DEFENSE SPOKESPERSON RESIGNS

Yang Yujun， 47， a spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defense of China， recently resigned from both his post and military service， a move which came as a surprise to many.

In the last seven years， the former military spokesperson often drew media attention at regular press briefi ngs by answering questions on diffi cult and complex topics.

After graduating from China Foreign Affairs University in 1993， Yang became an offi cer of the Ministry of National Defense. In 2010， he was promoted to the position of deputy director of the information bureau and became the fourth spokesperson of the ministry since its foundation.

In Western media， the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army is portrayed as veiled in mystery. Faced with various questions and suppositions， Yang did a good job in explaining Chinas defense policy and clarifying facts. In answering tricky questions from media， his remarks were often full of wit， winning popularity among both the public and journalists.

Yang is the fi rst person to have resigned from the post of senior military spokesperson. Although he mentioned nothing about his future， other government spokespersons have already set a precedent by resigning from their enviable positions.

For example， then spokesperson of the Supreme Peoples Court Sun Jungong left his post last year and joined the Alibaba Group as vice president for public relations. And three months ago， Shen Danyang， then spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce， resigned and took up a professorship at Xiamen University. With expertise and special experience， such former spokespersons can always fi nd a bright future in their new careers.

Wheels and a Way

Guangzhou Daily August 15

Special plates for new energy vehicles， tantamount to identifi cation cards， will be issued in all cities to help the police with traffic management， the Ministry of Public Security said.

Vehicles with such plates can access favorable policies more directly and easily.

China has more than 1 million new energy cars. Backed by favorable policies like tax cuts， their number is growing across the country. But while promoting these environment-friendly vehicles， measures have to be taken to address technical issues related to them like battery recharging facilities.

Though new energy vehicles are in line with the trend of using clean energy， their popularization cant depend on the governments efforts alone. Supportive facilities have to be constructed and the technology has to be upgraded and the quality improved so that even if the favorable polices are withdrawn some day， people will still want to buy new energy vehicles.

AI Opportunities

Outlook Weekly August 14

Artifi cial intelligence （AI） is transforming this planet in a subtle way. It is not only the most signifi cant scientifi c invention in the 21st century， but also the most important change taking place since life emerged on Earth.

Today， throughout the world， commercial giants are rushing to invest in AI. With Alibaba and Tencent as the two vanguards， Chinese companies are also getting involved with AI programs. In some areas， they are poised to surpass their U.S. rivals.

AI can become a strategic program of Chinas national industries. In May 2015， Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology as well as the National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued a plan of action on Internet Plus and AI， providing comprehensive and systematic guidance for AI development.

Not long ago， the State Council issued a plan for the development of a new generation of AI. Its predicted that by 2018， Chinas AI market will reach 38.17 billion yuan （$5.7 billion）， compared with 23.9 billion yuan （$3.57 billion） in 2016.

Although the market is showing better momentum than expected， how to forge its“soul” within a short period of time is proving to be an uphill task. Fortunately， AI is blessed with good infrastructure and the whole society，from top to bottom， realizing its importance， is inputting efforts to ratchet it up. By utilizing opportunities and building up the AI ecosystem featuring chips， big data， cloud computing and operating systems， China will succeed in becoming one of the global AI powers.

Justice for ‘Comfort Women

Nanfang Daily August 15

August 14 marked the International Memorial Day for the Victims of Japanese Military Sexual Slavery， a day that reminds us of the suffering endured by those unfortunate women and the crimes committed by Japanese militarists during World War II （WWII）. On August 12， Huang Youliang， the last Chinese “comfort woman” to sue the Japanese Government， left the world. Now， only 14 “comfort women” on record are still alive on the Chinese mainland.

During WWII， at least 200，000 Chinese women and girls were condemned to become “comfort women” by the invading Japanese army. Statistics show that 75 percent of the “comfort women”were tortured to death.

The issue of the “comfort women” was not taken up until the 1990s， when the Japanese Government was forced to investigate it under the pressure of human rights groups， the Chinese and South Korean governments and the United Nations. The then Japanese cabinet admitted the crime but the apology came too late. Now the current Japanese Government under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appears to be backtracking on the apologetic attitude by claiming that there is no solid evidence to prove that the Japanese army or government forced the women to become “comfort women.”

In May， NGOs from eight countries and regions including China， South Korea and Indonesia， applied to UNESCO to add the historical facts of “comfort women” to the Memory of the World Register. Its hoped that the application is approved as soon as possible. To acknowledge these facts is to show the women basic justice and the conscience of the human

PIONEER SCIENTIST PASSES AWAY

Zhu Yingguo， a famous plant geneticist and biologist from China， passed away at the age of 78 in Wuhan， central Chinas Hubei Province， on August 9.

Zhu was born into a poor family in Luotian County of Hubei in 1939. In 1959， he enrolled in the prestigious Wuhan University， where he majored in biology. After graduation four years later， he started teaching and research at the university.

In 1972， Zhu and his colleagues began hybrid rice research. They succeeded in cultivating several types of high-quality hybrid rice over the following decades， which led to Zhu winning many national awards and honors. The new types of hybrid rice researched by Zhu and his team have been planted in China and some Southeast Asian nations， bringing huge benefits to farmers and consumers.

Zhu made great contributions to Chinas progress in science and food supply. In 2005， he became an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering， the highest honor that can be awarded to Chinas most outstanding scientists.

“Scientific findings have obviously drawn much more attention in recent years， which demonstrates rising scientific literacy among the public. It is also the job of scientists to explain and promote their work to the public.”

Cai Yifu， professor at the University of Science and Technology of China， talking about the worlds highest altitude gravitational wave telescopes under construction in Tibet， which welcomed public opinion from design to construction

“Chinas economy and science and technology underwent fast development in the past two decades， and some notable innovations can be seen in the transport and technology sectors such as high-speed railway， WeChat， bike sharing services and online shopping.”

Mei Jianjun， director of the Needham Research Institute in Cambridge， adding that these innovations have brought dramatic change to the life of Chinese

“Chinese companies frenzy for investing in overseas sports industries will cool down for a while. It is positive to have the money invested in the domestic sports industry， which has begun to grow only in recent years .”

Adam Zhang， founder of Key-Solution Sports Consultancy， commenting on the Chinese Governments tightened restrictions on speculative overseas deals by Chinese companies in sectors such as property， sports and entertainment

“We were happy that the Chinese were coming. Any investment is a big deal for us because it helps our local economy.”

Bernie Ash， mayor of Lebanon， Tennessee， the United States， learning that Guangdong-based The Wonderful Group would invest$150 million and open a porcelain plant in his hometown