BEIJING, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- The following are the highlights of China's science news from the past week:

EXOPLANET NAMING

The first exoplanet discovered by Chinese astronomers and its host star have been named "Wangshu" and "Xihe," which mean moon goddess and sun goddess respectively in Chinese mythology.

The two names proposed by the student astronomy club of Guangzhou No. 6 Middle School were announced at the Beijing Planetarium Saturday, which is a part of the NameExoWorlds campaign organized by the International Astronomical Union.

PHOTOSYNTHESIS OF WOODY SPECIES

Researchers have disclosed that the photosynthesis of subtropical woody species is closely related to the water transport efficiency of the leaf vein system.

The researchers studied 33 woody species from subtropical monsoon evergreen broad-leaved forests, and measured plant leaf water transport efficiency and gas exchange traits, according to their recent study published in Tree Physiology.

ALLIANCE OF BRAIN COGNITION AND BRAIN DISEASE

China has set up an academic and industrial alliance of brain cognition and brain disease in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

The alliance was coordinated by the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology (SIAT) under the CAS, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Beijing Tiantan Hospital under Capital Medical University as well as other research institutions and enterprises.

WATER ENVIRONMENT DATASET

China has launched a water environment dataset of Poyang Lake, east China's Jiangxi Province, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Poyang Lake is the largest freshwater lake in China and an important wintering place for waterfowl in Asia, which is also home to over 300 species of birds.

SCIENCE POPULARIZATION

The number of people who participated in science popularization activities nationwide reached 892 million last year in China, a year-on-year growth of 15.8 percent, the Ministry of Science and Technology said Tuesday.

About 16.1 billion yuan (about 2.3 billion U.S. dollars) was raised in 2018 nationwide to popularize science.

CROP DISEASE MONITOR

A research center of crop diseases and pest monitoring and early warning has been founded in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, according to Tuesday's China Science Daily.

The research center, supported by the Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, developed an automatic monitor for wheat scab, one of the main crop diseases in China, said the newspaper. Enditem

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