China looms large in R&D

[J-10]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/article/20080307/TECHNOLOGY02/946794908
China looms large in R&D
By Fred Reed
March 7, 2008

The headline on the electronics site edn.com asks, "Is China the Next R&D Superpower?" The question is a good one.

Right now, it isn"t super. Of course, not so long ago that it wasn't economically important either.

You can arrange your facts and stats to get any answer you want. For example, China is rapidly increasing its R&D budget. Ah, but it is from a small base.

China's output of doctoral degrees in the sciences grows at a high rate. Ah, but theirs are not as good as ours.

The Chinese are filing a fast-growing number of patents in the United States. Ah, but the United States files many times more. And so on. There is, of course, the argument that only America can innovate.

Take your pick. But I believe we are in more trouble than we know just yet.

I think that as Americans we have too much self-confidence, as well as a tendency to underrate the Asians. When I was in high school in the "60s, we all sneered at some Japanese car firm — what was it? Toy something. Toyota is now either the world"s biggest car maker, or very very close, and Ford and General Motors and in deep trouble. The Japanese killed off the consumer-electronics industry, cameras, on and on.

China is following a similar trajectory. First, low-tech goods. Second, high-tech goods assembled in China. Third, high-tech goods designed in China. We are well into phase two and entering phase three.

The Chinese now have a space program. The mainstream media tells of China's plans for a lunar base.

China has gotten into the satellite business. Recently, they shot down one of their abandoned satellites. This was interpreted by the Pentagon as a military threat.

I think this badly misses the point.

The Chinese have nothing to gain from a military confrontation with the U.S. and everything to gain by avoiding one. They don"t need to fight. They just need to grow economically.

Edn.com says of Chinese research, "Quality is rising along with quantity. A decade ago, China's best and brightest went abroad to get their master's and Ph.D. degrees as a matter of course.

"Many top students still do head for the U.S. once they get their bachelor's degrees, but now there is an alternative: China's elite universities provide quality advanced training at home."

A friend of mine, writing a book on changes in Harvard since 1955, says that about a quarter of the college is now Jewish and about a quarter Asian, which often means Chinese. Many sources report that Chinese scientists increasingly return to China now that opportunity exists.

From a competitive point of view, the ominous fact (or so I think, anyway) is that the Chinese government looks to be both intelligent and practical. It is politically autocratic but clearly knows how to ignite an economy and clearly understands that technology is crucial. When a country with four times our population earns a whole lot of money and spends it wisely on its technological infrastructure, it might be a good idea to wake up and smell the coffee.

Meanwhile, the United States probably spends more than a trillion a year on the military. In terms of economic competitiveness, this is largely wasted, and little of the technology developed is commercially important.

Maybe we need a reality-based policy toward technology, consciously aimed at maintaining our position as long as we can. Fat chance, methinks.

[vryhpyammoadded]

I envy China’s position today. It’s always fun to be the second runner seeing the lead cooling his heels not realizing you’re closing fast. Just don’t trip and stumble pushing yourself too hard in all the excitement.
As for the

Meanwhile, the United States probably spends more than a trillion a year on the military. In terms of economic competitiveness, this is largely wasted, and little of the technology developed is commercially important.
I find the military expenditures drag on the economic competitiveness miniscule in comparison to the sucking black hole that is the Federal government’s corruption derived from its promotion of a draining, derisive, statist, philosophy of avarice that by extension poisons the people as a whole. If the Fed was to be stripped down by about 2/3, and the people armed and empowered, the US would be an economic and R&D power house again. Well, about five years after the massive blood letting.

[wotsnext]

^^^^ Two excellent posts

[Ordie]

China has years to go in developing a true organic R&D culture. Everything they have done up to date, has been in reaction to other country's research and accomplishment using and copying technology from outside sources.

As long as Chinese edcuation continue to stress repetition and technology over independent critical thinking, nothing innovative will come from China.

For they lack imagination.

