A group at the Institute of Microbiology of CAS has described a novel microbial fuel cell. Genetically modified cyanobacteria assimilate CO2 in visible light to form D-lactic acid, which they cannot utilize and excrete into the medium. A second microorganism, Shewanella bacteria, oxidises the D-lactic acid and conducts the electrons formed via a membrane protein […]
Silk-based composite membrane designed for salinity-gradient power plants
“Osmosis power plants” could use the potential difference between salt water and fresh water, e.g. in the estuaries of large rivers, to generate electrical energy by reverse electrodialysis. Liping WEN and colleagues from the Institute for Physics and Chemistry at CAS in Beijing investigated suitable composite membranes for this purpose. They produced a nanoporous composite […]
Shanghai: AI-directed „customized bus” service for commuters
In an attempt to provide better commuting services for office workers, Shanghai residents in some places can now reserve a seat in a customized bus, with a one-click reservation on their mobile phone via Alipay. The price is 18 ¥, about 1/10 the prize of a taxi. The bus route is calculated by AI according to the homes […]
More than 300 traditional medicinal plants recorded in the Wuliang Mountains, Yunnan
In the course of an ethnobotanical study, a team under CAI Chuantao as the principal investigator assessed the utilization of traditional medicinal plants by local people in Jingdong, Yunnan Province. The team from CAS Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden recorded a total of 302 traditional medicinal plant species belonging to 117 families and 252 genera. The local […]
Cybersecurity in China improves, but slowly
Acording to a talk at Beijing Cyber Security Conference, around 48.5 percent of China’s government agencies and 56.3 percent centrally-administered state-owned enterprises have deployed security operation centers, and the response time to security events has been reduced to less than one hour from about three days in 2016. In the first half of 2019, more […]
China was largest investor in renewable energy in the past 10 years
According to a summary of Japan’s Agency of Science and Technology (JST) of the “Renewables 2019 – Global Status Report” https://wedocs.unep.org/handle/20.500.11822/28496 investments over the past 10 years in renewables were as follows China 758 billion USD USA 356 Japan 202 Germany 179 UK 122 (Europe as a whole: 698 billion USD) The world’s renewable energy production capacity (excluding large […]
China presents first 10MW offshore wind power generator
The equipment is produced by Dongfang Electric who is the first manufacturer in China and the second in the world to obtain a 10MW large offshore wind generator with IEC design certificate. The generator will be installed in Xinghua Bay’s offshore wind farm, Fujian Province.
China’s R&D expenditure for basic science exceeded 100 billion RMB in 2018
According to the Statistical Bulletin on Annual Government R&D Expenditure (2018), China spent almost 2 trillion yuan on research and development (R&D) in 2018, up 11.8 percent year-on-year, of which 109.4 billion yuan ($15.2 billion) went to basic research. Universities and state-owned research institutions spent 59 and 42.3 billion ¥, respectively, whereas enterprises accounted for […]
Shanghai offers tourist information on nearly 1300 buildings through QR code
By scanning the QR codes on the outer walls of such buildings using a smartphone, the history of the building and other information is displayed on the smartphone screen. The city government plans to expand this program to 2180 buildings early next year. Japan JST China news, September 5, 2019
China launches polar satellite
The satellite called “Ice Pathfinder” (Code: BNU-1) was developed and built by Aerospace Dongfanghong Development in Shenzhen weighs 16 kilograms and carries three experimental payloads-a multispectral camera, a high-resolution visible-light camera and an automatic identification system receiver, a device for ship identification. The satellite is tasked with observing and monitoring the climate and environment in […]