Chinese Researchers Release Bilingual Land Cover Atlas of Five Central Asian Countries (1990-2020)

On June 11, researchers from the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography (XIEG) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences unveiled the Land Cover Atlas of Five Central Asian Countries (1990–2020) at the second Belt and Road Conference on Science and Technology Exchange. This atlas is the first bilingual (Chinese and Russian) professional land cover atlas for Central Asia, compiled by Chinese researchers.

• Chinese Scientists Uncover Why Birds Are Sour Tolerant

  Chinese researchers have decoded the molecular mechanism behind birds' ability to tolerate highly acidic foods, a trait that has long puzzled scientists. Published in the journal Science on Friday, the study reveals that a key mutation in the sour taste receptor OTOP1 gene enables songbirds to consume acidic fruits without aversion. Lai Ren, a researcher and the corresponding author of the paper at the Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, said his team found that a single amino acid change in OTOP1 enhances sour tolerance in songbirds, likely aiding their dietary expansion and species diversification.

• Chinese Scientists Develop World's First Ultra-high Parallel Optical Computing Chip

  Chinese scientists have developed the world's first ultra-high parallel optical computing integrated chip that's capable of delivering a theoretical peak computing power of 2560 TOPS (Tera Operations Per Second) at a 50 GHz optical clock speed, a metric that reportedly benchmarks against NVIDIA's advanced GPU chips. The achievement comes from researchers at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

• Study Reveals Link between Nighttime Artificial Light Exposure, Depression

  A new study has revealed that chronic exposure to artificial light at night can trigger depression-like behaviors by activating a specific neural pathway in the brain. The study, conducted on tree shrews -- diurnal mammals genetically close to primates, offers critical insights into how nighttime light may disrupt mood regulation. It has been published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.