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Here are today’s picks from our editors.
Xi sends congratulatory letter to world sci-tech development forum
Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the 1st World Science and Technology Development Forum that opened Wednesday in Beijing.
Xi said in the letter that the new round of sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation has a profound impact on the evolution of human civilization and the development of the global governance system.
Xi expressed the hope that the forum will help scientists, educators and entrepreneurs from different countries build consensus, exchange ideas and deepen cooperation, so as to contribute wisdom and strength to building a community with a shared future for humanity. (Xinhua)
2019 Military World Games torch relay held in host city Wuhan
The torch relay for the 2019 Military World Games took place in Wuhan on Wednesday, with 100 torchbearers passing the flame on a route through the host city's iconic East Lake Greenway.
The flame will be used to light the cauldron in the Wuhan Sports Center, where the opening ceremony will take place Friday night.
The 100 torchbearers consisted of Olympic champions, Military World Games participants, researchers, experts, soldiers and foreign representatives from CISM member states. (Xinhua)
EU orders emergency anti-trust measures against chipmaker Broadcom
The EU's powerful anti-trust authority on Wednesday ordered US chipmaker Broadcom to halt uncompetitive sales practices, in an unprecedented salvo against US big tech.
"Broadcom's behavior is likely, in the absence of intervention, to create serious and irreversible harm to competition," the EU's Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.
Broadcom in a brief statement said it intended to appeal the decision to the European Courts "and in the meantime comply with the commission's order." (AFP)
Turkey rejects US proposal for cease-fire with Kurdish forces in Syria
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday rejected the offer of his US counterpart Donald Trump for a cease-fire with the Syrian Kurdish fighters, but agreed to maintain dialogue with Washington.
Speaking to journalists on his way from Baku to Ankara, Erdogan said in a phone conversation, Trump proposed to mediate for a cease-fire between Turkey and the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria and decided to send a delegation to Ankara for this bid.
The delegation, led by US Vice President Mike Pence, will arrive in Turkey on Wednesday, Erdogan said, adding that he will not accept a cease-fire with the YPG first. (Xinhua)
IT failure temporarily shuts down production at Porsche
Porsche confirmed that production at the German sports car manufacturer came to a temporary halt because of a major IT failure on Tuesday.
A Porsche spokesperson stressed that an internal problem was the reason for the failure, not an external cyberattack. A defective data storage unit triggered the problem while a software that was supposed to contain the disruption also failed.
In addition to production, the IT failure also affected operations at Porsche's spare parts warehouse and with customer service.
Production resumed on Tuesday. (Xinhua)
Jack Ma receives Lifetime Achievement Award from Forbes
Jack Ma, the founder of China's e-commerce giant Alibaba, received a Malcolm S. Forbes Lifetime Achievement Award on Tuesday in Singapore, making him the first entrepreneur from the internet sector to win the award.
Ma is the third business figure from China to take home the award, following Hong Kong typhoon Li Ka-shing in 2006, and Wang Jianlian, the chairman of the Wanda Group, in 2016. (China Plus)
NASA refutes alien life found on Mars during 1970s experiment
US space agency NASA denied a recent claim made by one of its former scientists that alien life had been found on Mars over 40 years ago.
The claim emerged after Gilbert Levin, once the principal investigator on a NASA experiment that sent Viking landers to Mars in 1976, published an opinion article in the journal Scientific American arguing that a microbiological experiment on the Viking mission showed evidence of life, but it went unnoticed by NASA.
"Although we have yet to find signs of extraterrestrial life, NASA is exploring the solar system and beyond to help us answer fundamental questions, including whether we are alone in the universe," said NASA spokesman Allard Beutel. (Xinhua)
Thanks for listening and be sure to catch us tomorrow.
And now for the Question of the Day:
True or false? Yogurt is produced by bacterial fermentation of milk.
(Answer: True.)
Today’s quote is from Roman writer Publilius Syrus (85 BC - 43 BC).
"Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm."
(Produced by Nancy Yan Xu, Ryan Yaoran Yu, Lance Crayon, Brian Lowe, and Elaine Yue Lin. Music by Eugene Loner.)