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☆ China's latest supersonic spy drone looks a lot like the Lockheed D-21 that crashed there in 1971
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

The aircraft, shaped like a dart and painted black, was a D-21 supersonic reconnaissance drone. Ultimately unsuccessful, the drone would be relegated to the annals of aviation history if not for the appearance of a strikingly similar Chinese drone unveiled at a recent military parade. AdvertisementThis is what we know about the high-flying Chinese spy drone and the D-21 upon which it could be based. High altitude, high speedLockheed's solution was to create an unmanned high-altitude high-speed reconnaissance aircraft with similar capabilities as the A-12, but much smaller. A WZ-8 reconnaissance drone is on display at the 13th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition on September 28, 2021 in Zhuhai, China.

Persons: —, Francis Gary Powers, Dwight Eisenhower, Marquardt, Bill, Ray Torrick, Chen Xiao, Benjamin Brimelow Organizations: Service, Air Force, 4200th Support Squadron, Andersen Air Force Base, Business, Lockheed Corporation, Soviet, White House, CIA, Central Intelligence Agency, Lockheed's, Works, Redesignated, Navy, US Air Force, Chinese Aviation Museum, Davis, Monthan Air Force Base, 13th China International Aviation, Aerospace, US National Geospatial - Intelligence Agency, 29th Air Regiment, People's Liberation Army Air Force's 10th Bomber, Global Affairs, Fletcher School of Law, Diplomacy, Modern, Institute Locations: Guam, China, Soviet Union, Soviet, Yunnan, Beijing, Tucson , Arizona, United States, Zhuhai, People's Republic of China, Liuan, Korean, Taiwan, Pacific, West

☆ Vietnam is planning high-speed rail connections with China
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Vietnam aims to start building two high-speed railway lines linking its capital Hanoi with China before 2030, the Ministry of Planning and Investment said, another sign of a recent warming of ties between the two Communist-ruled neighbors. The two countries are already connected via a system of highways and two railway lines that are old and need upgrading on the Vietnam side. Earlier this month, Vietnam said it was seeking to learn from China to develop its first high-speed railway network and had sent its officials to work with Chinese railway companies. A massive high-speed railway line linking capital Hanoi with business hub Ho Chi Minh City is also being planned in the country. Trade between Vietnam and China in the first quarter of this year rose 22% from a year earlier to $43.6 billion, according to Vietnamese government data.

Persons: Lao Cai, Vuong Dinh Hue, Xi Jinping Organizations: Ministry of Planning, Investment, National Locations: Vietnam, Hanoi, China, Vietnam’s, Haiphong, Quang Ninh, Lao, China’s Yunnan, Lang Son, China’s Guangxi, Chi Minh City, Beijing, South China

☆ Landslide buries dozens in southwest China in freezing winter temperatures
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Nectar Gan | Wayne Chang | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Rescuers are racing to reach at least 47 people buried in a landslide in southwestern China on Monday, according to state media. The landslide hit the mountain village of Liangshui in Yunnan province shortly before dawn, when most residents were asleep. More than 300 rescue workers were deployed along with dozens of fire engines and earth-moving equipment, according to CCTV. One man was pulled from the rubble shortly after 11 a.m. local time, state-run news agency Xinhua reported. Much of southern China, including Yunnan, is in the middle of a cold snap, with temperatures dropping near or below freezing, according to China’s Meteorological Administration.

Organizations: CNN, CCTV, Xinhua, China’s Meteorological Administration Locations: China, Liangshui, Yunnan

☆ Death Toll in China Landslide Rises to 11, Rescuers Still Search for Missing
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING (Reuters) - The death toll from a landslide in China's Yunnan province rose to 11 on Tuesday as rescue workers battled freezing temperatures and snow to locate dozens of missing people. Rescuers worked through the night sifting deep mounds of earth at the site of the landslide in Zhenxiong County, state-owned China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Tuesday. After the landslide hit on Monday, at least 47 people from 18 households were reported missing, CCTV said. Eight of the missing were found dead on Monday afternoon, according to Zhaotong Daily, a local state-owned media outlet. "The mountain just collapsed, dozens were buried," a man surnamed Gu, who witnessed the landslide, told the state-owned TV station for the neighbouring province of Guizhou.

