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This is People’s Daily app.

Here are today’s picks from our editors. 

China's 3rd prototype of the C919 jet completes maiden flight

The third prototype of the C919 aircraft, China's first homegrown large passenger jet, touched down at a Shanghai airport after completing its first flight Friday morning.

It will move to Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, for further flight tests and modification.

Its manufacturer, Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC), is assembling three more prototypes and plans to bring all six C919 jets into the certification process next year. (People's Daily app) 

World economy to grow by 3.5 percent, report says

The world economy will see annual growth of 3.5 percent in 2019, according to a forecast by economists of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The slowdown of world economic growth next year is attributable to the expected weakening of the US economy－the world's largest－after its elevated growth this year. Other factors are financial market turbulence, limited policy tools of major economies to handle an easing and trade frictions among major trading powers, according to the authors of the Yellow Book of World Economy 2019 (China).

World economic growth may also be affected by possible financial market turbulence caused by expected US interest rate hikes－which could lead to currency depreciation and monetary crises in other countries, debt defaults in some high-debt-level countries, and possible asset price slumps in other countries as a result of the slowing US economy, the book said. (China Daily)

School shootings in US sets 20-year records in 2018: report

Gun violence on campuses across the Unites States in 2018 reached records unseen in the past 20 years in terms of both the number of incidents and the degree of devastation, according to a report by the Washington Post.

The Post launched a database in April tracking incidents of gun violence on campuses since 1999. It found that so far in 2018, there have been 25 school shootings nationwide; a total of 25,332 students were exposed to danger; 94 were shot, 33 of whom were killed and 61 injured. The 2018 figures in all these categories have set new records in almost two decades. (Xinhua) 

Bomb strikes tourist bus near Egypt’s Giza pyramids, kills 2

There has been a terrorist bombing near the famous pyramids of Egypt. Two people were killed and 10 others injured when a bus was damaged by a roadside explosion.

After the explosion, many Egyptian media reported that the dead and wounded were Chinese tourists, but the Egyptian Ministry of the Interior subsequently announced that the casualties were Vietnamese.

According to the Egyptian Ministry of the Interior, the bomb exploded in the city of Maryudia near the Pyramids of Giza. (People's Daily app) 

Syrian army declares entering Manbij city, following withdrawal of Kurdish militia

The Syrian army declared Friday entering the northern city of Manbij and raising the Syrian flag, following the withdrawal of Kurdish militia, according to state TV.

Also on Friday, the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) invited the Syrian army to enter the city of Manbij to stand in the face of a planned Turkish campaign.

In a statement released Friday, the YPG said its forces have withdrawn from Manbij, urging Syrian forces to assume control over the city in northern Aleppo province near the Turkish border.

With the entry of the Syrian army, Turkey would be stripped of the pretext to launch a campaign to enter the city. (Xinhua) 

Single male parents serving in Indian gov't entitled to 730-day child care leaves

Single male parents working with the government of India and having up to two dependent children will be entitled to 730 days' Child Care Leave (CCL) during their entire service period, on par with female employees, a new government order said.

The CCL can be availed by single male parents for rearing or looking after any of their children’s needs, such as education, sickness, etc. Till now this provision applied to women employees only. (Xinhua) 

Chinese researchers identify new risk gene for Alzheimer's disease

A Chinese research group has identified a gene variant that plays a key role in the development of Alzheimer's disease in Han Chinese, the largest ethnic group in China.

Researchers from the Kunming Institute of Zoology under Chinese Academy of Sciences using brain imaging data found that patients with the risk gene variant showed a significantly lower volume of the right hippocampus, a major component of the brain, and worse working memory performance in early adulthood compared with healthy people. The finding indicated that the variant might affect the brain structure and function several decades before disease onset. (Xinhua) 

Thanks for listening and be sure to catch us tomorrow.

And now for the Question of the Day:

For what is the Jurassic period named?

(Answer: It was named in 1829 by A. Brongniart after the Jura Mountains on the borders of France and Switzerland.)

Today's quote is from English critic William Hazlitt (1778-1830).

"A gentle word, a kind look, a good-natured smile can work wonders and accomplish miracles."

(Produced by Nancy Yan Xu, Ryan Yaoran Yu, Brian Lowe, Elaine Yue Lin, and Da Hang.)