介绍:
With the launch of China's first microgravity satellite SJ-10 recently, scientists look forward to the results of experiments that can shed new light on a range of questions, from biology to the physical properties of substances, in a weightless environment.
The recoverable satellite will stay in orbit for several days before its return capsule heads back to Earth. The orbital module will continue to conduct experiments for a few more days.
Microgravity refers to the environment created during weightlessness. It is an extreme condition that changes every physical phenomenon scientists are familiar with, which is why microgravity research has been a scientific hot spot internationally.
For example, liquids cannot be contained without the use of containers on Earth. But in a microgravity environment, liquids can float without a container. This makes it possible to determine the element's characteristics and develop new materials with new functions.
Microgravity experiments are normally carried out in various space facilities, including space stations, space shuttles, research rockets and satellites.
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With obesity on the rise across China, doctors and nutritionists have created a healthy treatment path, with the release of the country's first medical guideline to help overweight people lose weight.
Health care authorities say the guideline covers the principles and methods that will be adopted to help people lose weight and keep it off. It was developed over a year through the collective efforts of almost 100 doctors and nutritionists across the country.
The guidance is expected to encourage clinical nutritionists and related medical staff to provide standard weight loss services to customers using proper principals and methods.
According to a report released by the National Health and Family Planning Commission last year, around 30 percent of people in China aged 18 or older are overweight, an increase of more than 7 percentage points over 2002. The number of overweight people is increasing faster than in developed countries.
Excessive weight and obesity has been a major contributor to the prevalence of many chronic diseases including diabetes in China.
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A device to trace the source of a fart and research on why flies keep rubbing their front legs together are among the winners of a Chinese award celebrating the lighthearted side of science.
The Pineapple Science Award is given for research and projects that are both fun and serious in ten fields including psychology, physics and biology.
Amusement value is not enough. All entries must have been published in recognized academic journals or presented to conferences.
Why flies rub their hands together had been a source of mystery to David Hu since his childhood. Now a scientist with the Georgia Institute of Technology, he found out that flies brush dirt off their bodies with the tiny hairs on their legs, and then rub the dirt off. That finding won him the Pineapple Science Award for Biology this year.
David Hu says curiosity inspires great discoveries. He has suggested that space stations can use his discovery to keep their solar panels clean.
Nobel laureate George Fitzgerald Smoot once said curiosity and fun is what sustains scientists through the hardship of their work. The study of Li Ji-gong of Tianjin University not only solves the mystery of who farted, but provides a way to locate the source of any odor through the complex dynamics of air. It won this year's Pineapple Science Award for Physics.
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Students at Tianjin University can now enroll in courses in what is possibly the most difficult subject of all, relationships.
Around 200 students crowded into a lecture hall at the prestigious university on March 30 as the first class of a new course on romance, "Basic Theory and Experience of Love", got underway.
Course lecturer Liu Xiaochun, an associate professor of law at Tianjin University, says hopefully, the lecture will give students a higher sense of responsibility toward dating someone.
During the 90-minute talk, Liu explained legal issues related to dating, including the issues of mistresses, domestic violence, divorce and abortion. He says it was the first time he talked about dating in public.
For many young people in China, often away from home for the first time, college is their first chance to explore romance after dedicating much of their high school years to study.
One student who wants to remain anonymous says he hopes the course can help him get along better with his girlfriend.
Organized by a student dating club, the lectures cover a wide range of topics including dating tips and etiquette, as well as counseling. The classes are taught by teachers from the university and external experts.
You are listening to Special English. I'm Liu Yan in Beijing.
Experts say the economic transformation in China is providing great opportunities for Chinese students returning from overseas study, although the returnees face challenges when hunting for jobs back home.
A senior official from the Center for China and Globalization, a think tank in Beijing, made the remarks at a time when many in China have expressed concern that it may be more difficult for Chinese students to land a job after returning from study abroad.
China's economy is evolving from one that rests on its population advantage to that values talent. In the process, people who return from overseas study with international perspectives and an innovative spirit will have brighter employment prospects.
In recent years, the number of Chinese students choosing to return home after graduating overseas has increased greatly, from 186,000 in 2011 to almost 410,000 last year.
At the same time, the number of people graduating from domestic institutions this year is set to be more than 7 million, the largest number ever. The Chinese government is also loosening policies for expats wanting to work or start businesses in China.
