The Dragon and the Kangaroo Young Australians in China

APOLOGIES for the clichéd zoophilia of the title. Unfortunately,with the most auspicious of Chinese zodiacs swooping in only once in 12 years,2012 journalistic protocol for articles on China stipulates bestial kitsch whenever possible. And the kangaroo,whose pouch and hallmark hop seem perhaps even more improbable than a winged,fire-breathing serpent,is the obvious choice to complete our epithet for a story about Australia and China.While "The Dragon and the Kangaroo" are yet to make their way into popular fable,an interesting story is certainly being drafted by a young generation of antipodean Asianists who have found their métier in China’s capital,Beijing.     

China and the West Grow Closer through Higher Education Cooperation - An Interview with Dr. Thorsten Pattberg, a Research Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies, Peking University

CHINESE higher education is changing fast. The sector is rapidly expanding. A decade ago roughly one million college students graduated per year. This year there were almost seven million graduates, according to a recent statement from the State Council. The quality of teaching and research at universities has improved significantly since the turn of the millennium. A massive increase in university funding is largely to thank for this. Project 211, initiated at the end of the 199os, saw loo leading universities receive a total of RMB 36.8 billion to build physical plant. Project 985, launched soon after, sought to create world-class universities out of 39 institutions. Peking University alone received US $36o million under the project. The nine leading universities from these 39 institutions sub- sequently received extra cash injections with the formation of the C9 League, China＇s answer to America＇s Ivy League.     

A Huangshan Affair

MARCH in Beijing is a time of hope, and despair. The Siberian winds that howl in from Mongolia begin to wane; renegade centigrades make a break for positive. Beijing may get warmer in the third month of the year, but the weather can still be abysmal. Expect encounters with the wild children of meteorology - sleet, hail, sandstorms - before spring truly arrives. For many residents, married to the city for the pre-Chinese New Year winter work slog, March is breaking point.     

99 Billion Bottles of Beer on the Wall China’s Beer Culture Changing Fast as Foreign Brands and Brewers Move in

HEAVEN leaves a lot to be desired. It’s bright, really bright. They’ve stuck enough fluorescent lamps onto the low-hanging ceiling to light up a nighttime football game. At 104 square meters, it’s also way too small for the crowd it pulls. There’s no music. The washroom is almost always occupied, and almost never cleaned. The "chairs" are jagged little metal stools, presumably     

Regulating Risk: Implications of the Challenger Accident*

This analysis describes how the NASA organization contributed to the loss of the Challenger on January 28, 1986. The competitive environment, NASA organization characteristics (its structure, processes, and transactions), and the regulatory environment all influenced the decision to proceed with the launch. To be effective, strategies to control, change, or eliminate undesireable behavior should address the cause of that behavior. Understanding how organizations contribute to technical system accidents leads to the conclusion that efforts to reduce accidents in risky technological systems must include the organizations that produce them. Suggestions for policy aimed at curtailing organizational-technical system accidents are discussed.     

The possible forms of professionalism: credibility and the performance of queer sexualities among barristers in England and Wales

This article constitutes the first account of sexual minority barristers’ experience of and relation to professionalism at the Bar. Drawing on survey and interview data, it presents the Bar as a site of heteronormativity, where masculinist heterosexuality is pervasively assumed and publicly valorized. The ‘credible’ barrister – authoritative, respected, competent – is constructed as heterosexual. In this context, sexual minority barristers risk a loss of credibility in coming out or being out in the workplace. Our data presents mechanisms by which these individuals manage the public expression of their sexuality. Some – in contrast to heterosexual colleagues – deny entirely the professional relevance of their sexuality. Others adopt assimilationist strategies, curating a ‘credible’ public persona: out, but otherwise conforming to heteronormative expectations and values. While the data includes exceptions that give cause for hope, many sexual minority barristers experience professionalism as pressure to render their sexuality effectively invisible, at significant cost personally and professionally.