This is an accepted version of this page
127-582: The Three Gorges Dam ( simplified Chinese : 三峡大坝 ; traditional Chinese : 三峽大壩 ; pinyin : Sānxiá Dàbà ) is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River near Sandouping in Yiling District , Yichang , Hubei province, central China, downstream of the Three Gorges . The world's largest power station in terms of installed capacity (22,500 MW ),
254-631: A capacity of 700 MW, and two plant power generators, each with capacity of 50 MW, for a total of 22,500 MW. Among the 32 main generators, 14 are installed on the dam's north side, 12 on the south side, and the remaining six in the underground power plant in the mountain south of the dam. Annual electricity generation in 2018 was 101.6 TWh, which is 20 times more than the Hoover Dam . The main generators each weigh approximately 6,000 tonnes and are designed to produce more than 700 MW of power each. The designed hydraulic head of
381-443: A component—either a character or a sub-component called a radical —usually involves either a reduction in its total number of strokes , or an apparent streamlining of which strokes are chosen in what places—for example, the ⼓ ' WRAP ' radical used in the traditional character 沒 is simplified to ⼏ ' TABLE ' to form the simplified character 没 . By systematically simplifying radicals, large swaths of
508-434: A conversion table. While exercising such derivation, the following rules should be observed: Sample Derivations : The Series One List of Variant Characters reduces the number of total standard characters. First, amongst each set of variant characters sharing identical pronunciation and meaning, one character (usually the simplest in form) is elevated to the standard character set, and the rest are made obsolete. Then amongst
635-718: A dam capable of generating 30 million horsepower (22 GW) was possible downstream of the Three Gorges . In 1932, the Nationalist government , led by Chiang Kai-shek , began preliminary work on plans in the Three Gorges. In 1939, during the Second Sino-Japanese War , Japanese military forces occupied Yichang and surveyed the area. In 1944, the United States Bureau of Reclamation 's head design engineer, John L. Savage , surveyed
762-407: A few revised forms, and was implemented for official use by China's State Council on 5 June 2013. In Chinese, simplified characters are referred to by their official name 简化字 ; jiǎnhuàzì , or colloquially as 简体字 ; jiǎntǐzì . The latter term refers broadly to all character variants featuring simplifications of character form or structure, a practice which has always been present as
889-492: A flat rate of ¥250 per MWh (US$ 35.7) until July 2, 2008. Since then, the price has varied by province, from ¥228.7 to ¥401.8 per MWh. Higher-paying customers, such as Shanghai , receive priority. Nine provinces and two cities consume power from the dam. Power distribution and transmission infrastructure cost about 34.387 billion yuan. Construction was completed in December 2007, one year ahead of schedule. Power
1016-424: A flood in the same area caused billions of dollars worth of damage, when 2,039 km (787 sq mi) of farmland were flooded. The flood affected more than 2.3 million people, killing 1,526. In early August 2009, the largest flood in five years passed through the dam site. During this flood, the dam limited the water flow to less than 40,000 m/s (1.4 million cu ft/s) per second, raising
1143-545: A hundred flowers bloom; let a hundred schools of thought contend. The slogan was first used by Mao Zedong on May 2, 1956, during a public speech. The name was used to arouse the interest of China's intellectuals, referring to the Warring States period when numerous schools of thought competed for ideological, not military, supremacy. Historically, Confucianism , Chinese Mahayana Buddhism and Taoism had gained prominence, and socialism would now face its test. At
1270-752: A hundred schools of thought contend." Until April 28, 1956, in his concluding speech at an expanded meeting of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party , he mentioned, "Let a hundred flowers bloom, let a hundred schools of thought contend" in first time. It is suggested that the launching of the campaign was delayed by the shocking impact of the speech denouncing Stalin at the Twentieth Soviet Party Congress in February 1956 delivered by Nikita Khrushchev . In
1397-427: A kind of elevator for vessels. The ship lift can lift ships of up to 3,000 tons. The vertical distance traveled is 113 m (371 ft), and the size of the ship lift's basin is 120 m × 18 m × 3.5 m (394 ft × 59 ft × 11 ft). The ship lift takes 30 to 40 minutes to transit, as opposed to the three to four hours for stepping through the locks. One complicating factor
SECTION 10
#17327659114261524-640: A loss of individual rights, especially for any Chinese intellectuals educated in Western centers of learning. The campaign was conducted indiscriminately, as numerous individuals were labeled as "rightists" based on anonymous denunciations. Local officials across the country were even assigned quotas for the number of "rightists" they needed to identify and denounce within their units. In the summer and early fall of 1957, roughly four hundred thousand urban residents, including many intellectuals, were branded as rightists and either sent to penal camps or forced into labor in
1651-581: A monumental social and economical success, with the design of state-of-the-art large turbines and a move toward limiting greenhouse gas emissions . However, the dam has led to some ecological changes, including an increased risk of landslides, which have made it controversial domestically and abroad. Sun Yat-sen envisioned a large dam across the Yangtze River in The International Development of China (1919). He wrote that
1778-610: A newly coined phono-semantic compound : Removing radicals Only retaining single radicals Replacing with ancient forms or variants : Adopting ancient vulgar variants : Readopting abandoned phonetic-loan characters : Copying and modifying another traditional character : Based on 132 characters and 14 components listed in Chart 2 of the Complete List , the 1,753 derived characters found in Chart 3 can be created by systematically simplifying components using Chart 2 as
1905-573: A part of the Chinese writing system. The official name tends to refer to the specific, systematic set published by the Chinese government, which includes not only simplifications of individual characters, but also a substantial reduction in the total number of characters through the merger of formerly distinct forms. According to Chinese palaeographer Qiu Xigui , the broadest trend in the evolution of Chinese characters over their history has been simplification, both in graphical shape ( 字形 ; zìxíng ),
2032-476: A race apart'. On June 8, 1957, the major party newspaper, People's Daily , published an editorial that signaled the conclusion of the Hundred Flowers Campaign. The editorial asserted that "rightists" had exploited the new found freedom to attack the party and undermine the revolution. This, the editorial claimed, amounted to a hostile struggle "between the enemy and the people", indicating
