and see this hulking, clanking bit of whimsy walk by our cubicle. Word is, Wang is now working on a Mark III suit, and we can’t wait to see it. (Gizmodo – Iron Man in Shanghai) You can see images of the build process for Wang’s MK 1 suit, as well as newer images for the Mark III suit build – Wang Xiao Kang’s Blog (in Chinese).
Continue reading