Research Topics: December 2010

December 31, 2010

Is the European Union a democracy?

European parliament in Strasbourg - Image by BlatantNews.com via Flickr

Up European Union

Articles general

Articles dated

Books

See also

Videos

Bukovsky's warning - Vladimir Bukovsky, a former Soviet dissident who has lived in England since 1976, compares the European Union with the Soviet Union (4:37 min)

European Union

Image via Wikipedia

Research topics

Is the European Union a democracy?

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Articles general

European Union - Wikipedia

Articles news

Fukushima Forces Europe to Rethink Nuclear Energy - "The unfolding catastrophe at the Japanese nuclear power plant Fukushima has forced a number of European countries to radically rethink their energy policies and eventually renounce nuclear power." - IPS - April 1, 2011

Videos

How Severe Is Europe's Intertwined Debt Crisis? - "Economics correspondent Paul Solman reports on the ongoing fallout from Europe's debt crisis, which has led to political woes and bank bailouts among other problems." - PBS Newshour - 9:04 - Jan 24, 2011

China's threat to the world

China's 60th birthday parade - Image by @ alex via Flickr

Up China

Articles general

Chinese intelligence operations in the US - "The People's Republic of China (PRC) has and is currently using a widespread effort to acquire U.S. military technology and classified information. To fulfill its long-term military development goals, the PRC uses a variety of methods to obtain U.S. technology; including espionage, the exploitation of commercial entities, and a network of scientific, academic, and business contacts." - Wikipedia
Military budget of the People's Republic of China - Wikipedia

Articles news

China blocks coastal waters, enlarges military - "China’s “troubling” military buildup coincides with new efforts by Beijing to block the Navy from international waters near its coasts and field new missiles, submarines and cyberweapons, the commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific told Congress..." - The Washington Times - April 12, 2011
Alex Jones: Google’s New Censorship Tool & Chinese Pianist Plays Anti-USA Tune - Alex Jones show - video - Jan 24, 2011 (Among other, Alex speaks about this article Chinese Pianist Plays Propaganda Tune at White House)
"China built the radar-evading Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter jet by using technology gleaned from a downed F-117 Nighthawk, a stealth ground attack aircraft formerly operated by the United States Air Force" - The Economic Times - Jan 24, 2011
China's neo-imperial swagger need not mean a new cold war - "China has revealed a neo-imperial swagger... But it is wrong – at least for now – to think that a formal structure of alliances to contain China is needed in the way that one was required to contain the Soviet Union." - guardian.co.uk - Jan 15, 2010
Wikileak Cables Reveal China's Modernising Military Might - "A Wikileaked January 2009 diplomatic cable from the United States' Beijing embassy forecasting the next three decades of U.S.-China relations warned of the Asian giant's "rapid military modernisation"." - IPS - Jan 13, 2011
China's apparent 'stealth aircraft' may pose "terrifying" challenge to US fleet: Experts - OneIndiaNews - Jan 8, 2011
China media report mystery stealth fighter photos - "Photos leaked online that appear to show a prototype of China's first stealth fighter jet were discussed in state media Wednesday — a move that supports claims the country's military aviation program is advancing faster than expected." - AP - Jan 5, 2011
EU considers lifting China arms embargo - China Daily - Jan. 1, 2011
China is preparing for conflict 'in every direction', the Chinese defense minister said - The Telegraph - Dec. 29, 2010
Is China Seeking to Achieve Too Much Too Soon? - "The year 2010 will go down in history as a year in which the world witnessed with awe the menacing assertiveness of China in diplomatic, military, transnational infrastructure network and trade arenas." - oilprice.com - Dec 10, 2010

Documents

The problem of China - by Bertrand Russell 1922 - Analysis of China's historic foreign relations - Wikisource

Images

* Portraits of a rising military power - slide show - Foreign Policy - Jan 2, 2011

Music

Chinese military song - 2:50 min

See also

Videos

What is The China Threat? - Bill Gertz, the leading national security journalist in the United States, and the author of "The China Threat" discusses how the Pentagon decided China is no threat entirely from China's public statements. (conservative viewpoint, interview conducted in 2,000 - 27 min)