2159-508: A threat to the communist regime. The liberation was short-lived. Afterwards, a crackdown continued through 1957 and 1959, developing into an Anti-Rightist Campaign against those who were critical of the regime and its ideology. Citizens were rounded up in waves by the hundreds of thousands, publicly criticized during struggle sessions, and condemned to prison camps for re-education through labor or execution. The ideological crackdown re-imposed Maoist orthodoxy in public expression, and catalyzed
2286-475: A total of 198 million tonnes of freight passed through the locks. The freight capacity of the river increased six times and the cost of shipping was reduced by 25%. Originally, the total capacity of the ship locks was expected to reach 100 million tonnes per year. In 2022, their cargo turnover reached 159.65 million tons, with an annual increase of 6% over the past few years. These locks are staircase locks , whereby inner lock gate pairs serve as both
2413-468: Is 181 m (594 ft) high above the rock basis. When the water level is at its maximum of 175 m (574 ft) above sea level, 110 m (361 ft) higher than the river level downstream, the dam reservoir is on average about 660 km (410 mi) in length and 1.12 km (3,675 ft) in width. It contains 39.3 km (31,900,000 acre⋅ft ) of water and has a total surface area of 1,045 km (403 sq mi). On completion,
2540-440: Is actually more complex than eliminated ones. An example is the character 搾 which is eliminated in favor of the variant form 榨 . The 扌 'HAND' with three strokes on the left of the eliminated 搾 is now seen as more complex, appearing as the ⽊ 'TREE' radical 木 , with four strokes, in the chosen variant 榨 . Not all characters standardised in the simplified set consist of fewer strokes. For instance,
2667-454: Is derived. Merging homophonous characters: Adapting cursive shapes ( 草書楷化 ): Replacing a component with a simple arbitrary symbol (such as 又 and 乂 ): Omitting entire components : Omitting components, then applying further alterations : Structural changes that preserve the basic shape Replacing the phonetic component of phono-semantic compounds : Replacing an uncommon phonetic component : Replacing entirely with
SECTION 20
#17327659114262794-631: Is disputed by empirical research from archival sources and oral histories. She writes that many interpretations of the Hundred Flowers campaign "underestimate the fear on the part of Mao and party leadership over an escalating atmosphere of anticommunism within the communist world in the aftermath of the East European uprisings." Author Christine Vidal similarly rejects the idea of the campaign as being initially calculated to lure dissidents for later repression, stating that "the repression
2921-544: Is distributed over multiple 500 kV transmission lines. Three direct current (DC) lines to the East China Grid carry 7,200 MW: Three Gorges – Shanghai (3,000 MW), HVDC Three Gorges – Changzhou (3,000 MW), and HVDC Gezhouba – Shanghai (1,200 MW). The alternating current (AC) lines to the Central China Grid have a total capacity of 12,000 MW. The DC transmission line HVDC Three Gorges – Guangdong to
3048-446: Is enough flow, power output is limited by plant generating capacity. The maximum power-output curves were calculated based on the average flow rate at the dam site, assuming the water level is 175 m and the plant gross efficiency is 90.15%. The actual power output in 2008 was obtained based on the monthly electricity sent to the grid. The Three Gorges Dam reached its design-maximum reservoir water level of 175 m (574 ft) for
3175-600: Is home to 6,388 plant species, which belong to 238 families and 1,508 genera. Of these species, 57 are endangered. These rare species are also used as ingredients in traditional Chinese medicines. The proportion of forested area in the region surrounding the Three Gorges Dam dropped from 20% in 1950 to less than 10% as of 2002, adversely affecting all plant species there. The region also provides habitats to hundreds of freshwater and terrestrial animal species. Freshwater fish are especially affected by dams due to changes in
3302-508: Is made up of five stages, with transit time at around four hours. Maximum vessel size is 10,000 tons. The locks are 280 m long, 35 m wide, and 5 m deep (918 × 114 × 16.4 ft). That is 30 m (98 ft) longer than those on the St Lawrence Seaway , but half as deep. Before the dam was constructed, the maximum freight capacity at the Three Gorges site was 18.0 million tonnes per year. From 2004 to 2007,
3429-813: Is now discouraged. A State Language Commission official cited "oversimplification" as the reason for restoring some characters. The language authority declared an open comment period until 31 August 2009, for feedback from the public. In 2013, the List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters was published as a revision of the 1988 lists; it included a total of 8105 characters. It included 45 newly recognized standard characters that were previously considered variant forms, as well as official approval of 226 characters that had been simplified by analogy and had seen wide use but were not explicitly given in previous lists or documents. Singapore underwent three successive rounds of character simplification , eventually arriving at
3556-642: Is outdated and that revolutionary opera should be promoted. In late March, Mao inscribed a dedication for the establishment of the Chinese Opera Research Institute: "Let a hundred flowers bloom; weed through the old to bring forth the new." In 1953, Boda Chen, who was in charge of the Committee for the Study of Chinese Historical Issues, sought Mao's guidance on the work principles, to which Chairman Mao responded with four characters: "Let
3683-623: Is referred to as the " big seal script ". The traditional narrative, as also attested in the Shuowen Jiezi dictionary ( c. 100 AD ), is that the Qin small seal script that would later be imposed across China was originally derived from the Zhou big seal script with few modifications. However, the body of epigraphic evidence comparing the character forms used by scribes gives no indication of any real consolidation in character forms prior to
3810-419: Is that the water level can vary dramatically. The ship lift must work even if water levels vary by 12 m (39 ft) on the lower side, and 30 m (98 ft) on the upper side. The ship lift's design uses a helical gear system, to climb or descend a toothed rack. Simplified Chinese characters Simplified Chinese characters are one of two standardized character sets widely used to write
3937-547: Is used instead of 叠 in regions using traditional characters. The Chinese government stated that it wished to keep Chinese orthography stable. The Chart of Generally Utilized Characters of Modern Chinese was published in 1988 and included 7000 simplified and unsimplified characters. Of these, half were also included in the revised List of Commonly Used Characters in Modern Chinese , which specified 2500 common characters and 1000 less common characters. In 2009,
