1. Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org
2. The Online Books Page: http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/
Listing over 25,000 free books on the Web. The site is hosted by the University of Pennsylvania Library.
3. Asiaing.com: http://www.asiaing.com
Over 2,000 free ebooks & free magazines. Most of them can be downloaded directly.
4. PSU's Electronic Classics Site: http://www2.hn.psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/jimspdf.htm
Classic works of Literature.
5. PlanetPDF http://www.planetpdf.com/free_pdf_ebooks.asp?CurrentPage=1
Classics works of Literature.
6. University of California, eScholarship Edition: http://content.cdlib.org/escholarship/
The eScholarship Editions collection includes almost 2000 books from academic presses on a range of topics, including art, science, history, music, religion, and fiction.
7. University of Adelaide Library’s collection of Web books:
http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/
The collection includes classic works of Literature, Philosophy, Science, and History.
8. AvaxHome.ru: http://www.avaxhome.ru
Some new ebooks. Rapidshare download links. Copyright is a problem.
9. The National Academies Press: http://www.nap.edu
Read more than 3,000 books online FREE!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
China sets up real-time air quality monitoring network
BEIJING, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- China put into use Thursday its latest air quality monitoring system which provides hourly air quality information of the country's major cities.
According to a statement of the China National Environmental Monitoring Center (CNEMC), the new system provides air quality information on 113 key cities which will be accessed via the Internet, including indexes of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matters.
The country started weekly air quality reports in 1998, and then daily reports in 2000. The report is published on www.cnemc.cn.
Currently, China has more than 2,000 air monitoring stations.
The new system will play a crucial role in air pollution prevention and control, the statement said.
The CNEMC marked the 30th anniversary of its founding on Thursday.
According to CNEMC head Luo Yi, in the past 30 years, the center has frequently upgraded its equipment, enabling monitoring of air, surface water, noise, industrial pollution sources, solid waste, soil, among other substances.
Luo said the center is currently developing new technology to monitor more environmental factors such as optical radiation and thermal radiation.
Luo expressed his hope that the country's environmental monitoring system would advance rapidly with the launch of two environment monitoring satellites.
Successfully launched in 2008, the two environment and disaster monitoring satellites can provide a global scan every two days, closely track natural disasters and provide quick assessments of damage to guide rescue and reconstruction work.
SCO's prime ministers meet in Dushanbe, agree to boost regional cooperation
DUSHANBE, Nov. 25 -- Prime ministers of the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) met here Thursday and agreed to further regional cooperation within the SCO framework.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao attended the meeting.
This is the ninth such meeting. The first meeting was held in Almaty in September of 2001. Economic cooperation is atop the meeting's agenda.
Founded in 2001, the SCO groups China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (4th L) poses for a group photo with representatives attending the 9th prime ministers' meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, Nov. 25, 2010.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao attended the meeting.
This is the ninth such meeting. The first meeting was held in Almaty in September of 2001. Economic cooperation is atop the meeting's agenda.
Founded in 2001, the SCO groups China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (4th L) poses for a group photo with representatives attending the 9th prime ministers' meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, Nov. 25, 2010.
Sony launches new "Reader" e-book in Tokyo
| English.news.cn 2010-11-25 |
 |
A model poses with Sony Corp's new "Reader" e-book device at its unveiling in Tokyo November 25, 2010. |
Massive Indian Luxury Car Buy Attracts Attention
New Delhi 24 November 2010
DaimlerChrysler India Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Wilfried Aulbur stands next to a Mercedes E-280 as he speaks during an event
When businessmen, lawyers, doctors and other professionals in the town of Aurangabad in Western India purchased nearly 150 Mercedes Benz cars in a single day last month, they got what they wanted: attention.
The sight of Mercedes on the roads also whet the town's appetite for more luxury cars. Another group of about 100 people got together and they plan to order BMWs - again on a single day.
Aurangabad, a city of two million residents, lies in a cotton-growing belt and is close to historic caves visited by tourists in Maharashtra state. As the economy has boomed, it has transformed from a trading town to an industrial hub where Indian and multinational companies have established many factories.
Image change
Sacheen Mulay is the president of the local Chambers of Commerce and Industry and one of the proud Mercedes owners. He says the car buyers wanted to change the image of the town as a backward, sleepy destination.
"Buying a 150 Mercedes is not a joke," Mulay insisted. "We wanted recognition in the world. Aurangabad is not a small place. We are potential buyers and very upcoming entrepreneurs are there in Aurangabad."
While big cities such as Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore have attracted the attention of Western retail companies, not many have ventured into India's smaller towns.
Big potential
But retail consultants say these cities - with populations of between two and five million - offer huge potential.
Punendu Kumar at consulting firm Technopak says residents here were not known for conspicuous consumption in the past, but that is changing. He expects many companies to target these consumers in the coming years.
