#China investment

[fcfvafeed]

China's Belt and Road Initiative: Paving New Pathways for Global Development

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), China’s ambitious global infrastructure and investment strategy, continues to evolve, impacting diverse regions, including Africa, South America, and the South China Sea. Recent developments in 2023 have highlighted significant investments and construction projects across these areas, reflecting the BRI’s expansive reach and the varied nature of its…

[dazzelmethat]

Ameebs 10 year redraw 2024 vs 2014.

The character himself is about 18 years old though (middle school). Somehow the name Ameba stuck so I just call him Ame now. Or Ameebs. I have done much research into Chinese names for him, but nothing has stuck. The greek root word amoibē means 'a change,' named for his more unsteady physical form.

[sunnycrisp]

creatures

[still-breathing-au-p3r]

It’s Takeba and Yamagishi today. Aki too, of course– but that’s a given at this point. Shinjiro hasn’t done the math or anything, but he wouldn’t be surprised if Aki is actually spending more time in his hospital room than the dorm these days.

Takeba starts off by trying to apologize that she couldn’t visit sooner, but Shinjiro waves her off. It’s not like she’s obligated to visit him. Nobody is, though Aki would probably argue with him about it if he ever tried to say that out loud.

Takeba brushes off getting brushed off, smiling and rolling her eyes with theatrical flair, and starts telling him about a new recipe she’d tried her hand at recently, and how she’d roped Arisato into playing guinea pig.

Yamagishi looks troubled today, for some reason. As Takeba proudly relays Arisato’s verdict on her cooking (raised eyebrows and a nod, and saying ‘yum’ out loud, which coming from him was roughly the equivalent of jumping onto the table and shouting praise at top volume), Shinjiro keeps glancing over at Yamagishi, wondering if she’ll actually speak up. Eventually, Takeba also notices.

She squirms a little in her seat, uncomfortable with suddenly being the center of attention.

Understanding dawns on Takeba’s face. Whatever Yamagishi wanted him to hear, Takeba already had, apparently.

The words and the tone he actually says them in are so mis-matched it’s almost hilarious. There’s no bite at all in his voice, even though usually he finds this kind of waffling deeply annoying. 

The thing is, though, that he just doesn’t have it in him to be annoyed– ever, to any degree– with Yamagishi. This soft-spoken slip of a girl who couldn’t hurt a fly doesn’t deserve that.

She takes a deep breath. Shinjiro wonders if what she has to say really is that intimidating, or if he’s the intimidating one. He knows how he looks to most people. Sometimes he even leans into it. 

But Yamagishi being scared of him… doesn’t feel right. It feels pretty shitty, actually. She’d been skittish in the normal shy-person-dealing-with-a-stranger way when he’d first come back to the dorm, but that had pretty much evaporated within a week. She’d acted perfectly comfortable around him since then.

There’s really only one thing that’s changed that would explain why she was suddenly nervous around him again. Aki said that nobody thought any different about him after learning the whole ugly story, but��

Well. That’s about the last thing Shinjiro expected to hear. All he’s been getting are lectures and apologies since he woke up. Where the hell would any kind of thanks be coming from?

She pauses and rubs at one eye with the edge of her sleeve. Oh god, if she starts crying, he absolutely will not be able to handle it. He wonders vaguely whether the windows in this room can be opened. 

Takeba puts a hand on Yamagishi’s shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze, which seems to work like a charm to calm her down.

How the hell is he supposed to respond to that?

Shinjiro is once more at a loss for words. Over the month he’d spent running with the team again he’d watched Yamagishi become far less meek, but this is still the first time he’s heard her sound downright stern. 

Okay then. He’s been underestimating her. After growing up with Miki, you’d think he really ought to know better.

Yamagishi beams at him and he has to look away. Takeba and Aki are both snickering to his side; Takeba is at least making an effort to be kind of subtle about it, but Aki doesn’t even bother. Shinjiro does his best to ignore them, which doesn’t do a damn thing to deter them. 

Ugh. It makes him actually wish for a fresh delivery of school work from Kirijo, if nothing else so he would have something to pointedly focus on instead.

Still, despite his annoyance, he can’t deny the candle-flame glow of pride he feels for Yamagishi and her growing confidence. Aki’s Senpai-fever really is contagious, apparently.

[mapsontheweb]

Chinese investments in the Arctic.

