• Beijing had its earliest snowfall in a decade and - of course - it was because the Weather Modification Office decided to work its magic again, spraying clouds with 186 doses of silver iodide. It was to ease drought. [BBC]
• While labor reeducation camps may have been de rigueur a couple decades ago, now it's kind of embarrassing to admit you have them around. Unfortunately, China has them around. [France24]
• Oh really? NOW China is planning to repair that TVCC tower that was gutted by fire eight months ago. NOW. Allegedly, the building can "be repaired" and it won't be a "complete rebuilding." [WSJ]

Guess the two child incentive wasn't enough to make young people in Shanghai have more children. Statistics from the Shanghai population and family planning commission noted that almost 8% of couples of prime child bearing age are hesitant to have kids, up 3.37% from 2003. Reasons why include the rise of nursing costs and increasing competitive pressure at work. The lack of kids will only speed up the population aging trend, officials said, with estimates that by 2035, 40% of people in Shanghai will be older than 60. more ›

The old ladies and fellas you see dancing in the parks in the morning, China´s "forgotten generation", rarely gets a chance to be the central subject in Chinese movies. Director Ye Kai is now presenting an exception to that rule, by creating a feel-good comedy about a charming group of elderly amateur dancers, caught up in a quest to win a competition that will let them take part in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics. more ›