41 h. ago World’s first ‘ethical AI’ wades into risks of China’s new drug abuse law

A new Chinese AI system called Wen Dao – billed as the world’s first such model to be designed explicitly for ethical risk detection – has landed in the middle of its first major moral dilemma. Its immediate challenge is to navigate one of 2025’s most explosive social debates: whether the country should automatically seal the records of convicted drug users under the newly revised Public Security Administration Punishments Law. Effective January 1, an amendment to the law known as Article 136...

Events

56 h. ago Ancient DNA reveals China’s first ‘pet’ cat wasn’t the house cat

Ancient DNA reveals China’s first ‘pet’ cat wasn’t the house cat  Science News

Politics

61 h. ago US university seeks to dismiss lawsuit from family of neuroscientist Jane Wu

The legal battle over the death of Chinese-American neuroscientist Jane Wu officially began in a Chicago courtroom this week – a case that has shaken the research community and focused intense scrutiny on Northwestern University’s conduct. A civil lawsuit filed by Wu’s family in June centres on how the university handled one of its most accomplished professors during the controversial “China Initiative”, alleging her suicide in July 2024 was a direct result of the school’s treatment amid the...

Society

63 h. ago China trains industry AI tool using ‘world’s largest’ port operation data set

China is training an artificial intelligence tool to support the country’s port industry using what the National Development and Reform Commission said was the “world’s largest” port operation data set. The AI application draws on data covering “the most comprehensive range of port business scenarios”, according to Li Chao, deputy director of the NDRC’s policy research office. “It will provide strong support for technological research and development as well as verification in areas such as port...

Politics

67 h. ago China’s tech war warriors; trying to jam Starlink signals: 7 science highlights

We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China’s new tech war warriors: PhD graduates without a thesis China’s top defence university is piloting a scheme that allows PhD students to graduate with a product or design instead of a thesis in an effort to solve “bottleneck” engineering problems amid the tech race with the United States. 2. Chief...

Events

67 h. ago Chinese scientist detained, an ancient DNA discovery: 7 science highlights

We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. China’s new tech war warriors: PhD graduates without a thesis China’s top defence university is piloting a scheme that allows PhD students to graduate with a product or design instead of a thesis in an effort to solve “bottleneck” engineering problems amid the tech race with the United States. 2. Chief...

Politics

3 d. ago China’s ‘dirt cheap’ missiles could shake up global defence market: state media

Chinese aerospace firm Lingkong Tianxing unveiled a hypersonic glide missile last week that has a range of up to 1,300 km (800 miles) and a top speed of Mach 7. The YKJ-1000 has been nicknamed the “cement-coated” missile for its use of civilian-grade materials such as foamed concrete in its heat-resistant coating. According to slides widely circulated online, the unit production cost of this missile, already in mass production after successful combat trials, may be as low as 700,000 yuan (around...

Events

4 d. ago United we stand: why mammals that band together may face lower cancer risks

Much research on cancer prevalence has focused on genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors. But a new study by Argentine researchers offers a novel evolutionary perspective: the social structure of mammals may play a critical role in cancer risk. The new angle has been proposed by researchers from the cancer philosophy and biology systems group at the University of Buenos Aires, led by Professor Matías Blaustein. Their study, published on November 12 in the journal Science Advances, suggests...

Events

5 d. ago China’s Xingyan ‘Star Eye’ network to track satellites and space debris

China is launching a second satellite constellation to monitor objects in orbit to help commercial operators lower collision risks and ease the country’s long reliance on foreign tracking data. When complete, the Xingyan – or Star Eye – space situational awareness constellation will have 156 satellites up and running to identify the orbits of other satellites and debris, detect unusual movements, and provide collision warnings and maneuver advice every two hours. Its developer, Xingtu Cekong, an...

Politics

5 d. ago China’s new secret weapon in biotech race: Tibet animal poop with stranger germ

Hidden in the frozen highlands of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau – often called the “Third Pole” – lies an unexpected trove of biological innovation: animal poop. Chinese scientists have discovered that the faeces of yaks, Tibetan sheep, antelope and other native herbivores harbour thousands of previously unknown microbial species, some of which could be game changers for biotechnology. They include novel strains that have the potential to degrade cellulose – used for paper, cardboard and clothing –...

Events

5 d. ago China’s new secret weapon in biotech race: Tibet animal poop with newfound germs

Hidden in the frozen highlands of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau – often called the “Third Pole” – lies an unexpected trove of biological innovation: animal poop. Chinese scientists have discovered that the faeces of yaks, Tibetan sheep, antelope and other native herbivores harbour thousands of previously unknown microbial species, some of which could be game changers for biotechnology. They include novel strains that have the potential to degrade cellulose – used for paper, cardboard and clothing –...

