J&J to pay 2.2 bln dollars to settle U.S. drug probes

Global health care giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and its subsidiaries have agreed to pay more than 2.2 billion U.S. dollars to resolve criminal and civil investigations for misbranding antipsychotic drugs and paying kickbacks to pharmacists, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said Monday.

The resolution, one of the largest health care fraud settlements in U.S. history, included criminal fines and forfeiture totaling 485 million dollars and civil settlements with U.S. federal and state authorities totaling 1.72 billion dollars, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement.

The settlement demonstrated the DOJ's firm commitment to preventing and combating all forms of health care fraud, Holder added.

The department charged that Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of J&J, promoted antipsychotic drug Risperdal for uses not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including controlling anxiety and agitation for elderly dementia patients, from 1999 through 2005.

The company also provided incentives for off-label promotion and based sales representatives' bonuses on total sales of Risperdal in their sales areas, not just sales for FDA-approved uses, the DOJ said.

"J&J's promotion of Risperdal for unapproved uses threatened the most vulnerable populations of our society -- children, the elderly and those with developmental disabilities," said Zane Memeger, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania .

The FDA said in a statement that it had delivered repeated warnings to Janssen Pharmaceuticals about its "misleading marketing messages" targeted to physicians and later initiated a criminal investigation.

"We stand ready to take similar action in the future, if warranted, to protect public health," said John Roth, director of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations.

The Justice Department also alleged that J&J paid millions of dollars in kickbacks to Omnicare, the nation's largest pharmacy specializing in dispensing drugs to nursing home patients, under various guises including "grants" and "educational funding."

These kickbacks were intended to induce Omnicare and its hundreds of consultant pharmacists to promote the use of Risperdal and other J&J drugs in nursing homes, the department said.

"Today we reached closure on complex legal matters spanning almost a decade," J&J vice president and general counsel Michael Ullmann said in a statement. "We remain committed to working with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and others to ensure greater clarity around the guidance for pharmaceutical industry practices and standards."

As part of the deal, the global health care giant, based in New Jersey, has signed a five-year corporate integrity agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to scrutinise future practices.

Source: Xinhua

Up, and away with HGST's 6 TB helium-filled HDD

Last year, Western Digital subsidiary HGST announced the development of ahelium-field hard-drive  that would offer increased storage capacity and a reduction in power consumption compared to its air-filled cousins. The company has now delivered on its promise of a 2013 release by beginning shipments of what the company is trumpeting as the world's highest capacity HDD, the 6 TB Ultrastar He6.

The Ultrastar He6 is the first HDD to feature HGST's HelioSeal platform, which hermetically seals helium inside the drive enclosure. Because helium is one-seventh the density of air, there is less turbulence and drag placed on the spinning disk stack and head arms. This allows the drive to use less power while allowing seven disks to be contained within a standard 3.5-inch enclosure instead of the usual five. HGST refers to this as its 7Stac disk design.

Targeted at data centers, cloud storage, disk-to-disk backup and replicated or RAID applications, the enterprise drives are currently only being offered to "cloud and research leaders" who will work with HGST to validate the total cost of ownership (TCO) for such users. Companies on board include HP, Netflix, Huawei, CERN and social and search companies.

The company claims the helium-based technology will help improve the rate of HDD area density growth, which has slowed in recent years, and will also serve as the main platform for new HDD technologies.

HGST says the 6 TB Ultrastar He6 draws 5.3 W at idle, which is 23 percent lower than traditional HDDs, weighs 640 g (22.5 oz), which is 50 g (1.7 oz) lighter than a standard five-disk 3.5-inch HDD, and runs 4-5° C (39-41° F) cooler than current drives. It is available with SAS 6 Gb/s and SATA 6 Gb/s interface versions.

Rocket to carry Chang'e 3 arrives at launch center

China is getting one step closer to landing its first probe on the moon. A Long March-3B carrier rocket has reached the launch center of the Chang’e 3 moon probe in Xichang launch center in southwest China’s Sichuan Province.

Assembly and testing will now be carried out. The Long March-3B, with its four booster rockets, is China’s most powerful carrier rocket. More than 50 meters long, the rocket can send a 5.5-ton satellite into orbit more than 1,000 kilometers from earth. A modified guiding system is equipped, in order to directly send the Chang’e 3 moon probe into a more exact orbit and save fuel in future missions.

Wu Weiren, Chief designer of the second phase of China’s lunar probe project says that observing the carrier rocket’s running state in the entire launch process is also one of the designers’ priorities.

Wu Weiren, Chief Designer of China's Lunar Probe 2nd Phase, said, "Chang’e 3 will perform a soft landing on the lunar surface, and carry a special moon rover for detailed exploration and collection of lunar soil and stone samples. The landing process is the most crucial and challenging in the entire launch phase of the carrier rocket. The mission will showcase updated, state-of-the-art technologies and capabilities."

Source:CCTV

Beijing land auction for low-priced homes

In a bid to rein in property prices, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Land and Resources auctioned off six pieces of land today used to develop low-price commercial homes. These units are on average 30-percent cheaper versus their peers.

Monday’s land auction in Beijing was jammed packed with eager real estate developers and the media. Non-essential staff could only observe the process live from a screen.

The six pieces of land will provide building space for about 11,000 two-bedroom apartments. The highest price they are allowed to sell for is 22,000 yuan per square meter, or around 360 dollars per square foot.

Beijing’s municipal government plans to supply more low priced homes come at a time when the city’s housing prices have surged 20 percent from the same time last year. October figures from China’s National Bureau of Statistics show home prices in 69 out of the 70 surveyed major Chinese cities are still going up.

The government expects this new type of low-priced commercial homes to provide choices for those who either can’t afford to buy a regular commercial home or do not meet the welfare criteria to apply for affordable housing. But, Beijing residents are divided.

The Beijing government has announced it will supply 20,000 out of the 70,000 low-priced commercial homes by the end of this year. And there are still 11 pieces of land waiting to be bid on, and most of these auctions will take place in November.

