Podcasts about East Asia

In many ways, humanity seems to have become more humane and inclusive over time. While there's still a lot of progress to be made, campaigns to give people of different genders, races, sexualities, ethnicities, beliefs, and abilities equal treatment and rights have had significant success.It's tempting to believe this was inevitable — that the arc of history “bends toward justice,” and that as humans get richer, we'll make even more moral progress.But today's guest Christopher Brown — a professor of history at Columbia University and specialist in the abolitionist movement and the British Empire during the 18th and 19th centuries — believes the story of how slavery became unacceptable suggests moral progress is far from inevitable.Rebroadcast: This episode was originally aired in February 2023.Links to learn more, video, and full transcript: https://80k.link/CLBWhile most of us today feel that the abolition of slavery was sure to happen sooner or later as humans became richer and more educated, Christopher doesn't believe any of the arguments for that conclusion pass muster. If he's right, a counterfactual history where slavery remains widespread in 2023 isn't so far-fetched.As Christopher lays out in his two key books, Moral Capital: Foundations of British Abolitionism and Arming Slaves: From Classical Times to the Modern Age, slavery has been ubiquitous throughout history. Slavery of some form was fundamental in Classical Greece, the Roman Empire, in much of the Islamic civilisation, in South Asia, and in parts of early modern East Asia, Korea, China.It was justified on all sorts of grounds that sound mad to us today. But according to Christopher, while there's evidence that slavery was questioned in many of these civilisations, and periodically attacked by slaves themselves, there was no enduring or successful moral advocacy against slavery until the British abolitionist movement of the 1700s.That movement first conquered Britain and its empire, then eventually the whole world. But the fact that there's only a single time in history that a persistent effort to ban slavery got off the ground is a big clue that opposition to slavery was a contingent matter: if abolition had been inevitable, we'd expect to see multiple independent abolitionist movements thoroughly history, providing redundancy should any one of them fail.Christopher argues that this rarity is primarily down to the enormous economic and cultural incentives to deny the moral repugnancy of slavery, and crush opposition to it with violence wherever necessary.Mere awareness is insufficient to guarantee a movement will arise to fix a problem. Humanity continues to allow many severe injustices to persist, despite being aware of them. So why is it so hard to imagine we might have done the same with forced labour?In this episode, Christopher describes the unique and peculiar set of political, social and religious circumstances that gave rise to the only successful and lasting anti-slavery movement in human history. These circumstances were sufficiently improbable that Christopher believes there are very nearby worlds where abolitionism might never have taken off.Christopher and host Rob Wiblin also discuss:Various instantiations of slavery throughout human historySigns of antislavery sentiment before the 17th centuryThe role of the Quakers in early British abolitionist movementThe importance of individual “heroes” in the abolitionist movementArguments against the idea that the abolition of slavery was contingentWhether there have ever been any major moral shifts that were inevitableChapters:Rob's intro (00:00:00)Cold open (00:01:45)Who's Christopher Brown? (00:03:00)Was abolitionism inevitable? (00:08:53)The history of slavery (00:14:35)Signs of antislavery sentiment before the 17th century (00:19:24)Quakers (00:32:37)Attitudes to slavery in other religions (00:44:37)Quaker advocacy (00:56:28)Inevitability and contingency (01:06:29)Moral revolution (01:16:39)The importance of specific individuals (01:29:23)Later stages of the antislavery movement (01:41:33)Economic theory of abolition (01:55:27)Influence of knowledge work and education (02:12:15)Moral foundations theory (02:20:43)Figuring out how contingent events are (02:32:42)Least bad argument for why abolition was inevitable (02:41:45)Were any major moral shifts inevitable? (02:47:29)Producer: Keiran HarrisAudio mastering: Milo McGuireTranscriptions: Katy Moore

Explore how strategic leadership, global legal expertise, and a forward-thinking mindset help companies navigate expansion, talent acquisition, and innovation in today's fast-moving markets.In this episode of Sharkpreneur, Seth Greene interviews Dean Fealk, Northern California Co-Managing Partner at DLA Piper and WSJ Best-Selling Author, who has decades of experience guiding technology companies through global expansion, talent strategy, and market growth. A former international practitioner with work spanning East Asia and Northern California, Dean has advised top-tier clients like IBM, McDonald's, and Pfizer, as well as contributing to civic organizations and three U.S. presidential campaigns. In this episode, he shares lessons on scaling businesses, leading diverse teams, and applying strategic legal and operational insight to real-world challenges.Key Takeaways:→ Strategies for helping companies expand into new markets with minimal friction.→ Balancing global corporate standards with local flexibility for success.→ The importance of hiring and empowering top talent in different regions.→ Lessons from advising major multinational clients and navigating complex business environments.→ Dean's experience contributing to civic organizations and U.S. presidential campaigns.Dean Fealk is the Northern California co-managing partner at global law firm DLA Piper and a recognized citizen statesperson tackling international issues at the intersection of business, politics, and security. With 25+ years advising multinational companies on over $40 billion in cross-border transactions, Dean brings unparalleled expertise on how geopolitics impacts business and economy. A Wall Street Journal bestselling author and Chief Influencer, his insights appear in Forbes, Fast Company, and The Atlantic. Dean serves on numerous international security organizations including the Halifax International Security Forum and co-founded Transatlantic West to strengthen Silicon Valley-Europe relations. His leadership in global diplomacy has earned him designations as a Fulbright Scholar, Eisenhower Fellow, and Council on Foreign Relations life member.Connect With Dean:Website: https://www.dlapiper.com/en-usInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/dlapiper/X: https://x.com/DLA_PiperFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/DLAPiperGlobal/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dla-piper/

Listen to the article with analysis from the author:  President Donald Trump has a more limited range of options for attacking Iran now than he did in June. The US has moved military assets out of the Middle East in recent months, including moving an aircraft carrier strike group to the Caribbean.  Since the US and Israel’s war against Iran last year, the US has moved two aircraft carrier strike groups out of the Middle East. The USS Nimitz is now at a US port, and the USS Gerald R. Ford is in Latin America.  An advanced American air defense system that was deployed to the Middle East in June is now back in East Asia. Politico notes, “The Trump administration also has been eating away at dwindling US weapons stockpiles with the fast pace of military operations in the Red Sea, Iran and Venezuela.” Trump has made several pledges to back Iranian protesters and attack Iran. The lack of available military resources in the region could limit Trump’s operations for attacking Iran, although the US still maintains the capability to strike the Islamic Republic.  Over the past decade, the pace of US military interventions has spread across the globe. Under President Joe Biden, the US flooded weapons to Ukraine and Israel. President Donald Trump has bombed seven countries. Additionally, the US used a significant portion of its arsenal of interceptors to defend Israel from Iranian retaliation in June.  

Semafor CEO Justin Smith joins Mixed Signals for a candid discussion about why the digital media company raised $30 million late last year, and how it reached profitability in just three years. Max asks Justin and Semafor editor-in-chief Ben Smith about the company's $330 valuation, the company's planned investment in the Gulf and East Asia, and what it takes to build a modern media company in 2026. Justin and Ben reflect on lessons from earlier eras of digital media, and the triumphs and mistakes Semafor made in its first three years. Sign up for Semafor Media's Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media  For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com

In this return appearance on the podcast, demographer Lyman Stone joins Aaron Renn to discuss the latest global fertility and marriage trends as of 2026. While U.S. birth rates and marriage rates have shown relative stability at low levels, the picture elsewhere is far bleaker—sharp declines in East Asia and Eastern Europe, with South Korea hitting historic lows.They explore the long-term consequences: aging societies, loss of dynamism, military vulnerabilities, and whether the United States could emerge as demographic "last man standing" in a world of collapsing birth rates. The conversation covers housing affordability, young men's declining economic prospects, marriage penalties in public policy, ineffective pronatalist interventions, and why cash incentives do work—but at a steep price. Stone also critiques "billionaire baby fetishes," calls for fixing marriage disincentives, and highlights practical ideas like family-friendly airports and better child tax credit design.CHAPTERS(00:00 – Introduction)(00:25 – What's changed in fertility/marriage trends recently?)(02:19 – U.S. stability vs. global plunges (Eastern Europe, East Asia))(04:05 – Underlying drivers aren't reversing: gender polarization, young men's economic status, housing)(07:18 – Long-term implications: from military staffing crises to loss of community dynamism)(09:51 – Why declining population feels bad even when GDP rises)(13:48 – Aging societies, boomer interests, and anti-family tax policies)(17:49 – Do cash incentives work? Yes—but expensive)(21:30 – Immigration and AI as supposed fixes (and why they fall short))(23:41 – America as potential “last man standing” in a century)(27:12 – Rising elite fertility and the K-shaped economy's impact on family formation)(35:51 – Economic shifts delaying peak earnings and complicating mate selection)(38:05 – Pronatalism: intact families matter, fixing marriage penalties, child tax credit reform)(46:12 – Corporate interests, stay-at-home parents, and policy failures)(49:43 – Critique of billionaire “sperm spamming” and surrogacy tourism)LYMAN STONE LINKS:

Tune in here to this Friday's edition of the Brett Winterble Show! We’re joined by Gordon G. Chang, foreign policy analyst and China expert, to talk about the unraveling of authoritarian regimes and China’s increasingly precarious position on the world stage. Gordon breaks down how events in Venezuela and Iran are interconnected with Beijing’s strategic losses, particularly the collapse of key proxy relationships and access to cheap oil. The discussion explores how the retreat of the so-called “red-green alliance” is creating internal pressure for Xi Jinping, raising fears of unrest inside China itself. Gordon explains why this instability could drive more aggressive Chinese behavior in East Asia, including heightened provocations toward Taiwan, Japan, and the Philippines. Listen here for all of this and more on The Brett Winterble Show! For more from Brett Winterble check out his YouTube channel. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Silver Market Tightens: Record U.S. FUN Coin Show Crowds Meet East Asian Physical Silver Demand  From record crowds at the FUN Coin Show to rising demand across China and Asia, silver markets are tightening as retail and industrial buyers compete. Silver had a busy week — and the signals are getting harder to ignore. From record-breaking crowds at the FUN Coin Show in Florida to silver bullion selling out in minutes across Japan and months-long waitlists in Singapore, physical demand is tightening worldwide. At the same time, China's growing grip on global silver refining and new export controls are quietly reshaping supply chains that industries can't function without. Premiums in Asia and shrinking inventories in the West suggest this isn't just a paper-market move, but a real-world squeeze forming across hemispheres. Listen to hear how these forces are converging — and why silver's role as a strategic metal may be entering a new chapter.

Jay Solomon, author of The Iran Wars: Spy Games, Bank Battles, and the Secret Deals That Reshaped the Middle East and co-author of The Free Press report How Qatar Bought America joins Yasmine in Episode 4 of Islam and the West to discuss how Islamist governments like Qatar and Iran have spent billions of dollars infiltrating the media, education and governments in the West to control the narrative and spread their ideology.Jay Solomon is one of the U.S.'s premier investigative journalists and writers, with a global track record that goes back nearly 30 years. He was The Wall Street Journal's chief foreign affairs correspondent for over a decade, during which he broke some of Washington's largest stories, such as the Obama administration's secret cash shipments to Iran. He also served tours in the Middle East, India, and East Asia. He's an expert on international sanctions, illicit finance, nuclear proliferation, and cyber warfare.Jay on X: https://x.com/jaysolomonJay's works:The Iran Wars: https://a.co/d/hoNi9nrHow Qatar Bought America: https://www.thefp.com/p/how-qatar-bought-america?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

While early Buddhists hailed their religion's founder for opening a path to enlightenment, they also exalted him as the paragon of masculinity. According to Buddhist scriptures, the Buddha's body boasts thirty-two physical features, including lionlike jaws, thighs like a royal stag, broad shoulders, and a deep, resonant voice, that distinguish him from ordinary men. As Buddhism spread throughout Asia and around the world, the Buddha remained an exemplary man, but Buddhists in other times and places developed their own understandings of what it meant to be masculine. This transdisciplinary book brings together essays that explore the variety and diversity of Buddhist masculinities, from early India to the contemporary United States, and from bodhisattva-kings to martial monks. Buddhist Masculinities (Columbia UP, 2023) adopts the methods of religious studies, anthropology, art history, textual-historical studies, and cultural studies to explore texts, images, films, media, and embodiments of masculinity across the Buddhist world, past and present. It turns scholarly attention to normative forms of masculinity that usually go unmarked and unstudied precisely because they are "normal," illuminating the religious and cultural processes that construct Buddhist masculinities. Engaging with contemporary issues of gender identity, intersectionality, and sexual ethics, Buddhist Masculinities ushers in a new era for the study of Buddhism and gender. MEGAN BRYSON is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and chair of the Asian Studies program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She received her B.A. in Religious Studies and Chinese from University of Oregon, and her Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Stanford University. Her research focuses primarily on themes of gender and ethnicity in Chinese religions, especially in the Dali region of Yunnan Province. The geographical specificity of her work is balanced by its temporal breadth, which ranges from the Nanzhao (649-903) and Dali (937-1253) kingdoms to the present, as reflected in her monograph, Goddess on the Frontier: Religion, Ethnicity, and Gender in Southwest China (Stanford University Press, 2016, an interview with her about this book is also on the New Books Network), which traces the worship of a local deity in Dali from the 12th to 21st centuries. KEVIN BUCKELEW is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Northwestern University. He received his B.A. in the liberal arts from Sarah Lawrence College, and his Ph.D. from Columbia University's Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures. His research focuses on Buddhism in premodern China, with special attention to the rise of the Chan (Zen) Buddhist tradition and to interactions between Chinese Buddhists and Daoists. Thematically, his work explores how religious identities take shape and assume social authority; how materiality, embodiment, and gender figure into Buddhist soteriology; and how Buddhists have grappled with the problem of human agency. Jue Liang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Case Western Reserve University. She is currently completing her first book, entitled Conceiving the Mother of Tibet: The Early Literary Lives of the Buddhist Saint Yeshé Tsogyel. She is also working on a second project, tentatively titled i. As a scholar of Buddhist literature, history, and culture in South and East Asia, she reflects in her research and teaching continuities as well as innovations in the gender discourses of Buddhist communities. She is also interested in the theory and practice of translation in general, and translating Tibetan literature in particular. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

While early Buddhists hailed their religion's founder for opening a path to enlightenment, they also exalted him as the paragon of masculinity. According to Buddhist scriptures, the Buddha's body boasts thirty-two physical features, including lionlike jaws, thighs like a royal stag, broad shoulders, and a deep, resonant voice, that distinguish him from ordinary men. As Buddhism spread throughout Asia and around the world, the Buddha remained an exemplary man, but Buddhists in other times and places developed their own understandings of what it meant to be masculine. This transdisciplinary book brings together essays that explore the variety and diversity of Buddhist masculinities, from early India to the contemporary United States, and from bodhisattva-kings to martial monks. Buddhist Masculinities (Columbia UP, 2023) adopts the methods of religious studies, anthropology, art history, textual-historical studies, and cultural studies to explore texts, images, films, media, and embodiments of masculinity across the Buddhist world, past and present. It turns scholarly attention to normative forms of masculinity that usually go unmarked and unstudied precisely because they are "normal," illuminating the religious and cultural processes that construct Buddhist masculinities. Engaging with contemporary issues of gender identity, intersectionality, and sexual ethics, Buddhist Masculinities ushers in a new era for the study of Buddhism and gender. MEGAN BRYSON is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and chair of the Asian Studies program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She received her B.A. in Religious Studies and Chinese from University of Oregon, and her Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Stanford University. Her research focuses primarily on themes of gender and ethnicity in Chinese religions, especially in the Dali region of Yunnan Province. The geographical specificity of her work is balanced by its temporal breadth, which ranges from the Nanzhao (649-903) and Dali (937-1253) kingdoms to the present, as reflected in her monograph, Goddess on the Frontier: Religion, Ethnicity, and Gender in Southwest China (Stanford University Press, 2016, an interview with her about this book is also on the New Books Network), which traces the worship of a local deity in Dali from the 12th to 21st centuries. KEVIN BUCKELEW is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Northwestern University. He received his B.A. in the liberal arts from Sarah Lawrence College, and his Ph.D. from Columbia University's Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures. His research focuses on Buddhism in premodern China, with special attention to the rise of the Chan (Zen) Buddhist tradition and to interactions between Chinese Buddhists and Daoists. Thematically, his work explores how religious identities take shape and assume social authority; how materiality, embodiment, and gender figure into Buddhist soteriology; and how Buddhists have grappled with the problem of human agency. Jue Liang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Case Western Reserve University. She is currently completing her first book, entitled Conceiving the Mother of Tibet: The Early Literary Lives of the Buddhist Saint Yeshé Tsogyel. She is also working on a second project, tentatively titled i. As a scholar of Buddhist literature, history, and culture in South and East Asia, she reflects in her research and teaching continuities as well as innovations in the gender discourses of Buddhist communities. She is also interested in the theory and practice of translation in general, and translating Tibetan literature in particular. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies

