24 Apr 2006

The '1421' Myth exposed: Chinese admiral Zheng He did not discover the world in 1421
www.1421exposed.com, Singapore
Supplied note: "Dear H-Asia Listers, As has probably been apparent to some on the list, a number of persons around the globe have become a trifle upset with the fabrications of Mr. Gavin Menzies, his publishers and his co-conspirators. Rather than rebutting each claim repeatedly and diversely, it has been decided to create a website where rebuttals and criticisms can be mounted alongside the original claims. Persons interested in the issues can then access these at will.
The new website can be found at: [at the URL below] and http://www.1421exposed.tv/
I urge anyone who has applied their scholarship to the 1421 issue, the associated Liu Gang fake 1418/1763 map or the upcoming 'Island of Seven Cities' volume to share their findings on the website. If anyone has any queries on the site or aspects of it, please do let me know. Best wishes, Geoff Wade, National University of Singapore (arigpw--at--nus.edu.sg)
Self-description: "The http://www.1421exposed.com and http://www.1421exposed.tv joint websites have been set up by an international group of academics and researchers who are greatly concerned about the myths being created and perpetuated by Gavin Menzies, his group and his publishers. In his book '1421: The Year China Discovered the World' Menzies claimed Chinese admiral Zheng He had circumnavigated the globe, in the process 'discovering' most of the world. Subsequent media coverage has failed to accurately present to the public the large body of evidence that Menzies' claim is a fabrication, without any basis in fact. The purpose of this website is to present that evidence, and ensure that history is not rewritten by publishers more interested in short-sighted marketing campaigns that ensure their financial security, rather than intellectual integrity and public enlightenment."
Site contents: * About; * 1421 Myth (News, Useful links, Expert comment); *1763 Map (Liu Gang - owner of the 1763 Map, Useful links, Expert comment); * New Myths ('Island of Seven Cities' [a fortcoming, in May 2006, book by Paul Chiasson who claims that a large Chinese colony existed and thrived in Nova Scotia, Canada well before the European Age of Discovery - ed.], Expert comment); * Menzies (Menzies' Circus, Expert comment); Zheng He (Some Sources for the Zheng He Voyages - Original Sources, Academic Studies, Popular Media representations); * Media; * Contacts; * Links; * Petition ("it is proposed that a petition be created requesting that public libraries and other repositories of public knowledge re-classify '1421' as fiction, in the same vein as the 'Da Vinci Code' is so classified"); * Contribute (Evidence? Expertise? Analysis?); * Discussion [rules and subscription details of the '1421exposed --at--1421exposed.com' mailing list - ed.]
[Menzies' book '1421: The Year China Discovered America' is discussed and evaluated in a Wikipedia article at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1421_hypothesis address - ed.]
URL http://www.1421exposed.com/
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [The site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: Geoff Wade (arigpw--at--nus.edu.sg), forwarded by h-asia--at--h-net.msu.edu
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study/News/Documents
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: V. Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

24 Apr 2006

Sri Lanka: The Wounded Tiger [of Tamil Eelam]
Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, India
Supplied note: "The latest paper of the Institute For Topical Studies, A-2/3, Bharathi Dasan Colony, K.K.Nagar, Chennai---600078, India, on the above subject is now available at the web site of the South Asia Analysis Group (SAAG), New Delhi, at [the URL below] - br."
Extract: "Mr.Rajpakse [i.e. the Sri Lankan President - ed.] has been trying to use the Muslim card in the Eastern Province in order to use the Tamil-speaking Muslims against the Tamil-speaking Hindus and Christians, who constitute the almost total bulk of the LTTE [The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam - ed.] cadres and supporters. His reported decision to raise a Muslim regiment in the army is fraught with dangers. 13. The Tamil-speaking Muslims of Sri Lanka, like the Indian Muslims, have till now kept themselves away from pan-Islamic radicalism of the kind propagated by Al Qaeda and the IIF. However, even before Mr.Rajpakse came to power, there were indications of Pakistan's Lashkar-e-Toiba (LET) trying to extend its presence to the Eastern Province by recruiting members from the Sri Lankan Muslims working in the Gulf. [...] 14. By trying to create and use a Muslim card against the LTTE, Mr.Rajpakse runs the risk of contributing to a pan-Islamic radicalisation of the Tamil Muslim community. It is only a question of time before the Muslim anger against the LTTE, sought to be kindled by him, turns into anger against the civil society as a whole and the Government. Mr.Rajpakse is playing with pan-Islamic jihadi fire. - b. raman."
[The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai - ed.]
URL http://www.saag.org/papers18/paper1773.html
Internet Archive (www.archive.org) [the paper was not archived at the time of this abstract. However, in a few weeks time it will be available at web.archive.org/web/*/www.saag.org]
Link reported by: B. Raman (corde--at--vsnl.com)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library - NGO - other]: NGO
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Interesting
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

21 Apr 2006

The Scottish Centre for Himalayan Research (SCHR)
Scottish Centre for Himalayan Research, University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK
Self-description: "The Scottish Centre for Himalayan Research unites staff from across Scotland in a collaborative and interdisciplinary area studies centre at the University of Aberdeen. We offer two taught postgraduate programmes, an MRes in Himalayan Studies and an MSc in Himalayan Ethnobotany. PhD research is possible in a wide range of fields and along the entire length of the Himalayas. Researchers draw on expertise and resources from all the Scottish universities."
[SCHR's areas of expertise: anthropology, Buddhism, botany, conflict, development, ethnobiology, global warming, Hinduism, history, Islam, law, Nepali, Newari, politics, public health, Sanskrit, Tibetan, terrorism. Research projects underway in 2006 include: Tibetan divination, Tantric medicine, 17th century Scots in the Himalayas, plant collecting expeditions in the Solu Khumbu region, and spirit categories in Afghanistan. - ed.]
URL http://www.abdn.ac.uk/schr/
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [The site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: T. Matthew Ciolek (tmciolek--at--coombs.anu.edu.au)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Corporate Info.
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

