More Chinese Farmer Innovations: Baby Buddha Pears!

Rick Martin — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 08:45:06 -0700

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you're likely familiar with the unusual phenomenon of inventive Chinese farmers. For some reason, these rural inventors are grabbing more headlines than most Chinese tech companies. Well, here's another distinguished farmer to follow in that tradition.

This particular pear producer isn't going to let any economic downturn get the best of his crop sales. His baby buddha pears are selling like hotcakes, and he's doing so well that he now hopes to take them overseas. Check the photos:

7 Amazing Chinese Farmer Inventions and Mods

Rick Martin — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 02:16:53 -0700

You might be under the impression that most Chinese innovation is happening in research labs and universities. Well, let me take you on a quick tour of rural China for a second, where an uncanny amount of do-it-yourself contraptions are being created and assembled not by scientists -- but by farmers and laborers!

The Terminator thinks different in China

Rick Martin — Sat, 08 May 2010 07:44:29 -0700

Here's one of the latest viral videos making the rounds on the Chinese internets. 'Secret Mission of the Terminator' is a fun video created by Leon Wang. It starts out with a shot of a terminator robot begging for change outside the Apple store in Beijing. After receiving a coin from a generous passer-by, he uses it to charge up from a nearby vending machine and then all heck breaks loose. Apple fanboys, please close your eyes. This isn't pretty.

Chinese Designer Creates Sandal / Air Jordan Mashup

Rick Martin — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 07:54:46 -0700

According to Neocha, a site devoted to all things creative in China, designer Wang Zhijun has whipped up a crazy concept shoe that combines a pair of throwback Nike Air Jordan IVs with an old 1980s Chinese sandal-like shoe. He has taken the sole of the Air Jordans, and then added on a top piece that works in an open strap design that retains the Nike shoe shape and logo.

What a PSP Phone may look like

Rick Martin — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 17:52:54 -0800

Some interesting images are emerging from a Chinese website M8cool.com. Apparently patience is not one of the virtues of the shanzhai (loosely meaning, imitation) industry, as they love to kick out early prototypes and images of not-yet-released gadgets. The latest one of these is the PSP Phone.

Human-Powered Washing Machine

Rick Martin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 09:23:08 -0800

What do you get when you cross a treadmill with a washing machine? Give up? Something that looks a little like this, actually. A kid by the name of Zhang Jiayu from the northeastern Liaoning province thought that conventional washing machines wasted far too much electricity. He then had the bright idea of creating one that was powered by a man running on top.

China Says Goodbye to Google With Cartoons

Rick Martin — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 03:47:32 -0800

Since Google announced that they would no longer continue to censor in China, pretty much everybody has assumed that they won't be able to remain in the country. That may turn out to be the case. I'm not going to speculate too much on the issue, because there's way more than enough being said already.

In the midst of all that headache, I do want to point out a few humorous tributes to Google that some Chinese netizens have published online.

China ice sculpture tragically made entirely from beer

Rick Martin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:12:51 -0800

The city of Harbin in northern China is widely known for it's freeze-your-snowballs-off temperatures and it's annual ice festival. Domestically, the city is also known for it's beer. Sadly, some wiseguy decided to combine the two to create a ginormous ice sculpture with nothing more than copious amounts of frozen beer. Such a waste...

China has system to detect vulgar Karaoke

Rick Martin — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 08:31:29 -0800

Chinahush has a great write-up about a controversial new karaoke content management system being rolled out in Zhengzhou. The 'Black Box' (as it has been nicknamed) will flash red lights and alert the police when someone selects a vulgar song. Naturally, many netizens in China are voicing questions about such a system:

China's xpPhone to be upgraded to Win7Phone?

Rick Martin — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:25:29 -0800

The Chinese xpPhone was itself thought to be a rumor until engadget China reported on it last month. Sadly, it looks like this monstrosity does indeed exist. And what's more, it looks like it might soon be upgrading to Windows 7. Nevermind that the real Windows 7 Mobile won't be coming out until late next year. As usual, China has us covered with this magnificent (read 'ridonkulous') piece of work.

