Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.

Coming up on the program this evening...

The King of the Netherlands has arrived in Beijing to begin a tour of China.

The annual Beijing-Tokyo forum is underway this weekend here in Beijing.

The South Korean military has confirmed it fired warning shots at a North Korean patrol boat this weekend.

In the 2nd half of the hour, we'll be bringing you the highlights from the world of Science and Technology this past week.

In sports... New Zealand teen Lydia Ko is back to world number-1 after winning this weekend's LPGA event inTaiwan.

In entertainment... a Chinese film takes a major award at the Chicago International Film Festival.

Top NewsBeijing-Tokyo Forum opens in BeijingAnchorMore than 500 people are gathered in Beijing to attend the annual Beijing-Tokyo Forum.

This year's event includes discussions about the current Japanese government's new defense initiatives.

CRI's Guo Yan has more.

ReporterThis year's forum is focused on the topic of developing a sound and healthy China-Japan relationship.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda attended the opening ceremony and made a positive impression on the forum.

"No matter whether the political environment was good or bad, the forum has not been suspended. In the forums, people from China and Japan are able to exchange opinions on the problems of common interests. Especially, many non-governmental figures joined in the forum and gave frank opinions. I think these are important reference for both countries' governments."Apart from traditional topics like trade and culture, security will also be discussed at this year's forum.

The Japanese government passed a new security bill last month, which allows Japan to send troops overseas for the first time since the end of World War Two.

The bills have triggered widespread protests at home and abroad.

On this issue, Fukuda says failure to properly recognize history is irresponsible, but he expects China and Japan will find new solutions to help solve problems.

" I think the current China-Japan relations should not continue for a long time. The two countries should be open minded and build a common target to make efforts to improve the relationship"Zhou Mingwei is director of the China International Publishing Group, co-host of the forum.

He also shared the same notion with Yasuo Fukuda.

"Under new circumstances, learning how to deal with conflicts and crisis is an important issue. The Japanese government has passed a new security bill and many new problems have cropped up. Under such circumstances, it's necessary for the two countries to find solutions to deal with these problems."The Former Japanese Prime Minister also calls for more bilateral communication at various fields.

"I think the communication is not enough, so there should be more, no matter if it's political or civil communication. The NHK Symphony Orchestra will present a show in Beijing in November. I hope such activities can be a regular communication action, rather than news in the media."The forum has been held annually since 2005 to gather elites from both countries to exchanges views and enhance trust.

This year it is jointly organized by China International Publishing Group, and Genron NPO, a Japanese think tank.

For CRI, I'm Guo Yan.

Dutch King's China visit signifies closer China-EU relations: ExpertAnchorA leading European observer here in China is suggesting the arrival of the Dutch King for a 5-day visit to China this week is another sign of the growing ties China is fostering with Europe.

CRI's Wang Mengzhen has more.

ReporterAs part of his 5-day stay in China, Netherlands King Willem-Alexander and his wife will make stops in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou.

He is also due to travel to Shaanxi to tour through the Loess Plateau while making a stop in the city of Yan'an, which the Communist Party of China maintained its wartime headquarters.

The King's time in Beijing with Xi Jinping is the Chinese President's 2nd brush with the European monarchy this month, having just returned from the UK where he and his wife were the guests of Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace.

Professor Feng Zhongping, European Studies expert with the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, says the meetings with Europe's royalty has significant value from a public relations perspective.

"Even thought these monarchs don't have much political power in their country, their role still conveys an important symbolic meaning. Not only have the British and Dutch royal families reached out to the Chinese government, other monarchs from Sweden and Belgium have also either visited China or invited Chinese leaders to their countries. I think this is a sign European countries are racing to forge closer ties with China."Apart from the Dutch King's time in China, German chancellor Angela Merkel is due to make a stop in China this coming week.

French President Fran?ois Hollande is due to make a trip to China in early November.

Professor Feng Zhongping says these trips are a good opportunity for the Chinese side to make Europe more comfortable with China.

"The high-level reciprocal visits are an opportunity to build more political trust between state leaders. Only by promoting political trust, economic and trade cooperation, as well as people-people exchanges, can we guarantee a closer China-EU relationship. Right now, China-EU cooperation is on a fast track. It's the result of strong efforts from both sides."The Dutch King is here in China as part of a broader delegation from the Netherlands, which includes government officials and business leaders.

A number of Dutch companies, including KLM, Shell and the Port of Rotterdam have representatives on the trip.

Its expected several business deals in areas such as agriculture, finance, sports and tourism will be finalized as part of Willem-Alexander's time in China.

His time in Shaanxi is being highlighted as one area of significant interest, as its expected the Chinese side will be pressing for more cooperation from the Dutch delegation when it comes to the environment.

Shaanxi is on the edge of the Gobi Desert, and is an area the government has been focused on in its attempt to stop soil erosion and help clean up the air.

It's also an area where Xi Jinping spent 7-years as a "zhiqing," or educated youth, in the 1960's and 70's.

For CRI, I am Wang Mengzhen.

Willem-Alexander Attends Football Promotional Activity in BeijingKing Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands has begun a 5-day visit to China, attending an activity in Beijing to promote football across the country.

