Exhibition in Shanghai showcases production, uses of Chinese porcelain

China

Exhibition in Shanghai showcases production, uses of Chinese porcelain

2024-05-25 23:39 Last Updated At：05-26 12:07

The ongoing World Ceramic Art Exhibition held at the World Skills Museum in Shanghai is showcasing not only ancient Chinese ceramic techniques but also how new ceramic materials are used in contemporary society.

The exhibition includes three different themed zones: the Beauty of Ceramics, the Techniques of Ceramics, and the Innovation of Ceramics, with the Techniques zone occupying half of the whole exhibition area.

The exhibition features ceramic works from across Chinese history including black pottery tripod pots from over 4,000 years ago, three-legged plates from the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and exquisite pieces from the five great kilns (Ru, Jun, Guan, Ding, and Ge Kilns) of the Song Dynasty (960-1127).

Qu Jianan, who is in charge of the World Ceramic Art Exhibition, highlighted a black, three-legged pottery vessel from the Liangzhu Culture period (3300-2300 BC) in China.

"This piece is a porcelain exhibit from the Liangzhu Culture period. Take a closer look, you will notice its spiral marks inside. The mark was created using fast wheels and manual pulling-up techniques, which remain the main pulling-up methods in ceramic production today," Qu said.

New ceramic materials are widely used in modern-day medicine, environmental protection, aerospace, and new energy with the exhibition displaying a special ceramic combustion heating device used on the Tiangong-2 space laboratory.

This multi-functional device incorporates innovative technologies with many independent intellectual property rights, capable of refining composite materials, metals, organic polymers, and crystals.

"This device is used in space to conduct full combustion experiments on new materials. Currently, there are two of these devices: one aboard Tiangong-2 and the other on display in our exhibition hall. As shown in the profile, the ceramic technology is applied in the heating furnace, effectively ensuring the thermal insulation of materials burning in space," said Qu.

China's CPI expected to continue growing moderately in future: official

2024-06-17 15:57 Last Updated At：16:37

China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, was up 0.3 percent year on year in May, and it is expected to continue growing moderately in the future based on the price trend, according to officials on Monday.

At a press conference in Beijing, officials from the National Bureau of Statistics briefed the situation of CPI in May and gave the prediction over its trend in the future.

Liu Aihua, a spokeswoman of the National Bureau of Statistics, said that the consumer price in May had three characteristics.

First, it kept flat in the year-on-year increase.

"In May, CPI rose 0.3 percent from a year earlier, staying flat from the previous month. Of which, food prices fell by 2 percent year on year, with the decline 0.7 percentage points narrower than the previous month, while non-food prices increased 0.8 percent, 0.1 percentage points lower than April. Service price grow by 0.8 percent, the same as the previous month," said Liu.

Second, the consumer price showed a slight seasonal decline from the previous month. On a monthly basis, the CPI inched down 0.1 percent in May. The decrease was smaller than the 0.2-percent drop on average in the same period of the last 10 years.

Third, the core CPI rose moderately. In May, the core CPI apart from food and energy was up 0.6 percent year on year, keeping a moderate upward trend.

"Regarding the trend of CPI in the future, based on the current price trend of food, manufactured consumer goods and services, CPI will continue to rise moderately. For food, as a large number of seasonal fruits and vegetables being put on market, food price will remain at a seasonal low. In terms of manufactured consumer goods, its total supply is sufficient, which is conducive to the stability of prices. As for service, its price is expected to continue rebounding as demand for services further recovers," Liu said.