When Germans think of Shanghai, they tend to think of the roaring '20s, the German Transrapid train that connects the city's airport with its downtown, and sprawling growth that has made the city one of globalization's champions. Often overlooked are the people and how they live. But a new online exhibition  , Shanghai Living, provides a glimpse into the apartments and daily lives of Shanghai residents from all walks of life. It's a coffee-table book waiting to happen, but for now you can view some of the best photos online, for free. Chinese photographer Hu Yan has put together the images of 500 Shanghai residents -- from the abject poor to the ridiculously rich. The site provides a full databank with photos of the homes and the people who live in them. This may be the best visual insight into Chinese life around, short of hopping on the next plane to Shanghai.

Is it Okay to Mourn Wallace & Grommit?

Under any other circumstance, this week would have been one of celebration for Aardman Animations   in Bristol, England. The latest installment in the outrageously popular stop-action claymation animated film series "Wallace and Gromit" had just hit No. 1 at the US box office. But then Monday brought the worst news since the company's creation. A massive fire destroyed virtually every clay figure, film set, sketch and storyboard in Aardman's archive -- including the neurotic Brazilian jaguar from "Creature Comforts" and the sets of earlier Oscar-winning Wallace and Gromit shorts. Director Nick Park, the studio's creative genius, offered a typically understated British response. "In light of other tragedies," he said, like the Asian tsunami, "today isn't a big deal." Park's modesty aside, many are mourning the loss. For many animation enthusiasts, it would be the equivalent of George Lucas losing his "Star Wars" archive. "To have lost this material is a tragedy, especially as one of the wonderful things about Aardman was that they were so meticulous in archiving their material," British Animation Awards Director Jayne Pilling told the Guardian newspaper. Nor is Pilling alone: People all over the Web are mourning the loss, including German blogger Anke Gröner  , who links back to an important message posted on the Guardian's own blog  : The sets may be lost, "but everything we value about (Aardman Animations) is still there, right?" The studio says the fire will in no way affect production of its future films.

The World's Oldest Noodle