Some people living with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) have never been able to stand on their own. SMA is a genetic disorder that causes the nerves that connect the brain and muscles to deteriorate over time, making it challenging or even impossible for those affected to contract their muscles. Over time, their muscles shrink through lack of use. Depending on the severity, this condition can confine individuals to a wheelchair or leave them bedridden. It can also make eating a

Hong Kong authorities have confirmed that an unmarried couple arrested on suspicion of child neglect are the biological parents of undocumented infant Danny. A police source told the South China Morning Post on Thursday that Tsang Wai-bong and Kwan Pui-sin were the parents of the two-month-old, citing DNA test results. Danny was born at home in Hong Kong and was not registered with the Immigration Department, as his parents initially declined to submit a DNA test report to co

Researchers at Peking University have claimed a breakthrough in microchip design software, purportedly offering critical support to Huawei Technologies as the tech giant attempts to build cutting-edge semiconductors despite US-led trade restrictions. The innovation, unveiled on Tuesday, comes in the form of a prototype tool for electronic design automation (EDA), according to an announcement by the university’s School of Integrated Circuits. EDA is the highly specialised soft

Washington’s plans to work with allies on warship design and construction face steep opposition at home, but analysts warn that the US must outsource shipbuilding to South Korea and Japan if it wants to close its gap in fleet size with China. The US budget submission for the next financial year includes US$1.85 billion for a study on outsourcing parts of the design and construction of frigates and destroyers, according to media reports last month. USNI News, the news service

An administrator appointed to oversee the affairs of Hong Kong’s fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court has said it will arrange an extraordinary general meeting at the request of displaced owners, but stopped short of providing a time frame. In a written statement on Wednesday, Hop On Management Company said it was studying the Lands Tribunal’s reasons for dismissing its application to extend the statutory deadlines for convening and holding the meeting. It did not indicate whether the

The Soviet “sea monster” is back – and this time it’s for sale. A Chinese company has completed the maiden flight of a passenger craft that skims just above the water’s surface using ground-effect technology, reviving a concept once associated with the Soviet Union’s giant Cold War-era experimental vehicles. Chinese mobility company Navee on Thursday showcased its WaveFly 5X on Lake Taihu in Suzhou, eastern Jiangsu province, as it raced to commercialise what it said was the w

The parents of a Hong Kong baby without legal identity have insisted on not providing DNA proof for birth registration on privacy grounds, with the city’s welfare minister saying authorities would “strive to meet” the family after finally receiving an email reply from them. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han on Tuesday said that the Social Welfare Department had finally received a reply from the parents of two-month old Danny via email on Monday night. The dep

Hong Kong police have arrested the parents of a baby without documentation after they continued to refuse a DNA test for the boy’s birth registration on privacy grounds. The couple were detained on Tuesday following an intervention by the city’s welfare minister, who said authorities only received an email reply from them on Monday evening after five days of unsuccessful attempts to contact them. Secretary for Security Chris Tang Pin-keung said on Tuesday afternoon that polic

The parents of an undocumented baby had their DNA samples taken for tests required for their son’s birth registration following their arrest on Tuesday on suspicion of child neglect, Hong Kong police have revealed. The development on Wednesday came after the Social Welfare Department on Tuesday night said that it had applied to the court for a protection order in the boy’s best interests and had drawn up a care plan. Legislator Reverend Peter Koon Ho-ming said the department

Nvidia has partnered with Chinese robotics champion Unitree Robotics and Singapore robotic hand maker Sharpa to release a new humanoid robot reference design to accelerate innovation in the global humanoid industry, the US chip giant’s CEO, Jensen Huang, announced on Monday. The new design, called H2+ or Isaac GR00T, will support industry-wide humanoid robotics research by streamlining the full development workflow for developers, including data collection, policy training an

A Hong Kong couple has drawn public scrutiny after refusing a DNA test for their baby’s registration following his birth at home, raising potential gaps in the city’s legal and child welfare system. The infant’s father, Tsang Wai-bong, and mother, Kwan Pui-sin, were arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of child neglect, with the Social Welfare Department applying to the court for a protection order over the two-month old baby, Danny. The couple’s troubled history also triggered w

A research team from northwestern China has released a new algorithm that could fundamentally change how drone swarms hunt and destroy enemy targets. The algorithm, known as HG-STR (Heterogeneous Graph Spatio-Temporal Reasoning), promises to allow a fleet of fixed-wing drones to autonomously search a vast battlefield and eliminate every single enemy, even when their communications are being jammed and their vision is blocked. It is the first known algorithm capable of achievi

Amid a flurry of interest in newly declassified US government UFO files, a Chinese researcher has expressed intrigue in an apparent video of a fast-moving, human-shaped object. Zhang Nan, a Beijing-based researcher into unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), said he was particularly fascinated by a nearly five-minute video, captured by a sky-facing US military infrared sensor in Florida in 2020. In the footage labelled “NAG UAP 1 Jun 20”, a humanoid-like shape hovered for a

A Chinese PhD dropout who has become a viral influencer exposing academic misconduct is building a growing army of followers eager to reveal ethical malpractice among scientific researchers. The former PhD candidate in bioscience at the prestigious Beihang University, Geng Hongwei, dropped out in 2025, and became a full-time whistle-blower with over two million followers on an online platform. Geng attracted public attention for a video in April, in which he questioned a pape

The parents of a Hong Kong baby without legal identity have insisted on not providing DNA proof for birth registration on privacy grounds, with the city’s welfare minister saying authorities would “strive to meet” the family after finally receiving an email reply from them. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han on Tuesday said that the Social Welfare Department had finally received a reply from the parents of two-month old Danny via email on Monday night. The dep

Hong Kong is stepping up its efforts to transform into a global tech hub, backing university-led commercialisation with a funding blitz spearheaded by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). Speaking at HKUST’s annual Unicorn Day event on Tuesday, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Sun Dong said the government had committed over HK$3 billion (US$382.8 million) to 73 projects under the RAISe+ (Research, Academic and Industry Sectors One-plus)

China’s parody journals are turning failed experiments, revision fatigue, and academic anxiety into comedy — and finding an audience.

China’s leading cartographic scientist Zhou Chenghu – the former deputy director of the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) – is under investigation for corruption, the country’s top watchdog has confirmed. Zhou is being investigated by central and local anti-corruption bodies for “suspected serious violations of duty”, according to a notice posted on Monday by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspec

Chinese academics specialising in Tibet must find more creative ways to shape the global conversation about the region while remaining strictly aligned with the Communist Party’s ideology. That was the message Li Ganjie, head of the Communist Party’s United Front Work Department, had for researchers who gathered to mark the 40th anniversary of the China Tibetology Research Centre on Wednesday. According to state news agency Xinhua, Li said that the international situation was

Aerodynamics expert Gu Songfen has died at 96. He was the chief designer of China’s J-8 fighter jet family – the first home-grown supersonic fighter jet to counter US high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft. Gu was an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering as well as a researcher at the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). He died in Beijing on Sunday night, according to a statement from AVIC. A farewell ceremony is sched