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China

The United Arab Emirates successfully built a palm tree-shaped artificial island called Palm Jumeirah off the coast of Dubai.

Can Artificial Islands Solve Overcrowding?

Some say yes, others say the increasingly popular projects are too expensive and harmful to the environment

“Today, they started to demolish my studio ‘zuo you’ in Beijing with no precaution,” the long-time dissident wrote on Instagram

Authorities Raze Ai Weiwei’s Beijing Studio

The contemporary art giant is known for his caustic criticism of the Chinese government

A butcher in Meizhou, China

Will China’s Growing Appetite for Meat Undermine Its Efforts to Fight Climate Change?

The country consumes 28 percent of the world’s meat—twice as much as the United States. And that figure is only set to increase.

Lion Forest Garden.

This City in China Has the Most Unesco-Recognized Gardens in the World

Suzhou has more than 60 gardens dating back to 600 AD, and nine have collective World Heritage status

New Research

Oldest Stone Tools Outside Africa Unearthed in China

Six artifacts date to 2.1 million years ago, potentially rewriting what we know about which species led the migration out of Africa

The Deadly Attempt to Assassinate Qin Shi Huang

In 230 BC, the armies of the powerful Qin Shi Huang looked set to conquer all before them. But one neighboring kingdom, Yan, had other ideas

This Chinese Emperor Was Betrayed by His Mother’s Lover

China’s young emperor, Qin Shi Huang, faced a serious threat to his reign in 238 BC. At the heart of it was his mother, Queen Zhao, and her ambitious lover

New Research

Extinct Gibbon Species Discovered in 2,000-Year-Old Chinese Tomb

It’s believed the species represents a new genera of apes that may have died out just 300 years ago

New Research

China’s Plastic Ban Will Flood Us With Trash

New study reports China’s ban on importing foreign plastic could cripple global recycling programs and lead to 111 million tons of homeless plastic

DNA from this panda skull, found in Cizhutuo cave in southern China, is the oldest panda DNA ever sequenced.

This Ancient Panda Skull Belongs to a Previously Unknown Lineage

The fossilized skull represents a panda line that split from today’s fluffy creatures 183,000 years ago

Cool Finds

The Odyssey of the World’s Largest Freshwater Pearl

The gem, which was was recently bought at auction, was likely found in China in the 1700s and was once owned by Russia’s Catherine the Great

New Research

Oldest Footprints Show When Life On Earth Got Legs

Tiny fossil tracks found in South China firmly date appendages back to the Ediacaran period

Zhao Kangmin, the Archaeologist Who Pieced Together China’s Terracotta Warriors

Kangmin, who died earlier this month, was one of the first archaeologists on the scene when the famed relics were discovered in 1974

Who needs fuzz and pudge when you have this slimy smile?

Future of Conservation

The Adorable Chinese Giant Salamander Is Slithering Toward Extinction

The amphibians could actually be five separate species, some of which may already be extinct

Ceramic box base with a Chinese inscription that mentions a place, Jianning Fu, which dates from AD 1162 to 1278. From the Java Sea Shipwreck.

New Research

An 800-Year-Old Shipwreck Helps Archaeologists Piece Together Asia’s Maritime Trade

A new date for the Java Sea shipwreck could shed light on the politics of Chinese trade routes

The National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts

Taiwan Is Now Home to the World’s Largest Performing Arts Center

The National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts encompasses five performance centers and spans 1.5 million square feet

A Tyrannosaurus Rex head on display in Beijing. The country's fossil boom has resulted in a bevy of options for tourists seeking pterosaurs, feathered dinosaurs and early bird specimens.

Ten Chinese Museums Where You Can See a Dinosaur Fossil Up Close

The country’s dino explosion has created a mecca for tourists intent on catching a glimpse of feathered dinos and other prehistoric wonders

An artist's illustration of the Tiangong-1 space lab in orbit.

China’s Tiangong-1 Finally Crashes Back to Earth

Most of the craft likely burned up as it re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere

rice wine

Bottle of 2,000-Year-Old Rice Wine Found in Chinese Tomb

The bronze jug was dated around the late Warring States time period and the Qin Dynasty

In Asia, the biggest threat to elephant survival isn't ivory poaching but habitat loss. Here, men ride Asian elephants in Thailand.

New Research

In a Horrifying New Twist, Myanmar Elephants Are Being Poached For Their Skin

In Asia, the biggest threat to elephant survival has long been habitat loss. That may be changing

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