90-Year-Old Scientist Receives Floral Baskets From State Leaders on Birthday ����Fei Xiaotong, a well-known Chinese political activist and sociologist who turns 90 today, received floral baskets from General Secretary Jiang Zemin of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the CPC Central Committee. ����Li Ruihuan, a member of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau Standing Committee, presented the birthday gifts to Fei on behalf of Jiang and the CPC Central Committee. ����Cao Zhi, vice chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, also presented a floral basket to Fei on behalf of the NPC Standing Committee and its chairman Li Peng. ����Ding Shisun, chairman of the China Democratic League (CDL), presented a floral basket to the 90-year-old on behalf of the CDL Central Committee. Fei is a former chairman and now honorary chairman of the non-communist party. ����The senior scientist is widely known as a great expert in rural development as he has spent much of his life traveling across the country to investigate and monitor the changes in the life of the rural population. He has published a series of works on the subject. ����In 1935, Fei graduated from Qinghua University and went to study in Britain. In 1938, he returned with a doctorate and began to teach at Qinghua and Southwest Union University. He joined the CDL in 1944. ����Since the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, Fei worked as deputy director of the State Council Expert Bureau, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. (Xinhua) TopNews 1999-10-20 Page1 Full Story in Chinese