Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol.65/No.13 i Beijing Review

Energy Targets By 2025, annual domestic energy production capacity will exceed 4.6 billion tons of standard coal equivalent, according to a plan jointly released by the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration on March 22. The plan specifies targets for creating a modern energy system during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period. By 2025, the annual crude oil output will recover and stabilize at 200 million tons, and the annual natural gas output will reach over 230 billion cubic meters. The plan places emphasis on efforts to advance the large-scale and high-quality development of wind and solar power generation. Nuclear power will be developed in an active, safe and orderly manner, with the goal of elevating the installed capacity to roughly 70 million kW by 2025.…

‘To have the applications of a science, the science itself must exist.” This argument was made by American physicist Henry Augustus Rowland when delivering a speech, titled A Plea for Pure Science, at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science on August 15, 1883. Pure science, also known as basic science or basic research, aims to improve scientific theories in order to better understand and predict natural phenomena and the processes by which natural resources are transformed. Mathematics, physics and chemistry are all forms of this research approach. In the speech, Rowland called on Americans not to rely on the foundation of pure science built in Europe over the preceding centuries, but to explore the whole universe and make their own contributions to knowledge and…

The debate about what democracy is crosses political and academic boundaries, extending across certain contexts of society. The system, conceived to defend the people’s right to elect and supervise their rulers through mechanisms of direct or indirect participation, is adopted in many Western countries, and in Latin America in particular, the U.S. model is used. With China’s rise in the international arena, debates are unfolding in the West as to whether the former has democracy. Much more is known in China about the democracy that is practiced in the West than in the West about the Chinese political system and its democratic practices. Differences The Chinese democracy topic has sparked lively discussion in recent years. It is considered a tool for the benefit of society, not a good in itself.…

China. Land of promise, land of opportunity. It’s the new San Francisco, the new Hollywood, the new anything you want. It’s that completely unique piece of art, it’s the traditional skill of papercutting/ceramics/shadow puppetry, and so the list continues, that’s been practiced for over one millennium. Chinese art is rich and varied; it is a complex concept to grasp. Qingdaobased fashion artist Yvan Deng always aims to show his roots via art; personal style, after all, is about pride, progress and revolution. All rolled into one pencil pouch. Or a touch of clay. As Chinese ceramics and porcelain in days of yore served as diplomatic gifts for trade, today, they brave borders, cultures and times alike. Capital of kilns Often called the Porcelain Capital for its important role in the…

Students attend a live-stream popular-science lecture by the Shenzhou-13 crew members on March 23. The second live class from China’s Tiangong space station lasted 45 minutes. It was delivered by taikonauts Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu and attended by students from three classrooms across China. Wang, assisted by the other two crew members, conducted several scientific experiments, such as the crystallization from a supersaturated solution, a liquid bridge demonstration, water-oil separation and throwing objects under zero-gravity conditions.…

Fifty-six robots wearing the traditional costumes of China’s 56 ethnic groups danced during a 30-minute performance in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, ahead of the opening ceremony of the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 on February 4. Nine robots showcased their aerial snowboarding and skiing skills during the performance, simulating athletes’ facial expressions while also maintaining balance and synchronization. The robot model, named Wukong—the Chinese name of the Monkey King from the classic Journey to the West—was developed by UBTECH Robotics, a company established in Shenzhen in 2012, which specializes in the development, manufacturing and sales of humanoid robots. Wukong robots can simulate human movements like dancing, sneezing, doing push-ups and practicing kungfu. They can even get to their feet after falling over like a human. Using their “eyes,” Wukong robots can…

Nursed back to health, a sparrow hawk and a peregrine, both under second-class state protection, were released into the wild at the Yeyahu (Wild Duck Lake) National Wetland Nature Reserve in the Chinese capital’s Yanqing District by the Beijing Raptor Rescue Center on March 20. This lake marks a stopover along the East Asian-Australasian flyway for migratory birds, the most-concentrated layover for such birds in north China. That same day, inside the Summer Palace, a myriad of wild bird species was seen flying over the lake at the UNESCO-listed imperial park. Along the west walkway, lined with peach trees, a flock of mandarin ducks captured the gaze of many a visitor. According to the list of terrestrial wildlife in Beijing released by the Beijing Municipal Forestry and Parks Bureau of…

Canal Project Development of a new canal project in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region has been approved, Xinhua News Agency reported on March 20. The Pinglu Canal, stretching 140 km with an estimated investment of 68 billion yuan ($10.69 billion), aims to link the Xijiang River, a major waterway in southwest China, with ports in the Beibu Gulf. The canal will begin at the Xijin reservoir in Hengzhou City and end at Luwu Town of Lingshan County, where ships will be able to reach the Beibu Gulf via the Qinjiang River, opening a shorter route to the sea for Guangxi and other regions in southwest China. Local authorities are preparing to begin project construction this year, according to the region’s department of transport. Bird Protection Honghe National Nature Reserve in Heilongjiang…

Geometry Healthcare, a Beijing-based manufacturer of intelligent health monitoring products, has focused on producing self-developed intelligent toilets that can monitor users’ health. The company is already cooperating with domestic home furnishing brands and nursing homes, and seeks to export its products in the third quarter this year. Many foreign businesses are reaching out to the manufacturer in the hopes of collaborating. China’s progress is not limited to the manufacturing of consumer goods. It has also made worldleading achievements in cutting-edge fields including aerospace, biotechnology, quantum computing, 5G and high-speed trains, and is catching up in chipmaking, new materials and integrated circuits. Data from the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) showed that 169 state-level hitech zones contributed about 13 percent of China’s GDP in 2021, using only 0.1 percent of…

No Marxist has ever lived during a period when capitalism didn’t exist, when it wasn’t already globally hegemonic. The argument that some places came to capitalism later, or that they arrived via state capitalism and emphasized social welfare or even socialist values, does hold up. Humanity is now, and has long been, at a time when the capitalist mode of production dominates the world. This is not entirely a bad thing. While Marxists generally point to the many contradictions and injustices associated with capitalism, even Karl Marx himself asserted capitalism could help transform society’s social and material foundations, better preparing people to take new steps toward a new era. But let us be clear. We are well past the point of debating whether capitalism is, or was, a necessary evil,…

In Cuba, the mere mention of the name Pedro Martínez Arcos, 51, is synonymous with the embodiment of Cubanness—on the small screen. Martínez, among other functions, keeps over 11 million Cubans posted on current events through his famous news program Al Mediodía, which airs on national television. The job, combined with numerous artistic manifestations, has made him one of the most recognizable faces on the Caribbean island. With this substantial media baggage in hand and mind, Martínez arrived in China’s capital of Beijing in November 2019, where, over the course of roughly one month, he saw firsthand the monumental change the Asian giant had undergone. Martínez explored the nation of Confucius, Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, among many historical figures, right before COVID-19 wielded its impact on both China and…