Three Gorges Dam - Misplaced Pages Continue
4064-495: The Central Government did not receive much criticism, although there was a significant rise in letters of conservative advice. Premier Zhou Enlai received some of these letters, and once again realized that, although the campaign had gained notable publicity, it was not progressing as had been hoped. Zhou approached Mao about the situation, stating that more encouragement was needed from the central bureaucracy to lead
4191-670: The Chinese language , with the other being traditional characters . Their mass standardization during the 20th century was part of an initiative by the People's Republic of China (PRC) to promote literacy, and their use in ordinary circumstances on the mainland has been encouraged by the Chinese government since the 1950s. They are the official forms used in mainland China and Singapore , while traditional characters are officially used in Hong Kong , Macau , and Taiwan . Simplification of
4318-747: The Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution slowed progress. After the 1954 Yangtze River Floods , in 1956, Mao wrote " Swimming ", a poem about his fascination with a dam on the Yangtze River. In 1958, after the Hundred Flowers Campaign , some engineers who spoke out against the project were imprisoned. During China's emphasis on the Four Modernizations during its early period of Reform and Opening Up , The Communist Party revived plans for
4445-550: The Jingguang Railway was out of service for more than 100 days. The 1954 flood carried 50 cubic kilometres (12 cu mi) of water. The dam could only divert the water above Chenglingji, leaving 30 to 40 km (7.2 to 9.6 cu mi) to be diverted. The dam cannot protect against some of the large tributaries downstream, including the Xiang , Zishui , Yuanshui , Lishui , Hanshui , and Gan . In 1998,
4572-471: The Ministry of Environmental Protection , as of April 2007, more than 50 new plants could treat 1.84 million tonnes per day, 65% of the total need. About 32 landfills were added, which could handle 7,664.5 tonnes of solid waste every day. Over one billion tons of wastewater are released annually into the river, which was more likely to be swept away before the reservoir was created. This has left
4699-786: The "Dot" stroke : The traditional components ⺥ and 爫 become ⺈ : The traditional component 奐 becomes 奂 : Hundred Flowers Campaign The Hundred Flowers Campaign , also termed the Hundred Flowers Movement ( Chinese : 百花齐放 ) and the Double Hundred Movement (双百方针), was a period from 1956 to 1957 in the People's Republic of China during which the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), led by Mao Zedong , proposed to "let one hundred flowers bloom in social science and arts and let one hundred points of view be expressed in
4826-459: The "external appearances of individual graphs", and in graphical form ( 字体 ; 字體 ; zìtǐ ), "overall changes in the distinguishing features of graphic[al] shape and calligraphic style, [...] in most cases refer[ring] to rather obvious and rather substantial changes". The initiatives following the founding of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) to universalize the use of their small seal script across
4953-482: The 1986 General List of Simplified Chinese Characters , hereafter the General List . All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Chart 1 and Chart 2 in the 1986 Complete List . Characters in both charts are structurally simplified based on similar set of principles. They are separated into two charts to clearly mark those in Chart 2 as 'usable as simplified character components', based on which Chart 3
5080-520: The 1986 mainland China revisions. Unlike in mainland China, Singapore parents have the option of registering their children's names in traditional characters. Malaysia also promulgated a set of simplified characters in 1981, though completely identical to the mainland Chinese set. They are used in Chinese-language schools. All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Charts 1 and 2 of
5207-541: The 1990s. This is largely due to China's large reforestation effort . This accelerated after the 1998 Yangtze River floods convinced the government that it should restore tree cover, especially in the Yangtze's basin upstream of the Three Gorges Dam. Concerns about the dam's impact on wildlife predate the National People's Congress's approval in 1992. This region has long been known for its rich biodiversity. It
Three Gorges Dam - Misplaced Pages Continue
5334-620: The Anti-Rightist Movement. The name of the movement consists two parts. The first part "Let a hundred flowers bloom" （百花齊放） is originated from a novel named " Flowers in the Mirror " by Qing Author Li Ruzhen ; the second part "Let a hundred schools of thoughts contend" （百家爭鳴）comes from "Treatise on Literature" of the Book of Han authored by the Chinese historian Ban Gu : 百花齊放，百家爭鳴 ( Bǎihuā qífàng, bǎijiā zhēngmíng ) Let
5461-504: The CCP with posters and letters. They protested CPC control over intellectuals, the harshness of previous mass campaigns such as that against counter-revolutionaries, the slavish following of Soviet models, the low standards of living in China, the proscription of foreign literature, economic corruption among party cadres, and the fact that 'Party members [enjoyed] many privileges which make them
5588-634: The Central Government. The reception was immediate with intellectuals, who began voicing concerns without any taboo . In the period from 1 May to 7 June that year, millions of letters were pouring into the Premier's Office and other authorities. From May to June 1957, newspapers published a huge range of critical articles. The majority of these critiques argued that the Party had become less revolutionary and more bureaucratic. Nonetheless, most of
5715-470: The Chinese government published a major revision to the list which included a total of 8300 characters. No new simplifications were introduced. In addition, slight modifications to the orthography of 44 characters to fit traditional calligraphic rules were initially proposed, but were not implemented due to negative public response. Also, the practice of unrestricted simplification of rare and archaic characters by analogy using simplified radicals or components
5842-472: The Cultural Revolution, proved willing to bring in non-party people as part of his effort to curb officiousness by cadres. Other leaders, such as Liu Shaoqi, opposed "rectifying" the party by going outside of its ranks." Historians debate whether Mao's motivations for launching the campaign were genuine. Some find it possible that Mao originally had pure intentions, but later decided to utilize
5969-520: The Hundred Flowers campaign published on June 19 1957, Mao Zedong clarified the distinction between "beautiful flowers" and "poisonous weeds"; In July 1957, Mao ordered a halt to the campaign. Unexpected demands for power sharing led to the abrupt change of policy. By that time, Mao had witnessed Nikita Khrushchev denouncing Joseph Stalin and the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 , events which he felt were threatening. In essence, Mao
