Crystal scenery in China: Jilin fog glaze

Photo taken on Nov.22 shows trees covered with fog glaze in northeast China’s Jilin province. “Xiaoxue” (literally, Light Snow), one of the 24 Chinese solar terms fell on that day. In winter, fog glazes will emerge as the temperatures keep dropping down; Jilin is one of the best places in China to appreciate the crystal scenery in winter. Many tourists are attracted to Jilin to view this natural phenomenon.

Chinese Dream to shape global landscape: foreign experts

The realization of the Chinese Dream presents a vision for nationalrevival and contributes to a new global landscape, said foreign experts at a dialogueSaturday in Shanghai.

Experts from over 20 countries are attending the two-day dialogue on Chinese Dream,which kicked off on Saturday and is hosted by China's State Council Information Office.

The Chinese Dream will change the global landscape, which was shaped by Westerncountries over the past two centuries during industrialization, said Martin Jacques, visitingsenior fellow with the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Its realization will come along with the formation of the new global landscape, which will beestablished through international rules and experiences of both developed and emergingcountries, he said.

"It is a good thing for the Chinese Dream to integrate with the world," Jacques said whiledelivering a speech at the International Dialogue on the Chinese Dream.

Of course, China will be challenged on its right to speak on international affairs from thetraditional developed countries, and this process will test the wisdom of the Chineseleaders, Jacques said.

The Chinese Dream concept was put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping when heattended an exhibition themed "road towards renewal" at the end of 2012.

Achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is the greatest dream for the nationin modern times, Xi said.

It is obvious that the entire world would benefit from the Chinese Dream in the globalizedeconomy, said Robert Kuhn, a China watcher from the United States.

"It's entirely in China's best interest to have a stable world in order for China to achievethe Chinese Dream for itself. It must have a world that is in peace," he said.

According to Kuhn, the world is waiting on two major issues: how the Chinese Dream willbenefit the world, and how should the world better understand the Chinese Dream.

Xi stressed that the Chinese Dream means the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Itembodies achieving prosperity for the country, renewal of the nation and happiness forcitizens.

Xi also emphasized that the Chinese Dream is a dream for peace, development, cooperationand mutual benefit for all. It will not only benefit the Chinese people, but also people of allcountries in the world.

As Xi has highlighted in numerous comments since the start of his tenure, the aim is tomake the country "prosperous and strong," tapping into deep-seated aspirations forChina's modern identity, said Gustaaf Geeraerts, director of the Brussels Institute ofContemporary China Studies.

Realizing the "Chinese dream" boils down to China becoming a "socialist welfare state" anda "responsible great power," a feat that can only come to fruition in a peaceful internationalenvironment or "harmonious world," he said.

To his understanding, the Chinese dream harbors three dreams, which are closelyintertwined.

"It is about staging China's revival whilst remaining faithful to its rich cultural heritage andown socialist identity," he said.

"It is also about a stronger China that is to pursue an independent foreign policy andresolutely follow its own road, while at the same time increasing mutual cooperation withother countries, dealing with global challenges together and working hard to make acontribution to global development."

On the global level, "it is about a world order where states are equal and trust each other,common security is achieved, diversity of civilizations is maintained and win-wincooperation leads to common prosperity," he added. 

