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Zhou Jiang, a researcher at the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences, has a favorite book: White Deer Tableland or Bai Lu Yuan by renowned writer Chen Zhongshi.
As vice president of the Regional Science Association of China (RSAC), Zhou told the Global Times that a lifetime of reading has profoundly shaped the way he sees and understands the world. It ultimately led him to a career in research and academia, where he teaches and pursues scholarly work.
Since earning his PhD in economics in 2000, he has devoted himself to the study of regional science and economics, a field that demands a constant crossing of disciplinary boundaries, drawing on the fields of geography, sociology, history, and ecology among others.
"Reading has kept alive my sense of curiosity and taught me to ask questions with patience and persistence: Where do disparities in regional development come from? How do policies affect different groups in society? And how can a region pursue both efficiency and equity so that development is not merely effective, but also imbued with a greater sense of humanity and warmth?" Zhou noted.
Founded in 1991, RSAC is a national academic society dedicated to advancing domestic and international academic exchange and cooperation, providing consulting services on spatial planning, urbanization, and regional development, and offering intellectual support for China's modernization drive.
The 57-year-old researcher noted that reading has empowered him in two distinct ways.
"The first is discernment. When confronted with a complex issue, I try not to settle for a simple conclusion. Instead, I make an effort to understand its broader context, how it has unfolded, and the perspectives of the different people involved," he said.
"The second is a sense of inner steadiness. Setbacks are an inevitable part of both life and work. Good books remind us that hardship is never ours alone to bear; countless people before us have faced circumstances more difficult than our own, made difficult choices, and found the strength to carry on. Reading cannot solve every problem for us, but it can help us remain calm when challenges arise, giving us the clarity and resilience that allow us not to panic or give up too easily," he said.
Historical depth
Each time Zhou returns to the White Deer Tableland, he finds something different in its pages.
"When I first read it as a young person, I was drawn primarily to the characters and the twists and turns of their lives. Later, as I began researching regional economics, I found myself paying closer attention to the changes in the land, the countryside, families and social order presented in the story. Now, approaching 60, I have come to appreciate more deeply the choices the characters make, the constraints they face, and the quiet perseverance they show amid the sweeping currents of their times," he said.
White Deer Tableland uses Bai Lu village in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province as a microcosm, tracing the feuds and intertwined fortunes of three generations of the Bai (literally meaning white) and Lu families. Through their stories, it captures more than half a century of sweeping historical change, from the final years of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) to the 1970s and 1980s. The novel won the Mao Dun Literature Prize, one of China's top literature awards, in 1997.
Zhou prefers literary works with historical depth and a keen eye for social change.
Regional economics may appear to be concerned with the spatial distribution of industries, population and resources, but at its heart, it is about how people live on a particular piece of land, and why some places flourish while others decline, he noted.
In this sense, literature and history are more than pastimes beyond professional research. They often help him understand the historical context, cultural traditions and social mentality that lie behind economic data, he said.
When reading novels, Zhou said that he often pays close attention to the relationship between people and the places they inhabit: How the land shapes the local character, how transportation transforms a region, and how shifts in industry reshape families and villages. Such details may not offer a direct conclusion, but they broaden a researcher's perspective. They also serve as a reminder that research should look beyond growth rates and statistical indicators to consider the sense of fulfillment experienced by ordinary people and the dignity of human beings.
Understanding ourselves
Once, while tidying his study, he came across a book filled with notes he had scribbled in his early years. Among them was a question that particularly caught his attention: "In the face of sweeping changes in the times and profound social transformation, what can a person truly determine for himself?"
Looking at those words he had written in his youth was like coming face to face with the person he had been decades ago.
Reading is not simply the act of understanding a book; it is also a record of a person's own growth, he said. The same book can reveal something entirely different when read at different stages of life.
When we are young, we turn to books in search of answers; but when we become seasoned, we read more to understand life, to understand others, and ultimately, to better understand ourselves, Zhou said.
In this era of fragmented information, AI can help people access information quickly, organize materials, and gain a basic understanding of unfamiliar fields. Yet deep reading, Zhou said, allows people to see how a conclusion is reached — what evidence supports it, where its boundaries lie, and what alternative interpretations it may invite.
