Chip prodigy returns to China, coal waste used for critical minerals: 7 science highlights

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. Chinese archaeologist who discovered 5,000-year-old city pleads guilty to corruptionLiu Bin, a Chinese archaeologist credited with discovering a vast 5,000-year-old prehistoric city that rewrote the history of Chinese civilisation, has pleaded guilty to taking bribes and embezzlement.2. Chip prodigy Da Bo returns to China after his role in TSMC’s 3nm plant in JapanA Chinese chip pioneer who made his name in Japan – sweeping its top awards and developing the core components of the world’s most advanced production line – has returned to China, along with his team of researchers.3. Huawei, scientists build 2D parallel computing chip that rewrites Moore’s LawChinese researchers are using two-dimensional materials such as molybdenum disulfide to pack more transistors onto microchips. Photo: Nanjing UniversityChinese researchers, in collaboration with Huawei Technologies, have built the world’s first parallel processor using a two-dimensional (2D) semiconductor.4. Chinese scientists create self-deciding algorithm for drone swarmA research team from northwestern China has released a new algorithm that could fundamentally change how drone swarms hunt and destroy enemy targets.5. Why China is weaponising a ‘towering’ hybrid crop to farm where wheat failsThe crop can grow up to 1.6 metres high, taller than some humans. Photo: qq.comScientists in China are growing towering hybrids of wheat and rye – taller even than some humans – in the deserts of its western Xinjiang region.6. Concerns mount in China’s space sector that Musk’s Starship will be a failureThere are growing doubts within China’s space sector that Starship, the world’s most powerful rocket being developed by SpaceX in the United States, will ever overcome its engineering and financial challenges and deliver for founder and CEO Elon Musk.7. Why China is looking to coal waste as a source of critical metalsAmid a global energy shortage, coal piles sit near a chemical plant in Datong, as China turns coal into critical metals. Photo: APChina is turning coal waste into a source of critical metals including lithium, gallium and germanium, leveraging its advantages in extraction technology and industrial infrastructure.Further Reading