20 Apr 2006

National Library of China / National Digital Library of China
National Library of China, Beijing, China
Supplied note: "National (and Digital) Library of China. Full texts in PDF format. Requires Simplified Chinese Language Packages for most pdf readers. Links to most major Asian Libraries. - pr."
Site content: * Collections; * D-Portal; * Services for User; * User's Guide; * Services for Library; * Publications; * Navigation; * About Us.
[A site in Chinese. Bi-lingual (CN,EN) navigation system - ed.]
URL http://www.nlc.gov.cn/
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.nlc.gov.cn/
Link reported by: Paola Raffetta (paolaraffetta--at--gmail.com)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Corporate Info.
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library/museum - NGO - other]: Library
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Essential
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: over 3,000 [in fact, 18700 links]

20 Apr 2006

Asian Studies WWW Monitor - 12th Anniversary
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies (RSPAS), The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
Supplied note: "The Asian Studies WWW Monitor (ISSN 1329-9778) was first published on the 21st April 1994, originally under a title 'What's New in WWW Asian Studies Online Newsletter.' The electronic journal forms a key part of the Asian Studies WWW Virtual Library (AS WWW VL) Project (http://coombs.anu.edu.au/WWWVL-AsianStudies.html) which itself was established only one month earlier. The Journal tracks the current developments in the Asian Studies' cyberspace and provides timely and impartial summaries and evaluations of the latest web sites and other online information resources relevant to research of Asia and the Pacific region.
During the 12 years of operations (= 248 issues) the journal has published details (i.e. TOCs and short summaries of the content, resource's general type/category, details of its publisher, evaluation of its scholarly usefulness, and the count of external hyperlinks leading to it) of 4,813 web, gopher, ftp and email resources (= approx. 33.4 abstracts/month). All past issues of the Monitor are freely accessible online in the form of archived web pages, as well as a database, and provide a rich record of the key developments in online Asian Studies from the early 1994 till today. (See also 'Asian Studies Online - a Timeline of Major Developments', http://coombs.anu.edu.au/asian-studies-timeline.html). Since Oct 2005 the most valuable online scholarly materials revieved by the Monitor are also listed in a blog THE BEST OF THE ASIAN STUDIES WWW MONITOR (http://asia-www-monitor.blogspot.com).
On the eve of its twelfth anniversary, the e-mail edition of the journal (asia-www-monitor@coombs.anu.edu.au) had 5,323 subscribers. Selected portions of the Monitor are frequently republished by other scholarly mailing lists, including the prestigious H-ASIA@h-net.msu.edu. On the 20th April 2006 the Monitor's web site had the Google (www.google.com) rank #4 among about 147,000,000 online documents dealing with 'asian studies.' According to Altavista (www.altavista.com) the Monitor is linked to from over 723 external web pages - tmc."
URL http://coombs.anu.edu.au/asia-www-monitor.html
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/*/coombs.anu.edu.au/asia-www-monitor.html
Link reported by: T. Matthew Ciolek (tmciolek--at--coombs.anu.edu.au)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Online Guide
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: rating not available
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 1,000

18 Apr 2006

CAEI Working Papers on Asia-Pacific
Asia-Pacific Program, Argentine Center of International Studies (CAEI), Buenos Aires, Argentina
Self-description: "Para facilitar la comprension de las estructuras politicas, economicas y socio-culturales de los paises asiaticos, el CAEI conformo en el marco del area de Investigacion del Centro, un Grupo de Investigacion de Asia-Pacifico. El mismo funcionara como un conjunto de estudios interdisciplinarios conformado por graduados y estudiantes abocados a la formacion de un campo de estudios asiaticos a traves de la Investigacion, la docencia y la produccion de conocimiento cientifico; y permitiendo, de igual manera- coordinar actividades con otras areas en funcionamiento dentro del CAEI."
Site contents: * Working Paper #11 "Development & Effective Governance" - Lloyd Fernando, (16/04/06); * Working Paper #10 "Sesion anual del Parlamento chino: de vuelta al campo" - Xulio Rios, IGADI (02/04/06); * Working Paper #09 "Crisis Nuclear en Corea del Norte y la politica de la Administracion Bush hacia la crisis" - Lic. Fernanda Massaccesi, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, (05/09/05); * Working Paper #08 "La democracia en China: Libro blanco o Libro en blanco?" - Xulio Rios, IGADI, (12/02/06); * Working Paper #07 "La nueva politica para Taiwan" - Xulio Rios, IGADI, (12/02/06); * Working Paper #06 "Islam and political secularism: their convergence in an independence struggle" - Damien Kingsbury, Deakin University, Australia, (12/12/05); * Working Paper #05 "China: Politicas de Comercio Internacional e Desenvolvimento Economico" - Leonardo Cembranelli De Aquino, UniCEUB - Brasil, (12/12/05); * Working Paper #04 "Islam "Symbolic Politics", Democratization and Indonesian Foreign Policy" - Anak Agung Banyu Perwita, Parahyangan Catholic University (Bandung, Indonesia), (12/12/05); * Working Paper #03 "Desarrollo Cientifico-Tecnologico - Breve comparacion entre America latina y el Sudeste Asiatico. Caso de estudio: Argentina y Corea del sur" - Ariel Oliver, Universidad Nacional del Centro (Tandil), (10/10/05); * Working Paper #02 "China en Movimiento" - Lic. Gustavo Cardozo, Centro Argentino de Estudios Internacionales, (05/09/05); * Working Paper #01 "Politica exterior China en la Post Guerra Fria; Retos Internos y Externos en ALATyC" - Lic. Gustavo Cardozo, Centro Argentino de Estudios Internacionales, (08/08/05);
URL http://www.caei.com.ar/es/programas/asia/working.htm
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [the site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: Argentine Center of International Studies (cei--at--caei.com.ar), forwarded by central-eurasia-l--at--lists.fas.harvard.edu
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