Source: CCTV

Beijing : What is low price in China's Real State Speak?

What exactly are "low-priced" commercial homes versus "affordable homes" in China’s real estate speak? Let’s walk you through some details.

In terms of size, most of these homes are under 90 square meters, which are about 970 square feet.And only eligible Beijing home buyers can purchase these homes, which means they hold a Beijing residency permit, or "hukou," and do not own more than two homes.

Those who do not hold a Beijing residency permit but have lived and contributed social security taxes to the city for five consecutive years are also eligible.

However, every household is only allowed to buy one of these homes, and they will not be eligible to buy it again once they’ve sold it. Also, home buyers will not be able to sell or lease their low-priced commercial homes within the first five years of purchase. And if they do sell it after fives years, they would have to give 30 percent of their proceeds to the government.

Source: CCTV

China's Hao Ping elected president of UNESCO's 37th General Conference

Hao was officially endorsed for the appointment at the opening of the session in Paris. He is the first representative of China to be elected to chair UNESCO’s supreme governing body. He succeeds Katalin Bogyay, Hungary’s ambassador to UNESCO, who had presided since October 2011.

UNESCO was established in 1946 with the aim to contribute to peace and security by promoting international collaboration through education, science and culture. Speaking at the opening, Hao stressed the enduring importance of UNESCO’s mission.

"Today, standing on this important stage, I feel deeply honored with such great responsibility. Representatives of each member region unanimously elected me as the President of the 37th Session of the General Conference. It’s not only putting great trust in me, but also my country. I will keep in mind the objectives of UNESCO and do my utmost to carry out my role as the President of the General Conference, to live up to its expectations and fulfil my commitment." Hao said.

Source: CNTV

Hudway app turns your phone into a head-up display

It was just this July that we heard about Garmin's HUD. It's a portable device that sits on the dashboard of the user's car, working with their smartphone to project a head-up display (HUD) onto the inside of their windshield. Russian startup Hudway has taken that same basic approach with its self-named free app, except that it utilizes just the phone – no projector is required.

The Hudway app is currently only available for iOS devices, although an Android version is expected to be ready in February.

To use it, you start by inputting your starting point and destination, and then creating a mapped route between the two. This is the only step in the process in which internet access is required.

You then place the iPhone, iPad or iPod touch on your dash, preferably on an anti-slip surface such as a silicone pad. Using the device's GPS and accelerometer, the app keeps track of data such as driving speed, geographic location, upcoming curves and hills in the road, and distance to required turns.

Everything is displayed on-screen upside-down and backwards, so that it appears right-side-up and forwards when reflected onto the windshield. It works in the same way as a TelePrompTer.

Source: Gizmag

Chinese writers seek global success

Fifteen famous Chinese authors are participating in this year's Istanbul International Book Fair, attending 19 workshops with Turkish authors and readers.

A lack of quality translations is holding back Chinese literature from heading overseas, according to several publishing houses at the Istanbul International Book Fair.

Chinese authors participating in exchange activities say that for them, understanding lifestyles and thinking pattern differences is also a hurdle to global success.

"If Chinese literature is to go global, people need to know more about life in China, then, people can get closer to Chinese literature and have an idea of how Chinese people think," said author Liu Zhenyun.

Chinese author Mo Yan winning the 2012 Nobel Literature Prize has inspired Chinese writers and publishing houses to bring their work to overseas readers.

"The main task for Chinese writers is to write their next work well. It doesn’t matter for authors to go global or not. Putting your heart and mind into your work is the most important thing," Liu said.

This year, the Chinese contingent at the book fair is strong, with novelists, children’s writers, poets and ethnic minority writers all represented.

As Liu Zhenyun sees it, the exchange of activities and ideas will help Chinese literature practitioners broaden their views and deepen their understanding of lives at home and abroad.

Source:  CCTV

Toyota color-changing car to debut at Tokyo Motor Show

A chameleon-like vehicle that changes color according to the driver's mood, suggests destinations based on facial expressions, and warns of cars in blind spots forms part of Toyota Motor Corp.'s vision for the future.

The color-changing car is among the concept models that Toyota plans to display at the biennial Tokyo Motor Show this month. Still a work-in-progress, the vehicle codenamed Toyota FV2 presents applications that engineers envision may come out of the automaker's research into humanoid robots and their use of facial and voice recognition.Toyota joins automakers including General Motors Co. in introducing computer-assisted technology that helps reduce accidents and human error on the road, and may eventually allow cars to drive themselves. Mountain View, Calif.-based Google Inc., operator of the largest Web search engine, has been testing driverless cars in the U.S.
Toyota will also display a concept version of a hydrogen-powered car at the Tokyo show as part of plans to introduce a fuel-cell vehicle around 2015.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Japan: Cabinet approves bill for deregulation zones

Japan's government has come up with a bill to establish economic deregulation zones across the country. The aim is to attract investment from inside and outside Japan.

The Cabinet approved the bill on Tuesday.The bill calls for setting up an advisory panel in the Cabinet office with the prime minister as its chief to determine which regions will become special zones.
The selected zones will each have a panel to draw up specific business plans. The panel is to be comprised of a government minister, the head of the local municipality and representatives of private sector businesses.
Regulations that are to be eased are specified in each zone.
One is to increase the number of beds in hospitals that provide advanced medical services in a zone so that it will become a hub for global medical services.
Another proposal is to allow more floor space in high-rise condominiums in urban areas.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Bank Of Japan Money Supply hits new high

The Bank of Japan's bold credit easing policy has sent its monetary base to a record high for an 8th consecutive month.

The central bank says the amount of money it supplies to markets totaled more than 1.9 trillion dollars at the end of October. That's up 2.3 percent from September in yen terms.The monetary base has grown 30 percent since the end of last March, just before the BOJ began introducing massive easing measures.
The bank is trying to double the base in 2 years and pull the country out of a long period of deflation.