Events

6 d. ago ‘It is fake’: why US industry leader refused to believe China’s robot march clip

On November 14, Chinese robotics firm UBtech released footage showing hundreds of Walker S2 humanoid robots standing in precise formation inside a warehouse. The machines turned their heads in unison, waved their arms and marched into shipping containers – a scene so visually arresting it evoked sci-fi blockbusters like I, Robot. Brett Adcock, founder and CEO of leading US robotics company Figure, responded with disbelief. He immediately took to social media to suggest the footage was...

Politics

6 d. ago China gives disputed Scarborough Shoal a clean bill of health

Coral reefs at the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea are healthy and resilient to climate change, but growing thermal stress poses a potential bleaching risk, according to a Chinese environmental assessment. The report rated the atoll’s maritime environment as excellent, with no signs of cyanide in seawater, sediment or fish samples. Scarborough Shoal, known as Huangyan Island in China and Panatag Shoal in the Philippines, is claimed by both countries, and Manila has accused...

Science

6 d. ago Ancient Chinese DNA shows gender bias in human sacrifice ritual 4,000 years ago

Female sacrifice in China dates back thousands of years earlier than previously believed, a study of ancient DNA has revealed. Evidence from elite burials at a large Stone Age settlement in northwestern China also suggests the existence of an early hierarchical society, with gender preference relating to the type of sacrificial ritual, according to the Chinese archaeologists and anthropologists behind the study. Shimao, located in the Yellow River valley in Shaanxi province, is one of the...

Politics

7 d. ago Chinese scientists create super stable building block for quantum computers

Chinese physicist Pan Jianwei and his team have created a “quantum Lego block” that refuses to fall apart – even when shaken. Using a programmable quantum processor named Zuchongzhi 2, Pan’s team has simulated an exotic new state of matter where quantum effects are locked into the corners of a material, according to a paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Science on Friday. These corner states are protected by the deep laws of topology – a kind of quantum armour against errors and...

Politics

7 d. ago Li Minyong, noted Chinese chemist and Royal Society fellow, dies at age 49

Li Minyong, a prominent medicinal chemist and a fellow of multiple international research societies, died on November 16 at the age of 49. His sudden death marks China’s latest loss of a leading scientist at the height of their research career. Li, a professor and deputy dean of the school of pharmaceutical sciences at Hainan University, dedicated himself to pioneering drug discovery through light-controlled and bioactive visualisation technologies. He was elected a Fellow of Britain’s Royal...

Events

8 d. ago China has 3 reusable rockets lined up for launch as they vie to make history

The race to launch China’s first reusable rocket is heating up, with three contenders now lined up at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the country’s northwest for flights that could make history. On the pads stand the state-owned Long March 12A, LandSpace’s Zhuque-3, and Space Pioneer’s Tianlong-3 – all three of which are expected to be used to build China’s massive internet satellite constellations and to compete internationally on low-cost, rapid-turnaround missions. Both the Long March...

Events

9 d. ago How Cleopatra’s bath loofah may help PLA jets to vanish from space radars

Over 2,000 years ago, in a secluded bath chamber along the banks of the Nile, Queen Cleopatra of Egypt may have reached for an unlikely luxury: a fibrous, spongelike gourd – the loofah. This porous plant was prized by ancient Egyptian royalty as a natural exfoliant, a symbol of purity and refinement. Light as a feather, yet strong and intricately structured, the loofah scrubbed away impurities – both physical and spiritual – in rituals that blended hygiene with holiness. Today, this unassuming...

Politics

9 d. ago China challenges US containment with global action plan for space industry

China’s space agency has released an action plan to take its commercial space sector worldwide, pledging to help integrate commercial projects into its international cooperation agenda. The ambitious plan could challenge a number of US laws and government regulations aiming to curb the expansion of China’s space industry on the global stage. On Tuesday, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) posted guidelines for the promotion of commercial space flight and enterprises through to 2027,...

Politics

9 d. ago China’s mega dredger joins ranks of the world’s largest after passing sea trials

China has boosted its strategic capacity from land reclamation to deep-sea mining and pipelines, with the successful completion of sea trials for Asia’s largest trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD). The Tongjun – China’s first domestically designed super dredger – completed its five days of testing in the Yellow Sea off the northeastern Chinese coast on Tuesday, three months after its launch, according to state news agency Xinhua. With a hopper capacity of more than 38,000 cubic metres (1.3...

Politics