[worstloki]

Loki surveilling the skyline of New York from the top of Stark Tower and clocking that his favorite paired set of buildings are gone. sad

[weneedatdcharacterwho]

There's was an idea of a contestant who befriends all of the interns already, but I have another execution

We need a td character who somehow becomes friends with one of the interns. They start spend a lot of time together outside of challenges (possibly because they share some interests and maybe struggles with communication with others) and grow closer (it may work either platonic or romantic, I enjoy both variants but gotta admit that the idea of the romance between a contestant and an intern sounds more interesting to me). The contestant doesn't have any strong connections with any other contestants (they just being the friendly yet lonely one) because of it but they manages to go far because they just do a great job during challenges and often win immunity for their team or themself after the merge, so everyone just thinks they are a good player. But the truth is that the intern was secretly helping the contestant all this time without contestant's awarness of it

Bonus points if the contestant suddenly being eliminated by Chris because of "cheating" without specific explanation so everyone thinks that the contestant was playing dirty all along. And only the intern knows the truth and feels super guilty about it but too afraid to tell this to the contestant because they think it may ruin their relationships

Bonus bonus points if the contestant finds out about this whole thing and it causes a conflict between them and the intern and they go through the arc where they learn to trust each other again (and maybe trying to become more separated and find another friends they may rely on)

(btw, sorry if I send too many suggestions, I just have a lot of thoughts)

.

[mila-carat]

I was watching this Chinese variety show just to see Ricky and Zhang Hao but then I saw one of the hosts was Zhang Zhenyuan and now I want to cry… 😭💔

[indianfasttrack]

Worldwide Insurance Companies along with detailed information

Gathering a complete list of all insurance companies worldwide, along with detailed information about each, is a vast and complex task. The number of insurance companies globally is in the thousands, varying across regions and industries (life, health, property, casualty, etc.). Additionally, companies frequently merge, change names, or cease operations, which makes maintaining an up-to-date list…

[deepseacityunderground]

beginning to see american "if you dont vote for the blue warmongerers then you are personally responsible for the red warmongerers getting into power"

[aurianneor]

Useful Ecology

We’re hearing about a whole range of ecological measures.

We need to buy eco-friendly cleaning products, insulate our homes, change our boilers and have a Canadian well, buy less plastic, sort our waste, drive eco-friendly cars, limit our speed on the roads, limit our water consumption when we shower or flush the toilet, limit your consumption of concrete, have a compost in our garden, limit our consumption of meat, use Aleppo soap and limit our consumption of sun creams, use a solar oven, invest in ecological energy (wind turbines, photovoltaic panels, hydroelectric plants), buy second-hand. Electricity, oil and food prices are rising under the pretext of ecology.

Mining, lithium extraction, nuclear power plant waste, large factories, construction, petroleum, intensive agriculture (soil pollution, exorbitant water consumption). Multinationals pollute far more than private individuals, and are not subject to any ecological measures to limit their pollution. The world’s richest people, especially via multinationals, are responsible for the world’s biggest ecocides: they destroy forests such as the Amazon rainforest, pollute rivers, destroy the seabed, impose conditions on farmers such that they destroy the land, which is in danger of becoming sterile due to the use of chemicals, and mistreat animals. What’s more, chemicals such as pesticides are causing the extinction of entire animal species. They should be judged internationally, not according to the laws they decide at national level in each country.

Some sectors, such as agriculture and construction, are even subsidized. Others even receive the Legion of Honor (e.g. Total).

Revealed: the 20 firms behind a third of all carbon emissions – The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/09/revealed-20-firms-third-carbon-emissions

90% of industrial pollution comes from manufacturing things: housing, vehicles and clothing. Obsolescence, changing standards that force people to equip themselves, and the use of consumption as a status object are all very harmful.

How Buying Stuff Drives Climate Change – Columbia University – Columbia Climate School: https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2020/12/16/buying-stuff-drives-climate-change/

The measures mentioned at the beginning are useful for preserving the environment and limiting consumption, but they are minor measures compared to those that should be taken on a global scale.

How companies blame you for climate change – BBC: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220504-why-the-wrong-people-are-blamed-for-climate-change

But most of the pollution is still to come. Developing countries want factories, energy, cars and meat. If we don’t help them, this will happen with highly polluting coal-fired plants, petroleum and intensive agriculture (sometimes carried out in deserts, which sucks up all the water the population needs). We need to look at ecology on a global scale, and not just take measures in developed countries, otherwise the ozone layer will suffer and the air will become unbreathable.

“If left unchecked, climate change will cause average global temperatures to increase beyond 3°C, and will adversely affect every ecosystem. Already, we are seeing how climate change can exacerbate storms and disasters, and threats such as food and water scarcity, which can lead to conflict. Doing nothing will end up costing us a lot more than if we take action now.” Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts – ONU: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/climate-change/

We must help developing countries to develop in a way that is healthy for humanity.