NewsOnJapan

Why It's Too Early To Buy Barrick Gold And Other Mining Stocks

Barrick Gold is planning to use some of the newly raised cash to pay down a substantial debt load of about US$ 15 billion, but even after this move, the debt load will still remain high, which is an additional risk factor for shareholders to consider. The secondary offering consisted of about 163.5 million new shares, which were priced at $18.35. With around a billion shares outstanding before the offering, this secondary offering dilutes existing shareholders by about 16%.
If over-allotment option is exercised in full, Barrick would receive net proceeds of approximately $3.3B. The company intends to use $2.6B of the net proceeds to redeem or repurchase outstanding debt…
We believe shares may be range-bound near term as market digests the $3B stock issuance, new operating cost reduction program, pace of asset sales and board changes.
The plight of Barrick Gold is similar to many other gold mining stocks. Profits in this industry are declining along with the price of gold, and this has caused increased concerns over debt servicing and even dividend cuts. Furthermore, this stock is trading for about half of the 52-week high of $36.91, and that means many investors have significant losses. At this time of year, stocks that have performed poorly are likely to see substantial tax-loss selling pressure as investors want to harvest losses to offset gains in other assets. This is why many gold stocks like Barrick are likely to remain under pressure for the next few weeks.It could rebound a bit into January as this tax-loss selling pressure ends.
Investors who want more diversification while still having the potential of playing a rebound into January as tax-loss selling ends could consider the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF GDX which, has also fallen sharply in 2013.

Source: Hawkinvest, SeekingAlpha

Nissan, Mitsubishi to cooperate on car development

Two major Japanese auto makers, Nissan Motor and Mitsubishi Motors, say they will consider working together to jointly develop and produce electric vehicles.

The 2 automakers announced the plan on Tuesday.They say they will use their joint venture established in 2011 to jointly develop mini-vehicles for the plan. They also say the project will be joined by French automaker Renault, which has capital ties with Nissan.
Nissan and Mitsubishi began producing and selling electric vehicles ahead of the other Japanese makers.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Japan, South Korea concerned that China's smog will affect them

South Korea and Japan have sounded the alarm about potentially hazardous air pollution from northern China, which is expected to worsen this winter.

In South Korea, local media have called recent smog an "air raid", while in Japan, residents of Chiba prefecture have been told to stay inside as toxic fine-particle pollution blanketed parts of the region to the east of Tokyo.

The concern now is that the autumn westerly winds will once again bring elevated levels of particulate matter and pollution to Japanese and South Korean cities. And that will get worse when Chinese power plants start burning massive amounts of coal for heating during the winter months.

In recent weeks, parts of northern China, particularly Harbin , have all but ground to a halt because of smog containing contaminant levels up to 50 times that deemed safe by the World Health Organisation.

Japanese media have also reported that Japanese working in major cities in China are so concerned about the impact of air pollution that they are sending their families back to Japan.

The Japanese embassy in Beijing held a meeting for Japanese residents on October 28, with a doctor telling those present, "The options are to go on vacation, change your residence or find a new job somewhere free from the pollution," the Mainichi newspaper reported.

The alert in Japan was the first since the national government in March ordered local authorities to issue warnings to residents about dangerous levels of pollution.

On Monday the average hourly density of PM2.5 before 7am stood at 127 micrograms per cubic metre in the city of Ichihara, beyond the official daily limit of 70mcg. PM2.5 particles are 2.5 microns or less in diameter and lodge deep in the lungs.

The new levels were introduced after smog enveloped Fukuoka, Nagasaki and of other cities in western Japan in spring.

Source: NewsOnJapan

FAA testing confirms Citation X as world's fastest civilian aircraft

In the wake of the Gulfstream G650 claiming a new around-the-world speed record for a certified civilian aircraft, Cessna is signaling that the record will be short lived. On its way to certification, Cessna's Citation recently wound up all high-speed certification flights with the FAA, which confirmed the aircraft as the fastest civilian aircraft in the world.

The Citation X has flown over 1,300 hours as part of its test program that included the high-speed testing regimen conducted in recent weeks involving a collaboration between FAA pilots and Cessna's Engineering Flight Team. This focused on the aircraft's handling qualities, stability and control and maneuverability conditions at high speeds.

"The high-speed testing of the new Citation X was a success," says Michael Thacker, Cessna senior vice president of Engineering. "All responses from the high-speed certification testing were well within the expected performance envelope. While these are the results our engineers fully anticipated, this final round of testing went so smoothly the conditions were completed in fewer flights and hours than planned."

The testing validated the aircraft's maximum operating speed of Mach 0.935, which shades the Gulfstream G650's Mach 0.925 top speed. However, the G650 does boast a significantly greater range of 7,000 nautical miles to the Citation X's 3,242 nm.

Expect Cessna to be looking to steal a few world records from the G650 when its Citation X receives FAA certification, which is expected in early 2014.

Source: Zigmag

Xi Jinping urges deepening reform, innovation-driven development

Chinese President Xi Jinping, in an inspection tour to central China, has called for deepening of the reform and opening-up drive and implementation of innovation-driven development strategy, so as to achieve the economic and social development targets this year.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, took the inspection tour to central China's Hunan Province from Nov. 3 to Nov. 5.

During the tour, Xi stressed confidence and hardworking, and urged governments at all levels to stick to the policy tone of seeking steady progress and to continue their efforts to stabilize growth, adjust structure, promote reform and improve people's livelihood.

Xi also demanded governments at all levels to speed up transformation of China's economic growth pattern and the implementation of innovation-driven development strategy, maintain current economic growth momentum and strive to achieve this year's economic and social development targets.

On Sunday, Xi visited Fenghuang County, Jishou City and Huayuan County in Tujia-Miao Autonomous Prefecture in western Hunan, a traditionally poor region.

