>Number of kindergartens grows by 77% in past decade
全国幼儿园数量十年增长近八成
Children haul farm produce with small wheelbarrows at a kindergarten in Hefei, Anhui province, as they celebrate the Farmers' Harvest Festival, on Sept 22, 2021. [Photo by Ge Chuanhong/For China Daily]
The number of kindergartens in China reached 295,000 in 2021, up nearly 77 percent from a decade ago, figures from the Ministry of Education showed Tuesday.
教育部4月26日发布的数据显示，2021年，全国幼儿园达到29.5万所，较2011年增长近77%。
Of all the new kindergartens established in the period, around 60 percent are located in rural areas.
全国新增幼儿园60%左右分布在农村。
By 2021, there were 245,000 government-funded and privately-run non-profit kindergartens, representing 83 percent of all kindergartens in the country.
2021年全国普惠性幼儿园达到24.5万所，占幼儿园总量的83%。
The figures also showed that preschool enrollment rose, from 62.3 percent in 2011 to about 88 percent in 2021.
全国学前三年毛入园率由2011年的62.3%提高到2021年的约88%。
>China concludes 38th Antarctic expedition
中国第38次南极科学考察圆满收官
China's research icebreaker Xuelong arrives in East China's Shanghai, on April 26, 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]
China's research icebreaker Xuelong, or Snow Dragon, returned to Shanghai on Tuesday, marking the end of the country's 38th Antarctic expedition. Two icebreakers participated in the 174-day expedition, with the Xuelong 2 arriving in Shanghai six days ago. This is the second time that China has sent two icebreakers to the Antarctic since the 36th polar expedition.
4月26日，“雪龙”号极地科学考察船远航归来抵达上海，这标志着历时174天的中国第38次南极科学考察圆满收官。中国第38次南极科学考察由“雪龙”号和“雪龙2”号共同执行考察任务。这是中国自第36次南极科学考察之后，第二次派遣两艘破冰船在同一个“考察季”奔赴南极。其中，“雪龙2”号已于4月20日返回上海。
The scientific venture involved a range of tasks, including the replenishment of materials and staff rotation at China's Zhongshan Station and Great Wall Station in the region, as well as marine observations and oceanic ecosystem investigations.
中国第38次南极科学考察顺利完成南极长城站、中山站物资补给和人员轮换任务，开展了站基多学科和近岸海洋业务化观测，对南大洋生态系统进行了调查，取得了多项科研成果。
>China's highway network reaches 5.28m km
我国公路总里程已达528万公里
The Shaoguan-Xinfeng Expressway, built with an investment of 12.8 billion yuan ($1.98 billion), opens to traffic in Guangdong province on June 29, 2021. It links with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. HU XIAO/FOR CHINA DAILY
The total length of China's highway network has reached 5.28 million km, an official said on Tuesday. Zhou Rongfeng, an official with the Ministry of Transport, underscored the importance of strengthening highway maintenance and management, as the highway is among the most widely used means of transportation, with the most extensive coverage and the highest number of passengers. China has set up a national highway network that consists of expressways, trunk roads, and rural roads.
交通运输部公路局副局长周荣峰在4月26日举行的新闻发布会上宣布，目前我国公路总里程已达528万公里，形成了以高速公路为骨架、普通干线为脉络、农村公路为基础的全国公路网。周荣峰表示，公路交通是覆盖范围最广、服务人口最多、使用最广泛的交通运输方式，维护好这些规模庞大的公路资产，加强公路养护管理工作意义重大。
A total of 1.29 trillion yuan has been channeled into highway maintenance and addressing highway safety hazards in recent years, according to the ministry.
近年来全国累计投入1.29万亿元资金用于公路养护及安全隐患治理。
>Twitter accepts Elon Musk's acquisition offer
推特接受马斯克440亿美元收购要约
Elon Musk. [Photo/Agencies]
Twitter announced on Monday it has accepted Tesla CEO Elon Musk's offer to acquire the company at $54.20 a share, valuing the social media platform at $44 billion.
当地时间4月25日，社交媒体平台推特公司宣布接受特斯拉首席执行官埃隆•马斯克提出的每股54.20美元、估值约为440亿美元的收购要约。
Twitter stock was up nearly 6% following the announcement of the deal, hovering around $51.84, just shy of the offer price.
交易宣布后，推特股价上涨近6%，徘徊在51.84美元左右，略低于发行价。
The deal is pending approval from shareholders and regulators.
该交易正在等待股东和监管机构的批准。
Musk is both a high-profile Twitter user and a controversial one. He has more than 83 million followers on the platform, which he has used over the years for sharing memes, discussing his companies, insulting politicians, and spreading misleading claims about Covid-19.
马斯克是一位备受关注、充满争议的推特用户，他拥有超过8300万名粉丝，多年来一直活跃在推特上，从分享表情包、讨论他的公司到抨击政客，再到传播关于新冠的误导性言论。
Musk has repeatedly stressed in recent days that his goal is to bolster free speech on the platform and work to "unlock" Twitter's "extraordinary potential."
最近马斯克反复强调，他的目标是支持推特言论自由，并努力“释放”推特的“非凡潜力”。
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