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SCMP

We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.
1. Declassified Chinese operation sheds light on doomed US submarine incident
It is the stuff of science fiction. A giant whirlpool, spanning hundreds of kilometres, suddenly appears in the ocean, threatening anything in its path. But now, after the declassification of a Chinese operation, it appears this particular whirlpool was all too real. And it could be the explanation behind an international incident involving an American nuclear-powered submarine.
2. Chinese scientists hack encryption in quantum computer experiment: paper
Chinese scientists have mounted what they say is the world’s first effective attack on a widely used encryption method using a quantum computer. The breakthrough poses a “real and substantial threat” to the long-standing password-protection mechanism employed across critical sectors, including banking and the military, according to the researchers.
3. Sacred Lion of Venice was made in China, new research suggests

The winged Lion of Venice watches over St Mark’s Square in the northern Italian city, just as it has done for hundreds of years. But now a team of scientists in Italy have found evidence that the statue originated in China.
4. How hot sauce helped scientists see the human brain turn pain into pleasure
Why do some people love spice, while others hate it? That is the question at the centre of a Chinese-American study into how our expectations alter the way our brains respond to sources of pain.
5. Will these be the building blocks of China’s base on the moon?

China has unveiled materials for the construction of a future lunar base that could be sourced directly from the moon and more durable than conventional concrete bricks.
6. Chinese AI tool uncovers new viruses at the speed of a species per second: paper
An artificial intelligence tool has helped scientists discover unknown virus species at an unprecedented speed from data previously uploaded to databases, according to a joint study by researchers in mainland China, Hong Kong and Australia.
7. Milton vs Yagi: why do superstorms kill more people in US than China?

China and the US have each been hit by two major tropical cyclones this year. But while they were similar in terms of strength – and one struck the Chinese mainland harder than the other three – there were hundreds of American deaths, against six in China.


Shanghai’s changing expats, Hong Kong trail sign fallout: SCMP’s 7 highlights

Exhibition on gardens of China, Europe; art director’s top spots: 7 Lifestyle highlights

China builds world’s first ‘coal battery’, war on Alzheimer’s: 7 science highlights

UAE’s Opec exit, why Japan shared Mogami warship design with India: 7 Asia highlights

SCMP Highlights

Doomed US submarine, quantum computer hacking experiment: 7 science highlights

The Seawolf-class attack submarine USS Connecticut was severely damaged in a surprise collision in 2021. Now newly released data on a giant whirlpool in the same area could offer fresh clues to what may have caused the incident. Photo: US Navy

Researchers have proved that the Lion of Venice statue which stands in St Mark’s Square, Venice, originated in China. Photo: Shutterstock

The blocks join in a mortar and tenon design. Photo: CCTV

A largely deserted street in downtown Tampa, Florida during the approach of Hurricane Milton. Photo: AP

China’s Mars exploration battery, US ecologist on ‘kill list’: 7 science highlights

A battery developed by researchers from the University of Science and Technology of China could operate for nearly two Martian months at zero degrees, they say. Photo: Shutterstock

Peter Daszak, president of scientific research organisation EcoHealth Alliance, says he and the non-profit have endured four years of “relentless” and “damaging” attacks. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

Hong Kong was found to be a “longevity outlier”. Photo: Eugene Lee

Chinese nanotech pioneer leaves US, panda stem cell breakthrough: 7 science highlights

Wang Zhonglin (right), who is credited with developing the field of nanoenergy, has returned to China after decades working as a scientist in the US. Photo: Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems

There are thought to be just 2,000 giant pandas left in the wild. Photo: Xinhua

The Chang’e-6 mission soil samples are being stored in a nitrogen-filled cabinet alongside those from the Chang’e-5 mission, at the Lunar Sample Laboratory in Beijing. Photo: CCTV

China’s deadly ICBM, Anita Mui’s mother faces second bankruptcy: SCMP’s 7 highlights

Adeline Chang from Malaysia. Photo: Facebook/Adeline Chang

China’s PLA Rocket Force launches an intercontinental ballistic missile carrying a dummy warhead from an undisclosed location. Photo: AFP

Tam Mei-kam appears at the High Court in 2012. Photo: SCMP

illustration by Lau Ka-kuen

The excavation site of the M27 tomb at Wangzhuang village in Henan province, central China. Photo: Xinhua

Singapore’s Pritam Singh, US sends migrants back to China: 5 weekend reads you missed

Chinese migrants wait to be processed after crossing the US-Mexican border on May 8, 2024, near Jacumba Hot Springs, California. Photo: AP

Migrants rest at a camp after trekking across the Darien Gap from Colombia into Panama in hopes of reaching the US. Photo: AP

A surfer is chased by staff members of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at Shek O beach as Super Typhoon Yagi skirts Hong Kong on September 5. Photo: Antony Dickson

Rick Owens (left), Fecal Matter founders Hannah Rose Dalton and Steven Raj Bhaskaran, along with Michele Lamy were turned away from the Forbidden City. Photo: Instagram/Matières Fécales

The Workers’ Party Secretary-General Pritam Singh attends a press conference in Singapore last year. Photo: Reuters

Mongolian people prepare a boodog feast at the Genghis Khan Retreat in the Orkhon Valley, Mongolia, in October 2024. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

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World

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Science

From a declassified Chinese operation to possible building blocks for a lunar base, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent science reporting


From a declassified Chinese operation to possible building blocks for a lunar base, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent science reporting.


Doomed US submarine, quantum computer hacking experiment: 7 science highlights

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}From a declassified Chinese operation to possible building blocks for a lunar base, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent science reporting

1. Declassified Chinese operation sheds light on doomed US submarine incident

From a declassified Chinese operation to possible building blocks for a lunar base, here are a few highlights from SCMP’s recent science reporting