A World View from London: Geopolitical tension, environmental clean-ups and predictions for the year ahead Adam Gilchrist joins John Maytham for a global round-up that starts in East Asia, where China has launched fresh military drills around Taiwan, escalating regional tensions and prompting concern about stability in the Taiwan Strait. The conversation then shifts to the slopes of Mount Everest, where Nepal’s efforts to tackle mounting rubbish left by climbers are under scrutiny as authorities rethink how best to protect the world’s highest peak. The segment ends on a lighter but curious note with a look at the latest viral predictions attributed to Baba Vanga for 2026, sparking debate about why prophecies continue to capture the public imagination. Good Morning Cape Town with Lester Kiewit is a podcast of the CapeTalk breakfast show. This programme is your authentic Cape Town wake-up call. Good Morning Cape Town with Lester Kiewit is informative, enlightening and accessible. The team’s ability to spot & share relevant and unusual stories make the programme inclusive and thought-provoking. Don’t miss the popular World View feature at 7:45am daily. Listen out for #LesterInYourLounge which is an outside broadcast – from the home of a listener in a different part of Cape Town - on the first Wednesday of every month. This show introduces you to interesting Capetonians as well as their favourite communities, habits, local personalities and neighbourhood news. Thank you for listening to a podcast from Good Morning Cape Town with Lester Kiewit. Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays between 06:00 and 09:00 (SA Time) to Good Morning CapeTalk with Lester Kiewit broadcast on CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/xGkqLbT or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/f9Eeb7i Subscribe to the CapeTalk Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/sbvVZD5 Follow us on social media CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An exciting collection of stories of change that most people don't usually hear from the bottom up, from the grassroots, about what's happening in East Asia. Spaces of Creative Resistance: Social Change Projects in Twenty-First-Century East Asia (Rutgers UP, 2025) brings together an exciting cross-regional interdisciplinary group of scholars, scholar activists, artists, and others for a collection that addresses the last two decades' hollowing out of social connections, socioeconomic income gaps, and general precarity of life in East Asian societies. Written by authors from China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, each chapter is focused on people making a difference together in socially sustainable ways, particularly in the areas of gender, labor, and environments - both built and natural. These projects all constitute acts of creative resistance to neoliberal development, and each act of creative resistance demonstrates how individuals and communities across East Asia are making new worlds and lifeways in the small and everyday. Taking on larger political and economic forces that affect their lives and communities, each project and group of individuals featured here is focused on making more liveable presents and more possible futures. Andrea Gevurtz Arai is a cultural anthropologist and Acting Assistant Professor in the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. She is the author of The Strange Child: Education and the Psychology of Patriotism in Recessionary Japan (2016), co-editor of Spaces of Possibility: Korea and Japan (2016) and Global Futures in East Asia (2013). Arai is completing a second book, The 3.11 Generation: Changing the Subjects of Gender, Labor and Environment in Trans-Local Japan and co-editing Ultra low birth societies in East Asia: Crisis Discourse and Collaborative Responses. Yadong Li is a socio-cultural anthropologist-in-training. He is registered as a PhD student at Tulane University. His research interests lie at the intersection of political ecology, critical development studies, and the anthropology of time. More details about his scholarship and research interests can be found here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

An exciting collection of stories of change that most people don't usually hear from the bottom up, from the grassroots, about what's happening in East Asia. Spaces of Creative Resistance: Social Change Projects in Twenty-First-Century East Asia (Rutgers UP, 2025) brings together an exciting cross-regional interdisciplinary group of scholars, scholar activists, artists, and others for a collection that addresses the last two decades' hollowing out of social connections, socioeconomic income gaps, and general precarity of life in East Asian societies. Written by authors from China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, each chapter is focused on people making a difference together in socially sustainable ways, particularly in the areas of gender, labor, and environments - both built and natural. These projects all constitute acts of creative resistance to neoliberal development, and each act of creative resistance demonstrates how individuals and communities across East Asia are making new worlds and lifeways in the small and everyday. Taking on larger political and economic forces that affect their lives and communities, each project and group of individuals featured here is focused on making more liveable presents and more possible futures. Andrea Gevurtz Arai is a cultural anthropologist and Acting Assistant Professor in the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. She is the author of The Strange Child: Education and the Psychology of Patriotism in Recessionary Japan (2016), co-editor of Spaces of Possibility: Korea and Japan (2016) and Global Futures in East Asia (2013). Arai is completing a second book, The 3.11 Generation: Changing the Subjects of Gender, Labor and Environment in Trans-Local Japan and co-editing Ultra low birth societies in East Asia: Crisis Discourse and Collaborative Responses. Yadong Li is a socio-cultural anthropologist-in-training. He is registered as a PhD student at Tulane University. His research interests lie at the intersection of political ecology, critical development studies, and the anthropology of time. More details about his scholarship and research interests can be found here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/east-asian-studies

An exciting collection of stories of change that most people don't usually hear from the bottom up, from the grassroots, about what's happening in East Asia. Spaces of Creative Resistance: Social Change Projects in Twenty-First-Century East Asia (Rutgers UP, 2025) brings together an exciting cross-regional interdisciplinary group of scholars, scholar activists, artists, and others for a collection that addresses the last two decades' hollowing out of social connections, socioeconomic income gaps, and general precarity of life in East Asian societies. Written by authors from China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, each chapter is focused on people making a difference together in socially sustainable ways, particularly in the areas of gender, labor, and environments - both built and natural. These projects all constitute acts of creative resistance to neoliberal development, and each act of creative resistance demonstrates how individuals and communities across East Asia are making new worlds and lifeways in the small and everyday. Taking on larger political and economic forces that affect their lives and communities, each project and group of individuals featured here is focused on making more liveable presents and more possible futures. Andrea Gevurtz Arai is a cultural anthropologist and Acting Assistant Professor in the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. She is the author of The Strange Child: Education and the Psychology of Patriotism in Recessionary Japan (2016), co-editor of Spaces of Possibility: Korea and Japan (2016) and Global Futures in East Asia (2013). Arai is completing a second book, The 3.11 Generation: Changing the Subjects of Gender, Labor and Environment in Trans-Local Japan and co-editing Ultra low birth societies in East Asia: Crisis Discourse and Collaborative Responses. Yadong Li is a socio-cultural anthropologist-in-training. He is registered as a PhD student at Tulane University. His research interests lie at the intersection of political ecology, critical development studies, and the anthropology of time. More details about his scholarship and research interests can be found here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/anthropology

The Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes span 5,000 kilometers west to east along the northern latitude of Asia. This unique ecozone allowed rapid movements of people, animals, goods, and ideas across Eurasia since prehistory and harbored numerous polities of pastoralists that made tremendous impacts on human history. However, the region's dynamic genetic history has been emerging only recently from archaeogenomic studies. Choongwon Jeong of Seoul National University discusses the current understanding of the region's genetic history, including the divergent genetic history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppe populations, the genetic interaction between the steppe pastoralists and their neighbors, and a comparison between the genetic history of human and domesticated animal populations. The emerging genetic view illuminates the poorly recorded history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes and provides an interconnected perspective on the history of Eurasia. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 41197]

The Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes span 5,000 kilometers west to east along the northern latitude of Asia. This unique ecozone allowed rapid movements of people, animals, goods, and ideas across Eurasia since prehistory and harbored numerous polities of pastoralists that made tremendous impacts on human history. However, the region's dynamic genetic history has been emerging only recently from archaeogenomic studies. Choongwon Jeong of Seoul National University discusses the current understanding of the region's genetic history, including the divergent genetic history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppe populations, the genetic interaction between the steppe pastoralists and their neighbors, and a comparison between the genetic history of human and domesticated animal populations. The emerging genetic view illuminates the poorly recorded history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes and provides an interconnected perspective on the history of Eurasia. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 41197]

The Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes span 5,000 kilometers west to east along the northern latitude of Asia. This unique ecozone allowed rapid movements of people, animals, goods, and ideas across Eurasia since prehistory and harbored numerous polities of pastoralists that made tremendous impacts on human history. However, the region's dynamic genetic history has been emerging only recently from archaeogenomic studies. Choongwon Jeong of Seoul National University discusses the current understanding of the region's genetic history, including the divergent genetic history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppe populations, the genetic interaction between the steppe pastoralists and their neighbors, and a comparison between the genetic history of human and domesticated animal populations. The emerging genetic view illuminates the poorly recorded history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes and provides an interconnected perspective on the history of Eurasia. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 41197]

The Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes span 5,000 kilometers west to east along the northern latitude of Asia. This unique ecozone allowed rapid movements of people, animals, goods, and ideas across Eurasia since prehistory and harbored numerous polities of pastoralists that made tremendous impacts on human history. However, the region's dynamic genetic history has been emerging only recently from archaeogenomic studies. Choongwon Jeong of Seoul National University discusses the current understanding of the region's genetic history, including the divergent genetic history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppe populations, the genetic interaction between the steppe pastoralists and their neighbors, and a comparison between the genetic history of human and domesticated animal populations. The emerging genetic view illuminates the poorly recorded history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes and provides an interconnected perspective on the history of Eurasia. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 41197]

The Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes span 5,000 kilometers west to east along the northern latitude of Asia. This unique ecozone allowed rapid movements of people, animals, goods, and ideas across Eurasia since prehistory and harbored numerous polities of pastoralists that made tremendous impacts on human history. However, the region's dynamic genetic history has been emerging only recently from archaeogenomic studies. Choongwon Jeong of Seoul National University discusses the current understanding of the region's genetic history, including the divergent genetic history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppe populations, the genetic interaction between the steppe pastoralists and their neighbors, and a comparison between the genetic history of human and domesticated animal populations. The emerging genetic view illuminates the poorly recorded history of the Kazakh and Mongolian Steppes and provides an interconnected perspective on the history of Eurasia. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 41197]

In this episode, we explore groundbreaking developments in lunar colonization and the intriguing behaviors of interstellar visitors. We kick off with a bold announcement from Russia, revealing plans to construct a nuclear power plant on the Moon in collaboration with China, aiming for completion by 2036. This ambitious project signifies a shift towards sustainable human presence on the lunar surface. Next, we dive into a sci-fi-inspired innovation as Russia's Energia rocket company patents a spacecraft design featuring artificial gravity, a game-changer for long-duration space missions, potentially mitigating the adverse effects of zero gravity on astronauts.Shifting gears, we celebrate a significant achievement in satellite technology with the launch of Bluebird 6, a record-breaking satellite designed to provide broadband internet directly to smartphones, boasting the largest communication array ever deployed in low Earth orbit. However, not all news is positive, as Japan faces a setback with the failure of its H3 rocket during a critical mission to deliver the Michibiki 5 satellite, crucial for enhancing GPS accuracy in East Asia.Finally, we journey beyond our solar system to investigate the interstellar comet 3I ATLAS, which exhibits unusual behavior, including a rare sun-facing anti-tail and wobbling jets of outgassing material. This discovery provides insights into the comet's rotation, revealing its nucleus spins once every 15.5 hours. Join us as we unpack these fascinating stories and more in this episode of Astronomy Daily!00:00 – **Today we're covering ambitious plans for lunar colonization and fascinating new discoveries00:36 – **Russia plans to build a nuclear power plant on the moon by 203601:49 – **Russian rocket company has just secured a patent for a new spacecraft design03:11 – **Indian rocket recently launched the Bluebird 6 satellite, and it's a record breaker04:27 – **Japan's ambitions for an independent satellite navigation system suffered a significant blow05:31 – **Astronomers studying interstellar comet 3I ATLAS have observed unusual behavior06:59 – **Today's featured news includes ambitious plans for nuclear power on the Moon### Sources & Further Reading1. NASA2. Roscosmos3. Space.com4. AST SpaceMobile5. JAXA### Follow & ContactX/Twitter: @AstroDailyPodInstagram: @astrodailypodEmail: hello@astronomydaily.ioWebsite: astronomydaily.ioClear skies and see you next time!

Demographer and author Paul Morland joins James Smith to reveal the uncomfortable truth about the problem with population collapse - why falling birth rates are creating aging societies, economic decline and a quiet crisis at the heart of the modern world. Morland explains how a lack of children is reshaping nations, destroying communities and threatening the future of humanity itself. They discuss the myths around “overpopulation,” the cultural shifts stopping people from having families and the real reasons behind the demographic time bomb no one wants to talk about. From housing and technology to feminism and social media, this episode explores how comfort, distraction and misplaced priorities have turned reproduction into a global taboo.

Welcome back to another EUVC Podcast, where we explore the lessons, frameworks, and insights shaping venture ecosystems across the globe.In this special Southeast Asia edition this week, David Cruz e Silva from EUVC and Ambika from Circle Capital sit down with Binh Tran from AVV (Ascend Vietnam Ventures) - a VC firm headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, backing tech founders across Vietnam, Southeast Asia, and the U.S.A serial founder turned VC, Binh sold his first company Klout for $200M in 2014 before launching 500 Startups Vietnam and later AVV, which has now backed about 500 startups, including unicorns Turing, Skymavis, and ApplyBoard.Together, they unpack Vietnam's ecosystem growth, power-law returns in emerging markets, government catalysts, and how to back founders with both grit and global ambition.

John Ross, during his schoolboy days in New Zealand, was interested in far-flung places such as South America, Papua New Guinea, Ancient Greece and Rome, as well as books on World War One and Two. He read a lot of youth fiction starting at 10 years old, but as a teenager, had a voracious appetite for nonfiction. In his 20s he discovered a few wonderful fiction writers, but has still kept mostly to nonfiction through the decades.His first books were Willard Price's Adventure series and Gerald Durrell books on real-life animal collecting. He also read detective and war stories (Biggles) and lots of travel accounts and travel guides.Robert Louis Stevenson was a favorite—Treasure Island, Kidnapped—and later discovered that Stevenson was a very good essayist too. John also enjoyed Rudyard Kipling's Kim.The ancient Greeks left a great impression on him: Herodotus (The Histories) and Thucydides (The Peloponnesian War)In his early 20s he started reading proper literature:Anna Karenina, Dr Zhivago, George Orwell, and Joseph Conrad. He loved Peter Hopkirk's The Great Game series featuring colorful adventurers and spies in exotic locations. In his early 30s he discovered Raymond Chandler and in his 40s H.P. Lovecraft.For books on Asia and East Asia, he started reading about Burma in the late 1980s, and early 1990s, and Mongolia in the mid-1990s, and increasingly China and Taiwan, and even some works on Japan.Some well known book titles that made an early impression were Lost Horizon by James Hilton, Burmese Days by George Orwell, The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck, and Jonathan Spence's China books. Also books on Asia by Maurice Collis.Amy's ReadingAs a child, Amy remembers reading Black Beauty (Anna Sewell, 1877), Walter Farley's series The Black Stallion (1941), and a book called Ponies Plot (Janet Hickman, 1971). She loved all the required reading for school (some books now banned): English literature such as Graham Greene's Brighton Rock, Shakespeare's plays, and lots of Roald Dahl, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and James and the Giant Peach; and American authors John Steinbeck (1930s–1950s), J. D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye (1951), Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter (1850), Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh (1964) and A Separate Peace (1959) by John Knowles. She recalls that in first grade, her teacher read to the class Little Pear (1931), by Eleanor Francis Lattimore, about a Chinese boy.From her parents' book collection she read Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott (1868), and  Wuthering Heights (1847) Emily Bronte as well as stories by Charlotte Bronte and other classics.In college she moved into more popular literature, again much of it required reading for her classes: works by Thomas Pynchon, Jerzy Kosiński, Blind Date (1977) and The Painted Bird (1965) the latter of which—notably—had a scene on bestiality and would probably be banned as college reading these days!.In high school, her father paid her to read books, and she vividly remembers excerpts from Henry Hazlitt's The Foundations of Morality (1964), which still influences her choices in life today. She credits her father's books for her interest in philosophy and a basic understanding of free-market economics.Once she knew she was headed to Japan, she read Edwin Reischauer's  The Japanese Today (1988), and Japan as Number One, by Ezra Vogel (1979) which were her first books to read about Asia (other than Shogun). For most of her childhood she preferred non-fiction and didn't start reading fiction seriously till she arrived in Japan and read Haruki Murakami. Now she reads everything!At the end of the podcast Amy & John encourage listeners to write in to ask for suggestions on what books on Asia to give friends or family. They'll choose one to talk about at the end of each show with appropriate suggested reading. Since the BOA Podcast doesn't have an email address (yet), they ask you submit requests via social media:Follow BOA on Facebook and contact via Messenger or sign up for the BOA newsletter, from which you can reply directly to each email. There is a BOA Twitter (X) account, but they appear to be locked out at the moment (sigh).They also ask listeners to subscribe to the podcast, leave a review and share it with your friends so that Amy & John can have a happier holiday.May your holidays be bibliophilic: full of black ink, long words, excessive pages and new books! The Books on Asia Podcast is co-produced with Plum Rain Press. Podcast host Amy Chavez is author of The Widow, the Priest, and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island. and Amy's Guide to Best Behavior in Japan.The Books on Asia website posts book reviews, podcast episodes and episode Show Notes. Subscribe to the BOA podcast from your favorite podcast service. Subscribe to the Books on Asia newsletter to receive news of the latest new book releases, reviews and podcast episodes.

On this very special episode, Razib talks to paleoanthroplogists John Hawks and Chris Stringer. Hawks is a paleoanthropologist who has been a researcher and commentator in human evolutionary biology and paleoanthropology for over two decades. With a widely read weblog (now on Substack), a book on Homo naledi, and highly cited scientific papers, Hawks is an essential voice in understanding the origins of our species. He graduated from Kansas State University in 1994 with degrees in French, English, and Anthropology, and received both his M.A. and Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Michigan, where he studied under Milford Wolpoff. He is currently working on a textbook on the origins of modern humans in their evolutionary context. Hawks has already been a guest on Unsupervised Learning three times. Chris Stringer is affiliated with the Natural History Museum in London. Stringer is the author of African Exodus. The Origins of Modern Humanity, Lone Survivors: How We Came to Be the Only Humans on Earth and Homo Britannicus - The Incredible Story of Human Life in Britain. A proponent since the 1970's of the recent African origin of modern humans, he has also for decades been at the center of debates around our species' relationship to Neanderthals. In the 1980's, with the rise to prominence of the molecular model of "mtDNA Eve," Stringer came to the fore as a paleoanthropological voice lending support to the genetic insights that pointed to our African origins. Trained as an anatomist, Stringer asserted that the fossil evidence was in alignment with the mtDNA phylogenies, a contention that has been broadly confirmed over the last five decades. Razib, Hawks and Stringer discuss the latest work that has come out of Yuxian, China, and how it updates our understanding of human morphological diversity, and integrate it with the newest findings about Denisovans from whole genome sequencing. They talk about how we exist at a junction, with more and more data, but theories that are becoming more and more rickety in terms of explaining the patterns we see. Hawks talks about the skewing effect of selection on phylogenetic trees, while Stringer addresses the complexity of the fossil record in East Asia.

We're sharing a bonus episode from Greenpeace's Systemshift. This episode digs into the hidden environmental and social costs behind the global race to build faster, smarter AI.  As Nvidia hits a $5 trillion market cap, communities in East Asia are bearing with the hidden consequences. Systemshift's host Joycelyn Longdon speaks with Katrin Wu from Greenpeace East Asia to uncover how AI supply chain is driving pollution, health risks, and rising emissions, in the attempt of catching up with increasing global energy demands. We hear from Sunryul Kim, a South Korean campaigner who filed a lawsuit against LNG Power Plants being built in his community and Lena Chang a campaigner from Taiwan, who tells us about the impact that the tech industry is having in her homeland. Even as the AI boom brings new pressures and environmental risks to communities in East Asia, there is hope. We can demand real power shifts and redistribution, to ensure those currently paying the unseen price are funded for a truly just transition. What can you do?  •  Sign the petition for a clean, renewable AI supply chain - https://act.gp/4nyaBQr  •  Share the episode to spark conversation about AI's true footprint  •  Advocate for systemic changes in how the tech industry approaches climate responsibility - pushing for transparency, supplier support, and real investment in RE infrastructure where production happens  •  Read Greenpeace reports for more information: Nvidia Ranks Last on AI Supply Chain Decarbonization (https://act.gp/3LR02uC), Tracking electricity consumption & emissions from AI chip manufacturing

During the month of December, as the year winds down and the holiday season begins, we'll be taking a short break from recording new episodes. To keep you company during the festive period, we'll be re-releasing some of this year's most popular episodes, perfect to enjoy with a warm drink by your side as you reflect on the year, just like David will be.In this episode of the FocusCore podcast, host David engages in a deep conversation with Taisuke Yoshida, a dynamic leader in strategic finance and business transformation. Taisuke shares his journey from Sumitomo Chemical to his current role at Schneider Electric, highlighting the evolution of finance from traditional bookkeeping to a value-driver function. They discuss the importance of leadership and digital skills in FP&A, the differences in FP&A practices between Japanese and global companies, and the role of strategic finance business partnering. Taisuke also provides insights into leveraging generative AI for business understanding and the significance of effective communication and trust-building in cross-functional teams. The conversation provides valuable perspectives for finance professionals aiming to drive business performance and value creation.The latest FocusCore Salary Guide is here: 2026 Salary Guide In this episode you will hear:Taisuke's career progression and leadership development from local to global contextsThe importance of leadership and digital acumen for future finance professionals.How Japanese companies can leverage FP&A as business partners.Challenges and opportunities in Japanese FP&A practices.Things mentioned in the episode:The Mind Of The Strategist: The Art of Japanese Business - Kenichi Ohmaehttps://www.amazon.com.au/Mind-Strategist-Art-Japanese-Business/dp/0070479046三枝匡(Tadashi Saegusa)https://www.amazon.co.jp/%E6%9C%AC-%E4%B8%89%E6%9E%9D-%E5%8C%A1/s?rh=n%3A465392%2Cp_27%3A%25E4%25B8%2589%25E6%259E%259D%2B%25E5%258C%25A1『実践　日本版ＦＰ＆Ａ』池側千絵https://www.amazon.co.jp/%E5%AE%9F%E8%B7%B5-%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E7%89%88%EF%BC%A6%EF%BC%B0%EF%BC%86%EF%BC%A1-%E6%B1%A0%E5%81%B4%E5%8D%83%E7%B5%B5/dp/450253191XLoglass経営企画サミットhttps://www.loglass.jp/news/event-0417About Taisuke Yoshida: After graduating from the University of Tokyo, Taisuke began his career at Sumitomo Chemical, where he mastered the art of cost management and performance improvement at both the factory and division levels. Driven to expand his global perspective, he earned his MBA from IESE Business School in Spain.He then joined Industrial Growth Platform, Inc. (IGPI), advising CEOs and investors on business due diligent post-merger integration and management control systems across multiple industries. Taisuke is currently at Schneider Electric as the East Asia industrial automation business finance leader, partnering with business heads across the region to shape and execute strategies that improve performance and create enterprise value beyond the impressive credentials.Taisuke...

On Today's Episode –Snow has returned to Michigan and Winter is Here. Mark and Matt are jpioned by returning guest Bart Marcois. We meet Bart, and get a little back story. We move into Mark talking about Sec. of War Pete Hegseth being attacked on all fronts. Mark talks us through how we have been running clandestine operations for as long as we have been policing the world. People act like Trump is doing something different than Obama never did, which is preposterous.Tune in for all the Funhttps://aminutewithbart.com/ Bart Marcois is an international expert in energy, foreign affairs, and national security with experience in Europe and NATO, the Arabian Gulf, and East Asia. A senior corporate, government and foundation executive, Mr. Marcois has managed delicate negotiations in uncertain and changing environments.A media analyst in print and broadcast, he has served as a career Foreign Service Officer and as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy for Policy and International Affairs. At the Department of Energy, Marcois was the chief operating officer of a department with over 100 senior specialists and a $20 million budget to formulate U.S. domestic and international energy security policy. More recently, he managed an Administration effort at the FERC to streamline the permitting process for large infrastructure projects.As an American diplomat, Mr. Marcois conducted political analysis. He assisted the development of civil society, the rule of law, and democratic institutions in the context of Islamic societies. Mr. Marcois provided early warning of Islamist ideology, at a time when most American officials were oblivious to the threat. He is fluent in Arabic and Dutch.Marcois is a prolific contributor to the national debate about politics, culture, and national security affairs. He has authored over 200 articles in The Hill, American Greatness, OpsLens.com, and The Daily Caller, and is a frequent guest on television and radio broadcasts. He has appeared on Tucker Carlson Tonight, Fox and Friends, National Public Radio, The Hugh Hewitt Show, and The Blaze, among other programs.In the private sector, Mr. Marcois has served as a corporate director in a DC-based investment partnership managing activities in highly regulated sectors in Eastern and Central Europe. He was a director and executive in a Washington-based investment banking and commercial intelligence firm, and was a confidential advisor to several government entities. He conceived and executed public relations campaigns that achieved national impact.Mr. Marcois has served as a consultant to a federal advisory council on energy policy, and has been a course developer and instructor at both the Institute for Public-Private Partnership and The Leadership Institute.He has served as an executive and board member of several non-profit organizations, and is a former member of the Board of Directors of a coalition of 28 Christian churches that cooperate to provide early childhood care and education, food, rental assistance, furniture, and other services to low-income families of all denominations.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tensions between China and Japan have spiked since November 7 when Japan's newly elected prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, said in the Japanese parliament that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would be a situation threatening Japan's survival. Under Japan's 2015 security laws, that suggests Japan's self-defense forces could be activated to respond. The following day, the Chinese consul general in Osaka, Xue Jian, posted that China had no choice but to cut off the prime minister's head. China-Japan relations have since plummeted. China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, stated that Takaichi had “crossed a red line that should not have been touched.” China has taken retaliatory actions, restricting tourism to Japan and banning imports of Japanese seafood, among other actions. Why has Beijing reacted so strongly and how far are China-Japan relations likely to deteriorate?Joining us today to discuss the latest episode in China-Japan relations is Professor Akio Takahara. Professor Takahara is a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Tokyo Woman's Christian University and an Emeritus Professor at the University of Tokyo. He is also an Honorary Senior Fellow on Chinese Politics at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.Timestamps:[00:00] Introduction[02:07] The State of China-Japan Relations Pre-Dispute[02:49] Beijing's Reaction and Intended Audience[05:42] Continuity in Takaichi's Stance [10:31] Why a Chinese Takeover of Taiwan is Existential to Japan [13:03] China's Signals and Restraint[16:30] Recommendations for De-escalation[19:18] Senkaku Islands Dispute in Connection to Taiwan Dispute[22:04] Beijing's Potential Claims on Okinawa[24:23] View in Japan of the US Reaction[26:36] Takaichi's Support in Japan

On homoploutia and national market liberalism. Branko Milanovic, Research Professor at City University of New York, talks to Phil and Alex about his most recent book, The Great Global Transformation: National Market Liberalism in a Multipolar World. What unites the political trajectories of Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump? How is global inequality, growth and political conflict evolving in the aftermath of globalisation? How are hierarchies of global income shifting as the world rebalances towards East Asia? What kind of political theories can we use to model the emergence of this new multipolar world – Adam Smith, Lenin, Luxembourg or John Rawls? And what is Homoploutia?  Links: The Great Global Transformation: National Market Liberalism in a Multipolar World, Branko Milanovic Global Inequality 3.0 and More, Branko's substack An Economist's Case for Open Borders, Branko Milanovic, Dissent Magazine The ‘homoploutic' elephant, with Branko Milanović, FT  

A geopolitical expert says it's a good thing a New Zealand navy ship was on its own in waters around East Asia - when it was shadowed by seven Chinese warships. The vessel was patrolling last month as part of international efforts to monitor and restrict North Korea's nuclear and missile activity. The Defence Force says the Chinese ships followed at a safe, professional distance. Geoffrey Miller told Ryan Bridge we'll have to wait and see if there are further repercussions. He says China's usually more offended by joint actions with other Five Eyes countries - so it's probably better our Defence Force was alone. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Help us keep the conversations going in 2026. Donate to Conversations with Tyler today. Dan Wang argues that China is a nation of engineers while America is a nation of lawyers, and this distinction explains everything from subway construction to pandemic response to why Chinese citizens will never have yards with dogs. His prescription: America should become 20% more engineering-minded to fix its broken infrastructure, while China needs to be 50% more lawyerly so the Communist Party can stop strangling individual rights and the creative impulses of its people. But would a more lawyerly China constrain state power, or just create new tools for oppression? And aren't the American suburbs actually sterling achievements where the infrastructure works quite well? Tyler and Dan debate whether American infrastructure is actually broken or just differently optimized, why health care spending should reach 35% of GDP, how lawyerly influences shaped East Asian development differently than China, China's lack of a liberal tradition and why it won't democratize like South Korea or Taiwan did, its economic dysfunction despite its manufacturing superstars, Chinese pragmatism and bureaucratic incentives, a 10-day itinerary for Yunnan,  James C. Scott's work on Zomia, whether Beijing or Shanghai is the better city, Liu Cixin and why volume one of The Three-Body Problem is the best, why contemporary Chinese music and film have declined under Xi, Chinese marriage markets and what it's like to be elderly in China, the Dan Wang production function, why Stendhal is his favorite novelist and Rossini's Comte Ory moves him, what Dan wants to learn next, whether LLMs will make Tyler's hyper-specific podcast questions obsolete, what flavor of drama their conversation turned out to be, and more. Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links, or watch the full video on the new dedicated Conversations with Tyler channel. Recorded October 31st, 2025. Other ways to connect Follow us on X and Instagram Follow Tyler on X Follow Dan on X Sign up for our newsletter Join our Discord Email us: cowenconvos@mercatus.gmu.edu Learn more about Conversations with Tyler and other Mercatus Center podcasts here. Timestamps 00:00:00 - American infrastructure and suburban life 00:05:18 - American vs. Chinese infrastructure buildouts... 00:12:25 - And health care investment 00:17:52 - Chinese suburbs 00:20:10 - The existing lawyerly influence in East Asia  00:25:12 - China's lack of a liberal tradition 00:29:35 - Why China's won't democratize 00:33:49 - China's economic disfunction  00:38:44 - China's expansionism  00:41:55 - Chinese pragmatism and bureaucratic incentives 00:46:50 - Chinese cities and regional culture 00:59:44 - James C. Scott, Zomia, and elite culture 01:06:27 - A 10-day Yunnan itinerary 01:11:57 - On Chinese arts, literature, and cultural expression 01:18:23 - The Dan Wang production function 01:30:34 - Tyler's grand strategy, or lack thereof  

Subscribe now to listen to the full episode and get access to all of our Sunday bonuses. Danny and Derek speak to Ilias Alami, assistant professor of political economy at Cambridge, about the global shift from neoliberalism to new forms of state capitalism. They discuss the rebalancing of economic power toward East Asia; sovereign wealth funds, policy banks, and state-owned enterprises; and the role of states in industrial strategy, technology, and supply chains. They also touch on China, AI, and the overlap between economic rivalry and geopolitical confrontation. Check out the book Ilias co-authored, The Spectre of State Capitalism.

