COMPUTER SCIENTIST WINS TEACHING MASTER AWARD

COMPUTER SCIENTIST WINS TEACHING MASTER AWARD

Andrew Chi-Chih Yao， an internationally known computer scientist， recently won the Teaching Master award at Zhejiang University. The outstanding teaching award was given to fi ve people， while the Innovative and Entrepreneurial Talent award was given to 10 people. The awards were presented for the fi rst time.

Yao， born in Shanghai in 1946， received the Turing Award， the most prestigious award in computer science， in 2000. He resigned from Princeton University in 2004 and began working at Tsinghua University in Beijing as a full-time professor， where he continues to train international leading talent in computer science.

Yao has made many fundamental contributions to the theory of computation. The Institute for Theoretical Computer Science at Tsinghua University， which he established， has become a leading global computer research center.

In 2017， Yao gave up his foreign citizenship and became a full academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Battle for Environment To Continue

Peoples Daily October 11

The International Horticultural Exhibition 2019 Beijing， which concluded on October 9， had the largest number of participating countries and international organizations， displaying the most complete horticultural varieties. The expo was an example for the rest of the world to know Chinas efforts in ecological environment protection and its concept of green development.

Chinas ecological protection programs and projects are now extended throughout the country in diverse forms such as national parks and state forest farms. There are a lot of beautiful scenic spots along the Yangtze River and the Yellow River with mounting pressure to improve the ecological environment along the banks. Scientific planning and efforts have produced achievements and now more action will follow.

Facing climate deterioration challenges， China is working closely with the rest of the world. The National Plan on Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is a policy to help in this battle. China is also among the fi rst countries to ratify the Paris Agreement.

Chinas achievements in ecological environment improvement are also helping the worlds efforts in this regard. The horticultural exhibition in Beijing provided a platform for countries to exchange their ideas on environmental protection. The efforts will continue even after the conclusion of the exhibition.

Cities Embrace Sports

Oriental Outlook October 17

According to the Healthy China 2030 plan approved by the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee， by 2020， all people will be provided with basic fitness services and by 2030， a complete public fitness service system will come into being. To this end， cities are the core part of a healthy China.

For many years， cities， particularly metropolises， were short of fitness and sports grounds. The rising demand for fi tness was stymied by the lack of sports grounds.

To address this conflict， the first thing is to expand sports grounds and provide more fitness facilities； then to make better use of the existing sports and fitness areas and facilities， more of which should be opened to the public free of charge or at a low price.

The good news is that now more and more cities are inputting in public fi tness facilities. Schools playgrounds are open to the public， derelict places are being renovated and used for public fi tness. These measures and the plan behind them will do public health good in the long run.

A Valued Poverty Alleviation Weapon

Beijing Youth Daily October 14

The Cyberspace Administration of China recently announced the list of the top 10 poverty alleviation cases that utilized the Internet. China plans to lift all its rural population living under the current poverty line out of poverty and also all impoverished counties by 2020. By then， todays povertystricken population will have enough food and clothing， and access to compulsory education， basic healthcare and housing.

This urgent task is becoming more diffi cult now given that most of the remaining poor population live in remote areas with inclement natural conditions and weak economic resources. Against this backdrop， the authorities naming the top 10 poverty alleviation cases using the Internet will help to meet the target.

The Internet has a very important role in Chinas fight against poverty. In October 2016， the Central Government issued documents for the use of the Internet by encouraging and guiding Internet-related businesses like e-commerce platforms. It asked Internet organizations to get involved in poverty alleviation work so that more rural populations could sell their products through the Internet and more children get quality education through distant learning.

In this way， consumers are also helping rural areas to get rid of poverty by purchasing products online. Impoverished populations are no longer passively accepting handouts but are creating wealth for themselves through the use of the Internet.

PROMINENT MATHEMATICIAN PASSES AWAY

Ding Shisun， a renowned mathematician and one of the fi rst advocates of the algebraic number theory in China， passed away in Beijing at the age of 93 on October 12.

Ding was former chairman of the China Democratic League （CDL）， one of the parties in China which consists mainly of intellectuals in the fi elds of culture， education and science and technology.

He was also the president of the prestigious Peking University from 1984 to 1989.

Ding， born in Zhenjiang， east Chinas Jiangsu Province in September 1927， studied mathematics at Tsinghua University from 1948 to 1950， was a teaching assistant at the mathematics department of the university from 1950 to 1952 and worked at Peking University fi rst as a professor and then as the dean of the mathematics department from 1952 to 1984.

He was a vice chairperson of the ninth and 10th standing committees of the National Peoples Congress， Chinas top legislature， and chair of the seventh， eighth and ninth central committees of the CDL.

“The rapid transformation and upgrading of Chinas musical instrument manufacturing industry over the past 40 years of reform and opening up have promoted the development of music education and the culture of instrumental music in the country.”

Wang Shicheng， Director of the China Musical Instrument Association， commenting on the fact that the market value of Chinas musical instrument sector accounted for nearly one third of the worlds total in 2018

“By neglecting the truth and turning white to black， the U.S. House of Representatives called arson， the vandalization of shops and the violent assault of police officers human rights and freedom， which is a stark double standard that fully exposes some Americans extreme hypocrisy on human rights and democracy.”

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang， in a statement on October 16 expressing firm opposition to the U.S. House of Representatives passing the so-called Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act 2019

“It is high time for us to rethink hunger， our diets and our food systems， which are the foundation for all activities. As a result of globalization， urbanization and income growth， unhealthy diets have overtaken smoking as the worlds number one risk factor for disability and death worldwide.”

Martin Vincent， China Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations， at an event marking World Food Day in Hefei， east Chinas Anhui Province， on October 16

“You cant understand China through Western eyes or a Western present because Chinas history and culture is very different. You have to understand China through Chinese circumstances and that requires a very serious intellectual effort.”

Martin Jacques， a British China expert and senior fellow at Cambridge University， in a discussion on Chinas development path and the Belt and Road Initiative at the UKs Oxford Brookes University on October 14