Fresh Start: Podcast News (2/15/2018 Thurs.)
People's Daily app
1527388663000

image.png

Welcome to Fresh Start. 
This is People’s Daily app. 
Here are today’s picks from our editors.

Xi delivers Spring Festival address in Beijing

image.png

Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivered a speech during a festival reception at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on Wednesday.
President Xi stressed reunion and unity of families in achieving national prosperity and rejuvenation.
Xi also urged people to integrate their personal and family dreams with the Chinese Dream. 
And on behalf of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, President Xi extended Spring Festival greetings to all Chinese people. (Xinhua)

Thailand anticipates record Chinese holiday travel rush

chinese-tourists-in-thailand-beach.jpg

Thailand is expected to receive roughly 300,000 mainland Chinese visitors during the Chinese Lunar New Year, a senior Thai official said on Wednesday. 
The number of mainland Chinese entering Thailand during this year’s Spring Festival holiday will increase by 18 percent, and generate 255 million dollars in revenue, Santi Chudintra, deputy governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, told People's Daily. 
The Thai government is prepared to welcome Chinese travelers and ensure their secure travel with strengthened measures which enable government authorities to make a quick response to emergency situations, Santi said. (People’s Daily app)

Former Samsung vice chairman summoned over ties to ex-leader Lee

微信截图_20180214141511.png

On Wednesday, Lee Hak-soo, the ousted vice chairman of Samsung, was summoned by Seoul prosecutors to undergo questioning on a bribery charge involving the former South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.

Lee, who is seventy-two years old, is expected to be grilled over his involvement in Samsung's alleged payment of fees to a US law firm for a local auto parts maker run by the ex-president's family.
Prosecutors suspect the payment was a bribe from Samsung in return for a favor from the Lee government. (People’s Daily app)

South African president resigns

Zuma South Africa.jpg

South African President Jacob Zuma, in a televised address to the nation, said he will resign from his position "with immediate effect."

"I have...come to the decision to resign as the president of the republic with immediate effect," Zuma said Wednesday.

The scandal-tainted leader said he has resigned despite his disagreement with the instruction of the ruling African National Congress party to leave office immediately. The ANC had been prepared to pursue a vote of no confidence in parliament on Thursday. (Agencies)

Chinese and US scientists make tattoo sensor advance

Researchers from China and the US have reportedly developed an advanced version of the so-called 'tattoo sensors' which are thinner and cheaper than earlier versions.

Tattoo sensors are used to monitor essential health data, including cardio activity, body temperature, and hydration levels of human skin.

Science and Technology Daily reported the new tattoo sensor is only 1.5 micrometers thick, making it easier to conform to human skin. (China Plus)

China imports reindeer to revive species

China has imported one hundred and fifteen reindeer from the Netherlands as part of an effort to boost its species population in the country, regional authorities announced on Tuesday.
Right now, the reindeer are in Genhe, Northern China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, where they will remain in quarantine for 45 days.
After their release, they will travel to Aoluguya, where ethnic Ewenki herders, otherwise known as the “last hunting tribe in China" still use reindeer as a means of transportation. (Xinhua)

NBA All-star Durant to produce new series for Apple TV

image.png

Kevin Durant, the NBA All-star forward with the Golden State Warriors, has agreed to co-produce a basketball-themed series that will be part of Apple's original television programming.
The new series will draw inspiration from Durant's youth basketball experiences, including amateur leagues, and families dealing with the opportunities and problems that come with the professional leagues.

Durant tweeted about the new program, "So excited to partner with Imagine and Apple on this series...much more to come." (AFP)
The Tobys' reign again as Olympic doubles luge champions

Just about everyone in the international luge world refers to the German team of Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt a "The Tobys," for obvious reasons.

As most expected, a German team won the doubles luge title at the Pyeongchang Games. As few expected, it was Wendl and Arlt — the second-best team in the world all season.
Wendl and Arlt are the first German team to win two straight doubles golds since Hans Rinn and Norbert Hahn in 1976 and 1980. They had the fastest time in each of the two runs, plus set both the start record and the track record. (AP)
Thanks for listening and be sure to catch us tomorrow.
Happy Valentine's Day!  For this particular occasion, a few lines from the poem “On Marriage” by Kahlil Gibran.
“Love one another, but make not a bond of love. / Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.”
(Produced by Nancy Yan Xu, Lance Crayon, Ryan Yaoran Yu, and Zeke Ziyi Zeng.)