Stephen Hawking visits Jerusalem

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (L) speaks to world famous British scientist Stephen Hawking at Olmert's offices in Jerusalem, Dec. 10, 2006. Hawking is in Jerusalem for a lecture on the Bloomfield Museum of Science.

China's first sub-aqueous tunnel under construction

A worker walks along sub-aqueous tunnel on December 9.China's first sub-aqueous tunnel is now under construction. The tunnel will be 9 kilometers long in total and sub-aqueous for 5.9 kilometers. With a total investment of 3.22 billion yuan, it is expected to be finished within the next four years.

Guo Jingjing and partner rule 3m synchro diving

Guo Jingjing / Li Ting of China during the women's synchro 3m springboard final at Doha Asiad, Qatar, Dec. 11, 2006. Chinese Olympic champion Guo Jingjing took the limelight of the Hamad Aquatic Center together with her partner Li Ting as they cruised to the women's 3m synchronized springboard crown at the 15th Asian Games on Monday.

China reaches Asiad women's basketball final

Defending champion China reached the final of the Doha Asian Games women's basketball tournament after trouncing arch rival South Korea 77-53 in Doha on Monday.

Space shuttle Discovery docks with ISS

Space shuttle Discovery is shown after docking with the International Space Station in this image from television Monday, Dec. 11, 2006. The two spacecraft linked up successfully as they flew over southeast Asia.

Suzhou experts reconstruct ancient astronomy device

Pictured is the giant copper pot clocking device. After more than a year of testing, experts from the Suzhou Ancient Astronomy Clock Research Institute have reconstructed a Song Dynasty style copper pot clocking device. It is 2.9 meters high, 2.4 meters deep and 2.1 meters wide. An ancient robot which provides the correct time, dubbed the "magical time reporter" by Chinese and international experts was also duplicated successfully.

Donkey pulls jeep along Shenyang street

Mr. Meng spent more than 200,000 yuan on a jeep last year and has had repeated problems with it. To draw attention to his problem, he had a donkey pull his jeep along a public street on December 10. In the last six months, the car's handles have broken, the lights have fallen off and the dashboard has become deformed.

Chinese zoo marks Christmas Day

A feeder dressed as a Santa Claus presents tree leaves as a goodwill gift to giraffes at a zoo in Jinan, capital of East China's Shandong Province December 11, 2006. The zoo is preparing for the upcoming Christmas Day which will fall on December 25. (newsphoto)

Flush-toilet-shaped seats in Nanjing

Customers view a row of seats in the shape of flush toilets at a shopping mall in Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu Province December 10, 2006. Customers began trying the unique seat after learning about its use.

Creative feast in Beijing

A visitor looks at models whose clothes were made out of environment-friendly materials at the first China Beijing International Cultural and Creative Industry Expo on December 11, 2006.

Explosion occurs in Turkish military residential building

Soldiers and rescue teams work amidst the wreckage of a residential building belonging to the army in the southeastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir Dec. 11, 2006. Seven people were injured on Monday when an explosion occurred in a military residential building in Diyarbakir province in southeastern Turkey.

Annan criticizes U.S. foreign policy

Outgoing Secretary-General of the U.N., Kofi Annan criticizes U.S. foreign policy in a speech noting "Human rights and the rule of law are vital to global security and prosperity." at the Truman Presidential Library in Independence, Missouri, December 11, 2006. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)