China's space station program

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VIDEO: CHINA´S SPACE STATION PROGRAM CCTV News - CNTV English

China has a long-term goal for its space exploration program. And the launch of the Shenzhen 8 Space Shuttle is one of the missions that will be accomplished during the program’s undertaking.

According to the China National Space Administration or CNSA, China’s Space Program consists of three stages.

Phase 1 is the launch of a manned space shuttle that will execute various space experiments. The Shenzhou 5 and 6 have completed this stage’s mission.

The launch of a space laboratory marks Phase 2 of the program. One of the missions during this stage will be the docking of a manned space shuttle and space lab, which is a prototype of China’s ultimate space station to carry out experiments.



Shenzhou 7 was the third human spaceflight, which included the first Chinese extra-vehicular activity or EVA, a milestone during this phase. The launch of the Tiangong Space Lab and Shenzhou 8 to 10 Space Shuttles is expected to complete the rest of the second phase missions, which paves the way for China’s ultimate goal of constructing a space station. Its operation is part of Phase 3, which will take place in the future.

Tiangong-1 is the first Chinese space laboratory module. It is intended as an experimental testbed to develop rendezvous and docking capabilities needed to support a larger space station complex. Tiangong-1 is expected to be visited by three Shenzhou missions during its operational lifetime: the unmanned Shenzhou 8 in 2011, and the manned Shenzhou 9 and 10 in 2012.

After spending approximately two years in orbit, Tiangong-1 will return to earth in 2013. It will be replaced over the following decade by the larger Tiangong-2 and Tiangong-3 modules, which will conduct more sophisticated space experiments and probes. Tiangong 2 will fulfill various experiments, introduce new technologies, and possibly develop space medicine. The full-size, multi-module Tiangong 3 space station will have astronauts stationed inside. The station will be supplied by cargo shuttles.

CNSA says the Tiangong 3, China’s first full-size space station, will be a realistic and multi-functional station to perform experiments, production, probing and storing, which they believe will produce fruitful results. For example, the space station will have the ability to develop new types of vegetables and fruits or produce new materials in space. China has set a goal of having its space station to be in place by 2020.

A million-dollar dream?

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What would you do if you have a million bucks?

Monday Starters - By Soo Ewe Jin

WHAT would you do if you have a million bucks? A poor government clerk from Bihar, a remote and poverty-stricken region of northern India, has become the first person to win 50 million rupees (RM3mil) on the popular Indian version of the gameshow Who Wants to be a Millionaire?

Sushil Kumar's win is a classic case of life imitating art as the script is similar to that of the 2008 Oscar-winning film Slumdog Millionaire.

According to the Associated Press, Sushil said he would spend some of his prize money to prepare for India's tough civil service examination, which could lead to a secure and prestigious lifetime job.

He would also buy a new home for his wife, pay off his parents' debts, give his brothers cash to set up small businesses and build a library in Motihari so the children of his village would have access to books and knowledge.

 
Real life slumdog millionaire: Sushil (left) says thank you with clasped hands as he receives his US$1mil prize from Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan during the fifth season of the Indian version of the Who Wants to be a Millionaire? television quiz in Mumbai on Oct 25. Kumar, a computer operator who earns just US$130 a month, has become the first person to win the top prize. — AFP

Everyone loves a story like this. Although people can become instant millionaires by striking the lottery or pulling the lever on a one-armed bandit at a casino, using one's talent at a tension-filled gameshow is more admirable.

And I applaud Sushil for his noble attitude in thinking of others to share in his newfound fortune. Bihar is one of the poorest states of India and its remoter areas, such as Motihari, have been largely untouched by India's phenomenal recent economic growth.



Do you know that there are now at least 39,000 millionaires in Malaysia? According to a recent report by the Credit Suisse Group, 19,000 new millionaires were created over the past 18 months alone.

Meanwhile, the Asia-Pacific Wealth Report 2011 by Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management and Capgemini, also released recently, revealed that Malaysia's rich prefer splurging on a fancy new set of wheels, luxurious yachts or private jets.

Up to 46% invested their ringgit in luxury collectibles like cars, boats and jets, the highest percentage of any country within the Asia-Pacific region.

Their counterparts down south seem less interesting and still prefer jewellery and luxury watches.

I know that the CEOs who read the business section of this newspaper may consider a million ringgit small change but to most of us, it is a very faraway goal, not something one can possibly achieve as a regular salaried worker.

But we can all dream and I was wondering to myself, what would I do if I suddenly had a million ringgit in hand? I suppose our wishes would coincide very much with our age, status, and ultimately our character.

To those who believe material pursuits equate to real happiness, a shopping spree would be fantastic.

Those who do not focus too much on material things may want to travel around the world and complete their Bucket List, which may also include going on a religious pilgrimage.

I believe that God never gives us more than we can handle, just as He never lets us go through trials and tribulations beyond our capacity to endure.

And that was when I stopped dreaming. Because I know, seriously, I will never be able to handle so much money at any one time. So I shall be content and count my blessings. I hope you will too.

Deputy executive editor Soo Ewe Jin notes that the world's population officially hits seven billion today. No one really knows who is Citizen Seven Billion, of course, but by the time he grows up, millionaires and billionaires will probably be a dime a dozen.

Made in China: Country's new supercomputer uses homegrown chips

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China is stepping up its semiconductor manufacturing efforts and using domestic chips for its latest supercomputer. It's going to be interesting to see how fast China can close in on U.S. supercomputer processor makers Intel, AMD, and Nvidia.

The New York Times reported that a supercomputer called Sunway BlueLight MPP, was installed in September at the National Supercomputer Center in Jinan, China. The details emerged at a technical meeting. The real catch is that China used 8,700 ShenWei SW1600 chips.

Those semiconductors are homegrown and indicate that China is aiming to be a major chip player. The New York Times story was mostly sourced to Jack Dongarra, a computer scientist at the University of Tennessee, but Chinese sites reported on the technical meeting. Dongarra helps manage the list of Top 500 supercomputers. China's previous supercomputers used Intel and Nvidia chips.



Meanwhile, ZDNet UK highlighted the blog of Hung-Sheng Tsao, founder of HopBit GridComputing, who posted the slides detailing the Sunway BlueLight MPP, which come from IT168.com. IT168.com covered China's supercomputing powwow extensively this week.

ZDNet UK's Jack Clark noted:

According to (Tsao's) slides, which appear to be from a presentation describing the computer's capabilities, the ShenWei Sunway BlueLight MPP has 150TB of main storage and 2PB of external storage. Each ShenWei SW1600 processor is 64-bit, has 16-cores and is RISC-based.

Here's a Google Translate link offering more details via IT168.

The Wall Street Journal noted that the China domestic supercomputing effort is very credible and signals an effort to cut the country's reliance on western companies. It's unclear whether China's chips are completely original blueprints or based on a previous design. One issue for the Sunway chips is power consumption. The Sunway supercomputer apparently doesn't need that much power relative to rivals.

The New York Times added that that ShenWei chip appears to be based "on some of the same design principles that are favored by Intel's most advanced microprocessors."

China's efforts appear to be a few generations behind, but rest assured the country will try to close any gaps quickly.

This story was originally posted at ZDNet's Between the Lines under the headline "China steps up its semiconductor game with homegrown supercomputer effort." 

Larry Dignan

Larry Dignan is editor in chief of ZDNet and editorial director of CNET's TechRepublic. He has covered the technology and financial-services industries since 1995.

 
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