Zhou Youguang. [Photo/Xinhua]

Zhou Youguang, a renowned Chinese linguist, is often credited as the "Father of Pinyin (Chinese phonetic alphabet)" in China. Born in Changzhou in East China’s Jiangsu province, Zhou celebrated his 110th birthday on Jan 13.

Being active and passionate about life and his work, this 110-year-old man is still focused on national and foreign affairs through reading and his writings. His longevity and diligence makes his life a true legend in China. Meanwhile, it is worth noting that Zhou is interested in watching TV news in English. He thinks that English news is often equipped with English captions, which makes it easier to understand the main idea of every piece of news.

As often as not, he will make some comments on the specific issues. Many people often ask him the secret to longevity and his answer is two-fold: one is to live in a regular fashion without drinking or eating randomly; the other is to maintain a happy mood and optimistic attitude toward life.