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

-Albert Einstein

[2Sheds_Jackson]

I think any objective look at Chinese products would reveal what their attitude is towards R&D. For the moment, they would seem to value imitation far more than innovation.

[Nano]

Things are changing and so is China. I would agree with both of you Ordie and 2Sheds if i did not know the current ongoings. China is very much enthusiastic about realizing it's full potential. The article is mostly sensationalizing prideful boasting. The whole thing about their R&D base budget is meaningless unless you know what's behind it. China's leaders have been carefully crafting their rise for decades. China is merely taking the fastest route to success by attaining capital (foreign investment) using it to acquire technology along with that investment and using that to finance their own future. China has been inviting academics and has been promptly working on building their own Caltech's, MIT's and Harvard's of China. They are very open to changing and adopting Western style higher learning curriculum. The layout of their classrooms and labs have been in some cases been entirely been remodeled/re-built after outside academic advisers proposed their recommendations. China is going to pursue a very strong space based technological progression program. I would not be surprised if China's flag is the next to be televised live from the moon.

[vryhpyammoadded]

I think any objective look at Chinese products would reveal what their attitude is towards R&D. For the moment, they would seem to value imitation far more than innovation.
LOL, I remember long ago hearing one of my relatives saying something very similar about the Japanese.

I'm not bothered at all about this. China will rise, later the people will demand more of the good life for the sacrifices, the government will comply and eventually some other nation will grab up the baton and run.

Meanwhile I live “below” my means, owe nothing to anyone, attempt to dodge the shysters, sniff out tax loopholes, strive for independence, save for that rainy day, depression, civil war, etc, and keep out of sight making my meager living.

China can have the baton; it will only distract the cannibals, drawing them away from the American carcass they pulled down these past few decades.

[J-10]

There is a long way to chase up US, don't worry about it.


http://www.ag-ip-news.com/GetArticle.asp?Art_ID=5513&lang=en
24/2/2008 07:25 GMT
ag-IP-news
Unprecedented Number of International Patent Filings in 2007

GENEVA - In a year that saw a record number of filings under the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the cornerstone of the international patent system, inventors from the Republic of Korea (4th place) and China (7th) consolidated their top ten position in 2007, along with the United States of America (1st ) , Japan (2nd), Germany (3rd), France (5th), United Kingdom (6th), Netherlands (8th), Switzerland (9th) and Sweden (10th).

According to a press release by WIPO, in total, a record 156,100 applications were filed in 2007, representing a 4.7% rate of growth over the previous year.

For the fourth year running, the most notable growth rates came from countries in north east Asia which accounted for over a quarter (25.8%) of all international applications under the PCT.

“The growth in patent filings by a number of countries in north east Asia and their share of overall patenting activity is impressive and confirms shifting patterns of innovation around the world,” Director General of WIPO Dr. Kamil Idris said.

“It is most encouraging to see clear evidence that countries in the region are embracing the tools of the international patent system to stimulate commercial activity and economic growth,” he added.

“The PCT remains an attractive option for businesses as it makes it easier for companies and inventors to obtain patent rights in multiple countries,” Idris noted.

The Director General further pointed out that “strategic use of the patent system is a business imperative in today’s knowledge-driven economy. The success of the PCT is largely due to the sustained use of the system by some of the world’s foremost innovation-based companies.”

The Republic of Korea, which experienced 18.8% growth in 2007 as compared to 2006, overtook France to become the 4th biggest country of origin of PCT filings, and applicants from China, whose use grew by 38.1%, dislodged the Netherlands to take the position of 7th largest country of origin.

With more than 52,000 PCT applications, inventors and industry from the United States of America represented 33.5% (a 2.6% increase over 2006) of all applications in 2007.

