Weekly News Collection

ARCHAEOLOGY

More than 400 potteries pieces excavated in Jiayi Tomb

More than 400 pieces of pottery were discovered recently in the Jiayi Tomb of Turfan Basin after a half-year archaeological excava­tion by archaeologists from the Institute of Relics and Archaeol­ogy of Xinjiang Province and the Academy of Turfan Studies. The amount of pottery unearthed this time is only second to that in the Yanghai Ancient Tomb, another tomb in the Turfan Basin. Wang Long, deputy director of the Institute of Archaeology of the Acade­my of Turfan Studies, commented that, judging from the scale and layout of the Jiayi Tomb, it might be a public cemetery. Built about 2,200 to 2,300 years ago, it is one of the crucial sites for Turfan ar­chaeological studies.

MARINE STUDIES

Philology to be applied for marine inscriptions

Chinese marine inscriptions on tablets mostly focus on marine ac­tivities of the post-Song dynasties, noted scholars in the academic seminar held on August 6 themed “Marine Inscriptions on Tablets through the Ages of China”. When used in conjunction with paper documents, inscriptions on the tablets can also provide reliable materials and records for historical study. Before studying the inscription on a particular tablet, one must know where the tablet was excavated and preserved as well as clarify whether it has been made public or recorded before. Besides, methodologies of philol­ogy need to be applied in studying the inscriptions.

HISTORY

Oriental Metropolitan Museum opened

The Oriental Metropolitan Museum—the 3rd-6th Century (or The Six Dynasties Museum) was opened in Nanjing, China, on Aug. 11. Building ruins, porcelain, pottery and other precious cultural relics were exhibited. As the director of the museum, Hu A’xiang from the Department of History at Nanjing University re­marked that the museum is the largest collection of cultural relics from the Six Dynasties in ancient China (3rd-6th century), mak­ing it vital to preserving the legacy of traditional Chinese culture. As the capital during that era, Nanjing was considered one of the most important “Oriental metropolitan areas.” It represented the maturity of the agricultural civilization, which was characterized by peace, balance and respect for nature.

PSYCHOLOGY

Theoretical research plays a leading role in empirical psychology

On Aug. 9, the 2014 Annual Conference for the Committee of The­ory in Psychology and History of Psychology was convened in Lan­zhou city. Peng Yunshi, director of the committee and a professor from Hunan Normal University, noted that with the development of empirical science, theoretical psychology, which studies ab­stract psychological activities, runs the risk of being marginalized. Thus, the attendees called for further construction of a theoretical framework for psychology, putting the social and cultural function of the discipline into full play, and underpinning its leading role in empirical psychological research.

ECONOMICS

Cooperation among key cities crucial for Silk Road

“To accomplish the strategic project of the Silk Road economic belt, the key is to seek an effective mechanism for cooperation among key cities along the route,” said Fan Xiufeng, professor from the School of Economy and Finance at the Academic Symposium on the Silk Road as the Eurasian Channel, co-hosted by the Depart­ment of International Economic Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China and Xi’an Jiaotong University. Since China proposed to construct the Silk Road economic belt, much attention has been given to ways to promote economic interaction among the coun­tries and regions along the route and stimulate their initiative.

COUNTRY STUDIES

Guide to World States-Australia released

On Aug. 11, the release conference and academic symposium for the book collection Guide to the World States-Australia (third edi­tion), one of the major research projects of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, took place at the Australian Embassy in China. Ma Yuan, director of the Bureau of Scientific Research Management at CASS, spoke highly of the role the collection plays as a panoramic window that enables Chinese people to better understand the history and reality of foreign countries. Currently, as many as 144 volumes have been published for the collection, added him.

(Edited and translated by Bai Le)