State Key Laboratories of China
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Scientists Say 2012 Destructive Solar Blasts Narrowly Missed Earth
A NASA image captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory shows a blast of plasma streaming from the sun in August 2012. Share Fierce solar blasts that could have badly damaged electrical grids and disabled satellites in space narrowly missed Earth in 2012, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday. The bursts would have wreaked havoc on the Earth's magnetic field, matching the severity of the 1859 Carrington event, the largest solar magnetic storm ever reported on the planet. That blast knocked out the telegraph system across the United States, according to University of California, Berkeley research physicist Janet Luhmann. “Had it hit Earth, it probably would have been like the big one in 1859, but the effect today, with our modern technologies, would have been tremendous,” Luhmann said in a statement. A 2013 study estimated that a solar storm like the Carrington Event could take a $2.6 trillion bite out of the current global economy. Massive bursts of solar wind and magnetic fields, shot into space on July 23, 2012, would have been aimed directly at Earth if they had happened nine days earlier, Luhmann said. The bursts from the sun, called coronal mass ejections, carried southward magnetic fields and would have clashed with Earth's northward field, causing a shift in electrical currents that could have caused electrical transformers to burst into flames, Luhmann said. The fields also would have interfered with global positioning system satellites. The event, detected by NASA's STEREO A spacecraft, is the focus of a paper that was released in the journal Nature Communications on Tuesday by Luhmann, China's State Key Laboratory of Space Weather professor Ying Liu and their colleagues. Although coronal mass injections can happen several times a day during the sun's most active 11-year cycle, the blasts are usually small or weak compared to the 2012 and 1859 events, she said. Luhmann said that by studying images captured by the sun-observing spacecraft, scientists can better understand coronal mass injections and predict solar magnetic storms in the future. “We have the opportunity to really look closely at one of these events in all of its glory and look at why in this instance was so extreme,” Luhmann said.
Scientists predict strong thirst for 'human milk'
BEIJING - Genetically modified (GM) dairy products that are similar to human milk will appear on the Chinese market in two years, an expert in biotechnology has predicted. Li Ning, a scientist from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the State Key Laboratories for AgroBiotechnology at China Agricultural University, said progress in the field is well under way. Li said Chinese scientists have successfully created a herd of more than 200 cows that is capable of producing milk that contains the characteristics of human milk. He said the technology is at the cutting edge worldwide and will ensure "healthy protein contained in human milk is affordable for ordinary consumers". Photos depicting the GM cows were on display at an exhibition, held between March 7 and 14 in Beijing, that showcased China's major technological achievements during the period of the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010). "In ancient China, only the emperor and the empress could drink human milk throughout their lives, which was believed to be the height of opulence," Li said. "Why not make that kind of milk more available for ordinary people?" Human milk contains two kinds of nutrition that can help improve the immune systems and the central nervous systems of children. The components are not available in milk produced by goats or cows. Li said the scientific world had not previously found a way to mass-produce those ingredients. The GM milk will be as safe to drink as that of the ordinary cows, he added. The Ministry of Agriculture issued bio-safety examination certificates for the GM herd in March 2010, giving the scientific team a 22-month period during which the technology can be tested in laboratories. The ministry will then evaluate the results of the tests before deciding whether to allow the milk to be sold. "The milk tastes stronger than normal milk," Li said. "Within 10 years, people will be able to pick up these human-milk-like products at the supermarket." Xue Dayuan, chief expert with the Ministry of Environmental Protection, said the government will carry out a series of tests on the transferred gene and the method of transplanting it before the genetically modified cows and their milk are declared safe. There has been a good deal of opposition to GM technology in the United States and Canada, according to Fang Lifeng, a campaigner for Greenpeace China's food and agriculture project. Xinhua contributed to this story. China Daily
IN BRIEF