This is difficult. It’s not a question of sending money, because experience shows that the money would be diverted to corrupted individuals. It means that having people on the ground to check that the ecological work is being done is necessary. People need to be educated about ecology and given the means to put ecological measures in place. For developing countries to become low-emission countries like those in Europe, $2,400 billion a year would be needed. At present, fossil fuel subsidies total $5,000 billion a year. Switching to renewable energies would cost half as much as maintaining fossil fuels. António Guterres, attacked the use of subsidies in May 2024, declaring, “What we are doing is using taxpayers’ money – which means our money – to boost hurricanes, to spread droughts, to melt glaciers, to bleach corals. In one word – to destroy the world”. Taxes subsidize the destruction of the planet instead of saving it. This is one of the topics to be discussed at COP 29 from November 11 to 22, 2024.

Money, money, money: Financing plans for the climate transition – i4ce: https://www.i4ce.org/en/publication/financing-transition-multi-scale-challenge-climate/

After Bonn and towards COP 29: the battle on finance and the role of financing plans for the transition – i4ce: https://www.i4ce.org/en/after-bonn-towards-cop29-battle-finance-role-financing-plans-transition-climate/

How do we rein in the fossil fuel industry? Here are eight ideas – The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/14/how-rein-in-fossil-fuel-industry-eight-ideas

Global Fossil Fuel Subsidies Remain Large: An Update Based on Country-Level Estimates – IMF: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2019/05/02/Global-Fossil-Fuel-Subsidies-Remain-Large-An-Update-Based-on-Country-Level-Estimates-46509

China and Russia invest in developing countries without any ecological conscience. We need to be diplomatic with these countries to get them to take ecology into account.

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Ecologie efficace: https://www.aurianneor.org/ecologie-efficace/

Eficiencia ecológica: https://www.aurianneor.org/eficiencia-ecologica/

Fund: https://www.aurianneor.org/fund-according-to-the-latest-international/

Juste une question de culture; et de politique…: https://www.aurianneor.org/juste-une-question-de-culture-et-de-politique/

Ecoterrorism: https://www.aurianneor.org/ecoterrorism/

The richest 1% are at war with the rest of the world: https://www.aurianneor.org/the-richest-1-are-at-war-with-the-rest-of-the-world/

My hormones want admiration: https://www.aurianneor.org/my-hormones-want-admiration-i-want-to-shine-im/

Protecting water: https://www.aurianneor.org/protecting-water/

Peru, biodiversity in danger: https://www.aurianneor.org/peru-biodiversity-in-danger/

Consumption: Dream & Reality: https://www.aurianneor.org/consumption-dream-realitymore-love/

Bright idea of the century: https://www.aurianneor.org/bright-idea-of-the-century-the-light-bulb/

Stop the all-concrete approach: https://www.aurianneor.org/stop-the-all-concrete-approach/

Tomorrow – Chap 2: L’énergie: https://www.aurianneor.org/tomorrow-chap-2-lenergie-demainlefilm/

40 ans, un risque maîtrisé?: https://www.aurianneor.org/40-ans-un-risque-maitrise-votez-pour-defendre/

Tomorrow – Chap 1: Agriculture: https://www.aurianneor.org/tomorrow-chap-1-agriculture/

Nano Confiance: https://www.aurianneor.org/nano-confiance-affaire-des-oeufs-contamines-les/

Meat and environment, is that possible?: https://www.aurianneor.org/meat-and-environment-is-that-possible-no-if/

Solar Oven: https://www.aurianneor.org/solar-oven/

Clean Clothes: https://www.aurianneor.org/clean-clothes-shirt-on-your-back/

The eco comfort, a way of life: https://www.aurianneor.org/the-eco-comfort-a-way-of-life-how-to-use/

Hydrogen-powered aircraft: https://www.aurianneor.org/hydrogen-powered-aircraft/

Healthy Road: https://www.aurianneor.org/healthy-road-be-healthier-with-fewer-traffic/

Piste scooter / Moto: https://www.aurianneor.org/piste-scooter-moto-healthy/

Le Paon Scooter: https://www.aurianneor.org/le-paon-scooter-good-for-your-budget-compared/

The artistic blur of ecological cars: https://www.aurianneor.org/the-artistic-blur-of-ecological-cars-i-what-this/

Zero emission transport: https://www.aurianneor.org/zero-emission-transport/

Free public transport: https://www.aurianneor.org/free-public-transport/

Healthy Hair, The advice of a Wookie for hair: https://www.aurianneor.org/healthy-hair-the-advice-of-a-wookie-for-hair-and/

Healthy Skin: https://www.aurianneor.org/healthy-skin-wikipedia-aleppo/

Le savon: https://www.aurianneor.org/le-savon-le-meilleur-desinfectant-le-meilleur/

Healthy Tan: https://www.aurianneor.org/environment-health-perspective-sunscreens-damage/

Sun Cream: https://www.aurianneor.org/sun-cream-differences-entre-ecran-solaire-mineral/

[opisasodomite]

