介绍:
This is Special English. I'm Ryan Price in Beijing. Here is the news.
U.S. space agency NASA says it views China as a potential partner, not a threat, in the civilian space area.
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden made the remakes at an event hosted by the Washington-based think tank, the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Bolden discussed his agency's role in U.S. international affairs.
Bolden said that since he only views civilian space, he sees China as a potential partner. He said China is already a partner in some areas including Earth and lunar science. The United States and China have cooperated in areas including collaborative research on geodetics and glacial characterization in the Himalaya region.
Bolden said there are potential areas of partnerships, but because of congressional restrictions right now, the two countries are limited to merely multilateral activities. He said engagement always beats isolation.
U.S. Congress passed a law in 2011 prohibiting NASA from hosting Chinese visitors at its facilities. The law also bans working with researchers affiliated to any Chinese government entity or enterprise.
In April, China said it's open to space cooperation with all nations including the United States. It said cooperation between major space players will be conducive to the development of all mankind.
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The civil aviation authority is making efforts to prevent terrorist attacks on passenger planes and airports, including for the first time requiring that all industry employees receive security clearance.
According to the draft of the revised Regulation on Safety and Security of Civil Aviation, all of the country's civil aviation personnel must undergo background security investigations.
Additionally, civil aviation and public security administrations, airports and airlines are asked to enhance their anti-terrorism intelligence capabilities.
Safety and security plans drafted by foreign airlines that operate in China also must conform with China's laws and regulations, and the plans need to be examined and approved by local civil aviation administrations.
Besides anti-terrorism measures, the draft also bans passengers from attacking or occupying check-in counters, security check lanes and boarding gates in airports. It stipulates penalties for various offenses. These parts of the plan are designed to deal with an increasing number of angry passengers who are frustrated by flight delays.
The draft is posted on the website of the State Council's Legislative Affairs Office to solicit public opinion before May 20. The current regulation was adopted 20 years ago.
Industry observers say the new requirement that all aviation industry personnel receive security clearance is an important measure.
You are listening to Special English. I'm Ryan Price in Beijing.
A government investigation team has announced that the school at the center of an alleged pollution incident had relocated to contaminated land before remedial treatment of its soil had been carried out. The school made headlines after hundreds of students reportedly fell ill at the school.
Eastern China's Changzhou Foreign Languages School found itself at the center of a media storm after reports claimed the school was built on toxic land contaminated by three chemical plants.
The investigation team said the local district government failed to finish a soil treatment project in time and the school followed its original construction schedule. Students were moved to the new school in September last year.
The city government said that all of those responsible, including people from the school and the chemical factories, will be investigated. Those found guilty will be punished. Some of them have already been detained for investigation.
Health experts from the team said 909 students were examined at hospitals. Thyroid nodules were found in 247 of them, and 35 had lymphatic anomalies. However, the investigation team said it was hard to tell whether the conditions were directly related to pollution at the school site.
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China ranked at the top in a Save the Children survey of 18 countries in reducing discrimination against and neglect of children. More than 70 percent of Chinese people said they had seen an improvement.
The survey results showed that 74 percent of Chinese people thought things were getting better. That's the highest proportion out of all the countries surveyed. Other countries in the survey included the United States, India and the United Kingdom.
The survey also found that 77 percent of those who said they were affected by discrimination during childhood in China believed the situation in the country had improved. That represented the highest level among all the countries surveyed. India was second, with 61 percent, and Nigeria third at 55 percent.
Worldwide, almost 40 percent of adults said they were discriminated against as children because of gender, ethnicity, religion, disability or because of where they lived.
The survey interviewed 18,000 adults in the participating countries. Almost half of those surveyed in Asia said they faced discrimination as children. In China, the figure was 44 percent.
The survey has been conducted for Save the Children by the international opinion research and consultancy firm GlobeScan. It was the largest survey of its kind undertaken by Save the Children, the world's leading independent organization advocating for children.
You are listening to Special English. I'm Ryan Price in Beijing.
Overseas travelers passing through Beijing Capital International Airport no longer need to worry about communication breakdowns thanks to volunteers from Beijing Foreign Studies University.
Starting this month, the students, based in a call center on campus, are offering interpretation services for passengers who do not speak Chinese. The volunteer service covers seven foreign languages including French, Arabic, Japanese and Korean, from 8 am to 6 pm.
Passengers who are not at the airport can still make an inquiry about its services by calling the multilingual hotline on 96158.
Student volunteers have been working in the languages, plus English, for emergency services since 2010.
In order to qualify for volunteer work at the multilingual service center, students need to have foreign language proficiency level that is equal to or greater than a third-year bachelor's degree level.
The job can also be physically challenging when interpretations are being provided for the emergency services, as calls can come in at all times of the day, including late at night.
People made the calls to ask for medical help, inquire about delayed fights, or complain about disputes.
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