FOR the first time in its history, the Palace Museum（故宫博物院） has added a special Olympic product, the Fuwa mascots(吉祥物), to its treasure collection.
The collection comprises（包括） five Fuwa made of jade（玉） and a piece of ruyi（如意）. Ruyi is a kind of curio (珍品） and it symbolizes luck and happiness. At a ceremony on June 15, people saw the five jade dolls standing on a podium（领奖台） about 29 centimeters tall. The podium is also made of jade.
The use of jade goes back as far as the Chinese civilization（文明）. The creators（创作者） of the artwork used jade because jade symbolizes（象征） beauty, nobility（高贵）, purity and perfection in Chinese culture.
Setting the proper mood for the Games志愿者心乐团成立
A MUSIC ensemble（乐团） named “XIN” was formed in Beijing on June 14. It comprises（包括） professional（职业的） singers, volunteers from the campuses and other parts of society. About 1,500 volunteer applicants（申请人） and college representatives（代表） attended a launching ceremony（成立仪式） in Beijing on that day.
The group will go to various communities（社区）, parks and factories to perform songs for the Olympics.
According to the organizers, the singing events are part of the “Welcome the Olympics, Improve Manners and Foster New Attitudes”（迎奥运、讲文明、树新风） campaign. Its aim is to create a favorable atmosphere for the 2008 Olympic Games.
Perfecting the opening ceremony开幕式排练8月开始
REHEARSALS（排练） for the opening ceremony（开幕式） of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will begin in August, an official of the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee said recently.
“The Beijing opening ceremony already has a first draft（草案）， and it’s got a lot of attention from the world,” said Jiang Xiaoyu, executive vice president（执行副主席） of the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee. “Everything is going smoothly（顺利地） and we expect to have a wonderful opening ceremony as well as a good closing ceremony,” Jiang added.
Chinese famous film maker Zhang Yimou has been chosen as the director of the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2008 Olympic Games. Hollywood director Steven Spielberg is serving as an artistic consultant（艺术顾问）.
Dealing with public health issue奥运卫生监督员接受培训
A SIX-WEEK training course for 1,700 health supervisors（卫生监督员） ended early this month. The training period covered the knowledge and skills needed for the Olympic test events and next year’s Beijing Olympic Games.
The training was sponsored（主办） by the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee and the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau（北京市卫生局）. It included key areas that the health supervisors need to be aware of, such as the condition of Olympic venues, basic knowledge of the Olympic Games and etiquette（礼仪）, food and drinking water safety, public sanitation（公共场所卫生）, infectious disease prevention and control（传染病防控）, as well as the recognition and treatment of public health emergencies（发现并处理突发事件）.