6096-432: The Party. The first part of the phrase from which the campaign takes its name is often remembered as "let a hundred flowers bloom." This is used to refer to an orchestrated campaign to flush out dissidents by encouraging them to show themselves as critical of the regime, and then subsequently imprison them, according to Chang and James. In Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday , Chang asserts that "Mao
6223-453: The People's Republic of China in that the government opened up to ideological criticisms from the general public. Although its true nature has always been questioned by historians, it can be generally concluded that the events that took place alarmed the central communist leadership. The movement also represented a pattern that has emerged from Chinese history wherein free thought is promoted by
6350-796: The South China Grid has a capacity of 3,000 MW. The dam was expected to provide 10% of China's power. However, electricity demand has increased more quickly than previously projected. Even fully operational and despite its size, on average, it supported only about 1.7% of electricity demand in China in the year of 2011, when the Chinese electricity demand reached 4,692.8 TWh. According to the National Development and Reform Commission , 366 grams of coal would produce 1 kWh of electricity during 2006. From 2003 to 2007, power production equaled that of 84 million tonnes of standard coal. Two hazards are uniquely identified with
6477-625: The Three Gorges Dam Construction Fund, profits from the Gezhouba Dam , loans from the China Development Bank , loans from domestic and foreign commercial banks, corporate bonds , and revenue from both before and after the dam had become fully operational. Additional charges were assessed as follows: every province receiving power from the Three Gorges Dam had to pay an extra ¥7.00 per MWh, and
SECTION 50
#17327659114266604-502: The Three Gorges Dam directly caused the extinction of the baiji. Of the 3,000 to 4,000 remaining critically endangered Siberian crane , many spend the winter in wetlands that the Three Gorges Dam will destroy. Populations of the Yangtze sturgeon are guaranteed to be "negatively affected" by the dam. In 2022 the Chinese paddlefish was declared extinct, with the last confirmed sighting in 2003. In 2005, NASA scientists calculated that
6731-437: The Three Gorges Dam generates 95±20 TWh of electricity per year on average, depending on the amount of precipitation in the river basin. After the extensive monsoon rainfalls of 2020, the dam's annual production reached nearly 112 TWh, breaking the previous world record of ~103 TWh set by Itaipu Dam in 2016. The dam's body was completed in 2006; the power plant was completed and fully operational by 2012, when
6858-468: The area and drew up a dam proposal for a "Yangtze River Project". Some 54 Chinese engineers went to the US for training. The original plans called for the dam to employ a unique method for moving ships: the ships would enter locks at the dam's lower and upper ends and then cranes would move them from each lock to the next. Groups of craft would be lifted together for efficiency. It is not known whether this solution
6985-541: The beginning of a crackdown that later became the Anti-Rightist Campaign led by then party General Secretary Deng Xiaoping . Mao announced that "poisonous weeds" had grown amongst the "fragrant flowers" of the campaign, further terminology which signified the impeding crackdown. In a revised version of On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People , an essay aimed to revive
7112-602: The beginning. Circulated to higher party cadres in mid-May 1957, the letter stated: Things are just beginning to change. The rightist offensive has not yet reached its peak. [The rightists] are still very enthusiastic. We want to let them rage for a while and climb to the very summit. Mao's personal physician, Li Zhisui , suggested that: [The campaign was] a gamble, based on a calculation that genuine counter-revolutionaries were few, that rebels like Hu Feng had been permanently intimidated into silence, and that other intellectuals would follow Mao's lead, speaking out only against
7239-463: The case of the Cultural Revolution , employed more violent means. Another consequence of the Hundred Flowers Campaign was that it discouraged dissent and made intellectuals reluctant to criticize Mao and his party in the future. The Anti-Rightist Movement that shortly followed, and was caused by the Hundred Flowers Campaign, resulted in the persecution of intellectuals, officials, students, artists, and dissidents labeled "rightists". The campaign led to
7366-434: The chance to promote socialism , believing that after discussion it would be apparent that socialist ideology was the dominant ideology over capitalism , even amongst non-communist Chinese, and would thus propel the development and spread of the goals of socialism. To this end, in an attempt to reduce hesitancy, intellectuals were invited to forums in which they were allowed to ask exploratory questions, slowly discovering what
7493-428: The character set are altered. Some simplifications were based on popular cursive forms that embody graphic or phonetic simplifications of the traditional forms. In addition, variant characters with identical pronunciation and meaning were reduced to a single standardized character, usually the simplest among all variants in form. Finally, many characters were left untouched by simplification and are thus identical between
7620-407: The chosen variants, those that appear in the "Complete List of Simplified Characters" are also simplified in character structure accordingly. Some examples follow: Sample reduction of equivalent variants : Ancient variants with simple structure are preferred : Simpler vulgar forms are also chosen : The chosen variant was already simplified in Chart 1 : In some instances, the chosen variant
7747-485: The commentary was premised on complete acceptance of socialism and the legitimacy of the Communist Party and focused on making the existing socialist system work better. Criticism increasingly arose from Chinese citizens of varying backgrounds. Peasants criticized the effectiveness of cooperatives and demanded the repossession of their land. Workers argued that the wage system was irrational and complained about
SECTION 60
#17327659114267874-473: The country's writing system as a serious impediment to its modernization. In 1916, a multi-part English-language article entitled "The Problem of the Chinese Language" co-authored by the Chinese linguist Yuen Ren Chao (1892–1982) and poet Hu Shih (1891–1962) has been identified as a turning point in the history of the Chinese script—as it was one of the first clear calls for China to move away from
