Sally, Sam, Christine, Cedric and Sharon

15 Jan 2011 - In a few weeks we will enter the Year of the Rabbit, and a friend gave me the 2011 Chinese Almanac in preparation. It is full with useful and not-so-useful hints and tips, and the coming days it will keep me busy discovering my destiny. From what I got so far, the prediction is that my year will be "stable", which seems a euphemism for "boring". Some how, I have the feeling hat Year of the Rabbit will not be boring at all, so let's ee who is right. However, I was immediately drawn to the chapter about "Naming Your Pets". It is argued that naming pets is no different from naming babies. One first has to determine the birthday of the pet. The nature of a name is determined by the pronunciation: names of Wood begin with a dental consonant, names of Fire nature begin with a palatal consonant, and so on. According to Chinese wisdom an animal of Metal nature would suit me best, and I should name him/her Sally, Sam, Christine, Cedric or Sharon. I don't think I will ever have a pet ...

Ai Weiwei

14 Jan 2011 - Most of the time I like to keep the tone of message of this blog light, but sometimes there is a need to raise more serious issues. And as I care a great deal for China and the Chinese people these serious often have to do with the Middle Kingdom. BBC reports that demolition workers have torn down the Shanghai studio of Ai Weiwei - a move he says is linked to his pilitical activism. Mr Ai said that it only took a day for the workers to flatten everything. He initially had permission to build the studio, but later the permission was revoked under claims that he had failed to follow planning procedures. Mr Ai called the demolition order "ridiculous". Ai Weiwei is one of China's most famous contemporary artists, and he was involved in creating the Olympic "Bird's Nest" stadium in his hometown Beijing. He has been an outspoken critic of China's leaders and the human rights situation in the country.

Sharks in Queensland

13 Jan 2011 - The news wires are vbuzzing with the unprecedented floods in Queensland, Australia. On top of the misery and dismay caused by the rising waters, the local population is now reported to be confronted with a new challenge: sharks swimming in their backyard. Residents of the town of Goodna reported spotting a dangerous bull shark. These sharks are known to attack human beings, and it is feared that they are agressive and looking for food. And not only sharks are causing havoc, there are also reports of crocodiles at drift and of poisonous snakes swimming in the waters. The local advice to avoid the waters all together, but that is easier said than done when your living room in under water.

Pandamania

12 Jan 2010 - For the first time in nearly two decades two giant pandas will be brought from China to the United Kingdom. The two animals will be brought to the Edinburgh Zoo. The project represents the culmination of five year of diplomatic negotiations at a high level. One wonders what it is that makes the panda so engaging? According to Ron Swalsgood, Director of Applied Animal Ecology it is because the panda reminds us of ourselves. "they eat sitting up with their hands and their special pseudo thumb", he told the BBC. Zoo visitos love to see pandas eating and they are often amazed by the way they handle their food. The classic pose of the panda eating his food resembles a man or woman sitting on the floor. Mr. Swalsgood also believe we love pandas because of their distinctive eyes. Their eye patches look their eyes look bigger. I went to see Pandas in Hong Kong's Ocean Park, but all did was shit. Maybe we admire that too.

Lady Gaga - The Icon

10 Jan 2010 - The recently renovated Groninger Museum in the city of Groningen in the northern part of The Netherlands is considering a major exhibition on pop diva and fashion icon Lady Gaga. A spokesperson of the museum confirmed the news after the initiative came out through local media. The museum - with its outlandish  design an icon by itself - is known for its forward-thinking and trend-setting exhibitions. The spokesperson commented that Lady Gaga is a worldwide role model for fashion and style, for example when she recently appeared in a meat-dress during the MTV awards. Of course the museum hopes that the diva herself will attend the opening ceremony, but the media attention will no doubt benefit this small museum in one of the corners of the country (yet only 2 hours from Amsterdam). Bono visited the museum a few years ago to attend the onening of en exhibitiomn on the work of Dutch photographer Anton Corbijn. 

Great Picture (28)

9 Jan 2011 - The new year is a week old (so far, so good), but I came across this picture by Parool photographer Elmer van der Marel about a fireworks enthusiastic guy in Amsterdam.It looks a bit mysterious and dark, yet it is very happy occasion. I am only a bit confused there is no snow to see ... The country was covered in a white blanket all over - so when was the picture taken?

Sport and Sex

9 Jan 2011 - Sex sells and every successful sportsmen and woman will have to ask themselves at a certain moment in their career how to get in touch with inner ancient Greek and expose themselves. Most recently examples of David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo in their Emporio Armani briefs were all over the snazzy magazines. US cyclist Victoria Pendleton was photographed naked for Sports Monthly and a reader commented: "I want to be a saddle." In the original Olympics athletes competed in the nude covered only in olive oil massaged in by what these days would be described as ball boys. The aim was to prevent rivals treading on your toga and to glorify the god-like physics of the competitors. Maybe there were darker underlying reasons too?  Anyway, British tennis star Andy Murray, often described as a geek, has now posed for US Vogue looking mean and muscular in the gym. The pictures were made by famous star photograher Mario Testino and one hardly recognizes the scrawny, rugged, moody teenager. It is probably a shrewd career move for the tennis star who seems a bit stuck in the rankings..

