Giant aspires to superpower status
China is a sleeping giant, Napoleon once warned. "Let her sleep, for when she wakes she will shake the world."

Nearly two centuries later and China is well and truly awake.

In the past, when Wall Street sneezed, the rest of the world caught a cold.

While the United States still sets the pace for global markets, there is a growing awareness that, as China's economy expands rapidly, the balance of power is shifting in its direction.

Take, for example, the impact China's rocketing demand for oil -- up by more than a third in 2004 alone -- is having on global energy prices.

Or in clothing -- according to the World Trade Organization, China is expected to produce more than half the world's textiles by the end of the decade.

Dr Linda Yueh of the London School of Economics (LSE), says the rising influence of the Chinese economy is causing a fundamental rethink of the implications for the world, and for China's neighbors.

"We are living in a world where economic power matters and we have China growing at more than 9 percent a year, while Japan is barely even managing growth of 1 percent," she says.

That rise in economic power and confidence is spreading to the political arena, she says, as has been seen with the recent war of words between China and Japan.

In the space of just 25 years, China has transformed from an inward-looking, communist basket case, to a nation fast becoming one of the most influential in the world.

To see the entire Special Report from CNN please click here.

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Win a Swingmaster Classic Pro Jump Rope - $60 Retail Value
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China Update
A monthly look at news from China
Click the title to read the story

Chrysler to sell U.S. Chinese made cars?
Automaker is in talks with Chinese partner to make cars for export to North America.

Shanghai: China's business engine
Shanghai is the birthplace of the world's biggest anti-capitalist political movement,

Beijing to revamp swamped airport
Swamped with travelers just six years after a major expansion, Beijing's airport plans to spend $145 million to add new gates and improve its runways, state media reported.

Avon returns to China's many doors
Direct sales by the cosmetic giant returns after seven year ban; company sheds pyramid-scheme image.

Shanghai hog wild for "Pig Olympics"
These pigs run, jump, and swim -- almost anything but fly.

What material are bearing seals made of?
by Mike Mortensen - Director of Engineering RBI-USA

Three materials are commonly used in bearing seals. By far the most common material used in bearing seals is nitrile rubber, a shortened version of acrylonitrile rubber. Sometimes this material is referred to as Buna N rubber. It has a high temperature capability between 100°C – 120°C.

Another slightly more expensive seal material that is sometimes used is poly acrylic rubber. It offers a higher temperature capability of 160 – 170°C but its low temperature performance is not as good as nitrile rubber.

The third most common seal material is fluorocarbon rubber also referred to as Viton. This is most expensive of the three seal materials and offers the highest temperature capability and chemical resistance. Fluorocarbon seals can endure temperatures over 200°C.

Technical Article Archive

Have a question or topic you would like to see covered? Click here to let Mike know!

Memorial Day
it's more than the official start of summer...

Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day because it was a time set aside to honor the nation's Civil War dead by decorating their graves. It was first widely observed on May 30,1868, to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former sailors and soldiers.

During the first celebration of Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried in the cemetery.

In 1966, the federal government, under the direction of President Lyndon Johnson, declared Waterloo, New York, the official birthplace of Memorial Day. They chose Waterloo—which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866—because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.

By the late 1800s, many communities across the country had begun to celebrate Memorial Day and, after World War I, observances also began to honor those who had died in all of America's wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May. (Veterans Day, a day set aside to honor all veterans, living and dead, is celebrated each year on November 11.)

Today, Memorial Day is celebrated at Arlington National Cemetery with a ceremony in which a small American flag is placed on each grave. Also, it is customary for the president or vice-president to give a speech honoring the contributions of the dead and lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. About 5,000 people attend the ceremony annually.

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