English Version
20151
本期话题
1985年3月13日,“中共中央关于科学技术体制改革的决定”颁布,中国的科技体制改革 拉开了序幕。30年来的科技体制改革,是我国改革开放事业的重要组成部分,也是世界范围内 科学技术与社会的关系发生剧烈调整的一种表现。在科技体制改革的过程中,围绕如何平衡科 学的价值与社会经济的价值、如何协调科学研究的运行机制与市场经济体制和行政管理体制的 关系、如何理解科学家的新的社会角色和社会责任,一直存在着许多争论,也从多个侧面对我 们认识当代科学技术的特征以及科学技术与社会的关系,提出了诸多重要的、值得研究的问题。 为此,本刊组织了“科技体制改革:回顾与反思”专栏,集中编发了三篇中、外学者的研究论文。 李真真的文章回顾了我国科技体制改革的历史背景,揭示了我国科技体制改革在起点上所具有 的一些特殊性质。曹聪、李宁、李侠、刘立合写的文章,提出了一个分析科技体制的概念框架, 在宏观、中观和微观三个层面解析体制内部运行的关键因素,并引入体制改革的外部环境因素。 萨特米尔的文章,则从国际比较的角度分析了中国科技体制改革近些年的新趋势。
 
本期目录
  • 《自然辩证法通讯》与人民日报合作推出科技体制改革系列文章
    <p align="left"> 科技体制改革是我国改革开放事业的重要组成部分。1985年3月13日,&ldquo;中共中央关于科学技术体制改革的决定&rdquo;颁布,科技体制改革拉开了序幕。相较于其他领域,科技体制改革具有特有的困难和复杂性。科技进步需要长期积累且充满了不确定性。科技创新需要众多不同性质的组织和个人的参与且受到多重目标和动力的牵引。科技体制中交错着经济体制、行政体制、教育体制和科学共同体运行机制。科技体制改革从一开始便注定是一条艰难的道路。</p> <p align="left"> 30年的科技体制改革,秉承科技兴国的百年梦想,以跨越科技与经济的&ldquo;卡夫丁大峡谷&rdquo;的豪迈激情,在科技发展与产业技术进步的有效结合、基础研究与应用研究的相互促进、市场需求和社会需要的均衡兼顾、出成果和出人才的密切配合等方面进行了艰难探索,在科技创新的国家宏观管理体制和微观组织方式上进行了规模庞大的调整,在中国这样一个古老国度,前所未有地释放出了巨大的创新活力,为我国的经济起飞、社会进步和国家安全奠定了坚实的基础。</p> <p align="left"> &ldquo;事非经过不知难&rdquo;。30年的科技体制改革能够不断推进,离不开小平同志高屋建瓴的战略洞见,离不开党中央领导集体的战略决断,也离不开几代科技界领导者、科技政策研究者和广大科技工作者的卓越才识。30年科技体制改革的曲折历程,从总体上贯穿了求变求强的中国意志,彰显了宏阔广大的中国情操,体现了圆融通达的中国智慧,为科技体制改革的进一步深化,为创新驱动发展战略的有效实施,积累了重要的智识与精神财富。</p> <p> <span style="font-size: 1em;">《自然辩证法通讯》是在1978年经小平同志亲自批示创设的关于科学技术的哲学、历史学、社会学和文化研究的综合性、理论性刊物,主办单位为中国科学院大学,著名哲学家、经济学家于光远先生担任第一任主编,著名物理学家钱三强担任首任社长。30年来,《自然辩证法通讯》是科技体制改革的坚定支持者,竭力从学术研究角度分析科学研究的复杂特征、总结科学技术的历史经验、反思科技体制改革的得失,在学术界、思想界产生了一定的社会影响。</span></p> <p> &ldquo;科技是国家强盛之基,创新是民族进步之魂&rdquo;,<span style="font-size: 1em;">为反思总结科技体制改革30年的历程,中国科学院《自然辩证法通讯》杂志社与人民日报合作推出系列评论文章,</span><span style="font-size: 1em;">广邀科技体制改革的参与者和研究者,共同探讨如何建设创新型国家,唤来中国科学的&ldquo;第二个春天&rdquo;。</span></p>
    作者: 李斌        
    卷期:
    页码:
  • An Innovation System for the 21st Century? Reflections on China’s Science and Technology Reforms
    <div style="color: rgb(85, 85, 85); font-family: 微软雅黑, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, 宋体, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 24px; background-color: rgb(249, 249, 249);"> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">An&nbsp;Innovation&nbsp;System&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;Century?</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Reflections&nbsp;on&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Technology&nbsp;Reforms</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> 理查德&bull;P.&nbsp;萨特米尔/Richard&nbsp;P.&nbsp;Suttmeier</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Abstract:&nbsp;The&nbsp;rapid&nbsp;increase&nbsp;in&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;spending&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;15&nbsp;years&nbsp;has&nbsp;occurred&nbsp;in&nbsp;an&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;environment&nbsp;ill-suited&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;wise&nbsp;and&nbsp;effective&nbsp;use&nbsp;of&nbsp;expanded&nbsp;funding.&nbsp;Pressures&nbsp;for&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;national&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;have&nbsp;therefore&nbsp;been&nbsp;building&nbsp;in&nbsp;recent&nbsp;years.&nbsp;This&nbsp;paper&nbsp;explores&nbsp;the&nbsp;key&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;and&nbsp;policy&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;15&nbsp;years&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;broad&nbsp;reform&nbsp;agenda&nbsp;that&nbsp;emerged&nbsp;during&nbsp;2014.&nbsp;It&nbsp;attempts&nbsp;to&nbsp;put&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;comparative&nbsp;context&nbsp;by&nbsp;considering&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;characteristic&nbsp;features&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system.&nbsp;It&nbsp;suggests&nbsp;that,&nbsp;as&nbsp;in&nbsp;other&nbsp;countries,&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;faces&nbsp;the&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;defining&nbsp;a&nbsp;proper&nbsp;role&nbsp;for&nbsp;government&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;national&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;of&nbsp;developing&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;for&nbsp;promoting&nbsp;and&nbsp;using&nbsp;professional&nbsp;expertise,&nbsp;and&nbsp;of&nbsp;promoting&nbsp;a&nbsp;genuine&nbsp;internationalization&nbsp;appropriate&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;world&nbsp;of&nbsp;globalized&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation.&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Key&nbsp;Words:&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;reforms;&nbsp;National&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system;&nbsp;Professional&nbsp;expertise;&nbsp;Internationalization&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> 中图分类号:N0&nbsp;  &nbsp;文献标识码:A&nbsp;  &nbsp;DOI:10.15994/j.1000-0763.2015.01.001</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;its&nbsp;latest&nbsp;&ldquo;Science,&nbsp;Technology&nbsp;and&nbsp;Industry&nbsp;Outlook,&rdquo;&nbsp;the&nbsp;OECD&nbsp;has&nbsp;called&nbsp;attention&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;rapid&nbsp;rise&nbsp;of&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;development&nbsp;expenditures&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;likelihood&nbsp;that&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;spending&nbsp;on&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;will&nbsp;surpass&nbsp;that&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;not-too-distant&nbsp;future.&nbsp;A&nbsp;growing&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;indicators&nbsp;point&nbsp;to&nbsp;rapidly&nbsp;improving&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;in&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology,&nbsp;suggesting&nbsp;that&nbsp;expenditures&nbsp;have&nbsp;produced&nbsp;results.&nbsp;These&nbsp;signs&nbsp;of&nbsp;progress&nbsp;include&nbsp;increasing&nbsp;numbers&nbsp;of&nbsp;papers&nbsp;published&nbsp;in&nbsp;international&nbsp;journals,&nbsp;increasing&nbsp;numbers&nbsp;of&nbsp;patents,&nbsp;a&nbsp;large&nbsp;and&nbsp;expanding&nbsp;community&nbsp;of&nbsp;scientists&nbsp;and&nbsp;engineers,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;successful&nbsp;completion&nbsp;of&nbsp;demanding&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;engineering&nbsp;projects&nbsp;in&nbsp;such&nbsp;fields&nbsp;as&nbsp;space,&nbsp;ocean&nbsp;engineering,&nbsp;supercomputing,&nbsp;transportation,&nbsp;materials&nbsp;science,&nbsp;etc.&nbsp;These&nbsp;indicators&nbsp;all&nbsp;point&nbsp;to&nbsp;considerable&nbsp;success&nbsp;in&nbsp;implementing&nbsp;policies&nbsp;for&nbsp;catching&nbsp;up&nbsp;with&nbsp;international&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;and&nbsp;technological&nbsp;frontiers.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Yet,&nbsp;one&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;more&nbsp;curious&nbsp;aspects&nbsp;of&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;and&nbsp;technological&nbsp;development&nbsp;in&nbsp;China&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;15&nbsp;years&nbsp;has&nbsp;been&nbsp;that&nbsp;rapid&nbsp;spending&nbsp;increases&nbsp;on&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;development&nbsp;have&nbsp;occurred&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;face&nbsp;of&nbsp;an&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;environment&nbsp;that&nbsp;has&nbsp;been&nbsp;unsettled,&nbsp;has&nbsp;not&nbsp;always&nbsp;been&nbsp;well-suited&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;effective&nbsp;use&nbsp;of&nbsp;generous&nbsp;funding,&nbsp;and&nbsp;has&nbsp;therefore&nbsp;been&nbsp;subject&nbsp;to&nbsp;rounds&nbsp;of&nbsp;reforms.&nbsp;Since&nbsp;2000,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;beginning&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;expenditure&nbsp;surge,&nbsp;spending&nbsp;has&nbsp;clearly&nbsp;outpaced&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;design.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Not&nbsp;surprisingly,&nbsp;therefore,&nbsp;careful&nbsp;observers&nbsp;both&nbsp;inside&nbsp;and&nbsp;outside&nbsp;of&nbsp;China&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;aware&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;fact&nbsp;that&nbsp;many&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;positive&nbsp;indicators&nbsp;of&nbsp;progress&nbsp;have&nbsp;obscured&nbsp;serious&nbsp;problems&nbsp;with&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;development,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;as&nbsp;China&nbsp;seeks&nbsp;to&nbsp;go&nbsp;&ldquo;beyond&nbsp;catch-up&rdquo;&nbsp;to&nbsp;positions&nbsp;of&nbsp;techno-scientific&nbsp;leadership.&nbsp;These&nbsp;range&nbsp;from&nbsp;serious&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;misconduct,&nbsp;widespread&nbsp;filing&nbsp;of&nbsp;low-quality&nbsp;patents,&nbsp;waste&nbsp;and&nbsp;misuse&nbsp;of&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;funding,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;technical&nbsp;talent&nbsp;pool,&nbsp;a&nbsp;large&nbsp;portion&nbsp;of&nbsp;which&nbsp;seems&nbsp;to&nbsp;lack&nbsp;the&nbsp;training&nbsp;and&nbsp;socialization&nbsp;needed&nbsp;for&nbsp;original&nbsp;research.&nbsp;And,&nbsp;in&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;calls&nbsp;for&nbsp;&ldquo;indigenous&nbsp;innovation,&rdquo;&nbsp;reliance&nbsp;on&nbsp;foreign&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;for&nbsp;major&nbsp;national&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;engineering&nbsp;projects&nbsp;remains&nbsp;high,&nbsp;reflecting&nbsp;ongoing&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;technological&nbsp;dependency</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;short,&nbsp;despite&nbsp;the&nbsp;substantial&nbsp;investments&nbsp;China&nbsp;is&nbsp;making&nbsp;in&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology,&nbsp;the&nbsp;resulting&nbsp;research&nbsp;accomplishments,&nbsp;technological&nbsp;innovations,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;creation&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;society&nbsp;envisioned&nbsp;in&nbsp;current&nbsp;national&nbsp;plans,&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;seen&nbsp;as&nbsp;disappointing&nbsp;by&nbsp;key&nbsp;decision&nbsp;makers.