The Week Nov 26, 2010

Dogs are smarter than cats

The big news this week is that dogs are smarter than cats. Researchers at Oxford University in England charted the evolution of mammal brains over the last 60 million years. What the scientists found is that dogs evolved bigger brains because they're social animals. But you don't have to have a big brain to be alone. So cats, which are considered solitary animals, did not evolve bigger brains.

How smart are dogs? Let's take a look at this popular video on the Internet called "The Smartest Dog Ever".

Goats are smart, too

What Oxford University didn't report this week is that goats are smart, too. Here in China, Zhao Huaiyun owns a goat that fights off stray dogs, dances and performs other tricks. Zhao says he also shakes hands – rather, hooves – with visitors. Here's another goat who likes to get himself something to drink.

Winter fashion follies

Winter is here, and so is winter fashion. Walk down any street, and you can see great winter fashions and really awful winter fashion. But when it comes to bad fashion, can you fix it? The Week travels to Beijing's famed Raffles Design Institute for this special report …

Fashionable winter humidifiers

Speaking of winter fashions, what's in fashion at offices around Beijing every winter is the desk top humidifier. Humidifiers are great for adding moisture to dry winter air, and they come in lots of styles and colors. Let's join our senior correspondent on everything there is to know about humidifiers, Chris Clark.

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About the broadcaster:

Renee Haines is an editor and broadcaster at China Daily. Renee has more than 15 years of experience as a newspaper editor, radio station anchor and news director, news-wire service reporter and bureau chief, magazine writer, book editor and website consultant. She came to China from