9 h. ago Chinese team says carbon dioxide can be turned turned into sugar

Chinese scientists have developed a method to turn the alcohol methanol into white sugar, which they say could allow captured carbon dioxide to be converted into food. The team’s biotransformation system produces sucrose without the need to grow sugar cane or sugar beets – crops that require large amounts of land and water resources. Their method to convert methanol – which can be derived from industrial waste or made by hydrogenating carbon dioxide – into sucrose using enzymes was also adapted...

Politics

33 h. ago Debate rages over ancient crater after China returns rocks from moon’s far side

A year after China returned the first rock samples from the moon’s far side, scientists are debating whether the mission has answered a central question in lunar science – and whether the country’s rising scientific dominance is challenging who gets to tell the story of the moon’s past. While a team of Chinese researchers believes they may have nailed down the age of the moon’s largest and oldest crater – a colossal impact basin that could hold clues to the early solar system – other scientists,...

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6 d. ago Chinese scientists create visual sensor that adapts to light changes in seconds

A team of Chinese scientists has used semiconductor “quantum dots” to develop a vision sensor that adapts to extreme light changes faster than the human eye. The bionic visual sensor can adapt to extreme changes between dark and light in about 40 seconds, compared to two to 30 minutes for human eyes. Its ability to adjust sensitivity for better object recognition and imaging means the sensor could be used to make next-generation technology, such as more brain-like computing systems. “The sensor...

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7 d. ago Chinese team develops faster, more efficient data sorting for AI, computing

Chinese scientists have developed a faster and more energy-efficient method to sort data, which could be used to overcome limitations in scientific computing, artificial intelligence, and hardware design. Their new sorting system relies on memristors, an electronic circuit component with memory-like abilities, along with a sorting algorithm to enable more efficient data processing. The team built a memristor-based hardware sorting prototype to demonstrate tasks such as route finding and neural...

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9 d. ago Chinese National Team Kicks Off Training Camp in Beijing in Lead

Chinese National Team Kicks Off Training Camp in Beijing in Lead-Up to World Championships  SwimSwam

Politics

9 d. ago Human heart structure beats 21 days in pig embryo in Chinese chimera study

Chinese scientists have, for the first time, cultivated a beating heart structure with human cells in a pig embryo, reporting that the heart continued to beat for 21 days unaided. The study, led by Lai Liangxue’s team from the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was announced at the International Society for Stem Cell Research’s annual meeting in Hong Kong on June 12. Previously, the team had cultivated human kidneys in pigs for up to 28...

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1 week ago Chinese team creates blockchain tech to resist attacks from quantum computers

Chinese scientists have developed a new blockchain storage technology that they say can resist attacks from quantum computers. Blockchain technology – which provides a shared, decentralised digital ledger that stores tamper-proof records – has shown revolutionary potential in areas like financial services and supply chain management. Usually, blockchains use specialised encryption algorithms to verify each transaction, ensure the ledger’s security, and provide transparent access to...

Events

1 week ago Chinese scientists uncover coal power’s dirty secret in satellite data study

In the first high-precision satellite mapping of carbon dioxide emissions from large international coal power plants, Chinese scientists have found that existing databases are underestimating discharges from facilities across the globe. They include China’s Tuoketuo – the largest coal-fired power station in the world – and Alabama’s James H. Miller Jnr facility, the most polluting plant in the United States, according to a paper published on June 9 by the peer-reviewed Journal of Cleaner...

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2 w. ago Mammals could regenerate tissue by turning on ‘genetic switch’: Chinese team

Chinese scientists say they have restored the damaged outer ear in mice, a mammal that lacks natural regenerative abilities. The researchers said the pathway they identified could be applied to different tissue types and play a significant role in advancing regeneration in vertebrates. The team found that a mouse’s failure to regenerate stemmed from an inability to produce sufficient retinoic acid, a derivative of vitamin A that regulates what cell type emerges during a cell’s development and...

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2 w. ago Tributes paid to hero Chinese doctor who drowned after saving woman in Tanzania

China has paid tribute to a Chinese doctor in Tanzania who died saving a woman in distress in the sea, saying his heroism exemplified the deep China-Africa friendship and the dedication of Chinese medical teams. Zhang Junqiao, a 38-year-old anaesthesiologist working in Tanzania as part of a Chinese medical team, went to the aid of the drowning Tanzanian woman off Dar es Salaam on June 15. Images from the scene showed Zhang keeping her afloat while helping her into a life jacket moments before he...

Events

2 w. ago Chinese team details drone plan to capture Martian samples and avoid bio risks

China has unveiled details about its coming Mars sample return mission, including a plan to avoid biological contamination risks when employing a helicopter drone to collect surface samples and bring potential signs life back to Earth. The Tianwen-3 mission, which is set to bring back at least 500 grams (17.6 oz) of Martian material by 2031 as part of its search for signs of life, will for the first time pair a stationary lander with a drone to extend its sampling reach, according to scientists...

Events

3 w. ago Chinese team’s edible fruit coating can more than double shelf life: paper

Chinese scientists have developed an edible, washable protein-based coating that can extend the shelf life of fruits by 2½ times, by reducing moisture loss and microbial growth. The low-cost coating was tested across 17 varieties of whole and cut fruits, including strawberry, tomato, kiwi and mango. It was shown to effectively delay rot by almost a week or more, at a cost of just 9 US cents per kilogram of fruit, according to a recent paper in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Communications. The...

Politics

3 w. ago Chinese satellite beams data at 1Gbps, surpassing Starlink speed by 5 times

Imagine beaming a HD movie from Shanghai to Los Angeles – crossing three Pacific widths – in less than five seconds using just a night light. This may sound like fantasy because Starlink, operating just hundreds of kilometres above Earth, maxes out at a couple of Mbps. But from a secret satellite parked in stationary orbit more than 60 times higher, a team of Chinese scientists has used a 2-watt laser – dim as a candle – to push data through turbulent skies to Earth at 1Gbps, five times faster...

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