&nbsp;Questions&nbsp;about&nbsp;further&nbsp;re-form&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;are&nbsp;therefore&nbsp;again&nbsp;on&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;crowded&nbsp;policy&nbsp;agenda,&nbsp;being&nbsp;interlinked&nbsp;with&nbsp;economic&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;intended&nbsp;to&nbsp;strengthen&nbsp;market&nbsp;forces&nbsp;and&nbsp;reduce&nbsp;the&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state,&nbsp;with&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;focused&nbsp;on&nbsp;legal&nbsp;status&nbsp;of&nbsp;&ldquo;public&nbsp;service&nbsp;organizations&rdquo;&nbsp;(shiye&nbsp;danwei),&nbsp;and&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;widespread&nbsp;anti-corruption&nbsp;initiatives.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Although&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;is&nbsp;focused&nbsp;on&nbsp;the&nbsp;abuses&nbsp;and&nbsp;weaknesses&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;system,&nbsp;several&nbsp;larger&nbsp;questions&nbsp;loom&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;background.&nbsp;To&nbsp;what&nbsp;extent&nbsp;is&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;preparing&nbsp;the&nbsp;way&nbsp;for&nbsp;dealing&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century?&nbsp;Will&nbsp;re-forms,&nbsp;if&nbsp;successfully&nbsp;implemented,&nbsp;lead&nbsp;to&nbsp;unanticipated&nbsp;problems&nbsp;that&nbsp;will&nbsp;require&nbsp;further&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;after&nbsp;several&nbsp;years,&nbsp;or&nbsp;will&nbsp;they&nbsp;lead&nbsp;to&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;solutions&nbsp;with&nbsp;a&nbsp;high&nbsp;level&nbsp;of&nbsp;sustainability?&nbsp;Do&nbsp;they&nbsp;offer&nbsp;policies&nbsp;and&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;that&nbsp;will&nbsp;permit&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;to&nbsp;move&nbsp;&ldquo;beyond&nbsp;catch-up&rdquo;&nbsp;to&nbsp;international&nbsp;leadership&nbsp;in&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology?&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Mapping&nbsp;the&nbsp;Problems&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;system&nbsp;are&nbsp;hardly&nbsp;new.&nbsp;Over&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;30&nbsp;years,&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;initiated&nbsp;extensive&nbsp;changes&nbsp;in&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;which&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;directed&nbsp;at&nbsp;overcoming&nbsp;serious&nbsp;problems&nbsp;with&nbsp;re-search&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;stemming&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;policies&nbsp;and&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;designs&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Maoist&nbsp;period.&nbsp;These&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;have&nbsp;contributed&nbsp;to&nbsp;many&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;positive&nbsp;developments&nbsp;and&nbsp;achievements&nbsp;of&nbsp;recent&nbsp;years,&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above.&nbsp;They&nbsp;have&nbsp;included&nbsp;aggressive&nbsp;increases&nbsp;in&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;funding,&nbsp;the&nbsp;stimulation&nbsp;of&nbsp;university&nbsp;research,&nbsp;the&nbsp;establishment&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;National&nbsp;Natural&nbsp;Science&nbsp;Foundation&nbsp;(NSFC),&nbsp;the&nbsp;institutionalization&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;grants&nbsp;system,&nbsp;far-reaching&nbsp;changes&nbsp;in&nbsp;government&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes,&nbsp;the&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;patent&nbsp;system,&nbsp;the&nbsp;encouragement&nbsp;of&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;in&nbsp;industrial&nbsp;enterprises&nbsp;and&nbsp;support&nbsp;for&nbsp;market&nbsp;forces&nbsp;in&nbsp;stimulating&nbsp;innovation.&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> And&nbsp;yet,&nbsp;many&nbsp;features&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;pre-reform&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;persist,&nbsp;including&nbsp;a&nbsp;strong&nbsp;faith&nbsp;in&nbsp;top-down,&nbsp;centrally&nbsp;directed&nbsp;research&nbsp;planning,&nbsp;a&nbsp;key&nbsp;policy&nbsp;role&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;ministry&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology,&nbsp;the&nbsp;maintenance&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;national&nbsp;academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;sciences&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;major&nbsp;research&nbsp;performer,&nbsp;and&nbsp;a&nbsp;system&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;governance&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;which&nbsp;downplays&nbsp;the&nbsp;importance&nbsp;of&nbsp;decentralized&nbsp;professional&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;in&nbsp;favor&nbsp;of&nbsp;state&nbsp;control&nbsp;and&nbsp;direction.&nbsp;And,&nbsp;in&nbsp;many&nbsp;ways,&nbsp;past&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;have&nbsp;also&nbsp;engendered&nbsp;new&nbsp;problems.&nbsp;For&nbsp;the&nbsp;sake&nbsp;of&nbsp;our&nbsp;discussion&nbsp;here,&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;reform&nbsp;can&nbsp;be&nbsp;grouped&nbsp;into&nbsp;four&nbsp;major&nbsp;categories:&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> 1.&nbsp;Research&nbsp;Administration&nbsp;and&nbsp;Project&nbsp;Funding.&nbsp;As&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above,&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;30&nbsp;years&nbsp;have&nbsp;included&nbsp;the&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;grants&nbsp;system&nbsp;to&nbsp;replace,&nbsp;in&nbsp;large&nbsp;measure,&nbsp;the&nbsp;older&nbsp;system&nbsp;of&nbsp;block&nbsp;grants&nbsp;to&nbsp;institutions.&nbsp;However,&nbsp;while&nbsp;providing&nbsp;some&nbsp;benefits,&nbsp;the&nbsp;administration&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;grant&nbsp;system&nbsp;has&nbsp;also&nbsp;led&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;many&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;quality,&nbsp;misconduct,&nbsp;and&nbsp;waste.&nbsp;Administrative&nbsp;provisions&nbsp;limiting&nbsp;the&nbsp;size&nbsp;of&nbsp;grants,&nbsp;and&nbsp;allowable&nbsp;charges&nbsp;within&nbsp;grants&nbsp;(especially&nbsp;for&nbsp;personnel&nbsp;and&nbsp;overhead&nbsp;costs),&nbsp;have&nbsp;created&nbsp;incentives&nbsp;for&nbsp;investigators&nbsp;to&nbsp;increase&nbsp;the&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;grants&nbsp;in&nbsp;their&nbsp;research&nbsp;portfolios,&nbsp;expand&nbsp;the&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;graduate&nbsp;students&nbsp;to&nbsp;help&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;expanded&nbsp;portfolio,&nbsp;and&nbsp;divert&nbsp;funds&nbsp;to&nbsp;augment&nbsp;low&nbsp;salaries.&nbsp;Research&nbsp;quality&nbsp;and&nbsp;graduate&nbsp;education&nbsp;often&nbsp;suffer&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;result,&nbsp;with&nbsp;misconduct&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;uses&nbsp;of&nbsp;grant&nbsp;funding&nbsp;always&nbsp;a&nbsp;possibility.&nbsp;The&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;grant&nbsp;system&nbsp;relies&nbsp;heavily&nbsp;on&nbsp;peer&nbsp;review,&nbsp;but&nbsp;a&nbsp;limited&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;qualified&nbsp;re-viewers&nbsp;and&nbsp;weak&nbsp;norms&nbsp;of&nbsp;confidentiality&nbsp;make&nbsp;the&nbsp;objectives&nbsp;of&nbsp;high&nbsp;quality,&nbsp;blind&nbsp;peer&nbsp;reviews&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;to&nbsp;achieve.&nbsp;This&nbsp;has&nbsp;the&nbsp;effect&nbsp;of&nbsp;enhancing&nbsp;the&nbsp;power&nbsp;of&nbsp;officials&nbsp;in&nbsp;science&nbsp;agencies&nbsp;whose&nbsp;favor&nbsp;is&nbsp;then&nbsp;sought&nbsp;by&nbsp;members&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;community&nbsp;who&nbsp;hope&nbsp;for&nbsp;positive&nbsp;decisions&nbsp;on&nbsp;grant&nbsp;proposals.&nbsp;In&nbsp;some&nbsp;cases,&nbsp;peer&nbsp;review&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;are&nbsp;used&nbsp;in&nbsp;situations&nbsp;where&nbsp;they&nbsp;are&nbsp;not&nbsp;appropriate.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> 2.&nbsp;User&nbsp;Orientation&nbsp;and&nbsp;Organizational&nbsp;Missions.&nbsp;A&nbsp;long-standing&nbsp;problem&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;-&nbsp;a&nbsp;legacy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Soviet&nbsp;inspired&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;pre-reform&nbsp;era&nbsp;-&nbsp;has&nbsp;been&nbsp;the&nbsp;separation&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;from&nbsp;production&nbsp;and&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;users&nbsp;of&nbsp;new&nbsp;knowledge&nbsp;more&nbsp;generally&nbsp;(the&nbsp;so-called&nbsp;liangzhang&nbsp;pi&nbsp;problem).&nbsp;Although&nbsp;there&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;some&nbsp;significant&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;at&nbsp;reform,&nbsp;the&nbsp;problem&nbsp;persists.&nbsp;The&nbsp;most&nbsp;advanced,&nbsp;and&nbsp;potentially&nbsp;transformational&nbsp;research&nbsp;occurs&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Sciences&nbsp;and&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;better&nbsp;universities&nbsp;but,&nbsp;despite&nbsp;much&nbsp;declarative&nbsp;support&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;idea&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;serving&nbsp;national&nbsp;needs,&nbsp;the&nbsp;task&nbsp;of&nbsp;doing&nbsp;so&nbsp;still&nbsp;involves&nbsp;formidable&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;technology&nbsp;transfer&nbsp;from&nbsp;these&nbsp;research&nbsp;centers&nbsp;to&nbsp;users.&nbsp;This&nbsp;is&nbsp;true&nbsp;both&nbsp;for&nbsp;commercial&nbsp;technologies&nbsp;and&nbsp;for&nbsp;technologies&nbsp;supporting&nbsp;government&nbsp;missions&nbsp;and&nbsp;objectives.&nbsp;The&nbsp;main&nbsp;exceptions&nbsp;to&nbsp;this&nbsp;observation&nbsp;are&nbsp;high-priority&nbsp;national&nbsp;missions&nbsp;where&nbsp;resources&nbsp;and&nbsp;managerial&nbsp;attention&nbsp;can&nbsp;be&nbsp;concentrated&nbsp;on&nbsp;the&nbsp;achievement&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;objective,&nbsp;in&nbsp;keeping&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;liang-dan&nbsp;yixing&nbsp;tradition.