Newsstand Roundup
(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-15 14:49
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The Economist | Nov 13, 2010
Merapi, the next Vesuvius?
For two weeks, Indonesia's most active volcano, Merapi, has been spewing forth, killing at least 191 people by Nov 10. About 320,000 people have been forced to leave their homes on the lower slopes of the volcano and in the surrounding countryside. Although the eruptions have now become less intense, scientists warn that this volcano is extremely unpredictable.
There was some talk in Indonesia that the local city Yogyakarta, the cultural center of the main island of Java, would become the next Pompeii. They fear that a column of ash could rise from the main crater until it cools to the point when it can no longer sustain itself and collapses. This was what happened in the eruption of Vesuvius, which buried Pompeii. The magazine's analysis: That is rather unlikely.
Nature | Nov 11, 2010
Combating schizophrenia
Statistics show globally that somewhere between 0.5 percent and 1 percent of the population will experience schizophrenia in their lifetime. This special issue of Nature includes a series of articles and comments on our current knowledge of schizophrenia and, the research agenda.
The magazine says we are in a decade in which fundamental science and clinical and social research can make an enormous impact on mental health. Research has revealed daunting complexities in the psychiatric condition, but also new routes towards diagnosis and treatment. It says advances in this area may help control the condition in the next decades.
The cover artwork is by Rodger Casier and NARSAD Artworks, a nonprofit organization that showcases artists with mental illness.
Sanlian Lifeweek | Nov 15, 2010
South China Sea
In this issue, the magazine takes a close look at the beautiful, prolific South China Sea, an area that has stimulated a half-century of fights among regional and international powers.
The magazine first goes over the military strategic role of the South China Sea during the Cold War and then explores its vital importance in today's geopolitics.
It also overviews how international petroleum companies have been competing here for natural resources since the issue of the Emery Report in 1968 which, by geophysical exploration, predicted the sea would be one of the world's largest oil-producing areas in the 21st century.
Without doubt, such huge potential profits added another layer of complexity to the situation.
Southern People Weekly | Nov 15, 2010
A city keen on changes
Guangzhou, a modern metropolitan with more than 2,000 years of history, has always been spearheading China's fast growth and an epitome of each stage of the development.
Southern People Weekly takes us around the city to famous places like the Huangpu Military Academy, Sun Yat-sen University, White Swan Hotel, and Gaodi Street where we can catch a glimpse of Guangzhou's brilliant past and look into its promising future as well.
It also explores 60 reasons why people love Guangzhou.
This includes its proximity to Hong Kong, the convenient location, its flourishing market and the particular charm of Cantonese Opera.
The city is also known for the most modest civil servants in China (who can bend their knees to apologize for official misdeeds), locals that do not turn their back upon outsiders - and also plenty of women who can make fabulous soups.