The King has been joined at the event by retired Dutch national goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, who says football in China needs to be developed and nurtured.

"I think it's sustainable. Tha's the right working xxx. It's not about buying big players into the super league. It's focus on the grassroots football and schools and getting good coaches that can help. And grow better players in China."Huang Jianxiang, head of Chinese sports marketing agency Sport8 International, says they're working with their Dutch partners to get more young people in China involved in organized football.

"All we have to do is to let Children have fun in football. That's very important and everything starts from having fun. And then the right method, the right way to organise a club. A training session is also very important. So we are going to work with our Dutch partners for years to help more Chinese children, their parents and their teachers to know what is the right thing to do when we want our Chinese children to play football."The Chinese government launched an action plan last year to try to upgrade China's skill level in international football through youth development programs.

Despite having the largest population in the world to choose from, China's national men's football team currently ranks 81st in the world.

German economist positive about Sino-European relations after Xi's UK visitChinese President Xi Jinping's time in the UK this past week has also drawn attention from German economic circles, with some suggesting the trip will have a significant impact on Sino-European relations.

CRI's Min Rui has more.

Dr. Horst Loechel is a professor of economics at the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.

He says closer cooperation with China is of great benefit to the UK and even to the whole of Europe.

"I think that China is willing to cooperate with Europe. China is the second largest economy in the world, economically and politically, and the UK is also an important country in the Europe. Xi Jinping's visit to the UK is of significant importance."The professor notes that the UK's joining hands with China will encourage other European countries to reconsider their relationship with China; therefore it could trigger changes in international order.

He also points out the German city of Frankfurt has welcomed the Renminbi's internationalization, which will help fertilize and expand China-EU cooperation and investments in the future.

"The renminbi's internationalization in London, the UK's financial capital, is very important financially. Cooperation between China and other European countries, including Germany, is also very open. The German city of Frankfurt is also a platform for renminbi internationalization. This will endure and is no exception."Germany is the largest trading partner in the European Union for China.

Untapped business opportunities can be found mainly in the consumer goods market, particularly in the food and clothing sectors.

Dr. Loechel says Germany will also benefit from the China promoted Belt and Road initiative in the future.

"The implementation of the Belt and Road initiative, though it takes some time, will significantly promote trade between Europe and China. Countries along the Belt and Road will all benefit."It's been reported that German Chancellor Angela Merkel will pay an official visit to China on Oct. 29th and 30th.

Topics of bilateral trade and investment are said to be top the agenda during the Chancellor's meeting with Chinese officials.

For CRI, I'm Min Rui.

Retired Official on Beijing-Tokyo ForumAnchorA retired Chinese official who helped launch the annual Beijing-Tokyo Forum over a decade ago says the event, which has been held once-again this weekend, has done a lot to help maintain links between China and Japan.

CRI's Tu Yun reports.

ReporterAs a founder of the Beijing-Tokyo Forum, Zhao Qizheng says it was originally designed to be a non-governmental communication platform amid China-Japan relations that featured "cold politics but warm economics."Zhao Qizheng says the forum itself has some unique advantages to help foster communication between the two governments.

"When we first started it, non-governmental exchanges were the popular way for the two sides to get together. But events like this forum took things a step further by adding retired government officials into the mix. These people have a sound knowledge of China-Japan relations and know how to communicate with the Japanese participants in a proper way. They also have the ability to more-easily inform the governments of the day about the progress made at the forum."Among this year's discussions is the role of the media in China-Japan relations.

Zhao Qizheng suggests media organizations from both sides can do more to help improve bilateral ties.

"Chinese and Japanese media outlets should not be held responsible for the current souring of bilateral ties. But on the other hand, they should be expected to do more to help promote ties, including reporting on each other's country from a more elevated perspective. There is a big picture and it should be always kept in mind that friendship benefits both."The 75-year-old is also calling on young people to continue what his generation has started.

"It's inevitable that those of us at this year's meeting will eventually have to quit because of our age. But right now, there still not enough younger people able to take over the job. What they need is not only the language skills, but also experience. I hope more young people will join us to promote exchanges between China and Japan. I'm looking forward to them picking up the baton."Zhao Qizheng served as the Minister of the State Council Information Office from 1998 to 2005.

From there, he was appointed as vice-Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the country's advisory body.

The Beijing-Tokyo Forum first began in August 2005.

For CRI, I'm Tu Yun.

To mark 70th anniversary, Ban Ki-moon says UN Charter must remain our guideAnchorMore than 300 landmarks in 75 countries are being lit up in UN blue this weekend.

This comes as the United Nations celebrates the 70th anniversary of its founding.

CRI's UN correspondent Su Yi has more.

ReporterIn his remarks ahead of UN Day, Ban Ki-moon said "no single country or organization can address today's challenges alone," and "the timeless values of the UN Charter must remain our guide."When it comes to the contributions of the UN since its founding 70 years ago, the UN chief told reporters that the UN helped to end colonialism, pushed forward development, and helped more people to live with dignity.