&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;industrial&nbsp;research,&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;exception&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;relatively&nbsp;few&nbsp;companies,&nbsp;remains&nbsp;underdeveloped&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;of&nbsp;mission&nbsp;oriented&nbsp;ministries&nbsp;and&nbsp;agencies&nbsp;(health,&nbsp;agriculture,&nbsp;meteorology,&nbsp;environmental&nbsp;protections,&nbsp;etc.)&nbsp;has&nbsp;not&nbsp;always&nbsp;matched&nbsp;the&nbsp;quality&nbsp;of&nbsp;work&nbsp;found&nbsp;in&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;elite&nbsp;universities.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> 3.&nbsp;National&nbsp;Priorities&nbsp;and&nbsp;Policy&nbsp;Coordination.&nbsp;As&nbsp;in&nbsp;other&nbsp;countries,&nbsp;national&nbsp;policymaking&nbsp;and&nbsp;coordination&nbsp;in&nbsp;China&nbsp;suffers&nbsp;from&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;&ldquo;stovepiping&rdquo;&nbsp;which&nbsp;makes&nbsp;the&nbsp;achievement&nbsp;of&nbsp;national&nbsp;purpose&nbsp;-&nbsp;as&nbsp;something&nbsp;more&nbsp;than&nbsp;the&nbsp;outcome&nbsp;of&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;struggles&nbsp;-&nbsp;quite&nbsp;difficult.&nbsp;In&nbsp;some&nbsp;ways,&nbsp;of&nbsp;course,&nbsp;China&nbsp;does&nbsp;take&nbsp;priority&nbsp;setting&nbsp;quite&nbsp;seriously,&nbsp;as&nbsp;illustrated&nbsp;by&nbsp;planning&nbsp;procedures&nbsp;for&nbsp;annual,&nbsp;five-year,&nbsp;and&nbsp;long-range&nbsp;plans&nbsp;which&nbsp;allow&nbsp;policymakers&nbsp;and&nbsp;members&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;technical&nbsp;community&nbsp;to&nbsp;set&nbsp;national&nbsp;objectives&nbsp;and&nbsp;pursue&nbsp;individual&nbsp;and&nbsp;local&nbsp;interests.&nbsp;Plan&nbsp;implementation,&nbsp;how-ever,&nbsp;becomes&nbsp;more&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;face&nbsp;of&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;competition.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Efforts&nbsp;to&nbsp;develop&nbsp;broad&nbsp;policy&nbsp;coordination&nbsp;for&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;through&nbsp;interagency&nbsp;exchanges&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;focused&nbsp;on&nbsp;the&nbsp;work&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Education&nbsp;Leading&nbsp;Small&nbsp;Group&nbsp;under&nbsp;the&nbsp;State&nbsp;Council,&nbsp;but&nbsp;its&nbsp;current&nbsp;status&nbsp;seems&nbsp;to&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;diminished.&nbsp;Although,&nbsp;the&nbsp;Ministry&nbsp;of&nbsp;Finance&nbsp;has&nbsp;assumed&nbsp;a&nbsp;more&nbsp;active&nbsp;role&nbsp;in&nbsp;setting&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;budgets&nbsp;and&nbsp;developing&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;for&nbsp;financial&nbsp;accountability&nbsp;in&nbsp;recent&nbsp;years,&nbsp;its&nbsp;knowledge&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;intricacies&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;system&nbsp;is&nbsp;limited,&nbsp;and&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;long&nbsp;tradition&nbsp;of&nbsp;strong&nbsp;ministerial&nbsp;power&nbsp;has&nbsp;made&nbsp;the&nbsp;effective&nbsp;linking&nbsp;of&nbsp;policies,&nbsp;pro-grams,&nbsp;and&nbsp;budgets&nbsp;difficult.&nbsp;Hence,&nbsp;the&nbsp;achievement&nbsp;of&nbsp;greater&nbsp;program&nbsp;effectiveness&nbsp;and&nbsp;financial&nbsp;accountability&nbsp;has&nbsp;been&nbsp;limited.&nbsp;The&nbsp;net&nbsp;result&nbsp;has&nbsp;often&nbsp;been&nbsp;a&nbsp;fragmentation&nbsp;of&nbsp;national&nbsp;effort&nbsp;(jiulong&nbsp;zhishui,&nbsp;tiannu&nbsp;sanhua!).&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> 4.&nbsp;Evaluation.&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;made&nbsp;major&nbsp;commitments&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;course&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;last&nbsp;20&nbsp;years&nbsp;to&nbsp;develop&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;for&nbsp;evaluating&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;activities.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;the&nbsp;administration&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;system&nbsp;has&nbsp;tended&nbsp;to&nbsp;valorize&nbsp;the&nbsp;numbers&nbsp;of&nbsp;SCI&nbsp;publications&nbsp;and,&nbsp;more&nbsp;recently,&nbsp;patent&nbsp;applications,&nbsp;such&nbsp;that&nbsp;individuals&nbsp;and&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;are&nbsp;rewarded&nbsp;by&nbsp;maximizing&nbsp;performance&nbsp;on&nbsp;these&nbsp;quantitative&nbsp;measures.&nbsp;The&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;combined&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;other&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;administration&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above,&nbsp;is&nbsp;thought&nbsp;to&nbsp;lead&nbsp;to&nbsp;a&nbsp;great&nbsp;deal&nbsp;of&nbsp;rushed&nbsp;and&nbsp;derivative&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;to&nbsp;contribute&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;serious&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;misconduct&nbsp;which&nbsp;characterize&nbsp;much&nbsp;of&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;science.&nbsp;More&nbsp;generally,&nbsp;techniques&nbsp;such&nbsp;as&nbsp;peer&nbsp;review&nbsp;and&nbsp;various&nbsp;forms&nbsp;of&nbsp;project&nbsp;and&nbsp;program&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;often&nbsp;sit&nbsp;uncomfortably&nbsp;with&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;cultural&nbsp;traditions&nbsp;associated&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;importance&nbsp;of&nbsp;maintaining&nbsp;personal&nbsp;relationships&nbsp;(guanxi)&nbsp;and&nbsp;avoiding&nbsp;face&nbsp;losing&nbsp;candid&nbsp;criticisms.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Although&nbsp;the&nbsp;four&nbsp;problem&nbsp;areas&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above&nbsp;are,&nbsp;analytically,&nbsp;separable,&nbsp;they&nbsp;are&nbsp;in&nbsp;fact&nbsp;interconnected&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;set&nbsp;of&nbsp;systemic&nbsp;problems.&nbsp;Major&nbsp;national&nbsp;priorities&nbsp;emerge&nbsp;from&nbsp;intense&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;competition&nbsp;resulting&nbsp;from&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;failures&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;top&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;system.&nbsp;The&nbsp;interests&nbsp;of&nbsp;users&nbsp;get&nbsp;neglected&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;course&nbsp;of&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;competition&nbsp;in&nbsp;which&nbsp;the&nbsp;voices&nbsp;of&nbsp;users&nbsp;are&nbsp;not&nbsp;represented.&nbsp;Researchers&nbsp;seeking&nbsp;to&nbsp;advance&nbsp;their&nbsp;economic&nbsp;and&nbsp;career&nbsp;interests&nbsp;take&nbsp;their&nbsp;cues&nbsp;from&nbsp;these&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;arrangements&nbsp;and&nbsp;are&nbsp;driven&nbsp;less&nbsp;by&nbsp;concerns&nbsp;for&nbsp;quality&nbsp;work&nbsp;than&nbsp;for&nbsp;satisfying&nbsp;the&nbsp;requirements&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;system.&nbsp;Central&nbsp;leaders&nbsp;who&nbsp;have&nbsp;normative&nbsp;commitments&nbsp;to&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;development,&nbsp;and&nbsp;who&nbsp;have&nbsp;backed&nbsp;these&nbsp;with&nbsp;substantial&nbsp;resources,&nbsp;lack&nbsp;experience&nbsp;with&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;to&nbsp;monitor&nbsp;what&nbsp;goes&nbsp;on&nbsp;below&nbsp;them&nbsp;and,&nbsp;thus,&nbsp;lack&nbsp;the&nbsp;tools&nbsp;for&nbsp;enforcing&nbsp;accountability.&nbsp;Weak&nbsp;professional&nbsp;governance&nbsp;robs&nbsp;the&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;system&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;strong&nbsp;backbone.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Current&nbsp;Reform&nbsp;Initiatives&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">The&nbsp;July,&nbsp;2012&nbsp;National&nbsp;Conference&nbsp;on&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Innovation&nbsp;serves&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;useful&nbsp;marker&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;start&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;latest&nbsp;round&nbsp;of&nbsp;reforms.&nbsp;At&nbsp;the&nbsp;Conference,&nbsp;Wen&nbsp;Jiabao&nbsp;bemoaned&nbsp;the&nbsp;performance&nbsp;of&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;systems&nbsp;for&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation,&nbsp;and&nbsp;called&nbsp;for&nbsp;further&nbsp;reform.&nbsp;Two&nbsp;months&nbsp;later,&nbsp;in&nbsp;September,&nbsp;2012,&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;issuance&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;important&nbsp;&ldquo;Opinions&nbsp;on&nbsp;Deepening&nbsp;the&nbsp;Reform&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Technology&nbsp;System&nbsp;and&nbsp;Speeding&nbsp;up&nbsp;the&nbsp;Building&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;National&nbsp;Innovation&nbsp;System,&rdquo;&nbsp;the&nbsp;CCP&nbsp;Central&nbsp;Committee&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;State&nbsp;Council&nbsp;brought&nbsp;a&nbsp;sharper&nbsp;focus&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;need&nbsp;for&nbsp;further&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;reform.&nbsp;Clearly,&nbsp;as&nbsp;the&nbsp;second&nbsp;decade&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century&nbsp;began,&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;top&nbsp;political&nbsp;leaders&nbsp;were&nbsp;asking&nbsp;hard&nbsp;questions&nbsp;about&nbsp;the&nbsp;efficiency&nbsp;and&nbsp;effectiveness&nbsp;of&nbsp;all&nbsp;the&nbsp;money&nbsp;that&nbsp;was&nbsp;going&nbsp;into&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology.&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> During&nbsp;2014,&nbsp;these&nbsp;hard&nbsp;questions&nbsp;were&nbsp;being&nbsp;converted&nbsp;into&nbsp;a&nbsp;series&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;reform&nbsp;initiatives&nbsp;which&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;end&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;year&nbsp;were&nbsp;reflected&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;series&nbsp;of&nbsp;reform&nbsp;policy&nbsp;documents&nbsp;addressing&nbsp;many&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;problems&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above.