[ http://www.youtube.com/embed/P51zhJyei-o ] Interesting series of pictures showing you the scene at Muscatine, Iowa, a small town in the American heartland revisited by Vice President Xi Jinping yesterday after some 27 years. Hear Tibetan protestors chant against China after the jump...

A few links to start off your day: Gold, coal mine accidents and a very happy Guangzhou

New York Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin may be the first Asian-American in the NBA and the first Harvard graduate to play in the league for almost 60 years. But he's also quickly gained a reputation over the last week as the NBA's #1 Jesus Freak hands down. Recently, Lin -- who wants to become a pastor when he grows up -- appeared together with his mom on Taiwanese evangelical Christian channel GoodTV and showed the world how he's got his guanxi with God all down pat.

Animal rights groups and over 70 Chinese celebrities are protesting the decision by a company specializing in the extraction of bile from Asiatic black bears raised on their private farm to seek a public listing. The Fujian-based Guizhentang Pharmaceutical Co. is making a second bid to list publicly, after their first attempt was thwarted last year by public criticism last year.

Chen Xilong (陈锡隆), one of the victims fortunate enough to survive, is suffering from massive memory loss and impaired cognition, while also experiencing great difficulty in speaking, in addition to other serious symptoms. When asked what one plus two is, he gave the answer "four" and reportedly smiled afterwards.

China has secured the rights to build three new piers in the North Korean special economic zone of Rason and will be entitled to utilize the piers for 50 years, according to South Korea's Yonhap News Agency.

A Taiwanese surgeon who was a pioneer in the field of Lasik eye surgery has announced he will cease performing the procedure, as it violates his medical ethics.

Nicolas Anelka, arguably the highest-profile foreign footballer ever to sign for the Chinese league, arrived at Pudong airport yesterday before being whisked through security to a special VIP backdoor exit.

Midweek Music Preview is our weekly rundown of everything happening on stages across the city. In this week's late specially marinated edition, check out what's happening in the Shanghai metal scene at the Playful Warrior showcase, get the rare chance to see jazz legend Diane Schuur perform at the Peace Hotel, and on Sunday head over to an early 10RMB concert featuring new music from around the city! Read on for all the details, or check out our calendar for everything else.

Hannah Beech of Time asks an important question re: the basketball superstar now on everybody's lips, Jeremy Lin: "Could China, an Olympic powerhouse and homeland of Yao Ming, produce such a gifted, confident point guard?" Her own answer to the question:

In Apple CEO Tim Cook's keynote presentation at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference in San Francisco Tuesday, he responded to complaints about working conditions in Chinese factories and notes how these would be improved: