Nikon D200 this bad (compare to Canon 5D)?

from a Chinese photo site: link

2006 ACM ICPC World Finals Standings of Participating Chinese Universities

No. 1 Saratov State University (1st place Russia)
No. 5 Shanghai Jiao Tong University (1st place China)
No. 8 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1st place US)
No. 13 Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (1st place Korea)
No. 13 Beijing University
No. 13 Zhejiang University
No. 19 Kyoto University (1st place Japan)
No. 19 National Taiwan University
No. 19 The University of Hong Kong
No. 19 University of Science and Technology of China
No. 19 University of Tokyo
No. 19 Sun Yat-sen University
No. 39 Fudan University
No. 39 Fuzhou University
No. 39 Renmin University
No. 39 The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Honorable mention:
Carnegie Mellon University
Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad (1st place India)
Sichuan University

Authority and Legistamacy of the Wikipedia

A client made a comment on the blocking of the Wikipedia by the Chinese government. I replied, that was not as bad as blocking Google (which did happened, and it was believed that Baidu was the culprit).

By all means, Wikipedia has become such an important factor in everyday life, that I had throw my other versions of encyclopedias away. I was not concerned a bit over user vandalism because Wiki has build-in machinism to combat that effectively. However, it emerged that another kind of abuse could be very hard to prevent. That is, the vandalism conducted by the administrators.

In the case of the deletion of 'Jerry Taylor', not only the Wiki page, but also the discussion history were deleted. This is not acceptable, but people who are looking for information on Jerry could see the sign of deletion notice hanging there, and get a sense of not being totally lost. This is bad, but not the worst.

The worst nightmare came true in a related page, the wikipedia entry for the city of 'Tuttle Oklahoma', there was a paragraph of the neologism 'tuttled'. That paragraph was vaporized without a trace. Nothing in the history discussion, and no record in the article history to be tracked. A group of people can make administrative decisions as specified in the rules of wikipedia. However, the very decision should not include wiping out every trace of the decision itself as well as the decision making process.

The legitimacy of the wikipedia is built on the clearly cut rules and the theory of wit of mass. The wiping out of trace of 'tuttled' shows the administration of the project has no confidence in the mass, and that they think they can play the mass as it calls necessary.

Google's Localization in China

Google has officially announced their localization plan in China, which includes setting up Chinese search servers inside mainland China so that they would allow easy access for the monitoring agencies. The whole incident has been broadly publicized, but overshadowed by the Yahoo's tragedy exposure of Chinese dissidents which results in at least two cases of long term jail times.

Nothing can be perfect, as Google and Yahoo's administration put it. The only way to conduct business in China may require some extend of comprise to the authorities. However, there should always be a bottom line, one that should not be easily crossed. Alas, Yahoo crossed it. I had thought Google did not, and would not. I was wrong.

Google direct all of searches originated from mainland China to its servers in mainland server, even including pure Google English searches. As a result, even the results were re-ordered. In other words, if you reside in mainland China, two Google search at www.google.com would generate two different answers if one went through a proxy and one did not.

HUST and NKU ranked first in economists

Nineteen Chinese professors were ranking among top 1,000 economists in the world. Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan and Nankai University in Tianjin ranked first in China with three each.

1. Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST): 3
   Nankai University: 3
   
2. Qinghua University: 2
   Wuhan University: 2
   Jilin University: 2
   
3. Zhongnan University: 1
   Nanjing University: 1
   Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU): 1
   Zhejiang University: 1
   Beijing University: 1
   

11 Craziest Mental disorders

Via Digg at 2Spare.

1. Dr. Strangelove syndrome: hands with a life of its own
   
   Alien hand syndrome (or Dr. Strangelove syndrome) is a neurological disorder in which one of the sufferer's hands seems to take on a life of its own.
   
   Sometimes the sufferer will not be aware of what the hand is doing until it is brought to his or her attention. Alien hands can perform complex acts such as undoing buttons or removing clothing.
   
   
2. Foreign accent syndrome: speaking your language with an accent
   
   The syndrome causes people to speak their native language as if they had a foreign accent; for example, an American native speaker might speak with a French-sounding accent. It usually follows a severe brain injury, such as a stroke.
   
   
3. Capgras' syndrome: believing there's an impostor in the family
   
   The Capgras delusion or Capgras' syndrome is a rare disorder in which a person holds a delusional belief that an acquaintance, usually a close family member or spouse, has been replaced by an identical looking imposter.
   
   
4. Triskaidekaphobia: fear of the number 13.
   
   Adolf Hitler was triskaidekaphobic. A specific fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskavedekatriaphobia or friggatriskaidekaphobia. Tetraphobia is the fear of the number 4 in China, Japan, and Korea.
   
   
5. Bigorexia: working out too much
   
   Bigorexia or Muscle dysmorphia is a disorder in which an individual becomes obsessed that they are not muscular enough. Sometimes referred to as bigorexia or reverse anorexia nervosa, it is a very specific case of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD).
   
   Muscle dysmorphia can cause individuals to:
   - Constantly check themselves in a mirror
   - Become distressed if a gym session is missed
   - Take potentially dangerous drugs (e.g. anabolic steroids)
   - Neglecting jobs/relationships/family due to exercising
   
   
6. Bibliomania: collecting too many books
   
   Bibliomania is an obsessive-compulsive disorder involving the collecting of books to the point where social relations or health are damaged. The purchase of multiple copies of the same book and edition and the accumulation of books beyond possible capacity of use or enjoyment are frequent symptoms of bibliomania.
   
   
7. Exploding head syndrome: a loud noise in the head
   
   It causes the sufferer to occasionally experience a tremendously loud noise as if from within his or her own head, usually described as an explosion or a roar. This usually occurs within an hour or two of falling asleep, but is not the result of a dream.
   
   
8. Trichotillomania: urge to pull out scalp hair
   
   Trichotillomania is an impulse control disorder characterised by the repeated urge to pull out scalp hair, eyelashes, beard hair, nose hair, pubic hair, eyebrows or other body hair. It may be distantly related to obsessive-compulsive disorder, with which it shares both similarities and differences.
   
   
9. Androphobia: fear of men
   
   Androphobia is an abnormal and persistent fear of men. Sufferers of this disorder experience anxiety even though they realize they may face no real threat. Androphobia is one of infinite possible phobias, and as such can be traced back to a specific triggering event, usually a traumatic experience at an early age.
   
   
10. Munchausen syndrome: faking illnesses to gain atention
    
    In Munchausen syndrome, the sufferer feigns, exaggerates, or creates symptoms of illnesses in himself or herself in order to gain attention, sympathy, and comfort from medical personnel. The role of "patient" is a familiar and comforting one, and it fills a psychological need in people with Munchausen's.
    
    
11. Celebriphilia: pathological desire to have sex with a Celebrity
    
    celebriphilia is an abnormally intense desire to have a romantic and/or sexual relationship with a celebrity.
    

Li Ruihuan's Will

Mr. Li Ruihuan will donate all his properties to assisting education of poor students. Li has been giving to poor students at least $60,000 since 1996. The money came from his book royalty, his and his wife's salaries and gifts from his children. Reported by Tianjin Daily on March 24, 2006.