Playing mah-jong for tapping intelligence

As a popular game for people worldwide to kill time or socialize, mah-jong has become the center of debate in China's cultural circle and the media recently.

It all started with the allegation that the Japanese are more enthusiastic about including this ancient form of Chinese recreation into the list of World Intangible Cultural Heritage, scheduled to be announced by UNESCO next year.

According to Jiang Xuanqi, director of Mah-jong Culture Exchange Center under the Chinese Promotional Committee of the World National Culture Exchange, "Japan might even overtake China if we do not fasten our pace in cultural heritage application."