18 Apr 2006

CAEI Working Papers on CIS and Baltic Countries
CIS and Baltic Countries (ex USSR) Program, Argentine Center of International Studies (CAEI), Buenos Aires, Argentina
Self-description: "Con este amplio temario, el CAEI inicia una discusion que puede ser compartida por todos aquellos estudiantes, profesionales y academicos que deseen incorporarse a ella. La misma se manifestara; a traves de la publicacion de todos aquellas Investigaciones, papers, monografias, tesis y tesinas que -ajustados en los criterios de publicacion del CAEI- sean aportados al Area CEI y Paises Balticos."
Site contents (all papers are in English): * Working Paper #30 "Chechnya and Russia: the significance of the Chechen problem for contemporary Russia" - Maciej Falkowski, Centre for Eastern Studies (Varsovia, Polonia) (11/04/06); * Working Paper #29 "Policy paper on freedom of expression in Tajikistan" - Nigina Zaripova, International Policy Fellowships (Budapest, Hungria) (11/04/06); * Working Paper #28 "Belarus as a gas transit country" - Institute for Privatization and Management, IPM (Minsk, Bielorrusia) (11/04/06); * Working Paper #27 "Developing a national security concept for Georgia" - Center for Peace and International Relations Studies, CPIRS (Tiflis, Georgia), (11/04/06); * Working Paper #26 "Decentralization in the Russian Federation" - Elena Andreeva y Natalia Golovanova, Center for Fiscal Policy (Moscœ, Federacion Rusa), (11/04/06); * Working Paper #25 "Democratic accountability of Russian regional governments: do elections matter?" - Aitalina Azarova, Central European University / Open Society Institute (Budapest, Hungria), (11/04/06); * Working Paper #24 "Uzbekistan: the major source of instability in Central Asia?" - Grzegorz Zasada, Centre for Eastern Studies (Varsovia, Polonia) (11/04/06); * Working Paper #23 "Lost potential in the South Caucasus: aspects of interstate trade" - International Center for Human Development, ICHD (Erevan, Armenia) (11/04/06); * Working Paper #22 "Bicameralism and Democracy in the Republic of Tajikistan" - Naira Zavrabyan, MA, Central European University (Budapest, Hungria) (21/03/06); * Working Paper #21 "Privatisation and Economic Development Strategy in Russia" - Prof. Ram Kumar Mishra, Conflict Studies Research Centre, Institute of Public Enterprise (Andhra Pradesh, India), (20/03/06); * Working Paper #20 "Putin's foreign policy toward Syria" - Mark N. Katz, Conflict Studies Research Centre, George Mason University (Virginia, Estados Unidos), (20/03/06); * Working Paper #19 "The End of Ichkeria?" - Charles W. Blandy, Conflict Studies Research Centre, Defence Academy of the United Kingdom (Wiltshire, Reino Unido), (15/02/06); * Working Paper #18 "The Bear, the Peacock, the Eagle, the Sturgeon and the Black, Black Oil: Contemporary Regional Power Politics in the Caspian Sea" - Dr. Steven J. Main, Conflict Studies Research Centre, Defence Academy of the United Kingdom (Wiltshire, Reino Unido), (15/02/06); * Working Paper #17 "Civil Control over "Enforcement" structures in Ukraine: challenges and prospects" - Olexiy Poltorakov, PhD, Academia Nacional de Ciencias de Ucrania (Kiev, Ucrania), (15/02/06); * Working Paper #16 "Domestic sources of Post-Communist Foreign Policy. Institutional analysis of Hungary and Romania 1990-2000" - Sebastian Huluban, Ministerio de Defensa de Rumania (Bucarest, Rumania), (11/01/06); * Working Paper #15 "The Collapse of the USSR and International System: Proposal for a Theoritical Solution" - Fatih Seyhanoglu, MA, Fatih University (Estambul, Turquia) (11/01/06); * Working Paper #14 "Chechnya, Wahhabism and the invasion of Dagestan" - Dr. Emil Souleimanov, Charles University (Praga, Republica Checa), (17/12/05); * Working Paper #13 "Azerbaijan: Islam in a post-soviet republic" - Anar Valiyev, University of Louisville (Louisville, Estados Unidos), (03/12/05); * Working Paper #12 "Ten Myths About Russia: Understanding and Dealing with Russia's Complexity and Ambiguity" - David Foglesong, PhD, University of California (Berkeley, Estados Unidos), Dr. Gordon M. Hahn, Stanford University (Stanford, Estados Unidos), (03/12/05); * Working Paper #11 "Russia and the West: problems and oportunities" - Dr. Bobo Lo, Royal Institute of International Affairs (Londres, Reino Unido), (03/12/05); * Working Paper #10 "Azerbaijan's 2005 Elections: Lost Opportunity" - Europe Briefing #40 The Ankara Center for Turkish Policy Studies / International Crisis Group (Ankara, Turquia), (28/11/05); * Working Paper #09 "Azerbaijan's Parliamentary Elections: A Step Forward" - Svante Cornell, Johns Hopkins University-SAIS / Uppsala University (Washington DC, Estados Unidos), (28/11/05); * Working Paper #08 "Black Soil. Oil and Ethnicity in the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict" - Morten Anstorp Rosenkvist, MA, Oslo University (Oslo, Noruega), (28/11/05); * Working Paper #07 "Improving the OECD's Istanbul Anti-Corruption Action Plan" - Bryane Michael, Linacre College, University of Oxford (Oxford, Reino Unido), Donald Bowser, University of Melbourne (Melbourne, Australia) (28/11/05); * Working Paper #06 "Armenian Genocide. What it means to the US and the EU" - Mehmet Kalyoncu, Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies Georgetown University (Washington DC, Estados Unidos) (15/11/05); * Working Paper #05 "The Stakes of the Opening of Turkish-Armenian Border - The cross-border contacts between Armenia and Turkey" - Dr. Burcu Gultekin, French Institute of Anatolian Studies (Estambul, Turquia), (14/11/05); * Working Paper #04 "Islamic "threat": the case of Uzbekistan" - Yazmin Masood, University of World Economy and Diplomacy (Tashkent, Uzbekistan), (31/10/05); * Working Paper #03 "The US and democratization in Central Asia. The impact of 9/11 and call for change" - Yazmin Masood, University of World Economy and Diplomacy (Tashkent, Uzbekistan), (31/10/05); * Working Paper #02 "NATO eastward enlargement: Strategic implications for Eurasia" - Antonina Habova, University St. Kliment Ohridski (Sofia, Bulgaria), (10/10/05); * Working Paper #01 "What to do about Russia" - James M. Goldgeier, George Washington University (Washington DC, Estados Unidos), Michael McFaul Stanford University (Stanford, Estados Unidos) (10/10/05);
URL http://www.caei.com.ar/es/programas/cei/working.htm
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [the site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: Argentine Center of International Studies (cei--at--caei.com.ar), forwarded by central-eurasia-l--at--lists.fas.harvard.edu
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: V.Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