Food Vouchers

8 Jan 2011 - The British Government is slowly changing tactics in its struggle to motivate the Brits to lead healthier lives. British officials are abandoning the health argument and fattening people's wallets instead. They have tested several programmes that pay people incentives to make make healthy choices. Last week the Government committed to cash payouts to try to reverse the obesity epidemic, announced it would give out five million GBP 50 vouchers to families that could be swapped for fruits and vegetables instead of hamburgers and fries. "If people drop out they get nothing," said Winton Rossiter, who designed the programme tested by the Weight Wins Company. "And people hate giving up money even more than they hate giving up the fatty snacks.".  

Eating Worms

7 Jan 2010 - Female students in China have been eating roundworm eggs to lose weight for job interviews, all because employment is so hard to come by in China.The eggs hatch in the stomach, allowing those who take them to shed pounds without exercising or dieting. But swallowing the worms or its eggs is extremely dangerous, and definitely not to be recommended for those wanting to shed pounds in the New Year. Unemployment in China stands at 22% and the size of the labour pool has grown by 112 million people over the last decade to more than one billion people. It was also reported that other people stare for hours at pictures to suppress their appetite so they can shed weight.  The unemployment problem is in particular high in rural areas. Jobs in cities are being created quickly as China undergoes a rapid transformation into a developed country. The country's urban population will rise to over 700 million people by 2015, outstripping the rural population for the first time.

Dumb and dumber

6 Jan 2011 - It is not something we like to admit easily, but it seems that the human race may actually becoming increasingly dumb. Man's brain has been gradually shrinking over the last 20,000 years from 1,500 cubic centimeters to 1,350 cubic centimeters - losing a chunk the size of a tennis ball. The female brain has shrunk by about the same proportion. Luckily, most scientists believe that the fact the size of teh brain is decreasing does not mean our intelligence is in decline as well. Some believe that our brains are smaller but increasingly efficient. There are several theories for the shrinking brain. One is that big heads were necessary to survive prehistoric life, which involved cold, outdoor activities. Another theory believes that skulls developed to cope with a chewy diet of rabbits, reindeer, foxes and horses. As our food is now much easier to chew, our heads stopped growing. There is - however - hope. A recent study found out that our brain is on the rise again. Maybe we get smarter at last.

Just a Service Provider ...

6 Jan 2011 - Who would have predicted this? Clairvoyants and astrologers can legally practise in Romania since a few days as fortune-telling was officially recognized as a profession per 1st January 2011. The Romanian Government adopted last week a bill listing fortune-tellers, astrologers and "small practitioners" along with butlers, embalmers and driving instructors in thye "personal services" category. The move drew scatching comments on the internet with some asking if fortune tellers would have to declare revenues and pay taxes."Will they have to issue bills that will then act as warranty certificate?"Benjib, an internet user, said. If so, :just imagine the number of complaints over unfulfilled predictions lodged with the consumers protection office," he added.

New Language

4 Jan 2010 - The Lake Superior State University in Sault St. Marie, Illinois, USA released its annual list of banished words, terms so overused, misused and hackneyed they deserve to be sent to a permanent linguistic trash can in 2011. "Viral" often used to describe the rapid spreading of videos or other content over the internet, leads the list for the year 2010. Runners up include "epic" and "fail" often twinned to describe a blunder of monumental proportions. Fourteen words were on the list. Cliched terms such as "wow factor" , "a-ha moment", "back story" and "BFF" (Best Friend Forever) rated highly. The very au courant use of "Facebook" and "google" as verbs got a thumbs down as well. As usual, election-cycle zingers and catchwords quickly look as worn out as last year's campaign posters. The word "Mama Grizzlies", used to describe right-wing female politicians is therefore also on the list. Did somebody say Sarah Palin?

Back to School

3 Jan 2011 - It is not totally clear to me why school holidays in Malaysia are held in November and December (the cooler weather seem perfect to study?), but the holidays are over and today and tomorrow children return to school. The back-to-school shopping frenzy is evident in many of the leading stores and shopping malls. Parents, with their children in tow, pick out school uniforms and shoes in the right sizes and colors. "Whenever the school term starts, the one thing most parents worry about is having to spend a significant amount to buy school uniforms, books, shoes and stationary. These days children ask for what they want and they insist that we buy their favorite things," said mother of six, Ajurun Begum Ahmad. Ajurun recommends not to wait last minute with the purchases, as it pays off to shop around, and they could benefit from the year-end sale. Another mother takes a different approach: "Although we have to get everything new for the little one, that still does not mean that we will give in to all his demands."

Shrinking Population

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2 Jan 2010 - Japan's population shrank by a record margin last year as the nation rapidly ages, said the Welfare Ministry yesterday. The number of people fell by 123,000, the biggest drop since the records began in 1947. It is an illustration of the demographic crisis the country faces as a smaller working population has to support a mass of pensioners. It is the fourth consecutive year that the country's population has declined. The fall was larger than the 72,000 registered in 2009. The Ministry estimated 1,071,000 babies were born in Japan last year, almost flat from 2009, while deaths soared by 52,000 to a record of 1.194,000. It is interesting to note this trend in one of Asia's most developed nations, and similar trends are spotted in South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong. It would probably also be the same in Europe but immigration changes the picture in the old world.

