What does New York, Frankfurt, Tokyo and Seoul have in common with the capital of the People's Republic of China? They're all situated at 40° north. Yes, Capital Airport may be at 39° north -- but the botanical gardens of the Chinese capital is at 40°.

To commemorate this, they're sticking in a big 40°N monument. A second one is under discussion for the Olympic Park, right on Beijing's axis (north-south) line.

How big is 40° north? This is where plants grow the best and where humans live the most comfy in. So that -- is how big 40° north is. Nice and comfy for the rest of us. No wonder I'm taking this city as mine -- Zurich was just a bit too north of 40°N.

They wanted to, by the way, stick in a great big monument in Yuanmingyuan -- but the fact that the site remains a historical heritage site made those plans come to a screeching halt.