13 Apr 2006

Southasia Matters - yahoo.group
groups.yahoo.com, US
Supplied note: "Some of us (esp. based in Southasia) felt the need of having an e-list and an open platform to discuss issues of significance, activism, development work and share conference notices, research findings, teaching materials, and highlight books and book reviews on South Asia (India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives) hence Southasia_matters was founded [on 5 April 2006 - ed.]. Please join...... [at the URL below]. Or alternatively write to me and I will email invitations... Many Thanks kind regards vibha Dr. Vibha Arora [vibhaaurora--at--gmail.com] Delhi, India."
URL http://groups.yahoo.com/group/southasia_matters/
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [the site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: Dr. Vibha Arora (vibhaaurora--at--gmail.com), forwarded by h-asia--at--h-net.msu.edu
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: News
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: rating not available
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

11 Apr 2006

Will the US Strike Against Iran?
Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, India
Supplied note: "The latest paper of the Institute For Topical Studies, A-2/3, Bharathi Dasan Colony, K.K.Nagar, Chennai---600078, India, on the above subject is now available at the web site of the South Asia Analysis Group (SAAG), New Delhi, at [the URL below] - br."
Extract: "The strongest possibility is that the US might make a conventional strike against [the uranium enrichment plant at - ed] Natanz, even if it won't destroy the facility. It would definitely cause considerable damage, delay the operationalisation of the plant by many years and convey a clear message to Teheran of the US determination to prevent its operationalisation. [...] QUESTION NO. 13: What would be the implications for India? A nuclear Iran should be of serious concern to India too. It could upset our assessments relating to our minimum credible nuclear deterrence and the required delivery capabilities. [...] At the same time, India cannot remain unaffected by the emergence and spread of international Shia terrorism, if that is one of the products of an American air strike. [...] India's national interests demand that it should not be seen as conniving at US plans for a regime change in Iran or for the destruction of Iran's enrichment capability. It is a very ticklish task for Indian diplomacy. - b. raman."
[The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai - ed.]
URL http://www.saag.org/papers18/paper1765.html
Internet Archive (www.archive.org) [the paper was not archived at the time of this abstract. However, in a few weeks time it will be available at web.archive.org/web/*/www.saag.org]
Link reported by: B. Raman (corde--at--vsnl.com)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library - NGO - other]: NGO
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