8001-483: The countryside. While the party attempted to improve relations with intellectuals at the end of the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution obliterated any semblance of intellectual influence and prestige, "very few, if any, intellectuals survived the Cultural Revolution without having suffered physical and psychological abuse". The Hundred Flowers Movement was the first of its kind in the history of
8128-567: The course of the dry season. During the South China floods in July 2010 , inflows at the Three Gorges Dam reached a peak of 70,000 m/s (2.5 million cu ft/s), exceeding the peak inflow during the 1998 Yangtze River floods . The dam's reservoir rose nearly 3 m (9.8 ft) in 24 hours and reduced the outflow to 40,000 m/s (1.4 million cu ft/s) in discharges downstream, preventing any significant impact on
8255-458: The dam and proposed to start construction in 1986. It emphasized the need to develop hydroelectric power. The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference became a center of opposition to the proposed dam. It convened panels of experts who recommended delaying the project. The National People's Congress approved the dam in 1992: of 2,633 delegates, 1,767 voted in favour, 177 voted against, 664 abstained, and 25 members did not vote, giving
8382-421: The dam generated an average of 97.22 TWh of electricity per year, higher than Itaipu dam's average of 89.22 TWh of electricity per year during the same period. Due to the extensive 2020 monsoon season rainfall, the annual production reached ~112 TWh that year, which broke the previous world record of annual production by Itaipu Dam equal to ~103 TWh. The State Grid Corporation and China Southern Power Grid paid
8509-483: The dam is to control flooding, which is a major problem for the seasonal river of the Yangtze. Millions of people live downstream of the dam, with many large, important cities like Wuhan , Nanjing , and Shanghai located adjacent to the river. Large areas of farmland and China's most important industrial area are situated beside the river. The reservoir's flood storage capacity is 22 km (5.3 cu mi ; 18 million acre⋅ft ). This capacity will reduce
8636-459: The dam: that sedimentation projections are not agreed upon, and that the dam sits on a seismic fault . At current levels, 80% of the land in the area is eroding, depositing about 40 million tons of sediment into the Yangtze annually. Because the flow is slower above the dam, much of this sediment settles there instead of flowing downstream, and there is less sediment downstream. The absence of silt downstream has three effects: Erosion in
8763-507: The designed maximum level of 175 m (574 ft) by 2010. Made of concrete and steel, the dam is 2,335 m (2,554 yd; 1.451 mi) long and 185 m (607 ft) above sea level at its top. The project used 27.2 million m (35.6 million cu yd) of concrete (mainly for the dam wall), used 463,000 tonnes of steel (enough to build 63 Eiffel Towers ), and moved about 102.6 million m (134.2 million cu yd) of earth. The concrete dam wall
8890-476: The early 20th century. In 1909, the educator and linguist Lufei Kui formally proposed the use of simplified characters in education for the first time. Over the following years—marked by the 1911 Xinhai Revolution that toppled the Qing dynasty , followed by growing social and political discontent that further erupted into the 1919 May Fourth Movement —many anti-imperialist intellectuals throughout China began to see
9017-487: The field of science." It was a campaign that allowed citizens to offer criticism and advice to the government and the party; hence it was intended to serve an antibureaucratic purpose, at least on the Maoists' part. The campaign resulted in a groundswell of criticism aimed at the Party and its policies by those outside its rank and represented a brief period of relaxation in ideological and cultural control. The movement
9144-634: The first official list of simplified forms was published, consisting of 324 characters collated by Peking University professor Qian Xuantong . However, fierce opposition within the KMT resulted in the list being rescinded in 1936. Work throughout the 1950s resulted in the 1956 promulgation of the Chinese Character Simplification Scheme , a draft of 515 simplified characters and 54 simplified components, whose simplifications would be present in most compound characters. Over
9271-463: The first round—but was massively unpopular and never saw consistent use. The second round of simplifications was ultimately retracted officially in 1986, well after they had largely ceased to be used due to their unpopularity and the confusion they caused. In August 2009, China began collecting public comments for a revised list of simplified characters; the resulting List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters lists 8,105 characters, including
9398-443: The first time on October 26, 2010, in which the intended annual power-generation capacity of 84.7 TWh was realized. It has a combined generating capacity of 22.5 gigawatts and a designed annual generation capacity of 88.2 TWh. In 2012, the dam's 32 generating units generated a record 98.1 TWh of electricity, which accounts for 14% of China's total hydro generation. Between 2012 (first year with all 32 generating units operating) and 2021,
9525-475: The following decade, the Script Reform Committee deliberated on characters in the 1956 scheme, collecting public input regarding the recognizability of variants, and often approving forms in small batches. Parallel to simplification, there were also initiatives aimed at eliminating the use of characters entirely and replacing them with pinyin as an official Chinese alphabet, but this possibility
9652-406: The founding of the Qin. The Han dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) that inherited the Qin administration coincided with the perfection of clerical script through the process of libian . Eastward spread of Western learning Though most closely associated with the People's Republic, the idea of a mass simplification of character forms first gained traction in China during
9779-547: The founding of the country. This year, the entire Party launched the Rectification Campaign, mobilizing the masses to criticize and offer suggestions to the Party. This was a normal step in promoting socialist democracy. During the Rectification process, a very small number of bourgeois rightists took the opportunity to advocate for so-called "big revelations and big debates", launching a brazen attack on
9906-417: The frequency of major downstream flooding from once every 10 years to once every 100 years. The dam is expected to minimize the effect of even a "super" flood. The river flooded in 1954 over an area of 193,000 km (74,500 sq mi), killing 33,169 people and forcing almost 18.9 million people to move. The flood waters covered Wuhan, a city of eight million people, for over three months, and
