1,000 Cheaters in State Exams

The national civil service entrance exam is instituted in China for the selection of civil servants working for the government. In recent years, civil servant have become a very attractive job for its stability, salary, and generous pension and benefits, especially in the time of economic downturn and uncertainly. The exam is therefore becoming ultra-competitive.

The official China Daily announced that about a thousand cheaters have been busted in recent exams in Liaoning Province and Beijing. The cheaters wore wireless mini earplugs to receive transmitted information and/or bought standard answers from outside companies.

"Cheaters' names and identification card numbers will be put into a database to serve as a recruiting reference for central and local governments," reported China Daily.

Rao Yi Speaks Out on Shi Yigong's Grant Application

While the official media kept silent on the controversy of Shi Yigong's grant application yet hailing him as the new patriotic hero, Professor Rao Yi offered his personal views on the controversy. In fact, Rao Yi blamed the deafening silence of the grant authority as being unfair to Shi Yigong.

Rao Yi asserts that only the grant authority has the right to interpret its own rules and its applicability to Shi Yigong's application. From his own personal contacts, he learned that the committee in charge of the grants had conducted a thorough investigation after Fang Zhouzi's accusation. Both Shi Yigong and his Tsinghua University had been truthful and forthcoming on his job status throughout the investigation. The committee took votes on the issue and concluded that Shi Yigong was qualified for the grant even when his case apparently violated the rule on the letters.

The committee appeared to think that there is no need to offer any explanation for its decision either to the accuser or the public. Rao Yi disagreed. He felt the need to publish what he knew so that Shi Yigong would not be unfairly blamed for knowingly violating a rule.

Shi Yigong Becomes a Media Star in China

A few days into the new year, a media blitz unfolded in China in praise of Tsinghua Professor Shi Yigong. It involves the official Xinhua News Agency, CCTV, People's Daily, Guangming Daily, and Economics Daily, i.e., all the heavy weights under the direct control of the central government. The Economics Daily cited Shi Yigong's claim that "Returning home country to work, I feel my career has more meaning". Guangming Daily listed three personal goals from Shi Yigong himself. People's Daily priasied Shi Yigong as the model for all returning oversea Chinese scholars. The syndicated media campaign for a scientist is quite unusual. It looks like Shi Yigong is being molded into the new patriotic hero of China.

None of the media reports mentioned the controvercy of Shi Yigong's grant application and subsequet approval. With all the praise for his patriotism, they did not bother to point out that Shi Yigong is, in fact, an American citizen.

What they did mention, however, was the fact that Shi Yigong has been a recipent of the Irving Sigal Young Investigator Award, billed as "one of the most prestigous awards in biology". In reality, the award is a common one aimed for young scientists.

Beijing Court Sides with Fang Zhouzi on CEB Rice Case

After half a year's recess, Beijing Western District Court reached its verdict on the libel case CEB Rice had filed against Fang Zhouzi.

The court considered a laundry list of evidences provided by both sides and chose to rely on only those on which neither side had explicitly objected.

On Fang Zhouzi's claim that the science behind CEB Rice was not an original discovery, the court found it was without factual bases (to which Fang Zhouzi disputes). Nevertheless, the court concluded that the defendant's claim was within the boundary of freedom of expression and did not constitute falsehood, insult, or libel.

On whether the protein SOD could survive the rice-cooking process and be benefit to human body, the court maintained that it was still not a well-established scientific fact. The dispute on this issue was normal expressions of opinion, and therefore not libel.

Finally, the court found the defendant could have used better language in his criticism but could not find any intention or fact of libel. Therefore, the court rejected the plaintiff's case and ordered CEB Rice to pay for the court fee.

It's quite remarkable that this court has unequivocally used the "freedom of expression" clause to decide this case in Fang Zhouzi's favor.

How Not to Win a Nobel Prize for China

The Chinese government has become so anxious in the prospect of winning a Nobel Prize that it provided all-expense-paid trips for Nobel committee members to China "to explain the selection process and what it takes to win a Nobel Prize". The matter is currently under investigation by a Swedish anti-corruption prosecutor.

Hey, it had worked for the Olympics!

Fang Zhouzi is one of "People of the Times"

Although his web site is still blocked in China, Fang Zhouzi is getting more and more publicity and recognition through his books, newspaper columns, and blogs in that country. Most recently, he was voted as one of thirty "People of the Times for China's Education" (中国教育时代人物). The selection was made by internet users and sponsored by the China Education News and three other official sites. Its purpose was to recognize thirty people who had made significant contribution to China's education through the thirty years of reform.

In an ironic twist, Fang Zhouzi's name was listed next to one of his nemeses, the president of the Xian Fangyi College Ding Zuyi. In his blog, Fang Zhouzi commented on such an occurance as "It's so harmony."

At Nankai, the Best Teachers are all Administrators

Recently, Nankai University(南开大学) announced that they are honoring ten professors in the school as the best teachers of the year.

A curious netter took a look of the list and reported on New Thread that everyone on the list is either the Dean, Associated Dean, or head of their department. Apparently, administrators can really teach in this school.