The 2012 summit of the G8 industrialized nations gets under way May 18 at Camp David in the woods of northern Maryland. Initially planned for Chicago, U.S. planners moved it to facilitate better conversation and brainstorming among the leaders of the eight nations involved.

Occupy protestors who planned to march against the assembly, though, say the mere threat of their presence in Chicago forced the move.

What's the G8, you ask, and why all the fuss? Read here.

With Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng seeking protection in the American embassy in Beijing two weeks ago, and with various U.S./Chinese economic and strategic summits ongoing, it's hard to believe that forty years ago the U.S. and China had no diplomatic relations.

China was Communist, and the U.S. patently hated all Communism. Plus, the U.S. had recognized Nationalist China in Taiwan as the Chinese government, and mainland China hated that.

Then, in 1972, Richard Nixon went to China and began the process of normalizing relations between the two powers. Most people remember Nixon, of course, for one thing -- Watergate. But Nixon was a consummate foreign policy specialist, and his bold trip to China helped pave the way out of the Cold War. Read here for more on Nixon's trip.

Photo: Richard Nixon, his wife, Pat, and a Chinese entourage walk along the Great Wall of China in February 1972.

White House photo by Byron E. Schumaker, courtesy National Archives and Records Administration

Until last week, when Chen Guangcheng sought refuge in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, China, you may not have heard much about Gary Locke -- unless you're from Washington state. The former Washington governor and U.S. secretary of commerce is now the U.S. ambassador to China, and he became fully involved in the Chen incident.

Locke has received both praise and criticism for his handling of events. You can find out more about him here.

Photo: U.S. Ambassador To China Gary Locke.

Photo Courtesy U.S. Department of Commerce

All across American college and university campuses this weekend and next, commencement speakers will be talking about "the value of education." In an unintended way, New York University's offer to accept Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng as a visiting scholar proves that education also has value in the realm of foreign policy.

Chen sparked a diplomatic crisis when he sought refuge in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on April 30, then decided to return to Chinese jurisdiction, then said he wanted to leave China. The back-and-forth made American diplomats look indecisive and Chinese diplomats look heavyhanded and dictatorial.

New York University's offer on May 4 gave the U.S. an out. The offer forced China to extend Chen the same rights of educational travel that all Chinese citizens have, and the U.S. promised to expedite the process. For more on the incident, read here.

If China makes good on its promise to allow Chen to leave -- great. If not, China looks like the bad guy and the U.S. can make diplomatic hay of that. There are some scenarios -- bad ones -- which could point up U.S. indecision, but with international attention on Chen those probably won't happen.

In short, the most probable outcomes to the deal help the U.S. come out on top. And therein is "the value of education."

Photo: In this handout photograph provided by the U.S. Embassy Beijing press office, Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng (R) looks on as U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke (L) talks on the phone May 2, 2012 in Beijing, China.

Photo by U.S. Embassy Beijing Press via Getty Images