Gigi Choy

Hong Kong’s annual Tiananmen Square vigil gained fresh urgency as people defied a ban to gather on Thursday to remember the 1989 crackdown. In recent years, the organizer of the annual vigil had faced questions about its relevance from young people who dismissed it as naive and idealistic for caring about democratic change over the border in mainland China. But this time, Hong Kong activists put aside such differences in the face of a looming threat: a national security law to be imposed on their city by China’s central government, which could come into effect within weeks. Many feared the law – which Beijing says will “prevent, stop and punish” secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign i

Temperature checks have become the new normal in airports, offices and even some residential buildings as authorities rush to contain the spread of the new coronavirus.  (Where did the coronavirus come from? How to prevent infections? Here’s what we’ve learned so far about the coronavirus.) Despite their widespread use, medical and public health experts have said temperature checks are unlikely to detect infected people. Are ‘temperature guns’ reliable and accurate? Handheld, non-contact infrared thermometers, or “temperature guns,” have emerged as a popular device to screen people for fevers during viral outbreaks. The guns can quickly measure surface temperature without touching people’s

As the new coronavirus has proved capable of spreading between people and across borders, scientists have worked to crack the secrets of its ability to infect and kill. Scholars from China and other parts of the world have put the virus under the microscope – it looks like an orb studded with spikes – and sequenced its DNA, hoping to find better treatment for those who contracted it and make vaccines to prevent infection. But in their efforts to stop the epidemic’s global transmission, public health researchers have so far been unable to answer one question: Who did the virus first infect? The hunt for this person – also known as “patient zero” – could provide clues that help us contain the

Retired Wuhan factory worker Wei Junlan had always been in good health, but around two weeks after developing the first signs of a cough and fever, the 63-year-old was dead from what doctors suspect was the new coronavirus. But her death on January 21 will not show up in official statistics about the outbreak – her death certificate listed the cause only as “heavy pneumonia.” Her nephew Jerry Shang said that Wei had not been tested for the disease, but that the doctor said her symptoms – including a lung infection, fever and increasing weakness – closely matched those of Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. By the end, she was unable to walk, and the last the family saw of her was when

Officials in China have confirmed that an outbreak of a new pneumonia-like illness that originated in the central Chinese city of Wuhan has been spreading from person to person and has infected health workers. The previously unknown coronavirus has infected people in cities including Beijing and Shanghai and spread to other parts of Asia and the United States. The spike in cases before Lunar New Year has raised fears that the virus could spread further as hundreds of millions of people travel around the country. What is the death toll? 17. How many cases have been confirmed? 583 (571 are in mainland China). What is a coronavirus?  Medical experts in China identified the cause of the mysteri

A recently identified coronavirus has killed at least six people, Chinese authorities said Tuesday. Previously, on Monday, China’s health authorities said that 15 medical staff members in the central Chinese city had contracted the virus, confirming that it is spreading by human transmission and raising concerns that people at the most virulent stage of infection – so-called super-spreaders – could infect many others. The World Health Organization (WHO) said it would call an emergency meeting on Wednesday to decide whether the outbreak should be declared an international public health emergency. The new strain of coronavirus was identified this month after a mystery pneumonia started strikin

What’s inspiring some of Hong Kong’s cake designers? The ongoing anti-government protests. One cake with a political message even found its way to Cake International in the UK over the weekend, where it was disqualified from the confectionery competition because the entry’s content and message behind it “has been viewed as offensive and led to complaints from attendees,” according to an Instagram post quoting the organizer. Here are some of the bakeries that have taken dessert decorating to another level – and what inspired their creations. Amai Workshop Known for its signature marble fondant cake, Amai Workshop’s bespoke cake designs have been wowing customers since 2015. Its protest themed

Were you the kid with the “smelly lunch”? Edward Tian was. When he scrolls through the Subtle Asian Traits Facebook group, he sees his own experiences crop up time and time again. In the group, countless posts touch on the embarrassment of bringing lunch to school and even being bullied for eating “disgusting” food. “They’ll ask you if the meat in your lunchbox is dog or cat meat, or they’ll make fun of how much garlic Asians eat,” Tian, 20, said of his school days. These are familiar experiences to many Asian immigrants across the world who’ve felt pressure to assimilate or distance themselves from their heritage. “I remember I begged my mom to stop sending me to school with Chinese food a