TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL HEADS SUSTECH

TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL HEADS SUSTECH

Xue Qikun， former Vice President of Tsinghua University and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences （CAS）， is now president of the Southern University of Science and Technology （SUSTech）， according to the offi cial website of the university.

Xue， 58， is a prominent physicist with groundbreaking discoveries to his credit. He got his doctorate degree in 1994 and joined the Department of Physics at Tsinghua University in 2005. In 2013， he became vice president of the university.

At the Shenzhen Global Innovation Talent Forum marking the Fourth Shenzhen Talent Day in Guangdong Province， south China， on November 1， Xue said the cultivation of top talent is a core mission of a university. It decides the level of the university and its goal of future development.

Toys for Seniors

Economic Daily November 23

Generally， peoples understanding of toys tends to be limited to thinking about children. They are regarded as tools that can help youngsters develop observation， concentration， and spatial and logical thinking. But in recent years， toys designed for the aged have grown into a blue ocean market.

The current senior toy marketplace contains products that range from dolls or robots that provide companionship to those increasing cognitive skills and facilitating communication. Puzzles， blocks and similar toys are also benefi cial to their mental and physical health.

Chinas senior population is expected to reach 300 million in five years， which means the country will transition to a moderately aging society. With the demographic change， demands for toys for the elderly have great potential. However， compared to developed countries， the market of toys designed for the aged still needs to explore more opportunities.

Besides enterprises enhancing the development of targeted products， the governments support and guidance are important. Adapting to the market rule， the government should include designing toys for the aged into the industrys development， as well as make regulations about financial support and industrial standards. The government and the market should jointly optimize the toy market for the elderly， creating more choices for them.

New Branch of Insurance

Beijing Youth Daily November 23

Changchun， the capital city of Jilin Province in northeast China， has seen several natural disasters， resulting in varying degrees of damage caused by trees， according to the local Bureau of Forestry and Landscaping. So now a public liability insurance has been designed for casualty or property loss caused by trees due to natural disasters and construction.

With the insurance， the injured have a channel to claim compensation. Also， it can alleviate the local governments responsibility and prevent public accident risks.That also gives insurance companies a new channel to increase revenue. At the same time， more cities that are incurring expenses due to this issue will enjoy a decline in their compensation costs. Local governments have an excellent solution to deal with such accidents and avoid civil disputes to some extent.

Some people are concerned that the landscaping department will relax its standards once this insurance is available. However， insurance companies will not compensate for losses caused by the governments poor performance. It means the administration will also be subject to the supervision of insurance companies.

Under the cooperative framework of administrations and insurance companies， it is hoped that public accident risks will be better controlled.

Recovering Cultural Relics

Guangming Daily November 23

A total of 68 cultural relics， including porcelain， pottery and bronze items， have been returned to China from the United Kingdom after 25 years， according to the National Cultural Heritage Administration. The relics， which were smuggled overseas， were retrieved following joint efforts by the administration and the foreign affairs and customs authorities.

The regained artifacts that can be dated to 770 B.C. are on display on the administrations website.

According to the administration， nearly 4，000 pieces or sets of lost cultural relics have been returned in recent years. However， over 10 million relics taken away since 1840 are still in museums in the U.S.， UK and France and in private collections.

International recovery of relics usually takes years or even generations. First， it needs sufficient information to determine the identities of the artifacts. Then the cumbersome legal process in some countries increases the time taken for recoveries. Overall， it requires great determination and persistence on the part of cultural relic workers.

SCIENTIST ELECTED AGU FELLOW

Scientist Yao Tandong has been elected as a 2020 fellow of the American Geophysical Union （AGU） for years of research on glaciers and the environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau， sources at the Chinese Academy of Sciences （CAS） said on November 23.

A CAS academic， Yao is the chief scientist on Chinas second comprehensive scientifi c expedition to the plateau that began in 2017. He has led several research programs， including the Third Pole Environment （TPE） project， which has become internationally signifi cant.

He is also one of the most prolifi c and most-cited researchers in the field of international Qinghai-Tibet Plateau studies， according to a CAS statement.

Founded in 1919， the AGU is the worlds most influential geoscientifi c organization， with more than 60，000 members. Since 1962， only 0.1 percent of its global members have been elected as AGU fellows in recognition of their exceptional contributions to Earth and space sciences.

“With the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership reaching a higher level in fields including customs procedures and trade facilitation， intellectual property protection， e-commerce and trade remedies， China will engage in dialogue and communication with more major economies and regional trade mechanisms.”

Chinese Commerce Minister Zhong Shan， in a signed article in Peoples Daily on November 24

“It has already been 23 years since Hong Kong returned to the motherland， and yet the British Government still tries to poke its nose into Hong Kong affairs while hurling unfounded accusations at China by publishing the so-called Six-Monthly Report on Hong Kong.”

Zhao Lijian， Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson， at a press conference on November 24

“Chinas culture has displayed remarkable resilience， cohesion and unity in the face of the pandemic compared with the U.S. and other Western societies.”

Martin Jacques， a former senior fellow with the Department of Politics and International Studies at Cambridge University， to CGTN on November 25

“Chinas delisting of all impoverished counties from the countrys poverty list is a historic milestone globally and its experience should be learned [from] by countries with clusters of absolute poverty.”

Luxman Siriwardena， Executive Director of Pathfinder Foundation， a think tank in Sri Lanka， to Xinhua News Agency on November 25