In Fenghuang, Xi visited farmland of grapefruits and oranges, and learnt about efforts taken to shake off poverty through industry development. In Jishou, he inspected the Aizhai suspension bridge, the world's highest of its kind. In Huayuan, he visited a farmer's family.

He said difficulties were found in rural areas, especially poverty-stricken rural areas. Governments at all levels should pay more attention on poverty reduction.

Xi said it was important for poverty-hit areas to improve their transportation conditions and infrastructures in order to shake off poverty and set out on a road to prosperity. Governments at all levels should increase support in this regard.

Xi said he felt a strong responsibility for the fact that some people in western Hunan were still living a hard life. Development is the general method to eliminate poverty, and governments in poverty-hit regions should suit their measures to different conditions and help locals find out ways to shake off poverty, he said.

He also demanded local authorities to properly manage rural compulsory education, enabling the next generation to master more knowledge and skills.

On Monday, the president visited Lens Technology and Wasion Group, both based in Hunan's capital city Changsha.

Xi pointed out that transformation of the economic growth pattern should focus on improving the structure of industries and resolving the problem of overcapacity. He urged Chinese enterprises to seize the opportunities arising from the science and technology revolution.

Xi also visited Central South University, a technology research center and a state laboratory. He said the fundamental approach to breaking up the bottleneck restriction on China's economic development was through innovation and technology.

Xi also gave directions to the leadership of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee and the Hunan provincial government after listening to their work report.

According to Xi, transformation of the economic growth pattern and structural adjustment are hurdles which China has to overcome in its development. China needs to keep the economy growing within a reasonable pace, so as not to put strain on resources, capital and the market, he said.

"Governments at all levels should pursue solid and real GDP, and strive for efficient, quality and sustainable economic development," he added.

Source: Xinhua

Big Oil's Tricky Mix of Shale and Scale

  According to a report published today at the Wall Street Journal,the problem for Big Oil is that one of the world's biggest opportunities, shale, doesn't necessarily reward bigness.
Until recently, majors went anywhere but the onshore U.S., thinking it was tapped out. Instead, they hunted "elephant" fields with huge reserves in deep-water locations or far-flung countries.
Huge balance sheets and solid credit ratings allowed them to finance megaprojects.

One advantage: This model scales easily. A technical team, backed by centralized functions and a common approach, can handle a $1 billion project or a $5 billion one.

Not so with shale. Onshore wells cost a fraction of a deepwater hole in the Gulf of Mexico. So a big balance sheet isn't a prerequisite to play.

What's more, shale development requires intensive drilling of many wells rather than the handful common to a conventional project. That makes scale efficiencies harder. Mr. Brackett says a $1 billion, $2 billion or $3 billion shale project "is the difference between a 10-, 20- or 30-rig operation."

In a presentation last year, consultant PFC Energy, acquired recently by IHS, highlighted the differences. An average well drilled in Angola produces almost 14,000 barrels a day in its first year of production and that output declines by about a fifth in the first four years of operation.

In contrast, a well drilled in the Eagle Ford shale, where Shell is selling assets now, might produce just a few hundred barrels a day in its first year, dropping by more than a third in the first four years.

Another way of considering efficiency is output per employee.  Shell, for example, produced just under 46,000 barrels of oil equivalent, or BOE, per employee in its upstream division in 2012. For U.S. exploration-and-production companies, though, performance varies widely, based on data from IHS. At the top end of the range, EOG Resources wrings almost 65,000 BOE from each employee; Chesapeake Energy gets less than 20,000.

Another factor is the drive for efficiency by competing E&P companies in the shale. Drilling wells faster, experimenting with the number of fractures, or "fracks," per well, and other operational tweaks are tried at field level, a micro approach that isn't easy in a big, centralized organization.

That is why Exxon Mobil has left XTO Energy, the shale-gas company it bought in 2010, as a stand-alone division rather than absorb it.

US$ 20k Mosquito Ultralight Helicopter

September 21, 2005 Flying is not a sport generally associated with those people who are light of wallet – which makes the Mosquito Ultralight helicopter something of a rarity. The entire kit for the Mosquito can be purchased for US$20,000 and if you think the minimalist Mosquito leaves you a bit vulnerable, there’s the fully enclosed Mosquito XE and XEL which can be purchased for US$23,000 apeice. Building the kits will cost you about 200 to 300 hours to build or you can have the plane built for you for a flat US$4000.

The Mosquito’s designer John Uptigrove is a mech engineer by trade and like a lot of people alwaysdreamed of being able to fly. “By creating an ultralight helicopter it offers that ability without all the cost and hassle of dealing with air regs,” says Uptigrove. To date, Uptigrove’s Innovator Technologies has sold 37 mosquito kits (two in Japan, two in Canada, one in Spain, one in France, one in Belgium and the remainder in the US) and a dozen have been built to airworthiness by their purchasers at the time of going to press. The open frame Mosquito first became available in 2002 and the XE model was brought on in 2004.

All of the mosquitoes sold so far have been built in kit form, though the company has just begun offering a factory build program and the first factory-finished Mosquito is being finished as you read this.

The birds are typically used for “recreational flight for the most part,” says Uptigrove.

“Some plan to use them for flying into their favorite fishing hole. As a work machine they are ideal for ranch herding, flying fence lines or flying out to your farm machinery. I think every farmer and rancher should have one,” he jokes.

The Ultralight legal Mosquito and Mosquito XEL are only permitted to carry five gallons of fuel and hence have a range of just 60 miles. The XE can carry 12 gallons of fuel and so has a range of 150 miles.

Canadian-based Uptigrove originally charged less for his offspring, but as he explains, “I sell in US dollars as that is the primary market, but I live in Canada and the Canadian dollar keeps going up which is cutting into my profit in a bad way, so I have to keep raising my price to match.” You can actually start building your Mosquito for a lot less as the kit is sold in bite size chunks and the first kit group, the frame kit, sells for only US$2,995.00.