&nbsp;These&nbsp;include&nbsp;a&nbsp;clarification&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;legal&nbsp;foundation&nbsp;for&nbsp;reform,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;with&nbsp;regard&nbsp;to&nbsp;transparency&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;administration&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;funding&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;conduct&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;projects&nbsp;(Guofa&nbsp;2014,&nbsp;no.&nbsp;11).&nbsp;Project&nbsp;budgeting&nbsp;procedures&nbsp;were&nbsp;being&nbsp;improved&nbsp;by&nbsp;allowing&nbsp;for&nbsp;more&nbsp;rational&nbsp;salary&nbsp;and&nbsp;overhead&nbsp;allowances.&nbsp;New&nbsp;procedures&nbsp;were&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;to&nbsp;make&nbsp;the&nbsp;funding&nbsp;of&nbsp;research,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;results&nbsp;of&nbsp;research,&nbsp;more&nbsp;transparent.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Multiple&nbsp;government&nbsp;funding&nbsp;programs&nbsp;were&nbsp;being&nbsp;consolidated&nbsp;into&nbsp;five&nbsp;major&nbsp;funding&nbsp;streams:&nbsp;basic&nbsp;science&nbsp;support,&nbsp;support&nbsp;for&nbsp;major&nbsp;national&nbsp;projects&nbsp;(da&nbsp;xiangmu),&nbsp;funds&nbsp;for&nbsp;key&nbsp;national&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;programs,&nbsp;special&nbsp;technology&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;funds,&nbsp;and&nbsp;support&nbsp;for&nbsp;large&nbsp;facilities,&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;platforms,&nbsp;and&nbsp;human&nbsp;resource&nbsp;development.&nbsp;Progress&nbsp;was&nbsp;made&nbsp;in&nbsp;attacking&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;procedural&nbsp;difficulties&nbsp;that&nbsp;had&nbsp;developed&nbsp;in&nbsp;implementing&nbsp;Bayh-Dole&nbsp;type&nbsp;policies&nbsp;in&nbsp;China;&nbsp;through&nbsp;pilot&nbsp;programs&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;high&nbsp;tech&nbsp;parks&nbsp;in&nbsp;four&nbsp;cities&nbsp;(Beijing,&nbsp;Shanghai,&nbsp;Wuhan,&nbsp;and&nbsp;Hefei),&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;and&nbsp;universities&nbsp;were&nbsp;given&nbsp;clearer&nbsp;rights&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;benefits,&nbsp;use,&nbsp;and&nbsp;transferability&nbsp;(san&nbsp;quan)&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;intellectual&nbsp;property&nbsp;they&nbsp;develop.&nbsp;To&nbsp;further&nbsp;stimulate&nbsp;the&nbsp;integration&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;economy,&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;were&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;to&nbsp;stimulate&nbsp;the&nbsp;growth&nbsp;of&nbsp;an&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;service&nbsp;industry&nbsp;(keji&nbsp;fuwu&nbsp;chanye)&nbsp;to&nbsp;include&nbsp;the&nbsp;strengthening&nbsp;of&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;management&nbsp;and&nbsp;utilization&nbsp;of&nbsp;intellectual&nbsp;property.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;the&nbsp;area&nbsp;of&nbsp;reforming&nbsp;the&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;new&nbsp;regulations&nbsp;were&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;to&nbsp;reduce&nbsp;the&nbsp;exposure&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;community&nbsp;to&nbsp;wasteful&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;practices,&nbsp;thus&nbsp;reducing&nbsp;the&nbsp;time&nbsp;and&nbsp;effort&nbsp;needed&nbsp;to&nbsp;prepare&nbsp;for&nbsp;evaluations.&nbsp;More&nbsp;attention&nbsp;was&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;given&nbsp;to&nbsp;qualitative&nbsp;factors&nbsp;in&nbsp;evaluation,&nbsp;instead&nbsp;of&nbsp;an&nbsp;overreliance&nbsp;on&nbsp;numbers&nbsp;of&nbsp;papers&nbsp;and&nbsp;patents,&nbsp;and&nbsp;a&nbsp;database&nbsp;of&nbsp;appropriate&nbsp;professionals&nbsp;to&nbsp;serve&nbsp;as&nbsp;peer&nbsp;reviewers&nbsp;was&nbsp;established.&nbsp;Meanwhile,&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Sciences&nbsp;pushed&nbsp;ahead&nbsp;with&nbsp;its&nbsp;programs&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;assessment&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;work&nbsp;of&nbsp;its&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;using&nbsp;international&nbsp;panels&nbsp;of&nbsp;scientists.&nbsp;The&nbsp;importance&nbsp;of&nbsp;building&nbsp;high-level&nbsp;science&nbsp;advisory&nbsp;mechanisms&nbsp;was&nbsp;recognized,&nbsp;and&nbsp;new&nbsp;regulations&nbsp;were&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;affecting&nbsp;the&nbsp;procedures&nbsp;for&nbsp;nominating&nbsp;and&nbsp;selecting&nbsp;academicians&nbsp;for&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Engineering.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;an&nbsp;effort&nbsp;to&nbsp;further&nbsp;promote&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;modern&nbsp;research&nbsp;management&nbsp;system,&nbsp;important&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;were&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;by&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;(discussed&nbsp;further&nbsp;below),&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;Ministry&nbsp;of&nbsp;Education&nbsp;approved&nbsp;reform&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;at&nbsp;47&nbsp;universities&nbsp;aimed&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;university&nbsp;charters,&nbsp;modern&nbsp;governance&nbsp;mechanisms,&nbsp;and&nbsp;budget&nbsp;management,&nbsp;including&nbsp;comprehensive&nbsp;reform&nbsp;measures&nbsp;at&nbsp;several&nbsp;leading&nbsp;universities&nbsp;affecting&nbsp;the&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;new&nbsp;disciplines,&nbsp;student&nbsp;recruitment&nbsp;and&nbsp;human&nbsp;resource&nbsp;management.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Policy&nbsp;Mechanisms&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Not&nbsp;surprisingly,&nbsp;such&nbsp;systemwide&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;will&nbsp;also&nbsp;require&nbsp;changes&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;national&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;bureaucracy.&nbsp;While&nbsp;a&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;have&nbsp;yet&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;announced,&nbsp;several&nbsp;changes&nbsp;can&nbsp;be&nbsp;noted.&nbsp;Importantly,&nbsp;a&nbsp;new&nbsp;approach&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;inter-ministerial&nbsp;coordination&nbsp;problem&nbsp;was&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;establishment&nbsp;an&nbsp;&ldquo;inter-ministerial&nbsp;joint&nbsp;conference&nbsp;system&rdquo;&nbsp;(b&ugrave;j&igrave;&nbsp;li&aacute;nx&iacute;&nbsp;hu&igrave;y&igrave;&nbsp;zh&igrave;d&ugrave;)&nbsp;to&nbsp;coordinate&nbsp;and&nbsp;&ldquo;unify&rdquo;&nbsp;the&nbsp;government&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;programs.&nbsp;Policy&nbsp;direction&nbsp;for&nbsp;this&nbsp;new&nbsp;inter-agency&nbsp;mechanism&nbsp;apparently&nbsp;will&nbsp;come&nbsp;from&nbsp;MOST&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;Ministry&nbsp;of&nbsp;Finance&nbsp;in&nbsp;an&nbsp;attempt&nbsp;to&nbsp;establish&nbsp;a&nbsp;stronger&nbsp;organic&nbsp;link&nbsp;among&nbsp;policy,&nbsp;program,&nbsp;and&nbsp;budgeting.&nbsp;Along&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;call&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;establishment&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;high-level&nbsp;strategic&nbsp;consulting/policy&nbsp;advisory&nbsp;mechanism&nbsp;with&nbsp;membership&nbsp;from&nbsp;industry&nbsp;as&nbsp;well&nbsp;as&nbsp;government&nbsp;and&nbsp;academia&nbsp;(zhanlue&nbsp;zixun&nbsp;yu&nbsp;zonghe&nbsp;pingshen&nbsp;weiyuanhui),&nbsp;these&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;arrangements&nbsp;for&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;policy&nbsp;appear&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;going&nbsp;in&nbsp;interesting&nbsp;new&nbsp;directions.&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;several&nbsp;ways,&nbsp;these&nbsp;changes&nbsp;invite&nbsp;comparisons&nbsp;with&nbsp;US&nbsp;experience.&nbsp;The&nbsp;inter-ministerial&nbsp;joint&nbsp;conference&nbsp;system,&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;is&nbsp;somewhat&nbsp;reminiscent&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;National&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Technology&nbsp;Council&nbsp;(NSTC),&nbsp;an&nbsp;interagency&nbsp;body&nbsp;which&nbsp;coordinates&nbsp;the&nbsp;implementation&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;policy&nbsp;within&nbsp;federal&nbsp;agencies.&nbsp;①&nbsp;Although&nbsp;the&nbsp;NSTC&nbsp;is&nbsp;nominally&nbsp;headed&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;President,&nbsp;and&nbsp;includes&nbsp;the&nbsp;Vice&nbsp;President&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;member,&nbsp;its&nbsp;day&nbsp;to&nbsp;day&nbsp;direction&nbsp;is&nbsp;led&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;Office&nbsp;of&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Technology&nbsp;Policy&nbsp;(OSTP),&nbsp;whose&nbsp;Director&nbsp;also&nbsp;serves&nbsp;as&nbsp;the&nbsp;President&rsquo;s&nbsp;Science&nbsp;Advisor.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> NSTC,&nbsp;thus,&nbsp;is&nbsp;part&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;policy&nbsp;apparatus&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Executive&nbsp;Office&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;President.&nbsp;That&nbsp;apparatus&nbsp;also&nbsp;includes&nbsp;the&nbsp;President&rsquo;s&nbsp;Council&nbsp;of&nbsp;Advisors&nbsp;on&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;Technology&nbsp;(PCAST),&nbsp;a&nbsp;body&nbsp;of&nbsp;distinguished&nbsp;scientists&nbsp;and&nbsp;engineers&nbsp;from&nbsp;universities&nbsp;and&nbsp;industry.&nbsp;OSTP&nbsp;coordinates&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;Office&nbsp;of&nbsp;Management&nbsp;and&nbsp;Budget&nbsp;(OMB)&nbsp;in&nbsp;developing&nbsp;the&nbsp;President&rsquo;s&nbsp;budget&nbsp;for&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology.&nbsp;As&nbsp;parts&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Executive&nbsp;Office&nbsp;of&nbsp;President,&nbsp;both&nbsp;OMB&nbsp;and&nbsp;OSTP&nbsp;are&nbsp;supra-departmental&nbsp;(or&nbsp;&ldquo;supra-ministerial&rdquo;)&nbsp;agencies&nbsp;deriving&nbsp;power&nbsp;and&nbsp;authority&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;Office&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;President.