Though China's Law on the Protection of the Rights and Interests of the Elderly states that "elderly people are citizens over 60 years old," the elderly are getting "younger" in the eyes of many due to a higher national life expectancy, reports Xinhua.

In 1957, a 40-year-old man could have been considered an elderly person in China, because official data shows the average life expectancy of the Chinese population at that time was just 57 years. In 2019, that number was 77.3 years.

Over the past 30 years, China's average life expectancy has increased by about three years every decade.

"With continuously improving medical and social security services in the country, the elderly have been getting healthier," said Xing Yuan, a professor of sociology with Shanxi University. "This will affect people's evaluations of the elderly."

But exactly how old is a senior citizen? There are many differing opinions on this matter. However, interviewed experts, ordinary people and the elderly themselves did not believe 60 to be an old age.

Feng Junqi, a 77-year-old retiree in the city of Changzhi, north China's Shanxi Province, said the ten years between 60 and 70 is a "golden decade."

"Sixty years old is not old. We have time and money, and most people are healthy during the decade. We can actually do whatever we like at that time," Feng said.

For more than 10 years, Feng has been traveling the world and has visited more than 60 countries. Today, he is spending more time on calligraphy than traveling abroad. "Now you can call me an old person," he said.

If you take a look at the streets in China, you can see that the elderly are no longer as "old" as they were 20 years ago. They not only look and dress younger but also live more colorful lives in their later years.

From square dancers and elderly club-goers to football lovers and silver-haired internet celebrities, there is a widespread sense of unwillingness to accept the process of aging.

China's elderly consumption market will hit 3.79 trillion yuan (567 billion U.S. dollars) in 2020, according to a report released by the China National Committee on Ageing.

"This is not only because the number of people reaching the legal elderly age continues to increase, but also due to consumer demand generated by the desire to stay young," said Jiang Shan, a senior tour guide in Shanxi Province, adding that major travel agencies are now competing in the elderly tourism market.

Many retirees believe that they can still have significant social value.

Over the past nine years, more than a hundred retirees have been planting trees in the deep mountains of Kelan County, Shanxi Province, greening more than 33 hectares of barren hills.

"We are regarded as senior citizens by law, but we don't feel that old," said Zhang Wenhan, a 74-year-old retired official.

The public's evaluation of age is also affecting policymaking. A few years ago, China began to consider delaying the retirement age, with the general public expressing widespread support for the potential move.

Earlier this week, the Ministry of Public Security announced the removal of the upper age limit for car driving license applications.

The number of social security cardholders in China has topped 1.31 billion, covering 93.9 percent of the country's population. The country is now implementing its "Healthy China 2030" strategy, with an action plan covering a period running through 2030.

All efforts will help extend the average life expectancy of the Chinese population and allay the worries of the elderly.

In the future, people who are considered elderly today will be seen as younger in the eyes of the public as age evaluation develops, said Xing Yuan with Shanxi University.

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‘Amar Joboner Golpo’, an autobiography by President of Faridpur District Puja Udjapon Parishad CIP Dr Jashoda Jibon Debnath’s, has been unveiled at a programme in Faridpur.

The book was unveiled at Ambika Memorial hall at Jhilatuli in the district town on Friday night.

President of Faridpur Press Club Kabirul Islam Siddique presided over the programme.

Mashiur Rahman Khokon, general secretary of Faridpur Press Club conducted the programme while Jibo Debnath, freedom fighter PK Sarkar, Sazzad Hossain Rony, Biswajit Saha Tanu and Prof. Mizanur Rahman Manik were present on the occasion.

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If one arm temporarily immobilized due to injury, people still can increase the muscle strength and reduce muscle loss without touching it by doing exercise in the opposite one, Australian researchers reported on Thursday.

The study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Australia and their international colleagues could lead to a new way of rehabilitation and improve outcomes for post-injury and stroke patients.

During the study, researchers made experiments on 30 participants who had one arm immobilized for a minimum of 8 hours a day for four weeks.

Some of them were instructed to do a mix of eccentric and concentric exercises, some with eccentric exercise only and the rest of them had no excise at all.

In eccentric exercises, the contracting muscle is lengthening, such as when lowering a dumbbell in bicep curls, sitting on a chair slowly or walking downstairs. While in concentric exercises, muscles are shortening such as when lifting a dumbbell or walking upstairs.

A researcher, Prof. Ken Nosaka from ECU's School of Medical and Health Sciences said the group that only performed the eccentric exercise on their active arm showed an increase in strength and a decrease in muscle wastage, in their immobilized arm.

"Participants who did eccentric exercise had the biggest increase in strength in both arms, so it has a very powerful cross-transfer effect," Nosaka said.

"I think this could change the way we approach rehabilitation for people who have temporarily lost the use of one arm or one leg," he added.

"By starting rehab and exercise in the uninjured limb right away, we can prevent muscle damage induced by exercise in the other limb and also build strength without moving it at all," he noted.

