Poyang Lake; the Kingdom of Rare Birds

The Poyang Lake is the biggest freshwater lake in China.But the world comes toknow the lake not because of this fact,butbecause of the wonderful discovery that thelake is the greatest sanctuary for the largestbevy of white Siberian cranes on the earth.The International Crane Foundation,unaware that white Siberian cranes dwelled in     

Damage mechanism in Tournai limestone – The case of the tomb of Admiral Tromp in the Old Church of Delft (The Netherlands)

The funeral monument of Maarten Tromp, in the Old Church of Delft (the Netherlands), is partially built with Tournai stone, a grey-blackish limestone from the Wallonia region (Belgium). This stone is suffering a severe delamination and scaling, which has, in the course of the centuries, led to a considerable material loss from the surface of some of the stone elements. In order to identify the damage process and define a sound basis for the conservation of the monument, a research plan was set-up including, next to the tests and analyses on the stone, a 1-year monitoring of the microclimate in the church and the investigation of the structure of the monument as well as its connections to the adjacent walls. First of all, the stone type was identified by macroscopic features and by thin section microscopy. The moisture distribution in the monument and in the adjacent walls was gravimetrically determined on samples taken at different height and depths. The content and type of salt in the Tournai stone from the monument were determined by X-ray diffraction and ion chromatography, and the results compared to those obtained for the fresh stone. The analyses showed the presence of considerable amount of gypsum, together with a low content of soluble salts (chlorides and nitrates). The SEM-EDS observations showed that gypsum is mainly crystallizing in cracks between the layers of the material. The damage mechanism and the influence of salt on the decay were further investigated by combining hygroscopic moisture uptake, hygric dilation (RH cycles between 50% and 95% RH) measurements and SEM-EDS observations; all measurements were performed both on stone sampled from the monument and, as comparison, on fresh stone specimens. The results show that gypsum is the main salt present, but its role in the damage is not significant. The naturally thin laminated structure of the stone together with the considerable hygric dilation seem to be the main causes of the delamination observed in this stone.     

A discussion on the development model of earthquake relic geopark – a case study of the Qingchuan Earthquake Relic Geopark in Sichuan Province,China

Earthquake relic is a unique geoheritage. At present, the research on earthquake relic geoparks or national parks is less domestic and overseas, while the protection, development and exploration are in its infancy. This paper, taking ‘Qingchuan Earthquake Relic Geopark’ (QERG) as an example, analyses the characteristics of the geopark, and explores the development model, in order to provide reference for the earthquake relic geopark and national park development domestic and overseas.     

The Church of the Maddalena in Venice: the use of laser in the cleaning of the façade

The Church of the Maddalena was built between 1763 and 1778 by Tommaso Temanza. The building has a central plan and is surmounted by a copper-covered brick masonry dome. The conservation work conducted on the façade has highlighted the superb quality workmanship of the Istrian stone surfaces, which feature extremely fine grain, perfectly regular tooth-chiselling. This finish has led, however, to very specific conditions of decay and laser treatment provided appreciably better results than traditional chemical and mechanical methods. In addition to laser, however, other methods of cleaning were used in order to find the best response to each of the various situations encountered. Indeed it should be emphasized that in restoration it is often appropriate to exploit the potential of several systems, combining their action on the basis of careful preliminary analyses.     

A Review of the Chinese Movie Industry Over the 20 Years of Reform

At the moment when the bell chimes for the coming of the new century, let us take a look at how the Chinese movie industry has developed over the last 20 years since the reform. Twenty years ago when Zhao Dan, a celebrated movie artist in China, expressed his concerns about the prospects of the Chinese movie industry on his deathbed, people realized that it needed to blaze a trial. It was at that time that a drive for ideological emancipation was launched nationwide and people longed for movies that would reflect their daily life and their heartfelt aspirations. To answer the call of what the people demanded, a large number     

Quantification of wall surface heterogeneity and its influence on species diversity at medieval castles – implications for the environmentally friendly preservation of cultural heritage

Historic buildings are important for cultural history and provide a variety of habitats for animals and plants. Especially structural heterogeneity of wall surfaces is perceived to support biological diversity. Nevertheless, in traditional approaches goals of biodiversity preservation and monument restoration are perceived to interfere and to be mutually exclusive. As a consequence, priority is often given to constructional restoration accepting the loss of local populations and biodiversity. At walls of medieval castles, including an experimental restoration project where conventional and less intensive restoration techniques were applied, we relate species composition and richness to wall properties. Especially wall surface structure is quantified using a novel approach. The study focuses on lichens, mosses and vascular plants. Boosted regression tree analyses and non-metric multidimensional scaling techniques are applied to detect the influence of abiotic site conditions on biodiversity. We find species richness to be promoted by wall surface heterogeneity. However, species composition is more affected by restoration approaches than species richness. Lichen composition varies considerably while vascular plants and mosses are less affected by wall properties. We suggest strategies that are combining both societal targets, the preservation of historic monuments and of species diversity. Careful restoration is capable of supporting both, the maintenance of cultural heritage and of rare and unique anthropogenic habitats. Wall surface heterogeneity needs to be witnessed for both aspects as it affects both species composition as well as the effectiveness of cleaning methods.     

