YOUNGEST WINNER OF XPLORER PRIZE 2020

　　Huang Qianqian， a 30-year-old assistant professor at the Department of Microelectronics， Peking University， has become the youngest winner of the Xplorer Prize， an annual publicinterest award that recognizes inspirational Chinese scientists younger than 45 working full-time.
　　Huang， a PhD， spent over nine years researching microelectronics and solid-state electronics. In 2017， she became a doctoral supervisor at Peking University. Two years later， she was named in the 30 Under 30 China list by Forbes， highlighting 30 high-achievers under 30 in different fi elds.
　　The Xplorer Prize was instituted in 2018 by Tencent CEO Pony Ma， Professor Rao Yi of Peking University， and other scientists. Tencent Foundation provides 3 million yuan （$439，800） to each award-winner in fi ve years.

Boosting New Consumption

　　People.com.cn September 23
　　The General Offi ce of the State Council has recently issued a guideline on accelerating new consumption based on new business forms. It says related institutional mechanisms and policy systems will be improved within fi ve years.
　　By 2025， the government will foster several demonstration cities and leading enterprises for new types of consumption. At the same time， online retail sales of physical goods will be increased， promoting new types of consumption， such as Internet Plus services.
　　Domestic demand is a driving force for China’s economic growth， where consumption plays a vital role. New forms of consumption， such as live-streaming shopping， have achieved signifi cant performance amid the prevention and control period of the novel coronavirus disease （COVID-19）.
　　The guideline， calling for fostering market competitiveness， cultivating new growth points， lowering tax burdens and improving the business environment， provides details for the long-term development of new consumption.
　　It will help create a new development pattern where the domestic and foreign markets can boost each other， with the domestic market as the mainstay.

Physical Education

　　Beijing Youth Daily September 24
　　In the future， schools should reduce students’ academic burden and leave time for physical exercise， a Ministry of Education （MOE） official said at a press conference on September 22. He said teachers should assign physical activityrelated homework to make sure students acquire sports skills.
　　According to the conference， physical education reform in schools should prioritize health knowledge and basic sports skills. Like math and foreign languages， students should also practice what they learn in physical education classes after school. 　　The General Administration of Sports of China and MOE will collaborate to boost physical education and improve students’health at all levels. The two departments will organize events for students， further reform sports schools， and build sports teams at colleges and universities to select and cultivate sports talent.

　　The health of students in China has improved in recent years， with physical education in school playing a significant role in that process. But the situation could be better if resources from the sports administration and MOE could be integrated.
　　To make it happen， the two departments released a document on September 21， reaffirming the idea of“health comes fi rst” and agreeing to develop physical education and students’ health.
　　Schools should ensure physical education teachers prepare lessons that are scientifically organized. Also， they need to give feedback with incentives. Parents should cooperate with schools and help students fi nish their sports homework.

Slow Employment

　　C hina Comment September 22
　　The COVID-19 epidemic is slowing down the pace of young people seeking employment. Many graduates are not in a hurry to take up jobs unless it is an ideal job offer， and these are much fewer due to the epidemic. This is creating a trend of slow employment among young people.
　　Also， a s ecure job， such as civil servants’， has become the preferred option.
　　Parents’ fi nancial support and tolerance of young people taking time to fi nd a suitable career have led to a lack of pressure and impetus for them to get a job immediately.
　　In addition， as more new job designations， such as online shop owners and live-streaming anchors， are being accepted as proper jobs， graduates are less eager to take up traditional occupations.
　　Though it might show a more mature perspective of modern youth on employment， this slowdown in their getting employed may cause new problems. Graduates should have a clear plan for their career development. It is reasonable for graduates to expect a job with a good pay and a promising future， but they might miss the best job while waiting for the ideal offer.
　　In the worst case， the slowdown may develop a reluctance to work and evasion of employment.

NEW DEPUTY DIRECTOR GENERAL FOR MFA INFORMATION DEPARTMENT

　　Jiang Xiaoyan， a former counselor of the Information Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs， has been named its deputy director general. She has also worked as spokesperson at China’s mission to the European Union and counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Suriname. 　　The appointment makes Jiang the third new deputy director general in 2020. Now， there are four deputy directors general with Hua Chunying， spokesperson and director general， heading the department.
　　The Information Department is responsible for releasing information on major diplomatic events in China and stating the Chinese foreign policy. It guides overseas diplomatic missions and provides service to the permanent offices of foreign media organizations and foreign journalists in China. It also covers public diplomacy and information collection and processing.
　　“It is very hard to separate out these particular actions against TikTok and WeChat from the fact that they are taking place in the context of President Trump’s trade war with China， as well as the president’s history of anti-Chinese rhetoric and xenophobia.”
　　Hina Shamsi， Director of the National Security Project at the American Civil Liberties Union， at a webinar on September 24
　　“The goal is not a quantitative indicator of GDP， but more importantly， a quality-based indicator， which includes [economic] structural upgrading， coordinated development， innovation-driven growth and productivity improvements in all aspects.”
　　Liu Wei， President of Renmin University of China， in an interview with China Daily on September 28， saying it is entirely possible for China to achieve the goal of building a well-off society in an all-round way by the end of the country’s 13th Five-Year Plan （2016-20） period
　　“Overseas investors have been purchasing more Chinese bonds this year with a decent return amid the global zero-rate environment， ongoing global reserve diversification and inflows as a result of the two prior bond index inclusions.”
　　Candy Ho， global head of renminbi business development for global markets at HSBC， commenting on the inclusion of Chinese Government bonds on the FTSE World Government Bond Index starting in October 2021
　　“It’s the one time where both Chinese and Western companies can come together， showcase their innovation， provide their lessons learned and make more connectivity. I think it’s a terrific platform.”
　　Shane Tedjarati， President of Honeywell Global High Growth Regions， commenting recently on the coming 2020 China International Import Expo