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This article, focused on Hu Jintao whose moment in the spotlight came on Friday when he formally took over as party chief and head of the "fourth generation" of leaders, quotes China expert and Government Professor Cheng Li.

Associate Professor of Music and bassist Michael "Doc" Woods played in a jam session at New York City's famed Blue Note Jazz Club on November 8 and 9. Woods had attended a performance at the club, then joined an open jam session when the host group asked for a volunteer bass player.

Assistant Professor of History Kevin Grant published an essay, "Trust and Self-Determination: Anglo-American Ethics of Empire and International Government," in Critiques of Capital in Modern Britain and America, edited by Mark Bevir and Frank Trentmann (Palgrave/Macmillan, 2003).

Professor of Government Cheng Li, who is currently a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, wrote three scholarly articles: "The Sixteenth Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party: Paths to Membership and Balance of Power," in Ding Shufan (ed.) Challenges for the Hu Jintao Era. (Taipei: Xinxinwen Publishing House, 2002); "Poised to Take the Helm: Rising Stars and the Transition to the Fourth Generation" in David M. Finkelstein and Maryanne Kivlehan (eds), China’s Leadership in the 21st Century: The Rise of the Fourth Generation (Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2002), pp. 21-44; and "The Mishu Phenomenon: Patron-Client Ties and Coalition-Building Tactics," China Leadership Monitor (Stanford University), No. 4 (Fall, 2002).

Assistant Professor of Physics Seth Major presented a lecture, "Life without Lorentz Invariance: Good, Worthwhile, or Merely Crazy," at the Perimeter Institute/CITA (University of Toronto) Mini-Workshop Oct. 30. The work, some of which is joint work with Tomasz Konopka '02 and Dan Heyman '03, relates to the intriguing recent claims that Einstein's theory of special relativity may require modification.

The 16th Party Congress meeting in Beijing was a significant event for the future of China. Top leaders are expected to retire and a group of new leaders are anticipated to emerge. How far will China move from rule by a main figure? Cheng Li, professor of government and Woodrow Wilson Fellow, said, "The ramifications go beyond a change of guard. This is the major test to see whether China can move toward a peaceful, orderly, institutionalized form of government."

On the last day of China’s 16th Party Congress meeting more than 2,000 delegates elected 198 full and 158 alternate members, and about 180 of whom were new faces. Those 356 members will select top leaders for the next five years. According to two congress delegates, Hu Jintao was the top vote getter, but it was unclear how many votes he collected. Li said that "I would not underestimate him (Hu). Shanghai Gang controls the Political Bureau, but Hu Jintao’s people are the largest group in the Central Committee. Hu may be more powerful than he appears."

This article evaluated Jiang's achievements and failures during his 13 years governing China. Cheng Li, professor of government and Woodrow Wilson Fellow, said "Jiang's weakness is his strength. He relied on think tanks. He talks to other people." Jiang’s achievements included kept the relationship relatively steady through many difficult incidents with the U.S., raised China international stature by joining the WTO, and won the right to host the 2008 Olympics. However, Jiang’s failures included corruption, high unemployment rate and increased disparity between rich and poor.

Cheng Li, professor of government and Woodrow Wilson fellow was quoted in an article that focused on Hu Jintao who will take over as president in March.

This article quoted Cheng Li, China expert and government professor, and focused on Hu Jintao who was the only one of China's top seven leaders returned to office at the Communist Party's 16th Congress in Beijing.