Nosaka said he is hopeful their findings could also help a wider range of people with immobility problems due to injury or sickness.

"In the future, we hope to look at how eccentric exercise can help improve motor function, movement and fine muscle control, which is particularly important for stroke and rehabilitation patients," he said.

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The Cosmos Foundation, the non-profit philanthropic and cultural arm of the Cosmos Group, and the Liberation War Museum signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Wednesday with the aim of boosting their cooperation and collaboration.

Under it, the Cosmos Foundation will offer its services to the Museum based on its expertise in relevant fields, as also financial support as and when necessary on mutually agreed terms.

Enayetullah Khan, Chairman of the Cosmos Foundation, expressed his deep satisfaction with regard to the MoU.

He said, “We are delighted to take the ties between the two organizations to newer heights with the signing. The Foundation has high-tech capability of digital recording, editing and presentation of digital content.”

Pledging the Foundation’s full support to the Museum, he added: “We are willing to open our technical resources for the Museum’s use and benefit.”

The MoU has identified several key areas of cooperation. These are : first, financial and technical  support to be extended by the Foundation to the Museum’s annual Liberation Docfest and Filmfest events; second, support by the Foundation , having 360 digital cameras and necessary expertise, to conduct of virtual tours of the museum on pro bono basis; third, offer of assistance by the Foundation to the museum for the holding of various artistic and cultural events; and fourth , commitment by both sides to identify newer areas of cooperation from time to time.

The Liberation War museum was established in 1996 by the Muktijuddha Smriti Trust. It has since earned overwhelming recognition at home and abroad, as an organization of national importance in collecting, preserving and presenting the glorious history of the Bangladesh Liberation War.

The Cosmos Foundation, which commenced its journey as a philanthropic organization in 2015, devoted to the promotion of art and culture, has now emerged as a renowned think-tank hosting seminars and discussions on issues of global and regional significance with well-known international scholars and thought leaders as speakers.

Members of its Advisory Body are Dr Danilo Turk, former President of Slovenia, Ambassador George Moose Vice Chairman of the United States Institute for Peace; Ambassador Li Debiao, a distinguished retired Chinese diplomat, former Foreign Secretary Krishnan Srinivasan of India and Professor Haider Khan of the Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver.

Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, former Foreign Affairs Advisor, Government of Bangladesh, is the President of the Cosmos Foundation.

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German architect Anna Heringer has won the prestigious Obel Award 2020 for the Anandaloy, a community therapy centre and textile workshop in Dinajpur, for its architectural excellence.

The Danish architecture honour is given annually to a building or architectural project that showcases excellence in architectural achievement, reports Wallpaper.com.

Anandaloy, which means ‘place of deep joy’, houses a therapy centre for people with disabilities on the ground floor and a fair-trade textile manufacturing workshop for local women on its first floor.

Made out of rammed earth and bamboo, the structure explores age-old local building techniques in soft curves and textures that connect with its place and the region’s vernacular.

“The key motivation always is to use architecture as a tool to improve lives,” says the architect, who has spent part of her life in Bangladesh, is the UNESCO Chair of Earthen Architecture, Building Cultures, and Sustainable Development and focuses on the use of natural and readily available building materials.

“The vision behind, and motivation for my work is to explore and use architecture as a medium to strengthen cultural and individual confidence, to support local economies and to foster the ecological balance. Joyful living is a creative and active process and I am deeply interested in the sustainable development of our society and our built environment,” said Anna.

“For me, sustainability is a synonym for beauty: a building that is harmonious in its design, structure, technique and use of materials, as well as with the location, the environment, the user, the socio-cultural context. This, for me, is what defines its sustainable and aesthetic value,” she added.

Respecting local heritage and crafts, the project was made using only local materials, construction methods and workforce. This - climate-positive design and sustainability on all levels - was a key aspect in the judging process.

The jury this year included Martha Schwartz (founder, Martha Schwartz Partners, USA), Kjetil Trædal Thorsen (co-founder, Snöhetta, Norway), Louis Becker (design principal and partner, Henning Larsen, Denmark), Dr Wilhelm Vossenkuhl (professor emeritus of philosophy, Germany), and XU Tiantian (founding principal, DnA, Beijing, China).

“The Anandaloy building is not only a spatial solution to a number of both basic and specific human needs, the project as a whole is a multi-layered response to the challenge of mending by cleverly interweaving sustainable, social, and architectural design,” says the judging panel in a statement.

Louis Becker, lead partner and design principal of Henning Larsen Architects, has been involved in setting up the award since its inception.

“This prize was set up to promote new possibilities and the different directions architecture could have. This year, the winning project has a very direct social impact - it is doing something every day to change the lives of people locally. It also showcases what you can do by using local knowledge. It is very much aligned with what we wanted to do when we created the award,” said Louis.

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