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;China,&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;increased&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;mission&nbsp;oriented&nbsp;ministries&nbsp;(Agriculture,&nbsp;Environment,&nbsp;Public&nbsp;Health,&nbsp;etc.)&nbsp;in&nbsp;supporting&nbsp;the&nbsp;nation&rsquo;s&nbsp;research,&nbsp;the&nbsp;initiation&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;inter-ministerial&nbsp;coordination&nbsp;mechanism&nbsp;would&nbsp;seem&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;a&nbsp;sensible&nbsp;move,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;given&nbsp;the&nbsp;linkage&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;budget&nbsp;process&nbsp;through&nbsp;the&nbsp;key&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Ministry&nbsp;of&nbsp;Finance.&nbsp;The&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;new&nbsp;strategic&nbsp;consulting/advisory&nbsp;council&nbsp;also&nbsp;seems&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;serving&nbsp;an&nbsp;important&nbsp;need,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;since&nbsp;it&nbsp;should&nbsp;include&nbsp;distinguished&nbsp;representatives&nbsp;from&nbsp;industry&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;economy,&nbsp;as&nbsp;well&nbsp;as&nbsp;from&nbsp;academic&nbsp;institutions.&nbsp;Both&nbsp;new&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;entities&nbsp;are&nbsp;reminiscent&nbsp;of&nbsp;NCST&nbsp;and&nbsp;PCAST,&nbsp;but&nbsp;the&nbsp;analogy&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;system&nbsp;has&nbsp;its&nbsp;limits.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> It&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;entirely&nbsp;clear,&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;what&nbsp;the&nbsp;relationship&nbsp;would&nbsp;be&nbsp;between&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;inter-ministerial&nbsp;mechanism&nbsp;(b&ugrave;j&igrave;&nbsp;li&aacute;nx&iacute;&nbsp;hu&igrave;y&igrave;&nbsp;zh&igrave;d&ugrave;)&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;advisory&nbsp;council&nbsp;(zhanlue&nbsp;zixun&nbsp;yu&nbsp;zonghe&nbsp;pingshen&nbsp;weiyuanhui).&nbsp;In&nbsp;the&nbsp;absence&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;functional&nbsp;equivalent&nbsp;in&nbsp;China&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;president&rsquo;s&nbsp;science&nbsp;advisor&nbsp;and&nbsp;an&nbsp;OSTP,&nbsp;the&nbsp;underlying&nbsp;reporting&nbsp;and&nbsp;authority&nbsp;relations&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;system&nbsp;also&nbsp;remain&nbsp;somewhat&nbsp;unclear.&nbsp;This&nbsp;is&nbsp;especially&nbsp;true&nbsp;with&nbsp;regard&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;resolution&nbsp;of&nbsp;conflicts,&nbsp;should&nbsp;they&nbsp;occur,&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;inter-ministerial&nbsp;forum,&nbsp;given&nbsp;that&nbsp;all&nbsp;members&nbsp;seemingly&nbsp;would&nbsp;have&nbsp;the&nbsp;same&nbsp;ministerial&nbsp;level&nbsp;or&nbsp;rank.&nbsp;It&nbsp;is&nbsp;also&nbsp;not&nbsp;clear,&nbsp;to&nbsp;whom&nbsp;the&nbsp;advisory&nbsp;council&nbsp;should&nbsp;report;&nbsp;should&nbsp;it&nbsp;be&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;inter-ministerial&nbsp;conference,&nbsp;or&nbsp;to&nbsp;some&nbsp;higher&nbsp;political&nbsp;authority?&nbsp;In&nbsp;these&nbsp;and&nbsp;other&nbsp;ways,&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;approach&nbsp;to&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;policy&nbsp;arrangements&nbsp;differ&nbsp;somewhat&nbsp;from&nbsp;those&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;in&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;fact&nbsp;that&nbsp;they&nbsp;seem&nbsp;to&nbsp;have&nbsp;similar&nbsp;purposes.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Reforming&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">The&nbsp;national&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program,&nbsp;discussed&nbsp;above,&nbsp;carries&nbsp;implications&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;variety&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;performers,&nbsp;including&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Sciences,&nbsp;universities,&nbsp;government&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes,&nbsp;and&nbsp;industry.&nbsp;Reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Sciences&nbsp;serve&nbsp;as&nbsp;an&nbsp;interesting&nbsp;case&nbsp;of&nbsp;how&nbsp;the&nbsp;community&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;performers&nbsp;might&nbsp;respond&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;broader&nbsp;national&nbsp;reform&nbsp;environment.&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;reform,&nbsp;referred&nbsp;to&nbsp;in&nbsp;English&nbsp;as&nbsp;the&nbsp;&ldquo;Pioneer&nbsp;(shuaixian&nbsp;xingdong)&nbsp;Initiative,&rdquo;&nbsp;has&nbsp;the&nbsp;potential&nbsp;to&nbsp;bring&nbsp;about&nbsp;the&nbsp;most&nbsp;radical&nbsp;changes&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;since&nbsp;the&nbsp;1950s.&nbsp;It&nbsp;grows&nbsp;out&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;policy&nbsp;instructions&nbsp;issued&nbsp;by&nbsp;President&nbsp;Xi&nbsp;Jinping&nbsp;during&nbsp;his&nbsp;July,&nbsp;2013&nbsp;visit&nbsp;to&nbsp;CAS,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;need&nbsp;to&nbsp;respond&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;broader&nbsp;national&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;discussed&nbsp;above.&nbsp;The&nbsp;initiative&nbsp;involves&nbsp;reorganizing&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;into&nbsp;four&nbsp;major&nbsp;thematic&nbsp;categories,&nbsp;enhancing&nbsp;its&nbsp;educational&nbsp;missions,&nbsp;and&nbsp;through&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;academician&nbsp;(yuanshi)&nbsp;system,&nbsp;strengthening&nbsp;its&nbsp;policy&nbsp;advisory&nbsp;functions.&nbsp;These&nbsp;changes&nbsp;can&nbsp;be&nbsp;seen&nbsp;as&nbsp;the&nbsp;latest&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;series&nbsp;of&nbsp;attempts&nbsp;to&nbsp;overcome&nbsp;long-standing&nbsp;problems&nbsp;of&nbsp;mission&nbsp;definition&nbsp;and&nbsp;management&nbsp;within&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;as&nbsp;it&nbsp;has&nbsp;had&nbsp;to&nbsp;face&nbsp;the&nbsp;significantly&nbsp;different&nbsp;national&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;post-1978&nbsp;era.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;in&nbsp;addition,&nbsp;the&nbsp;changing&nbsp;expectations&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;central&nbsp;political&nbsp;leadership,&nbsp;reflected&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;national&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program,&nbsp;have&nbsp;given&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;a&nbsp;new&nbsp;urgency.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> CAS,&nbsp;of&nbsp;course,&nbsp;had&nbsp;already&nbsp;experienced&nbsp;considerable&nbsp;change&nbsp;under&nbsp;the&nbsp;terms&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;&ldquo;Knowledge&nbsp;Innovation&nbsp;Program,&rdquo;&nbsp;(KIP).&nbsp;Under&nbsp;KIP,&nbsp;the&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;underwent&nbsp;a&nbsp;series&nbsp;of&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;from&nbsp;1998&nbsp;to&nbsp;2010,&nbsp;and&nbsp;benefitted&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;infusion&nbsp;of&nbsp;substantial&nbsp;funding&nbsp;intended&nbsp;to&nbsp;make&nbsp;it&nbsp;a&nbsp;more&nbsp;capable&nbsp;institution&nbsp;for&nbsp;meeting&nbsp;national&nbsp;needs.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;in&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;much&nbsp;progress&nbsp;in&nbsp;enhancing&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;for&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;result&nbsp;of&nbsp;KIP,&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;missions&nbsp;and&nbsp;objectives&nbsp;remained&nbsp;somewhat&nbsp;uncertain.&nbsp;And,&nbsp;rather&nbsp;like&nbsp;the&nbsp;national&nbsp;laboratories&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;US,&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;and&nbsp;many&nbsp;of&nbsp;its&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;have&nbsp;yet&nbsp;to&nbsp;find&nbsp;the&nbsp;right&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;orientation&nbsp;for&nbsp;responding&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century.&nbsp;For&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;Department&nbsp;of&nbsp;Energy&nbsp;experiences&nbsp;problems&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;relations&nbsp;between&nbsp;DOE&nbsp;headquarters&nbsp;and&nbsp;its&nbsp;labs,&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;organization&nbsp;of&nbsp;headquarters,&nbsp;and&nbsp;especially&nbsp;in&nbsp;moving&nbsp;the&nbsp;technology&nbsp;developed&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;labs&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;market.&nbsp;②&nbsp;Such&nbsp;problems&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;evident&nbsp;in&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;as&nbsp;well.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;change&nbsp;in&nbsp;leadership&nbsp;occasioned&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;appointment&nbsp;of&nbsp;scientist&nbsp;Bai&nbsp;Chunli&nbsp;to&nbsp;replace&nbsp;engineer&nbsp;Lu&nbsp;Yongxiang&nbsp;as&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;president,&nbsp;provided&nbsp;an&nbsp;opportunity&nbsp;for&nbsp;further&nbsp;changes.&nbsp;Although&nbsp;Bai&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;a&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;policy&nbsp;changes&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;outset&nbsp;of&nbsp;his&nbsp;presidency,&nbsp;those&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;last&nbsp;two&nbsp;years&nbsp;have&nbsp;been&nbsp;the&nbsp;most&nbsp;consequential.&nbsp;They&nbsp;include,&nbsp;importantly,&nbsp;a&nbsp;strengthening&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Academy&rsquo;s&nbsp;educational&nbsp;activities&nbsp;(most&nbsp;notably,&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;rapid&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;University&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;of&nbsp;Sciences&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Beijing&nbsp;suburbs&nbsp;and&nbsp;Shanghai&nbsp;Tech&nbsp;University),&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;to&nbsp;build&nbsp;a&nbsp;high&nbsp;quality&nbsp;think&nbsp;tank&nbsp;of&nbsp;relevance&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;nation&rsquo;s&nbsp;policy&nbsp;needs,&nbsp;and&nbsp;an&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;effort&nbsp;to&nbsp;reorganize&nbsp;the&nbsp;Academy&rsquo;s&nbsp;100+&nbsp;institutes.