Yangko of the Yellow River

Boatmen sing work songs when they row boats across the Yellow River. For these boatmen living on the river, the worst nightmare is when the dry season hits and the Yellow River dries up and bares its riverbed to the sky. Nothing is more important than a memorial ceremony held for the God of the Yellow River.In a village called Sanjiao Village on the bank of the Yellow     

Business schools,the anxiety of finance,and the order of the ‘middle tier’

Financial imagination plays a fundamental, yet ambivalent role in the establishment of hierarchies within and between business schools, and in business life at large. This study examines this process in the ‘middle tier’ of business education: that is, in the social space in which students and instructors understand themselves to occupy a ‘mid-range’ position within an order of excellence and success. Largely articulated through business school rankings, this order strongly relies on the centrality of the financial curriculum, proficiency in which is understood as both a proxy for smartness and a sign of moneymaking capacity. In the ‘middle tier’, this order manifests in the form of an anxiety: an order that, though legitimate, is thought not to be attained, or hardly attainable. The study draws from ethnographic investigation in a ‘middle tier’ business school with attention to how finance is made sense of in relation to an alternative curriculum, and in connection with the aim of ‘making it to the top’. A comparison with a ‘top tier’ business school allows furthering understanding of how the order of business schools relies on the anxiety of finance in order to reproduce an acquiescence to dominant financial imagination.     

A Perfect Marriage of the Soundless and the Sound

Gao Nianhua as a specialist in ancient architecture and Chen Hongbing as an opera singer are well known in Hangzhou. But few local people know they are husband and wife, for they seldom appear together in news stories.How they knew each other and how they got married was a delightful anecdote. Gao and Chen's elder brother were good buddies in their early youth. Chen's family knew him well. Years later, a close friend of Chen Hongbing arranged a blind date     

Mystery Unveiled; Discovery of the Deepest Canyon in the World——A visit to Yang Yichou, a Chinese Geographer

The 5,328-meters deep,the grandgorge on the Yarlung Zangbo River was forthe first time identified as the deepest gorgeon the earth by our scientists.From then onGrand Canyon of Colorado,2,133 metersdeep,in the United States and the 3,200meter-deep Colca River Canyon in Peruhave to drop to second place,which hadstood first in the world for long.This significant discoverg was made byYang Yichou,a geographer in the ChineseAcademy of Sciences,and his colleagues Gao     

The Congress for Cultural Freedom, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Minerva</Emphasis>, and the Quest for Instituting “Science Studies” in the Age of Cold War

The Congress for Cultural Freedom is remembered as a paramount example of the “cultural cold wars.” In this paper, I discuss the ways in which this powerful transnational organization sought to promote “science studies” as a distinct – and politically relevant – area of expertise, and part of the CCF broader agenda to offer a renewed framework for liberalism. By means of its Study Groups, international conferences and its periodicals, such as Minerva, the Congress developed into an influential forum for examining the ways Big Science impacted the relations between science, society, and politics, thus constituting a semi-institutional niche for Science Studies before its professionalization within academia during the 1970s. I argue that the Congress contributed to the construction of public space in which the relations between science, society and politics were debated, and science was reconceptualized as a social activity. The vision of “science studies” the CCF-associated intellectuals promulgated was different from the science studies we know today. Yet, this alternative vision, in which the issues of science politics appeared inseparable from those of science policy, science organization, and science governance, constituted the “pre-history” of science studies today.     

Structural investigations and analyses for the conservation of the ‘Arsenale’ of Venice

Systematic interventions are being planned and progressively designed on most buildings of the Arsenale of Venice, the Venetian republic’s shipyard, a very large complex of docks and sheds of peculiar construction characteristics. These renovation interventions are required in view of new uses for the revitalizing of that area, which is currently almost completely neglected. In the paper, after a general presentation of the main properties and of the most relevant deterioration phenomena of the principal parts of the monumental area, the methodology that is being used for the structural diagnosis, for the implementation of guidelines for the future interventions and for the maintenance of the restored conditions are presented. Some preliminary results, given by experimental tests performed both in situ and in laboratory on materials and structural elements, and by FE simulations, are discussed.     

Anecdotes of Dreams in the Making

In order to make a program called DreamsCome True to be aired on February 11 onOriental TV, two leading actresses and theplaywright of the Dreams of Red Mansion wereinvited to a talk show. They talked about thingsmost people didn't know in the past. Xu Yu…     

First-Rate People of the Second-Rate House

The Second-Rate House was a house ownedby Tang Yu, an overseas Chinese who helpedthe war efforts to fight the Japanese invadersduring World War II. He used his brother'smoney to have houses built in Chongqing, thewartime capital of China. One of the house…     

In Reminiscence of A Great Friend of the Chinese People

An English baby girl was born at the Peking Union Medical College Hospital on Jan. 19, 1919. The father J. B. Tayer, a professor of economy at Yan Jing University in Peking (Beijing), named the baby Gladness, a meaningful name standing for the pleasure that her birth had brought to the family. Ever since that day, this blue-eyed English girl was cradled on the Chinese land. China was experiencing great political chaos during the early 20's, when there were ceaseless fightings between warlords. After much consideration, her parents decided to send her and her sibhngs back to England for education. Gladness left China with food memories of the lane where she had lived in, the tinkle of bells on camels in the outskirts of Peking and her little friends at the kindergarten. During her 10 years' stay in England, her father went hack there for vacations and     

Evolution of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project: The Effects of the “Third” on the Interplay Between Cooperation and Competition

Minerva - The paper investigates the evolution of the first manned international space mission – a rendezvous and docking between a US and a Soviet spacecraft in 1975 known as the...     

Northwest China Through the Eyes of Easterners

The vast Northwest China,includingGansu,Qinghai,Shaanxi provinces andNingxia,Xinjiang autonomous regions,formsone third of the country's total land.Whenwe stepped our feet on this land for the firsttime,we were deeply impressed not only byits boosting economy in the severe ecologicalenvironment but also by its grand natural