What truly shapes a person, after all, is not how much information they have browsed, but the words that have made them pause and reflect - and the words that have remained with them for many years, he added.
。 NEW DELHI -- India’s top court on Tuesday refused to legalize same-sex marriages, passing the responsibility back to Parliament in a ruling that disappointed campaigners for LGBTQ+ rights in the world's most populous country. Chief Justice DY Chandrachud also urged the government to uphold the rights of the queer community and end discrimination against them. Earlier this year, the five-judge bench heard 21 petitions that sought to legalize same-sex marriage. Chandrachud said there were degrees of agreement and disagreement among the justices “on how far we have to go” on same-sex marriages, but a majority of the judges agreed that the court cannot grant LGBTQ+ people the right to marry as that is a legislative function. “This court can’t make law. It can only interpret it and give effect to it,” the chief justice said, reiterating that it was up to Parliament to decide whether it could expand marriage laws to include queer unions.One of the petitioners, Mario da Penha, said it was “a day to be disappointed but not to lose hope.”“There's been tremendous work that has gone into these petitions, and many hopes and dreams of the queer community attached to them - to lead lives that most other Indians take for granted. The fact that the dream could not come to fruition today is a disappointment for all of us,” he said.He added that it was not yet clear if the court had set a mandate or timeline for Parliament to act. “Without that mandate, there is no pressure on Parliament to enact any legislation.”“There are queer couples today that are already families and in relationships, and are pillars of society. That they are not afforded the dignity and rights that they are due is deeply disappointing,” said Karuna Nundy, one of the lawyers representing the petitioners. Legal rights for LGBTQ+ people in India have been expanding over the past decade, mostly as a result of the Supreme Court’s intervention. In 2018, the top court struck down a colonial-era law that had made gay sex punishable by up to 10 years in prison and expanded constitutional rights for the gay community. The decision was seen as a historic victory for LGBTQ rights, with one judge saying it would “pave the way for a better future."Despite this progress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government resisted the legal recognition of same-sex marriage and rejected several petitions in favor. During the hearings, the government argued that a marriage is only between a biological male and a biological woman, adding that same-sex marriages went against religious values and that the petitions reflected only “urban elitist views”. Religious groups too had opposed same-sex unions, saying they went against Indian culture.Adish Aggarwala, the president of the Supreme Court bar association, said the court had done the right thing by recognizing that this was a job for Parliament, an argument the government also made during the hearings. Lawyers for the petitioners argued that marriage is between two people, not just a man and woman. They said concepts of marriage have gradually changed with time and laws should acknowledge that. By not recognizing such unions, the government was depriving same-sex couples of their right to equality enshrined in the constitution and rights enjoyed by married heterosexual couples, from adoption and medical insurance to pensions and inheritance, they argued. “This court needs to push society to acknowledge same-sex marriage,” one of the lawyers said.Petitioners were hopeful that the Supreme Court could challenge the government’s position.But even as some of the justices urged that the state must make sure queer couples don't face harassment or discrimination in accessing basic needs, like opening a joint bank account, they stopped short of granting legal recognition to same-sex unions. Instead, the court accepted the government's offer to set up a special panel that will explore granting social and legal benefits to same-sex couples. Homosexuality has long carried a stigma in India’s traditional society, even though there has been a shift in attitudes toward same-sex couples in recent years. India now has openly gay celebrities and some high-profile Bollywood films have dealt with gay issues. According to a Pew survey, acceptance of homosexuality in India increased by 22 percentage points to 37% between 2013 and 2019.But same-sex couples often face harassment in many Indian communities, whether Hindu, Muslim or Christian.India is estimated to have at least 2.5 million LGBTQ+ people, according to government figures from 2012. However, gay rights activists and global estimates believe they number at least 10% of the population, or more than 135 million.In May, Taiwan became the first jurisdiction in Asia to recognize same-sex marriages. In July, Nepal's Supreme Court issued an interim order enabling the registration of same-sex marriages for the first time. It is still not clear when the court would make its final decision on the case.。
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