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Shaanxi province takes multifaceted measures to promote cultural inheritance

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By Gong Shijian, Zhang Danhua, People’s Daily

Shaanxi province in northwest China enjoys a long history and rich cultural heritage. In recent years, Shaanxi has made great efforts to promote cultural inheritance through strengthening cultural heritage preservation, leveraging technology, and facilitating cultural exchanges.
This allows Shaanxi’s profound history and traditions to harmoniously coexist with openness, inclusiveness and modernity.
The Shaanxi Archaeology Museum, with its Tang Dynasty (618-907) styled architectures and garden-like layout, is drawing crowds of archaeology enthusiasts from near and far, exuding grandeur and grace.
“The construction of this archaeology-themed museum took 10 years. It exhibits over 5,000 cultural relics, with each carrying the genes and codes of civilization, as well as the wisdom of ancient people. They are priceless treasures,” said Sun Zhouyong, curator of the museum and head of the Shaanxi Academy of Archaeology.
Improving its capability in museum construction, Shaanxi province has taken huge efforts to protect historical and cultural relics.
Shaanxi province has over 350 museums, averaging one museum for every 100,000 residents, far exceeding the national average. These institutions have become vital windows into the province’s achievements in cultural relics preservation.
In the province, people can seek the earliest bronze ware engraved with Chinese characters “zhong guo,” which means China, at the Baoji Bronze Ware Museum. They can also see how relics are unearthed and repaired at the Emperor Qinshihuang’s Mausoleum Site Museum, and catch a glimpse the splendor of the Tang dynasty at the Shaanxi History Museum.
Shaanxi province attaches high importance to archaeological studies along the Silk Road. It is constantly enhancing its archaeological capability and discipline construction.
Professor Wang Jianxin of Shaanxi’s Northwest University, who is the first Chinese scholar to conduct archaeological investigation in Central Asia, finally unearthed the remains of the Yuezhi Culture and the Kangju Kingdom recorded in the Records of the Historian and the Book of Han after more than 20 years of efforts, making important contributions to archaeological studies along the Silk Road.
Chinese scholars, represented by archaeologists from the Shaanxi Academy of Archaeology, the Northwest University and other institutions have established profound friendship with their counterparts in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan during joint archaeological investigations, sharing with the latter the Chinese experiences of protecting and studying major heritage sites accumulated this century.
Shaanxi, which houses over 110 universities and more than 1,500 scientific research institutions, boasts formidable strength in scientific research. Its innovation capability, driven by a huge talent base, is breathing new life into its cultural riches – from heritage sites standing on the vast land, to scripts penned in ancient texts, and to treasures collected by museums.
Datang Everbright City scenic area, a tourist landmark of Xi’an, Shaanxi province featuring a grand street with characteristics of the Tang Dynasty, launched an augmented reality (AR) project this year, which enables tourists to see virtual objects in the real-world environment and thus offers them an immersive experience.
Wearing a pair of AR goggles, tourists will be able to see carps leaping into the sky, blossoming fireworks, the magnificent Hanyuan Hall of the Daming Palace, the route of Tang Dynasty Buddhist monk Xuanzang’s journey to the west, etc.
At the Xi’an Museum, information about over 100,000 ancient books in its collection has been digitized and recorded in virtual space, including details on authors, graphic designs and copyrights. Visitors to the Shaanxi History Museum can easily view every intricate detail of the museum’s Tang Dynasty murals on their phones by simply scanning a QR code, thanks to the implementation of high-resolution image capture and virtual display technologies.
So far, digitalization is being widely promoted at general museums, libraries, local chronicles museums, archives, galleries and cultural centers in Shaanxi province.
The China (Shaanxi) Pilot Free Trade Zone, which was established seven years ago, has accelerated the development of the province’s cultural services and trade, and facilitated the mutual understanding and recognition among different cultures.
A series of cultural performances as well as art and cultural festivals of Shaanxi province have been staged overseas, bringing local intangible cultural heritage items to foreign audiences, including the Hancheng drum, Ansai folk paper-cutting, Chinese New Year wood painting, opera masks and shadow play. They have fully demonstrated the unique charm of the Chinese culture.
Besides, Shaanxi’s capital city Xi’an has held the Silk Road International Arts Festival attracting artists from over 100 countries and regions, as well as the Silk Road International Film Festival that gathers global directors, writers and actors and discusses the innovation and mutual learning in the sphere of the film industry.

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Trump begins mass layoffs at Voice of America

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The Trump administration has initiated sweeping layoffs at Voice of America (VOA) and other U.S.-funded international broadcasters, effectively dismantling institutions long seen as critical for American influence abroad.

 

On Sunday, contractors working for VOA received an email notification that their employment would be terminated by the end of March. “You must cease all work immediately and are not permitted to access any agency buildings or systems,” the email read, according to multiple staff members who confirmed the development.

 

The move, which comes just a day after all employees were placed on administrative leave, disproportionately affects non-English-language services, where contractors make up a significant portion of the workforce. Many of these contractors are not U.S. citizens and may now face visa issues, further complicating their status in the country.