"On a daily basis, the UN has been delivering and making lot of differences in saving human lives, vaccinating more than 60 percent of the world's children, so that their lives can be saved from preventable diseases. We have been deploying peacekeeping operations. We have been working very hard to realize women empowerment. We have been trying to prevent regional conflicts, thereby saving millions of human lives. We are still today delivering to tens of millions of people their life-saving assistance."Among the landmarks taking part in the 'Turn the World UN Blue' campaign will be the Great Pyramids in Egypt, the Empire State Building in New York, the Great Wall of China, Russia's Hermitage Museum, and the ancient city of Petra in Jordan.

In an interview with Chinese media outlets earlier this year, Ban Ki-moon said as the world's second largest economy and a peace-loving country, China will continue to make a lot of contributions to this rapidly changing world.

The Chinese government has recently pledged to contribute 10 million dollars to UN Women to support its work around the world.

Lakshmi Puri, UN Assistant Secretary General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, says the support bears important political and financial value.

"China's generous gesture to offer 10 million dollars to our core resources means we will be reinforced financially; our resource gap will be closed somewhat. We will be enabled to do work effectively at the global level, at the regional level and in developing counties through our operational programs on gender equality and women empowerment, supporting them, empowering them. This is going to be strongly benefited by the contribution of China which has brought high political value as well as financial value."Apart from the global light show, a concert has been held at the General Assembly Hall.

It is the second year in a row for pianist Lang Lang, UN Messenger of Peace, to join the concert at the UN Headquarters to mark UN Day.

"We hope to convey our good wishes through the concert to mark UN Day. We hope more people can support the work of the UN. The UN has many goals each year, and we are on the way to realize the established ones. I hope we are able to realize every single of them eventually."The United Nations Day, marked annually on Oct. 24, is dedicated to the UN's global efforts and achievements since its founding on this date in 1945.

For CRI, I'm Su Yi in New York.

Syria's Assad says ready for early elections "when necessary"Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has told Russian lawmakers he's ready to call for presidential elections "if the Syrian people support the idea."Assad has also expressed a willingness to discuss amendments to Syria's constitution and hold parliamentary elections.

He's made the suggestion while meeting with a Russian Member of Parliament in Damascus.

Moscow is one of Assad's key foreign allies.

Russia has also been pushing for elections in Syria.

Meetings this past week among diplomats from Russia, the US, Saudi Arabia and Turkey failed to make any major breakthrough on how bring the fighting in Syria to an end.

The future of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad continues to be a major sticking point.

S.Korea Fires Warning Shots at North's BoatIt's been revealed the South Korean navy fired warning shots at a North Korean patrol boat in the Yellow Sea this weekend.

South Korea's military says the boat crossed into its territorial waters on Saturday afternoon, prompting the South Korean side to open fire.

No casualties have been reported.

The North Korean side is condemning it as a "grave military provocation."It's come at the same time a 2nd round of family reunions takes place this weekend at the Mount Kumgang Resort in North Korea.

At this point, the reunion of families separated by the end of fighting in the Korean War have not been affected.

First ever World Indigenous Games gets off to a rocky start in BrazilAnchorThe first-ever World Indigenous Games are underway in Brazil.

However, the competition among the athletes is already being overshadowed by demonstrations against the embattled government of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.

CRI's Poornima Weerasekara has more.

ReporterBilled as the indigenous peoples' answer to the Olympics, the World Indigenous Games has drawn around 2,000 native people from dozens of Brazilian tribes and nearly 20 countries to Brazil.

The games, in the northern Brazilian city of Palmas, kicked-off on Friday with a colorful parade with teams dressed in straw skirts, feathers and Artic furs.

Eduardo Arellanes, a participant from Mexico says the games help to bring indigenous culture onto the world stage.

"The games like ours did not have a place to be shown to the world and we could not share experiences with other countries. So the Indigenous Games are a great opportunity for indigenous people who were always separated from traditional sports."The games include events like archery, spear tossing, canoeing and sprinting in teams through a forest while hoisting a 200-pound log.

There will also be non-competitive events showcasing the different traditions of indigenous ethnic groups.

This includes a football-style game called xikunahity, in which the ball is controlled only with the head.

But the games got off to a rocky start.

Spectators carrying anti-government banners protested loudly during the opening ceremony.

Many in the audience booed and hissed as Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff walked inWenatanan, who is from Brazil says Rouseff has long had a frosty relationship with Brazil's native communities.

"In general, Rousseff is not doing very much for our Brazil. There are lots of children dying, human beings dying. But our Brazil is very rich, so we need someone who shows some responsibility for our Brazil. "Protesters say Rousseff's government is too friendly with big agricultural businesses that are taking over land that belongs to native tribes.

Brazil is home to nearly 900,000 indigenous people, who speak more than 270 languages.

The United Nations says native tribes make up about 5 percent of the world's population, with some 370 million people.

But many indigenous languages and customs face the risk of disappearing.

The multinational sporting event, with teams from the Philippines, Pakistan, Australia, Russia an Ethiopia among others aims to raise understanding and respect for the cultural and spiritual traditions of native tribes world-wide.

Organizers plan to make it a regular fix in the international sporting calendar, with the planet's oldest and most endangered civilizations coming together every four years.

