Modernity, they proudly and not uncontroversially say, has arrived in this backward region in the form of an engineering miracle that has laid tracks on land gripped year-round by ice, a railway line at higher altitude than any other in the world.

ECONOMIST: Tibet is linked to the rest of China

"Hopewell misjudged the speed of major civil engineering construction in China, the complexities of land acquisition and budgeting, " says Michael Green of Nomura Research Institute.

CNN: HANGING ON AT HOPEWELL

Once all the engineering, accounting and legal obstacles are cleared away, the land is scoured for possible archaeological remains.

ECONOMIST: America��s highways

Algae at least can be grown, with sufficient engineering, on a large scale that does not require prime crop land in competition with growing food crops (as rules out conventional biofuel strategies beyond grants from governments and the European Union), and there is no demand for freshwater since saline water does even better to promote the growth of certain highly oil-yielding strains.

FORBES: Biofuel From Algae: Different Prognoses

Based at Birmingham Science Park, in Aston, the new UTC is expected to draw upon the area's engineering expertise, including partnerships with local manufacturers such as Rolls Royce and Jaguar Land Rover.

BBC: Aston University Engineering Academy opens

It provided each state with a land grant to sell in order to raise proceeds to establish or improve colleges focusing on practical studies such as engineering, agriculture and military science.

FORBES: Happy Birthday to the Morrill Act