Persons: Rescuers, Gu, Bernard Orr, Shri Navaratnam Organizations: China Central Television, Sichuan Daily Newspaper Press Locations: BEIJING, China's Yunnan, Zhenxiong County, Zhaotong, Guizhou, Shanghai

BEIJING (AP) — A landslide in southwestern China’s mountainous Yunnan province early Monday buried 44 people and forced the evacuation of 200 more. The disaster struck just before 6 a.m. in the village of Liangshui, under the town of Tangfang in Zhenxiong County. The county publicity department said rescue efforts were underway to find victims buried in 18 separate houses. The cause of the landslide wasn’t immediately known, although photos from the scene appeared to show snow on the ground. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Organizations: BEIJING, Associated Press Locations: China’s, Yunnan, Liangshui, Tangfang, Zhenxiong County

☆ Dozens Missing in Landslide in Southwest China's Yunnan Province
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING (Reuters) - A landslide in a city in the northeast of China's Yunnan province has left at least 47 people unaccounted for and rescue operations were currently underway, Chinese state media said on Monday. At about 5:51 a.m. (2151 GMT), a landslide hit the city of Zhaotong and local government officials launched a disaster relief emergency response, the People's Daily reported. It's not clear what caused the landslide. Yunnan, in southwest China, is among several provinces in the country's southern region currently experiencing a cold wave and bitter temperatures near or below freezing, according to the National Meteorological Centre. (Reporting by Bernard Orr and Qiaoyi Li; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)

Persons: Bernard Orr, Qiaoyi Li, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: National Meteorological Centre Locations: BEIJING, China's Yunnan, Zhaotong, Yunnan, China

On Nov. 18, China’s Ministry of Public Security announced that authorities in northern Myanmar had handed over some 31,000 suspects. The Kokang Self-Administered Zone and the Wa Self-Administered Division both share a border with China and are heavily influenced by their bigger neighbor. The Ming family are not the only powerful Kokang families caught up in the drive. Wa police handed 194 Chinese nationals to Chinese authorities on Nov. 28, according to Wa's state media, Voice of Wa State. Others say that China is showing it won't tolerate the scams anymore, regardless of how powerful are the people behind them.

Persons: ”, Lu Jiantang, Jason Tower, Ming, Hu Xijin, ” Hu, Wei Qingtao, they’ll, ” Wei, Liu Zhengqi, Ming Xuechang, Kokang, Yin Masan, MNDAA, cyberscammers, Richard Horsey, “, Bai Suocheng, Li Kyar Wen, It’s, Wanqing Chen Organizations: China’s Ministry of Public Security, U.S . Congress, United States Institute of Peace, Communist Party, China’s Communist Party, CCTV, Global Times, of Public Security, Fully, Wa Construction Ministry, Wa Communist Party, Brotherhood Alliance, Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, National Liberation Army, International Crisis Locations: BANGKOK, China, Myanmar, “, Wa, Kokang, Yunnan, Wa State, Shan, Arakan, cyberscams, Beijing

[1/6] A man sings for customers touring the Erhai lake on a sightseeing bus, in Dali, Yunnan province, China November 10, 2023. Many are former city-dwellers in search of an elusive prize in authoritarian China: Space for open discussion and exchange of ideas. POLICE OVERSIGHTThe local government has sought to attract young tech talent and in September asked digital nomads for input on policies, two community organisers told Reuters. Many digital nomads who use co-working spaces are involved with technologies like blockchain, according to organisers, which they say has drawn scrutiny from local authorities. Since digital nomads, unlike university students, "are not subject to structured discipline, they are harder to manage", she said.