Amazing Anime Makeover

Rick Martin — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 05:45:39 -0700

From a forum posting on the Chinese internet comes this amazing photo set of an Anime-style makeover. The girl (Lala) is from China, but by the end of the process she has that big-eyed Japanese cartoon look that's so popular with the kiddies these days.It's pretty amazing what a little mascara, eyeshadow and extra-big contact lenses can do.

Chinese Netizen Arrested, Sends SOS on Twitter

Rick Martin — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 03:43:14 -0700

Many of you are likely familiar with the case of the American student from Berkley back in April of 2008 who when he was taken into custody by Egyptian police managed to send out a short tweet via SMS saying "Arrested." Subsequently his embassy and the press were notified and he was eventually released (see CNN story) thanks to his twitter distress call.

Yesterday in China there was a very similar situation, where blogger Peter Guo, who goes by the twitter handles amoiist, sent out the following plea for help:

Best Chinese Knockoff Ever? Sony VAIC TT

Rick Martin — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 07:54:45 -0700

There's something ingenius about taking an 'O' and making it a 'C.' It's so subtle. So clever. It boggles the mind with possibilities: Orec cookies anyone? Maybe a little Cvaltine to wash it down? Ok, maybe not. But that's generally the idea behind this '~~Viac'~~ 'Vaic,' a shanzhai version of the tiny Sony Viao.

Replica Tian'anmen Gate Crafted from Human Hair

Rick Martin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 01:02:55 -0700

What's hairy, forbidden, and red all over? Why, it's this replica Tian'anmen Gate built entirely out of leftover hair clippings! (Sorry, I hope I didn't disappoint any Anne of Green Gables fanboys out there.)

'Phoney' Marriage Proposal in China

Rick Martin — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 01:01:02 -0700

The latest viral video to come out of China features a young man's unique marriage proposal, created by making a sort of LED screen out of hundreds of cell phones. The display was then programmed to display a surprise romantic message to the unsuspecting girlfriend. Check out the video and see for yourself:

China creates the iPhone Nano [pics]

Rick Martin — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 07:41:58 -0700

Here's yet another Chinese 'Shanzhai' creation for you viewing pleasure. This time it's the much anticipated iPhone Nano, the device that the world seems to think Apple will inevitably produce. Nevermind that it doesn't exist yet, that's no reason to refrain from copying it. The folks down in Shenzhen are getting into this knock-off market early by trying to envision what an Apple iPhone Nano might look like, and then copying that vision.

China's 'Green Dam' Censorship Software Looks Pretty Damn Lame

Rick Martin — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 21:50:36 -0700

The Wall Street Journal wrote a piece earlier this week entitled 'China Squeezes PC Makers' where they outlined the Chinese governments' recent requirement that PC makers to ship their machines with internet filtering software. The Green Dam software is intended to filter out explicit language and pornographic images, but early user reports indicate that this software might not be as slick as many might have expected.

China's Netizens Declare they will Fight Back vs Censorship

Rick Martin — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:16:08 -0700

With the protests in Iran, there has been a lot of discussion in the news of late about the power of technology in circumventing government control and censorship. Of course no one knows this kind of censorship better than Chinese netizens, especially after these past few weeks that saw the blocking of popular social media sites and the introduction of the 'Green Dam' filtering software.

in the face of such censorship, some more creative Chinese netizens (I have no idea who, or how many) have used Google Docs to release a declaration of war against this government imposed internet filtering.

Google Maps Shows Massive Pyramids... in China?

Rick Martin — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:40:45 -0700

China has a lot of secrets that it sweeps under the national rug, but here is one of the most unusual ones. According to World Mysteries, the existence of these pyramids had been rumored for years with one of the most intriguing reports coming from an American pilot half a century ago.