Have a comment? Send us a text! (We read all of them but can't reply). Email us: Will@faithfulpoliticspodcast.comIn this episode of Faithful Politics, Will and Josh talk with China expert William Nee about the major October 2025 crackdown on Beijing's Zion Church, one of the largest underground Christian networks in China. William explains what actually happened during the coordinated raids, why Pastor Ezra Jin (Jin Mingri) and nearly 30 church leaders were charged with “illegally using information networks,” and how all of this connects to Xi Jinping's tightened national-security agenda.The conversation steps back to look at the broader picture: how “Sinicization” works, why the Chinese Communist Party fears independent faith communities, and what life is like for ordinary Christians when church gatherings, youth religious education, and online ministry can all trigger state action.William also describes how the U.S. government and human-rights groups are responding, why international attention matters, and what this moment means for Christians, Uyghur Muslims, Tibetans, and others facing religious restrictions in China. If you want clear, grounded insight into what's really happening inside China's religious-freedom landscape, this episode gives you the context you need.Guest bio:William Nee is the Senior Manager for East Asia at the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), where he focuses on China's human-rights landscape, civil society, and religious freedom. Before NED, he served as a China researcher at Amnesty International and worked with Chinese Human Rights Defenders. His work often covers the CCP's efforts to control faith communities, including the recent crackdown on Zion Church and its founder, Pastor Ezra Jin.RELEVANT LINKSZion Church background:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beijing_Zion_ChurchPastor Ezra Jin biography:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jin_MingriReuters report on the 2025 arrests:https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-undergrSupport the show

Welcome back to the College Essay Guy Podcast. This is a very special session with a dear friend of mine and an honored guest in my world, Joan Liu. Joan is the founder of Second Chance, an organization that helps high achieving students from around the world secure full scholarships to universities after their original offers fall through. This conversation is adapted from a live webinar that we hosted where Joan shares some of the most practical, candid advice I've heard for international students who are looking for full financial aid and for the counselors who support them.  In our conversation, we talk about: What a competitive, full-need international applicant really looks like Some common mistakes that students make when applying to colleges and universities in the United States Why creating a global list and not just a US-centric list can open up new opportunities Joan's advice for counselors who are guiding students through this sometimes really complex process.  And more. Joan Liu has been a college counselor for the past 25 years, across top secondary schools in the US, UK, Turkey, and Singapore. She is a graduate of Cornell University and Columbia University. Joan is known in the admissions field for her financial aid expertise, and her ability to place students at universities with a full ride. In 2018, Joan mobilized a team of colleagues to support 60 Nepali students who had lost their scholarships from a university in Texas, USA. Joan did not stand by and watch this higher ed crisis. She assembled a team, and these teams stepped forward and re-seated all of the students at universities in the US, Canada, Middle East, and East Asia, with 10+ million in financial aid and scholarships - after the admissions cycle was OVER for that year. That experience led to Joan founding the non profit, Second Chance at Higher Ed, which supports talented students needing financial support, in accessing higher education at the last minute, after the US cycle is over. Folks, that's full rides after April 1 -  no other organization has ever done this  - and Second Chance is first in its category. Just a few months ago, SC went into its 7th cycle, helping 53 students from 23 countries earn a full ride in less than eight weeks. These students included refugees from Syria, Jordan, and Palestine.  Whether you're a student dreaming of studying abroad or a counselor helping students try to reach that dream, we're hoping that you'll find something useful in this episode.    Play-by-Play: 2:36 – What is Second Chance and how did it get started?  3:34 – What is the typical profile that colleges look for in an international student who is competitive for full financial aid in the United States? 8:00 – How do admissions officers evaluate international applicants compared to U.S. students? 11:59 – What are the most common mistakes that full-need international students make when applying to colleges and universities in the US? 21:53 – What does it mean when a college says they are need-blind for international students? 23:02 – How important is early action for international students? 23:53 – How should international students think about SAT/ACT? What if testing is difficult to access? 31:34 – How important is English proficiency? 32:51 – How should full-need international students think about developing their college list? 41:22 – How does the financial aid process differ for full-need international students? 46:03 – How can students learn more about Second Chance? 51:35 – If a student is rejected from Early Decision, can they still be considered for Regular Decision?  53:09 – If a student does not have a school counselor, how do they submit a school report or other documentation required for applications?  55:11 – How is the application process different this year than in the past?  56:35 – How can students compensate for an average or low GPA? 58:13 – How can counselors best advocate for their full-need international students? 1:02:17 – Closing advice    Financial Aid Resources: Second Chance EducationUSA RESOURCES — BigJ Educational Consulting International Applicants – CSS Profile | College Board International Student Application for Financial Assistance (ISAFA) International Association for College Admission Counseling (IACAC)   College Essay Guy Resources: College Application Hub for International Students How to Use Jennie Kent and Jeff Levy's  Financial Aid Information Excel Sheets 4 Major College Application Deadlines to Keep in Mind College Essay Guy's Personal Statement Resources College Essay Guy's College Application Hub   Podcasts:  CEG Podcast Episode 205: That One Time a University Revoked More Than 60 Full Scholarships (And What You Can Do About It) CEG Podcast Episode 211: Financial Aid Tips for International Students (and Their Counselors)—2019 Version CEG Podcast Episode 122: Which Schools Are the Most Generous With Financial Aid? (International Version)

Geopolitics of the Gulf and Eurasia: US-Saudi Relations and China's Global Strategy — Victoria Coates, Vice President, Heritage Foundation — Victoria Coates addresses U.S.-Saudi relations, noting that technology transfer risks from China exist but remain manageable through export-controlled F-35 versions. She argues that Russia is dependent on Beijing in the Ukraine war, which serves China's strategic objective of distracting the West from Indo-Pacific developments. A perceived Russian victory would embolden China toward aggression in East Asia. Coates identifies security guarantees and Saudi openness to the Abraham Accords as key priorities for regional stability.  1922 PEKING

Hear from Rio Handley, Associate Regional Director of East Asia and Oceania, about how God has been at work as she has lived in different homes and held different roles over the course of her years in missions. "I feel at home where God has placed me. I feel at home at the center of His will." "I've seen the grace of God in my life, and I've seen how God moves." "Missions is not just the missionary's responsibility; missions is the church's responsibility." "We cannot put missionaries on a pedestal because we are all part of one Body, and when God calls people to missions, it has to be the whole church in support of that." "Being a teacher and being intentional in doing missions is very important." "Being a teacher is having that connection in the lives of your students and that opportunity to change lives and let alone the opportunity to share life [and] Jesus Christ." What's changing our lives: Keane: Reading Father Brown mysteries Heather: Scheduling posts and chats in Microsoft Teams Rio: Learning how to drive Weekly Spotlight: East Asia and Oceania Region We'd love to hear from you! podcast@teachbeyond.org Podcast Website: https://teachbeyond.org/podcast Learn about TeachBeyond: https://teachbeyond.org/

In this episode of China Decode, hosts Alice Han and James Kynge break down how China is quietly building the “Android of AI” while the U.S. is pouring billions into the ultra-premium iPhone equivalent. As American firms chase ever-bigger, pricier models, Chinese competitors are going lean, open-source, and dirt-cheap — and U.S. startups are already switching to them. They unpack why Chinese models are suddenly dominating Hugging Face, how an AI price war could spark a market correction, and whether U.S. export controls are backfiring. Plus, a diplomatic firestorm between China and Japan is raising tough questions about the future balance of power in East Asia. With Tokyo taking an unusually hard line on Taiwan — and Beijing responding with fury — Alice and James examine what's driving the escalation, what it means for U.S. strategy, and how historical grievances still shape the region's security map. Finally, China's coffee wars are heating up — and Starbucks is blinking. After losing ground to aggressive local rivals like Luckin and Cotti, Starbucks is selling off majority control of its China business. They explore why Western brands keep struggling in China's hyper-competitive consumer market — and whether Starbucks can claw back relevance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eric welcomes Michael Hunzeker, associate director of the Center for Security Policy Studies at George Mason University's Schar School of Policy and Government, to discuss his new book America's Taiwan Dilemma, co-authored with Mark Christopher. They explore why a nation's reputation for credibility matters for deterrence and alliance management, and whether U.S. treaty allies in East Asia truly want Washington to defend Taiwan at all costs. The conversation also examines Taiwan's globally essential semiconductor industry, the fate of Hong Kong following its integration into China, and how the Trump Administration is reshaping America's East Asian system of bilateral alliances. America's Taiwan Dilemma: Allies' Reactions and the Stakes for US Reputation: https://a.co/d/6sgYh3D Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

News items read by Laura Kennedy include: 5,200-hole monument may be the oldest accounting system in the Andes (details)(details) Humans and dogs migrated together for 11,000 years (details) French naval base built on top of a 2,000-year-old port (details) Japan had the least Denisovan DNA in East Asia (details)(details)

SHOW 11-11-25 CBS EYE ON THE WORLD WITH JOHN BATCHELOR 1933 VON PAPPEN IN BERLIN THE SHOW BEGINS IN THE DOUBTS ABOUT THE BBO CONTNUING INTACT. FIRST HOUR 9-915 Economic Slowdown Fears Amid AI Impact and the BBC Scandal. Liz Peek characterizes the US economy as slowing down, with hiring affected by government layoffs and the displacement of tech jobs due to AI adoption. While the consumer remains robust, significant anxiety exists regarding the massive investments in AI and resulting stock market valuations. Peek comments on the BBC scandal, viewing the resignations as acknowledgment that the state-run outlet deliberately spliced footage to portray the US President as exhorting violence, revealing a deep, unfavorable political bias against conservatives. 915-930 Economic Slowdown Fears Amid AI Impact and the BBC Scandal. Liz Peek characterizes the US economy as slowing down, with hiring affected by government layoffs and the displacement of tech jobs due to AI adoption. While the consumer remains robust, significant anxiety exists regarding the massive investments in AI and resulting stock market valuations. Peek comments on the BBC scandal, viewing the resignations as acknowledgment that the state-run outlet deliberately spliced footage to portray the US President as exhorting violence, revealing a deep, unfavorable political bias against conservatives. 930-945 Middle East War Dynamics: Hamas Decimation, Peace Plans, and Hezbollah Rearmament. Jonathan Schanzer addresses the BBC's acknowledgment of breaching editorial guidelines over 1,500 times during the Gaza conflict. He confirms that Hamas has been decimated, operating as a spent, asymmetric urban force. Schanzer details the Trump administration's "Board of Peace" proposal for Gaza, stressing the need for a technocratic authority that excludes both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority. He also highlights troubling reports that Hezbollah is rearming with increasing speed, assisted by Iran and, surprisingly, Turkey. 945-1000 Middle East War Dynamics: Hamas Decimation, Peace Plans, and Hezbollah Rearmament. Jonathan Schanzer addresses the BBC's acknowledgment of breaching editorial guidelines over 1,500 times during the Gaza conflict. He confirms that Hamas has been decimated, operating as a spent, asymmetric urban force. Schanzer details the Trump administration's "Board of Peace" proposal for Gaza, stressing the need for a technocratic authority that excludes both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority. He also highlights troubling reports that Hezbollah is rearming with increasing speed, assisted by Iran and, surprisingly, Turkey. SECOND HOUR 10-1015 Staffing Challenges and Political Bias: The Gaza Peace Plan and the BBC. Mary Kissel details the challenges facing the State Department and NSC in implementing the Trump administration's urgent Gaza Peace Plan, noting staffing issues are delaying coordination. The plan, featuring an apolitical "Board of Peace," seeks international legitimacy despite the UN's prejudice against Israel. Kissel expresses little surprise regarding the BBC scandal, viewing the deliberate distortion of the President's video remarks as appalling and emblematic of an "embedded bias" against conservatives that is deep and unfixable. 1015-1030 Staffing Challenges and Political Bias: The Gaza Peace Plan and the BBC. Mary Kissel details the challenges facing the State Department and NSC in implementing the Trump administration's urgent Gaza Peace Plan, noting staffing issues are delaying coordination. The plan, featuring an apolitical "Board of Peace," seeks international legitimacy despite the UN's prejudice against Israel. Kissel expresses little surprise regarding the BBC scandal, viewing the deliberate distortion of the President's video remarks as appalling and emblematic of an "embedded bias" against conservatives that is deep and unfixable. 1030-1045 The Rise of the AfD and the Threat to German Democracy. Judy Dempsey discusses the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, noting it is infiltrating German culture, education, and town halls, predominantly in the East. She warns that the AfD poses a danger to German democracy and the rule of law. The future hinges on whether established parties can isolate the AfD or if the Constitutional Court will intervene to outlaw the party. Dempsey also notes that the BBC scandal involves the highly scrutinized domestic service, distinct from the generally "exemplary" BBC World Service. 1045-1100 The Rise of the AfD and the Threat to German Democracy. Judy Dempsey discusses the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, noting it is infiltrating German culture, education, and town halls, predominantly in the East. She warns that the AfD poses a danger to German democracy and the rule of law. The future hinges on whether established parties can isolate the AfD or if the Constitutional Court will intervene to outlaw the party. Dempsey also notes that the BBC scandal involves the highly scrutinized domestic service, distinct from the generally "exemplary" BBC World Service. THIRD HOUR 1100-1115 Rare Earths, Global Conflicts, and Reimagining Democracy. Gregory Copley analyzes China's rare earth monopoly, noting it was achieved through low pricing and unsafe practices but is now eroding as global suppliers ramp up production. He reviews current global conflicts, viewing the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford battle group near Venezuela as a test of brinkmanship, and citing Kyiv's admission of losses in Ukraine. Copley also argues that democracy is "dead," advocating for a return to defining the spirit of a social contract rather than relying on mutable laws. 1115-1130 Rare Earths, Global Conflicts, and Reimagining Democracy. Gregory Copley analyzes China's rare earth monopoly, noting it was achieved through low pricing and unsafe practices but is now eroding as global suppliers ramp up production. He reviews current global conflicts, viewing the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford battle group near Venezuela as a test of brinkmanship, and citing Kyiv's admission of losses in Ukraine. Copley also argues that democracy is "dead," advocating for a return to defining the spirit of a social contract rather than relying on mutable laws. 1130-1145 Rare Earths, Global Conflicts, and Reimagining Democracy. Gregory Copley analyzes China's rare earth monopoly, noting it was achieved through low pricing and unsafe practices but is now eroding as global suppliers ramp up production. He reviews current global conflicts, viewing the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford battle group near Venezuela as a test of brinkmanship, and citing Kyiv's admission of losses in Ukraine. Copley also argues that democracy is "dead," advocating for a return to defining the spirit of a social contract rather than relying on mutable laws. 1145-1200 Rare Earths, Global Conflicts, and Reimagining Democracy. Gregory Copley analyzes China's rare earth monopoly, noting it was achieved through low pricing and unsafe practices but is now eroding as global suppliers ramp up production. He reviews current global conflicts, viewing the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford battle group near Venezuela as a test of brinkmanship, and citing Kyiv's admission of losses in Ukraine. Copley also argues that democracy is "dead," advocating for a return to defining the spirit of a social contract rather than relying on mutable laws. FOURTH HOUR 12-1215 Conservative Politics and Extremism; The Structural Problems of the BBC. Joseph Sternberg argues that mainstream conservatives must accommodate legitimate right-wing concerns (like immigration) to squeeze out extremists, referencing the German CDU/CSU's successful historical tactic against neo-Nazis. He analyzes the widespread BBC scandal, noting its huge cultural influence in the UK, where it is funded by a mandatory license fee. The deliberate editing of the US President's remarks and allegations of tendentious coverage of the Israel/Gaza war point to a deep, structural problem within the organization. 1215-1230 Conservative Politics and Extremism; The Structural Problems of the BBC. Joseph Sternberg argues that mainstream conservatives must accommodate legitimate right-wing concerns (like immigration) to squeeze out extremists, referencing the German CDU/CSU's successful historical tactic against neo-Nazis. He analyzes the widespread BBC scandal, noting its huge cultural influence in the UK, where it is funded by a mandatory license fee. The deliberate editing of the US President's remarks and allegations of tendentious coverage of the Israel/Gaza war point to a deep, structural problem within the organization. 1230-1245 The UN Cybercrime Treaty: A Tool for Digital Authoritarianism. Ivana Stradner warns that the UN cybercrime treaty, drafted by Russia and supported by China, undermines global human rights and free speech. She argues the treaty is mere "window dressing" enabling authoritarian regimes to pursue digital sovereignty—like Russia's "fake news" laws or China's "golden shield" project—to censor dissent. Stradner suggests that allowing Russia and China to regulate cyberspace is comparable to trusting the arsonist to put out the fire, urging the United States not to ratify the treaty. 1245-100 AM The Modern Marine Corps: MEUs, Amphibious Ship Shortages, and the Role in East Asia. Colonel Grant Newsham discusses the Marine Corps, celebrating its 250th birthday and historic legacy at Belleau Wood. Newsham describes the Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) as a flexible force of about 2,000 Marines aboard amphibious ships, capable of missions from humanitarian aid to combat. A critical challenge is the Navy's low prioritization of amphibious ships, leading to a deployment shortage. In East Asia, Marines are expected to seize key terrain and use long-range precision weapons to control maritime territory, though prioritizing missile units has reduced overall mission versatility.