Persons: Florence Lo, DALI, Trump, Xi Jinping, Minhua Ling, Dali, Xi's, Bai Yunxi, Xi, Bai, Chen Zhengyun, Chen, Ling, Laurie Chen, Katerina Ang Organizations: REUTERS, Geneva Graduate Institute, Reuters, Communist Party, Thomson Locations: Dali, Yunnan province, China, China's, Israel, Gaza, Yunnan, Beijing

☆ Chasing a Different China Dream, Young Digital Nomads Head for the Hills
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +6 min

Many are former city-dwellers in search of an elusive prize in authoritarian China: Space for open discussion and exchange of ideas. POLICE OVERSIGHTThe local government has sought to attract young tech talent and in September asked digital nomads for input on policies, two community organisers told Reuters. Many digital nomads who use co-working spaces are involved with technologies like blockchain, according to organisers, which they say has drawn scrutiny from local authorities. "We are more low-key and don't emphasise digital nomads in our marketing anymore," one co-working space staffer told Reuters, adding that conservative local governments in rural towns like Dali are "cautious of emerging technologies". Since digital nomads, unlike university students, "are not subject to structured discipline, they are harder to manage", she said.

Persons: Laurie Chen DALI, Trump, Xi Jinping, Minhua Ling, Dali, Xi's, Bai Yunxi, Xi, Bai, Chen Zhengyun, Chen, Ling, Laurie Chen, Katerina Ang Organizations: Geneva Graduate Institute, Reuters, Communist Party Locations: China, China's, Israel, Gaza, Dali, Yunnan, Beijing

☆ Xi-Biden summit: What’s on the agenda for China’s leader as he heads to California?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Biden, meanwhile, finds himself strapped with international challenges from the war in Ukraine to the latest conflict in Gaza. Chinese leader Xi Jinping, left, and US President Joe Biden. Getty ImagesXi’s agendaDespite the challenges he faces at home, the insulated Chinese leader may see himself in a stronger position relative to Biden. Xi will ask Biden to clarify and define the scope of the US approach on tech restrictions, analysts say. Liu Ranyang/China News Service/VCG/Getty Images‘Positive signals’The lead-up to Xi’s American visit has been marked with signals that China is hoping to smooth prickly relations.

Persons: — Xi Jinping, Joe Biden —, Xi, Biden, he’d, ”, Yun Sun, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, …, Suisheng Zhao, Stimson, Sun, Harry Moyer, Liu Ranyang, Zhong Sheng, wisecracks, Nancy Pelosi’s, Beijing’s, Shi Yinhong, Shi Organizations: CNN, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, “, China Program, Stimson, Getty, Biden, Center for, Cooperation, University of Denver, Communist Party, US, Taiwan’s Democracy Progressive Party, US Flying Tigers, Kunming Foreign Language School, China News Service, “ Flying Tigers, China’s Renmin University, Republicans Locations: China, Hong Kong, San Fransisco, Bali , Indonesia, Ukraine, Gaza, Washington, Beijing, Center for China, Taiwan, California, Kunming, China's Yunnan, United States, Russia, Iran

☆ Thailand Tries to Rescue 162 Nationals Trapped in Myanmar Fighting
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-03 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand is trying to bring home 162 of its nationals trapped in Myanmar by a surge in clashes between junta troops and ethnic minority insurgents near the border with China, officials said. Heavy fighting erupted last week in northern Myanmar's Shan State where an alliance of ethnic minority forces battling for self-determination launched a series of coordinated attacks on junta positions. Newly formed pro-democracy insurgent groups have in some areas teamed up with ethnic minority guerrillas who have been campaigning for decades for greater autonomy. The latest fighting in Shan State has pushed thousands of refugees into China, and displaced thousands more internally, Myanmar media outlets reported. A "three brotherhood alliance" of ethnic minority armies in Shan and Rakhine states, said it is seeking to defend their territory and civilians from attacks by the junta.