The nine-day event will wrap up on the first of November.

For CRI I'm Poornima WeerasekaraGlaciers in the Italian Alps are melting fasterAnchorGeologists studying the glaciers in the Italian Alps are issuing a warning ahead of this year's UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, suggesting the snow-capped landscape we're accustomed to seeing now may be gone before in the next two generations.

CRI's Wang Wei reports.

ReporterThe vast Monte Rosa on the border between Italy and Switzerland is the second highest mountain in the Alps and a paradise for skiers and snowboarders.

But it's also a prime spot for a group of Italian geologists to observe a shrinking glacier on the mountain, which they warn could disappear completely in a few decades.

Roberto Seppi, Geologist from University of Pavia is worried about the melting of glaciers on the Italian side of the Alps, which is carrying away the wealth of water that is conserved in the glacier.

"The shrinking of glaciers in the Alps and across the world is reducing our great reserves of fresh water - fresh water that also feeds our rivers on the plains, our agriculture in the summer months."While the number of glaciers in Italy is increasing, it does not suggest that the situation has improved.

On the contrary, it is a result of ice fragmentation, which is a phenomenon linked to global warming,according to Gianfranco Bologna, scientific director of WWF-Italy and co-author of the Hot Ice report on the Alpine glaciers in Italy.

Geologists have seen them retreating slowly for over a century, and much more sharply in the last 50 years.

Giovanni Mortara, a geologist from the National Research Council, has spent a large part of the year forecasting a further reduction of Alpine glaciers.

"We've seen a substantial reduction in the thickness of the ice, a couple of metres a year, and this year we're even talking about some 10 centimetres a day."Ice is considered an important part of the water cycle, and is particularly vulnerable to climate change. The progressive impact of climate change on the glaciers has become a critical issue.

Silvio Seno, Geologist at the University of Pavia, predicts a rise in temperature of between one and five degrees by the end of the century.

"Naturally the effect on the glaciers, in either the more positive or more negative scenarios, would be very serious and would mean the Alpine glaciers' disappearance."The further melting of Alps' glaciers would pose even more threats to Italy's environment and economy.

Mortara suggests that effective measures sohuld be adopted to prevent the further deterioration of glaciers in Italy and worldwide.

"It's possible that our children and grandchildren will look upon completely different scenery. If they come to the Belvedere there probably won't be any ice left here, or there'll only be a small bit, in the highest areas."For CRI, I'm Wang Wei.

Twin Panda Cubs from Chengdu Chosen by UNDP as Image AmbassadorA pair of twin panda cubs born in Sichuan last month have been chosen by the United Nations Development Program as its image ambassador.

The announcement has been made at a conservation event this weekend at the Chengdu Panda Base put on by the UNDP.

Zhang Zhihe, director of Chengdu Panda Base, says panda cubs are a great tool to raise environmental awareness.

"We always talk about the significance of environment protection, but not everyone agrees. So it is necessary to choose a species that is influential and persuasive enough to convince people and raise their awareness about environmental protection. The giant panda fits that bill well."The young cubs chosen by the UNDP as its image ambassador are one of 7 pairs of twins artificially bred by the center in Chengdu.

The Chengdu Panda Base has artificially bred over 100 giant panda cubs in captivity since it was established in 1987.

Headline NewsSyria's Assad says ready for early elections "when necessary"Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has told Russian lawmakers he's ready to call for presidential elections "if the Syrian people support the idea."Assad has also expressed a willingness to discuss amendments to Syria's constitution and hold parliamentary elections.

He's made the suggestion while meeting with a Russian Member of Parliament in Damascus.

Moscow is one of Assad's key foreign allies.

Russia has also been pushing for elections in Syria.

Meetings this past week among diplomats from Russia, the US, Saudi Arabia and Turkey failed to make any major breakthrough on how bring the fighting in Syria to an end.

The future of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad continues to be a major sticking point.

Myanmar picks 10 firms as players of stock marketA total of 10 companies have been selected to be part of Myanmar's first ever equity market.

The Yangon Stock Exchange is due to open in early December.

Myanmar's Economic Bank will operate the exchange in partnership with the Tokyo Stock Exchange and Daiwa Securities.

Transactions will be have to be done in the local currency, the kyat.

Myanmar's government is preparing to block all transactions in foreign currencies at the end of next month in a bid to try to curb the devaluation of the local currency, which has lost some 40-percent in value against the US dollar over the past calandar-year.

The Yangon Stock Exchange is due to open a few weeks after Myanmar's general election on November 8th.

Voters go to polls in Ukraine regional electionRegional and local elections are underway across Ukraine.

However, voting is not taking place in the disputed regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

29 candidates are competing for the position of Kiev's mayor.

However, current mayor and former heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko is expected to win that race.

Zara Founder briefly Overtakes Bill Gates as Richest Man in WorldNew analysis from Forbes is suggesting Zara founder Amancio Ortega briefly overtook Bill Gates for a short while this past week to become richest man on earth.

The 79-year old Spainyard, who formed Zara out of his original company Inditex in 1975, saw his personal fortune rise to 79.9-billion US dollars earlier this week.