Applicants from Japan, who unseated their German counterparts in 2003 for the number two spot, maintained their second place position with 17.8% of the total number of applications, representing a 2.6% increase over 2006. Inventors and industry from Germany held third position with 11.6% of all applications in 2007, representing an 8.4% increase, followed by users in the Republic of Korea (4.5% of all applications and an 18.8% increase) and France (4.1% of all applications and a 2.1% increase).

Of the fifteen top filing countries, China achieved double-digit growth (7th highest filer, with a growth rate of 38.1% in 2007). Among other countries to register double-digit growth in 2007 were Brazil (15.3%), Malaysia (71.7%), Singapore (13.9%) and Turkey (10%).

“WIPO is continuing to enhance the PCT and its operations to ensure that applicants benefit from access to ever-more efficient, cost-effective quality services of the highest caliber,” Deputy Director General Francis Gurry stated.

“We have seen tremendous efficiency gains in the delivery of PCT services over the last four years. WIPO is handling an unprecedented volume of applications with lower staff numbers and is effectively responding to increased demands resulting from changing patterns of innovation."

“We are clearly seeing a maturing of the system as the PCT celebrates 30 years of operations and currently enjoys a membership of 138 countries,” he continued.

The year 2007 saw some changes in the list of top users of the PCT system. Matsu****a of Japan moved into 1st place (2,100 applications published in 2007), overtaking the Dutch multinational Philips Electronics N.V. (2,041 applications published in 2007).

Siemens (Germany) (1,644) retained 3rd place. Huawei Technologies of China moved up 9 places to become the 4th largest applicant with 1,365 applications published in 2007.

The largest proportion of PCT applications published in 2007 related to the telecommunications (10.5%), information technology (10.1%) and pharmaceuticals (9.3%) sectors. The fastest growing technology areas are nuclear engineering (24.5% increase) and telecommunications (15.5%).

The main fields of technology in which PCT applications were published in 2007 are broken down according to the International Patent Classification (IPC) - a classification system designed to facilitate the retrieval of technical information found in patent documents.

WIPO continued to receive international patent applications from developing countries in 2007. The largest number of applications received came from the Republic of Korea (7,061) and China (5,456) followed by India (686), South Africa (390), Brazil (384), Mexico (173), Malaysia (103), Egypt (41), Saudi Arabia (35) and Colombia (31).

Developing countries make up 78% of the membership of the PCT, representing 108 of the 138 countries that have signed up to the treaty to date.

The PCT offers inventors and industry an advantageous route for obtaining patent protection internationally. By filing one “international” patent application under the PCT, protection of an invention can be sought simultaneously in each of a large number of countries. Both applicants and patent offices of PCT member states benefit from the uniform formality requirements, the international search and preliminary examination reports, and the centralized international publication provided by the PCT system.

The national patent granting procedure and the related expenses are postponed, in the majority of cases, by up to 18 months (or even longer in the case of some offices) as compared with the traditional patent system.

By this time, the applicant will have received important value-added information concerning the likelihood of obtaining patent protection as well as potential commercial interest in that invention.

Growth rates in the filing of PCT applications have been particularly dynamic over the last nine years. It took 18 years from the beginning of PCT operations in 1978 to reach 250,000 total applications, but only four years to double that figure (500,000), and another four to double it again (1,000,000).

[lenovo]

Huawei China Becomes Global 4th Largest Patent Applicant

[21 February 2008]

According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Huawei moved up 9 places to become the 4th largest patent applicant under the WIPO Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), with 1,365 applications published in 2007, following Matsu****a, Philips Electronics N.V. and Siemens.

The year of 2007 saw a record number of filings under the WIPO PCT. In total, a record 156,100 applications were filed in the year, representing a 4.7% rate of growth over the previous year. Inventors from the Republic of Korea (4th place) and China (7th) consolidated their top ten position in 2007, along with the US, Japan, Germany, France, UK, Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden.

