Pact sealed to protect germplasm resources

An agreement for protecting the forest tree germplasm resources was recently signed by the CAS Kunming Institute of Botany (KIB) and theWorld Agro-forestry Center (ICRAF) in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.     

Flora investigation kicks off on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Coordinated by the CAS Kunming Institute of Botany, a project to investigate the floral germplasm resources on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was initiated recently in Kunming, capital of southwest China＇s Yunnan Province.     

KIB to cooperate with TLL on energy crops

An agreement on energy plant research and development was sealed between the CAS Kunming Institute of Botany(KIB)and Singaporean Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory(TLL)on 8 December,2007 in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.The document was signed by KIB Vice Director YANG Yongping and TLL Chief Operating Officer Tan Kok Keng.     

A Newly Established Fernery

With the financial supportfor botanical gardensfrom the Ministry ofFinance, a fern garden has recentlybeen established at the CASKunming Institute of Botany.Ferns are on the top of theevolutionary tree of spore plants.Some fern species are valued asornaments, medication and food.With a 250-square-meter exhibitiongreenhouse and a 50-square-meterbreeding room, the sanctuary hasmore than 300 typical fern speciesoriginally distributed in tropical,subtropical and temperate zones invarious ecolog…     

Modern human settlement in East Asia earlier than thought

Tracing through human migration history with the help of genes, Dr. SUBing and coworkers from the CAS Kunming Institute of Zoology （KIZ） lately revealed the evidenceof a much earlier modern human settlement in East Asia than people previously thought.     

KIB to cooperate with TLL on energy crops

An agreement on energy plant research and development was sealed between the CAS Kunming Institute of Botany （KIB） and Singaporean Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory （TLL） on 8 December, 2007 in Kunming, capital of southwest China＇s Yunnan Province. The document was signed by KIB Vice Director YANG Yongping and TLL Chief Operating Officer Tan Kok Keng.     

Sino-US Botanists Make an Expedition in the Hengduan Mountains

With support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China and U.S. National Science Foundation, a Sino-US research team headed by Prof. Sun Hang from the CAS Kunming Institute of Botany (KIB)and Dr. David E. Boufford from Harvard University has recently completed a two-month botanical field trip to the Hengduan Mountain Range in south China.     

Save Traditional Culture Save Biodiversity——An interview with PEI Shengji

In the forests of Xishuangbanna, southwest China and the mountainous areas of Southwest Asia, Prof. Pei Shengji, a senior researcher with the CAS Xishuangbanna Tropical Garden and the CAS Kunming Institute of Botany, has been carrying out botanic studies that are closely related to the traditional cultures of ethnic minorities for over three decades. By learning from local people, he helped the government to protect large areas of forests and mountains. In a recent interview with XIN Ling, a staff reporter of BCAS, the professor called for saving indigenous knowledge and traditional culture for biodiversity conservation.     

CAS forum for young scientists held in Yunnan

Co-organized by the CAS Graduate University （GUCAS） and the CAS Kunming Branch, 2007 Sciencel00, a CAS annual forum for outstanding young scientists, was opened on 28 November, 2007 at the CAS Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden （XTBG）, with an attendance of more than 90 experts and scholars from various CAS affiliates.     

CAS physicist receives Tate Medal from American Institute of Physics

The American Institute of Physics （AIP） 2007 Tate Medal for Leadership in International Physics goes to Prof. YU Lu, a physicist from the CAS Institute of Physics and chair of the CAS Interdisciplinary Center for Theoretical Studies.     

Xinjiang Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry,CAS,in Profile

The Xinjiang Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry (XJTIPC) was established recently by the merger of two former CAS institutes: the Xingjiang Institute of Physics and the Xingjiang Institute of Chemistry.This is an important decision made by CAS for the implementation of the national Knowledge Innovation Program (KIP) piloted at the Academy in the context of the national drive to develop China's west.     

CAS to Address Water Eutrophication

At a meeting on April 5, the CAS authorities gave the green light to a proposal to carry out studies on the development and control of eutrophication on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The five-year project,to cost 20 million yuan (about USS 2.4 million), will involve scientists from various CAS institutes, including the Nanjing Institute of Geography & Limnology, Wuhan Institute of Hydrobiology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Wuhan Institute of Botany, Institute of Chemistry, Institute of Geodesy & Geophysics, and Institute of Microbiology.     

Northeast Institute of Geography and Agricultural Ecology, CAS

The Northeast Institute of Geography and Agricultural Ecology, a new CAS research body inaugurated in March 2002,comes from the merger of two former CAS research affiliates:Changchun Institute of Geography and Heilongjiang Institute of Agricultural Modernization in Harbin.     

Progress in Diffraction Enhanced Imaging

In cooperation with the Topography Station of Beijing Synchrotron Radiation under CAS Institute of High Energy Physics, a research group from the CAS Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has made encouraging progress in the diffraction enhanced imaging technology through phase-contrast microscope by hard X-rays.     

MPS／CAS Partner Group on Colloid and Interface Science

The Partner Group on Colloid and Interface Science is based on the International Joint Laboratory, established in the former Beijing Institute of Photographic Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and was incorporated into the Center for Molecular Science of the Institute of Chemistry, CAS in 1999. The Partner Group aims at research on molecular assembly of biomimetic membranes and the synthesis of nano-structured materials by way of training younger Chinese scientists and making use of the advanced facilities in Germany. Both sides cooperate closely in sectors in which they have a common interest to push forward the development of related sciences in China. The group leader, Li Junbai, has received many awards and has obtained much financial support inside China. On the German side, the Partner Group is hosting or participating in several research and development projects commissioned by the Max Planck Society and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). The Partner Group has thus secured goo     

CAS Invites International Panel to Evaluate Its Institute

At the invitation of the CAS, a group of eight international experts convened in Nanjing on October 7th and 8th to evaluate the CAS Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology (NIGPAS). This is the first move of its kind ever made by CAS at the academy level. Earlier this year several CAS institutes had made similar assessments by themselves.     

Institute of Policy and Management: Aiming at the Ranks of World-class Think Tanks

Established on June 26, 1986 by the consolidation of four former CAS subordinates (namely,the Office of Policy Research, Division of Management Science, Editorial Department of the Journal of Dialectics of Nature, and Section of Optimization and Overall Planning under the CAS Institute of Applied Mathematics), the Institute of Policy and Management (IPM), CAS, is characterized by interdisciplinary studies of social and natural sciences. It applies itself to theoretical, methodological and applied research into national strategies, policies and management for S&T development. It also provides consultancy services for government departments, local authorities and CAS on issues concerning S&T development, social and economic growth, S&T management and administration of enterprises.     

Ecosystems and Biodiversity Research

The common goals and the almost perfect complement of the initiatives taken in parallel at Kunming and at several Max Planck sites could serve as valuable starting points for further promoting the CAS/MPS partnership in all matching areas of ecological research.     

Institute of Nutritional Science Officially Inaugurated in Shanghai

The nameplate for the CAS Institute of Nutritional Science (INS) was unveiled on December 15 in Shanghai. CAS President Lu Yongxiang and Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng attended the inaugural ceremony.     

CAS to set up a digital media lab in Singapore

The CAS Institute of Automation(CASIA)will join hands with the Media Development Authority of Singapore(MDA)to establish the China-Singapore Institute of Digital Media in Singapore.The agreement was inked by CAS Vice Secretary-General and CASIA Director-general TAN Tieniu and MDA Chairman Tan Chin Nam on