West Lake clearly a beautiful place

When Italian explorer Marco Polo first called Hangzhou the greatest city in the world some 700 years ago, he could not have known how clear the waters of West Lake would become. 　　The transparency of the lake reached 60.07 centimetres on average in 2004. 　　That means objects to a depth of about 60 centimetres are visible to the naked eye, according to a report from the West Lake Waters' Administration Division in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province. 　　"The West Lake has witnessed the best water quality ever recorded in history and the transparency continues to rise," said Wu Zhiying, vice-director of the division. 　　Compared with 2003 and 2002, the average clearness of the water increased by 10.65 centimetres and 16.41 centimetres respectively, according to the report. 　　The West Lake, covering 6.5 square kilometres, is the most important scenic spot in Hangzhou. Iat has been famous for thousands of years for its intoxicating beauty. It was originally a shallow sea inlet before it became a lake due to the laying down of silt. 　　The increased transparency of this water wonderland is down to the success of a West Lake protection project, launched in 2003 by the local government to improve water quality, Wu said. 　　About 400,000 cubic metres of recycled water is drawn from the Qiantang River into the lake each day, meaning the water is completely changed each month. 　　"This provides a total volume of 120 million cubic metres of fresh water into the lake every year and the West Lake has become a flowing lake now," said Wu, adding that the water was changed yearly in the past. 　　What is more, the self-purification ability of the lake has been greatly improved thanks to the "westward movement." 　　That has reclaimed wetlands in the western part and enlarged the area of the lake from 5.6 square kilometres to 6.5 square kilometres, according to Wu. 　　The average depth of the lake has increased from 1.65 metres to 2.27 metres with a volume of 14 million cubic metres, 40 per cent higher than before. 　　Efforts have also been made on a waste discharge system to solve the problem of waste water being dumped in the lake by farmers living nearby, said Wu. 　　To maintain a balanced ecosystem, more than 1 million plants - about 66 types in all - have been planted around the lake, making it a venue for birds such as wild ducks and cormorants. 　　However, the hardest nut to crack is how to fully rehabilitate the ecosystem of the West Lake, Wu says. 　　"There is still a long way for us to go to strike a balance between human and nature," Wu added.

Beautiful scenery of Wuyuan in early winter

Photo shows the scenery of Wuyuan County in east China's Jiangxi province in early winter. 

Invisible Sun Village

Shijiazhuang Jingxing village on anzhen Baiwangzhuang early winter, covered with a layer of ash trees, houses and vegetable, all trace of an atmosphere of depression and decadent.Volunteers in the hands of the tester display, PM2.5 concentration here has reached 300 micrograms per cubic meter. It was noon, the sun was overhead blurred highlights a group, the villagers said, has become the norm in the local haze.

Adjacent to the southern village of Hebei righteous sheep xibaipo power plants, installed capacity of 2400 MW planning is one of the largest power plant in Hebei South Network, four huge cooling towers Lingual stands, three tall chimneys lined up.

Also adjacent to the power plant on the school Anzai Changan, accompanied by live daily with the chimney, kids health worrying.

China's satellite navigation system to start oversea operation next year

China's homegrown Beidou Navigation Satellite System will be putinto its first oversea operation in Thailand early next year.

The announcement was made in Bangkok on Wednesday by China's Wuhan InformationTechnology Outsourcing Service and Research Centre and the Geo-informatics and SpaceTechnology Development Agency (GISTDA) under Thailand's Ministry of Science andTechnology.

An agreement with an expected value of 319 million U.S. dollars inked by the two countriesin March has established their commitment to cooperation on the construction ofThailand's geospatial system, giving the country access to China's advanced technology,products and services. The two sides have agreed to start building a model satellite stationbased on Beidou in an industrial estate in Thailand's eastern Chon Buri province nextmonth and nationwide construction will begin early next year, said Liu Junyi, deputydirector of the Wuhan Information Technology Outsourcing Service and Research Centre.

It will be the first time that the Beidou lands outside China, said Liu, adding that China willdraw experience in its cooperation with Thailand and further explore foreign markets. "The Beidou will be able to provide global service by 2015," he said.

Anond Snidvongs, executive director of GISTDA, said the Thai government will list theconstruction of a disaster forecasting system based on the Beidou into its overall economicdevelopment plan. The Beidou will be used in many sectors such as agricultural disasterwarning, transportation, power distribution and environment, he said.

New high-speed railway starts operation in north China

TIANJIN, Dec.1 -- A new high-speed railway that connects the two northern port cities of Tianjin and Qinhuangdao was put into operation on Sunday, railway authorities said.

The railway line extends 287 km and runs through 14 districts and counties in north China's Hebei Province and Tianjin Municipality, with speeds of up to 350 km per hour, according to the Beijing Railway Bureau.

The maximum speed will be set at 300 km per hour during the initial stage.

The whole journey with nine stops takes one hour and 35 minutes. The fastest travel time between Tianjin West and Qinhuangdao, with fewer stops, will be one hour and 11 minutes, almost half of the previous time.

Construction of the rail line started on Nov. 8, 2008 and testing began in November 2013.

The Tianjin-Qinghuangdao railway marks that high-speed railway lines in China's northeastern provinces have been linked with the country's high-speed rail network.

It also cuts the travel time for passengers traveling between south or east of the country and northeast China provinces.

Up till now, China has 34 high-speed rail lines with the length accounting for one tenth of the country's total railway operation mileage.