China Re-invents the Bicycle Wheel

Rick Martin — Wed, 27 May 2009 11:18:33 -0700

Move over Japan. China's making huge strides in the field of weird and wacky. Check out this crazy bicycle with a pentagonal wheel on the the front and a triangular one on the back. It was developed by Chinese inventor Guan Baihua who believes that people will want to ride the bike because it requires more effort than a conventional bike, and thus provides a greater workout for the rider.

Cigarette Pack Mobile Phone

Rick Martin — Thu, 14 May 2009 09:32:20 -0700

Here's a new gadget that certainly falls into that 'Shanzhai' category: A cigarette pack mobile phone. This little winner will certainly be popular among guys in China. Given that about 57% of men over 18 are heavy smokers, you couldn't ask for a better market. Maybe a few of them would be willing to substitute out their cancer sticks for a cell phone?

China Developing Robot for the Eldery

Rick Martin — Thu, 14 May 2009 01:36:17 -0700

China scientists recently announced that they are only a couple of years away from launching a robot to care for the elderly. This new robot, reportedly 1.6 meters in height will perform numerous functions such as "fetching food, medicine, sounding alarms in case of water or gas leakage, sending texts or video images via wireless communications, and even singing a song or playing chess to entertain its masters."

China's National Space Program Copies Star Trek Logo

Rick Martin — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:32:08 -0700

To give them full credit, I shouldn't say that China's National Space Administration ripped off a Star Trek logo. They actually ripped off two Star Trek logos. Check it out:

China Fights Somali Pirates with Army of Dolphins!

Rick Martin — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 16:19:30 -0700

At least China's state media is good for something. From Xinhuanet.com comes what must surely be the best news headline ever, 'Thousands of Dolphins Block Somali Pirates.

China Will Paint Itself White to Fight Global Warming

Rick Martin — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 13:40:32 -0700

Really?! No, not really. But an article on China.org.cn went to great pains on April 1st to try to fool us into believing as much. Here's a quick overview of their ficticious ten-year plan: The roofs of all government buildings will be painted white, and individuals and companies who do the same will be monetarily compensated.

Solar Panels Banned in Chinese Neighborhood

Rick Martin — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 05:42:38 -0700

In China it's not unusual to see private residents to make the move to solar power. Like in any country the initial expense is high, but putting a few solar panels on your roof will pay off in the long run. It's good for you and it's good for the environment. Everybody wins, right?

Not so fast, skippy. This is China, remember?

As Tibet Anniversary Nears Youtube is Blocked in China

Rick Martin — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 23:46:50 -0800

As I wrote 2 weeks ago, March 10th will mark the 50th anniversary of a failed Tibetan uprising in China, and the 1 year anniversary of last years riots. Well, reports are now coming in via Twitter, Fanfou, and the web that Youtube is now blocked for some users in China, just as it was blocked in the wake of the Tibet riots 1 year ago.

Chasing the Wind: China's Critical Pursuit of Alternative Energy

Rick Martin — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 02:53:19 -0800

The Global Wind Energy Council just released some fascinating 2008 year-end data, and there are two big stories that are grabbing everyone's attention

China's Lunar Probe Crashes Into The Moon

Rick Martin — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:51:29 -0800

The BBC reported yesterday that China, the third nation to put a man into space, has crashed a probe into the moon. But don't worry. That's totally what they meant to do.

Up In Flames: The Path of Digital News Out Of China

Rick Martin — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 21:31:25 -0800

Last night, the CCTV building in Beijing caught fire at around 9 pm, the result of an unfortunate New Years' fireworks blunder. Not surprisingly, no news report appeared on television in the initial few hours after the fire began.Anyone who pays any attention at all to China will know that bad news faces many obstacles on its way to reaching the rest of the world. But in recent years new social media tools ensure that information can spread (pardon the pun) like wildfire. Here's the path that this particular story took.