However, a sharp rise in Microsoft's share-price and a downturn in the value of the euro on Friday saw Gates re-emerge as the world's richest man heading into the weekend.

Inditex share price has risen by nearly 40-percent this year, making Zara the world's biggest clothing retailer.

The company, now valued at over 100-billion US dollars, is the biggest in Spain.

Bacon and other processed meat are a cancer risk, claims WHO reportThe WHO is due to publish a report suggesting bacon, sausages and other processed meat are a cancer risk.

It's being reported the WHO will rank processed meat in the same category as cigarettes, alcohol and asbestos.

The same report is also reportedly going to warn that eating red meat increases the risk of bowel cancer.

The report has been compiled by the WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer.

Weekly Sci-tech ReportAnchorIt's time for our weekly Sci-Tech feature.

In this week's report, we'll tell you about Apple's latest move to try to tackle pollution in China, as well as how Swiss scientists are allowing people to experience independent flight.

Here's CRI's Wenjie.

ReporterApple Launches New Energy Programs in ChinaApple has announced two new programs designed to reduce the air pollution caused by its manufacturing partners in China.

The programs are designed to significantly reduce greenhouse gas pollution between now and 2020.

The amount of greenhouse gases Apple hopes to eliminate through its industrial program would be the equivalent of pulling 4 million passenger vehicles off the road.

As part of the plan, Apple is going to build large-scale solar power projects in the northern, eastern and southern regions of China.

Apple's main product producer in China, Foxconn, is also part of the new program.

Apple currently runs 19 corporate offices and 24 retail outlets in China.

The company claims it's powering 100 percent of those operations in China and the US through renewable energy.

===Apple releases iOS update with over 150 new emojiApple has also released a new software update for its iPhones.

The firm's latest iOS 9.1 update has added over 150 new emoji's, including a taco, cheese wedge, hot dog, unicorn and a middle finger icon.

The update also includes updates to Siri for iPhones and iPads.

It allows users to activate the voice-controlled assistant by simply saying 'Hey, Siri' at their devices.

Other major changes include updates to the Live Picture features on iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus devices.

===Bird simulator to recreate flight sensationSwiss scientists have created a bird simulator, complete with a virtual reality headset, to help recreate the sensation of flight.

The device, named "Birdly", lets users see through the eyes of a kite flying high over New York city.

"You really think that you will crash down when you lean forward. You really think that you will fall. It was really cool."Designers of "Birdly" say they believe this is the closest a human can get to experience independent flight while staying firmly on the ground.

The simulator was originally created as an experiment by a team from the Zurich University of Art and Design in Switzerland.

Realistic graphics for the machine have been provided by an American company specializing in 3D renderings of cities.

===Autonomous tech takes drones to new heightsAn exhibition featuring Unmanned Aerial Vehicle technology, or drones, has taken place in London this past week.

The two day show has seen a series of new and innovative applications for drone technology on display.

Yannic van Moerkerk is a technician from Netherlands-based Aerialtronics, which was one of the companies displaying its products.

"A pilot is not really a pilot anymore; he is an operator of a system. He sends the system to wherever the system needs to go and he can pre-programme the flight route in-air, he can change the flight route, but he doesn't actually have to fly the system, the only thing he has to do is make sure the thing operates safely in a safe environment and make sure he has all the documents he needs. "Using 3D maps, drones are quickly gaining the ability to fly on their own and avoid no fly zones or structures on the ground.

Chinese drone-maker DJI was part of this year's show.

China is quickly becoming one of the biggest drone producers in the world.

===Scientists: prawn sex-change boosts male yieldsScientists in Israel are using so-called "gene silencing" to change the sex of female prawn larvae to males.

The move is meant to increase the yields for prawn farmers, as males are faster-growing and meatier.

The method involves the female giant freshwater prawns with a molecule that silences a gene, ensuring that all its fertilized eggs will hatch as males.

Professor Amir Sagi with Ben Gurion University says they contend their new method is not genetic modification.

"The advantage of this technology is that with using all male with that technology is that we do not have to use any chemicals nor any hormones and it is a non-GMO, saying that it is not genetically modifying the organism."Researchers say a well-trained individual can inject as many as 2-thousand prawns a day.

Those prawns will be able to produce thousands of eggs over several cycles.

===News scan detects early signs of schizophreniaUK doctors say they've been able to devise a method to allow doctors to get a much earlier diagnosis of schizophrenia in patients.

Neurologists from Imperial College and Kings College are using a new form of brain scans to make the earlier detection, focusing on cells in the brain which are there to help repair any damage to a person's brain.

The cells, called microglia, respond to brain damage and infections.

They also help re-arrange connections between brain cells.

UK researchers say they've found people with schizophrenia tend to have higher levels of microglia compared to non-schizophrenics.

Dr. Oliver Howes is part of the research team at Kings College in London.

"This is the first indication of a new approach of treating schizophrenia and the thing that I think is striking is that over the last 60 years we've had no new fundamentally different approaches to treating this illness and we desperately need new avenues and new approaches."Researchers say this discovery, while not likely to produce a cure, could lead to earlier treatment of people diagnosed as schizophrenic, helping them avoid the worst symptoms of the neurological disorder later in life.

