IN BRIEF (Page 2)

Forbidden City shares ideas with other museums

Managers from world renowned institutions such as the Louvre Museum in Paris, the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, and the Tokyo National Museum, as well as domestic facilities like the Shanghai Museum and Nanjing Museum, took part in a two-day forum in the Palace Museum, or Forbidden City, in Beijing. The forum on "smarter" protection of relics, which started on Nov 28, was presented by the Palace Museum and internet giant Tencent. Shan Jixiang, the Palace Museum's director, introduced equipment used in its new cultural relic restoration lab. The lab was visited by President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump during Trump's visit to the Palace Museum this month. Shan says restoration work is closely mingled with scientific research. As many as 33 academic study projects are underway with the ongoing restoration of the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the museum, which was the home to the last eight emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Space station device to aid quantum physics

China plans to install a cutting-edge scientific instrument on its future space station, a move likely to revolutionize research into quantum mechanics, one of the most sophisticated and complex areas of physics. The device, called a high-accuracy time-frequency cabinet, is being developed by Chinese scientists and will be used in experiments "related to the fundamentals of physics", according to Gao Lianshan, a senior researcher of atomic clocks at the Beijing Institute of Radio Metrology and Measurement, a major participant in the program. It will be carried by the country's first manned space station, which is expected to be assembled starting in 2019 and enter service around 2022. The 60-metric-ton station will have three parts - a core module attached to two space labs - and will operate for at least 10 years, according to space authorities. The device will be tasked with performing a series of scientific experiments in the space station, including one that will enable scientists to refine their knowledge of quantum mechanics.

CAS admits biggest group of foreigners

The Chinese Academy of Sciences has elected 16 foreign scientists - the largest number ever - to receive China's highest academic honor as foreign academicians in 2017, the academy announced on Nov 28. Poland, the Netherlands and Uzbekistan have one scientist each being accepted into the academy. It is the first time scientists from these countries have joined the CAS, China's top science think tank. Two Nobel laureates, Andre Geim from the Netherlands and James Stoddart from the United Kingdom, are among the 16 top scientists admitted. The scientists' fields of expertise include such areas as particle physics, environmental science and biotechnology. "The academy's entry standard is extremely high, so it is great to see new scientists, especially from countries along the Belt and Road Initiative, join the big family," says Bai Chunli, CAS president. "Now the origin of foreign academicians is more diverse and fair, which can lead to more exchanges and cooperation," he says, adding that the overwhelming majority of current foreign academicians at CAS come from the United States.

Vice-premier boosts Indonesian ties

China and Indonesia signed seven documents on Nov 28 to promote cultural and people-to-people exchanges during Vice-Premier Liu Yandong's visit to the Southeast Asian country. Liu and Indonesian Coordinating Minister of Human Development and Culture Puan Maharani witnessed the signing of the deals after they co-hosted the third meeting of the China-Indonesia people-to-people exchange mechanism at the vice-premier level in Solo, Indonesia. The meeting was held as China has become Indonesia's largest source of foreign tourists, with more than 2 million visits made between the two countries last year.

Platform will help to solve traffic cases

An online platform to help people involved in traffic disputes was put into operation on Nov 28. The platform is being tested in 14 regions, including Beijing, Shanghai and Zhejiang province. After a two-year pilot program, it will be extended across the country, a statement from the Supreme People's Court said. A project of the top court, the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Justice and China Insurance Regulatory Commission, the platform "could make it easier for people to solve traffic disputes and help legal workers effectively deal with the rising number of such cases", says Du Wanhua, a senior judge of the top court. In 2016, Chinese courts concluded 922,000 civil cases related to traffic accidents. In addition, the number of traffic disputes solved by mediation has also been rising, according to the Ministry of Justice. People can go to the platform and find out if they have been deemed responsible for a traffic accident by the police, and can choose mediation or a lawsuit to solve the dispute, he says.

Auto congestion down in big cities

More than one-third of major Chinese cities saw reduced traffic congestion in the third quarter of this year, compared with the same period last year, according to a report released by AMAP, a major online map provider in China, and several other companies and institutes, including bike-sharing company Mobike. Based on traffic data from 100 cities, the report found that 37 of them had become less congested. Traffic in 42 cities was the same, while conditions were worse in the remainder. Jinan, Shandong province, was ranked as the most-congested city, with an index of 2.065 during peak hours - meaning drivers spent more than twice as long on the road on average between 7 and 9 am, and 5 and 7 pm, compared with free flowing traffic. Harbin and Beijing ranked second and third, with indexes of 2.049 and 2.046, respectively. July proved to be the least-crowded month in 63 of the 100 cities. September, when schools opened, was the most crowded month for 84 cities, the report said.

Officials will need to apply for banquets

Officials in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, will have to apply via an online government system if they want to hold wedding banquets or funerals. Starting on Dec 1, all officials in the city will be required to apply 10 days in advance to get approval for such events, according to the city's disciplinary inspection commission. An online application system is being tested. Events for the new system include wedding banquets, birthday parties, housewarming parties, promotion banquets and work transfer banquets for officials, their spouses or close relatives.

(China Daily Africa Weekly 12/01/2017 page2)