Both the large number of domestic graduates and the expected influx of foreign talent have led some to worry that the employment prospects of students returning from overseas study might not be as good in the future as they were.
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A technical college in Guangzhou is establishing a new specialty to meet the growing demand for feishou, or drone operators, in Guangdong province.
The Guangzhou Electromechanical Technician College says if there isn't enough time to complete preparations by the school term that starts in September, the new program will begin enrollment next year.
More than 3 million yuan, roughly 460,000 U.S. dollars, has been invested in major facilities and updated equipment for the establishment of the new specialty so far. Another 5 million yuan will be used to bid for a piece of land, covering an area of more than 1,000 square meters, for drone flight practices.
The college says the drone specialty is expected to become a signature subject at the college and attract a large number of high school graduates in the years ahead, since it should be easy for students to find jobs upon graduation. Around 50 students are expected in the first class.
Drones are being used in an increasing range of industries in the Pearl River Delta area and the entire Guangdong province. In Shenzhen alone, more than 700 drone manufacturers have registered.
Unmanned aircraft are widely used in fighting crime, fire control, rescue operations and agriculture.
You're listening to Special English. I'm Liu Yan in Beijing. You can access the program on our Apple Podcast. If you have any comments or suggestions, please let us know by e-mailing us at mansuyingyu@cri.com.cn. That's mansuyingyu@cri.com.cn. Now the news continues.
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics ski venue Chongli has received 2 million tourists during the first snow season after Beijing and Zhangjiakou won their co-bid in July.
Chongli is a district of Zhangjiakou city, around 200 kilometers northwest of Beijing. Chongli will stage most of the skiing events during the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
The ski resort has earned more than 1.5 billion yuan, roughly 240 million U.S. dollars, in tourism revenue from the past winter, accounting for more than 30 percent growth over the previous season.
The past snow season lasted for five months from last November, during which Chongli has hosted 36 events, including the Far East Cup and the Children's Skiing International Festival. A total of 23 skiing camps have been set up, attracting almost 4,000 young people to participate.
The forthcoming Winter Olympics has ignited a skiing fever among the Chinese people. The local education authorities in Chongli have introduced services from ski resorts to let every student in the district to ski with professional instructors.
By the end of November, Zhangjiakou will complete preparation for the 2022 Winter Games. And all venue construction will be finished by the end of 2020 to enable the city to hold test events.
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More inspection dogs are expected to be deployed at entry-exit ports across China after two national centers for breeding and training are built within the next five years.
Faced with increasing pressure to ensure biosafety, entry-exit inspection and quarantine authorities will also increase their capacity to keep out hazardous elements including diseases, viruses and invasive species. This includes improving the warning system and replacing X-ray machines used for handling mail and parcels with more precise CT scanners.
Almost 300 dogs are deployed at ports in China, but this is far from enough.
The authorities say considering that there are around 280 major ports in China, 1,000 inspection and quarantine dogs are needed; but the country suffers a lack of regulated breeding and training centers.
Of the two national centers, one is being built in Beijing, which is likely to be completed within two years, and the other is very likely to be built in Guangdong province in southern China.
The first inspection dog was put into service in 2001. The use of such dogs can help improve the rate of successful interception of harmful materials by 30 percent.
Three breeds, springer spaniels, labradors and beagles, are favored for inspections in China.
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Ten female pandas at a breeding base in southwestern China's Sichuan Province have mated since February.
A conservation center in the region announced that six of the 10 pandas mated naturally, two by artificial insemination, and the remaining two had both.
The China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Pandas captive-breeds the world's largest panda population of 218 as of the end of last year. Twenty-six female pandas and 19 males have been selected in this year's mating plan.
Pandas have an infamously solitary lifestyle, female pandas only tolerate a male's presence around them two to three days a year during mating season.
Their eggs only live for 36 to 40 hours, making conception even more difficult. The success rate of conception is between 30 to 40 percent; and no more than 40 percent of cubs survive.
Male captive pandas capable of natural mating are extremely few, accounting for less than 5 percent of the population. But the pregnancy rate among female pandas receiving natural mating is above 90 percent this year, which the center says, is a good sign.
Artificial breeding of giant pandas in China is planned for the sake of genetic diversity.
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