On the 7th in China, ahead of the start of this year's National College Entrance Examination (commonly known as "Gaokao"), a road sign on a national highway in Ankang, Xunyang City, Shaanxi Province, with the numbers "985" and "211" written on it, has become a major topic of conversation. The reason is that these numbers are the same as those of the "211 Project" and "985 Project" universities that the Chinese government is preferentially developing to raise the level of higher education, and are therefore considered very auspicious.

The "211 Project" selects approximately 100 high-quality universities and works on fostering basic human resources for various industries. Furthermore, in the "985 Project," 39 of China's top prestigious universities are selected and are engaged in cutting-edge scientific research and the cultivation of high-level, precise, and advanced (高精尖) talent. Universities targeted by both projects have become representatives of high-quality universities in China. (Provided by/People's Daily Online Japanese edition - Edited by/KN)