Persons: Thais, Srettha Thavisin, Nobel, Aung, Panu, Poppy McPherson, Robert Birsel Locations: BANGKOK, Thailand, Myanmar, China, Israel, Myanmar's Shan State, Yunnan province, Thai, Suu Kyi, Shan State, Shan, Rakhine

☆ Li Keqiang: Death of China’s former premier offers glimpse into discontent with Xi Jinping
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Cnn Staff | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —The sudden death of China’s former Premier Li Keqiang has spurred an outpouring of grief and mourning across the country. But for many, it also appears to offer a rare opening to air pent-up discontent with top leader Xi Jinping and the direction he has taken the country. His death, just months after his retirement, shocked the Chinese public. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang review a guard of honor prior to a meeting at the Chancellery on July 9, 2018 in Berlin, Germany. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visits a hospital in Wuhan on January 27, 2020, days after the city was placed under a complete lockdown to curb the raging Covid-19 outbreak.

Persons: Li Keqiang, Xi Jinping, Li, Xi –, ”, Alfred Wu, Lee, “, Xi, Angela Merkel, Sean Gallup, Zhang Lun, Mao Zedong, Zhang, “ I’ve, Wu, Li Tao, Zhou Enlai, Mao, Hu Yaobang, Fish Leong, ” Zhang Organizations: CNN, Communist, Lee Kuan Yew, of Public Policy, Getty, Studies, University of Cergy, Peking University, Li, AP Party, Communist Party, Xinhua, CPC, Party Locations: Shanghai, China, Singapore, German, Berlin, Germany, Pontoise, France, Communist China, Wuhan, AFP, Yunnan province, Weibo, Malaysian, Hefei, Anhui, Zhengzhou, Henan, Beijing

☆ Newly discovered pangolin species could aid in fight against extinction
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Faye Chiu | Jenna Schnuer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

There are eight previously known species of pangolin — four found in Asia and four in Africa. Genomics can help protect threatened speciesThe scales’ form initially suggested they belonged to one of four species of pangolin found in Asia. But DNA analysis showed that their “genomic data provide robust and compelling evidence that it is a new pangolin species distinct from those previously recognized,” Hu said. An analysis of contraband pangolin scales revealed genetic markers not seen in known species, researchers said. “We also expect to find other pangolin species,” Hu said.

Persons: CNN —, —, ”, Jing, Yan Hu, pangolin, ” Hu, Aryn Wilder, Wilder, Manis mysteria, Feng Yang One, ” Wilder, “, Hu Organizations: CNN, State Key Laboratory for Conservation, Yunnan University, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Locations: Asia, Africa, Hong Kong, Yunnan

☆ China Risks Property Debt
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Source: China Real Estate Information Corp. (CRIC)The physical size of Country Garden’s real estate portfolio is enormous. The Weight of Debt The ballooning debt crisis could delay the prospect of a recovery of both the property market and the broader Chinese economy, in which real estate is a core pillar. China property sector slump China’s property sales, investment and funds raised by property developers slid in January - August 2023 after a sharp fall in 2022. China's property sector accounts for more than half of global new home sales and home building, according to Nomura. Any contraction in the property sector will affect China’s growth, thus sending ripple effects around the globe as the world’s factory slows.

Persons: Evergrande, homebuyers, Nomura, David Stanway, Jason Lee, –, Moody's, Yawen Chen, Amr Alfiky Organizations: Country, Garden, Estate Information Corp, CIFI Holdings, Sunac, National Bureau of Statistics, China, Investment, REUTERS, International Monetary Fund, Nomura, JPMorgan, Dubai, National Bureau of Economic Research Locations: China, Burj, Burj Khalifa, Sunac China, Kunming, Yunnan province, Beijing, Xuchang, Henan province, United Arab Emirates

Asia's hydropower output fell 17.9% during the seven months through July, data from energy think tank Ember showed, while fossil fuel-fired power rose 4.5%. In India, hydropower generation fell 6.2% during the eight months ended August in the sharpest decline since 2016. In some cases, the hydropower output plunge was a result of efforts to conserve water and alter supply patterns. "This trend of rapidly increasing wind or solar power generation in China could push for hydropower playing this critical regulating function, instead of operating whenever there is water," he added. However, unlike hydro, wind power is harder to forecast and control, as it varies by local weather conditions.

