We face being buried under an avalanche of Chinese science

[unhappycamper]

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/28/we-face-being-buried-under-an-avalanche-of-chinese-science/



We face being buried under an avalanche of Chinese science
By Kostas Kostarelos, The Guardian
Tuesday, January 28, 2014 13:14 EST

I was chatting with a friend and collaborator based in Germany recently about the completion of a new building that his university was constructing, dedicated to biomedical imaging sciences. I was sharing my own exhilaration about the serious investment that our government, regional agencies and the EU were making in graphene research at the University of Manchester. At some point in our conversation it became apparent that as extraordinary as the investments in our institutions were, they did not even come close to what we had both experienced from recent trips in China.

Our conclusion was that “for each floor refurbishment in Europe, a new building is built is China, and for each new building in Europe, a new campus is built in China …”

The magnitude of R&D investment in China is unprecedented and well-documented. Nanoscience is a strategically important field in the eyes of Chinese policymakers: a poster-child of new-age, high-tech China. The volume of scientific data generated and published by Chinese laboratories in all areas of nanotechnology has been increasing exponentially.

What I fear is that we all – Asians and westerners alike – run the risk of getting buried under this avalanche of manic scientific output and the oversimplification of capitalist principles applied to science in an artificially consumerist – yet not truly capitalist – society. Let me try to explain.

[dipsydoodle]

1. A simple example of their level of investment

is that they pay for students to spend 5 years in Cuba learning Spanish so they can represent China in Latin America etc. Doubtless they've got students learning Portuguese elsewhere for the same reason.

[MisterP]

9. Central America has a lot of Taiwanese (and Japanese) connections and "binationals"

un gran lago aún es un lago

[GeorgeGist]

2. the title smacks of paranoid ignorance.

[bemildred]

7. The whole thing smacks of paranoid ignorance.

He seems to think that science has not inundated us already, for one thing. It has been some time now since one could keep up with more than a small part of scientific knowledge, let alone the wider field of human endeavor. This is one of the reasons I like to offend uncivil know-it-alls.

Arrogance is not a unique Chinese cultural phenomenon by any means, we love it too. How many posters do we have here now who act like science is their personal fiefdom?

[DetlefK]

3. As a scientist, one paragraph really got my attention:

"It is enlightening when one realizes that going to a conference in Asia will not involve open discussion and challenge ideas, simply because this is considered disrespectful."

So, someone holds a scientific talk and I'm not supposed to note: "Excuse me, but you went wrong on that point for that and that reason." Am I supposed to let this scientist go on with his work, fully knowing that he's wasting everyone's time because he will inevitably fail sooner or later?

Scientists love being right, but they love it even more, when they get challenged. "Your theory or mine, only one will get out of this alive. IT'S ON!"
If you win: "Yay, I was right, just like I always knew. That was boring."
If you loose: "Thanks for showing me your secrets. Now my research will outpace yours! Muhahaha!"

[Victor_c3]

4. That is a very good point about the culture of non-dissent

Dissent and questioning things are fundamental aspects of the scientific process.

--- edit to add ---

For what it's worth, I'm a wannabe scientist myself. I don't do any research, but I spend my day working in a quality assurance lab as a chemist.

[Progressive dog]

5. xenophobia?

There is no difference between western and Chinese Science. If the Chinese invent a better way of doing science, westerners will copy it.

[bemildred]

6. Sort of like what we did to them a while back? nt

[DireStrike]

8. Science doesn't bury. It uplifts.

Neither can progress stay hidden in one country for long.

After reading the full article, I think the writer has a deeply flawed understanding of history, and falsely imagines the 50s and 60s in the US to be a golden age.