Inhaled vaccines

Clinical trials of China-developed nasal spray and inhaled COVID-19 vaccines are currently under way, according to the National Health Commission.

The nasal spray has been selected as one of China’s vaccine technologies to combat COVID-19 in the very beginning, Zeng Yixin, deputy head of the commission, said in a recent interview. Medical experts will study the safety and effectiveness of the tested vaccines after completing the collection of clinical trial data, Zeng added. Zeng also said there are 21 COVID-19 vaccines developed by China that have entered clinical trials. China is now vaccinating its citizens “at a staggering pace” with an average of about 19 million shots per day, said a recent report of The Associated Press, citing the rolling seven-day average of Our World in Data, an online research site.

Isolated exam sites

Two gaokao takers sat for the National College Entrance Exam in two separate exam rooms in Guangzhou No. 8 People’s Hospital in Guangzhou City on Monday for their positive nucleic acid test results.

One of the students tested positive on Sunday, one day ahead of the exam, and his test result remained positive after being retested. Although his body temperature was above 37 degrees Celsius on Monday morning, the student was allowed to take the exam by doctors after thorough assessment in an isolated exam room in the hospital.

The other gaokao taker had been hospitalized for being an asymptomatic COVID case before the exam started, and he also took the exam there on Monday.

Guangzhou’s headquarters on COVID-19 control and prevention said starting Monday’s noon, those leaving the city must provide a negative result of nucleic acid testing done within 48 hours before departure.

Virtual student

On June 3, Hua Zhibing, in her first Weibo post, announced she would study in the Department of Computer Science and Technology at Tsinghua University.

Hua has something that sets her apart from an average college student — she is China’s first virtual student powered by a homegrown large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) system. “I’ve been addicted to literature and art since I was ‘born,’” said Hua in her first vlog post on Weibo. Hua’s appearance, voice and background music in the vlog, as well as her paintings, were all developed on a record-breaking AI modeling system named Wudao 2.0.

Wild elephants

A herd of 15 wild Asian elephants continue to linger in the outskirts of the southwestern city of Kunming, local authorities said on Sunday.

The herd trekked another 12.1 km in 24 hours as of 3:10 p.m. on Saturday to reach the Xiyang Yi Autonomous Township in Jinning District of Kunming, said the on-site command tracking the elephants. (SD-Agencies)