10033-402: The generator rotors have 80 poles. Rated power is 778 MVA , with a maximum of 840 MVA and a power factor of 0.9. The generator produces electrical power at 20 kV . The electricity generated is then stepped up to 500 kV for transmission at 50 Hz. The generator's stator , the biggest of its kind, is 3.1/3 m in height; the outer diameter of the stator is 21.4/20.9 m,
10160-454: The generators is 80.6 metres (264 ft). The flow rate varies between 600–950 cubic metres per second (21,000–34,000 cu ft/s) depending on the head available; the greater the head, the less water needed to reach full power. Three Gorges uses Francis turbines with a diameter of 9.7/10.4 m (VGS design/Alstom's design) and a rotation speed of 75 revolutions per minute. This means that in order to generate power at 50 Hz ,
10287-448: The government, and then suppressed by it. A similar surge in ideological thought would not occur again until the late 1980s, leading up to the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre . The latter surge, however, did not receive the same amount of government backing and encouragement. Another important issue of the campaign was the tension that surfaced between the political center and national minorities. With criticism allowed, some of
10414-498: The ground can we easily uproot them. Don't farmers weed several times a year? Weeds, once removed, can still be used as fertilizer. Class enemies will inevitably seek opportunities to express themselves. They are unwilling to accept the downfall of the nation and the rise of communism. Professor Lin Chun characterizes as a "conspiracy theory" the depiction of the Hundred Flowers campaign as a calculated trap. In her analysis, this depiction
10541-466: The increased usage of 朙 was followed by proliferation of a third variant: 眀 , with 目 'eye' on the left—likely derived as a contraction of 朙 . Ultimately, 明 became the character's standard form. The Book of Han (111 AD) describes an earlier attempt made by King Xuan of Zhou ( d. 782 BC ) to unify character forms across the states of ancient China , with his chief chronicler having "[written] fifteen chapters describing" what
10668-475: The inner diameter is 18.5/18.8 m, and the bearing load is 5,050/5,500 tonnes. Average efficiency is over 94%, with a maximum efficiency of 96.5% reached. The generators were manufactured by two joint ventures: Alstom , ABB , Kvaerner , and the Chinese company Harbin Motor; and Voith , General Electric , Siemens (abbreviated as VGS), and the Chinese company Oriental Motor. The technology transfer agreement
10795-403: The intellectuals into further discussion. Mao Zedong found the concept interesting and superseded Zhou to take control. Guo Moruo declared that the contending of diverse schools should be guided by the central aim of building a socialist society. The idea was to have intellectuals discuss the country's problems to promote new forms of arts and new cultural institutions. Mao also saw this as
10922-465: The last main generator (No. 27) finished its final test on May 23, 2012, the six underground main generators were all operational, raising the capacity to 22.5 GW. After nine years of construction, installation and testing, the power plant was fully operational by July 2012. By August 16, 2011, the plant had generated 500 TWh of electricity. In July 2008 it generated 10.3 TWh of electricity, its first month over 10 TWh. On June 30, 2009, after
11049-409: The last of the main water turbines in the underground plant began production. Each of the main water turbines has a capacity of 700 MW. Combining the capacity of the dam's 32 main turbines with the two smaller generators (50 MW each) that provide power to the plant itself, the total electric generating capacity of the Three Gorges Dam is 22,500 MW. The last major component of the project,
11176-465: The left, with the 月 'Moon' component on the right. Li Si ( d. 208 BC ), the Chancellor of Qin, attempted to universalize the Qin small seal script across China following the wars that had politically unified the country for the first time. Li prescribed the 朙 form of the word for 'bright', but some scribes ignored this and continued to write the character as 明 . However,
11303-427: The legislation an unusually low 67.75% approval rate. Construction started on December 14, 1994. The dam was expected to be fully operational in 2009, but additional projects, such as the underground power plant with six additional generators, delayed full operation until 2012. The ship lift was completed in 2015. The dam raised the water level in the reservoir to 172.5 m (566 ft) above sea level by 2008 and to
11430-500: The middle and lower river. The installation of ship locks is intended to increase river shipping from ten million to 100 million tonnes annually; as a result transportation costs will be cut between 30 and 37%. Shipping will become safer, since the gorges are notoriously dangerous to navigate. There are two series of ship locks installed near the dam ( 30°50′12″N 111°1′10″E / 30.83667°N 111.01944°E / 30.83667; 111.01944 ). Each of them
11557-434: The minorities' activists made public their protest against " Han chauvinism " which they saw the informal approach of party officials toward the local specifics. The prominent party figures' attitudes toward the campaign is also a prime example of divided opinion on leadership level within the party on the issue of corruption among the party officials. As Lieberthal puts it, "The Chairman…in the Hundred Flowers campaign and in
11684-402: The most prominent Chinese authors of the 20th century, stated that "if Chinese characters are not destroyed, then China will die" ( 漢字不滅，中國必亡 ). During the 1930s and 1940s, discussions regarding simplification took place within the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party. Many members of the Chinese intelligentsia maintained that simplification would increase literacy rates throughout the country. In 1935,
11811-455: The opening stage of the movement, during March and April, issues discussed were relatively minor and unimportant in the grand scheme. Emphasis was placed on a distinction being drawn between "friend and foe". Intellectuals approached the campaign with suspicion, due to a lack of guidelines on what speech was acceptable; few also had suspicions about whether the campaign was bait, and whether disallowed speech would get them in trouble. Resultantly,
11938-429: The opportunity to destroy criticism. Historian Jonathan Spence suggests that the campaign was the culmination of a muddled and convoluted dispute within the Party regarding how to address dissent. Authors Clive James and Jung Chang posit that the campaign was, from the start, a ruse intended to expose rightists and counter-revolutionaries, and that Mao Zedong persecuted those whose views were different from those of
12065-508: The other provinces had to pay an additional charge of ¥4.00 per MWh. No surcharge was imposed on the Tibet Autonomous Region . Power generation is managed by China Yangtze Power , a listed subsidiary of China Three Gorges Corporation (CTGC), a Central Enterprise administered by SASAC . The Three Gorges Dam is the world's largest capacity hydroelectric power station, with 34 generators: 32 main generators, each with