11 Apr 2006

Asia-Pacific Missionaries: at Home and Abroad, Aug 2006.
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
Self-description: "2nd Biennial ANU Missionary History Conference, Asia-Pacific Missionaries: at Home and Abroad, Coombs Lecture Theatre, The Australian National University, Friday 25-Saturday 27 August 2006.
ABSTRACTS INVITED. You are invited to share in the 2nd ANU Missionary Conference. Presentations on Canadian, New Zealand/Aotorean, Pacific Islander, Hong Kong, Singaporean, Malaysian, South African and Australian contributions to Christian missions, domestic and foreign, in the Asia-Pacific region, are invited. A common background with British missionary outreach links the 2006 conference. Abstracts close 30 May 2006. Postgraduate papers are encouraged. A special focus of the conference is the contribution of women to the missionary enterprise. The conference is open to anyone interested. [...] Proceedings [in PDF format] of 2004 TransTasman Missionary conference are at: rspas.anu.edu.au/pah/TransTasman/ "
[The 2004 Conference Proceedings include: * Barry, Amanda - 'A Matter of Primary Importance': early missionary educational attempts at Ramahyuck (Victoria) and Poonindie (South Australia); * Brett, Christine - "We have grown to love her". The Aborigines Inland Mission, Aboriginal People and the NSW Aborigines Protection Board, 1905-1920.; * Crawford, Janet - "Unpretending labours": Julia Farr and the Melanesian Mission; * Edwards, Bill - A Moravian Mission In Australia: Ebenezer Through Ernabella Eyes; * Gooden, Rosalind - Five Barley Loaves: An icon for Australasian Baptist Missionary Work; * Lake, Meredith - The Australian Council of Churches' activity in Asia and its reflexive impact on Australian Christianity, 1950 - 1965; * Mitchell, Jessie - "Can these dry bones live?" Conversion and Worship on Aboriginal Missions and Protectorate Stations, 1830-1850; * Morrison, Hugh - Australian Influences on New Zealand's Emerging Protestant Missionary Movement, 1885-1922; * Paproth, Darrell - Hussey Burgh Macartney Jr: Mission Enthusiast; * Piggin, Stuart - The Origins of Australian Protestant Missions: Evangelical Visions; * Ross, Cathy - Separate Spheres Or Shared Dominions?; * Welch, Ian - Nellie, Topsy and Annie: Australian Anglican Martyrs, Fujian Province, China, 1 August 1895. - ed.]
URL http://rspas.anu.edu.au/pah/missionaryhistory/
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [the site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: T. Matthew Ciolek (tmciolek--at--coombs.anu.edu.au)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Corporate Info.
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

10 Apr 2006

European Bulletin of Himalayan Research (EBHR)
Dept. of Ethnology, South Asia Institute, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
Supplied note: "The European Bulletin of Himalayan Research (EBHR) ISSN 0943 8254 is one of the major scientific periodical on the Himalayan region. It was founded in 1991 and has appeared twice yearly ever since. It is edited on a rotating basis between France (CNRS), Germany (South Asia Institute) and the UK (SOAS). We take the Himalayas to mean: Karakorum, Hindukush, Ladakh, southern Tibet, Kashmir, north-west India, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, and north-east India. The subjects we cover range from geography and economics to anthropology, sociology, philology, history, art history, and history of religions. In addition to scholarly articles, we publish book reviews, reports on research projects, information on Himalayan archives, news of forthcoming conferences, and funding opportunities. - pr.]
Site contents: Subscription Form; Information for Authors; Content of Recent Issues; News; Back Issues for Download.
EBHR Back Issues in PDF format archived online:
[access via http://www.digitalhimalaya.com/collections/journals/ebhr/ Alternative access via http://www.thdl.org/texts/reprints/ebhr/] #1 - 1991 [4.1 MB]; #2 - 1991 [7.8 MB]; #3 - 1992 [10.7 MB]; #4 - 1992 [11.2 MB]; #5 - 1993 [10.6 MB]; #6 - 1994 [9.1 MB]; #7 - 1994 [8.7 MB]; #8 - 1995 [9.2 MB]; #9 - 1995 [8.3 MB]; #10 - 1996 [8.6 MB]; #11 - 1996 [11.2 MB]; #12 & 13 - 1997 Double Issue [29.8 MB]; #14 - 1998 [14.9 MB]; #15 & 16 - 1999 Double Issue [36 MB]; #17 - 1999 [19.4 MB]; #18 - 1999 [19MB]; #19 - 2000 [2 MB]; #20 & 21 - 2001 Double Issue [2.2 MB]; #22 - 2002 [19 MB]
URL http://www.sai.uni-heidelberg.de/workgroups/ebhr/ebhr.php
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.sai.uni-heidelberg.de/workgroups/ebhr/ebhr.php
Link reported by: Philippe Ramirez (pramirez--at--vjf.cnrs.fr)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Corporate Info./Study
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Essential
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

