Five years ago, Applied Materials began construction of a state-of-the-art research and development facility in Xi'an, a historical city in Western China. More than 300 employees now work at the facility in the areas of semiconductor equipment, solar, training, software and procurement operations. On November 30th, the Xi'an facility celebrated its fifth anniversary and Applied Materials Chairman and CEO Mike Splinter joined in the festivities.
Recently I spent four amazing, rainy hours at Shanghai’s Expo 2010. The Expo, which is built around the theme, "Better City, Better Life," is focused on the future of the urban environment and the ways in which future policies and urban strategies will influence sustainable development in large urban areas such as Shanghai.
Like many things in China, the Expo is absolutely astounding. It covers over 92 acres and expects approximately 70 million visitors during its six month run.