Persons: Carlos Torres Diaz, Rystad, Lauri Myllyvirta, Myllyvirta, Ember, Victor Vanya, Sudarshan Varadhan, Jamie Freed Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, National Bureau, International Energy Agency, Centre for Research, Clean Energy, Air, Thomson Locations: Qiaojia, Yunnan province, Ningnan, Sichuan province, China, Rights SINGAPORE, Asia, India, Vietnam, India's, Philippines, Malaysia, Ember

☆ Chinese developer Sunac seeks Chapter 15 protection in New York court
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People on a property tour talk outside of a show flat at a residential property developed by Sunac China Holdings in Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China, June 22, 2019. REUTERS/Lusha Zhang Acquire Licensing RightsSept 19 (Reuters) - Chinese developer Sunac China Holdings (1918.HK) has filed for Chapter 15 protection from creditors in a U.S. bankruptcy court, court documents showed on Tuesday. Creditors of Sunac China Holdings approved its $9 billion offshore debt restructuring plan on Monday, marking the first approval of such debt overhaul by a major Chinese property developer. Sunac is among a string of Chinese property developers that have defaulted on their offshore debt payment obligations since the sector was hit by a liquidity crisis in 2021, roiling global markets. Reporting by Jyoti Narayan in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Jacqueline WongOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lusha Zhang, Jyoti Narayan, Christopher Cushing, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Sunac China Holdings, REUTERS, HK, Thomson Locations: Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China, U.S, United States, Bengaluru

BANGKOK (AP) — One of Myanmar’s biggest and most powerful ethnic minority militias has arrested and repatriated more than 1,200 Chinese nationals allegedly involved in criminal online scam operations, an official of the group said Saturday. The arrests were carried out in territory controlled by the United Wa State Army, or UWSA, in eastern Shan state in raids on Tuesday and Wednesday, Nyi Rang, a liaison officer from the militia, told The Associated Press. The United Wa State Army is the biggest and strongest ethnic armed organization among the major ethnic minority groups in Myanmar, with an army of approximately 30,000 well-equipped soldiers and sophisticated weaponry including heavy artillery and helicopters, from China, with which it maintains close relations. The U.N. report about Southeast Asian cybercrime said the online fraud gangs were also active in southeastern Kayin state on the Thai border. The complexes were developed by Chinese investors in cooperation with the local Border Guard Forces, which are militias affiliated with Myanmar’s army.

Persons: Nyi Rang, —, Wa, Aung, Suu Kyi, Chen Hai, cybercrime, Shwe Kokko Organizations: Myanmar’s, United Wa State Army, Associated Press, Human Rights, United Wa State Party, Beijing’s Ministry of Public Security, Foreign, Border Guard Forces Locations: BANGKOK, Shan, Wa, Yunnan province, Asia, Southeast Asia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Kayin, Mong, China, Thailand, Suu, Thai, Shwe, Myawaddy

☆ China launches 'unprecedented' crackdown on its healthcare industry amid economic woes
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN —China has launched a sweeping anti-corruption campaign targeting its hospitals, pharmaceutical industry and insurance funds as it grapples with mounting economic challenges and long-standing public frustration about high costs in the behemoth healthcare sector. Some areas have set up hotlines for phoning in tips about corruption in the sector, according to state media. At least one state media report has described the campaign as “unprecedented in the depth, breadth and intensity” of targeting the healthcare sector. Despite wide health insurance coverage, absolute costs of healthcare can be a heavy burden for many in China. “Given the economic slowdown and the shrinking fiscal revenue, the debt-ridden local governments really don’t have the capabilities to invest more in the medical sector and corruption continues to be an issue,” said Huang.