05 Apr 2006

Ellen Bruno Films: Documentaries on Tibet, Cambodia and Burma
Bruno Films, San Francisco, CA, US
Supplied note: "[I have produced] films about human rights issues in [Tibet,] Burma/Thailand, Cambodia and Nepal. Below are some descriptions as well as direct links to five minute clips of the films.
SAMSARA: Death and Rebirth in Cambodia - documents the Cambodian's efforts to reconstruct a shattered society in a climate of war, bringing a humanistic perspective to a country in deep political turmoil. To view a clip: http://www.brunofilms.com/samsara.html
SATYA: A Prayer for the Enemy - documents human rights abuses in Tibet, focusing on the non-violent activism of Tibetan Buddhist nuns in the struggle for basic human rights and religious freedom. To view a clip: http://www.brunofilms.com/satya.html
SACRIFICE: The Story of Child Prostitutes from Burma - examines the political and economic forces at work in the trafficking of Burmese girls into prostitution in Thailand. To view a clip: http://www.brunofilms.com/sacrifice.html
LEPER: Life Beyond Stigma - offers a rare and intimate glimpse into a village of lepers in rural Nepal. Villagers speak openly and emotionally about the myriad stigmas and misunderstandings that surround the disease that has marked their bodies and their lives. To view a clip: http://www.brunofilms.com/leper.html
SKY BURIAL - documents a common burial custom in Tibet where the bodies of the dead are offered to the vultures as a final act of kindness to living beings... the ultimate gesture of generosity. To merge with the sky is a holy event, one that replaces the sufferings of this world with peace. To view a clip: http://www.brunofilms.com/sky.html - eb."
[The filmaker, Ellen Bruno, completed a masters degree in documentary film at Stanford University in 1990. She held a Rockefeller Fellowship in 1997, Guggenheim Fellowship in 1998, fellowships from the Western States Media Arts and a Shenkin Fellowship from Yale University School of Art. - ed.]
URL http://www.brunofilms.com/
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.brunofilms.com/
Link reported by: Ellen Bruno (ellen--at--brunofilms.com)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Corporate Info.
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Business
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: V.Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 300

05 Apr 2006

Old World Trade Routes (OWTRAD) Project
Asia Pacific Research Online, Canberra, Australia
Self-description: "This site [est 7 Jul 1999 - ed.] supports online research in the field of dromography [= the study of history, geography and logistics of communication and trade routes - ed.] and provides a public-access electronic archive of geo/chrono-referenced data on land, river and maritime trade routes of Eurasia and Africa during the period 10,000 BCE - circa 1820 CE."
Site contents: * Introduction; * Reference Tools; * Data sets [in early Apr 2006 there were 58 GIS-ready datasets including] * Africa trade and pilgrimage routes data sets [...] * Asia & the Middle East data sets (# Karakoram and Pamir,1900 CE, major travel routes [17 data points; Src: Walker 1995; georeferenced] # NW China, 100 CE-1400 CE, 'Silk Road' trade routes [45 data points; Src: Anonymous-4 1991; georeferenced] # Tibet, Sichuan and Yunnan, 680 CE-1950 CE - dataset 1, 'Tea and Horse' routes [16 data points; Src: Yang Fuquan 2004a; georeferenced] # Tibet, Sichuan and Yunnan, 680 CE-1950 CE - dataset 2, 'Tea and Horse' routes [18 data points; Src: Yang Fuquan 2004b; georeferenced] # Tibet, Sichuan and Yunnan, 680 CE-1950 CE - dataset 3, 'Tea and Horse' routes [27 data points; Src: Beijing Portal 2004; georeferenced] # China, 1368 CE-1644 CE, Imperial courier (I-chan) routes [458 routes' segments; Src: Hoshi 1971 and Elvin 1982; georeferenced] # NW China,1920 CE, major roads and caravan routes [111 data points; Src: Cable and French 1947; georeferenced] # Tibet, 1900-1950 CE, trade and transportation routes - dataset 1 [150 data points; Src: Baumann 1988; georeferenced] # Tibet, 1900-1950 CE, trade and transportation routes - dataset 2 [14 data points; Src: Norbu & Turnbull 1976, Gyatso 1992, Norbu 1997; georeferenced] # Hellenistic countries, 350 BCE, trade routes [52 data points; Src: Scarre (ed.) 1988; georeferenced] # Middle East, 600-500 BCE, trade routes [13 data points; Src: Cohen and Yisrael 1995; georeferenced] # India,1550-1710 CE, major roads [88 data points; Src: Farooque 1977; georeferenced] # Persia, 550 BCE-450 BCE, major roads [18 data points; Src: Lockhart 1966; georeferenced] # Persia, 50 BCE-300 CE, trade routes [92 data points; Src: Davies 1959; georeferenced] # Kyrgyzstan, 100 BCE-1400 CE - dataset 1, 'Silk Road' routes [37 data points; Src: Artrek n.d.; georeferenced] # Kyrgyzstan, 100 BCE-1400 CE - dataset 2, 'Silk Road' routes [16 data points; Src: Unusaliev and Tabaldiev 1998; georeferenced] # Kyrgyzstan, 100 BCE-1400 CE - dataset 3, 'Silk Road' routes [42 data points; Src: Artrek 2001; georeferenced] # Kyrgyzstan, 100 BCE-1400 CE - dataset 4, 'Silk Road' routes [32 data points; Src: ITMC Tien Shan n.d.; georeferenced] # Kyrgyzstan, 100 BCE-1400 CE - dataset 5, 'Silk Road' routes [57 data points; Src: Kolobova n.d.; georeferenced] # Cambodia [Khmer], 1200 CE, major roads [35 data points; Src: Hatano 2002; georeferenced] # Tajikistan, 400 CE-800 CE - dataset 1, 'Silk Road' routes [104 data points; Src: Tajikistan Development Gateway Team. n.d. (1) & (2); georeferenced] # Tajikistan, 400 CE-800 CE - dataset 2, 'Silk Road' routes [53 data points; Src: Jonboboev & Mamadambarova. n.d. (1); georeferenced] # Anatolia, 1200 CE-1400 CE, trade routes [191 routes' segments; Src: Anonymous-5. n.d; georeferenced] # The Middle East, the Caucasus, Central Asia and China, 1200 CE-1400 CE, trade routes [121 routes' segments; Src: Anonymous-6. n.d; georeferenced] # Turkey, 1300 CE-1600 CE, trade routes [174 routes' segments; Src: Inalcik 2000; georeferenced] # Iran and China, 200 BCE-500 CE, 'Silk Road' routes [27 data points; Src: Klimkeit 1988; georeferenced] # The Mediterranean, Iran and China, 200 BCE-1400 CE, 'Silk Road' routes [55 data points; Src: Klimkeit 1988; georeferenced] # Central Asia, 700-1000 CE, 'Silk Road' routes [59 data points; Src: Whitfield 1999; georeferenced] # Central Asia, 1 CE-1400 CE, 'Silk Road' routes [45 data points; Src: Foltz 1999; georeferenced] # Central Asia, 1 CE-1400 CE, 'Silk Road' routes [40 data points; Src: Anonymous-4 1991; georeferenced] # Middle East and India,1300 CE-1600 CE, trade and pilgrimage routes [149 data points; Src: Michell 1978; georeferenced]); * Europe trade and pilgrimage routes data sets [...]); * The OWTRAD Gazetteer (A list of online Lat/Long Gazetteers, Georeferenced Nodes - coordinates and other details of 12,500 variant names for 3,130 unique places in Eurasia and Africa]; * Catalogue of Georeferenced Caravanserais/Khans [Details of 607 caravanserais/khans and other built facilities (bedestans/qaysariyyas, bridges, forts, lighthouses/beacons, markets/bazaars, hospices, etc.) supporting long-distance communication routes]; * Trade-Routes--at--mm.isu.edu scholarly forum [Historical Transport/Communication/Pilgrimage Networks forum] * The OWTRAD Notation System (Introduction, Details of the formal language); * Trade Routes Resources Blog; * Useful Bibliographies.
URL http://www.ciolek.com/owtrad.html
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/*/www.ciolek.com/owtrad.html
Link reported by: T. Matthew Ciolek (tmciolek--at--coombs.anu.edu.au)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Other
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: rating not available
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 3,000 (in fact, 1350)

