SCIENTIST AWARDED FOR SUPERCONDUCTOR

Physicist Zhao Zhongxian was awarded the State Preeminent Science and Technology Award on January 9 along with Tu Youyou， co-winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. They will receive 5 million yuan （$721，000） each. Ninety percent of the prize money has to be invested in scientific research.

Zhao， a 75-year-old academic with the Chinese Academy of Sciences， has been researching electron superconductors for over four decades. Physicists used to believe that superconducting properties worked only at temperatures no higher than minus 233 degrees Celsius. However， Zhao and his team have discovered an iron-based superconductor that functions at much higher temperatures. Their achievement has helped turn China into a leading position in this field of research.

Since the establishment of the State Preeminent Science and Technology Award in 2000， bestowed on no more than two scientists every year， 27 scientists have won it. Last year there were no winners.

Fighting Online Fakes

Guangzhou Daily January 6

E-commerce giant Alibaba Group announced on January 4 that it sued two sellers of fake Swarovski watches on its shopping websites， the first such lawsuit on the Chinese mainland. The company sought 1.4 million yuan（$203，300） in compensation from the vendors for selling fakes in violation of their contract with the platform and damaging its reputation.

The case represents part of Alibabas wider efforts to crack down on counterfeit goods weeks after the company was put back on U.S. trade regulators Notorious Markets list. In the past， e-commerce platforms used to shut down the accounts of merchants who peddled counterfeit goods. Resorting to legal measures shows that online retailers have recognized the importance of the law in fighting fakes.

However， the power of such lawsuits to eliminate online fakes may be limited. E-commerce platforms can take more measures to fight counterfeiting and protect intellectual property， such as using big data to find counterfeit manufacturers and reporting them to the police or reminding consumers that they are buying fakes.

The larger responsibility lies with administrative departments. Since e-commerce is a new business model， regulations governing online vendors are inadequate. As a result， government supervision over retailing on such platforms is weak and needs to be strengthened urgently.

Up Close With Jackie Chan

China Newsweek January 2

Movie star Jackie Chan was awarded an honorary Oscar at the Eighth Annual Governors Awards in Los Angeles on November 12， 2016.“After 56 years in the film industry， making over 200 films， Ive broken so many bones. Finally this is mine，” he said.

At the age of 6， Chan was sent by his parents to a theatrical troupe to learn traditional Chinese opera. He experienced a rigorous training schedule， getting up at five in the morning and not going to bed until midnight. The concepts of loyalty and faithfulness he learned from traditional Chinese opera have formed his personal values. He is patriotic， and as a singer， his greatest achievement in recent years is a song named Nation， which he has performed on multiple important occasions， expressing his love for China.

As his paternal ancestors came from Shandong Province， Chan， born in Hong Kong， often regards himself as a Shandong man， and his personal characteristics—kind， honest and sometimes bold and unconstrained—match those of the stereotypical Shandong man. Chan said he is traditional and， being reluctant to use apps such as WeChat， he uses his mobile phone only for calls and text messaging.

However， he kept an eye on trying different genres and characters in his acting career， because he feared audiences tiring of him always playing invincible heroes in action movies. “So， I would work with different directors to show different sides of me. I also want to try tragedies and emotional dramas，” said Chan.

Ensuring Disability Rights

Legal Daily January 6

A visually impaired resident in Beijing recently encountered difficulty boarding a bus with her guide dog， as the conductor insisted dogs are not allowed on the citys buses. Although the woman finally persuaded the conductor to allow her on board， the conductor continuously berated the passenger for bringing a dog onto the bus.

The incident has triggered heated debate about the rights of people with disabilities. Guide dogs make the lives of visually impaired people much more convenient. These animals， however， are often barred from public transport and other public places such as supermarkets.

China has a large number of people with disabilities. Its regrettable that their rights have not received adequate attention or been well protected. For instance， special paving designed to guide visually impaired people along city streets is often blocked.

In order to strengthen protection of the rights of people with disabilities， relevant laws need to be improved. The current laws lack strong regulations ensuring that guide dogs can enter public places. Although some local laws specifically stipulate guide dogs can access public places and take public transportation， no form of punishment is set out for violators.

In addition， the current laws protecting the rights of people with disabilities should be strictly enforced. For instance， construction of barrier-free infrastructure should meet national standards.

FORMER TOP COURT OFFICIAL ON TRIAL

Xi Xiaoming， former Vice President of the Supreme Peoples Court， was charged by prosecutors with abusing his position to provide conveniences to individuals or entities， a court in Tianjin said on January 10. Xi showed remorse and pleaded guilty to the charges.

The court found the 62-year-old took massive bribes directly or through his family members. He is the highest-level official in Chinas judicial system to stand trial for graft and the first official from the two top judicial authorities—the Supreme Peoples Court and the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate—to be investigated since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012.

Xi， a native of Changzhou， Jiangsu Province， joined the top court after graduation in 1982. He rose through the ranks to become deputy chief judge of the tribunal for commercial disputes in 1993. He became the vice president of the apex court in 2004.

“The problem is that its extremely hard to institute a cap in an existing league， and to get it right with the amount. The salary cap constantly changes in overseas leagues （based on league incomes）.”

Mark Dreyer， founder of the China Sports Insider website， in response to the General Administration of Sports proposal to place a ceiling on domestic soccer clubs investment in player transfers and salaries

“As the amount of power generated from clean energy sources rises， coal-fired power consumption will gradually decrease， together with its pollutants.”

Joseph Jacobelli， a senior analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence， on January 5. China has set an annual target of clean and renewable energy consumption that is equivalent to the energy generated from 580 million metric tons of coal， according to the National Energy Administration

“Rapidly increasing numbers of flights and limited airspace for civil aviation are the major reasons for delays.”

Li Xiaojin， a professor at Civil Aviation University of China， in response to the latest report by local aviation statistics company VariFlight， saying that although the average punctuality rate of the surveyed airports rose to 70.4 percent in 2016， the average delay time was 33 minutes， on January 10

“Improved features and falling prices are key reasons consumers around the world are signaling a desire to buy new smartphones.”

David Sovie， an executive of consulting firm Accenture， on January 5. A recent Accenture report showed 74 percent of respondents in China said they intended to purchase one in the coming 12 months