Uptigrove believes safety is paramount in aviation and puts his money where his mouth is. Provide proof that you have had helicopter training from a certified instructor to at least the "solo" signoff, or a minimum of 10 hours dual instruction by the time of your purchase of the last group (Rotor System and Blades) and Innovator will discount the final price by US$2,000 to help pay for your training.

Source: Zigmag

China's organ transplants: A shift to voluntary organ donation system

So far, the majority of transplanted organs in China have come from executed prisoners. In recent years, in an attempt to move away from the practice, the Chinese government has been pushing for more voluntary donations.

At the end of 2012, about 64 percent of transplanted organs in China came from executed prisoners. That number has dipped to under 54 percent by August this year.

In March 2010, China introduced its first voluntary post-mortem organ donation system at some pilot hospitals in a joint collaboration between the Red Cross and the Ministry of Health. Persuading people to donate their organs is a very new concept in China.

And so far, it has been slow going. More than 1,000 organ donors have come through the new system, benefiting at least 3,000 patients.Voluntary organ donation currently stands at an average of 130 per month, up from only 63 cases in all of 2010.

However, supply still falls far behind demand; partly because of a traditional Chinese belief that a person should be buried or cremated in one piece. An estimated 300,000 patients are wait-listed every year for organ transplants and only about one in 30 will finally receive an organ.

Source: CCTV

China Sets Goal to Reduce PM Density by 2017

Joining us now is reporter Tang Bo to tell us more about the measures the Chinese government has taken to cope with the air pollution.

Tang: Poor air quality in Beijing and the “Beijing cough” has repeatedly embarrassed the country in the international arena. In the latest example, American Grammy winner Patti Austin was forced to cancel her performance in the city on October the 18th after she suffered from asthma and a respiratory infection. Environmental problems in China have triggered serious policy changes. A 1.75 trillion-yuan (284.2 billion US dollars) plan was sanctioned by the Chinese government in September to tackle the air quality problem. It is aimed at improving air quality within five years, decrease the number of days of heavy pollution and improve air quality in major cities. The government wants to cut the density of inhalable particulate matter by at least 10 percent in major cities nationwide and reduce PM 2.5 by about 25 percent from the 2012 level in Beijing and its surrounding areas by 2017. To better monitor air quality, environmental authorities have set up 668 monitoring spots in 114 cities and release the data daily through media and on the Internet. They also plan to pilot an air quality warning system this month.

Zack: China has introduced many measures to cope with the air pollution, and climate change. What are the major challenges the world is facing in terms of cooperation?

Tang: There have been wide-ranging discussions over the world’s two biggest greenhouse gas emitters: China and the United States. The debate is over whether countries need a new impetus to push towards a global deal to curb climate change at the upcoming UN climate change conference in Warsaw. Analysts say as negotiators start hammering out a new 2015 deal to tackle climate change, China is going to set the level of ambition of the agreement. But there are problems, from a lingering economic slowdown across many parts of the world to failure to build a widespread sense of urgency to act on climate change. This means negotiators may struggle to find backing for an agreement that is both ambitious and quick enough to halt the worst impacts of global warming. People have been complaining that the Climate change conversation so far has not been about urgency. Like Qatar last year, Poland’s leadership of the upcoming talks in Warsaw has raised many questions about whether it can drive them forward at the speed required.

Source: CCTV

China calls for global internet rules

Stanford University in the US is hosting a major global conference on Cyber-security. Delegates from 40 countries are set to discuss the possibility of an independent body being set up to monitor hacking.

Cai Mingzhao, director of China’s state council information office, told the conference that countries must work together to better cooperate against threats. He called for new international rules governing the internet.

Source:CNTV

Italian enthusiasts create virtual walking tours

The most beautiful locations on earth are often hidden deep in the wild. A group of Italian outdoor enthusiasts have created a web service that provides panoramic views of some of the world’s most hidden and remote locations. They say their creation "Trail Me Up" reaches places that Google’s Street View can’t access.

Visiting a tribal village in Ethiopia, climbing mountains and hiking through national parks have all become accessible through your computer. "Trail Me Up", an online augmented reality system, works like Google’s Street View, but offers something different.

"Trail Me Up" is a service that allows you to take virtual guided tours of places that can be reached only by foot, said founder Fabio Zaffagnini.

"It’s a kind of Street View that gives people the possibility to join virtual tours of trails, forests and national parks. Along with that, there is also a part that explains what you see in the panoramas. What comes out is a sort of interactive documentary," Zaffagnini said.

The secret lies in this backpack which is equipped with five synchronised cameras connected to one shutter release button. The person wearing it releases the shutter every 20 to 30 metres, thus taking a 360 degree image of the surrounding area. Users can move through the trails and get detailed views of every angle just by clicking on the arrows on the website.

"Trail Me Up" is also working with the Italian Alpine Club to involve its members in mapping the Italian mountains. It won’t be long before you can explore many of the wonders of nature just from you laptop.

Source: CCTV

China's 1st livestock futures to be traded in market

China’s first livestock futures product will be traded in the stock market this Friday. The Dalian Commodity Exchange released details of its egg futures on Monday. The initial deposit is set at 8 percent of the contracts value, and the limit move is set at 4 percent of the settlement price on the previous trading day.

Statistics show China’s output of egg exceeded 24 million tons in 2012, which accounts for more than a third of world’s total output.

Source: CNTV

U.S. Oil Futures Extend Losses, Follow Equity Market Lower After ISM Data

  According to an aticle published today on the Wall Street Journal,U.S. oil futures extended their losses Tuesday, dropping to fresh four-month lows as traders worried that a better-than-expected reading on the U.S. services industry would lead to a faster wind down of the Federal Reserve's economic stimulus program.

Light, sweet crude for December delivery fell as much as $1.17, or 1.2%, to $93.45 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, dropping to the lowest price since June 24. Nymex crude was recently off $1.13, or 1.2%, at $93.50.