 

While most full-time staff remain employed for now, they have been told not to work, leaving VOA and its sister organizations in a state of uncertainty. Some services, unable to produce new programming, have resorted to playing music.

 

VOA, founded during World War II, has been a critical tool for U.S. public diplomacy, broadcasting in 49 languages to audiences in countries where press freedom is restricted. However, President Trump signed an executive order on Friday targeting its parent organization, the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), as part of broader federal budget cuts.

 

The cuts extend beyond VOA, affecting other U.S.-funded media entities such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, Radio Farda (which broadcasts in Persian to Iran), and Alhurra, an Arabic-language network launched after the 2003 Iraq invasion. The administration argues that taxpayers should not fund what it calls “radical propaganda,” despite VOA’s longstanding editorial independence.

 

Liam Scott, a VOA journalist covering press freedom and disinformation, expressed concern over the decision. “I’ve covered press freedom for a long time, and I’ve never seen something like what’s happened in the U.S. over the past couple of months,” he wrote on social media.

 

The move has drawn international attention, particularly from China and Russia, which have been expanding their own state-funded media efforts. The Chinese state-run *Global Times* reacted with an editorial declaring that “the monopoly of information held by traditional Western media is being shattered.”

 

Trump’s administration has pursued aggressive cuts across federal agencies, including eliminating most foreign aid and significantly reducing the Department of Education. With input from tech billionaire Elon Musk, Trump has focused on reducing government size to facilitate tax cuts.

 

As the global media landscape shifts, the dismantling of U.S.-funded broadcasters leaves a vacuum that could be filled by rival state-controlled networks. Whether Congress or legal challenges will intervene remains to be seen, but for now, the future of America’s international broadcasting efforts hangs in the balance.

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Judge blocks Trump from deporting non-citizens using wartime law

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A federal judge has temporarily halted the Trump administration’s attempt to deport migrants allegedly linked to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua under a wartime law.

US District Judge James Boasberg issued a restraining order preventing the administration from using the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to expel undocumented migrants accused of gang ties. The order initially protected five individuals challenging the deportation but was later expanded to all affected noncitizens in US custody.

Boasberg also directed that any planes carrying these migrants be returned to the United States. “Any plane containing these folks that is going to take off or is in the air needs to be returned,” he ruled. The restraining order will remain in effect for 14 days or until further court action.

The Trump administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act, citing Tren de Aragua as a terrorist organization that has “unlawfully infiltrated the United States” and is engaging in hostile actions. However, civil rights groups, including the ACLU, argue that the gang’s activities do not meet the legal definition of an invasion.

The Justice Department has appealed the ruling, while the case continues in court.

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China’s new chapter in global innovation

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By Gu Yekai, Liu Yiqing, People’s Daily

At a smart construction project site managed by China State Construction Engineering Corporation, a quiet technological revolution is underway. Amid cranes and concrete, engineers are deploying advanced artificial intelligence (AI) systems that could fundamentally reshape the construction industry.

Li Fengjian, an AI specialistwith Xianyuan Technology, detailed how the company’s latest intelligent system – built on a large model – adapts to complex construction environments.”Engineering machinery equipped with intelligent agents can adjust its operations automatically in response to weather conditions,” Li explained, adding that a spatiotemporal sensing network further enhances the system, providing real-time tracking of both personnel and materials throughout the construction site.

In February this year, Xianyuan Technology rapidly integrated its self-developed model with DeepSeek-R1, effectively blending a general-purpose framework with industry-specific models. This integration, Li noted, has produced a solution capable of delivering expert-level performance in challenging, dynamic environments. The firm is based in the Shanghai Foundation Model Innovation Center, aburgeoning AI incubator that now hosts over 200 innovative enterprises.

China’s technological transformation extends well beyond the construction sector. Overthe past three decades, the country has evolved from its initial forays into internet connectivity to becoming a key player in global digital innovation.

Here, a steady stream of technological innovations are emerging, from the early days of emails and web browsing to the cutting-edge technologies represented by DeepSeek and the dynamic evolution of social media.

Wu Jianping, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering and headof the Zhongguancun Laboratory, pointed out that while China had introduced only one internet standard before 2005, it now contributes to over 200 worldwide. Such strides illustrate the country’s concerted push toward high-level technological self-reliance – a journey marked by both persistence and determination.

Beyond the digital realm, China is makingsignificant inroads in aerospace, new energy, and other high-tech sectors. It has transitioned from being a follower to standing shoulder-to-shoulder with global leaders, and in some areas, even taking the lead. Wu attributed these achievements to a dynamic ecosystem of policy reforms and talent cultivation that encourages creativity and technical expertise at every level.

Amid intensifying international competition, collaborative research and the integration of new technologies with traditional industries are central to China’s high-quality economic development.

Mei Linhai, a researcher at China’s State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Intelligence, remarked that the age of AI calls for continuous exploration. “In this era, everyone is an innovator. Only by persistently pushing the boundaries can we remain at the forefront of both technological and industrial development,” Mei observed.

In the field of general-purpose AI, Mei emphasized that independent innovation is paramount. He advocates for a self-driven industrial ecosystem that leveragesbreakthrough technologies to boost productivity and unlock new possibilities, Mei said.

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