The Modern Marine Corps: MEUs, Amphibious Ship Shortages, and the Role in East Asia. Colonel Grant Newsham discusses the Marine Corps, celebrating its 250th birthday and historic legacy at Belleau Wood. Newsham describes the Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) as a flexible force of about 2,000 Marines aboard amphibious ships, capable of missions from humanitarian aid to combat. A critical challenge is the Navy's low prioritization of amphibious ships, leading to a deployment shortage. In East Asia, Marines are expected to seize key terrain and use long-range precision weapons to control maritime territory, though prioritizing missile units has reduced overall mission versatility. 1920 JOHN CARTER ON MARS

PREVIEW. Marine Corps Strategy in the Western Pacific Against China. Colonel Grant Newsham, United States Marine Corps retired, discusses Marine Corps planning for deployment in East Asia if China attacks Taiwan. Current plans prioritize placing small missile units on Pacific islands to target Chinese ships. Newsham is unhappy, noting this focus reduces the Marines' versatility and ability to conduct other missions, such as humanitarian assistance or seizing key terrain. 1968 GUADALCANAL ISLAND

SHOW 11-10-2025 CBS EYE ON THE WORLD WITH JOHN BATCHELOR 1910 gaza THE SHOW BEGINS IN THE DOUBTS ABOUT THE GAZA "BOARD OF PEACE." FIRST HOUR 9-915 Analysis of the Trump Administration's "Take It or Leave It" Gaza Peace Plan. Bill Roggio and Ambassador Husain Haqqani discuss how the Trump administration proposed a "take it or leave it" Gaza victory plan, including a Board of Peace, international financing, and security. Ambassador Haqqani found the plan vague and a "fantasy," failing to address ground realities like disarming Hamas or the IDF's withdrawal. Bill Roggio insisted that peace is impossible under Hamas, whose charter demands Israel's removal. The vagueness makes it unclear how regional capitals like Cairo and Doha will respond, potentially allowing turmoil to continue. 915-930 Analysis of the Trump Administration's "Take It or Leave It" Gaza Peace Plan. Bill Roggio and Ambassador Husain Haqqani discuss how the Trump administration proposed a "take it or leave it" Gaza victory plan, including a Board of Peace, international financing, and security. Ambassador Haqqani found the plan vague and a "fantasy," failing to address ground realities like disarming Hamas or the IDF's withdrawal. Bill Roggio insisted that peace is impossible under Hamas, whose charter demands Israel's removal. The vagueness makes it unclear how regional capitals like Cairo and Doha will respond, potentially allowing turmoil to continue. 930-945 Hezbollah's Rearmament and Israeli Active Defense Strategy in Lebanon and Gaza Peace Plan. David Daoud discusses how since the Gaza ceasefire, Hezbollah has been rearming, which the deal did not preclude. Israel shifted to "active defense," striking Hezbollah personnel and assets north and south of the Litani River, including in the Beqaa Valley, making no place in Lebanon off-limits. Hezbollah funds its operations through illicit transnational and internal economic channels. The US plan for Gaza aims for international engagement to preclude Hamas's resurgence, potentially relying on an international force and Israeli assistance. 945-1000 Hezbollah's Rearmament and Israeli Active Defense Strategy in Lebanon and Gaza Peace Plan. David Daoud discusses how since the Gaza ceasefire, Hezbollah has been rearming, which the deal did not preclude. Israel shifted to "active defense," striking Hezbollah personnel and assets north and south of the Litani River, including in the Bekaa Valley, making no place in Lebanon off-limits. Hezbollah funds its operations through illicit transnational and internal economic channels. The US plan for Gaza aims for international engagement to preclude Hamas's resurgence, potentially relying on an international force and Israeli assistance. SECOND HOUR 10-1015 Geopolitical Shifts: Gaza Peace, Syria's al-Sharaa, and REising Anti-Semitism. Malcolm Hoenlein discusses how the comprehensive US plan for Gaza proposes a transitional Board of Peace and mandates the disarming of Hamas. Hoenlein expressed skepticism regarding al-Sharaa's White House visit, noting his background as an ex-jihadist who ordered massacres of minorities in Syria. While neutralizing Syria would be positive, al-Sharaa has yet to prove himself. There is also rising concern over anti-Semitism in Europe, evidenced by attacks on Israeli sports teams and polls showing sympathy for Hamas. 1015-1030 Geopolitical Shifts: Gaza Peace, Syria's al-Sharaa, and Rising Anti-Semitism. Malcolm Hoenlein discusses how the comprehensive US plan for Gaza proposes a transitional Board of Peace and mandates the disarming of Hamas. Hoenlein expressed skepticism regarding al-Sharaa's White House visit, noting his background as an ex-jihadist who ordered massacres of minorities in Syria. While neutralizing Syria would be positive, al-Sharaa has yet to prove himself. There is also rising concern over anti-Semitism in Europe, evidenced by attacks on Israeli sports teams and polls showing sympathy for Hamas. 1030-1045 Assessing European Reliability in Countering the China Threat to Taiwan. Steve Yates discusses how Europe's reliability in defending Taiwan is questioned, despite the Taiwan Vice President addressing the EU Parliament. Europe has historically lacked a significant defense footprint in East Asia. China exploits the narrative of European colonial history and decline to separate Europe from Taiwan. Although some European leaders prioritize economic opportunity with Beijing, reliable economic partners like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan offer strong strategic and economic ballast against the risks posed by the People's Republic of China. 1045-1100 China's Censorship Campaign Against Pessimism and Social Discontent. Charles Burton discusses how China initiated a two-month campaign against "pessimism," targeting citizens who criticize the state due to economic failure, unfair housing, or joblessness. The regime ignores serious societal issues, relying on propaganda while profound discontent exists privately. Censorship is counterproductive, leading to false reporting and increasing internal cynicism toward the leadership. With official news censored, people rely on fast-running rumors, which the government attempts to deal with by arresting activists and rumor-mongers. THIRD HOUR 1100-1115 Russia's Winter Strikes on Ukrainian Energy and the Battle for Pokrovsk. John Hardie discusses how Russia is escalating its winter campaign against Ukrainian energy infrastructure using a higher percentage of hard-to-intercept ballistic missiles and drones. This aims to break Ukrainian will and create leverage for negotiations. On the front, the battle for Pokrovsk is difficult, with Russians infiltrating the city and disrupting logistics using fiber-optic-controlled FPV drones. Although Ukraine has succeeded in attriting Russian forces there, preserving manpower by avoiding a late withdrawal remains a critical concern. 1115-1130 Russia's Winter Strikes on Ukrainian Energy and the Battle for Pokrovsk. John Hardie discusses how Russia is escalating its winter campaign against Ukrainian energy infrastructure using a higher percentage of hard-to-intercept ballistic missiles and drones. This aims to break Ukrainian will and create leverage for negotiations. On the front, the battle for Pokrovsk is difficult, with Russians infiltrating the city and disrupting logistics using fiber-optic-controlled FPV drones. Although Ukraine has succeeded in attriting Russian forces there, preserving manpower by avoiding a late withdrawal remains a critical concern. 1130-1145 Assessing al-Sharaa's Visit and the Risks of the Gaza Board of Peace Proposal. Edmund Fitton-Brown discusses how the proposed Gaza "Board of Peace" is part of the Trump plan to create active international engagement and prevent a return to Hamas control. The international stabilization force must have "real teeth" to fight subversive elements, unlike the failed UNIFIL mission. Regarding al-Sharaa, the self-named Syrian president and ex-al-Qaeda veteran, the White House visit gives him a chance to stabilize Syria. However, he must be pressured to investigate massacres of Druze and Alawites and hold people accountable (trust but verify). 1145-1200 Assessing al-Sharaa's Visit and the Risks of the Gaza Board of Peace Proposal. Edmund Fitton-Brown discusses how the proposed Gaza "Board of Peace" is part of the Trump plan to create active international engagement and prevent a return to Hamas control. The international stabilization force must have "real teeth" to fight subversive elements, unlike the failed UNIFIL mission. Regarding al-Sharaa, the self-named Syrian president and ex-al-Qaeda veteran, the White House visit gives him a chance to stabilize Syria. However, he must be pressured to investigate massacres of Druze and Alawites and hold people accountable (trust but verify). FOURTH HOUR 12-1215 Discussion of al-Sharaa's White House Visit, Syrian Sanctions, and Domestic Stability Issues. Ahmad Sharawi discusses how al-Sharaa (formerly al-Jolani), the self-named president of Syria and former al-Qaeda leader, visited the White House seeking the repeal of Caesar sanctions. The administration hopes he can stabilize Syria, ignoring his history of massacres against minorities like the Alawites and Druze. Critics argue he must address internal stability and remove foreign fighters first, as he is being rewarded for actions already serving his self-interest, such as fighting ISIS and limiting Iran's influence. 1215-1230 Discussion of al-Sharaa's White House Visit, Syrian Sanctions, and Domestic Stability Issues. Ahmad Sharawi discusses how al-Sharaa (formerly al-Jolani), the self-named president of Syria and former al-Qaeda leader, visited the White House seeking the repeal of Caesar sanctions. The administration hopes he can stabilize Syria, ignoring his history of massacres against minorities like the Alawites and Druze. Critics argue he must address internal stability and remove foreign fighters first, as he is being rewarded for actions already serving his self-interest, such as fighting ISIS and limiting Iran's influence. 1230-1245 Climate Change, Indigenous Demands, and Governance Challenges in the Amazon. Ernesto Araújo discusses how indigenous leaders at COP 30 highlighted demands tied to environmental issues in the Amazon, which spans many countries. Poverty drives illegal activities, like logging and mining, even on indigenous lands (14% of Brazilian territory), which are often exploited through bribery and organized crime. While Lula speaks of protecting the Amazon, deforestation and indigenous health figures remain poor. The complex solution requires enforcing existing laws and focusing on establishing law and order to fight pervasive corruption. 1245-100 AM Iran's Nuclear Stalemate, Economic Crisis, and Missile Program Aspirations. Jonathan Schanzer discusses how Iran views the lack of peace or war with Israel as a dangerous stalemate, while aspiring to fire 2,000 ballistic missiles at once in a future conflict. Covert Israeli operations target Iranian missile facilities. Despite sanctions, Iran's oil exports have sharply increased (2.3 million barrels/day) due to lax enforcement, funneling money to regime kleptocrats. Domestic crises like water and power shortages are increasing internal desperation, as the regime prioritizes regional ambitions over the welfare of the average Iranian. | 

Assessing European Reliability in Countering the China Threat to Taiwan. Steve Yates discusses how Europe's reliability in defending Taiwan is questioned, despite the Taiwan Vice President addressing the EU Parliament. Europe has historically lacked a significant defense footprint in East Asia. China exploits the narrative of European colonial history and decline to separate Europe from Taiwan. Although some European leaders prioritize economic opportunity with Beijing, reliable economic partners like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan offer strong strategic and economic ballast against the risks posed by the People's Republic of China. 1905 shanghai

