The mascot of World Expo 2010 Shanghai should be of Chinese style, Chen Hanmin, a professor at Tsinghua University said yesterday according to Oriental Morning Post.

The public has a higher expectation on the Expo mascot comparing to the Expo emblem. The mascot is an art closely related to people, which will be more popular, said Chen. And as a symbol of the event, mascot could promote Chinese culture in the world.

Chen said, "The choices of Expo mascot are wide open. We could choose persons, animals, or plants as the mascot. Both the number and form could be very different from usual."

Chen also noted that the mascot should not reject popular animation characters but must be "created by China."

The international solicitation of the World Expo mascot was launched on January 16 and will end on May 31. The result will be announced at the end of this year.