Sci-Tech

Sci-Tech

Chinese，Irish and Japanese Scientists Share 2015 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine

The Nobel Assembly at Sweden's Karolinska Institute announced on October 5 that China's Tu Youyou，Irish-born William Campbell，and Satoshi Omura from Japan had jointly won the 2015 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

Tu won half of the prize “for her discovery of a new antimalarial drug.” Campbell and Omura were jointly awarded the other half “for their discoveries of a new drug，avermectin，that has helped the battle against river blindness and lymphatic filariasis as well as showing effectiveness against other parasitic diseases，” the assembly said.

Tu discovered artemisinin，a drug that has significantly reduced the mortality rates of patients suffering from malaria，according to the statement. Juleen R. Zierath，chairman of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine，said that Tu's “inspiration from traditional Chinese medicine” was important. “But what was really critical was that Tu Youyou identified the active agent in that plant extract，”Zierath said，adding，“There was a lot of modern chemistry，biochemistry attached to this to bring forward this new drug.”

Malaria infects close to 200 million individuals yearly. Artemisinin is used in all malariaridden parts of the world. When used in combination therapy，it is estimated to reduce mortality from malaria by more than 20 percent as a whole，and by more than 30 percent in children.

208 Million

A Ministry of Industry and Information Technology official recently disclosed that 208 million households in China now access to the Internet through broadband and 94 million via optical fiber cables，a 75 percent increase over last year.

China to Build High Altitude Observatory to Monitor Cosmic Rays

China will invest more than RMB one billion to build a high altitude observatory in its southwest to monitor cosmic rays. The observatory，the second of its kind in China，will be built in the Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Garze in Southwest China's Sichuan Province，said Cao Zhen，a research fellow with the Institute of High Energy Physics （IHEP） under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Discovered in 1912，cosmic rays are highly energetic charged particles from outer space that travel at almost the speed of light and strike the earth from all directions. The study of cosmic rays could help people learn about supernova explosions，black holes and the origin of the universe.

The Garze prefectural government and IHEP inked an agreement that will see the observatory built on Haizi Mountain in Daocheng County，where the average altitude is 4，410 meters.

“With an acute gamma ray detector，it is the world's second most expensive cosmic ray observatory，after the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctica，” said Cao Zhen. The observatory will be able to cover an area of one million square meters，detecting rays whose energy range from 100，000 giga electron volts to one billion giga electron volts.

EU，China Sign Key Partnership on 5G

The European Union （EU） on September 28 announced that it has signed a key agreement with China on the “fifth generation” of telecommunications systems，or 5G，a move towards seeking an edge within global digital competitiveness. The EU described the agreement as a “milestone”in the global race to develop 5G networks.

Under the agreement，the EU and China will try to reach a global understanding by the end of 2015 on the 5G concept，basic functionalities，key technologies and time plan. Observing that China will play a substantial role in establishing a 5G global standard，the EU said both sides will jointly promote global 5G standardization. Possibilities as regards 5G services and applications will also be jointly explored，especially in the area of the Internet of Things （IoT） which connects traditional devices，including home appliances，to the Internet.

China is regarded as a likely major player in 5G development and also the world's largest potential market for these new technologies，products and services.

The EU emphasized the “very timely” nature of the agreement，as by 2016 the 5G standardization race will have already started，along with discussions on 5G spectrum requirements that should culminate during the World Radio Conference 2019.

Five Scientists Awarded Shaw Prize in Hong Kong

The annual Shaw Prize presentation ceremony，in which five U.S. and German scientists were commended for their prominent work in astronomy，life science and medicine，and mathematical science，took place on September 24 in Hong Kong. Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying presented the awards to the five laureates at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center. Each prize bears a monetary award of US $ one million.

The Shaw Prize in Astronomy was awarded to William J. Borucki，principal investigator for the Kepler mission，Ames Research Center，NASA. The prize recognizes Borucki's contributions in conceiving and leading the Kepler mission，which greatly advanced knowledge of both extrasolar planetary systems and stellar interiors.

The Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine was awarded in equal shares to two scientists this year： Professor Bonnie L. Bassler，Squibb professor and chair，Department of Molecular Biology，Princeton University and Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute，and Professor Everett Peter Greenberg，professor of microbiology，University of Washington. Bassler and Greenberg have been recognized for their discovery of quorum sensing，a process whereby bacteria communicate with each other and which offers innovative ways to interfere with bacterial pathogens or to modulate the microbiome for health applications.

The Shaw Prize in Mathematical Sciences was awarded in equal shares to Professor Gerd Faltings，managing director，Max Planck Institute for Mathematics and to Professor Henryk Iwaniec，New Jersey professor of mathematics，Rutgers University. Both are recognized for their introduction and development of fundamental tools in number theory，allowing them as well as others to resolve some longstanding classical problems.