The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, January 20, 1987 - Page 3
Prof offers solutions for
aging Chinese society
By PAMELA FRANKLIN
A Chinese law limiting families
to one child may may create havoc
in the future when Chinese citizens
will be forced to support their
elderly, according to a new Uni-
versity study.
"The Chinese do not understand
the dimension of the problem.
Their top priority is fertility con-
trol," said Medical Care Organ-
ization Prof. Jersey Liang, a re-
search scientist in the Institute of
Gerontology. Liang studied the
situation and suggests solutions.
Liang explained that adult Chi-
nese children are responsible for
their parents in their old age; there-
fore, one child would have to care
for two parents, in-laws, and up to
eight grandparents.
China's one-child policy, the
central part of its campaign for zero
growth of its population of 1.2
billion, may place a large burden on
the adults of the future - and may
endanger the security of the future
elderly.
THE STUDY reports that as a
result of the one-child policy, the
absence of siblings, in-laws,
uncles, aunts, and the thinning out
of extended relationships would
remove a large number of branches
from the family tree.
Tradition and China's "Marriage
Law" place the responsibility for
the aged on their children, the study
said. Violators of the law are sub-
ject to punishment.
The one-child policy has changed
the traditional, extended Chinese
family. As a result, the tradition for
children to care for parents must be-
come a national, rather than a per-
sonal, responsibility, Liang said.
Liang makes three suggestions
in the report: raising the fertility
rate to the replacement level of two
children per family after the year
2000, improving economic pro-
ductivity, and implementing a so-
cial security system.
China does have a retirement
program, but Liang said China's
current policy is limited.
"PENSIONS range from 60 to
100 percent of a worker's last wage,
depending on length of service and
prior participation in revolutionary
work," the study said.
Pension plans exist primarily for
state employees, which make up 21
percent of the total labor force.
Another pension plan with fewer
benefits covers workers of large
urban collectives, who comprise
five percent of China's labor force.
Another suggestion is to in-
crease the retirement age. Citizens
would pay into the system for a
longer period of time before being
supported by it. Late retirement,
however, creates a job shortage, the
study says.
To maintain the current ratio of
elderly to workers, the Chinese
could increase the retirement age of
60 for men and 55 for women to 74
and 69 by 2042, the study said.
Last year, Liang traveled to
People's Republic of China three
times to meet with the go-
vernment's Academy of Social Sci-
ence and Bureau of Social Affairs,
and various universities, including
the Chinese University of Hong
Kong, Shanghai University, Tian-
jin Academy of Social Sciences,
Nankai University in Tainjin, and
Beijing Academy of Social Sci-
ences. He also visited the Taipei,
Taiwan city government.
During the trips, Liang met with
officers and researchers and lectured
on gerontology.
Associated Press contributed to
this report.
Cantham describes
I., -o
Daily photo by SCOTT LITUCHY.
Rejuvenation
Construction worker Charles Arnett replaces an aluminum door with an original wood door as part of a
Nickel's Arcade restoration project.
-1
LIST
New 'Paris computer
stronger than Mac Plus
Campus Cinema
Super 8mm Films of Lenny
Lipton, Eyemediae, 8 p.m., 214 N.
Fourth.
Two1975 films from one of the
first filmmakers to make use of the
Super-8 sound camera. Children Of
The Golden West ( a western), and
The Story Of A Man (Going Down
In Flames), about an American
criminal hoofing it through Canada.
The Girl In The Picture (C.
Parker, 1986), MTF, 7:45 p.m.,
Mich.
The director of Gregory's Girl
brings us another whimsical tale
Iabout two people who find they
would rather be miserable together
than content and alone.
Speakers
Rabbi Walter Wurtzburger and
Rabbi Eugene Lipman -"Will
There Be One Jewish People in the
Year 2000?" B'nai B'rith Hillel
Foundation, 7:30 p.m., Hillel
Auditorium.
Sandra Mackrill - "Building
Your Wonder Wardrobe," 7 p.m.,
Ann Arbor 'Y'.
Marjorie Levy and Edna
Coffin - "Technology in the
Humanities," Women in a
Technological Society, 3 p.m.,
Rackham Assembly Hall.
Marc Taras - "History of Jazz:
Early Drumming," 7 p.m.,
Michigan Union.
Martin Palmer- "Geochemistry
of Submarine Hydrothermal Fluids,"
Dept. of Geological Sciences, 4
p.m., 4001 C.C. Little.
William Tumas -
"Photochemical Studies of
Titanacyclobutanes," Dept. Of
Chemistry, 4 p.m., 1300 Chemistry
Bldg.
Douglas Hofstadter, John.
Holland, Richard Nisbett, and
Gary Olson - "The Mind and the
Abstract," 7 p.m., 4th Floor
Ampitheatre, Rackham Bldg.
Meetings
Undergraduate Political Sci -
ence Association - 7 p.m.,
Michigan Union, Kuenzel Room.
Eclipse Jazz - 5:30 p.m.,
Michigan Union, Anderson Room.
Furthermore
American Red Cross -
Advanced Lifesaving Review Course,
7 p.m., Tappan Junior High School
(994-2326).
Bloodmobile - 9 a.m.-3 p.m.,
University Tri-Services, North Hall
(747-4603).
The May Company - Executive
Training Program Opportunities, 7
p.m., 35 Angell Hall.