12192-408: The party became alienated from the masses and that its members had become "flatterers, sycophants, and yes-men." One professor mentioned that Marx and Lenin had repeatedly revised their theories and suggested that the two would be displeased if they had seen how strictly the CCP leaders were applying doctrine. Notably, students at Peking University created a "Democratic Wall" on which they criticized
12319-405: The people and practices Mao himself most wanted to subject to reform. Indeed, Mao responded to the accusation in July 1, 1956 editorial of People's Press: Some say this is a conspiracy. We say this is an open strategy. Because we informed the enemy in advance: only by allowing the monsters and demons to come out of their lairs can we exterminate them; only by letting the poisonous weeds emerge from
12446-430: The public and quickly fell out of official use. It was ultimately formally rescinded in 1986. The second-round simplifications were unpopular in large part because most of the forms were completely new, in contrast to the familiar variants comprising the majority of the first round. With the rescission of the second round, work toward further character simplification largely came to an end. In 1986, authorities retracted
12573-465: The recently conquered parts of the empire is generally seen as being the first real attempt at script reform in Chinese history. Before the 20th century, variation in character shape on the part of scribes, which would continue with the later invention of woodblock printing , was ubiquitous. For example, prior to the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) the character meaning 'bright' was written as either 明 or 朙 —with either 日 'Sun' or 囧 'window' on
12700-444: The regimentation of education, thought reforms in previous years that were described as "painful", and the lack of employment prospects for those who went to American and British scholars. Additionally, some recanted their self-criticism and confessions from previous years. By the spring of 1957, Mao had announced that criticism was "preferred" and had begun to mount pressure on those who did not turn in healthy criticism on policy to
12827-492: The requirement to work overtime without pay. Some individuals even argued that the people were better off under the administration of the KMT . There was even advocation by ethnic minorities within the China to separate from the nation to form independent states. Others spoke out by putting up posters around campuses, rallying in the streets, holding meetings for CPC members, and publishing magazine articles. A journalist wrote that
12954-580: The reservoir flooded a total area of 632 km (156,000 acres) of land, compared to the 1,350 km (330,000 acres) of reservoir created by the Itaipu Dam . The Chinese government estimated that the Three Gorges Dam project would cost 180 billion yuan (US$ 22.5 billion). By the end of 2008, spending had reached 148.365 billion yuan, of which 64.613 billion yuan was spent on construction, 68.557 billion yuan on relocating affected residents, and 15.195 billion yuan on financing. It
13081-625: The reservoir, induced by rising water, causes frequent major landslides that have led to noticeable disturbance in the reservoir surface, including two incidents in May 2009 when somewhere between 20,000 and 50,000 cubic metres (26,000 and 65,000 cu yd) of material plunged into the flooded Wuxia Gorge of the Wu River . In the first four months of 2010, there were 97 significant landslides. The dam catalyzed improved upstream wastewater treatment around Chongqing and its suburban areas. According to
13208-456: The river downstream, providing fresh water for agricultural and industrial usage, and improving shipping conditions. The water level upstream drops from 175 to 145 m (574 to 476 ft), in preparation for the rainy season. The water also powers the Gezhouba Dam downstream. Since the filling of the reservoir in 2003, the Three Gorges Dam has supplied an extra 11 km (2.6 cu mi) of fresh water to downstream cities and farms over
13335-472: The river flow rate increased to over 24,000 m/s, all 28 generators were switched on, producing only 16,100 MW because the head available during flood season is insufficient. During an August 2009 flood, the plant first reached its maximum output for a short period. During the November to May dry season, power output is limited by the river's flow rate, as seen in the diagrams on the right. When there
13462-426: The same set of simplified characters as mainland China. The first round was promulgated by the Ministry of Education in 1969, consisting of 498 simplified characters derived from 502 traditional characters. A second round of 2287 simplified characters was promulgated in 1974. The second set contained 49 differences from the mainland China system; these were removed in the final round in 1976. In 1993, Singapore adopted
13589-467: The second round completely, though they had been largely fallen out of use within a year of their initial introduction. That year, the authorities also promulgated a final version of the General List of Simplified Chinese Characters . It was identical to the 1964 list save for 6 changes—including the restoration of 3 characters that had been simplified in the first round: 叠 , 覆 , 像 ; the form 疊
13716-533: The shift of water mass stored by the dams would increase the total length of the Earth 's day by 0.06 microseconds and make the Earth slightly more round in the middle and flat on the poles . A study published in 2022 in the journal Open Geosciences suggests that the change of reservoir water level affects the gravity field in western Sichuan, which in turn affects the seismicity in that area. An important function of
13843-472: The ship lift, was completed in 2015. In addition to generating electricity, the dam was designed to increase the Yangtze River's shipping capacity. By providing flood storage space, the dam reduces the potential for flooding downstream, which historically plagued the Yangtze Plain . In 1931, floods on the river caused the deaths of up to 4 million people. As a result, China regards the project as
13970-583: The time, the movement was opposed by even some of Mao's most devout followers, as well as some within the academic circle, most notably, Guo Moruo . In March 1951, the Peking Opera Research Institute was considered to be expanded and established as the Chinese Opera Research Institute. Mao was invited to inscribe a dedication for the institute. Meanwhile, half of the people argued that Peking Opera
14097-427: The traditional and simplified Chinese orthographies. The Chinese government has never officially announced the completion of the simplification process after the bulk of characters were introduced by the 1960s. In the wake of the Cultural Revolution , a second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977—largely composed of entirely new variants intended to artificially lower the stroke count, in contrast to