"You see these people getting more aware of lot of products and lot of other categories where they can spend money on," Kumar explained. "I see that's the way to go and they will become the hub for expansion."
Aurangabad is showing the way. A huge shopping mall that opened last month has become popular with residents. But they want much more - luxury brands, a bowling alley, and a nightclub.
Chinese Increasingly Hit the Road in Their Own Cars
Stephanie Ho | Beijing 24 November 2010
A lone Chinese cyclist face a traffic dominated by automobiles in Beijing, China (file photo)
China has a growing love affair with the car. This is clear at the Beijing Asian Games Village Automobile Exchange, where more and more people come to look and, increasingly, to buy.
Alice Wu is an editor at a Chinese Internet publication. She takes the subway to work, but she is certain she can cut her commute time if she drives herself.
Wu says it takes her three hours to get to work now. If she had a car, she says, the same trip would only take her two hours.
Big business
The Asian Games Village Automobile Exchange is the biggest car dealership in Beijing. General manager Guo Yong says the business sells more than two thousand cars each week.
Guo says it is much easier for Chinese consumers to buy a car now. In the past, it would take them several years to earn enough money to buy a new car. Now, he says, many people only need to save for one year.
Also, the emergence of less expensive domestic brands like Chery and BYD means more Chinese can afford cars.
Traffic congestion
For decades, most Chinese city residents got about by bicycle or public buses and trains. Now, in many areas, the number of new cars is growing faster than the road system, leaving city streets jammed with traffic.
Guo Liang has wanted to buy a car for a decade, and he will be the first in his family to own one. He is not deterred by Beijing's traffic jams.
Guo says if the traffic is too bad, he will use the car for leisure or holidays with his family.
Another customer, Zhang Menxin, works in Beijing, but is from Xi'an, more than 900 kilometers away.
Zhang says it is very difficult to get a train ticket to return home for Chinese New Year. She adds that she will want to take her infant son, and that the train is not convenient. If she had her own car, she says, she could go anytime she wanted to.
Status symbol
World Bank transportation specialist Shomik Mendhiratta says a car is something people in any society would aspire to own.
"Getting a car makes people feel like they have arrived (to the) middle class," Mendhiratta said. "It's got a huge status associated with it. It's a fantastic thing to have, if you have never had a car. A car gives you a mobility that's unbelievable."
And, as 26-year-old car shopper Alice Wu points out, for young women in her generation, a car also can help make a potential boyfriend a little more attractive. She says she does not care if a future beau has a car – but she says if he does, it will add points.
Related Articles
Former House Majority Leader DeLay Convicted of Money Laundering in Texas
Greg Flakus | Houston 25 November 2010
Former House Majority Leader Tom Delay, along with his wife, Christine, left, and daughter Danielle Garcia, leave the Travis Coumty Courthouse in Austin, Texas 24 Nov. 2010.
As the verdict was read in court Wednesday, Tom DeLay stood quietly, although some witnesses say his face reddened and he appeared to be suppressing tears. Afterwards, he spoke to local reporters outside the courtroom.
His reaction
"This is an abuse of power. It is a miscarriage of justice and I still maintain that I am innocent," Delay said. "The criminalization of politics undermines our very system. I am very disappointed."
DeLay's attorney, Dick DeGuerin, told reporters he would appeal the decision and that the verdict would never stand up on appeal.
But lead prosecutor Gary Cobb said the trial was fair and that the jury had made its decision based on the evidence presented in court, not on the basis of politics.
About the case
The case against DeLay was put together in 2005 by the then district attorney for Travis County, Ronnie Earle, a well-known Democrat who was seen by DeLay's defenders as operating with a political agenda. But the current district attorney, Rosemary Lehmberg denied there were any political considerations in this case. She also noted that her office convicted a Democratic state legislator on corruption charges and that this shows there is no partisan agenda at work.
DeLay was first elected to represent Texas' 22nd Congressional District in 1984 and resigned in 2006 after he was targeted by both an investigation here in Texas and a separate federal investigation into his ties with lobbyist Jack Abramoff. The federal case was dropped in August of this year. The Texas case was based on allegations that DeLay channeled $190,000 in corporate donations to Republican state legislative candidates here in Texas in 2002. Such use of corporate funds is illegal in Texas.
DeLay's achievements
Gains by the Republicans in the 2002 election paved the way for changes in the boundaries of the state's Congressional districts, which political analysts say has helped Republicans win more districts in elections since then. DeLay was also controversial as majority leader in the U.S. Congress from 2003 to 2005. He was known as "The Hammer" for his tough approach to marshalling votes and his strident advocacy for conservative positions.
Tom DeLay was out of the public eye in recent years except for a series of appearances as a dancer on a popular U.S. television program, "Dancing with the Stars," in 2009. He now runs a consulting firm in the Houston suburb of Sugarland, which is in the 22nd Congressional district that he once represented.
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