The findings may also provide a better understand of other mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder.

===China's hi-res mapping satellite sends back more visual dataA mapping satellite launched by Chinese authorities for civilian mapping programs has now taken pictures of all of China's land territory.

The Ziyuan III satellite, launched in January 2012, has produced images of 190 million square kilometers for mapping, land, mining and water conservancy.

It ended China's reliance on the use of foreign hi-resolution satellite images.

China plans to build a remote-sensing mapping satellite system in 10 to 15 years. Three follow-up mapping satellites are already in the pipeline.

===China's Didi launches bus-booking serviceChinese ride-hailing app Didi Chuxing has launched an online bus-booking service to its platform.

So far, the bus-booking service has attracted more than 500-thousand subscribers across China.

The service charge on a pay-as-you go bus trip now starts between 7 to 13 yuan, or 1 to 2 U.S. dollars per ride, which is three to five times the price of public buses.

Didi has already provided taxi-hailing, chauffeur and ride-sharing services.

It also dominates the Chinese online taxi-hailing market.

The company plans to bring the bus-booking service to more Chinese cities and invest more to launch new routes.

===Luxembourg invented super microscopeA high-powered "super microscope" has been developed by the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology.

Dr. David Dowsett is one of the researchers who helped create the high-powered device.

"A human hair is about 50 to 100 microns in diameter. The resolution of our microscope images is half a nanometer and the resolution of our SIMS images is about 10 nanometres. So, that's about 100,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair."Researchers are now working with big pharmaceutical companies to use the "super microscope" for commercial uses, such as seeing whether shampoo actually penetrates human hair.

They're also hoping the nano-particle-level technology can also detect whether a drug the big pharmacy companies have produced is present within a cell.

===Solar power cheaper than conventional electricity in three years: Australian reportResearch coming out of Australia is suggesting new advancements in solar power battery technology could make solar power the cheapest way to provide electricity in the country in the next 3-years.

A report by Australia's Climate Council is suggesting the storage capacity of batteries for solar power devices could grow by as much as 50-fold over the next 10-years.

US-based Tesla and one of its rival battery makers are currently working to test new high-capasity lithium-ion batteries in Australia.

If successful, the Climate Council suggests the new technology could make solar power a cheaper option for home-owners by 2018.

Australia currently has some of the highest retail prices for electricity in the world.

==And that brings us to the end of this edition of our weekly science and technology feature.

Thank you for listening and I hope you enjoy the show.

I'm Wenjie. See you next week.

SportsGolf: Lin Xiyu cards top-10 finish in TaiwanIn golf,Guangzhou-native Lin Xiyu has earned her 3rd top-10 finish of this year's LPGA season, finishing tied for 6th at the now-concluded Taiwan Championships in Taipei.

Lin fired a 2-under-70 today to finish tied with American Paula Creamer at 7-under for the tournament.

But the big story of the day was Lydia Ko.

The 18-year-old captured her 10th win on the LPGA Tour with a blistering final round 7-under-65 to win by 9-strokes, both the largest margin of victory this season.

It also puts her back in the top position heading into the Championships in Florida later on this year, jumping ahead of South Korean Imbee Park as the world number-1.

Her victory continues what has already been an historic season for the young New Zealander.

She started off the season by becoming the youngest player in the history of the game, male or female, to reach the Number-1 ranking in the world.

Meanwhile,China's Feng Shanshan struggled in her final round, going 1-over to finish her tournament tied for 14th at minus-2.

The women now head to Hainan for this week's Blue Bay LPGA event.

---On the men's side in southern China,Justin Rose has taken this year's European Tour Hong Kong Open.

Lucas Bjeeregaard had a chance to force Rose into a playoff on the 18th, but could only muster par after Rose bogeyed the final hole, leaving the young Norwegian one-stroke back in 2nd.

Rose, who finished the tournament at 18-under, is likely to move up from 7th to 5th in the world rankings.

--At the European Tour Challenger event in the city of Foshan in Guangdong,It was Spainyard Borja Virto-Astudillo hanging on for a 2-stroke victory, carding a 2-under-70 to outlast Sweden's Bjorn Akesson.

The top Chinese golfer was Zhang Huilin, who finished tied for 24th after a 4-under-68 today to finish the tournament at minus-6.

--On the PGA tour,Brett Stegmaier remains atop leaderboard after third round of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas.

Stegmaier, in just his fifth start on tour, sits at minus-13, one stroke ahead of fellow American Morgan Hoffman.

CSL updatesIn football,Guangzhou Evergrande has failed to clinch this year's Chinese Super League title after drawing with Shandong Luneng 2-2, making for an interesting final round.

Second placed Shanghai SIPG earned a 2-nil victory over Changchun Yatai.

This leaves SIPG just two points back of Guangzhou heading into the final match.

A loss by Guangzhou on the road in Beijing against Guo'an, combined with a Shanghai victory at home against Liaoning next weekend, will see SIPGAfter the matches, Guangzhou remains at the top of the league with 64 points, surpassing Shanghai SIPG only 2 points.