05 Apr 2006

Tibskrit - A Bibliography of Tibetan Philology
Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies (RSPAS), The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
Supplied note: "Dear Tibet List [i.e. Tibetan-Studies--at--coombs.anu.edu.au - ed.], [... Tibskrit is] a bio-bibliographical work that may be found useful for anyone who can make use of it critically, which I think might include persons doing research in areas in some way related to Indian and Tibetan religion, philosophy, grammar, literature and so forth. Tibskrit [TibskritRTF.rtf file is 3.6MB long - ed.] was compiled (and typed) by myself over a number of years. Earlier this year it was edited by Alexander Cherniak of Jerusalem.

It is 'open' and freely available to anyone who would like to have it (and if you know of anyone who might like to have it, please forward this message to them right away). Its remaining imperfections can be fixed. It can be used in any way you find useful.

[...] Another warning - If you do not have a fairly recent computer setup, it is possible you may not be equipped to handle Unicode fonts (Mac systems starting with OS X do support Unicode, as do recent PCs). Tibskrit is being made available, at present, only in Unicode fonts. Kindly let me know if you need a pre-Unicode font version. Perhaps this could be made available, too. [...] Yours sincerely, Dan Martin, Jerusalem."

URL ftp://coombs.anu.edu.au/coombspapers/otherarchives/asian-studies-archives/tibetan-archives/tibet-culture/
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [the site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: Dan Martin (msyben--at--mscc.huji.ac.il)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: V.Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

04 Apr 2006

Network for the Education/Studies on Asia (ASNET)
The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
Supplied note: "ASNET is a virtual network of researchers at the University of Tokyo who are engaged in education/studies on Asia, regardless of their disciplines or fields. This web site provides information of the conference, seminar and symposium related to Area Studies of Asia - mm."
Site contents: * About ASNET; * Symposium and Workshop; * ASNET Database (Search for researchers, Search for research activities, Search for lectures, Questionnaire about environmental issues in Asia [in Japanese only]); * Academic Exchange Agreements; * Mailing Lists (ASNET-ML, Japan, East-Asia/ North-Asia, Southeast-Asia/ Oceania, South-Asia/ Central-Asia, West-Asia/ Central-Asia/ Islamic World); * Links (The University of Tokyo, Institute of Oriental Culture, Machine-readable text-database of the Taisho Tripitaka, Global Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering, Forest Policy Laboratory, Transport Research and Infrastructure Planning Laboratory, Islamic Area Studies, Database Project 'The World and Japan', Gateway to Asian Studies in Japan).
[Largely, a bi-lingual (JP, EN) site - ed.]
URL http://www.asnet.dir.u-tokyo.ac.jp/
Internet Archive (web.archive.org) [the site was not archived at the time of this abstract]
Link reported by: Mizuno Mitsuaki (mitsuaki--at--mail.h-net.msu.edu)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Corporate Info.
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: Academic
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Useful
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 100

