LOVE STORY TOUCHES THE NATION

The love story of Hao Kang， a freight train driver， and his girlfriend Lei Jie， a train attendant， from Suide， a county in northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province， was broadcast on China Central Television on February 10 during the Spring Festival holiday and moved viewers.

Leis train stops only for 8 minutes at the Yulin station， where it goes four times a week. Haos train also passes the station but it may take months for the couple to meet once on the platform. In the video shot on February 3， two days prior to the Spring Festival， Leis train stopped at the station for only 5 minutes as it was late due to snow in some sections. Hao met Lei and after a few hurried words and a hug， it was time for the train to leave. He gave her a wedding ring but didnt even have time to say “Marry me！”

“If we changed our jobs， we wouldnt suffer the pang of missing each other but I know he loves his job very much，” Lei said in the video.

“As we both work for the railways， it has become a token of our love，” Hao said.

Man vs. Machine

Peoples Daily February 11

Workers in traditional professions being replaced by artificial intelligence （AI） devices is no longer the stuff of science fi ction. AI is making truckers worry， and many others doing work that has clear assessment criteria also face the possibility of replacement.

The fact that Xiaobing， a chat robot， has written poetry shows that despite critical comments， creative work such as writing poems and composing music that need inspiration is also being usurped by AI.

The question now is， how can people stay ahead of the machines？ Will Karl Marxs worry that the machine would make workers redundant become a reality？ It is imperative to update peoples education and professional skills as well as to enhance their understanding and skills to employ AI.

In the final analysis， skills that robots cannot master will be invaluable， so people should keep on developing human competitive advantages. Skills to work with robots are also becoming more and more important.

Final Fight Against Poverty

Oriental Outlook February 7

With 2019 being critical for China to realize a moderately prosperous society in all respects by 2020， how can the government help the remaining people out of poverty？ The provincial-level Two Sessions held recently proposed some new approaches and policies.

In 2018， 675，000 residents in east Chinas Jiangsu Province were lifted out of poverty； in east Chinas Anhui Province， 726，000 people came above the domestic poverty line； and in northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region， the number was 537，000. All those achievements have paved the way to eradicate poverty in China.

This year， another 10 million people in rural areas will shed off poverty， according to the State Council Leading Group Offi ce of Poverty Alleviation and Development.

Many provinces poverty alleviation methods are specific. Jiangsu plans to focus on poor villages and individuals， lifting another 600，000 people out of poverty.

It is also helpful that some developed areas are assisting other provinces in poverty alleviation. Beijing Mayor Chen Jining said the capital will conduct personnel training courses for those in some diffi cult counties to prevent people there from relapsing into poverty.

Defense Against Air Pollution

Guangming Daily February 11

The average concentration of PM2.5 in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and neighboring areas， the Yangtze River Delta， and the Fenhe-Weihe areas declined by 11.8 percent， 10.2 percent and 10.8 percent respectively year on year in 2018.

The target of the 2018 campaign against pollution was met way ahead of the deadline.

In 2018， the central environmental protection inspectors inspected cases investigated in 2017 in 20 provinces， imposing fi nes that totaled nearly 1 billion yuan （$148 million） with more than 8，000 people held accountable.

The key areas under the environmental protection campaign—the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and neighboring areas， the Yangtze River Delta and the Fenhe-Weihe areas—are traditionally home to resource-based industries， and also major sources of steel and coal. These industries are gradually moving to other parts of the country. However， as these industries resettle， these new areas should not become polluted. Therefore， it is imperative to think ahead and enhance control.

The pressure in 2019 may be greater than before.

“Just as there is no joke in the army， there is no failure in the fi ght against pollution，” said Liu Bingjiang， head of the Department of Atmospheric Environment， the Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

CHINESE FOOTBALLERS SPANISH DEBUT

Chinese forward Wu Lei made his debut in Spanish LaLiga Santander when he came on as a 78th-minute substitute for RCD Espanyol defender Didac Vila on February 3.

Although he was on the pitch only for 15 minutes （including injury time）， the former Shanghai SIPG forward showed some nice touches.

Wu is the second Chinese player to appear in LaLiga Santander， following Zhang Chengdong， who made one appearance totaling 8 minutes for Rayo Vallecano in the 2015/16 season.

The 1991-born Wu started his football career playing for third-tier side Shanghai SIPG， making his debut for the club in 2006 in a 5-3 loss against Yunnan Lijiang Dongba. It made him the youngest ever player to play professional Chinese football at 14 years and 287 days.

He helped the club win the third-tier title and rise to the second tier at the end of the 2007 league season. He is currently the all-time top goal scorer in Chinese Super League history with 102 goals.

Wu transferred to RCD Espanyol on January 28.

“Southeast Asian countries have huge populations that frequently travel from one point to another and therefore need investments in transportation infrastructure.”

David Lampton， a research scholar at Stanford Universitys Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center， commenting on the rail lines being built to link China and Southeast Asia

“Chinas rapid economic growth has brought huge benefits to Australias agriculture and animal husbandry. I am grateful from the bottom of my heart for the opportunities that my motherland has brought us， overseas Chinese.”

Li Wei， Chairman of a Sydney-based beef supplier， responding to Chinese President Xi Jinpings speech at the reception in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on February 3， ahead of the Spring Festival

“It is destructive to hold a‘zero-sum game mindset and overemphasize the aspect of competition in China-U.S. ties.”

Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai， at a public event in Michigan， the United States， on February 8

“Belt and Road destinations are attractive to Chinese tourists for their beautiful natural scenery and historical and cultural resources， and there are several positive factors fueling Chinas outbound travel such as more convenient visa policies， more direct flights， more individualized travel products， and convenient payment environments.”

Dai Bin， President of the China Tourism Academy. According to the academy， 27 million Chinese traveled to Belt and Road destinations in 2017， up 77 percent compared with 2013