News You Might Have Missed: Roads, Rodeos, and Imitation

Beijing's roads are being crushed while rodeo dreams are not. Meanwhile Apple and Google are being copied in China, like it or not.

There’s a new opening for Beijing’s longest arch bridge. The previous contender was crushed earlier this week after a truck failed to acknowledge the 46 ton weight limit and brought 160 tons across destroying the entire bridge. No word yet what bridge will now fill the top-spot void.

For more crushing blows to Beijing’s roads, the Airport Expressway has been named the strangest toll policy in China. The placement of when you pay is enough to make it top the list. Thankfully Beijing does not come top in any of the worrying categories.

News of the rodeo coming to China has got everyone’s attention for some reason or other. Several animal activists are appalled by the news and claim they will put an end to the fun before it even starts. Rodeo lovers should have nothing to fear though. Several groups contacted won’t be doing anything, and any other groups that plan to may be allowed to petition but not stage any actual protest. Yeehaw!

Sanlitun’s Apple Store recently celebrated three-years of iPhones, iPads, and iPods. As a show of flattery China has been on a mission of creating the most perfect knock-off Apple store. Several in Kunming have been widely covered on the internet but now conflicting reports have emerged as to whether the employees were aware the store was a fake. One sign your store is fake: misspelling "Apple Stoer."

Apple isn’t the only Western brand being replicated in China. Baidu’s more recent browser looks strikingly similar to Google Chrome ... can you spot the difference?