&nbsp;As&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;national&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;discussed&nbsp;above,&nbsp;we&nbsp;are&nbsp;still&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;early&nbsp;stages&nbsp;of&nbsp;implementation,&nbsp;and&nbsp;how&nbsp;these&nbsp;initiatives&nbsp;will&nbsp;unfold&nbsp;remain&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;seen.&nbsp;Nevertheless,&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;changes&nbsp;are&nbsp;already&nbsp;notable.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;reorganization&nbsp;of&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;institutes,&nbsp;seemingly,&nbsp;is&nbsp;an&nbsp;attempt&nbsp;to&nbsp;clarify&nbsp;Academy&nbsp;missions&nbsp;and&nbsp;devise&nbsp;management&nbsp;and&nbsp;policy&nbsp;strategies&nbsp;appropriate&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;functions&nbsp;and&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;various&nbsp;institutes.&nbsp;③&nbsp;According&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;plan,&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;would&nbsp;be&nbsp;re-organized&nbsp;into&nbsp;new&nbsp;entities&nbsp;falling&nbsp;into&nbsp;one&nbsp;of&nbsp;four&nbsp;main&nbsp;categories:&nbsp;centers&nbsp;of&nbsp;excellence,&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;&ldquo;academies&rdquo;&nbsp;(chuangxin&nbsp;yuan),&nbsp;platforms&nbsp;for&nbsp;large&nbsp;facilities,&nbsp;and&nbsp;institute&nbsp;of&nbsp;special&nbsp;need&nbsp;for&nbsp;supporting&nbsp;national&nbsp;environmental&nbsp;and&nbsp;resource&nbsp;needs&nbsp;and&nbsp;those&nbsp;of&nbsp;local&nbsp;economies.&nbsp;In&nbsp;principle,&nbsp;this&nbsp;categorization&nbsp;is&nbsp;seemingly&nbsp;an&nbsp;imaginative&nbsp;approach&nbsp;which&nbsp;recognizes&nbsp;diverse&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;and&nbsp;functions&nbsp;pro-vided&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;need,&nbsp;therefore,&nbsp;to&nbsp;develop&nbsp;managerial&nbsp;strategies&nbsp;appropriate&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;different&nbsp;missions&nbsp;and&nbsp;competencies.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> For&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;the&nbsp;fundamental&nbsp;science&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;of&nbsp;some&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;are&nbsp;at,&nbsp;or&nbsp;near,&nbsp;international&nbsp;levels&nbsp;and&nbsp;offer&nbsp;China&nbsp;opportunities&nbsp;to&nbsp;make&nbsp;world-class&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;contributions.&nbsp;Recognizing&nbsp;these&nbsp;as&nbsp;&ldquo;centers&nbsp;of&nbsp;excellence,&rdquo;&nbsp;providing&nbsp;them&nbsp;with&nbsp;stable&nbsp;funding,&nbsp;and&nbsp;linking&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;missions&nbsp;with&nbsp;elite&nbsp;education&nbsp;would&nbsp;seem&nbsp;to&nbsp;make&nbsp;a&nbsp;great&nbsp;deal&nbsp;of&nbsp;sense.&nbsp;Similarly,&nbsp;a&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;have&nbsp;strengths&nbsp;in&nbsp;upstream&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;activities&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;diverse&nbsp;range&nbsp;of&nbsp;technologies&nbsp;without&nbsp;necessarily&nbsp;being&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;forefront&nbsp;of&nbsp;basic&nbsp;science.&nbsp;The&nbsp;incorporation&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;into&nbsp;&ldquo;innovation&nbsp;academies,&rdquo;&nbsp;seemingly,&nbsp;is&nbsp;also&nbsp;a&nbsp;step&nbsp;towards&nbsp;rationalizing&nbsp;organizational&nbsp;arrangements&nbsp;in&nbsp;ways&nbsp;that&nbsp;are&nbsp;consistent&nbsp;with&nbsp;functions.&nbsp;The&nbsp;same&nbsp;could&nbsp;be&nbsp;said&nbsp;for&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;large&nbsp;facilities,&nbsp;and&nbsp;those&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;field&nbsp;sciences&nbsp;dealing&nbsp;with&nbsp;environmental&nbsp;and&nbsp;resource&nbsp;issues.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;appeals&nbsp;of&nbsp;this&nbsp;blueprint,&nbsp;though,&nbsp;several&nbsp;problems&nbsp;are&nbsp;likely&nbsp;to&nbsp;make&nbsp;the&nbsp;full&nbsp;implementation&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;changes&nbsp;especially&nbsp;challenging,&nbsp;and&nbsp;illustrate,&nbsp;perhaps,&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;types&nbsp;of&nbsp;problems&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;broader&nbsp;national&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;will&nbsp;also&nbsp;face.&nbsp;First,&nbsp;while&nbsp;the&nbsp;attempts&nbsp;to&nbsp;bring&nbsp;better&nbsp;alignment&nbsp;between&nbsp;function&nbsp;and&nbsp;organization&nbsp;are&nbsp;understandable,&nbsp;many&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;are&nbsp;multi-functional&nbsp;and&nbsp;multi-mission,&nbsp;in&nbsp;part&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;result&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;policies&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;Lu&nbsp;Yongxiang&nbsp;period&nbsp;and&nbsp;changes&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;during&nbsp;KIP.&nbsp;Thus,&nbsp;some&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;with&nbsp;strong&nbsp;basic&nbsp;research&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;have&nbsp;also&nbsp;developed&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;in&nbsp;applied&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;relevance&nbsp;to&nbsp;technological&nbsp;innovation.&nbsp;Some&nbsp;of&nbsp;those&nbsp;housing&nbsp;large&nbsp;facilities&nbsp;are&nbsp;also&nbsp;leaders&nbsp;in&nbsp;promoting&nbsp;major&nbsp;technologies&nbsp;and&nbsp;might&nbsp;be&nbsp;classified&nbsp;as&nbsp;&ldquo;innovation&nbsp;academies.&rdquo;&nbsp;How&nbsp;these&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;should&nbsp;be&nbsp;categorized&nbsp;constitutes&nbsp;a&nbsp;major&nbsp;challenge,&nbsp;and&nbsp;points&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;possibility&nbsp;that&nbsp;established&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;will&nbsp;be&nbsp;broken&nbsp;up&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;pieces&nbsp;reorganized&nbsp;or&nbsp;reassembled&nbsp;into&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;entities.&nbsp;Such&nbsp;reorganization,&nbsp;though,&nbsp;will&nbsp;surely&nbsp;be&nbsp;disruptive,&nbsp;will&nbsp;introduce&nbsp;additional&nbsp;churn&nbsp;into&nbsp;the&nbsp;professional&nbsp;lives&nbsp;of&nbsp;researchers,&nbsp;and&nbsp;is&nbsp;likely&nbsp;to&nbsp;lead&nbsp;to&nbsp;considerable&nbsp;resistance&nbsp;and&nbsp;possible&nbsp;compromise&nbsp;of&nbsp;reform&nbsp;objectives.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> This&nbsp;is&nbsp;especially&nbsp;true&nbsp;when&nbsp;we&nbsp;consider&nbsp;questions&nbsp;of&nbsp;funding,&nbsp;the&nbsp;legal&nbsp;status&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;organizations,&nbsp;and&nbsp;principles&nbsp;of&nbsp;personnel&nbsp;management.&nbsp;In&nbsp;the&nbsp;case&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;centers&nbsp;of&nbsp;excellence,&nbsp;the&nbsp;idea&nbsp;seems&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;to&nbsp;provide&nbsp;stable&nbsp;public&nbsp;funding&nbsp;and&nbsp;reducing&nbsp;the&nbsp;share&nbsp;of&nbsp;funding&nbsp;coming&nbsp;from&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;grants.&nbsp;Since&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;centers&nbsp;which&nbsp;have&nbsp;already&nbsp;been&nbsp;established&nbsp;are&nbsp;being&nbsp;incorporated&nbsp;into&nbsp;&ldquo;colleges&rdquo;&nbsp;(kejiao&nbsp;runghe&nbsp;zhongxin)&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;new&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;University,&nbsp;one&nbsp;can&nbsp;imagine&nbsp;their&nbsp;affairs&nbsp;will&nbsp;be&nbsp;managed&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;somewhat&nbsp;familiar&nbsp;academic&nbsp;mode.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Less&nbsp;clear&nbsp;are&nbsp;the&nbsp;other&nbsp;three&nbsp;categories,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;the&nbsp;&ldquo;innovation&nbsp;academies.&rdquo;&nbsp;These,&nbsp;presumably,&nbsp;will&nbsp;face&nbsp;a&nbsp;more&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;funding&nbsp;environment,&nbsp;and&nbsp;it&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;clear&nbsp;to&nbsp;what&nbsp;extent&nbsp;funding&nbsp;should&nbsp;be&nbsp;coming&nbsp;from&nbsp;government&nbsp;sources&nbsp;or&nbsp;from&nbsp;industry&nbsp;sources.&nbsp;Given&nbsp;the&nbsp;overall&nbsp;drift&nbsp;of&nbsp;national&nbsp;policy&nbsp;towards&nbsp;having&nbsp;market&nbsp;forces&nbsp;play&nbsp;a&nbsp;greater&nbsp;role&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;we&nbsp;would&nbsp;expect&nbsp;these&nbsp;new&nbsp;innovation-oriented&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;to&nbsp;have&nbsp;more&nbsp;intimate&nbsp;relations&nbsp;with&nbsp;users.&nbsp;At&nbsp;the&nbsp;same&nbsp;time,&nbsp;much&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;that&nbsp;would&nbsp;be&nbsp;performed&nbsp;is&nbsp;likely&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;upstream,&nbsp;looking&nbsp;at&nbsp;longer-term&nbsp;national&nbsp;needs&nbsp;and&nbsp;priorities,&nbsp;and&nbsp;therefore,&nbsp;perhaps&nbsp;not&nbsp;always&nbsp;consistent&nbsp;with&nbsp;market&nbsp;expectations.&nbsp;Personnel&nbsp;policies&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;&ldquo;innovation&nbsp;academies&rdquo;&nbsp;are&nbsp;also&nbsp;uncertain;&nbsp;would&nbsp;personnel,&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;still&nbsp;have&nbsp;the&nbsp;status&nbsp;and&nbsp;benefits&nbsp;enjoyed&nbsp;now&nbsp;by&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;personnel,&nbsp;or&nbsp;would&nbsp;they&nbsp;face&nbsp;a&nbsp;more&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;and&nbsp;uncertain&nbsp;employment&nbsp;environment?&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;ways&nbsp;in&nbsp;which&nbsp;such&nbsp;questions&nbsp;are&nbsp;approached&nbsp;and&nbsp;resolved&nbsp;within&nbsp;CAS&nbsp;are&nbsp;strongly&nbsp;influenced&nbsp;by&nbsp;broader&nbsp;national&nbsp;concerns&nbsp;for&nbsp;reforming&nbsp;the&nbsp;so-called&nbsp;&ldquo;public&nbsp;service&nbsp;units&rdquo;&nbsp;(shiye&nbsp;danwei),&nbsp;a&nbsp;broad&nbsp;category&nbsp;of&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;in&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;law&nbsp;into&nbsp;which&nbsp;CAS,&nbsp;universities&nbsp;and&nbsp;most&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;and&nbsp;educational&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;fall.