China is catching up to the US on science and engineering spending, report finds

[beijingwalker]

China is catching up to the US on science and engineering spending, report finds

• By Loren Grush
  
• on January 19, 2016 03:53 pm
  

Many Asian countries, especially China, have been increasing their investment in scientific research and development at a much faster rate than the United States. That's according to the new Science and Engineering Indicators 2016 reportout today from the National Science Board — a group appointed by the president that sets policies for the National Science Foundation. The report details how Southeast, South, and East Asia now account for 40 percent of the world's expenditures in R&D. Asia's advancements are threatening America's leadership in the field, the NSB report argues, as the United States' commitment to science and engineering is wavering.


"International activities in R&D is a good thing. We support that," said Kelvin Droegemeier, vice chair of the National Science Board, during a press briefing on the report. "But the issue here is how the US is faring in the face of that competition."


THE UNITED STATES' COMMITMENT TO SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING IS WAVERING

The United States is still the global leader in science and engineering spending, accounting for 27 percent of the world's total R&D expenditures. However, China isn't far behind, making up 20 percent. "China is decisively the second largest R&D spending nation," Droegemeier said. And between 2003 and 2013, China's investments in the area have grown significantly. Each year, the country's spending on R&D increased by an average of 19.5 percent.

In the private sector, China has also gained a lot on the United States. Chinese industries devoted to high-tech manufacturing — such as the aerospace industry or the medical engineering industry, for instance — account for 27 percent of the global output. That's just slightly lower than the United States' share, 29 percent. And in the realm of science and engineering education, China is blowing the US away. Around 49 percent of all bachelor's degrees in these fields come from China, while 33 percent comes from the US. And between 2000 and 2012, the number of science and engineering degrees from China increased by 300 percent.

"WE'VE GOT TO CONTINUE SPEEDING UP AND ACCELERATING OUR INVESTMENTS."

The report also shows that US federal investment in both academic and business R&D has declined recently. And since 2008, the growth of federal R&D investment hasn't reached the same levels seen before the Great Recession when adjusted for inflation. The NSB points out that the funding drop is harmful because federal support is essential for helping universities and scientists gain new knowledge and create better technologies. And it's hard for people to invest in long-term projects when it's unclear how much funding they'll receive. "The lack of predictability in funding is more important than the actual amount," said Droegemeier.


The NSB issues the Indicators report every two years to assess the state of the United States' science and education spending. The report doesn't include any suggested policy changes, though Droegemeier said it's important that the United States continues expanding its investments in R&D, especially as other countries seem to be following us very closely.

"Obviously you look at those graphs, and China stands out very clearly," said Droegemeier. "We very much celebrate the emergence of other countries doing R&D. There's plenty of room for lots of players... It really is about US competitiveness and making sure we remain competitive. We've got to continue speeding up and accelerating our investments."

China is catching up to the US on science and engineering spending, report finds | The Verge

 

[LeGenD]

China is the biggest nation in the world, population-wise. Imagine the possibilities with over a billion educated and employed people.

US have already achieved wonders with a population of around 320 million people. However, it is virtually impossible for the US to statistically compete with China in all areas with a population of this size.

 

[Shotgunner51]

The United States is still the global leader in science and engineering spending, accounting for 27 percent of the world's total R&D expenditures. However, China isn't far behind, making up 20 percent.

Considering a regulated currency exchange rate, China's 20% global share reported in dollar isn't low.

Also cost effectiveness is not taken into account:

• With 20% of world's total R&D expenditure as per OP, China accounts for 31% of world's patent filings. See WIPO Global Ranking – 2015 Edition

• Take cost effectiveness in another area, say green energy. With 1/3 of world's investment, China implemented 40% of world's total capacity last year. For details see GlobalData: China now the Largest Installer of Clean Energy

China is the biggest nation in the world, population-wise. Imagine the possibilities with over a billion educated and employed people.

US have already achieved wonders with a population of around 320 million people. However, it is virtually impossible for the US to statistically compete with China in all areas with a population of this size.

Thanks bro! When it comes to business, pragmatism prevails. The 2015 trade stats shows that China Mainland despite overall surplus did consistently record deficit with 4 economies: China Taiwan, South Korea, Japan & Germany. Reasons are obvious - trade advantage. It's pragmatic for "Made in China 2025" to use highest benchmarks of these 4 hi-tech exports powerhouses, or 3 nations, not US.

China only ranks number 9 globally (with 587 patent filings per million pop), behind Germany (913), Japan (2,092) and South Korea (3,254) which tops this measure.​

China only ranks number 8 globally (with 402 industrial design filings per million pop). Top leaders are South Korea (1,251) & Germany (837).

 

[Monkey King]

The good trend is that Chinese government highlights the importance of science and technology and continues pouring money into R&D. The problem is that most publications or patents from China is of low-quality or without any potential use. This is mainly due to the publication-oriented research system in China. Most research staffs tried to publish as many papers or patents as possible in order to get promoted or get more research funds. Also most universities or institutes require that graduate students need two or three publications to obtain Doctor’s degree.

Take my research area as an example, China now can produce as many as roughly 30%~40% of total publications, far exceeding US or Europe. However, as to the qualifications with high quality that can give some scientific insights, China is still behind US. Although Chinese graduates are generally more hard-working than US counterparts, the leader or “boss” of research group is usually short-sighted and eager to produce publications in short time with low quality.

Research from some Northern Europe (Swiss, Germany, Netherland, Sweden) generally has the highest quality although with much fewer numbers. I think one reason is that leaders of research group usually don’t have economical pressures in these highly-developed countries and they have stronger interests to uncover the truth when doing research.

Time to change or reform the evaluation system of scientific research community, which is crucial for China to catch up with US. Otherwise, a large portion of R&D expenditures or funds would be wasted just to produce some rubbish.