Up China

Neanderthals

Image via Wikipedia

Up Human races

Articles general

Neanderthal - "The Neanderthal is an extinct member of the Homo genus that is known from Pleistocene specimens found in Europe and parts of western and central Asia." - Wikipedia

Articles news

Were Neandertals and Modern Humans Just Ships in the Night? - "A new radiocarbon dating study of a Neandertal site in Russia concludes... that Neandertals and modern humans were probably like ships in the night. (have met only for a shorter period) - History News Network - May 11, 2011
Neanderthals' Last Stand Possibly Found - "A newly found prehistoric toolkit suggests Neanderthals may have lingered in Russia's Ural Mountains as recently as 33,000 years ago." - Discovery News - May 12, 2011
Neanderthals Were Overwhelmingly Right-Handed - "Neanderthals and their likely ancestors were overwhelmingly right-handed, according to investigation into fossilized teeth excavated in Spanish and other European caves." - Discovery News - April 21, 2011
Did Neanderthals Believe in an Afterlife? - "A possible Neanderthal burial ground suggests that they practiced funeral rituals and possessed symbolic thought before modern humans." - Discovery News - April 20, 2011
Stone tool troves point to highland Neanderthals - "High in the wind-swept mountain ridges of northern Greece, archaeologists have made a surprising discovery: hundreds of prehistoric stone tools that may have been used by some of the last Neanderthals in Europe, at a time when hunter-gatherers were thought to have kept to much lower altitudes. The two sites used between 50,000 to 35,000 years ago..." - Forbes.com - March 9, 2011
Did Neanderthals use feathers for fashion? - "...archaeologists ... say they have evidence that Neanderthals were using feathers as ornaments 44,000 years ago..." - New Scientist - Feb 21, 2011
Ancient humans, but not their evolutionary cousins [Neanderthal], had heels for running - Science News - Feb 3, 2011
The Neanderthal Nose Enigma: Why So Big? - Live Science - Jan 14, 2011
Neanderthals cooked and ate vegetables - BBC - Dec. 27, 2010
Neanderthal genes 'survive in us' - "Between 1% and 4% of the Eurasian human genome seems to come from Neanderthals." - BBC News, May 6, 2010
Should We Clone Neanderthals? - The scientific, legal, and ethical obstacles - Includes information about Neanderthals - archaeology.org - March/April 2010

Videos

* Dr. Jean-Jacques Hublin: Neanderthals Deciphered - The latest information about Neanderthals in this 1 1/2 hour video - Scientists are using new techniques such as plotting skulls and measuring the difference between one hominin and another in order to discover how far species are apart. They also use a technique similar to dendrochronology, which is to find information based on tree-rings, but now for teeth. Add to that the study of DNA and we're in for an exciting new discoveries. - Jan 2011

Up Human races

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Human races

Image via Wikipedia

Research topics

Neanderthals

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Articles general

Homo - Wikipedia
Race (classification of humans) - Wikipedia
Top 10 Mysteries of the First Humans - Where do they come from, who was the first hominid, what is the hobbit? - Live Science

Articles news & other

Heidelberg Man Links Humans, Neanderthals - "What was thought to be a cousin turns out to be parent on the human evolutionary family tree. The last common ancestor of humans and Neanderthals was a tall, well-traveled species called Heidelberg Man, according to a new PLoS One study." - Discovery News - May 4, 2011
Fire did not spark human colonisation of cold Europe - "Humans may have been much later to master fire than we thought. A review of supposed archaeological hearths in Europe suggests that the oldest date to just 400,000 years ago." - New Scientist - March 14, 2011
When Earth's Human Population Was 18,500! - "Scientists have calculated that for a period lasting one million years and beginning 1.2 million years ago, at a time when our ancestors were spreading through Africa, Europe and Asia, there were probably between 18,500 to 26,000 individuals capable of breeding (and no more than 26,000)." - The Daily Galaxy - March 1, 2011
Ancient Tools May Mark Earlier Path Out of Africa - "On the basis of tools [found in the United Arab Emirates], [researchers] propose that humans crossed from eastern Africa to Arabia around 130,000 years ago." - Wired Science - Jan 27, 2011

