Lend me your ears, show me the light

The lack of social awareness regarding the debilitating effects of depression is prompting Chinese patients to go online to support each other with much-needed sympathy.

Rising cases of breast cancer prompt call for checks

Experts are calling for early detection of breast cancer in China, which has seen a rising number of patients.

Mystery beneath

A back injury led Briton Rose Oliver to tai chi, which led her to her husband and then took both of them to China. But three years after moving to Shanghai to pursue their dream, Oliver's husband died, leaving her alone to follow their shared passion for tai chi.

Flash mob takes performance art to new heights

During lunch time, the food court at the China World Trade Center is a jumble of tension and chaos. Suddenly, it is quieted by the loud, sonorous voice of a woman singing. Suddenly, people young and old, wearing face mics, stand up from among the crowd and move toward the center of the space, all the while singing old songs that call forth people's common memories.

Mission possible

Jiang Shumei was illiterate for much of her life. She only started learning to write Chinese characters at 60. Not only did she become proficient enough to read the voluminous Mo Yan collections, she turned to writing at 75 and produced a popular memoir a year later.

A bumper year for digging up the past

The six most important archaeology discoveries of 2013 were unveiled by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in December, with the earliest dating back more than 4,000 years.

Books offer a glimpse of China in 2014

At a meeting of writers, Sinologists and publishing professionals in Beijing in December, a wry joke circulated. In the past, the experts said to each other, only three types of Chinese books found their way into Western readers' libraries: traditional culture, controversy and anything about beauty and sex.

A booming market for words and translations

An article recently published in Swiss newspaper Berner Zeitung refers to Chinese publishing as a mysterious "Black Box" lacking channels to get information and feedback.

Skin-deep decisions

In 2003, when Beijing-based office worker Yu Lu decided to buy a whitening facial cream, her most important consideration was: Is it effective? Time flies. A decade on, with more Chinese people conscious about environmental protection, Yu, now 35, has become more sophisticated when selecting cosmetics products.

DIY beauty gurus put their best face forward

In recent years, China's cosmetics market has seen a rise in the number of homegrown brands developed by self-taught beauty experts.

IN BRIEF (Page 22)

Honor the past, live in the present

In December, the Chinese abacus was listed as an intangible cultural heritage at the annual UNESCO World Heritage Congress. It was not big news in China. But it perplexed as many people as it made proud: Are we supposed to keep using the old calculating tool, or should we place it in museums?