Brent crude on ICE Futures Europe also declined 59 cents, or 0.6%, to $105.65 a barrel. The European benchmark, considered to be a gauge of world oil prices, was supported by reports of violence in Libya, which has struggled to get its crude production back up to prior levels amid labor unrest.

U.S. oil prices, already trading lower Tuesday on fears over high supplies and weak demand, followed the equity market even lower after the Institute for Supply Management's nonmanufacturing purchasing managers index for October rose to 55.4 from 54.4 in September. Forecasters had expected a slight decline.

Market participants believe the data could give the Fed a reason to accelerate the timetable for tapering its $85 billion-a-month bond buying program. The measure has weakened the dollar, making oil cheaper to buy using other currencies.

U.S. oil supplies have risen by 28.2 million barrels, or roughly 8%, in the past six weeks as refiners are processing less crude amid seasonal maintenance work and unplanned outages. Total oil stockpiles of 383.9 million barrels are at the highest level since late June and the highest amount since the Energy Information Administration began tracking the data in 1982.

Meanwhile, Brent crude declined less than the U.S. contract after militia engaged in heavy fighting in the Libyan capital of Tripoli on Tuesday. The violence, which included heavy gunfire and explosions lasting several hours, wounded at least one person, according to a Reuters report.

Libya, which pumped 1.4 million barrels of crude per day earlier this year, has been hurt by strikes at its oil export terminals, which nearly crippled its oil output in recent months. The disruptions have cut supplies to Europe and helped support Brent prices.

According to the AFP, Libyan production now stands at 250,000 barrels a day, a figure roughly 100,000 barrels below the level the country was expected to reach last week.

GPS-enabled Phanton Quadracopter

DJI Innovations unveiled its GPS-enabled Phanton Quadcopter less than a year ago, and since then it has become perhaps the go-to aerial platform for the GoPro HERO actioncam. In April, the company provided us with a sneak peek at the next model in the line, the Phantom 2 Vision. While there weren't many details available at the time, that's changed as of today, with the Vision's official commercial release. Among its new features are improved battery life, a video-stabilizing platform and most significant of all, an included HD video camera that allows for first-person-view via a mobile device.

The DJI-specific camera is slung underneath the aircraft, in the same place that the user-supplied GoPro would ordinarily sit. It's mounted in such a way that the only thing directly linking it to the quadcopter are four soft rubber plugs, as is the case with the third-party anti-vibration mounts currently available for the regular Phantom. This is definitely a welcome addition, as the so-called "Jell-O effect" (distorted video caused by motor/propeller vibrations) has been a problem with that model.

The 14-megapixel camera has a field of view of up to 140 degrees (depending on shooting mode), and records at a maximum resolution of 1080p/30fps, onto an included 4GB microSD card.

Using a custom app on a compatible iOS or Android device, users can not only view real-time output from that camera, but they can also tilt it up and down, start and stop recording, or capture stills. That app also lets them view flight parameters such as altitude, speed and remaining battery life, plus it makes it possible to instantly share images online.

As with the previous Phantom, the quadcopter itself is controlled using physical toggles on a dedicated control unit. A built-in brace holds a smartphone or iPod touch in place right above that unit, so users don't have to juggle both devices at once. An included Wi-Fi range extender, also attached to the controller, lets the Vision travel up to 300 meters (984 ft) away from its user without losing video contact.

The Vision's 5,200-mAh, 11.1-volt lithium-polymer battery reportedly allows for approximately 25 minutes of flight time per charge.

The Phantom 2 Vision quadcopter can be purchased starting November 1st, at an official list price of US$1,199.

Source: Gizmag

EU to fine Deutsche, JPMorgan and others in rate probe

EU antitrust regulators are set to fine six global banks including Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and HSBC after an investigation into the rigging of benchmark euro zone interest rates, a person familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

The penalties, which will also target Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Credit Agricole and Societe Generale, represent the first punishments from Brussels as a result of its inquiry and are the latest costly payouts for an industry struggling to draw a line under past misdeeds.

The move comes two years after the European Commission, the EU's antitrust authority, raided a number of banks for suspected fixing of Euribor, a benchmark used as the basis for pricing 250 trillion euros ($338 trillion) of financial contracts, ranging from Spanish mortgages to complex derivatives.

Barclays, which alerted the European Commission to the suspected wrongdoing, will not be fined, the source said.

The penalties relate only to manipulation of Euribor. Banks suspected of rigging the London interbank offered rate, or Libor, could be fined next month when the Euribor penalties are announced, the source said.

Some of the banks have agreed a settlement with the Commission that would bring a 10 percent reduction in their fines, the source added.

Such settlements, which can prevent cases from dragging on for several years, typically involve companies admitting to wrongdoing.

Several of the banks will not be fined immediately because they are contesting the size of the proposed penalties. HSBC, Europe's largest bank, is one of those, two sources said. In these cases, the banks are likely to face formal charges next month, followed by fines next year, one of the people said.

Source: Reuters

Lockheed Martin developing successor to the SR-71 Blackbird

When the last SR-71 Blackbird was grounded in 1998 it was a double blow. Not only did aviation lose one of the most advanced aircraft ever built, but also one of the most beautiful. Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works has now revealed that it is building a successor to the Blackbird: the SR-72. Using a new hypersonic engine design that combines turbines and ramjets, the company says that the unmanned SR-72 will be twice as fast as its predecessor with a cruising speed of Mach 6.
The SR-71 Blackbird is one of history’s great aircraft. It was built during the Cold War in the early 1960s by Lockheed at its secret Skunk Works facility and flew from 1966 to 1998. With black paint covering its unprecedented titanium fuselage, it was designed as a reconnaissance platform capable of flying 2,900 nautical miles (5,400 km) at sustained supersonic speeds at an altitude of 80,000 ft (24,000 m).
The Blackbird could fly so fast and so high that it could literally outrun enemy missiles, and routinely did. Needless to say, it left interceptors far behind and of the 32 that were built, not one was lost to enemy action. It even grew stronger over the years because the heat generated in flight was so great that the titanium hull annealed.
The SR-71 was also famous for holding a raft of records. It was the world's fastest and highest-flying operational manned aircraft, reaching 85,069 feet (25,929 m) in sustained flight, and it still holds the speed record. On September 1, 1976, a US Air Force SR-71 Blackbird flew from New York to London in 1 hour 54 minutes and 56.4 seconds at a peak velocity of about Mach 3.2 (2,436 mph, 3920 km/h). To this day, no aircraft exists that can match its performance.
The idea of a hypersonic replacement has been kicked around for years, and now Lockheed is working on the SR-72. Unlike its predecessor, the SR-72 will be unmanned, but it will be twice as fast with a cruising speed of Mach 6 (4,567 mph, 7,350 km/h).