See also

Research topics: Origins of the Japanese

Websites

The Genographic Project - Wikipedia: "The Genographic Project, launched on April 13, 2005 by the National Geographic Society and IBM, is a multi-year genetic anthropology study that aims to map historical human migration patterns by collecting and analyzing DNA samples from hundreds of thousands of people from around the world."

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Korea North-South relations

Image via Wikipedia

Up Korea

Articles general

Korean War - The Korean War (1950–armistice, 1953) was a military conflict between the Republic of Korea, supported by the UN, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which was supported by People's Republic of China (PRC), with military material aid from the Soviet Union. - Wikipedia

Articles news

N.Korea Keeps Sending More Workers to Kaesong Complex - "The number of North Korean workers at the Kaesong Industrial Complex has been growing even as Seoul halted all other trade with the North after deadly attacks on the Navy corvette Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island last year." - The Chosunilbo - May 18, 2011
S. Korea understands need for cooperation with DPRK regarding Mt. Baekdu - "South Korea said Friday it recognizes the need to cooperate with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) regarding potential volcanic activities at Mount Baekdu, according to the Ministry of Unification in Seoul." - People's Daily Online - March 18, 2011
North Korea uses families to blackmail defectors - "In a remarkable first for North Korea, the secretive communist state has posted online interviews with the families of four of its citizens who want to defect to the South." - ABC News - March 10, 2011
SKorea to get more weapons amid NKorean threat - "South Korea says it will deploy more fighter jets, helicopters, artillery and advanced spy aircraft to better prepare for potential attacks by North Korea." - boston.com - March 8, 2011
Balloon launches breach North Korea's bubble - "Thousands of helium balloons will be soon released over the Korean border with information about the uprisings that toppled the Tunisian and Egyptian governments." - New Scientist - March 1, 2011
North, South Korea talks collapse - Feb 9, 2011
Two Koreas hold first talks since island attack - Inform - Feb 8, 2011
N.Korea Sells Products in South Under False Labels - "North Korean products are being sold in South Korea labeled as Russian after the South stopped all cross-border trade in May last year." - The Chosun Ilbo - Jan 23, 2011
In Seoul, South Koreans Find Peace Despite North's Constant Threats - "South Korean officials have agreed to high-level military talks with North Korea, despite the brinksmanship following deadly attacks on a South Korean warship and an island. Margaret Warner reports from Seoul on how South Koreans cope with the constant threats from the North and gets views on what's ahead for the peninsula." - PBS Newshour video, 11:37 min - Jan 20, 2011
North Korean defectors can't join South Korea's army - "North Korean defectors want to join in the fight against their former comrades. But South Korea's government says no." - Public Radio International - Jan 18, 2011
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula Keep Military on High Alert - PBS Newshour report on ongoing tensions - 12:02 min - Jan 17, 2011
North, South Korea talks collapse - Feb 9, 2011
Two Koreas hold first talks since island attack - Inform - Feb 8, 2011
N.Korea Sells Products in South Under False Labels - "North Korean products are being sold in South Korea labeled as Russian after the South stopped all cross-border trade in May last year." - The Chosun Ilbo - Jan 23, 2011
In Seoul, South Koreans Find Peace Despite North's Constant Threats - "South Korean officials have agreed to high-level military talks with North Korea, despite the brinksmanship following deadly attacks on a South Korean warship and an island. Margaret Warner reports from Seoul on how South Koreans cope with the constant threats from the North and gets views on what's ahead for the peninsula." - PBS Newshour video, 11:37 min - Jan 20, 2011
North Korean defectors can't join South Korea's army - "North Korean defectors want to join in the fight against their former comrades. But South Korea's government says no." - Public Radio International - Jan 18, 2011
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula Keep Military on High Alert - PBS Newshour report on ongoing tensions - 12:02 min - Jan 17, 2011