Last time we spoke about the fall of Wuhan. In a country frayed by war, the Yangtze became a pulsing artery, carrying both hunger and hope. Chiang Kai-shek faced a brutal choice: defend Wuhan to the last man, or flood the rivers to buy time. He chose both, setting sullen floodwaters loose along the Yellow River to slow the invaders, a temporary mercy that spared some lives while ripping many from their homes. On the river's banks, a plethora of Chinese forces struggled to unite. The NRA, fractured into rival zones, clung to lines with stubborn grit as Japanese forces poured through Anqing, Jiujiang, and beyond, turning the Yangtze into a deadly corridor. Madang's fortifications withstood bombardment and gas, yet the price was paid in troops and civilians drowned or displaced. Commanders like Xue Yue wrestled stubbornly for every foothold, every bend in the river. The Battle of Wanjialing became a symbol: a desperate, months-long pincer where Chinese divisions finally tightened their cordon and halted the enemy's flow. By autumn, the Japanese pressed onward to seize Tianjiazhen and cut supply lines, while Guangzhou fell to a ruthless blockade. The Fall of Wuhan loomed inevitable, yet the story remained one of fierce endurance against overwhelming odds.   #174 The Changsha Fire Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the summer of 1938, amid the upheaval surrounding Chiang Kai-shek, one of his most important alliances came to an end. On June 22, all German advisers to the Nationalist government were summoned back; any who refused would be deemed guilty of high treason. Since World War I, a peculiar bond had tied the German Weimar Republic and China: two fledgling states, both weak and only partially sovereign. Under the Versailles Treaty of 1919, Germany had lost extraterritorial rights on Chinese soil, which paradoxically allowed Berlin to engage with China as an equal partner rather than a traditional colonizer. This made German interests more welcome in business and politics than those of other Western powers. Chiang's military reorganization depended on German officers such as von Seeckt and von Falkenhausen, and Hitler's rise in 1933 had not immediately severed the connection between the two countries. Chiang did not share Nazi ideology with Germany, but he viewed Berlin as a potential ally and pressed to persuade it to side with China rather than Japan as China's principal East Asian, anti-Communist partner. In June 1937, H. H. Kung led a delegation to Berlin, met Hitler, and argued for an alliance with China. Yet the outbreak of war and the Nationalists' retreat to Wuhan convinced Hitler's government to align with Japan, resulting in the recall of all German advisers. Chiang responded with a speech praising von Falkenhausen, insisting that "our friend's enemy is our enemy too," and lauding the German Army's loyalty and ethics as a model for the Chinese forces. He added, "After we have won the War of Resistance, I believe you'll want to come back to the Far East and advise our country again." Von Falkenhausen would later become the governor of Nazi-occupied Belgium, then be lauded after the war for secretly saving many Jewish lives. As the Germans departed, the roof of the train transporting them bore a prominent German flag with a swastika, a prudent precaution given Wuhan's vulnerability to air bombardment. The Japanese were tightening their grip on the city, even as Chinese forces, numbering around 800,000, made a stubborn stand. The Yellow River floods blocked northern access, so the Japanese chose to advance via the Yangtze, aided by roughly nine divisions and the might of the Imperial Navy. The Chinese fought bravely, but their defenses could not withstand the superior technology of the Japanese fleet. The only substantial external aid came from Soviet pilots flying aircraft bought from the USSR as part of Stalin's effort to keep China in the war; between 1938 and 1940, some 2,000 pilots offered their services. From June 24 to 27, Japanese bombers relentlessly pounded the Madang fortress along the Yangtze until it fell. A month later, on July 26, Chinese defenders abandoned Jiujiang, southeast of Wuhan, and its civilian population endured a wave of atrocities at the hands of the invaders. News of Jiujiang's fate stiffened resolve. Chiang delivered a pointed address to his troops on July 31, arguing that Wuhan's defense was essential and that losing the city would split the country into hostile halves, complicating logistics and movement. He warned that Wuhan's defense would also be a spiritual test: "the place has deep revolutionary ties," and public sympathy for China's plight was growing as Japanese atrocities became known. Yet Chiang worried about the behavior of Chinese soldiers. He condemned looting as a suicidal act that would destroy the citizens' trust in the military. Commanders, he warned, must stay at their posts; the memory of the Madang debacle underscored the consequences of cowardice. Unlike Shanghai, Wuhan had shelters, but he cautioned against retreating into them and leaving soldiers exposed. Officers who failed in loyalty could expect no support in return. This pep talk, combined with the belief that the army was making a last stand, may have slowed the Japanese advance along the Yangtze in August. Under General Xue Yue, about 100,000 Chinese troops pushed back the invaders at Huangmei. At Tianjiazhen, thousands fought until the end of September, with poison gas finally forcing Japanese victory. Yet even then, Chinese generals struggled to coordinate. In Xinyang, Li Zongren's Guangxi troops were exhausted; they expected relief from Hu Zongnan's forces, but Hu instead withdrew, allowing Japan to capture the city without a fight. The fall of Xinyang enabled Japanese control of the Ping-Han railway, signaling Wuhan's doom. Chiang again spoke to Wuhan's defenders, balancing encouragement with a grim realism about possible loss. Although Wuhan's international connections were substantial, foreign aid would be unlikely. If evacuation became necessary, the army should have a clear plan, including designated routes. He recalled the disastrous December retreat from Nanjing, where "foreigners and Chinese alike turned it into an empty city." Troops had been tired and outnumbered; Chiang defended the decision to defend Nanjing, insisting the army had sacrificed itself for the capital and Sun Yat-sen's tomb. Were the army to retreat again, he warned, it would be the greatest shame in five thousand years of Chinese history. The loss of Madang was another humiliation. By defending Wuhan, he argued, China could avenge its fallen comrades and cleanse its conscience; otherwise, it could not honor its martyrs. Mao Zedong, observing the situation from his far-off base at Yan'an, agreed strongly that Chiang should not defend Wuhan to the death. He warned in mid-October that if Wuhan could not be defended, the war's trajectory would shift, potentially strengthening the Nationalists–Communists cooperation, deepening popular mobilization, and expanding guerrilla warfare. The defense of Wuhan, Mao argued, should drain the enemy and buy time to advance the broader struggle, not become a doomed stalemate. In a protracted war, some strongholds might be abandoned temporarily to sustain the longer fight. The Japanese Army captured Wuchang and Hankou on 26 October and captured Hanyang on the 27th, which concluded the campaign in Wuhan. The battle had lasted four and a half months and ended with the Nationalist army's voluntary withdrawal. In the battle itself, the Japanese army captured Wuhan's three towns and held the heartland of China, achieving a tactical victory. Yet strategically, Japan failed to meet its objectives. Imperial Headquarters believed that "capturing Hankou and Guangzhou would allow them to dominate China." Consequently, the Imperial Conference planned the Battle of Wuhan to seize Wuhan quickly and compel the Chinese government to surrender. It also decreed that "national forces should be concentrated to achieve the war objectives within a year and end the war against China." According to Yoshiaki Yoshimi and Seiya Matsuno, Hirohito authorized the use of chemical weapons against China by specific orders known as rinsanmei. During the Battle of Wuhan, Prince Kan'in Kotohito transmitted the emperor's orders to deploy toxic gas 375 times between August and October 1938. Another memorandum uncovered by Yoshimi indicates that Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni authorized the use of poison gas against the Chinese on 16 August 1938. A League of Nations resolution adopted on 14 May condemned the Imperial Japanese Army's use of toxic gas. Japan's heavy use of chemical weapons against China was driven by manpower shortages and China's lack of poison gas stockpiles to retaliate. Poison gas was employed at Hankou in the Battle of Wuhan to break Chinese resistance after conventional assaults had failed. Rana Mitter notes that, under General Xue Yue, approximately 100,000 Chinese troops halted Japanese advances at Huangmei, and at the fortress of Tianjiazhen, thousands fought until the end of September, with Japanese victory secured only through the use of poison gas. Chinese generals also struggled with coordination at Xinyang; Li Zongren's Guangxi troops were exhausted, and Hu Zongnan's forces, believed to be coming to relieve them, instead withdrew. Japan subsequently used poison gas against Chinese Muslim forces at the Battle of Wuyuan and the Battle of West Suiyuan. However, the Chinese government did not surrender with the loss of Wuhan and Guangzhou, nor did Japan's invasion end with Wuhan and Guangzhou's capture. After Wuhan fell, the government issued a reaffirmation: "Temporary changes of advance and retreat will not shake our resolve to resist the Japanese invasion," and "the gain or loss of any city will not affect the overall situation of the war." It pledged to "fight with even greater sorrow, greater perseverance, greater steadfastness, greater diligence, and greater courage," dedicating itself to a long, comprehensive war of resistance. In the Japanese-occupied rear areas, large armed anti-Japanese forces grew, and substantial tracts of territory were recovered. As the Japanese army themselves acknowledged, "the restoration of public security in the occupied areas was actually limited to a few kilometers on both sides of the main transportation lines." Thus, the Battle of Wuhan did not merely inflict a further strategic defeat on Japan; it also marked a turning point in Japan's strategic posture, from offense to defense. Due to the Nationalist Army's resolute resistance, Japan mobilized its largest force to date for the attack, about 250,000 personnel, who were replenished four to five times over the battle, for a total of roughly 300,000. The invaders held clear advantages in land, sea, and air power and fought for four and a half months. Yet they failed to annihilate the Nationalist main force, nor did they break the will to resist or the army's combat effectiveness. Instead, the campaign dealt a severe blow to the Japanese Army's vitality. Japanese-cited casualties totaled 4,506 dead and 17,380 wounded for the 11th Army; the 2nd Army suffered 2,300 killed in action, 7,600 wounded, and 900 died of disease. Including casualties across the navy and the air force, the overall toll was about 35,500. By contrast, the Nationalist Government Military Commission's General Staff Department, drawing on unit-level reports, calculated Japanese casualties at 256,000. The discrepancy between Japanese and Nationalist tallies illustrates the inflationary tendencies of each side's reporting. Following Wuhan, a weakened Japanese force confronted an extended front. Unable to mount large-scale strategic offensives, unlike Shanghai, Xuzhou, or Wuhan itself, the Japanese to a greater extent adopted a defensive posture. This transition shifted China's War of Resistance from a strategic defensive phase into a strategic stalemate, while the invaders found themselves caught in a protracted war—a development they most disliked. Consequently, Japan's invasion strategy pivoted: away from primary frontal offensives toward a greater reliance on political inducements with secondary military action, and toward diverting forces to "security" operations behind enemy lines rather than pushing decisive frontal campaigns. Japan, an island nation with limited strategic resources, depended heavily on imports. By the time of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, Japan's gold reserves,including reserves for issuing banknotes, amounted to only about 1.35 billion yen. In effect, Japan's currency reserves constrained the scale of the war from the outset. The country launched its aggression while seeking an early solution to the conflict. To sustain its war of aggression against China, the total value of military supplies imported from overseas in 1937 reached approximately 960 million yen. By June of the following year, for the Battle of Wuhan, even rifles used in training were recalled to outfit the expanding army. The sustained increase in troops also strained domestic labor, food, and energy supplies. By 1939, after Wuhan, Japan's military expenditure had climbed to about 6.156 billion yen, far exceeding national reserves. This stark reality exposed Japan's economic fragility and its inability to guarantee a steady supply of military materiel, increasing pressure on the leadership at the Central Command. The Chief of Staff and the Minister of War lamented the mismatch between outward strength and underlying weakness: "Outwardly strong but weak is a reflection of our country today, and this will not last long." In sum, the Wuhan campaign coincided with a decline in the organization, equipment, and combat effectiveness of the Japanese army compared with before the battle. This erosion of capability helped drive Japan to alter its political and military strategy, shifting toward a method of inflicting pressure on China and attempting to "use China to control China", that is, fighting in ways designed to sustain the broader war effort. Tragically a major element of Chiang Kai-shek's retreat strategy was the age-old "scorched earth" policy. In fact, China originated the phrase and the practice. Shanghai escaped the last-minute torching because of foreigners whose property rights were protected. But in Nanjing, the burning and destruction began with increasing zeal. What could not be moved inland, such as remaining rice stocks, oil in tanks, and other facilities, was to be blown up or devastated. Civilians were told to follow the army inland, to rebuild later behind the natural barrier of Sichuan terrain. Many urban residents complied, but the peasantry did not embrace the plan. The scorched-earth policy served as powerful propaganda for the occupying Japanese army and, even more so, for the Reds. Yet they could hardly have foreseen the propaganda that Changsha would soon supply them. In June, the Changsha Evacuation Guidance Office was established to coordinate land and water evacuation routes. By the end of October, Wuhan's three towns had fallen, and on November 10 the Japanese army captured Yueyang, turning Changsha into the next primary invasion target. Beginning on October 9, Japanese aircraft intensified from sporadic raids on Changsha to large-scale bombing. On October 27, the Changsha Municipal Government urgently evacuated all residents, exempting only able-bodied men, the elderly, the weak, women, and children. The baojia system was mobilized to go door-to-door, enforcing compliance. On November 7, Chiang Kai-shek convened a military meeting at Rongyuan Garden to review the war plan and finalize a "scorched earth war of resistance." Xu Quan, Chief