ACU-I Campus Games
Tournament- Register in
Billiards and Games Room, 2nd
Floor Michigan Union (764-6498).
Safewalk - Night time Safety
Walking Service, 8 p.m.-1:30 a.m.,
UGLi Room 102 or call 936-1000.
Tape Sale - East Quad Music
Co-op, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Fishbowl
(764-3456).
Send announcements of up-
coning events to "The List,"
c/o The Michigan Daily, 420
Mayird St., Ann Arbor,
Mich., 48109. Include all per-
tinent information and a con-
tract phone number. We must
receive announcements for
Friday and Sunda'y events at
least two weeks before the
event, and announcements for
weekday events must be
received at least two days
before the event.
(Continued from Page 1)
Northbrook Computers in North -
brook, Ill.;
- Two to four megabytes of
Random Access Memory. Sherman
said, "The two to four megabytes
RAM refers to the internal memory
capacity of the computer. Gener -
ally, it is accepted that the more
memory you have to play with, the
more you can do at one time, and
the more complicated projects your
machine can handle;"
- 20 megabytes disk space. The
informed source said, "The capacity
of the internal hard disk will be
three or four times bigger (than the
Macintosh Plus), but some of the
extra space is needed because the
operating system is far larger than
the system inside a Mac." The disk
is used for information storage;
- One megabyte display and an
option for color screens. Flanigan
explained, "On a larger screen...
you can see a whole page or two,
which, is very nice for com -
positions. If you are drawing, you
can do much finer work. It's like
drawing with a very fine pencil," he
said;
- A pricetag of $5,000 to
$7,000. Flanigan and Sherman said
this is a reasonable price.
According to Mahoney, "Spec
sheets are pretty accurate. Usually
differences between the spec sheet
and the computer are minor."
Sherman sees the Paris "as a
definite improvement over what we
see now." But, he added, "I will
believe it only when I see it."
The informed source also said
the new machine would be at least
two or three times faster than the
Macintosh Plus.
THE DATE when Apple will
formally announce the Paris line of
computers is still uncertain, al -
though it is expected to come in
early March.
Marks said, however, that the
Macintosh Plus is sufficient for the
needs of most people. "Everything I
personally need to do I can do just
fine on a Mac Plus," Marks said.
The University's Macintosh
Plus sale is a cooperative venture
with Apple Computers to sell the
computer packages for low prices.
Information packets about the
sale did not reach some people until
the middle of last week because of
delays at the printer and in the Uni-
versity mail.
Marks explained that Computer
Weekend cannot be pushed back
because the University wants to get
the machines to the students as
soon as possible, and because
Apple wants to talk about the re-
sults with other universities at its
March convention.
Apple is considering running a
similar sale with three other large
universities in the future, according
to Apple's Midwest Sales Director
Jim Buckley.
bU7recrui
(Continued from Page 1)
2.0 GPA last semester, the min-
imum grade point required to play
for Michigan, so they can play next
season. Canham said only 5 percent
of athletes recruited by the Uni-
versity fail to maintain a 2.0.
"You cannot have a competitive
program without taking some
students (with low academic
rankings)," said Paul Gikas,
medical school professor and a
representative to the Big Ten.
Gikas added that it was em-
barrassing that Mills and Robinson
could not play, but he predicts the
number of University-recruited
athletes with poor academics will
decrease. Currently, the University
admits "literally a handful" of aca-
demically borderline students each
year, he said.
Gikas said 85.6 percent of
freshmen who entered the Uni-
versity in 1980 graduated in five
years, compared to the 76.4 percent
of student-athletes who graduated in
the same five years.
This percentage varies among
specific teams with a 100 percent
graduation rate from swimming,
tennis, and track, and a 50 percent
graduation rate from the hockey
team. There is also a gender
difference among graduates --68.8
percent of male athletes graduated in
1985 after five years while 91.7
percent females graduated.
MEDICAL SCHOOL Prof.
Philip Margolis said he was pleased
with the high percentage of athletes
who graduated in five years. "I'm
torn between maintaining standards
and realizing that some people need
an opportunity," he said.
Athletes are given more aca-
demic support, such as tutoring,
which motivates them, said Engin-
eering Professor Dale Briggs.
On other issues, Canham said he
is opposed to freshmen playing on
sports teams. "I've been
campaigning against it for years,"
he said. Canham feels that during
students should concentrate on
academics during their first year in
college. He said at that at Ohio
State University and Michigan
State University, students "can play
in three football games and not
know where the library is."
Another issue is whether
athletes, if they don't compete
during their freshman year, would
be able to compete for three or four
years. Canham said he would like
to see students compete for four
years beginning in their sophomore
year.
Canham spoke yesterday despite
a statement last week that he would
not address the Senate Assembly
because he felt he would not have
have time to speak and answer
questions about intercollegiate
athletics.
CORRECTIONS
An article in yesterday's Daily misspelled the name of Bettinna
Signori, an organizer of a calendar featuring University students. The
same article incorrectly said the Entrepreneurial Society is selling
national advertisements for its "Spring Break in Jamaica" calendar. The
group is currently focusing on selling local advertisements.
To get further information about the calendar, call 996-5521 or 747-
6439.
The DRDA is an acronym for the Division of Research and
Development Administration. The Daily misidentified the division on
Friday.
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