Zhang Xinyang (张炘炀), a 16-year-old getting his PhD in pure mathematics at Beihang University (北京航空航天大学), earlier this year refused to defend his master's thesis until his parents agreed to buy him his own apartment. Finally out of options, Zhang's parents rented an apartment in Beijing, and lied to their son about buying it. He's found out about the ruse, but his demands for an apartment haven't wavered. more ›

The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Asian University Rankings for 2011 are out, and the top ten positions have all been filled by universities from Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and South Korea. more ›

Last week Peking University sparked heated debate when it announced a new reeducation'consultation' program targeting, among troubled students, those "with radical thoughts." The university of course claims to be operating in the interest of the students, but the policy has resulted in an storm of criticism online and off, many drawing the all-too-obvious comparisons to Orwellian thought police and the Cultural Revolution. Yesterday, China Daily reported that university officials have now "delayed its introduction to allow more time for further discussion." more ›

The argument that more press freedom is the first step towards political reform here in China is not new. But it feels like, with Wen Jiabao's recent remarks on the very subject and new protections for independent press, the doors have opened for academia to discuss their right to... well, discuss. China Media Project has translated a blog post by Peking University Professor of Law He Weifang comparing Shanghai and Guangzhou's media during the World Expo and Asian Games, respectively. Namely how, while Guangzhou's media was a storm of criticism, Shanghai's media 'had been “had.”' The most notable quote, I think, is something I've discussed with various Chinese locals who've insisted that more media freedom would lead to more chaos in China: "The people can voice their resentment through the newspaper pages and on the Internet, and this means they don’t have to take to the streets, and even less likely are they to stage a revolt." more ›

What do people who grew up during the Cultural Revolution feel about youth who've grown up in the "Consumer Revolution"? Alec Ash over at The China Beat interviews two professors at Peking University and finds out the older generation is worried about their younger counterparts' "self-centeredness" and “psychologically vulnerable." So basically, the phrase "kids these days!" can be heard anywhere around the globe. more ›

• Shishou official speaks out about riot [China Elections] "A blog entry posted by an official in Shishou has shed more light on the recent events in Shishou city, Hubei province. The blog is maintained by an official named Liu Guolin and details his perspective on the government's containment efforts in Shishou and lessons that can be learned from the handling of the incident. The blog entry marks a surprising break from usual government silence concerning such incidents and tight control usually asserted over official reports."
• China's smart grid ambitions could open door to US-China cooperation [needigest.com] "China’s largest electric transmission company has announced an ambitious plan to develop a national smart grid by 2020 that would help utilities and their customers transport and use energy more efficiently. The sheer size of the project raises some intriguing questions. First, about whether China has the capital and technology for such an extensive upgrade. And second, whether the project could provide an opening for U.S.-China cooperation on technological improvements that could benefit both."
• China launches first direct flight linking Beijing, Lhasa [People's Daily Online] "Air China, the nation's biggest carrier, said Wednesday it will launch the nation's first direct flight between Beijing and Lhasa, the capital city of southwestern Tibet Autonomous Region, beginning July 10 to promote tourism. The three-hour-fifty-minute flight will be operated by the Airbus A330. Previously, travelers had to transfer through Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province neighboring Tibet. The transfer added two hours to the flight."

• China targets an academic culture of cut-and-paste [csmonitor.com] "Plagiarism and sheer invention have flourished in Chinese academic circles, adds Stephen Stearns, a Yale University professor of ecology and evolutionary biology who taught two classes at Peking University in 2007, because 'at least until recently, the rewards were great and the punishment was trivial. It paid off.'"
• China clears Johnson & Johnson products after probe [The Times of India] "China’s State Food and Drug Administration has cleared baby products manufactured by Johnson & Johnson after a high-profile and widely publicized investigation to determine if they contained potential carcinogens. The Administration launched its probe on the basis of allegations leveled by an US based activist group."
• Beijing Redeploys Its Carmakers For Global Race [Forbes] "Dongfeng Automobile Co., Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. and Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. have been directed by Beijing to start acquiring smaller rivals in a race to transform themselves into the “Big Two” or “Big Three” in China’s auto industry."

People Daily has this short two-paragraph news item on the latest developments in starting pay for fresh graduates:

The Education and Economic Research Institute of Peking University and the Institute for Higher Education recently issued the "2007 employment situation for college graduates" survey results. The investigation revealed that the employment rate of graduates in 2007 reached 70%; the average starting salary for graduates was 1,798 yuan; and half of graduates received less than 1,500 yuan. The employment rate of college graduates is worse than that of junior college students. more ›

So in the meanwhile, Youtube remains blocked. Shanghai blogger John Pasden of Sinosplice informs us that Youtube wasn't the only unlucky fella. Revver.com and Dailymotion.com also appear to be hit. And of course Google Video was never accessible in China to begin with, so that's a no-count. more ›

Shanghai Jiaotong University (SJTU) has released its fifth annual Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) which saw American universities take eight of the top ten spots. Harvard University emerged right on top, followed by Stanford University and University of California-Berkeley. Britain's Oxford and Cambridge -- the only two non-American universities to make it to the top ten -- secured the fourth and tenth positions respectively. The top university in Asia was the University of Tokyo, edging in at the twentieth spot. more ›

It's not the New York Times and it is certainly a bit slanted towards Beijing by the nature of its source, but the list of top ten books noted by users of book club site Douban.com is a whimsical glimpse into what young, plugged-in Chinese are reading offline these days. Here is the list as it stands today: more ›

Peking University, known colloquially as Bei Da, is generally considered China's most prestigious and elite university. Less well-known is how much assistant professors get paid there. If you've been following some of the debates surrounding higher education in China you might have heard complaints that all professors care about these days is money. They are perfunctory about their teaching duties and spend most of their time doing things -- be it teaching at private institutions or lucrative research -- that make them money. more ›

Just when you thought you were all grown up and could do things on your own, your parents find a new way to interfere -- at least that might be the case for hundreds of young adults in Shanghai, whose parents are worried that they are too old to be single. Taking matchmaking to the next level was a “parent’s chat meeting,” which, according to the current print edition of the Shanghai Star, started in July to let parents try to hook up their kids -- according to some criteria of course. Can you believe that the waiting list for these monthy meetings extends until next January? more ›