Moon samples collected by China will be on display at the 2025 Osaka Expo, which is scheduled to open on April 13 in Osaka, Japan, marking the first time for samples collected from both sides of the moon to be showcased together in a foreign country.
In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Hu Hao, chief designer of China’s Chang’e-6 mission, which was the first to bring back samples from the far side of the moon, shared insights on the mission and the upcoming exhibition.
“I think it is of great significance to showcase China’s lunar soil samples at the China Pavilion. It symbolizes China’s great aerospace capabilities and its technological advancement, and it also reflects our confidence in the peaceful use of outer space. Our efforts aim to contribute to the common development of the international community,” said Hu.
Hu noted a detailed observation indicates there are some differences between the samples from the two sides of the moon, adding that the differences are quite significant when viewed by a scientist, though they look somewhat similar from appearance.
“Previously, as no one had ever collected samples from the far side of the moon, scientists have been highly interested in these samples. Meanwhile, it was a great challenge for us. Now, with the Chang’e-6 samples, our understanding of the Moon has deepened significantly,” said the scientist.
On June 25, 2024, China’s Chang’e 6 lunar probe brought nearly 2 kilograms of lunar samples to the Earth for the first time in human history.
These samples were collected from the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA Basin), the largest, deepest and oldest basin on the moon’s far side.
Themed “Designing Future Society of Our Lives,” the 2025 Osaka Expo will be held from April 13 to Oct 13.
Covering around 3,500 square meters, the China Pavilion ranks among the largest foreign self-built facilities at the expo.
Lunar samples collected by China to be displayed at Osaka Expo
Hubei released China’s first pricing program for medical services with brain-computer interface (BCI) technologies this week, accelerating the cutting-edge sci-tech’s pace entering people’s livelihood.
The Healthcare Security Administration of Hubei Province set the maximum prices for the implantation and removal of an invasive BCI implant at 6,552 yuan (about 899.7 U.S. dollars) and 3,139 yuan respectively, and the highest price for a non-invasive BCI adaptation service at 966 yuan.
The BCI technologies are bringing revolutionary changes in the treatments of many patients, according to Professor Jiang Xiaobing with the neurosurgery department under the Union Hospital affiliated to the Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.
“For patients with hemiplegia, blindness, or aphasia, we can use BCIs to restore some of their physiological functions. And we can also use BCI technologies to treat patients with Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, or Alzheimer’s disease. And currently we don’t have very effective therapies to cope with these diseases. So BCIs are bringing hopes for these patients,” said Jiang.
“The next three to five years are a critical period in our development of BCI technologies. Their applications to the treatments of, say, cancers and paralyses are definitely different, so relevant products have to go through corresponding procedures (before entering the end market),” said Jiang.
In March, the National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA) released a pricing guideline for neural system care services, specifying BCIs in an independent category.
According to the NHSA, this move aims to boost the clinical application of the cutting-edge technology to benefit patients in need, against the backdrop of BCIs’ rapid development in recent years.
The guideline also outlines the pricing of invasive and non-invasive BCIs respectively based on the distinctive features of the two BCI approaches.
The guideline will pave the way for the swift translation of mature BCI technology into clinical use in the future, and offer a compass for localities nationwide to manage relevant medical services, said the NHSA.
China’s first medical service pricing for brain-computer interfaces issued
AloJapan.com