Navigation New GPS to create big business A new Chinese global navigation system (GPS) is expected to help China compete with foreign GPS technologies, and could generate about 400 billion yuan (43 billion euros) in revenues by 2020, said Liu Jingnan, executive president of the China Satellite Navigation Conference. "The Beidou project will be part of an industry that could be worth 150 to 200 billion yuan by 2015, and 400 billion yuan by 2020." Earlier reports said there will be 12 to 14 navigation satellites put into orbit to provide navigation and short messaging services in the Asia-Pacific region, during the first stage of the project (2011-2015). By 2020, there will be more than 30 satellites in the global navigation system. Drive to end illegal online mapping China is launching a national campaign this year to crack down on illegal online mapping services with the aim of reducing the amount of sensitive and confidential information revealed by the sites. The State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping said in a statement on its website that the crackdown will lead to the shutting down of some mapping websites. The statement said all published maps that have severe problems, such as wrong information, will be destroyed. Bookstores selling unlicensed maps will also be halted. Meteorology Boost to regional rainmaking China will launch the country's first regional program to artificially enhance precipitation in its northeastern area in an attempt to protect the wheat harvest there, said Wang Guanghe, deputy director of artificial weather intervention center under the China Meteorological Administration. "More than 1 billion yuan (108 million euros) will be invested ... and the program will gradually be expanded to cover the Northwest, South, Southwest and East China." Wang said that the reason why Northeast China was picked for the pilot project was the fact that the area is a major wheat-growing zone and is at risk of forest fires in the event of a long drought. Three planes with advanced cloud-monitoring equipment will be bought for 300 million yuan to enhance the weather intervention capacity in Northeast China. The aircraft will be made in China. Biotechnology Strong thirst for GM milk forecast Genetically modified (GM) dairy products that are similar to human milk will appear on the Chinese market in two years, an expert in biotechnology has predicted. Li Ning, a scientist from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the State Key Laboratories for AgroBiotechnology at China Agricultural University, said progress in the field is well under way. Li said Chinese scientists have successfully created a herd of more than 200 cows that are capable of producing milk that contains the characteristics of human milk. He said the technology is at the cutting edge worldwide and will ensure "healthy protein contained in human milk is affordable for ordinary consumers". Auditing Funds misused in railway project At least 187 million yuan (20.2 million euros) has been misappropriated by individuals or companies involved in building the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway, the National Audit Office (NAO) said in a report released on March 24. NAO said it has forwarded the related cases to disciplinary and judicial departments for further investigation. The report, summing up an audit carried out in 2010, is the second to be published by the NAO since construction began on the high-speed rail link in April 2008. A previous report was published in February 2010. So far 138.4 billion yuan - out of a total investment of 217.6 billion yuan - has been spent on the 1,318-km project, scheduled for completion in June. Law Victims get help in legal battles People who claim their rights were infringed upon by the government will find it easier to seek compensation following the release of a new regulation from the nation's top court. The regulation, a judicial interpretation of the State Compensation Law that was adopted in 1994 and amended last year, took effect on March 22. It stipulates that government bodies that are the subject of compensation claims are obliged to offer evidence of whether they infringed upon the plaintiffs' rights. If they fail to provide evidence, they will be considered responsible. The Supreme People's Court, which drafted the regulation, said it is aimed at better protecting victims' rights. China Daily E-paper City of Joy Welcome to the 'world of smiles' where life meanders slowly. Preview of the coming issue Debate on nuclear power revived The future is now more European Edition Specials Ping-pong Hotel A ping-pong racket-shaped architecture is planned in East China. Blasting away floating ice Bombs are dropped over a section of the Yellow River to blast floating ice. Beloved polar bear died Berlin's beloved polar bear Knut, an international star died Saturday. Peony express Tea-ing up US jet crashes in Libya, pilots safe more
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1 Li Ning, a scientist from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the State Key Laboratories for AgroBiotechnology at China Agricultural University, said progress in the field is well under way.
2 The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture has given the green light to test production of the human-like milk, which will be available on the Chinese market in two years, said Li Ning, a leading researcher at the State Key Laboratories for AgroBiotechnology at China Agricultural University.
3 Meanwhile, the CUHK yesterday officially opened the first State Key Laboratory in Oncology in South China, which was approved by the central government last month.