N. Korea reopens border hotline with S. Korea - "North Korea Wednesday reopened a cross-border Red Cross hotline despite South Korea's rejection of its latest call for dialogue after months of tensions." - Nuclear Weapons Information - Jan 13, 2011
Hackers 'celebrated' Kim Jong Un's birthday with video - Also the North Korean Twitter account was hacked - Watch the video - Jan 8, 2011
S. Korean websites 'attacked by North Korea' - AFP - July 7, 2009

Books

Korean War Related Books - Listing of a big number of books

Documents

* THE 95 THESES FOR REUNIFICATION OF KOREA (English version) - Published by a Facebook group 'Reunification of Korea' - gives principles and ideas to advance Korea's reunification through peaceful and principled means

See also

Videos

Born and raised in a concentration camp - The story of a refugee born in a North Korean concentration camp and his experiences in freedom (1 hr 6 min)

Interview - History of North & South Korea - Dr. Rainer Werning on some of the history of North and South Korea, June 2003 in Seoul, South Korea - critical of South Korea and the USA (43 min)

Korea war documentary(20 min)

Websites

South Korea's high-tech society

A giant display and solar panel lamp at Nuritkum Square, Digital Media City, Seoul, South Korea (Wikipedia)

Up Korea

Articles general

Digital Media City or DMC is the first high-tech complex in the world for digital technologies, housing ubiquitous networked offices, apartments, exhibitions, conference halls and cultural centers in Seoul, South Korea (Wikipedia)

Articles dated

South Korea Using Robots To Teach Elementary School Kids - Robots named Engkey are used to replace English language teachers - Dec. 30, 2010

Books

Videos

Engkey - Robot English Teacher from Korea - Korean language video - posted Dec 29, 2010 - 1:51 min

How your high-tech Korean apartment takes care of you

December 30, 2010

Struggle for indigenous autonomy

International Year of the World's Indigenous P...

Image by United Nations Photo via Flickr

Up Indigenous peoples

Articles general

Aboriginal self-determination and autonomy - "Self-determination is a term used to describe that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people take matters into their own hands." - creativespirits.info
United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - 2007

Articles dated

Origins of autonomy- "The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples does not support indigenous nationalist autonomy, but rather supports rights to internal self-determination" - Indian Country Today - December 30, 2010

Indigenous peoples

Image via Wikipedia

Research topics

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Articles general

Indigenous peoples - Wikipedia

Articles news

Uncontacted Amazon Indians face annihilation - Survival International - Feb 14, 2011
Slow but steady progress on recognizing indigenous land rights is interrupted by commodity boom - Feb 9, 2011

Images

Gallery: The Last Uncontacted People

Music

Native American Music Video - 3:45 min

Websites

Indigenous peoples Issues and Resources

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Main Korean historic locations

Gyeongbok-Gung Seoul - Image via Wikipedia

Up Korea

Articles general

Autumn Colors in the Secret Garden - "The second-oldest of Seoul’s Joseon-era royal palaces and the best preserved ... Changdeokgung is one of Korea’s most sublime works of traditional architecture..."
Baekdu mountain - Wikipedia
Gyongbok palace - Built in 1395, Gyongbok gung (Gyungbok palace) was the main royal palace of the Josun Dynasty (article includes video)
Sacred Mountains and Sanshin mountain-spirits of Korea
Sacred sites of Korea - Overview of 40 sites

See also

Research topics: Korean architecture

Videos

Journey to Baekdu Mountain 2010/08/05 FTV News (4:42 min) - the Heaven Lake at the border between North Korea and China is the legendary birthplace of Korea's founding ancestors

History of Korea

Korea in 476 - Image via Wikipedia

Up Korea

Articles general

Goguryo - Northeast Asian History Foundation (has many pages on Korean history)
History of Korea - Wikipedia
* History of Korea - Gives access to many pages about Korea's history - WorldLingo
Korea's history - AsianInfo.org
Pure blood theory in Korea - The pure blood theory in Korea refers to a notion that Korean people are the cleanest and purest race, descendants of a single ancestor - Wikipedia
Timeline of Korean history - Wikipedia