Whenever someone posts one of those crazy apartment mega towers in China as like a, wow this is so awful and bad the Nefarious Chinese are living in a true urban hell, I’m always surprised because those things are so cool to me

[father-of-the-void]

Iran sabotages French railroad ahead of Olympics

[batsplat]

id be very interested in any post of yours on the vale/jorge dynamic!!! and as a marc fan first human second i think this would also shed more light on how exactly 2015 became what it did… vale is, as we know, very bad at forgetting and extremely bad at forgiving

(this post is now posted) I do still have a few more open-ended asks in my inbox about this rivalry that I'll get to at some point, but I just wanted to quickly have a crack at this one specifically. you can kindaaaa read between the lines of the post I linked to if you want to know where I stand on this issue, but I don't say it explicitly and I might as well actually do that lol. and my stance on 2015 is that the valentino/jorge rivalry... really does not feature all that heavily. absurdly little, given they are the ones having an actual title fight. they retroactively remember to get mad at each other once all the drama has actually happened - and then suddenly you do get their history worm its way through the cracks. like, actually 2016 is way more interesting for their interpersonal relationship than 2015 is!! but 2015 is... well, it's just not that relevant. by valentino standards, you don't even really get the sense he's motivating himself through the power of spite or anything. he literally just wants his tenth - jorge being his title rival is only relevant insofar as that's his teammate

I don't actually think the maxim of valentino being bad at forgetting and forgiving really holds in this specific relationship. I've banged on about this distinction a few times by now, but to me there really is a substantial and noticeable difference between how valentino approaches the marc/sete rivalries and the way biaggi + casey/jorge get treated. the former camp involves rivals valentino was friends with, blokes he was genuinely fond of on an interpersonal level before they really butted heads competitively - and as a result there's a relationship to burn down. as a result, valentino is hurt by what happens. that's the basic precondition valentino needs not to forgive and forget: he needs to feel like a friendship has been betrayed. with jorge, there's none of that! they never had anything remotely like a close relationship with each other; if anything it's a fair bit colder than the casey dynamic is pre-2007. which means there's really nothing to forgive and forget! valentino gets over the entire 2008-10 dramatics comically quickly... like there's still a bit of needle in 2011 but once he realises there's no real competitive justification, he just kinda goes *shrug* eh, whatever. he's still bickering with casey in 2012, but those two did seemingly get a weird kick out of their squabbling and valentino also dropped that completely around mid-2013 (casey ofc did Not). like these people said some nasty shit about each other... but with both jorge and casey, valentino is extremely willing to drop it when he doesn't really think there's a point any more. as a result, valentino and jorge get on better in valentino's ducati years! it'd really only been a brief period where they're properly at war - but that period is so memorable it's how that teammate relationship gets remembered these days

basically what I said in the jorge/valentino post:

and this maybe deserves a more in-depth post... but of course it's worth pointing out that in their second teammate stint, they once again take their sweet time getting to the actual drama. 2013 they're being perfectly cooperative and honda's cute little internal war is hogging all the headlines, 2014 is basically fine with a bit of corporate espionage for flavour - hell, even 2015 is okay until, like, the very end. they're asked about their relationship every single week that year, to the point where valentino starts making gags about how him and jorge have been keeping relationship diaries and will release them at the end of the year. (drop the diaries, kings.) there's also a very sweet 'ooh you've learned so much from valentino' jorge moment that very much thematically follows on from the 2008-10 post:

Lorenzo explained an incident where, ahead of the season-finale race in Valencia, he approached a journalist to request a specific question was asked to irritate Rossi. "At the airport I told her that at the press conference she had to ask me if Valentino deserved the title,” Lorenzo said.  “For me it would not have been deserved. I wanted to put pressure on him to feel inferior.  “I also created that rivalry through the press."

which... good on you, jorge, but. what. and also... why

point is, even in their actual title fight in 2015, a bunch of different factors conspire to ensure that valentino is focused more on marc than he is on jorge. one big, big reason is that valentino + jorge basically never actually cross paths on track that whole year for more than like, a minute, which is one of the things that made that season so funky. it's maybe a little unsatisfying to go 'that long post I wrote isn't actually super relevant as backstory' and it doesn't not matter, but in a way the really interesting bit is... you'd kinda think it'd matter MORE. their history should be more relevant than it is to this story!! it's weird that it played such a small role! and, again, it does come back into the picture in 2016... they were proper mad with each other then! I reckon they did get to the point where they even managed to hurt each other, where that was something reciprocal! which is fun and compelling, but even there they do manage to mostly Get Over It at some point that very same year. in the end... despite all this history, despite this intense three year stint as teammates the first time round - somehow we ended up with another title fight between the pair of them with a super controversial finish but that interpersonal relationship is very nearly irrelevant. quirky innit

[omarfor-orchestra]

Looking for scientific papers is so funny because they'd be like