The 3rd place slot for the Asian Champions League is also up for grabs, with Shandong now sitting in the position after Beijing went down to Tianjin 4-nil.

Both Beijing and Shandong are on 59-points, but Luneng has the advantage on goal differential.

Manchester derby set for tonight in English Premier LeaugeIn football,This weekend's much-anticipated derby is set to get underway in around 2-hours time (10pm), with Manchester United taking cross-town rivals Man City at Old Trafford.

City comes into the match at 2nd on the table, while United currently sits 4th, just 2-points back of City.

This is one of 4 Sunday matches in the English Premier League tonight.

Arsenal has moved to the top of the table with its 2-1 victory over Everton last night.

The win comes on the heels of Arsenal winning its first match in the Champions League earlier this week over Bayern Munich 2-nil, something Everton Manager Roberto Martinez says probably helped motivate the Gunners last night.

"Obviously in football you get measured as a team and as a squad in how you react when you face adversity and how you can show that character when it's most needed and probably the worst thing that you could do today is give a goal lead to this Arsenal side that they are full of confidence, probably in the best moment of the season after the phenomenal win against Bayern."Also from last night,Chelsea Manager Jose Mourinho is likely to face a stiff penalty from the League after being ejected at half-time after protesting a dis-allowed goal in Chelsea's 2-1 loss to West Ham last night.

Mourhinho was already hit with a 50-thousand pound fine earlier this season for comments made about the officiating in a previous loss by Chelsea.

The defending champions, after 10-matches, sit 3-2-5 at 11 points, just 3-positions ahead of relegation.

The win by West Ham last night puts them in provisional 3rd place in the league, one point ahead of Man U heading into tonight's match.

--In other action,It was Swansea leaving Aston Villa deeper in relegation, downing Villa 2-1.

--It was Leicester City continuing its surprisingly solid season, edging Crystal Palace 1-nil.

Leicester is now even with Man United at 19-points.

--It was West Brom Albion over Norwich 1-nil.

--And Watford earned a 2-nil victory over Stoke to put them one point ahead of the Potters at 13-points.

Argentina takes on Australia in Rugby WC semisIn rugby,Argentina looks to continue its solid run at this year's World Cup.

However, they're going to face stiff competition, as the South American's are set to do battle with Australia later tonight.

Argentina comes into the semi-final clash on the heels of a 43-20 drubbing of Ireland in the quarter-finals.

Australia heads into tonight's game after narrowly edging Scotland 35-34 this past weekend.

The winner of tonight's match, which gets underway at 11pm, will be facing the All-Blacks in the Final next weekend.

This, after New Zealand narrowly edged South Africa 20-18 last night, holding the Springbocks off the scoreboard for the last 18-minutes of the match.

Chinese women's gymnastics team secures Olympic spotChina has booked a place in the women's gymnastics team competition at next year's Rio Olympics after finishing fourth at the World Championships.

Chen Siyi, Fan Yilin and 4 other Chinese athletes finished behind the United States, Russia and Britain.

The top eight teams at this weekend's event qualify directly for Olympics.

The other four teams to make it in are Italy, Japan, Canada and the Netherlands.

Those who failed to enter top-8 will have a second chance at an Olympic Test Event in April in Rio.

Montreal extends NHL winning streak to 9From the National Hockey League,The Montreal Canadiens are one win away from tying an NHL record for the best start to a season after dumping the Toronto Maple Leafs this morning 5-3.

The Canadiens earned their 9th straight win to start out the regular season, despite being outshot by the Leafs 52-27.

The Canadiens, coming off a 7-2 win in Buffalo on Friday night, are one short of an NHL record 10-0-0 start shared by the 1993-94 Leafs and 2006-07 Buffalo Sabres.

Their next game is Tuesday in Vancouver.

In other NHL action this morning,The Anaheim Ducks' early-season struggles continue.

The Ducks, who came just one win short of making the Stanley Cup Finals last year, only forced Minnesota goaltender Devan Dubnyk to make 15 saves in leading Minnesota to a 3-0 victory this morning.

Anaheim is 1-5-1 on the season, raising questions about how long head coach Bruce Boudreau will remain behind the bench.

--It was the Arizona Coyotes over Ottawa 4-1.

--New Jersey edged Buffalo 4-3.

Sabres' off-season aquisition Evander Kane had to leave that game with a knee injury.

His status remains unclear.

--Philadelphia downed the New York Rangers 4-3.

--Florida beat up on Dallas 6-2.

--It was the New York Islanders getting past St. Louis 3-2 in overtime.

--Phil Kessel got his 3rd goal of the season to give the Pittsburgh Penguins a 3-2 overtime victory over Nashville.

--Johnathan Toews scored the only goal of the game 17-seconds into overtime to give Chicago a 1-0 victory over Tampa Bay.

--Columbus earned its first victory of the season, and first under new head coach John Tortorella, edging Colorado 4-3.

--Detroit handed Vancouver its 4th straight loss, edging the Canucks 4-3 in overtime.

--And it was San Jose all over Carolina 5-2.