of Staff of the Security Command, drafted the detailed implementation plan. On November 10, Shi Guoji, Chief of Staff of the Security Command, presided over a joint meeting of Changsha's party, government, military, police, and civilian organizations to devise a strategy. The Changsha Destruction Command was immediately established, bringing together district commanders and several arson squads. The command actively prepared arson equipment and stacked flammable materials along major traffic arteries. Chiang decided that the city of Changsha was vulnerable and either gave the impression or the direct order, honestly really depends on the source your reading, to burn the city to the ground to prevent it falling to the enemy. At 9:00 AM on November 12, Chiang Kai-shek telegraphed Zhang Zhizhong: "One hour to arrive, Chairman Zhang, Changsha, confidential. If Changsha falls, the entire city must be burned. Please make thorough preparations in advance and do not delay." And here it seems a game of broken telephone sort of resulted in one of the worst fire disasters of all time. If your asking pro Chiang sources, the message was clearly, put up a defense, once thats fallen, burn the city down before the Japanese enter. Obviously this was to account for getting civilians out safely and so forth. If you read lets call it more modern CPP aligned sources, its the opposite. Chiang intentionally ordering the city to burn down as fast as possible, but in through my research, I think it was a colossal miscommunication. Regardless Zhongzheng Wen, Minister of the Interior, echoed the message. Simultaneously, Lin Wei, Deputy Director of Chiang Kai-shek's Secretariat, instructed Zhang Zhizhong by long-distance telephone: "If Changsha falls, the entire city must be burned." Zhang summoned Feng Ti, Commander of the Provincial Capital Garrison, and Xu Quan, Director of the Provincial Security Bureau, to outline arson procedures. He designated the Garrison Command to shoulder the preparations, with the Security Bureau assisting. At 4:00 PM, Zhang appointed Xu Kun, Commander of the Second Garrison Regiment, as chief commander of the arson operation, with Wang Weining, Captain of the Social Training Corps, and Xu Quan, Chief of Staff of the Garrison Command, as deputies. At 6:00 PM, the Garrison Command held an emergency meeting ordering all government agencies and organizations in the city to be ready for evacuation at any moment. By around 10:15 PM, all urban police posts had withdrawn. Around 2:00 AM (November 13), a false report circulated that "Japanese troops have reached Xinhe" . Firefighters stationed at various locations rushed out with kerosene-fueled devices, burning everything in sight, shops and houses alike. In an instant, Changsha became a sea of flames. The blaze raged for 72 hours. The Hunan Province Anti-Japanese War Loss Statistics, compiled by the Hunan Provincial Government Statistics Office of the Kuomintang, report that the fire inflicted economic losses of more than 1 billion yuan, a sum equivalent to about 1.7 trillion yuan after the victory in the war. This figure represented roughly 43% of Changsha's total economic value at the time. Regarding casualties, contemporary sources provide varying figures. A Xinhua Daily report from November 20, 1938 noted that authorities mobilized manpower to bury more than 600 bodies, though the total number of burned remains could not be precisely counted. A Central News Agency reporter on November 19 stated that in the Xiangyuan fire, more than 2,000 residents could not escape, and most of the bodies had already been buried. There are further claims that in the Changsha Fire, more than 20,000 residents were burned to death. In terms of displacement, Changsha's population before the fire was about 300,000, and by November 12, 90% had been evacuated. After the fire, authorities registered 124,000 victims, including 815 orphans sheltered in Lito and Maosgang.  Building damage constituted the other major dimension of the catastrophe, with the greatest losses occurring to residential houses, shops, schools, factories, government offices, banks, hospitals, newspaper offices, warehouses, and cultural and entertainment venues, as well as numerous historic buildings such as palaces, temples, private gardens, and the former residences of notable figures; among these, residential and commercial structures suffered the most, followed by factories and schools. Inspector Gao Yihan, who conducted a post-fire investigation, observed that the prosperous areas within Changsha's ring road, including Nanzheng Street and Bajiaoting, were almost completely destroyed, and in other major markets only a handful of shops remained, leading to an overall estimate that surviving or stalemated houses were likely less than 20%. Housing and street data from the early post-liberation period reveal that Changsha had more than 1,100 streets and alleys; of these, more than 690 were completely burned and more than 330 had fewer than five surviving houses, accounting for about 29%, with nearly 90% of the city's streets severely damaged. More than 440 streets were not completely destroyed, but among these, over 190 had only one or two houses remaining and over 130 had only three or four houses remaining; about 60 streets, roughly 6% had 30 to 40 surviving houses, around 30 streets, 3% had 11 to 20 houses, 10 streets, 1% had 21 to 30 houses, and three streets ) had more than 30 houses remaining. Housing statistics from 1952 show that 2,538 houses survived the fire, about 6.57% of the city's total housing stock, with private houses totaling 305,800 square meters and public houses 537,900 square meters. By 1956, the surviving area of both private and public housing totaled 843,700 square meters, roughly 12.3% of the city's total housing area at that time. Alongside these losses, all equipment, materials, funds, goods, books, archives, antiques, and cultural relics that had not been moved were also destroyed.  At the time of the Changsha Fire, Zhou Enlai, then Deputy Minister of the Political Department of the Nationalist Government's Military Commission, was in Changsha alongside Ye Jianying, Guo Moruo, and others. On November 12, 1938, Zhou Enlai attended a meeting held by Changsha cultural groups at Changsha Normal School to commemorate Sun Yat-sen's 72nd birthday. Guo Moruo later recalled that Zhou Enlai and Ye Jianying were awakened by the blaze that night; they each carried a suitcase and evacuated to Xiangtan, with Zhou reportedly displaying considerable indignation at the sudden, unprovoked fire. On the 16th, Zhou Enlai rushed back to Changsha and, together with Chen Cheng, Zhang Zhizhong, and others, inspected the disaster. He mobilized personnel from three departments, with Tian Han and Guo Moruo at the forefront, to form the Changsha Fire Aftermath Task Force, which began debris clearance, care for the injured, and the establishment of soup kitchens. A few days later, on the 22nd, the Hunan Provincial Government established the Changsha Fire Temporary Relief Committee to coordinate relief efforts.  On the night of November 16, 1938, Chiang Kai-shek arrived in Changsha and, the next day, ascended Tianxin Pavilion. Sha Wei, head of the Cultural Relics Section of the Changsha Tianxin Pavilion Park Management Office, and a long-time researcher of the pavilion, explained that documentation indicates Chiang Kai-shek, upon seeing the city largely reduced to scorched earth with little left intact, grew visibly angry. After descending from Tianxin Pavilion, Chiang immediately ordered the arrest of Changsha Garrison Commander Feng Ti, Changsha Police Chief Wen Chongfu, and Commander of the Second Garrison Regiment Xu Kun, and arranged a military trial with a two-day deadline. The interrogation began at 7:00 a.m. on November 18. Liang Xiaojin records that Xu Kun and Wen Chongfu insisted their actions followed orders from the Security Command, while Feng Ti admitted negligence and violations of procedure, calling his acts unforgivable. The trial found Feng Ti to be the principal offender, with Wen Chongfu and Xu Kun as accomplices, and sentenced all three to prison terms of varying lengths. The verdict was sent to Chiang Kai-shek for approval, who was deeply dissatisfied and personally annotated the drafts: he asserted that Feng Ti, as the city's security head, was negligent and must be shot immediately; Wen Chongfu, as police chief, disobeyed orders and fled, and must be shot immediately; Xu Kun, for neglect of duty, must be shot immediately. The court then altered the arson charge in the verdict to "insulting his duty and harming the people" in line with Chiang's instructions. Chiang Kai-shek, citing "failure to supervise personnel and precautions," dismissed Zhang from his post, though he remained in office to oversee aftermath operations. Zhang Zhizhong later recalled Chiang Kai-shek's response after addressing the Changsha fire: a pointed admission that the fundamental cause lay not with a single individual but with the collective leadership's mistakes, and that the error must be acknowledged as a collective failure. All eyes now shifted to the new center of resistance, Chongqing, the temporary capital. Chiang's "Free China" no longer meant the whole country; it now encompassed Sichuan, Hunan, and Henan, but not Jiangsu or Zhejiang. The eastern provinces were effectively lost, along with China's major customs revenues, the country's most fertile regions, and its most advanced infrastructure. The center of political gravity moved far to the west, into a country the Nationalists had never controlled, where everything was unfamiliar and unpredictable, from topography and dialects to diets. On the map, it might have seemed that Chiang still ruled much of China, but vast swaths of the north and northwest were sparsely populated; most of China's population lay in the east and south, where Nationalist control was either gone or held only precariously. The combined pressures of events and returning travelers were gradually shifting American attitudes toward the Japanese incident. Europe remained largely indifferent, with Hitler absorbing most attention, but the United States began to worry about developments in the Pacific. Roosevelt initiated a January 1939 appeal to raise a million dollars for Chinese civilians in distress, and the response quickly materialized. While the Chinese did not expect direct intervention, they hoped to deter further American economic cooperation with Japan and to halt Japan's purchases of scrap iron, oil, gasoline, shipping, and, above all, weapons from the United States. Public opinion in America was sufficiently stirred to sustain a campaign against silk stockings, a symbolic gesture of boycott that achieved limited effect; Japan nonetheless continued to procure strategic materials. Within this chorus, the left remained a persistent but often discordant ally to the Nationalists. The Institute of Pacific Relations, sympathetic to communist aims, urged America to act, pressuring policymakers and sounding alarms about China. Yet the party line remained firmly pro-Chiang Kai-shek: the Japanese advance seemed too rapid and threatening to the Reds' interests. Most oil and iron debates stalled; American businessmen resented British trade ties with Japan, and Britain refused to join any mutual cutoff, arguing that the Western powers were not at war with Japan. What occurred in China was still commonly referred to in Western diplomatic circles as "the Incident." Wang Jingwei's would make his final defection, yes in a long ass history of defections. Mr Wang Jingwei had been very busy traveling to Guangzhou, then Northwest to speak with Feng Yuxiang, many telegrams went back and forth. He returned to the Nationalist government showing his face to foreign presses and so forth. While other prominent rivals of Chiang, Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi, and others, rallied when they perceived Japan as a real threat; all did so except Wang Jingwei. Wang, who had long believed himself the natural heir to Sun Yat-sen and who had repeatedly sought to ascend to power, seemed willing to cooperate with Japan if it served his own aims. I will just say it, Wang Jingwei was a rat. He had always been a rat, never changed. Opinions on Chiang Kai-Shek vary, but I think almost everyone can agree Wang Jingwei was one of the worst characters of this time period. Now Wang Jingwei could not distinguish between allies and enemies and was prepared to accept help from whomever offered it, believing he could outmaneuver Tokyo when necessary. Friends in Shanghai and abroad whispered that it was not too late to influence events, arguing that the broader struggle was not merely China versus Japan but a clash between principled leaders and a tyrannical, self-serving clique, Western imperialism's apologists who needed Chiang removed. For a time Wang drifted within the Kuomintang, moving between Nanjing, Wuhan, Changsha, and Chongqing, maintaining discreet lines of communication with his confidants. The Japanese faced a governance problem typical of conquerors who possess conquered territory: how to rule effectively while continuing the war. They imagined Asia under Japanese-led leadership, an East Asia united by a shared Co-Prosperity Sphere but divided by traditional borders. To sustain this vision, they sought local leaders who could cooperate. The search yielded few viable options; would-be collaborators were soon assassinated, proved incompetent, or proved corrupt. The Japanese concluded it would require more time and education. In the end, Wang Jingwei emerged as a preferred figure. Chongqing, meanwhile, seemed surprised by Wang's ascent. He had moved west to Chengde, then to Kunming, attempted, and failed to win over Yunnan's warlords, and eventually proceeded to Hanoi in Indochina, arriving in Hong Kong by year's end. He sent Chiang Kai-shek a telegram suggesting acceptance of Konoe's terms for peace, which Chungking rejected. In time, Wang would establish his own Kuomintang faction in Shanghai, combining rigorous administration with pervasive secret-police activity characteristic of occupied regimes. By 1940, he would be formally installed as "Chairman of China." But that is a story for another episode.  In the north, the Japanese and the CCP were locked in an uneasy stalemate. Mao's army could make it impossible for the Japanese to hold deep countryside far from the railway lines that enabled mass troop movement into China's interior. Yet the Communists could not defeat the occupiers. In the dark days of October 1938—fifteen months after the war began—one constant remained. Observers (Chinese businessmen, British diplomats, Japanese generals) repeatedly predicted that each new disaster would signal the end of Chinese resistance and force a swift surrender, or at least a negotiated settlement in which the government would accept harsher terms from Tokyo. But even after defenders were expelled from Shanghai, Nanjing, and Wuhan, despite the terrifying might Japan had brought to bear on Chinese resistance, and despite the invader's manpower, technology, and resources, China continued to fight. Yet it fought alone. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. In a land shredded by war, Wuhan burned under brutal sieges, then Changsha followed, a cruel blaze born of orders and miscommunications. Leaders wrestled with retreat, scorched-earth vows, and moral debts as Japanese force and Chinese resilience clashed for months. Mao urged strategy over martyrdom, Wang Jingwei's scheming shadow loomed, and Chongqing rose as the westward beacon. Yet China endured, a stubborn flame refusing to surrender to the coming storm. The war stretched on, unfinished and unyielding.

