Lotus Painter Cai Qibao

THE studio is small and cramped. One has to edge one’s way along it to avoid knocking over the tools of his trade - brushes, sticks of ink, paper, inkstones, and stamps - and a pile of letters on his work table. Cai Qibao jokes that his studio is possibly the smallest in Beijing.     

The Happiness Index

Han Kang,a senior researcher of comparative economics and macro-economy,is the chief editor of The 12th Five-year Plan:The Big Strategy for Chinese Development and Rethinking the Model for a Chinese Market Economy:Selections of Han Kang’s Economic Articles.He presided over the research for part of the 12th Five-year Plan for National Economic and Social Development(2011-2015).Currently he is vice president of the Chinese Academy of Governance.     

Enjoying Acrobatics in an Ancient City

AT a distance of 280 km from Beijing, Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province, is the nearest provincial capital to the seat of the national government. The region around Shijiazhuang has a long history of developed civilization. Archeological discoveries show that human activities had already begun in this area between 6,000 and 7,000 years ago.     

Twin Meetings Frank on V Problems and Challenges

THE government report delivered by the Chinese premier is invariably a key event in the annual meeting of the National People’s Congress(NPC). The NPC session overlaps with the yearly meeting of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) to produce a week of key political importance for the country.     

Messages Encoded in Bird-and-Flower Paintings （PartⅡ）

IN the West, red roses are a symbol of romantic love, yellow roses of friendship. To observe Valentine＇s Day, various kinds of roses are marketed on China＇s streets and lanes. In ancient China flowers symbolized sentiments. For instance, twin lotus flowers on one stalk or two trees with branches interlocked were imagined to be devoted couples. The lotus flower connotes nobility, and the peony, wealth and rank. For thousands of years these flowers have been key elements in the composition of bird-and-flower paintings.     

Bright Lights,Big Village

An experiment in job creation - the College Grad Village Official program - shows that placements who take these rural posts for the right reasons are realizing ambitions that outpace their city-bound colleagues.     

Back to School,Back on Their Feet

THE violent earthquake that ripped through Wenchuan three years ago caught school children amid their lessons in packed classrooms. Falling ceilings and collapsing     

Ex-pathology and the Medical Multiverse

IT is never more inconvenient to fall ill than in a foreign country. It can feel a bit like having a medical emergency in a public place-lying helpless while someone yells,     

University Graduates Suffer ＂Employment Anxiety ＂

AFTER walking out of a job fair at Peking university,Che Xinglai shook his head disappointedly and told the reporter,＂Nothing gained.＂     

A 49-Year-Old Chinese Woman’s Round-the-World Tour

I couldn’t stop traveling once I started. Wherever I went, I had completely different feelings as I experienced each place," says Ma Li. In 19 years, Ma has traveled through an