&nbsp;Since&nbsp;the&nbsp;1980s,&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;sought&nbsp;to&nbsp;redefine&nbsp;the&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;shiye&nbsp;danwei&nbsp;in&nbsp;ways&nbsp;that&nbsp;would&nbsp;make&nbsp;them&nbsp;more&nbsp;efficient,&nbsp;contribute&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;reduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;size&nbsp;and&nbsp;scope&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state&nbsp;and,&nbsp;more&nbsp;generally,&nbsp;create&nbsp;an&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;environment&nbsp;suitable&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;market&nbsp;economy.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> As&nbsp;these&nbsp;shiye&nbsp;danwei&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;have&nbsp;affected&nbsp;re-search&nbsp;institutions,&nbsp;they&nbsp;have&nbsp;created&nbsp;complex&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;about&nbsp;the&nbsp;directions&nbsp;of&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;change.&nbsp;Should&nbsp;the&nbsp;organization&nbsp;targeted&nbsp;for&nbsp;reform&nbsp;remain&nbsp;part&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;government&nbsp;administration?&nbsp;Should&nbsp;it&nbsp;(perhaps,&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;case&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;chuangxin&nbsp;yuan,&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance)&nbsp;become&nbsp;some&nbsp;sort&nbsp;of&nbsp;hybrid&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;having&nbsp;both&nbsp;government&nbsp;support&nbsp;and&nbsp;opportunities&nbsp;to&nbsp;participate&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;market&nbsp;and&nbsp;generate&nbsp;contract&nbsp;income&nbsp;from&nbsp;industry?&nbsp;Should&nbsp;it&nbsp;become&nbsp;a&nbsp;fully&nbsp;not-for-profit&nbsp;service&nbsp;organization&nbsp;or,&nbsp;should&nbsp;it&nbsp;transition&nbsp;into&nbsp;a&nbsp;commercial&nbsp;enterprise,&nbsp;subject&nbsp;to&nbsp;market&nbsp;forces&nbsp;(qiye&nbsp;hua)?&nbsp;Such&nbsp;questions&nbsp;point&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;special&nbsp;difficulties&nbsp;China&nbsp;faces&nbsp;in&nbsp;defining&nbsp;the&nbsp;proper&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;discussed&nbsp;further&nbsp;below.&nbsp;Attempts&nbsp;to&nbsp;resolve&nbsp;such&nbsp;questions,&nbsp;in&nbsp;turn,&nbsp;involve&nbsp;a&nbsp;consideration&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;disposition&nbsp;of&nbsp;assets,&nbsp;the&nbsp;governance&nbsp;structures&nbsp;in&nbsp;reformed&nbsp;institutions,&nbsp;budgeting&nbsp;and&nbsp;fina-ncial&nbsp;arrangements,&nbsp;and&nbsp;personnel&nbsp;policies,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;with&nbsp;regard&nbsp;to&nbsp;leadership,&nbsp;ranks,&nbsp;salaries,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;legal&nbsp;status&nbsp;of&nbsp;employment&nbsp;position.&nbsp;These&nbsp;are&nbsp;all&nbsp;complicated&nbsp;and&nbsp;contentious&nbsp;issues&nbsp;that&nbsp;point&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;difficulties&nbsp;of&nbsp;reforming&nbsp;the&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;system.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> &nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> A&nbsp;Successful&nbsp;21st&nbsp;Century&nbsp;Innovation&nbsp;System?&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> &nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> As&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above,&nbsp;in&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;fact&nbsp;that&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;seen&nbsp;a&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;successes&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;its&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;in&nbsp;recent&nbsp;years,&nbsp;the&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;has&nbsp;also&nbsp;been&nbsp;plagued&nbsp;by&nbsp;serious&nbsp;problems.&nbsp;Today&rsquo;s&nbsp;reform&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;have&nbsp;clearly&nbsp;been&nbsp;directed&nbsp;at&nbsp;solving&nbsp;those&nbsp;problems.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;thinking&nbsp;ahead,&nbsp;are&nbsp;they&nbsp;also&nbsp;laying&nbsp;the&nbsp;foundation&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;highly&nbsp;productive&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;for&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century&nbsp;conditions?&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> As&nbsp;Dieter&nbsp;Ernst,&nbsp;and&nbsp;others,&nbsp;have&nbsp;recently&nbsp;noted,&nbsp;those&nbsp;conditions&nbsp;include&nbsp;an&nbsp;international&nbsp;environment&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;increasing&nbsp;socio-technical&nbsp;complexity&nbsp;involving&nbsp;new&nbsp;science-based&nbsp;technologies,&nbsp;demanding&nbsp;market&nbsp;conditions,&nbsp;complex,&nbsp;globally&nbsp;dispersed&nbsp;business&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;practicing&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;business&nbsp;plans,&nbsp;and&nbsp;a&nbsp;variety&nbsp;of&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;policies&nbsp;from&nbsp;national&nbsp;governments,&nbsp;many&nbsp;of&nbsp;which&nbsp;defy&nbsp;international&nbsp;harmonization.&nbsp;Under&nbsp;these&nbsp;conditions,&nbsp;single&nbsp;companies,&nbsp;and&nbsp;even&nbsp;single&nbsp;nations,&nbsp;are&nbsp;often&nbsp;less&nbsp;able&nbsp;to&nbsp;generate&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;knowledge&nbsp;assets&nbsp;by&nbsp;themselves,&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;result&nbsp;that&nbsp;we&nbsp;have&nbsp;seen&nbsp;the&nbsp;emergence&nbsp;of&nbsp;global&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;networks,&nbsp;as&nbsp;well&nbsp;as&nbsp;global&nbsp;production&nbsp;networks.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> This&nbsp;socio-technical&nbsp;complexity&nbsp;also&nbsp;begets&nbsp;new&nbsp;forms&nbsp;of&nbsp;uncertainty&nbsp;and,&nbsp;thus,&nbsp;new&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;for&nbsp;decision-makers.&nbsp;As&nbsp;Ernst&nbsp;observes,&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> &ldquo;Uncertainty&nbsp;implies&nbsp;that&nbsp;it&nbsp;is&nbsp;always&nbsp;preferable&nbsp;to&nbsp;have&nbsp;built-in&nbsp;redundancy&nbsp;and&nbsp;freedom&nbsp;to&nbsp;choose&nbsp;among&nbsp;alternatives&nbsp;rather&nbsp;than&nbsp;seeking&nbsp;to&nbsp;impose&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;top&nbsp;the&nbsp;&lsquo;one&nbsp;best&nbsp;way&rsquo;&nbsp;of&nbsp;doing&nbsp;things.....&nbsp;It&nbsp;(uncertainty)&nbsp;makes&nbsp;it&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;to&nbsp;predict&nbsp;possible&nbsp;outcomes&nbsp;of&nbsp;any&nbsp;particular&nbsp;policy&nbsp;measure,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;unexpected&nbsp;negative&nbsp;side&nbsp;effects,&nbsp;of&nbsp;which&nbsp;there&nbsp;is&nbsp;an&nbsp;almost&nbsp;endless&nbsp;variety.....&nbsp;and....it&nbsp;is&nbsp;next&nbsp;to&nbsp;impossible&nbsp;to&nbsp;predict&nbsp;the&nbsp;full&nbsp;consequences&nbsp;of&nbsp;interactions&nbsp;among&nbsp;the&nbsp;increasingly&nbsp;diverse&nbsp;population&nbsp;of&nbsp;....domestic&nbsp;and&nbsp;international&nbsp;stakeholders.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Ernst&nbsp;goes&nbsp;on&nbsp;to&nbsp;note&nbsp;that&nbsp;therefore,&nbsp;&ldquo;prioritization&nbsp;is&nbsp;no&nbsp;longer&nbsp;the&nbsp;exclusive&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state&nbsp;planner.&rdquo;&nbsp;The&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;becomes&nbsp;less&nbsp;a&nbsp;matter&nbsp;of&nbsp;selecting&nbsp;&ldquo;priority&nbsp;sectors,&nbsp;technologies&nbsp;and&nbsp;areas&nbsp;for&nbsp;public&nbsp;investment,&rdquo;&nbsp;and&nbsp;more&nbsp;one&nbsp;of&nbsp;removing&nbsp;regulatory&nbsp;constraints&nbsp;and&nbsp;providing&nbsp;incentives&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;activities&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;market&nbsp;actors&nbsp;participating&nbsp;in&nbsp;global&nbsp;networks.</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Policymakers&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;OECD&nbsp;countries&nbsp;are&nbsp;struggling&nbsp;to&nbsp;identify&nbsp;the&nbsp;right&nbsp;operational&nbsp;tools&nbsp;to&nbsp;respond&nbsp;to&nbsp;these&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;complexity&nbsp;and&nbsp;uncertainty.&nbsp;In&nbsp;Europe,&nbsp;there&nbsp;is&nbsp;much&nbsp;discussion&nbsp;of&nbsp;&ldquo;smart&nbsp;specialization,&rdquo;&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;which&nbsp;seeks&nbsp;not&nbsp;only&nbsp;to&nbsp;provide&nbsp;broad&nbsp;&ldquo;framework&nbsp;conditions&rdquo;&nbsp;for&nbsp;an&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;environment,&nbsp;but&nbsp;also&nbsp;to&nbsp;encourage&nbsp;naturally&nbsp;occurring&nbsp;regional&nbsp;comparative&nbsp;advantages&nbsp;and&nbsp;specialized&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;through&nbsp;a&nbsp;&ldquo;light&nbsp;touch&rdquo;&nbsp;of&nbsp;vertical&nbsp;government&nbsp;intervention.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> A&nbsp;recent&nbsp;report&nbsp;on&nbsp;the&nbsp;US&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;by&nbsp;contrast,&nbsp;takes&nbsp;a&nbsp;somewhat&nbsp;different&nbsp;approach.&nbsp;It&nbsp;argues&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;best&nbsp;way&nbsp;to&nbsp;provide&nbsp;resilience&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;face&nbsp;of&nbsp;unpredictability&nbsp;is&nbsp;to&nbsp;focus&nbsp;on&nbsp;three&nbsp;critical&nbsp;objectives:&nbsp;1)&nbsp;maintaining&nbsp;&ldquo;a&nbsp;talented&nbsp;and&nbsp;(globally)&nbsp;interconnected&nbsp;workforce,&rdquo;&nbsp;2)&nbsp;&ldquo;adequate&nbsp;and&nbsp;dependable&nbsp;resources,&rdquo;&nbsp;and&nbsp;3)&nbsp;&ldquo;world-class&nbsp;basic&nbsp;research&nbsp;in&nbsp;all&nbsp;major&nbsp;areas&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&rdquo;&nbsp;to&nbsp;allow&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;exploitation&nbsp;of&nbsp;discoveries&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;variety&nbsp;of&nbsp;fields.