President Donald Trump announced a trade truce with Chinese President Xi Jinping after a 90-minute meeting in Busan, South Korea, on Thursday. But what actually came out of the truce seems… less than meets the eye. According to Axios, Trump reduced tariffs against China in exchange for promises from the Chinese president to buy American soybeans and oil. However, the deal appears to be largely temporary, with few actual binding details that would make it any different from those made during Trump's first term in office or even earlier this year. So for more details on the trade truce and Trump's Asia trip, I spoke to Evan Madeiros. He's the Penner Family Chair in Asia studies at Georgetown University with a focus on East Asia and US-China relations.And in headlines, Immigration and Customs Enforcement refuses to cease operations during Halloween festivities in Chicago, the Trump administration restricts the amount of refugees it will allow into the US every year, and Trump administration officials held a classified briefing on the president's escalating boat-strike campaign – but only invited Republicans.Show Notes:Call Congress – 202-224-3121Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut has deep insights into national security. And he is concerned. He joined Ryan to share his thoughts on strikes on drug boats, the Trump administration's foreign policy in Latin America, the way the administration fails to work with Congress on matters of national security, and strategy in other parts of the world, including Europe, the Middle East, and East Asia.

Hurricane Melissa intensifies into a Category 5 hurricane as it heads towards Jamaica. We look at how, in the age of climate change, storms are becoming wetter, stronger, slower and more destructive. Also, US President Donald Trump is on a weeklong trip to East Asia. And, Ireland elects left-leaning lawmaker Catherine Connolly as its new president, known for her outspoken views on the war in Gaza, NATO and Irish unification. Plus, a small abandoned village in Greenland is seeing a revival.Listen to today's Music Heard on Air. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Part 2 of this installment of Unearthed! features animals, swords, art, shoes, shipwrecks, and the miscellany category of potpourri. Research: Abrams, G., Auguste, P., Pirson, S. et al. Earliest evidence of Neanderthal multifunctional bone tool production from cave lion (Panthera spelaea) remains. Sci Rep 15, 24010 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-08588-w Addley, Esther. “English warship sunk in 1703 storm gives up its secrets three centuries on.” The Guardian. 7/31/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jul/31/british-warship-hms-northumberland-1703-storm-archaeology Alberge, Dalya. “New research may rewrite origins of the Book of Kells, says academic.” The Guardian. 9/26/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/sep/26/new-research-may-rewrite-origins-of-the-book-of-kells-says-academic Alex, Bridget et al. “Regional disparities in US media coverage of archaeology research.” Science Advances. Vol. 11, No. 27. July 2025. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adt5435 American Historical Association. “Historians Defend the Smithsonian.” Updated 8/15/2015. https://www.historians.org/news/historians-defend-the-smithsonian/#statement Anderson, Sonja. “Underwater Archaeologists Capture Photos of Japanese Warship That Hasn’t Been Seen Since It Sank During World War II.” Smithsonian. 7/23/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/underwater-archaeologists-capture-photos-of-japanese-warship-that-hasnt-been-seen-since-it-sank-during-world-war-ii-180987026/ “Ancient DNA provides a new means to explore ancient diets.” Via PhysOrg. 7/1/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-ancient-dna-explore-diets.html Archaeology Magazine. “Roman Workshop Specialized in Manufacturing Nails.” 9/11/2025. https://archaeology.org/news/2025/09/11/roman-workshop-specialized-in-manufacturing-nails-for-army-boots/ Arnold, Paul. “DNA analysis reveals insights into Ötzi the Iceman's mountain neighbors.” Phys.org. 7/22/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-dna-analysis-reveals-insights-tzi.html Arnold, Paul. “Prehistoric 'Swiss army knife' made from cave lion bone discovered in Neanderthal cave.” Phys.org. 7/9/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-prehistoric-swiss-army-knife-cave.html Associated Press. “Divers recover artifacts from the Titanic’s sister ship Britannic for the first time.” 9/16/2025. https://apnews.com/article/britannic-titanic-shipwreck-recovery-9a525f9831bc0d67c1c9604cc7155765 Breen, Kerry. “Woman's remains exhumed in Oregon's oldest unidentified person case.” CBS News. 9/24/2025. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/oak-grove-jane-doe-remains-exhumed-oregon-unidentified-person-homicide/ Croze, M., Paladin, A., Zingale, S. et al. Genomic diversity and structure of prehistoric alpine individuals from the Tyrolean Iceman’s territory. Nat Commun 16, 6431 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61601-8 Davis, Nicola. “Even Neanderthals had distinct preferences when it came to making dinner, study suggests.” The Guardian. 7/17/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jul/17/even-neanderthals-had-distinct-preferences-when-it-came-to-making-dinner-study-suggests Durham University. “Bronze and Iron Age cultures in the Middle East were committed to wine production.” EurekAlert. 9/17/2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1098278 “Archaeologists discover four at-risk shipwrecks on colonial waterfront at Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site.” 8/4/2025. https://news.ecu.edu/2025/08/04/archaeologists-discover-four-at-risk-shipwrecks-on-colonial-waterfront-at-brunswick-town-fort-anderson-state-historic-site/ Fratsyvir, Anna. “Polish president-elect urges Ukraine to allow full exhumations of Volyn massacre victims, despite resumed work.” 7/12/2025. https://kyivindependent.com/polands-president-elect-urges-zelensky-to-allow-full-exhumations-in-volyn-as-work-already-resumes/ Fry, Devin and Jordan Gartner. “Coroner’s office identifies man 55 years later after exhuming his body from cemetery.” 7/19/2025. https://www.kltv.com/2025/07/19/coroners-office-identifies-man-55-years-later-after-exhuming-his-body-cemetery/ Guagnin, Maria et al. “12,000-year-old rock art marked ancient water sources in Arabia's desert.” Phys.org. 10/1/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-year-art-ancient-sources-arabia.html History Blog. “Medieval leather goods found in Oslo.” 7/15/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73641 Jana Matuszak, Jana. “Of Captive Storm Gods and Cunning Foxes: New Insights into Early Sumerian Mythology, with an Editoin of Ni 12501.” Iraq. Vol. 86. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/iraq/article/of-captive-storm-gods-and-cunning-foxes-new-insights-into-early-sumerian-mythology-with-an-edition-of-ni-12501/391CFC6A9361C23A0E7AF159F565A911 Kuta, Sarah. “Cut Marks on Animal Bones Suggest Neanderthal Groups Had Their Own Unique Culinary Traditions.” Smithsonian. 7/17/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/cut-marks-on-animal-bones-suggest-neanderthal-groups-had-their-own-unique-culinary-traditions-180987002/ Kuta, Sarah. “Seventy Years Later, They Finally Know What It Is.” Smithsonian. 8/1/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-found-sticky-goo-inside-a-2500-year-old-jar-70-years-later-they-finally-know-what-it-is-180987088/ Kuta, Sarah. “Underwater Archaeologists Were Looking for a Lost Shipwreck in Wisconsin. They Stumbled Upon a Different Vessel Instead.” Smithsonian. 7/16/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/underwater-archaeologists-were-looking-for-a-lost-shipwreck-in-wisconsin-they-stumbled-upon-a-different-vessel-instead-180986990/ Linköping University. “Ancient crop discovered in the Canary Islands thanks to archaeological DNA.” Phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-ancient-crop-canary-islands-archaeological.html Lucchesi, Madison. “More layoffs at GBH as ‘Defunded’ sign goes viral.” Boston.com. 7/24/2025. https://www.boston.com/news/media/2025/07/24/gbh-layoffs-defunded-sign/ Luscombe, Richard. “‘It’s incredibly exciting’: ancient canoe unearthed after Hurricane Ian stormed through Florida.” The Guardian. 9/28/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/28/florida-ancient-canoes Margalida, Antoni et al. “The Bearded Vulture as an accumulator of historical remains: Insights for future ecological and biocultural studies.” Ecology. Volume 106, Issue 9. 9/11/2025. https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ecy.70191 Metcalfe, Tom. “300-year-old pirate-plundered shipwreck that once held 'eyewatering treasure' discovered off Madagascar.” Live Science. 7/3/2025. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/300-year-old-pirate-plundered-shipwreck-that-once-held-eyewatering-treasure-discovered-off-madagascar Mondal, Sanjukta. “Ancient Romans likely used extinct sea creature fossils as amulets.” Phys.org. 7/28/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-ancient-romans-extinct-sea-creature.html Morris, Steven. “Iron age settlement found in Gloucestershire after detectorist unearths Roman swords.” The Guardian. 7/4/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jul/04/roman-swords-gloucestershire-villa-iron-age-settlement-discovery Mullett, Russell et al. “Precious finger traces from First Nations ancestors revealed in a glittering mountain cave in Australia.” Phys.org. 7/28/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-precious-finger-nations-ancestors-revealed.html Ocean Exploration Trust. “Expedition reveals 13 shipwrecks from WWII battles off Guadalcanal.” Phys.org. 8/4/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-reveals-shipwrecks-wwii-guadalcanal.html Oster, Sandee. “Study translates fragmentary ancient Sumerian myth around 4,400 years old.” Phys.org. 7/22/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-fragmentary-ancient-sumerian-myth-years.html Paul, Andrew. “130-year-old butter bacteria discovered in Danish basement.” Popular Science. 9/15/2025. https://www.popsci.com/science/old-butter-basement-discovery/ Penn, Tim. “Big Roman shoes discovered near Hadrian's Wall—but they don't necessarily mean big Roman feet.” Phys.org. 7/20/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-big-roman-hadrian-wall-dont.html#google_vignette Pogrebin, Robin and Graham Bowley. “Smithsonian Responds to Trump’s Demand for a Review of Its Exhibits.” New York Times. 9/3/2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/03/arts/design/smithsonian-bunch-trump.html Preston, Elizabeth. “Scientists found a 650-year-old shoe in a vulture nest. That’s just the start of it.’ National Geographic. 10/1/2025. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/vulture-nest-was-hiding-a-650-year-old-shoe Reilly, Adam. “GBH lays off 13 staff at American Experience, pauses production of new documentaries.” GBH. 7/22/2025. https://www.wgbh.org/news/local/2025-07-22/gbh-lays-off-13-staff-at-american-experience-pauses-production-of-new-documentaries Richmond, Todd. “Searchers discover ‘ghost ship’ that sank in Lake Michigan almost 140 years ago.” Associated Press. 9/15/2025. https://apnews.com/article/lake-michigan-schooner-shipwreck-door-county-ccff930d8cd87f3597483938f8fb4fd6 Savat, Sarah. “Discovery expands understanding of Neolithic agricultural practices, diets in East Asia.” EurekAlert. 9/24/2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1099662 Seb Falk, James Wade, The Lost Song of Wade: Peterhouse 255 Revisited, The Review of English Studies, Volume 76, Issue 326, October 2025, Pages 339–365, https://doi.org/10.1093/res/hgaf038 Smith, Kiona N. “Oldest wooden tools in East Asia may have come from any of three species.” Ars Technica. 7/7/2025. https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/07/did-denisovans-or-homo-erectus-make-the-oldest-wooden-tools-in-east-asia/ The Catholic Herald. “Plans in train to exhume holy remains of martyr St Thomas More.” 7/14/2025. https://thecatholicherald.com/article/plans-in-train-to-exhume-holy-remains-of-martyr-st-thomas-more The History Blog. “1600-year-old iron scale, weights found in Turkey.” 7/10/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73597 The History Blog. “2,500-year-old honey identified in ancient offering.” 7/31/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73776 The History Blog. “Kushan vessel inscribed with woman’s name found in Tajikistan.” 7/8/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73582 The History Blog. “Medieval sword fished out of Vistula in Warsaw.” 7/7/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73574 The History Blog. “Unique 3D mural 3,000-4,000 years old found in Peru.” 7/30/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73769 The White House. “Letter to the Smithsonian: Internal Review of Smithsonian Exhibitions and Materials.” 8/12/2025. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2025/08/letter-to-the-smithsonian-internal-review-of-smithsonian-exhibitions-and-materials/ Thorsberg, Christian. “A Tiny Typo May Explain a Centuries-Old Mystery About Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales’ and ‘Troilus and Criseyde’.” Smithsonian. 7/16/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-tiny-typo-may-explain-a-centuries-old-mystery-about-chaucers-canterbury-tales-and-troilus-and-criseyde-180986991/ University of Cambridge. “Scholars just solved a 130-year literary mystery—and it all hinged on one word.” 7/16/2025. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/07/250716000855.htm Vindolanda Trust. “Magna Shoes.” 7/2/2025. https://www.vindolanda.com/news/magna-shoes Whiddington, Richard. “$2 Thrift Store Plate Turns Out to Be Rare Chinese Porcelain Worth Thousands.” Artnet. 8/21/2025. https://news.artnet.com/market/chinese-porcelain-uk-thrift-store-auction-2680013 Whiddington, Richard. “Famed Antikythera Shipwreck Yields More Astonishing Discoveries.” Artnet News. 7/16/2025. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/antikythera-shipwreck-more-discoveries-2668217 Whiddington, Richard. “Scholars Crack 130-Year-Old Mystery Behind a Lost Medieval Epic.” 7/17/2025. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/song-of-wade-mystery-chaucer-2668558 Whiddington, Richard. “Sunken Clues Reveal Identity of Mysterious Scottish Shipwreck.” Artnet. 7/25/2025. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/scotland-shipwreck-sanday-2671342 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Part one of this quarter's installment of Unearthed! features things related to books and letters, and edibles and potables, and as we usually do, we are starting this installment of Unearthed with updates. Research: Abrams, G., Auguste, P., Pirson, S. et al. Earliest evidence of Neanderthal multifunctional bone tool production from cave lion (Panthera spelaea) remains. Sci Rep 15, 24010 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-08588-w Addley, Esther. “English warship sunk in 1703 storm gives up its secrets three centuries on.” The Guardian. 7/31/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jul/31/british-warship-hms-northumberland-1703-storm-archaeology Alberge, Dalya. “New research may rewrite origins of the Book of Kells, says academic.” The Guardian. 9/26/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/sep/26/new-research-may-rewrite-origins-of-the-book-of-kells-says-academic Alex, Bridget et al. “Regional disparities in US media coverage of archaeology research.” Science Advances. Vol. 11, No. 27. July 2025. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adt5435 American Historical Association. “Historians Defend the Smithsonian.” Updated 8/15/2015. https://www.historians.org/news/historians-defend-the-smithsonian/#statement Anderson, Sonja. “Underwater Archaeologists Capture Photos of Japanese Warship That Hasn’t Been Seen Since It Sank During World War II.” Smithsonian. 7/23/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/underwater-archaeologists-capture-photos-of-japanese-warship-that-hasnt-been-seen-since-it-sank-during-world-war-ii-180987026/ “Ancient DNA provides a new means to explore ancient diets.” Via PhysOrg. 7/1/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-ancient-dna-explore-diets.html Archaeology Magazine. “Roman Workshop Specialized in Manufacturing Nails.” 9/11/2025. https://archaeology.org/news/2025/09/11/roman-workshop-specialized-in-manufacturing-nails-for-army-boots/ Arnold, Paul. “DNA analysis reveals insights into Ötzi the Iceman's mountain neighbors.” Phys.org. 7/22/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-dna-analysis-reveals-insights-tzi.html Arnold, Paul. “Prehistoric 'Swiss army knife' made from cave lion bone discovered in Neanderthal cave.” Phys.org. 7/9/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-prehistoric-swiss-army-knife-cave.html Associated Press. “Divers recover artifacts from the Titanic’s sister ship Britannic for the first time.” 9/16/2025. https://apnews.com/article/britannic-titanic-shipwreck-recovery-9a525f9831bc0d67c1c9604cc7155765 Breen, Kerry. “Woman's remains exhumed in Oregon's oldest unidentified person case.” CBS News. 9/24/2025. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/oak-grove-jane-doe-remains-exhumed-oregon-unidentified-person-homicide/ Croze, M., Paladin, A., Zingale, S. et al. Genomic diversity and structure of prehistoric alpine individuals from the Tyrolean Iceman’s territory. Nat Commun 16, 6431 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61601-8 Davis, Nicola. “Even Neanderthals had distinct preferences when it came to making dinner, study suggests.” The Guardian. 7/17/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jul/17/even-neanderthals-had-distinct-preferences-when-it-came-to-making-dinner-study-suggests Durham University. “Bronze and Iron Age cultures in the Middle East were committed to wine production.” EurekAlert. 9/17/2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1098278 “Archaeologists discover four at-risk shipwrecks on colonial waterfront at Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site.” 8/4/2025. https://news.ecu.edu/2025/08/04/archaeologists-discover-four-at-risk-shipwrecks-on-colonial-waterfront-at-brunswick-town-fort-anderson-state-historic-site/ Fratsyvir, Anna. “Polish president-elect urges Ukraine to allow full exhumations of Volyn massacre victims, despite resumed work.” 7/12/2025. https://kyivindependent.com/polands-president-elect-urges-zelensky-to-allow-full-exhumations-in-volyn-as-work-already-resumes/ Fry, Devin and Jordan Gartner. “Coroner’s office identifies man 55 years later after exhuming his body from cemetery.” 7/19/2025. https://www.kltv.com/2025/07/19/coroners-office-identifies-man-55-years-later-after-exhuming-his-body-cemetery/ Guagnin, Maria et al. “12,000-year-old rock art marked ancient water sources in Arabia's desert.” Phys.org. 10/1/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-year-art-ancient-sources-arabia.html History Blog. “Medieval leather goods found in Oslo.” 7/15/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73641 Jana Matuszak, Jana. “Of Captive Storm Gods and Cunning Foxes: New Insights into Early Sumerian Mythology, with an Editoin of Ni 12501.” Iraq. Vol. 86. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/iraq/article/of-captive-storm-gods-and-cunning-foxes-new-insights-into-early-sumerian-mythology-with-an-edition-of-ni-12501/391CFC6A9361C23A0E7AF159F565A911 Kuta, Sarah. “Cut Marks on Animal Bones Suggest Neanderthal Groups Had Their Own Unique Culinary Traditions.” Smithsonian. 7/17/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/cut-marks-on-animal-bones-suggest-neanderthal-groups-had-their-own-unique-culinary-traditions-180987002/ Kuta, Sarah. “Seventy Years Later, They Finally Know What It Is.” Smithsonian. 8/1/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-found-sticky-goo-inside-a-2500-year-old-jar-70-years-later-they-finally-know-what-it-is-180987088/ Kuta, Sarah. “Underwater Archaeologists Were Looking for a Lost Shipwreck in Wisconsin. They Stumbled Upon a Different Vessel Instead.” Smithsonian. 7/16/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/underwater-archaeologists-were-looking-for-a-lost-shipwreck-in-wisconsin-they-stumbled-upon-a-different-vessel-instead-180986990/ Linköping University. “Ancient crop discovered in the Canary Islands thanks to archaeological DNA.” Phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-ancient-crop-canary-islands-archaeological.html Lucchesi, Madison. “More layoffs at GBH as ‘Defunded’ sign goes viral.” Boston.com. 7/24/2025. https://www.boston.com/news/media/2025/07/24/gbh-layoffs-defunded-sign/ Luscombe, Richard. “‘It’s incredibly exciting’: ancient canoe unearthed after Hurricane Ian stormed through Florida.” The Guardian. 9/28/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/28/florida-ancient-canoes Margalida, Antoni et al. “The Bearded Vulture as an accumulator of historical remains: Insights for future ecological and biocultural studies.” Ecology. Volume 106, Issue 9. 9/11/2025. https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ecy.70191 Metcalfe, Tom. “300-year-old pirate-plundered shipwreck that once held 'eyewatering treasure' discovered off Madagascar.” Live Science. 7/3/2025. https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/300-year-old-pirate-plundered-shipwreck-that-once-held-eyewatering-treasure-discovered-off-madagascar Mondal, Sanjukta. “Ancient Romans likely used extinct sea creature fossils as amulets.” Phys.org. 7/28/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-ancient-romans-extinct-sea-creature.html Morris, Steven. “Iron age settlement found in Gloucestershire after detectorist unearths Roman swords.” The Guardian. 7/4/2025. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/jul/04/roman-swords-gloucestershire-villa-iron-age-settlement-discovery Mullett, Russell et al. “Precious finger traces from First Nations ancestors revealed in a glittering mountain cave in Australia.” Phys.org. 7/28/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-precious-finger-nations-ancestors-revealed.html Ocean Exploration Trust. “Expedition reveals 13 shipwrecks from WWII battles off Guadalcanal.” Phys.org. 8/4/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-reveals-shipwrecks-wwii-guadalcanal.html Oster, Sandee. “Study translates fragmentary ancient Sumerian myth around 4,400 years old.” Phys.org. 7/22/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-fragmentary-ancient-sumerian-myth-years.html Paul, Andrew. “130-year-old butter bacteria discovered in Danish basement.” Popular Science. 9/15/2025. https://www.popsci.com/science/old-butter-basement-discovery/ Penn, Tim. “Big Roman shoes discovered near Hadrian's Wall—but they don't necessarily mean big Roman feet.” Phys.org. 7/20/2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-big-roman-hadrian-wall-dont.html#google_vignette Pogrebin, Robin and Graham Bowley. “Smithsonian Responds to Trump’s Demand for a Review of Its Exhibits.” New York Times. 9/3/2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/03/arts/design/smithsonian-bunch-trump.html Preston, Elizabeth. “Scientists found a 650-year-old shoe in a vulture nest. That’s just the start of it.’ National Geographic. 10/1/2025. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/vulture-nest-was-hiding-a-650-year-old-shoe Reilly, Adam. “GBH lays off 13 staff at American Experience, pauses production of new documentaries.” GBH. 7/22/2025. https://www.wgbh.org/news/local/2025-07-22/gbh-lays-off-13-staff-at-american-experience-pauses-production-of-new-documentaries Richmond, Todd. “Searchers discover ‘ghost ship’ that sank in Lake Michigan almost 140 years ago.” Associated Press. 9/15/2025. https://apnews.com/article/lake-michigan-schooner-shipwreck-door-county-ccff930d8cd87f3597483938f8fb4fd6 Savat, Sarah. “Discovery expands understanding of Neolithic agricultural practices, diets in East Asia.” EurekAlert. 9/24/2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1099662 Seb Falk, James Wade, The Lost Song of Wade: Peterhouse 255 Revisited, The Review of English Studies, Volume 76, Issue 326, October 2025, Pages 339–365, https://doi.org/10.1093/res/hgaf038 Smith, Kiona N. “Oldest wooden tools in East Asia may have come from any of three species.” Ars Technica. 7/7/2025. https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/07/did-denisovans-or-homo-erectus-make-the-oldest-wooden-tools-in-east-asia/ The Catholic Herald. “Plans in train to exhume holy remains of martyr St Thomas More.” 7/14/2025. https://thecatholicherald.com/article/plans-in-train-to-exhume-holy-remains-of-martyr-st-thomas-more The History Blog. “1600-year-old iron scale, weights found in Turkey.” 7/10/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73597 The History Blog. “2,500-year-old honey identified in ancient offering.” 7/31/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73776 The History Blog. “Kushan vessel inscribed with woman’s name found in Tajikistan.” 7/8/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73582 The History Blog. “Medieval sword fished out of Vistula in Warsaw.” 7/7/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73574 The History Blog. “Unique 3D mural 3,000-4,000 years old found in Peru.” 7/30/2025. https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/73769 The White House. “Letter to the Smithsonian: Internal Review of Smithsonian Exhibitions and Materials.” 8/12/2025. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2025/08/letter-to-the-smithsonian-internal-review-of-smithsonian-exhibitions-and-materials/ Thorsberg, Christian. “A Tiny Typo May Explain a Centuries-Old Mystery About Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales’ and ‘Troilus and Criseyde’.” Smithsonian. 7/16/2025. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-tiny-typo-may-explain-a-centuries-old-mystery-about-chaucers-canterbury-tales-and-troilus-and-criseyde-180986991/ University of Cambridge. “Scholars just solved a 130-year literary mystery—and it all hinged on one word.” 7/16/2025. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/07/250716000855.htm Vindolanda Trust. “Magna Shoes.” 7/2/2025. https://www.vindolanda.com/news/magna-shoes Whiddington, Richard. “$2 Thrift Store Plate Turns Out to Be Rare Chinese Porcelain Worth Thousands.” Artnet. 8/21/2025. https://news.artnet.com/market/chinese-porcelain-uk-thrift-store-auction-2680013 Whiddington, Richard. “Famed Antikythera Shipwreck Yields More Astonishing Discoveries.” Artnet News. 7/16/2025. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/antikythera-shipwreck-more-discoveries-2668217 Whiddington, Richard. “Scholars Crack 130-Year-Old Mystery Behind a Lost Medieval Epic.” 7/17/2025. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/song-of-wade-mystery-chaucer-2668558 Whiddington, Richard. “Sunken Clues Reveal Identity of Mysterious Scottish Shipwreck.” Artnet. 7/25/2025. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/scotland-shipwreck-sanday-2671342 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.