14224-833: The traditional character 強 , with 11 strokes is standardised as 强 , with 12 strokes, which is a variant character. Such characters do not constitute simplified characters. The new standardized character forms shown in the Characters for Publishing and revised through the Common Modern Characters list tend to adopt vulgar variant character forms. Since the new forms take vulgar variants, many characters now appear slightly simpler compared to old forms, and as such are often mistaken as structurally simplified characters. Some examples follow: The traditional component 釆 becomes 米 : The traditional component 囚 becomes 日 : The traditional "Break" stroke becomes
14351-399: The upper gate of the chamber below and the lower gate of the chamber above. The gates are the vulnerable hinged type, which, if damaged, could temporarily render the entire flight unusable. As there are separate sets of locks for upstream and downstream traffic, this system is more water efficient than bi-directional staircase locks. In addition to the canal locks, there is a ship lift ,
14478-411: The upstream water level from 145.13 m (476.1 ft) on August 1, to 152.88 m (501.6 ft) on August 8. A full 4.27 km (1.02 cu mi) of flood water was captured and the river flow was cut by as much as 15,000 m (530,000 cu ft) per second. The dam discharges its reservoir during the dry season every year, between December and March. This increases the flow rate of
14605-522: The use of characters entirely. Instead, Chao proposed that the language be written with an alphabet, which he saw as more logical and efficient. The alphabetization and simplification campaigns would exist alongside one another among the Republican intelligentsia for the next several decades. Recent commentators have echoed some contemporary claims that Chinese characters were blamed for the economic problems in China during that time. Lu Xun , one of
14732-545: The water stagnant, polluted and murky. In 1997, the Three Gorges area had 10% forestation, down from 20% in the 1950s. Research by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization suggested that the Asia-Pacific region would gain about 6,000 km (2,300 sq mi) of forest by 2008. That is a significant change from the 13,000 km (5,000 sq mi) net loss of forest each year in
14859-481: The water temperature and flow regime. Many other fish are injured in the hydroelectric plants' turbine blades. This is particularly detrimental to the region's ecosystem because the Yangtze River basin is home to 361 different fish species and accounts for 27% of China's endangered freshwater fish species. Other aquatic species have been endangered by the dam, particularly the baiji, or Chinese river dolphin , now extinct. In fact, Chinese Government scholars even claim that
14986-464: Was abandoned, confirmed by a speech given by Zhou Enlai in 1958. In 1965, the PRC published the List of Commonly Used Characters for Printing [ zh ] (hereafter Characters for Printing ), which included standard printed forms for 6196 characters, including all of the forms from the 1956 scheme. A second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977, but was poorly received by
15113-581: Was considered for its water-saving performance or because the engineers thought the difference in height between the river above and below the dam too great for alternative methods. No construction work was performed because of the Nationalists' worsening situation in the Chinese Civil War. After the 1949 Communist Revolution , Mao Zedong supported the project, but began the Gezhouba Dam project nearby first, and economic problems including
15240-572: Was deemed acceptable speech. During this time, criticisms were often indirect and lauded the Hundred Flowers campaign itself. In Leknor's research, it is stated that the conventional understanding of communication and power is inverted during the campaign since the right to speak up and be heard was not the right resevered for those in powers, but the right to keep one's voice out of the unfolding campaign. In other words, students were pressured by teachers to speak out; inferiors were asked to speak by superiors. Criticisms became more specific in May, citing
15367-404: Was estimated in 2009 that the cost of construction would be fully recouped when the dam had generated 1,000 terawatt-hours (3,600 PJ) of electricity, yielding 250 billion yuan; total cost recovery was thus expected to be completed ten years after the dam became fully operational. In fact, the entire cost of the Three Gorges Dam was recovered by December 20, 2013. Funding sources include
15494-432: Was eventually achieved on October 18, 2006, after the water level reached 156 meters. On the south side, main generator No. 22 started up on June 11, 2007, and No. 15 became operational on October 30, 2008. The sixth (No. 17) began operation on December 18, 2007, raising capacity to 14.1 GW, exceeding that of Itaipu dam (14.0 GW) to become the world's largest hydro power plant by capacity. When
15621-407: Was in part a response to tensions between the CCP and Chinese intellectuals. Mao had realized that the CCP's control over intellectual life was stifling potentially useful new ideas. He was also worried about the emergence of new party elites who could threaten his position. He sought to use the movement to restrain the new forces within the party. However, criticism quickly grew out of hand and posed
15748-651: Was not the initial aim of Mao and of his Hundred Flowers policy." The party's internal attitude towards the campaign can be found in Resolution on Certain Questions in the History of Our Party since the Founding of the People's Republic of China : The economic task in 1957, due to the serious implementation of the correct policies of the Party's "Eighth National Congress", was one of the most effective years since
15875-415: Was setting a trap, and...was inviting people to speak out so that he could use what they said as an excuse to victimise them." Prominent critic Harry Wu , who as a teenager was a victim, later wrote that he "could only assume that Mao never meant what he said, that he was setting a trap for millions." One supposedly authentic letter written by Mao indicates that the campaign was a ploy for entrapment from
16002-411: Was signed together with the contract. Most of the generators are water-cooled. Some of the newer ones are air-cooled, making them simpler in design and easier to manufacture and maintain. The first north-side main generator (No. 2) started up on July 10, 2003. The north side became completely operational on September 7, 2005, with the implementation of generator No. 9. Full power (9,800 MW)
16129-421: Was threatened by the intellectuals efforts to reclaim the position as loyal guardians of the proper moral framework for the political system. The campaign made a lasting impact on Mao's ideological perception. Mao, who is known historically to be more ideological and theoretical, less pragmatic and practical, continued to attempt to solidify socialist ideals in future movements in a more pragmatic manner, and in
#425574