Persons: That’s, Xi Jinping, Ren Jianming, Yanzhong Huang, ”, Huang, Jade Gao, Xi Chen, ” Chen, Winning Health Technology Group’s, Zhou Wei, Sun Ningling, ” “ Organizations: CNN, behemoth, Communist Party, China News Service, Center for Integrity Research, Education, China’s Beihang University, Publishing, Council, Foreign Relations, Getty Images, Yale School of Public Health, Getty, Health Commission, NHC, Central Commission, CSI, Reuters, Shanghai Serum, Winning Health Technology, Peking University People’s Hospital Locations: China, Yunnan, Shanghai, Beijing, Zhejiang, United States, New York, AFP, Guangzhou, Shenzhen

China generated 121 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) from hydro in July 2023, down from 146 billion kWh in the same month a year earlier, and the lowest since 2015. China also boosted generation from wind farms (+16 billion kWh) and solar farms (+5 billion kWh) compared with July 2022. But without the extra generation from thermal (+44 billion kWh) it could not have offset the drop in hydro (-25 billion kWh) while meeting growth in load (+40 billion kWh). SOUTH CHINA DROUGHTFour-fifths of China’s total hydro generation comes from provinces along the Yangtze River system and further south. Facing continued restrictions on hydro generation, coal-fired generation, coal production and coal imports will have to rise even further.

Persons: Doksuri, John Kemp, Bernadette Baum Organizations: REUTERS, National Bureau of Statistics, East, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Qiaojia, Yunnan province, Ningnan, Sichuan province, China, Hebei, Beijing, Chartbook, CHINA, Sichuan, Yunnan, Hubei, Guizhou, Guangxi, Hunan, Fujian, Guangdong, Chongqing, Yibin

Copper prices have been range-bound in recent months after a January slide from their highest in more than seven months and a May rebound from a slump below $8,000 a metric ton. Analysts forecast a copper surplus this year of 111,000 metric tons, with oversupply rising to 188,000 tons next year. Analysts expect a market deficit this year of 191,750 metric tons, dropping to 66,000 tons in 2024. Analysts expect LME cash nickel prices to average $20,000 a metric ton in the fourth quarter, down 11% from the previous poll. They expect the global nickel market to show a surplus of 199,000 metric tons this year and 150,000 tons in 2024.

Persons: Dan Smith, Goran Djukanovic, Nguyen, Eric Onstad, Ananya, David Goodman Organizations: Amalgamated Metal Trading, Study, London Metal Exchange, Reuters, Indonesia, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, China, YUNNAN, Yunnan, Yunnan province, Indonesia, Commerzbank, London, Bengaluru

Norwegian producer Norsk Hydro (NHY.OL) has called for the exchange to reconsider its decision last November to continue accepting deliveries of Russian metal. China imported 462,000 metric tons of Russian-brand primary aluminium last year, up from 291,000 metric tons in 2021. The country has emerged as the market of first resort for Russian metal since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The top two destinations for June's "exports" were Japan (10,000 metric tons) and South Korea (20,500 metric tons). China's aluminium run-rate fell by an annualised 636,000 metric tons over the first quarter, according to the International Aluminium Institute.

Persons: Rusal, Goldman Sachs, ingot, isn't, Jane Merriman Organizations: London Metal Exchange, Norsk Hydro, Hydro, Rusal, International Aluminium Institute, AZ Global, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Norwegian, Russian, China, United States, Europe, Asia, Ukraine, Japan, South Korea, Gwangyang, CHINA, Yunnan

☆ The Ongoing Mystery of Covid’s Origin
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( David Quammen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

But as the researchers describe it, these apparent contradictions were simply a reflection of their fast-evolving views. It showed that such an RBD had evolved in the wild and might well have gotten into SARS-CoV-2 by recombination, the natural gene-swapping process. The genome was 96.2 percent identical to the SARS-CoV-2 genome as sampled from people during the early days of the pandemic. RaTG13 has attained renown, not just because it constituted strong evidence of SARS-CoV-2’s ancestry in bat viruses but also because the Mojiang mine figures in some of the more lurid scenarios for a lab-leak origin. The inference is that Shi’s team, a year after the mine workers died, may have taken the virus back to Wuhan.

