THIS WEEKWORLD

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THIS WEEKWORLD

BRAZIL

XINHUA

The opening ceremony of the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games takes place at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro on September 7

LIBYA

XINHUA

Personnel maintain fighter jets at the Air College of Misrata on September 4， which the Libyan Air Force is using as an airbase to target the so-called “Islamic State”group in Sirte

EGYPT

XINHUA

People stay around a derailed train in the district of Ayat in Giza on September 7. The train derailment killed five people and injured 27 others

LEBANON

XINHUA

A seafood exhibition in the port city of Batroun on September 4. Some 2，613.8 kg of seafood was showcased，breaking a Guinness World Record for the largest seafood display

SWITZERLAND

XINHUA /AFP

Paulo Pinheiro， head of the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic， warns of an upsurge in violence in Syria during a press conference in Geneva on September 6

AFGHANISTAN

XINHUA

Afghan security force soldiers inspect the site of an attack in Kabul on September 6. A group of militants attacked an international aid agency office， killing one civilian and injuring six

JACKIE CHAN TO RECEIVE AN HONORARY OSCAR

Hong Kong action movie star and director Jackie Chan will be given an honorary Oscar for his“extraordinary achievements” in film， the United States’ Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on September 1.

Film editor Anne Coates， casting director Lynn Stalmaster and documentary maker Frederick Wiseman will also receive honorary Oscars.

Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs described the recipients as “true pioneers and legends in their crafts.” They will be honored at the Academy’s Governors Awards ceremony on November 12.

Chan， 62， is renowned for starring in martial arts films， but he has also directed， produced and choreographed many movies.

Though he has never been nominated for an Oscar， Chan was praised by the Academy for his “distinctive international career.”

Chan is the first Chinese and the fourth Asian， following Japanese director Akira Kurosawa， Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray and Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki， to receive the honor.

BRICS of GoId StiII GIitter

Xinhua News Agency September 4 Coined by former Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill in 2001， the term “BRIC” referred to Brazil， Russia， India and China， four emerging markets with rapid growth and great potential. In 2009， leaders from the four countries held their first official meeting in Yekaterinburg， Russia. In 2010， South Africa joined the group， and the acronym was changed to BRICS.

In Chinese， the mechanism was translated into four characters with the literal meaning of “gold brick countries，” partly to convey the meaning of their promising future. However，affected by a protracted and sluggish world recovery and dropping commodity prices in recent years， lingering slowdown and even depression have begun to haunt the economies.

The World Bank forecast that the Russian and Brazilian economies may shrink by 1.2 percent and 4 percent respectively this year， even though China and India are likely to maintain fast growth. Despite the new challenges， BRICS members still enjoy abundant natural and human resources， vast markets， huge growth potential and bright prospects from their policy coordination.

Facing new situations， the BRICS must be confident in themselves and realize the vitality of emerging-market economies and developing countries they represent， said Chinese President Xi Jinping at an informal meeting of the leaders of the five countries on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in China on September 4. At the meeting， leaders agreed on the prospects and momentum of their economies and the fact that they will continue to be strong engines of the world economy.

With their solidarity and openness， the “gold content” of the BRICS will continue to rise in the long haul.

“If the conservation status is downgraded， protection work might slacken off， and both the panda population and their habitat are more likely to suffer irreversible loss.”

Zhang Hemin， chief of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda， commenting on the decision by the International Union for Conservation of Nature on September 3 to take the species off its endangered list

“The present time is a golden age for Traditional Chinese Medicine（TCM） to develop and prosper.”

Yan Shujiang， Deputy Director of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine，calling on pharmaceutical experts to explore the market value of existing TCM research at a conference on September 5

What Makes a Happy Union？

South Reviews

August 24-September 6

In today’s China， the factors affecting the health of a marriage have changed significantly from those in times past. The traditional model of marriage， where the husband works to support the whole family and the wife takes care of the home and children， has dwindled. In order to sustain a family these days， generally both partners need to work.

The success of a marriage also depends on both partners’ personal growth. A family will become happier with the investment of more energy and time in their marriage by the husband and wife，while if either party has problems， the marriage will suffer.

Some say contemporary marriage is less about love and more about money. As an apartment has sometimes become a prerequisite for marriage， property ownership has risen to be an important factor in determining the relationship between a husband and wife， while multiple other factors also play a role， including the couple’s social and/or economic sta-tus， family backgrounds， and the extent to which they love each other.

A couple’s relationship is subtle，complex and dynamic and determines the happiness of a family.

Couples should use affection for one another to offset the impact of factors such as money on their relationship in order to make their marriage more stable and sustainable.

Promoting CycIing

Beijing Times September 6

A network of 3，200 km of bike lanes will be built over the next five years in Beijing，according to a plan unveiled by the local government on September 2.

Bicycles used to be the most common means of transport for Beijing residents. Today， however， cars have replaced bicycles to become the primary form of private transport in the capital. The practicality of existing bike lanes has diminished， as many of them are filled with cars.

The plan will help bring more bicycles back to the roads. Car and bicycle lanes will be separated to a greater degree to ensure the safety of cyclists， and cars will be prevented from parking in bike lanes， according to the plan.

In addition to building cycle lanes， the government should promote a cycling culture in order to encourage green transport.

Green transport is the key to treating so-called “urban diseases” such as traffic congestion and air pollution. In addition to the construction of bike lanes， cycling as a means of getting around Beijing should be popularized once again in order to promote green transportation.

The Netherlands’ example may be drawn upon. Bicycles in the European country number around 18 million， exceeding the population of 16 million. The popularity of cycling in the Netherlands can be attributed not only to the flat landscape， but also to the government’s efforts to build special cycle lanes and to implement pro-cycling policies.

Notably， encouraging cycling doesn’t mean giving cyclists special privileges. They should be prevented from riding on sidewalks and fined if they break relevant traffic rules.

MOTHER OF TEST-TUBE BABY TECHNOLOGY PASSES AWAY

Zhang Lizhu， who is hailed as the mother of test-tube baby technology in China， died in Beijing on September 2 at the age of 95.

Zhang， founder of the Gynecology and Obstetrics Department at Peking University Third Hospital （PUTH）， was the first to apply test-tube baby technology in China. She started experiments in 1986 and enabled the successful birth of China’s first test-tube baby two years later.

She then successfully facilitated China’s first test-tube baby developed from a frozen embryo and experimented with other world-leading assisted reproductive technologies.

Born in 1921， Zhang studied medical science in the United States and the UK after receiving a medical doctorate from St. John’s University Medical School in Shanghai in 1944. She returned to Beijing in 1952 and worked at PUTH’s Gynecology and Obstetrics Department from 1958. She served as honorary director of the hospital’s Center of Reproductive Medicine until her death.

“The Chinese film industry is relatively young when it comes to international publicity.”

Stuart Ford， founder and CEO of Los Angeles-based IM Global， a company specializing in international film production，sales and distribution， speaking at the 73rd Venice Film Festival on September 6

“His memory made a crucial contribution to discovering the Nanjing Massacre scars left by Japanese troops on the outskirts of Nanjing.”

Zhang Lianhong， a history professor at Nanjing Normal University in Jiangsu Province， remarking on the death on September 6 of Su Guobao， a survivor of the Nanjing Massacre， in which more than 300，000 Chinese people were killed by Japanese troops in December 1937 and January 1938