Society

Bright Project as New Poverty Aid

The State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development， the National Health and Family Planning Commission jointly released an action plan on the Bright Project， which offers free surgeries to impoverished patients with cataracts. The project was launched this year， and will cover all registered low-income people suffering from this disease.

According to an official from the Commission， cataracts are the leading cause of blindness in China. Some patients put off operations due to financial reasons， and suffer partial or complete loss of eye sight， which causes a number of issues for both patients and their families. Free treatment of cataracts for hard-up citizens is a key measure to both prevent and cure blindness among the population and eradicate poverty in rural China by 2020 as well.

In addition to the basic medical insurance， which covers almost all Chinese people， the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development will raise money from the public to supplement the funds needed for the project. According to the action plan， the Office and the Commission will organize an assessment of the treatment results， supervise the fund use， and release the results to the public regularly.

Tourist Numbers& Revenues on Rise

Data from China National Tourism Administration show that in the first half of this year， Chinese people made about 2.54 billion leisure trips within the country， a 13.5 percent increase over the same period of 2016； and domestic tourism generated RMB 2.17 trillion in revenue， up 15.8 percent year-on-year. Meanwhile， Chinese citizens made 62.03 million trips abroad， an increase of 5.1 percent year-onyear. The country also received 69.5 million international visitors， 2.4 percent more than the same period last year.

“In recent years， all-for-one tourism is booming， contributing significantly to local tourism and social and economic development，” said an official from the administration.

Legendary First-century Inscription Discovered

Chinas Inner Mongolia University recently released a statement， saying that its Mongolian study center and Mongolias Genghis Khan University had primarily identified the cliff carving of Eastern Han historian Ban Gus （32-92） famous writing Inscriptions on the Yanran Mountains.

In AD 89， Eastern Han Emperor Hedi sent General Dou Xian on an expedition to fight the Huns， and appointed Ban Gu as an army supervisor. After winning the decisive battle， Dou Xian surmounted the Yanran Mountains （now known as Khangai Mountains in Mongolia）， where he instructed Ban Gu to write a eulogy on this military feat and had it chiseled into the rock face.endprint

This action is believed to have started the tradition of erecting inscribed steles celebrating military victories in frontier areas.

Floating Solar Farm Starts Operation

A gigantic 40-megawatt floating solar farm has started generating power in Huainan， a coal-rich city in East Chinas Anhui Province. The farm could power about 15，000 homes a year.

More than 160，000 photovoltaic panels were installed on floats covering around 86 hectares on the water surface of a coal mining subsidence area， according to the company running the project， a branch of the Sungrow Power Supply Co.， Ltd.

Xiao Fuqin， deputy general manager of the branch， said that the floats are 200 to 300 meters away from the bank of the 400-hectare subsidence area to ensure the decreasing water does not impact the farm.

“On the surface， the floats just stay on the water， and more than 1，000 reinforced concrete piles are installed on the bed， keeping the floats in order，”Xiao said.

The farm has a lifespan of 25 years， which demands that the facilities must be designed to resist aging factors， such as the heat， salt， and humidity that comes from being on the water.

A floating solar farm has the advantages of not taking up scarce land resources compared with a conventional solar farm， protecting the environment， and benefiting the local development as well.

Activity

NBA Global Games China 2017

Date： October 8， 2017

Place： Shanghai Mercedes-Benz Arena

Price： RMB 350/600/800/1200/2200/3200

NBA fans can expect an amazing match from the Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Warriors roster currently features two-time NBA MVP Stephen Curry， 2017 NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant， and three-time NBA All-Star Klay Thompson. The Timberwolves roster features NBA Rookies of the Year Karl Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins， as well as three-time NBA All-Star Jimmy Butler.

Revels World of Shakespeare

Date： October 28， 2017

Place： Suzhou Dushu Lake Theater

Price： RMB 60/100/180/280

Revels World of Shakespeare is written， directed， and performed by Joseph Graves. It draws heavily on Gravespersonal experience at the Chelsea School for Boys in London under the tutelage of Clive T. Revel. Graves weaves a tale of childhood confusion and exploration of the plays of William Shakespeare， led by his eccentric headmaster Revel.endprint