Persons: Andersen, ”, Slack, Matt Wong, ” Andersen, Zhengli Shi, Shi, RaTG13 Organizations: Twitter, Nature, Wuhan Institute of Virology Locations: Houston, Yunnan Province, Wuhan, Tongguan, Mojiang, Yunnan

☆ Why US Treasury Secretary Yellen’s visit to a Beijing restaurant set off a wild mushroom craze
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( Maggie Wong | Maggie Hiufu Wong | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Among the dishes the food blogger claimed to have spotted were grilled fish with herbs, stir-fried pickled Yunnan wild greens with potato slices and cold rice noodles. She ordered four portions of jian shou qing (a Yunnan wild mushroom species). But the most heated discussions were focused on the multiple orders of the mushroom dish – jian shou qing. Jian shou qing, Yunnan’s mysterious mushroomsBaskets of jian shou qing mushrooms, foraged from a Yunnan forest. Chieu Luu/CNNThe fact that Yellen and her team visited a Yunnan restaurant shouldn’t come as a surprise.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN — It’s, Janet Yellen, jian shou qing, Yi Zuo Yi Wang, ”, Pan Pan Mao, ” Pan Pan Mao, Yellen, Mark Schiefelbein, Yellen’s, Jian shou qing, Colin Domnauer Jian shou qing, “, Peter Mortimer, Mortimer, Jun Xu, they’re, Luu, Dian Cai –, Ng Mung Lam, Ng, Yellen's, Leisa Tyler, LightRocket Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Weibo, CNN, Kunming Institute of Botany, African, Getty, Botanical Society of, Xinhua, CNN Travel Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, China, Yunnan, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Weibo, India, Yunnan Province, Botanical Society of Yunnan, China’s, Shenzhen, Chuxiong prefecture, pu’er

☆ Factbox: China's major germanium and gallium producers
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

China produces around 60% of the world's germanium, or 180 metric tons in 2022, and over 90% of the world's gallium, about 606 tons last year, according to research firm Antaike. YUNNAN GERMANIUM, AN ESTABLISHED PRODUCERHeadquartered in southwest China's Yunnan province, Yunnan Lincang Xinyuan Germanium Industry Co. Ltd. (002428.SZ) extracts germanium from its own germanium mines and germanium-containing lignite coal mines. It has an annual capacity of 47.6 metric tons of germanium ingot, 60 tons of germanium tetrahydride - used to build 5G infrastructure - and 300,000 germanium wafers for solar cells. CHINALCO, A MAJOR GALLIUM PRODUCERState aluminium giant Chinalco has three gallium production plants, one each in central China's Henan and southwestern Guangxi and Guizhou provinces. It has annual production capacity of 200 metric tons of gallium metal and produced 146 metric tons in 2022.

Persons: Duan Xiangdong, Hope, Zhuzhou, Dominique Patton, David Evans Organizations: . Ltd, Aluminum Corporation of China, Zhuhai Fangyuan, Xing'an, Gallium, AXT Inc, Beijing, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, YUNNAN, China's Yunnan, Yunnan, China's Henan, Guangxi, Guizhou, Shanghai, Zhuzhou, China's Hunan, Zhuhai, Guangdong, Shanxi, Nanjing, U.S, Beijing

☆ Explainer: How is extreme weather testing China's climate resilience?
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

BEIJING, July 5 (Reuters) - Dramatic swings between extreme heat and intense rainfall are testing China's ability to cope with increasingly wild weather, as high temperatures challenge power grids and water security while floods ruin crops and threaten urban populations. The average number of high-temperature days stood at 4.1 in January-June, already higher than the full-year average of 2.2 days. Heatwaves spur demand for electricity to cool homes, malls and offices, taxing power supply and even triggering blackouts. Factories also shut when power demand exceeds supply to meet demand from residential and non-industrial users. The southern province of Hunan, which produces around 13% of China's rice, has been hit by continuous rain since late June.

Persons: Qiaoyi Li, Ethan Wang, Qin, Ryan Woo, Andrew Hayley, David Stanway, Sonali Paul Organizations: Factories, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, Beijing, Yunnan province, Yunnan, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhengzhou, Guangxi, CHINA

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