China Economy Adrift as Snow Keeps Falling

Officials worried about 'protest' singer

(NEWSER) - It doesn't take a Chinese weatherman to know which way the wind blows. Government officials are quite clear: "Protester" Bob Dylan, 68, will not be allowed to perform concerts in Beijing and Shanghai, reports the Guardian . The singer, whose biggest protest days are far behind him, is now calling off the rest of his planned tour of east Asia this month that would have included stops in South Korea and Taiwan. China's Ministry of Culture was apparently nervous about Dylan's counterculture status, particularly after feisty singer Björk shouted pro-Tibet slogans at a Shanghai concert 2 years ago. More»

Pageant shows rapidly shifting attitudes to homosexuality

(NEWSER) - When the eight finalists of the first Mr. Gay China pageant strut the catwalk of a Beijing club this Friday, they'll be doing something that was once unthinkable in a country where gay sex was illegal until 1997 and homosexuality was classed as a mental illness until 2001. These days, official state media are reporting approvingly of Mr. Gay China, which reflects a newly thriving gay scene in China's major cities. More»

Openness makes nations stronger, president tells students

(NEWSER) - China and the US don't have to be adversaries and can work out their differences, President Obama told students in Shanghai today. "More is gained when great powers cooperate than when they collide," Obama said. But the president also prodded for more freedoms in China, reports CNN , telling students that Internet freedom makes nations stronger: "The more freely information flows, the stronger the society becomes, because then citizens of countries around the world can hold their own governments accountable." More»

(NEWSER) - Large numbers of American graduates shut out of the job market at home are turning to the East for opportunities, the New York Times reports. A surge of young Americans have left to try their luck in Shanghai and Beijing in recent years, attracted by the strong economy and the chance to jump a few rungs on the career ladder or make it as an entrepreneur without needing vast amounts of start-up capital. More»

Researchers turn adult, not embryonic, skin cells into stem cells

(NEWSER) - Scientists in China have created mice using stem cells made from modified skin cells—hinting at an alternative to embryonic stem cells, the Washington Post reports. Separate teams used viruses to manipulate genes that caused mice skin cells to regress back into induced pluripotent stem cells—which, within a placenta sheathing and in the wombs of female mice, developed into baby animals. More»