For the complete report, please go to http://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles/2008/article_0006.html (http://www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/articles)

----------------------------------------------------
World's First 3.5G Datacard with Mobile TV Functionality

World's First 3.5G Datacard with Mobile TV Functionality [Hannover, 4 March 2008] Huawei Technologies Co.,Ltd. ("Huawei"), a leader in providing next generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world, today announced that it has launched the world's first mobile TV capable 3.5G datacard, called the E510, at CEBIT, the world's largest communications showcase event for consumer electronics, held in Hannover, Germany.
-----------------------------------------------------------

Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. (Chinese (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_language): 华为技术有限公司; pinyin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinyin): Huáwei Jíshu Yǒuxiàn Gōngsī) in Shenzhen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenzhen), Guangdong (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guangdong), People's Republic of China (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Republic_of_China) is the largest networking and telecommunications equipment supplier in China and one of the world leaders in this industry.
Established in 1988 by Ren Zhengfei (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ren_Zhengfei) [1] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huawei#_note-0), Huawei Technologies is a private high-tech enterprise which specializes in research and development (R&D), production and marketing of communications equipments, and providing customized network solutions for telecom carriers. Huawei serves 35 of the top 50 telecoms operators and puts 10 per cent of revenue into R&D each year.[2] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huawei#_note-1) In addition to the R&D centers in Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, Nanjing, Xi’an, Chengdu, and Wuhan in China, Huawei has also R&D centers in Stockholm, Sweden; Dallas and Silicon Valley, U.S.; Bangalore, India; Ferbane in Offaly, Ireland; Moscow, Russia.

[Ordie]

There has yet to be a Chinese Nobel winner in science since 1957. However the Dailai Lama, a Chinese Citizen according to Beijing, did win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.

[vryhpyammoadded]

A question for the Chinese experts…
What with all the global warming Chicken Little’s running about squawking alternative gween energy this and that, and the nationalists demanding a strategic energy independence breaking our Middle Eastern addictions, and the US leadership seemingly unconcerned, what are the Chinese thinking and doing about their own energy needs?

I’ve been doing tremendous research and some work into disconnecting from the utilities, making my home and transport completely independent from my local utility provider. They charge among the highest rates and provide the worst service in the US and intend to squeeze more money out of me again next month. My concerns are less environmental and more survival should this country decide to double my taxes, devalue my earnings or worse. I could care less about the media hype and just want to stop hemorrhaging my hard earned wealth.

Anyway, I’ve settled on solar and found in my research that the world is bordering on many exciting new technologies in the photovoltaic and storage arena, such as, organophotovoltaic, fullerene or nanodot photovotaics, and ultra capacitors. Some are projecting that alternative energy will be the next big “thing”, the bubble to chase.
Is China looking to get into this market soon or seemingly ignoring it like the US? If they are, any translated news that I might dig up and track? I’d buy ultra cheap Chinese solar in a drop dead second if it were available. As for now I’m stuck with needing another 7Kw for the machine shop but can’t stomach the highway robbery or the long wait current providers insist inflicting on me.

Next on my list are the ultra capacitors and to convert the Vanagon, 30 miles on a quarter ton of lead acid sucks rocks!

[J-10]

To vryhpyammoadded,

I'm not a expert, thus just know a few informations:

[Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd.
http://www.suntech-power.com/Default.aspx?tabid=359

(STP:suntech pwr hldgs co ltd adr News, chart, profile, more Last: 32.17-1.28-3.83% 4:01pm 03/14/2008 STP 32.17, -1.28, -3.8%) also makes the fund manager's list. The Chinese firm, he said, is "one of the biggest companies you've never heard of."

Suntech is about to pass Japan's Sharp Corp. as the largest solar panel manufacturer, Landis says.

"They are very successful at manufacturing cleaner solar technologies," he added. "Most of their products go into engineering, but their marketing is starting to rise now and they are growing their industry presence rapidly." from:http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/fund-manager-sees-power-plays/story.aspx?guid=%7BC921300C-1A92-46D3-9C7A-2AE0A0D49706%7D


New energy in China: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-03/12/content_7776022.htm