Your First Look At “No Pants Subway Ride” Shanghai 2013

No Pants Subway Ride Shanghai
No Pants Subway Ride, the annual event launched in 2002 by New York City-based Improv Everywhere, has spread to more than 60 cities, in which subway commuters strip off their pants on January 13 just because. Thousands participated this year in New York, hundreds in Mexico City, and, um, maybe a dozen or so in Shanghai?... Read more »

New Chinese Maps Highlight Disputed Islands In South China Sea

China map
China upset many Asian countries in November by issuing a new passport that included contested South China Sea islands within its pages, and just to show you how they’ve learned from criticism, the National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation (NASMG) has just published, via Sinomaps Press, a new set of vertical-format maps that include more than 130... Read more »

Gun vs. Brick: More Details From Changsha’s Bloody Street Fight

Changsha brick vs gun
We have an update on the Thursday showdown in downtown Changsha featuring a gunslinger and brick-wielder. As we initially suspected, it was the man with the brick who inflicted more damage, though to our surprise, both men are described as only suffering “minor injuries.” Global Times:

While US Embassy Pollution Index Measured 755 Last Night, Beijing’s Official Air Quality Index Was “Out Of Service” [UPDATE: Video]

AQI 800
We don't really get how a reading that theoretically should max out at 500 can spit out a number like 755, but look at the above. It got so bad last night that Beijing's official air-quality index conveniently went "out of service" from 10 pm to 10 am this morning. When it came back, it featured this warning:

Taiwanese Singer Annie Yi Becomes Free Speech Champion, PRC Government Persona Non Grata

Annie Yi
Sina Weibo was recently aflutter with Yi Nengjing, also known as Annie Yi, Inō Shizuka, and formerly Wu Jingy. As Tea Leaf Nation tells us, born in 1969 to a political family, Yi has been somewhat of an atypical pop star, often clashing with media and remaining outspoken even at the cost of potential endorsements. She’s taken... Read more »