NEW NATIONAL FOOTBALL TEAM COACH

Italian Marcello Lippi was named head coach of Chinas mens football team on October 22， at a time when the nation has a slim chance of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup tournament in Russia.

“I am proud to announce the start of a new adventure as coach of the Chinese national team，” Lippi tweeted after his appointment.

Lippi has taken over the position from Gao Hongbo， following Chinas draw with South Korea and three consecutive losses to Iran， Syria and Uzbekistan in qualifying matches.

Lippi， 68， is one of the worlds most successful coaches， having led Italian club Juventus to a European Champions League title in 1996 and Italy to World Cup glory in 2006.

Lippi also took Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande to three Chinese Super League titles between 2012 and 2014 as well as to the Asian Champions League crown in 2013—Chinas first continental football trophy in 23 years.

Lippi will make his Chinese national team coach debut in the World Cup qualifier against Qatar on November 15.

Saving Low-Priced Medicines

Beijing Morning Post October 25

Low-priced medicines in short supply in hospitals and drug stores fetch sky-high prices on the black market. Protamine Sulfate， for instance， a drug indispensable to heart surgery， sells on the black market for several thousand yuan， while pharmaceutical companies are reluctant to produce it for slim profit.

Inexpensive medicines are often effective in treating illnesses and are therefore popular among customers. Pharmaceutical companies， drug stores and hospitals need not suffer losses by producing and selling such medicines， due to their large sales volumes. However， they often prefer more expensive drugs with similar effects in place of low-priced ones in the pursuit of greater profit. Notably， some cheap medicines are lifesaving drugs that have no substitute. Their disappearance will be a great loss.

More worrisome still are the inflated prices of cheap drugs on the black market. Faced with diminishing numbers of cheap medicines， relevant government departments should act to prevent such medicines from becoming the cash cows of illegitimate drug dealers.

They should select specific companies to produce cheap medicines based on market demand and provide such manufacturers with favorable policies in government funding， loans and taxation. In addition， the government should guarantee that cheap medicines will be sold directly to drug stores and hospitals to avoid price hikes by intermediaries.

Look Both Ways Before Building Tracks

Oriental Outlook October 27

Super-fast trains have taken off in China in recent years. The nations high-speed railway network now ranks first worldwide in terms of length—exceeding 20，000 km—and is expected to grow to 30，000 km by 2020. As high-speed railways can boost the local economy， many cities in China are scrambling for the opportunity to become railway stations.

Notable examples include the ancient city of Luoyang in Henan Province， which is vying to become a stop on the highspeed railway from Hohhot， Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region， to Nanning， capital of south Chinas Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Although Chinas railway network is becoming increasingly developed， it cannot call at every city. Experts suggest that competition for railway stations should cool down for a number of reasons. First of all， the huge investment needed for railway construction places a heavy financial burden on local governments.

Furthermore， most of Chinas highspeed railways have yet to achieve profitability. The six high-speed railways that had become profitable by the end of last year are mostly located in more developed eastern regions. In addition， local governments hell-bent on linking their cities to the high-speed railway network could miss out on development opportunities made possible by investment in other industries with greater potential.

Last but not least， railway routing is a complicated issue involving technical， economic and political factors which cannot be driven by the aspirations of individual cities. Therefore， local authorities should adopt a more even-tempered attitude in bidding for high-speed railway stations.

Delivery Package Waste Mounts Up

Nanfang Daily October 25

Packaging waste produced by the delivery industry is startling. According to a recent report on the development of green packaging for the delivery industry by the State Post Bureau， at least 3 billion woven bags， 9.922 billion packaging cases and 16.985 billion meters of adhesive tape were consumed last year by the industry. That amount of adhesive tape is long enough to encircle the Earth 425 times along the equator. The report also points out that reuse of delivery packages and their recycling are insufficient.

Suggestions for ways to make the delivery industry more environmentally friendly， such as using soft packages to replace boxes， have been put forward. However， such packages can be used only for non-fragile items and short-distance deliveries. Some people have suggested using recyclable plastic boxes. However， such a practice would inevitably increase costs for delivery companies and is therefore impractical.

Technological innovation is the key to reduce waste. More recyclable and degradable packaging materials should be developed. Packages made of waste paper that are reusable and can withstand vibration， for example， have been produced by some foreign companies.

Moreover， consumers awareness of environmental protection should be raised through education as well as by incentive measures. For instance， some delivery companies have promised to give one package free of charge to customers who return 10 packages. Collection points could be installed in residential complexes to facilitate the recycling of used packages.

KMT LEADER VISITING THE MAINLAND

Hung Hsiu-chu would make her first visit to the mainland as chairwoman of the Taiwan-based Kuomintang （KMT） party from October 30 to November 3， said the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office on October 24.

Hung would visit Nanjing， capital of Jiangsu Province and site of the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum， before traveling to Beijing to attend a forum on the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations on November 2， according to the office. Sun Yat-sen is the founding father of the KMT.

Hung became the head of the KMT in March after the party lost the islands leadership and its legislative majority to the Democratic Progressive Party （DPP） in January.

Relations across the Taiwan Straits are at an impasse because the DPP administration has refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus， which affirms that both sides of the Taiwan Straits belong to one China， since it took power in May.

“Hungs visit will certainly have a very positive influence on cross-Straits relations，” said Ni Yongjie， Deputy Director of the Shanghai Institute of Taiwan Studies， referring to the commitment of the CPC and the KMT to maintaining communication on the common political basis of the 1992 Consensus and opposing “Taiwan independence.”

“The future of media will be a combination of computer technology and mans style of thinking. We should believe in the power of information technology as well as in the power and value of humans.”

Zhou Xiaopeng， Editor in Chief of Web portal Sina， at the Sina Future Media Summit in Beijing on October 25

“If a school doesnt have the facilities， how can you make it compulsory？ Conversely， ice hockey is not compulsory in Beijing， but so many children love it.”

Tan Jianxiang， a sports sociology professor at South China Normal University in Guangzhou， Guangdong Province， responding on October 21 to an ambitious proposal by Beijings sports authority to introduce winter sports as a compulsory course in primary and middle schools

“Most components are still imported from foreign countries， which increases the cost of robots. Also， lack of well-known brands is limiting the development of the domestic robot sector.”

Zhao Jie， a mechanics professor at Harbin Institute of Technology in Heilongjiang Province， at a robotics conference in Beijing on October 21

“Health is not just about curing illness. Prevention is the key.”

Liu Yuanli， head of the public health school under the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences， commenting on the Healthy China 2030 blueprint released on October 25， which emphasizes health knowledge and skills and encourages good habits