49 m. ago China deploys new floating barrier at Scarborough Shoal, satellite image shows

China has installed a new floating barrier at Scarborough Shoal, according to satellite imagery, as tensions rise between Beijing and Manila over the disputed atoll in the South China Sea. The barrier was seen blocking the entrance to the lagoon at the shoal in the image obtained by Satellogic, a geospatial company headquartered in Montevideo, Uruguay. “New satellite imagery shows an illegal floating barrier installed by the People’s Republic of China at the mouth of Scarborough Shoal,” Luke...

Politics

53 m. ago Prince Harry, Meghan join calls to halt AI surpassing human intelligence

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have joined prominent computer scientists, economists, artists, evangelical Christian leaders and American conservative commentators Steve Bannon and Glenn Beck to call for a ban on AI “superintelligence” that threatens humanity. The letter, released on Wednesday by a politically and geographically diverse group of public figures, is squarely aimed at tech giants like Google, OpenAI and Meta Platforms that are racing each other to build a form of artificial...

Politics

5 h. ago Return to China of cancer researcher Wang Qianben reunites esteemed family

The recent return to China of cancer researcher and professor Wang Qianben marks the reunion of a family of high-achieving Chinese scientists and the culmination of a decades-long journey for Wang Qi, a renowned traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) researcher in Beijing In the 1970s, Wang Qi bestowed upon his two sons names laden with ambition – Wang Qianfei (“to fly forward”) and Wang Qianben (“to run forward”). Now, both his children have returned home from the United States as distinguished...

Science

11 h. ago Naked China boy running on all fours raises concerns over child welfare and safety

A Chinese boy was spotted running on all fours naked and behaving like a dog, while his parents dismissed government inquiries, claiming it was a form of “natural parenting.” On October 15, a video was posted online showing a naked boy running on all fours in a highway service area in southwestern China’s Sichuan province. Social media users were shocked to see the boy acting like a dog, picking up food from the ground with his mouth and sniffing it before eating. His parents were nearby,...

Politics

21 h. ago China’s analogue AI chip could work 1,000 times faster than Nvidia GPU: study

Chinese scientists have created a superfast analogue chip that can solve complex maths problems for advanced scientific tasks and artificial intelligence (AI) while using less power than conventional computing, according to a paper published this month. The analogue device designed by researchers from Peking University uses memory chips made of resistive materials. With future improvements, it could perform calculations at a processing rate 1,000 times faster than top digital processors, such as...

Politics

27 h. ago Why top Chinese scientist warned public against ‘hubris’ over country’s advances

The Chinese people have been urged to stay “calm and objective” about the country’s advances in cutting-edge weapons by a veteran rocket scientist, who warned “a lot of effort” was still needed. An array of advanced rockets, including intercontinental ballistic missiles, featured in last month’s Victory Day parade in Beijing along with other hi-tech weapons, generating considerable public enthusiasm. In an interview for a popular video account, Zhao Ruian, 84, a former researcher with the China...

Events

45 h. ago Argentina formalises US$20 billion lifeline from Trump as Milei faces poll test

Argentina on Monday formalised a currency swap agreement with the United States for up to US$20 billion aimed “at contributing to Argentina’s economic stability,” the South American country’s central bank said. The deal is part of huge financial support from the administration of Donald Trump, a strong backer of Argentine President Javier Milei, who is under pressure ahead of midterm elections on October 26. The peso has been fluctuating wildly ahead of the vote, disrupting the savings and...

Politics

47 h. ago China’s soybean imports surge as orders to US hit zero and American farmers fret

China imported no soybeans from the United States in September, but total imports remained at high levels amid a recent escalation in the US-China trade war, the latest Chinese customs data showed. Last month, the world’s largest food buyer purchased 12.8 million tonnes of soybeans – a crop heavily reliant on imports for its livestock industry – with a notable surge from Argentina during a brief suspension of export taxes, according to the detailed customs data released on Monday. The absence of...

Events

55 h. ago Chinese scientists caught neurons ‘kissing’ each other with cutting

Chinese scientists have captured the “kiss-shrink-run” process of neuronal communication using the world’s first camera with nanometre resolution and a millisecond-scale imaging speed. This cutting-edge cryogenic electron microscopy development enables the team to freeze moments of neurotransmission in time and clearly observe the complete dynamic process of the synaptic vesicle – a tiny, membrane-bound sac in a neuron that stores neurotransmitters. Their findings have also helped to resolve a...

Events

56 h. ago Chinese scientists discover secret to healthy ageing in naked mole

The remarkable longevity and disease resistance of naked mole rats are linked to a version of a protein involved in DNA repair that is also found in humans, Chinese scientists have discovered. The team led by researchers from Shanghai’s Tongji University found that introducing this modified protein in flies and mice reduced the genetic damage associated with ageing and helped to extend lifespan, according to results of their study published earlier this month. Their findings suggest that the...