Rolling Stones

2 Jan 2010 - Rolling Stones' guitar player Keith Richards has published his autobiography called "Life". It seems an appropriate title for a man who was near-dead for many years of his life. He wrote the book together with ghostwriter James Fox. Richards explains how it all started ... The band was still totally unknown when they were invited for an interview by a local magazine.Jazz News (!!!!). The journalist asked the duo Mick Jagger and Keith Richards what the name of the band was They had no clue, but they saw an album by Muddy Waters lying around and one of the songs on the album was called Rolling Stone. So, voila ... The Rolling Stones were born. Much has been said about the rivalry (and friendship) between Mick and Keith, but the name of the band was chosen by both of them. Not long after, they played the world in gigantic stadiums and earned lots of money. The legendary band was born.

Musical Victory

1 Jan 2011 - Australian airline Qantas had a rough 2010. On top of everything the year ended on a sour note as local musicians said that had scored a victory against Qantas after a Facebook campaign helped persuade the airline to scrap a ban on carrying instruments as cabin luggage. Jazz saxophonist Jamie Oehlers started the online protest when Qantas introduced a policy requiring all musical instruments except violins and violas to be checked in and stored in the cargo hold. "After travelling with them for 20 years, I was made to check my saxophone in for the first time a few weeks ago, causing USD 1200 worth of damage.", Oehlers wrote, launching the campaign last month. More than 8,700 people joined the group, including members of the country's symphony orchestra's, posting stories and pictures of instruments that had been damaged in the cargo hold. Qantas confirmed on 24 Dec it had reversed the policy. The new policy allows small instruments as carry-on baggage, provided they are no longer than 81cm, higher than 30cm or more than 19cm deep.  

Last Puff

1 Jan 2011 - Spaniards better light up today, because when they wake up tomorrow they will find what many consider an inalienable right - puffing on a cigarette with a drink at their local bar - has overnight become illegal. On 2nd January 2011, one of the laxest laws in Europe will have become one of the strictest, along with that of Ireland. Spanish smokers will no longer be able to light up in bars, restaurants and cafes as a new legislation takes into effect that bans smoking in all enclosed public spaces (so including public toilets). It will also be illegal to smoke in children's playgrounds and on school or hospital grounds, according to the new law, which received final approval from Parliament on 21 December 2010. I bet many Spaniards did not have to think long for their new year's resolutions: stop puffing.

2010

31 Dec 2010 - So, the last day of the year 2010. The year saw new superpowers emerging in the New Media landscape and I expect their authority will further rise in 2011. Two of them - Google and Facebook - now influence societies and cultures all over the world by their sheer size and reach, while the third one - WikiLeaks - epitomises the power of information. Google has a mere monopoly of web search and online search advertising. It owns YouTube and Blogger (so many thanks!) and it is only expected to expand its digital empire further. These days if you don't appear on a Google search you don't exist any longer! I have already written about Facebook, and its founder Mark Zuckerberg, in the last few days, so let's spend the last lines of 2010 on WikiLeaks. It was labeled a "foreign terrorist organization" by some US lawmakers, but was also awarded by The Economist and Amnesty International. I believe we will hear (much) from/about WikiLeaks in 2011. And it will not only be WikiLeaks. A rival called Openleaks.org has already emerged and more whistle blowing sites will follow. I expect that 2011 will further change the way we look at information - as the new superpowers rule the world.

Salt Scarcity

31 Dec 2010 - I am back in the tropical weather of Kuala Lumpur, but I can still feel the winter-cold in my bones. I had a somewhat slippery journey to Amsterdam Schiphol airport as thaw has set in and the roads and pavements are icy. The Dutch complain about practically everything (not only the Dutch by-the-way), but I was quite surprised that nobody complained about the slippery icy conditions of the roads. "In the good old days" people were requested to keep the pavement in front of their house free of snow and the city council took care of the rest. The last few days I noticed that attitudes and practice has changed, because nobody bothered anymore. Even the city council got away with a comment that they could not keep the roads ice-free because of salt scarcity. They probably have never heard of "winter preparedness". Anyway, there is good news, because on my last day in Holland I learned a ship with 7,000 tons salt from Turkey sailed into one of the Dutch ports. But probably the roads are too slippery by now get it to its destination?

15 Minutes of Fame

30 Dec 2010 - The Year also had their short term heroes, like Anna Chapman and the Old Spice Guy. 15 Minute Hero of the Year is Steven Slater. You may not immediately recognize the name, but I am sure you remember the story about the JetBlue flight attendant who could not take it any longer and snapped. When the flight attendant was hit on the head by a passenger's bag in August and was told off by one of the passengers, he exited via an emergency chute and never returned to his job again. He became an instant folk hero for the online community on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook. Despite his fame, he said that - although he enjoyed some aspects of the limelight - he never felt more alone in his life than at the height of public scrutiny.