The SR-72’s purpose is to provide the United States with not only a hypersonic recon platform, but also a strike aircraft as well. "Hypersonic aircraft, coupled with hypersonic missiles, could penetrate denied airspace and strike at nearly any location across a continent in less than an hour," says Brad Leland, Lockheed Martin program manager, Hypersonics. "Speed is the next aviation advancement to counter emerging threats in the next several decades. The technology would be a game-changer in theater, similar to how stealth is changing the battle space today."

According to Leland, a Mach 6 platform would not only leave very little time for an enemy to respond, but it also be a very effective way to launch hypersonic missiles. Since these wouldn't need a booster rocket when launched at six times the speed of sound, they can be of much lighter and simpler construction.

The key to the SR-72 is what Lockheed calls Turbine-Based Combined Cycle Propulsion, which incorporates Lockheed’s experience in building the HTV-2 hypersonic demonstrator that flew at Mach 20 (15,224 mph, 24,501 km/h) in tests. In this new system, the twin engines of the SR-72 are actually two engines in one. Each engine shares combined inlets and nozzles connected to two very different powerplants as a way to significantly reduce drag.

According to Leland, no new technologies needed to be invented for the SR-72 so a demonstration aircraft could fly by 2018, and the plane could be operational by 2030. “The demonstrator is about the size of the F-22, single-engined and could fly for several minutes at Mach 6,” says Leland. “It will be about the size of the SR-71 and have the same range, but have twice the speed.”

Source: Gizmag

Chinese investments in US hit $12 bln dollars in first 9 months of 2013

The United States has emerged as the shinning spot for overseas Chinese investment in recent years. According to a US consultancy, in the first nine months this year, Chinese firms spent over 12 billion US dollars on greenfield projects and acquisitions in America.

From a hefty stake in New York’s iconic General Motors Building to pork giant, Smithfield Foods, lately China has been buying America in a big way. Chinese investment in the U.S. is at an all-time high. And, experts predict strong growth in the next few years. Attorney Robert Profusek says Shanghui International’s 5 billion dollar purchase of Smithfield will be a catalyst when approved.

Doing deals on the merits resulted in Chinese investment in the U.S. hitting a record 6 billion dollars last year. Just 5 years earlier, the number was a mere 360 million dollars. What’s behind the recent acceleration Professor David DeNoon says China, in part, needs to slim down it’s ample holdings of U.S. Treasuries.

“They recognize as almost all economists do that interest rates are eventually going to go up and they’re going to take some kind of hit on those Treasuries. And, they want to balance it with assets that are going to yield a higher return. So diversification makes a lot of sense.” DeNoon said.

China’s State Administration Foreign Exchange or SAFE has reportedly opened an office in New York City with the express purpose of sniffing out good places for China to park its cash. China experts say last year’s purchase of AMC Loews movie theaters by China’s Dalian Wanda is a good model for future deals because of its non-controversial nature.

Experts predict China will focus future investments on U.S. infrastructure as well as agriculture and manufacturing companies.

Source: CNTV

Pollution affecting nature of China's energy market

Recent days of heavy air pollution, particularly in China's north, have once again turned the spotlight on the energy use in China. A solution is to look at alternate sources of energy that are non-polluting and sustainable. This is what energy experts are debating about at the latest China Mining Exhibition in Tianjin.

China’s energy demand is growing at over 4 percent per year in the current decade, but the serious air pollution problem is changing the country’s energy market.

Reporter: “China now gets 70% of its energy from coal. But, it’s believed to be one of the major contributers to air pollution in the country. And, businesses relying on coal may have a hard time in the future.”

The iron and steel industry also causes air pollution. The industries have been affected by low profits and over capacity in recent years, but they are still expanding in China. Around 2 million tons of steel are produced every day.

“The State Council has clarified the country’s roadmap to resolve excess production capacity in the iron and steel industry. It is tightening new projects and environmental protection standards. The iron and steel industries are really hurting, as many are running at a low profit, and require a large investment in order to reduce emissions. And the worst is yet to come.” Professor Wang Yingsheng from Market Research Development of China Iron & Steel Association, said.

Source: CNTV

China Mobile Invests over US$ 2 billion in Pakistan

 Gu Bin, a 38-year-old Chinese from east China's Jiangsu Province, came to Faisalabad this June as a region sales director of China Mobile Pakistan. Now he manages a team of more than 80 Pakistani workers and runs a big market of over 2 million users. "Telecom market here is very competitive due to the early introduction of foreign capital", Gu Bin said "that's why I keep on channelling my team into better marketing instead of just selling". "Although I miss my hometown and family very much, It's good to be working here because I benefited a lot from collaborating with these Pakistani colleagues." Up to October 2013, China Mobile Pakistan has already invested over 2 billion US dollars in Pakistan and provided employment for more than 200,000 local residents.

Japan: Popular figures encourage overseas study

An Olympic medalist, an astronaut and other professionals have talked about their experiences of studying abroad to encourage more Japanese students to go overseas.

The education ministry held an event on Monday at Tokyo's Haneda Airport as part of a campaign to double the number of people studying abroad.Speakers included London Olympics fencing silver medalist Yuki Ota, freelance announcer Christel Takigawa and astronaut Soichi Noguchi.
Ota went to Germany as a university student to brush up his fencing skills. He said he learned a lot by communicating with other students.