Articles news

Historical records bound for ‘World Memory’ list - "... Ilsungrok,” a diary-style log of Joseon-era kings’ daily lives, and collections of documents on the Gwangju Democratization Movement of 1980..." - Korea Joongang Daily - May 26, 2011
Where did Asians migrate from? - "A new study shows all Asians probably originated from Southeast Asia and migrated northward, indicating Japanese landed in their present location via the Korean peninsula." - The Korea Herald - March 30, 2010

Books

A History of Religions in Korea - By Duk-Whang Kim Ph.D. - 261 pages
Corea, the hermit nation. I. Ancient and mediaeval history. II. Political and social Corea. III. Modern and recent history (1882) - by Griffis, William Elliot, 1843-1928 - 506 pages - read online or download
Guide to Korean culture - 257 pages - 1995 - Published by Korean Culture and Information Service, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
Korea's fight for freedom (c1920) - Author: Mackenzie, Frederick Arthur, 1869-1931 - Subject: Japanese -- Korea; Korea -- History 1864-1910; Korea -- History Japanese occupation, 1910-1945 (332 page, can be downloaded)

See also

Drama

Capital Scandal - Drama set in the 1930's about Korean resistance against the Japanese occupiers, 16 episodes
* Jumong - Drama about the life of the founder of Goguryo in 37 BC, 81 episodes
- Information about the film and the film location
- More historical information about Jumong

* Kingdom of the Winds - Drama about the life of Jumong's grandson, Moo Hyul, who later became king of the Goguryeo Kingdom (37 B.C.-A.D. 668), 36 episodes
More drama History of Korea

Videos

Korea Today - US Army film made after the Korean War, a study of American soldiers helping a nation to help itself - with historical footage - download site - 28:41 min

Websites

History of Korea - Facebook group
Timemap Korea - Animation of timeline of Korea territories from ca 0-1000 CE

China

The Great Wall of China - Image via Wikipedia

Research topics

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Articles general

China - Wikipedia

Articles news

China internal security spending jumps past army budget - "China’s spending on police and domestic surveillance will hit new heights this year, with “public security” outlays unveiled on Saturday outstripping the defence budget for the first time as Beijing cracks down on protest calls." - Tibet Sun - March 5, 2011
State Stamps Out Small 'Jasmine' Protests in China - Time - Feb 21, 2011
China grooms Hu Jintao's successor - About the presumed successor Xi Jinping, now China’s vice president - Tibet Sun - Jan 24, 2011
China Gains 3,000 Years of Nuclear Power, but What is Nuke Fuel Reprocessing? - "[China] developed a fuel reprocessing technology so that it could extract useful bi-products from "spent" nuclear fuel. This gave China a massive extension to its future of nuclear power exploitation" - Fast Company - Jan 18, 2011

Images

Music

Chinese music - 6:20 min

See also

Research topics: Tibet

Videos

"The Chinese Model" - Orville Schell about capitalism Chinese style - The Real News Network video - May 13, 2011

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Korea

Image via Wikipedia

Research topics
Korea

North Korea

South Korea

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Articles general

South Korea - Wikipedia

Articles news

Growing Number of Koreans Deciding to Become Farmers - "A growing number of people are returning to the countryside to become farmers, seeking to get back in touch with their roots and to have a more relaxing lifestyle, statistics show" - The Chosun Ilbo - April 19, 2011
Chosun-Era Medical Text to Be Published in English - "A Korean medical encyclopedia dating from the Chosun Dynasty is set to be published in English in time to celebrate its 400th anniversary in 2013. The Dongui Bogam, or Principles and Practice of Eastern Medicine, was compiled by royal physician Heo Jun in 1613. It served as a key reference book in many Asian countries at the time, including China and Japan." - Chosun Ilbo - March 12, 2011

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