America asks: "What would happen if China surpasses the United States in R&D?" | Reference Exclusive
2024-08-11
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Reference News reported on August 11Batteries are just one example of how China is catching up with advanced countries in technology and manufacturing sophistication, and has made breakthroughs in a long list of areas, from pharmaceuticals to drones to efficient solar panels.
Compared to students in other large countries, a much higher proportion of Chinese students major in science, mathematics and engineering. And this proportion is still rising, with total higher education enrollment in China having increased several times since 2000.
China’s spending on research and development has surged, tripling over the past decade and vaulting the country into second place behind the U.S. Recent estimates by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute show Chinese researchers produce the most widely cited papers on 52 of 64 key technologies.
Last month, Chinese leaders vowed to take the country's research efforts to the next level. The goal received a lot of attention in decisions adopted at a meeting of the Communist Party's leadership that identified science and technology education and training as one of the country's top priorities.
Minister of Education Huai Jinpeng said that China will "make an extraordinary layout of urgently needed disciplines and majors" and "implement in depth the strategic action plan for cultivating top talents in national basic disciplines."
China’s lead is particularly evident in the battery sector: According to the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, 65.5% of the most cited technical papers in the battery field come from Chinese researchers, compared with only 12% from the United States.
China has nearly 50 graduate programs focusing on battery chemistry or subjects closely related to battery metallurgy. In contrast, only a handful of professors in the United States are engaged in battery research.
The roots of China's battery success can be seen at Central South University in Changsha, a city in south-central China that has long been the center of China's chemical industry.
Central South University has a vast modern campus with nearly 60,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Its chemistry department used to be in a small brick building, but has now moved to a six-story concrete building with a maze of laboratories and classrooms.
In a lab full of red lights, hundreds of batteries with new chemical compositions are tested simultaneously. "For us, there are enough experimental equipment to meet everyone's testing needs," said Zhu Fangjun, a doctoral student.
China's expanding expertise in manufacturing has sparked a heated debate in other countries, especially the United States. The focus of the debate is whether to invite Chinese companies to build factories or whether to work hard to replicate China's achievements. "If the United States wants to quickly build a supply chain, the best way is to invite Chinese companies, which will quickly build up and bring technology," said An Feng, founder of the Center for Energy and Transportation Innovation, a nonprofit research organization.
Manufacturing accounts for 28% of China's economy, compared with 11% in the United States.Liu Qiao, dean of Peking University's Guanghua School of Management, said China hopes its investments in scientific education and research will translate into efficiency gains that will help boost the economy as a whole.
The United States still leads China in overall research spending, both in dollars spent and as a share of both countries’ economies. After several years of growth, the U.S. spent 3.4% of its economy on R&D last year. China’s figure was 2.6% and rising.
“What would it be like if China surpassed the United States in research and development and had a manufacturing base?” asked Craig Allen, president of the U.S.-China Business Council.
This article was published on the website of The New York Times on August 9, with the original title "How China Builds Technological Strength: Chemistry Classrooms and Research Laboratories", and the author is Keith Bradsher. (Compiled by Liu Zongya)
