Chinese Social Sciences Academic Press held a signing ceremony for the appointment of the chief researchers in charge of the Innovative Projects in philosophy and social science in Beijing last month. Prof. Li Ping from the Department of History of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanity of the University of Macau was appointed as one of the four chief researchers. Chief researcher is the highest position in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences for the Philosophy and Social Sciences Innovative Projects. Prof. Li is the first chief researcher appointed in the discipline of history.

Gao Xiang, editor-in-chief of Chinese Social Science Academic Press, pointed out that the appointments include four distinguished scholars in literature, history, economics and political science respectively The appointments made are based on strict and professional assessment by Chinese Social Sciences Academic Press.

Before the signing ceremony, Prof. Li delivered two academic reports, titled East, West, South, North and the Center and Study on History of Wei that firstly mentioned the Yellow Emperor. In the first report, Prof. Li argued that the political and economic centre of ancient China had grown apart over time. However, the Grand Canal played a critical role in balancing the two forces in the process by its effect in stimulating the economy and steadying the political situation. He also pointed out that one of the reasons that hindered the social development of China over the past two thousand years is the constant needs to stabilize the dynamic between the political and economic forces.

In his second report, Prof. Li pointed out that the most significant historical contribution made by Sima Qian is that he positioned the Yellow Emperor as the primogenitor of China; while the author of History of Wei, went further in positioning the role of the Yellow Emperor as the common ancestor of the Hu and Han people, laying ground for the notion that the Yellow Emperor is the ancestor of all Chinese.


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