03 Apr 2006

India's Continuing Maoist Dilemma
Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, India
Supplied note: "The latest paper of the Institute For Topical Studies, A-2/3, Bharathi Dasan Colony, K.K.Nagar, Chennai---600078, India, on the above subject is now available at the web site of the South Asia Analysis Group (SAAG), New Delhi, at [the URL below] - br."
Extract: "(To be read in continuation of my earlier article of February, 14, 2005, titled 'Maoists Gain Momentum in India' available at http://www.saag.org/papers13/paper1251.html). The Police forces of different Indian States and the intelligence agencies have had several successes to their credit in dealing with essentially urban terrorism, initially of the Khalistani terrorists in Punjab and subsequently of the jihadi terrorists in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) and other parts of India. But, they continue to face serious difficulties in controlling the spreading fire of the rural terrorism of the Maoists. - b. raman."
[The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai - ed.]
URL http://www.saag.org/papers18/paper1756.html
Internet Archive (www.archive.org) [the paper was not archived at the time of this abstract. However, in a few weeks time it will be available at web.archive.org/web/*/www.saag.org]
Link reported by: B. Raman (corde--at--vsnl.com)
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: Study
* Publisher [academic - business - government - library - NGO - other]: NGO
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Interesting
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 30

01 Apr 2006

H-Asia Discussion List - 12th Anniversary
H-Net: Humanities and Social Sciences OnLine, Michigan State University, US
Self-description: "The primary purpose of H-ASIA is to enable historians and other Asia scholars to easily communicate current research and teaching interests; to discuss new articles, books, papers, approaches, methods and tools of analysis; to test new ideas and share comments and tips on teaching. H-Asia is especially committed to discussing region wide, comparative and professional issues important to scholars of Asia."
Site contents: * General Information: (Subscribe!, Manage Subscription, Subscription Help, About H-Asia, Welcome Message Editors & Board); * H-Asia Resources (Discussion Logs, Discussion Threads, Resources, Links, Electronic Journals, KIAPS); * Related Lists: (H-Japan, H-USJapan, H-ANZAU, H-SEASIA); * Search H-Asia Logs; *Search all H-Net Logs; * Recent Book Reviews published by H-Asia; * Recent messages posted by H-Asia.
Supplied note: "H-ASIA is twelve years old! Editors, volunteers and other H-ASIA News. From: Frank Conlon. Members of H-ASIA may be interested to know that this project commenced in a formal way on April 1, 1994 (the date was accidental not intentional). When Steven Leibo and I launched H-ASIA I don't think either of us could have imagined that it would grow into such an expansive world-wide community. [...] Our membership roster today numbers 3911 in 74 countries. We are not the most active H-Net list, but over the years we have had considerable traffic. As of last night we have handled 26,950 posts. Our model is one followed by all of the constitutent networks of H-Net: volunteer editors who give their time and effort toward sustaining the conversation among members as well as posting announcements of jobs, of conferences and other calls for papers. [...] Long-term members of H-ASIA, particularly outside North America, who would be interested in discussing the possibility of service on the Advisory Board, should contact me at their convenience in the next few weeks. [... There is] the possibility of adding a Book Review editor for East Asia. [...] Interested parties should contact me [i.e. Frank Conlon] with their curriculum vitae. It is necessary that any review editor have a fairly well-developed set of contacts for soliciting reviewers. There are also opportunities for service as line editors (working with me, Ryan Dunch, Kate Brittlebank and Linda Dwyer in a rotation on editing and posting) and for a person willing to alternate with our heroic Subscription Editor Ming-te Pan [...]. As a historical note, our editorial crew began with Steven Leibo and me, Frank Conlon in 1994. Steven retired from the editing in 2004, while I still soldier on--mostly because I really enjoy keeping in touch with what's happening in Asian Studies. In 1996 Marilyn Levine joined us as an editor. Other co-editors included Christiane Reinhold (1997-2001), Richard A. White (1997-2000) and T. Matthew Ciolek (2001-2003). More recently we have been joined by Linda Dwyer (2001- ), Ryan Dunch (2004- ) and Kate Brittlebank (2004- ). And since 1997, Ming-te Pan has presided as Subscriptions Editor. Robert Entenmann served as East Asia Review editor (1997-2003), Patrick Peebles was South Asia Review editor (1997-2000) and we continue to enjoy the contributions of Sumit Guha (South Asia Review Editor since 2001) and William Cummings (Southeast Asia Review Editor since 2005). Remember, we don't do this all by outselves. We have counted on the responsive and helpful advice and maintenance by H-Net officers and staff at Michigan State University where H-Net is hosted by the MSU Matrix project. Without the MSU support there would be no H-ASIA! - f. conlon."
[The list, initially addressing no more than 12 readers, was first conceived and created by Steven A. Leibo of the Sage Colleges & Suny-Albany and Frank F. Conlon of the University of Washington. (See also "Asian Studies Online: a Timeline of Major Developments", coombs.anu.edu.au/asian-studies-timeline.html) The fledgeling H-Asia underwent a series of tests from the 15th of March 1994 onwards, and it went fully public on the 31st March of that year. H-Asia continues to be the single most valuable, most useful and most seminal Asian Studies' resource available on the Net. - tmciolek]
URL http://www.h-net.org/~asia/
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/*/www.h-net.org/~asia/
Link reported by: Frank Conlon (conlon--at--u.washington.edu), forwarded by h-asia--at--h-net.msu.edu
* Resource type [news - documents - study - corporate info. - online guide]: News
* Publisher [academic - business - govt. - library/museum - NGO - other]: NGO
* Scholarly usefulness [essential - v.useful - useful - interesting - marginal]: Essential
* External links to the resource [over 3,000 - under 3,000 - under 1,000 - under 300 - under 100 - under 30]: under 3,000 [in fact, 1610]

URL http://coombs.anu.edu.au/asia-www-monitor.html
Internet Archive http://web.archive.org/web/* /coombs.anu.edu.au/asia-www-monitor.html
International students: ANU CRICOS Provider Number is 00120C