EntertainmentChinese films about modern China win big at Chicago Film FestivalChinese director Song Pengfei's debut first film Underground Fragrance has won the Gold Hugo award for New Directors at the 51st Chicago International Film Festival.

Underground Fragrance is a feature film presenting ordinary people striving to move up in today's China.

Another Chinese director Song Zhantao, won the Silver Hugo Award for his documentary "In the Underground." That film talks about the lives of miners in north China's Hebei Province.

This year's Chicago International Film Festival received more than 4,500 applications but less than 200 films were selected for international competitions.

Four Chinese films made the cut, including Hou Hsiao-Hsien's The Assassin and Jia Zhangke's Mountains May Depart.

The festival runs till October 29Ludovico Einaudi's album becomes first classical album in charts for over 20 yearsFor the first time in 23 years, a classical music album has made it to the top 15 in the UK album charts.

Ludovico Einaudi's album Elements debuted at number 12 in the charts this week, beating pop artists such as Taylor Swift and Scouting For Girls.

Elements becomes the highest charting modern classical album since Henryk Gorecki's Symphony of Sorrowful Songs reached number six in 1992.

Einaudi, who is the grandson of former Italian Premier Luigi Einaudi, and has trained under the avant-garde composer Luciano.

The composer has created music for many films and television shows. This includes the BAFTA nominated soundtrack to Shane Meadows' This is England series.

More recently, he has composed the soundtrack for the BBC one drama Doctor Foster.

Einaudi has enjoyed mainstream success even before and has sold over 1.8 million records.

He is the world's most streamed classical composer.

China's film watchdog targets box office cheatsChina's film watchdog is saying that it will take further action against box office fraud.

The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) says more technical measures along with more strict regulation will be carried out to improve management of cinema ticket sales.

And the blacklists of wrongdoers will be made public.

The move follows the recent news that domestic movies are inflating box office figuresStatistics from the national digital ticketing platform show that a few cinemas and distributors have manipulated viewing figures and sales.

China's film market, now the world's second largest, has been a huge success this year.

Stats show that cinemas have taken 30 billion yuan already this year, exceeding the 2014 total of 29.6 billion yuan.

Homegrown movies "Monster Hunt" and "Lost in Hong Kong" are said to have reaped 2.4 billion yuan and 1.6 billion yuan respectively, but reportedly are involved in as yet unconfirmed box office fraud.

Duran Duran 'proud' to receive new MTV Video Visionary AwardDuran Duran, the sensational band from the 80's, will receive the first ever MTV Video Visionary Award.

The trophy will be handed out at this year's MTV Europe Music Awards in Milan later today.

The chart-topping 1980's band will be given the honor for their strong visual presence, and for influencing a generation of musicians with some of the best pioneering music videos of all time.

Meanwhile, there is a good deal of anticipation around Justin Bieber's forthcoming performance at the event. Fans may remember that broke down in tears at the MTV Video Music Awards in August.

This year promises an intense battle between Taylor Swift, who has nine nominations, and Bieber who has scored six nods.

Bieber is due to release his new album Purpose on November 13, the same date as One Direction's much-anticipated fifth studio album, Made In The AM.

Singer Ed Sheeran and model Ruby Rose will host this year's Europe Music Awards.

Maureen O'Hara, spirited movie star, dies at 95Maureen O'Hara, the flame-haired Irish movie star has passed away.

She was 95.

O'Hara appeared in classics ranging from the grim "How Green Was My Valley" to the uplifting "Miracle on 34th Street" and bantered unforgettably with John Wayne in several hit films.

O'Hara died in her sleep at her home in Boise, Idaho.

O'Hara came to Hollywood to star in the 1939 "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and went on to build a long career.

During her movie heydays, she became known as the Queen of Technicolor because of the camera's love affair with her vivid hair, pale complexion and fiery nature.

She was never nominated for a competitive Oscar but received an honorary Academy Award last year.

WeatherBeijing will see slight rain with a low of 9 degrees, tomorrow will be cloudy with a high of 15.

Shanghai will be cloudy overnight with a low of 18, rainy tomorrow with a high of 26.

Chongqing will see slight rain tonight, low of 21, tomorrow will also be rainy with a high of 22.

Lhasa will be clear tonight with a low of 1,tomorrow, sunshine with a high of 18.

Elsewhere in Asia,Islamabad will have rainy with a high of 15.

Kabul, cloudy, 13.

Down in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sydney will be sunny with a high of 26.

Brisbane will also be cloudy, high of 18.

Perth will be overcast, high of 13.

And finally Auckland, New Zealand will be sunny with a high of 18 degrees Celsius.

That's it for this weekend edition of the Beijing Hour.

A quick look at the headlines before we go...

The King of the Netherlands has arrived in Beijing to begin a tour of China.

The annual Beijing-Tokyo forum is underway this weekend here in Beijing.

The South Korean military has confirmed it fired warning shots at a North Korean patrol boat this weekend.

In sports... New Zealand teen Lydia Ko is back to world number-1 after winning this weekend's LPGA event inTaiwan.

On behalf of the Beijing Hour staffers, this is Paul James in Beijing hoping you'll join us for the next edition of the Beijing Hour, and open a window to the world together.