Science

3 d. ago Nobody ‘cares’: a crocodile caused barely a ripple at an Australian resort pool

A crocodile took a dip in a luxury hotel pool in northeastern Australia this weekend but failed to stir guests who relaxed in the sun a few steps away. Video posted on social media showed the juvenile carnivore lying on the bottom of the pool at the Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort in Port Douglas. “I don’t want to alarm anyone but there is a crocodile in the Sheraton pool,” TikTok user Lisa Keller said in a video showing the scaly predator. A handful of tourists could be seen taking it easy on sun...

Politics

3 d. ago ‘Nobody cares’: crocodile causes barely a ripple in Australian resort pool

A crocodile took a dip in a luxury hotel pool in northeastern Australia this weekend but failed to stir guests who relaxed in the sun a few steps away. Video posted on social media showed the juvenile carnivore lying on the bottom of the pool at the Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort in Port Douglas. “I don’t want to alarm anyone but there is a crocodile in the Sheraton pool,” TikTok user Lisa Keller said in a video showing the scaly predator. A handful of tourists could be seen taking it easy on sun...

Politics

4 d. ago Sinking Shanghai, iPhone Air sells out in China: SCMP daily highlights

Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest China stories of the day. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Double whammy: Shanghai is sinking while sea level rises fast Shanghai is sinking while the sea level along China’s coastline is rising fast – its fastest in 4,000 years – possibly threatening China’s financial hub and the global supply chain, scientists warn in a new study. 2. Ships divert, directors resign as US-China port fees rock shipping...

Politics

5 d. ago Double whammy: Shanghai is sinking while sea level rises fast

Shanghai is sinking while the sea level along China’s coastline is rising fast – its fastest in 4,000 years, possibly threatening China’s financial hub and the global supply chain, scientists warn in a new study. China faces a double threat from rising seas, as many of its largest and most economically important cities are concentrated in delta regions, which are flat lands close to water. They were ideal for urban development but extremely vulnerable to flooding, the team said. Shanghai,...

Politics

5 d. ago China’s double threat: Shanghai sinks as sea level rises fastest in 4,000 years

Shanghai is sinking while the world’s sea levels are rising fast – the fastest in 4,000 years – possibly threatening the Chinese financial hub and the global supply chain, scientists warn in a new study. China faces a double threat from rising seas, according to the multinational team, as many of its largest and most economically important cities are concentrated in delta regions – flat lands close to water that were ideal for urban development but remain extremely vulnerable to...

Events

5 d. ago Top scientist Hu Ye quits US for China after cuts to US$8 million in grants

A top biomedical scientist has left the United States for China following cuts to US$8.3 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that funded his research projects. After studying and working in the US for 22 years, Hu “Tony” Ye, who held the prestigious chair professor position at Tulane University in New Orleans, left to take on the role of founding dean at the new school of biomedical engineering at his alma mater, Tsinghua University. Hu has long focused on the rapid...

Economics

5 d. ago Top scientist Hu Ye quits US for China after giving up millions in funding

A top biomedical scientist has left the United States for China after giving up millions of dollars in research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). After studying and working in the US for 22 years, Hu “Tony” Ye, who held the prestigious chair professor position at Tulane University in New Orleans, left to take on the role of founding dean at the new school of biomedical engineering at his alma mater, Tsinghua University. Hu has long focused on the rapid detection of viruses,...

Science

5 d. ago Nuclear fusion: could China be first to harness the energy that powers the sun?

At a laboratory in northern China, less than an hour away from Beijing, a team of scientists is working on a new technology with huge potential as a clean energy source: nuclear fusion. The spacious ENN Group campus in Langfang, Hebei province, is home to a cluster of experimental facilities. At its heart is a spherical device called the EXL-50U – a compact tokamak that uses a magnetic field to confine charged gas, or plasma, to fuse hydrogen nuclei. On the day the South China Morning Post...

Events

5 d. ago Race for the stars: will China be first to deliver fusion energy by 2035?

At a laboratory in northern China, less than an hour away from Beijing, a team of scientists is working on a new technology with huge potential as a clean energy source: nuclear fusion. The spacious ENN Group campus in Langfang, Hebei province, is home to a cluster of experimental facilities. At its heart is a spherical device called the EXL-50U – a compact tokamak that uses a magnetic field to confine charged gas, or plasma, to fuse hydrogen nuclei. On the day the South China Morning Post...

Science

5 d. ago Treasury Signals Tougher Stance on China Trade as Trump Doubles Down on Argentina Aid

Treasury Signals Tougher Stance on China Trade as Trump Doubles Down on Argentina Aid  RFD-TV

Politics