Source: NewsOnJapan

Korean president says talks with Japan would 'serve no purpose'

President Park Geun-Hye has painted a bleak picture of South Korea's current and future ties with Japan - a key ally in efforts to rein in North Korea's nuclear programme.

In an interview with the BBC, Park suggested a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe would be pointless given Tokyo's refusal to apologise for Japan's "past wrongdoings".

Abuses carried out during Japan's repressive 1910-45 colonial rule remain a source of deep anger and resentment in South Korea, particularly the treatment of women forced to work as "comfort women" in wartime Japanese military brothels.

Outrage at Japan's perceived reluctance to show sincere remorse and offer adequate reparations has been compounded by a territorial rift over a crop of rocky islets in the Sea of Japan (East Sea).

"None of these cases have been resolved or addressed," Park said in the interview broadcast on Monday ahead of an forthcoming state visit to Britain.

Source: NewsOnJapan

China maintains prudent monetary policy

The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, reported on Tuesday that monetary policy will remain prudent.

The report pointed out the importance of stable monetary and financial circumstances to reform. Use of different monetary instruments will build mature, prudent macro policy where liquidity and social financing are effective, the PBOC said. China will manage and adjust the liquidity of the banking system, and strengthen communication between the market and public, while guiding commercial banks towards better management of assets, liabilities and risk.

Monetary policy will integrate resources, helping small and micro businesses and enhancing credit support for rural development.

Job opportunities, poverty relief, education and housing prices also need financial policy support, as well as mitigating over-production capacity.

Source: Xinhua

New probe casts shadow over Deutsche Bank revamp

Deutsche Bank's struggle to break with the past and achieve a "cultural transformation" has suffered another setback after co-CEO Juergen Fitschen was implicated in a criminal investigation.

The bank set out an ambitious agenda last year to create a leaner, safer lender - exiting risky business lines, abandoning proprietary trading and implementing a "red card" system for staff meant to raise the standard for behaviour.

But the list of costly scandals and legal complications keeps getting longer with Fitschen, a principal architect of Deutsche's makeover, named on Monday as a suspect in a investigation into falsifying evidence.

"This shakes the very foundations of trust in the bank," said one Germany-based shareholder.

EU antitrust regulators landed a fresh blow when they included Deutsche on a list of big banks to be fined multi-million euro sums for suspected rigging of benchmark interest rates, a source told Reuters on Tuesday.

Deutsche Bank stands by Fitschen, whose contract was extended until 2017 only last week, saying it was "absolutely convinced" that he would be cleared in the latest investigation.

Munich prosecutors seek to determine whether Fitschen gave misleading evidence in a decade-old civil suit brought by the heirs of late media mogul Leo Kirch, who accuse the bank of undermining the business.

The bank set aside 1.2 billion euros for potential legal charges in the third quarter, wiping out profit and raising the total amount of legal reserves to 4.1 billion euros.

"Only something greater than 6 billion euros will take the bank to the safe side," the shareholder said.

The list of complications keeps lengthening and includes a probe into whether its traders helped rig reference interest rates including Libor.

Fitschen and fellow co-CEO Anshu Jain proposed sweeping reforms last year designed to set behavioural benchmarks for staff and management, saying that a cultural transformation was needed to get the bank back on a solid, sustainable footing.

"The sins of the past, of which there were many, are still being uncovered and retribution exacted," said a chief investment officer at one of Deutsche Bank's 30 largest shareholders.

Source: Reuters

Barclays' chief UK economist to head Bank of England forecast team

The Bank of England said on Tuesday that it had appointed Barclays' chief UK economist, Simon Hayes, to head its economic forecasting team.

Hayes, who worked at the BoE for eight years before joining Barclays, will be responsible for drafting the central bank's quarterly economic forecasts and will report to BoE chief economist Spencer Dale.

No official start date has been set for Hayes, but the current incumbent, Robert Woods, is due to complete his secondment at the BoE and return to Britain's finance ministry in the spring of 2014, the BoE said.

The BoE's forecasts have come in for regular criticism from British politicians and some economists since the start of the financial crisis for not predicting the persistence of inflation and the weakness of growth - though many other forecasts have shown similar errors.

The BoE is due to publish its next set of quarterly forecasts on November 13. There is particular interest in its forecast for unemployment, as the central bank has pledged not to raise interest rates before the jobless rate falls to 7 percent - something it forecasts will take at least three years.

Source: Reuters

Pentagon chief warns against over reliance on military power

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Tuesday the United States must effectively use all instruments of power, not just military might, to successfully lead the world after a dozen years of war that have strained it physically and financially.

The Pentagon chief told a leading Washington think tank that Americans should not "fall prey to the false notion of American decline," and must also resist the post-war urge to retreat from foreign entanglements.

"No other nation has the will, the power, the capacity, the capability and the network of alliances to lead the international community ... However, sustaining our leadership will increasingly depend not only on the extent of our great power, but an appreciation of its limits and a wise deployment of our influence," he said.

Hagel's remarks come as the Defense Department is winding down a 12-year-old war in Afghanistan and is struggling to meet demands to cut nearly a trillion dollars from its budgets over the next decade.

The speech underscored the administration's shift toward a more cautious approach to military force and a desire for greater reliance on diplomacy. Hagel pointed to U.S. engagement with Iran Iand Syria as examples where combined use of diplomatic, economic and military power are creating opportunities to advance U.S. interests.

The cuts in U.S. defense spending have eroded military training and readiness, and Pentagon officials have warned that the spending reductions would eventually force the department to reassess the global military strategy it outlined two years ago.

"These cuts are too fast, too much, too abrupt and too irresponsible," Hagel told the forum. The Defense Department "cannot responsibly, efficiently and effectively plan, strategize and implement national security policies with this cloud of uncertainty continuing to hang over it."

Source: Reuters