A Guangdong member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China's political advisory body, has proposed to build a "Goddess of Harmony" (和谐女神像) at an important bridge linking Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau. more ›

Hard to tell from the raucous clamor of Shanghai streets, but apparently the most Chinese character is 和 ("peace") according to a study from China Heritage. Not all that evident as old ladies push and shove their way to the front of any line, but he does appear as the first character in two government slogans: 和谐社会 (hexie shehui) meaning "harmonious society" and 和平崛起 (heping jueqi) or "peaceful rise." Let's not also forget the expo and the splattering of posters around the city with people coming together to hug Haibao as well as the Beijing Olympics banner touting "One World, One Dream." At the same time, also topping the list is tan (贪 ), the character representing greediness...perhaps a little more reflective of actual society than the much more philosophical concept of harmony. more ›

The Net Nanny makes all of our lives a little more annoying, providing hours of infuriating slow and often inaccessible browsing. more ›

Locals in Xi'an are working to preserve the art of ancient Tang Dynasty court music. Dating back to the seventh century, this music is said to be comparable to Europe's Gregorian chants in age, which are "commonly described as the earliest written music". more ›

• Cara Anna of the AP reports police dragged away over 100 parents protesting outside the courthouse in Dujiangyan (都江堰) holding pictures of their children who died in the Sichuan earthquake:

  "Why?" some of them yelled. "Tell us something," they said as black-suited police wearing riot helmets yanked at them. more ›