Finding a helping hand to kick the habit

KIEL, Germany: Smoking bans in public places have recently come into effect in several European countries and Germany is set to join their ranks this August.

Why painful memories may soon be a thing of the past

WASHINGTON: Researchers have confirmed what common wisdom has long held "that people can suppress emotionally troubling memories" and said they have sketched out how the brain accomplishes this.

IN BRIEF (Page 19)

Life People

Friendly Faces

Along with other 30 foreigners, Wilma O'Sullivan had come to Beidaihe, a summer resort in Hebei Province, to escape from the intense summer heat. With members of so many races, her summer tourist group seemed to resemble a miniature United Nations.

Craft master has many fans

Owning an exquisitely handmade folding fan, especially one featuring refined paintings and calligraphy by famed literati, was a status symbol in ancient times. Today, a small population of fan fanatics still cherishes this tradition. And members of this clique flood the home of 75-year-old fan-making master Xu Yilin, in the Taohuawu area of Suzhou, in East China's Jiangsu Province.

SINO-FRENCH SPECIAL

Young ambassadors boost ties

A delegation of young Chinese from the art world have recently wrapped up a weeklong visit to France where they toured several cities and took part in a music festival.

On camera

A photographer shoots the world's first camera exhibited at the Capital Museum of China in April with a state-of-the-art digital camera, marking a stark contrast between the antique and the modern. As part of the Sino-French Cultural Exchange 2007, the exhibition "A French Innovation: Birth of Photography" showcased 117 related historical items and photos. It was jointly sponsored by the Capital Museum of China, the Paris municipal government, the French Culture Center and the Nicphore Nipce Museum. Wen Zhao

Opportunities beckoning

Editor's note: The French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in China (CCIFC) plays a key role in helping French companies tap into business opportunities in China. Its president Annick de Kermadec shares with China Daily her opinions on related issues, reports Liu Baijia.

Life Travel

Drinking their fields dry

Few of the thousands of tourists to Longsheng County of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region would realize that their presence is actually endangering the magnificent landscape of terraced fields they enjoy. With a population of 167,000, of whom nearly 80 percent are ethnic minorities of Miao, Yao, Dong and Zhuang, Longsheng received 235,000 sightseers in 2006, according to Yang Tongming, head of the county.