Science

China sets great store by the sciences.  Not only does it see science and engineering as fundamental to its future success, it has a preoccupation with anthropology and palaeontology.  And this is not just reflected in its museums.

China is dotted with excellently preserved ancient sites of Stone Age and Bronze Age cultures. 

A 'dig' site - late Stone Age

China has a most impressive fossil record that links the dinosaurs to modern birds in a very unequivocal fashion.  It was Chinese scientists who made these discoveries in palaeontology and developed the theory that is now accepted by scientists worldwide. 

There is greater pride in the early technological achievements including printing, paper, gunpowder and the compass, as well as many others.

China is the third nation to put a man in space.  After an initial unmanned flight to celebrate the Peoples’ Republic’s 50th Birthday in 1999, they sent their first Astronaut, Yang Liwei, into space aboard Shenzhou 5 in 2003. Then under the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program, an un-manned lunar orbiter,  Chang'e 1, successfully orbited the Moon in 2007.  They are presently on track to put one or more men on the Moon by 2030; probably ahead of a US return.

China is becoming a significant generator of nuclear electricity.   China presently ranks tenth (in order) behind: the United States; France; Japan; Russia; Germany; South Korea(ROK); Ukraine; Canada and the  United Kingdom.

Currently China has just 13 nuclear power reactors in operation with a generating capacity of 10.23 GWe less than 2% of its electricity (compare this with France at over 75%; or Japan 30%).   But more than 25 new larger reactors are under construction; and more are about to start construction soon.                                                                Read More…

To facilitate this expansion it has formed nuclear partnership deals with Westinghouse (US); France; Germany; Russia and Canada for the further development of various nuclear power technologies.  As a result, in several areas, it is now leading the World in advanced nuclear technologies.

Additional reactors planned include some of the world's most advanced, to give more than a ten-fold increase in nuclear capacity to at least 80 GWe by 2020; 200 GWe by 2030; and 400 GWe by 2050.

Thus unless the US steps-up its nuclear generation program in response, by around 2025 China will overtake the US to become the largest generator of nuclear electricity in the World.  

Similarly China is a world leader in advanced coal gasification and furnace technologies and will soon be the largest manufacturer of wind turbines.  

Already most EV solar panels imported into Australia come from China.