&nbsp;In&nbsp;the&nbsp;words&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;report,&nbsp;&ldquo;A&nbsp;world-class&nbsp;basic&nbsp;research&nbsp;enterprise&nbsp;attracts&nbsp;scholars&nbsp;from&nbsp;around&nbsp;the&nbsp;world&nbsp;who&nbsp;in&nbsp;turn&nbsp;enhance&nbsp;excellence&nbsp;in&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;create&nbsp;a&nbsp;self&nbsp;reinforcing&nbsp;cycle.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;latest&nbsp;round&nbsp;of&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;reforms,&nbsp;discussed&nbsp;here,&nbsp;are&nbsp;still&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;early&nbsp;stages&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;full&nbsp;course&nbsp;of&nbsp;their&nbsp;development&nbsp;remains&nbsp;unclear.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;as&nbsp;China&nbsp;pursues&nbsp;today&rsquo;s&nbsp;reforms,&nbsp;the&nbsp;resulting&nbsp;adjustments&nbsp;to&nbsp;its&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;cannot&nbsp;ignore&nbsp;these&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century&nbsp;realities&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;they&nbsp;offer.&nbsp;Hence,&nbsp;going&nbsp;forward,&nbsp;several&nbsp;key&nbsp;issues&nbsp;warrant&nbsp;particular&nbsp;attention.&nbsp;Some&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;are&nbsp;shared&nbsp;with&nbsp;countries&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;OECD,&nbsp;some&nbsp;are&nbsp;more&nbsp;distinctively&nbsp;Chinese.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;Role&nbsp;of&nbsp;Government.&nbsp;In&nbsp;one&nbsp;sense,&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;discourse&nbsp;about&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;reform&nbsp;in&nbsp;China&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;unlike&nbsp;discussions&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;OECD&nbsp;countries&nbsp;as&nbsp;they&nbsp;try&nbsp;to&nbsp;understand&nbsp;the&nbsp;proper&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;nation&rsquo;s&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;system.&nbsp;As&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;OECD,&nbsp;market&nbsp;failure&nbsp;issues&nbsp;associated&nbsp;with&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;needs&nbsp;for&nbsp;supporting&nbsp;strategic&nbsp;technologies&nbsp;and&nbsp;basic&nbsp;research,&nbsp;are&nbsp;broad&nbsp;justifications&nbsp;for&nbsp;an&nbsp;important&nbsp;role&nbsp;for&nbsp;government.&nbsp;Still,&nbsp;in&nbsp;light&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;changing&nbsp;nature&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;ecosystem,&nbsp;the&nbsp;determination&nbsp;of&nbsp;when&nbsp;and&nbsp;how&nbsp;government&nbsp;should&nbsp;intervene&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;market,&nbsp;and&nbsp;how&nbsp;the&nbsp;government&nbsp;should&nbsp;organize&nbsp;itself&nbsp;to&nbsp;support&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation,&nbsp;require&nbsp;imaginative&nbsp;new&nbsp;thought&nbsp;and&nbsp;creative&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;design.&nbsp;We&nbsp;see&nbsp;both&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;questions&nbsp;on&nbsp;the&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;reform&nbsp;agenda,&nbsp;but&nbsp;the&nbsp;background&nbsp;conditions&nbsp;in&nbsp;China&nbsp;differ&nbsp;from&nbsp;those&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;OECD&nbsp;world.&nbsp;First,&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;a&nbsp;long&nbsp;tradition&nbsp;of&nbsp;relations&nbsp;between&nbsp;intellectuals&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;state&nbsp;in&nbsp;which&nbsp;knowledge&nbsp;is&nbsp;taken&nbsp;as&nbsp;serving,&nbsp;and&nbsp;being&nbsp;subordinate&nbsp;to,&nbsp;the&nbsp;state.&nbsp;Since&nbsp;1949,&nbsp;this&nbsp;tradition&nbsp;has&nbsp;taken&nbsp;the&nbsp;form&nbsp;of&nbsp;having&nbsp;strong&nbsp;state&nbsp;direction&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;entire&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;system.&nbsp;Of&nbsp;course,&nbsp;as&nbsp;market&nbsp;forces&nbsp;have&nbsp;come&nbsp;to&nbsp;play&nbsp;a&nbsp;greater&nbsp;role,&nbsp;and&nbsp;as&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;seen&nbsp;the&nbsp;rise&nbsp;of&nbsp;successful&nbsp;high-technology&nbsp;enterprises&nbsp;outside&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state&nbsp;system,&nbsp;assumptions&nbsp;about&nbsp;the&nbsp;primacy&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state&nbsp;have&nbsp;come&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;questioned&nbsp;in&nbsp;recent&nbsp;years.&nbsp;This&nbsp;is&nbsp;especially&nbsp;true&nbsp;since&nbsp;the&nbsp;convening&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;18th&nbsp;Party&nbsp;Congress,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;emphasis&nbsp;placed&nbsp;on&nbsp;market&nbsp;reforms.&nbsp;Yet,&nbsp;the&nbsp;path&nbsp;dependency&nbsp;resulting&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;tradition&nbsp;of&nbsp;state&nbsp;leadership&nbsp;is&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;to&nbsp;reverse;&nbsp;the&nbsp;long&nbsp;and&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;experience&nbsp;of&nbsp;attempting&nbsp;to&nbsp;reform&nbsp;the&nbsp;shiye&nbsp;danwei,&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above,&nbsp;is&nbsp;but&nbsp;one&nbsp;illustration&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;power&nbsp;path&nbsp;dependency.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Determining&nbsp;the&nbsp;proper&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;is&nbsp;also&nbsp;related&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;stages&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;country&rsquo;s&nbsp;economic&nbsp;development&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;capabilities,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;the&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;of&nbsp;industry.&nbsp;The&nbsp;strong&nbsp;government&nbsp;leadership,&nbsp;and&nbsp;mobilization&nbsp;of&nbsp;resources,&nbsp;which&nbsp;often&nbsp;characterizes&nbsp;successful&nbsp;&ldquo;catch-up&rdquo;&nbsp;phases&nbsp;of&nbsp;development,&nbsp;may&nbsp;be&nbsp;appropriate&nbsp;for&nbsp;early&nbsp;developmental&nbsp;stages.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;this&nbsp;approach&nbsp;may&nbsp;not&nbsp;be&nbsp;suitable&nbsp;for&nbsp;progressing&nbsp;&ldquo;beyond&nbsp;catch-up&rdquo;&nbsp;into&nbsp;areas&nbsp;of&nbsp;creative&nbsp;original&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;genuinely&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;technologies.&nbsp;As&nbsp;the&nbsp;experiences&nbsp;of&nbsp;other&nbsp;East&nbsp;Asian&nbsp;countries&nbsp;have&nbsp;demonstrated;&nbsp;many&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;policies&nbsp;and&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;suitable&nbsp;for&nbsp;catch-up&nbsp;can&nbsp;become&nbsp;obstacles&nbsp;to&nbsp;moving&nbsp;successfully&nbsp;to&nbsp;a&nbsp;new&nbsp;phase&nbsp;of&nbsp;development.&nbsp;④&nbsp;An&nbsp;effective&nbsp;current&nbsp;reform&nbsp;strategy,&nbsp;therefore,&nbsp;must&nbsp;be&nbsp;designed&nbsp;with&nbsp;due&nbsp;attention&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;nation&rsquo;s&nbsp;developmental&nbsp;stage,&nbsp;but&nbsp;this&nbsp;is&nbsp;no&nbsp;small&nbsp;task&nbsp;given&nbsp;the&nbsp;great&nbsp;variability&nbsp;in&nbsp;levels&nbsp;of&nbsp;development&nbsp;that&nbsp;remains&nbsp;in&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;society.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> A&nbsp;further&nbsp;complicating&nbsp;factor&nbsp;is&nbsp;the&nbsp;growing&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;provincial&nbsp;and&nbsp;city&nbsp;governments&nbsp;in&nbsp;supporting&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;in&nbsp;their&nbsp;jurisdictions.&nbsp;Given&nbsp;the&nbsp;large&nbsp;size&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;sub-national&nbsp;government&nbsp;units,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;wealth&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;them&nbsp;possess,&nbsp;it&nbsp;is&nbsp;likely&nbsp;that&nbsp;their&nbsp;role&nbsp;will&nbsp;increase.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;this&nbsp;raises&nbsp;interesting&nbsp;questions&nbsp;about&nbsp;the&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;sub-national&nbsp;governments&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;coordination&nbsp;between&nbsp;national&nbsp;and&nbsp;local&nbsp;level&nbsp;policy&nbsp;initiatives,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;since&nbsp;much&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;recent&nbsp;support&nbsp;for&nbsp;technical&nbsp;entrepreneurship&nbsp;and&nbsp;institution-building&nbsp;for&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;in&nbsp;nominally&nbsp;non-governmental&nbsp;high-technology&nbsp;enterprises&nbsp;has&nbsp;come&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;form&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;strong&nbsp;underwriting&nbsp;provided&nbsp;by&nbsp;local&nbsp;governments.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Government&nbsp;and&nbsp;Professionalization.&nbsp;An&nbsp;especially&nbsp;interesting&nbsp;aspect&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;2014&nbsp;reform&nbsp;policies&nbsp;is&nbsp;the&nbsp;emphasis&nbsp;placed&nbsp;on&nbsp;&ldquo;professionalization.&rdquo;&nbsp;As&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above,&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;calls&nbsp;for&nbsp;an&nbsp;overall&nbsp;professionalization&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;administration&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;R&amp;D,&nbsp;including&nbsp;both&nbsp;the&nbsp;allocation&nbsp;of&nbsp;funding&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;further&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;evaluation&nbsp;practices.&nbsp;Yet,&nbsp;it&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;entirely&nbsp;clear&nbsp;what&nbsp;&ldquo;professionalization&rdquo;&nbsp;entails.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> One&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;things&nbsp;that&nbsp;characterizes&nbsp;effective&nbsp;modern&nbsp;governments&nbsp;is&nbsp;the&nbsp;infusion&nbsp;of&nbsp;professionalism&nbsp;into&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;organizations.&nbsp;The&nbsp;modern&nbsp;public&nbsp;organization&nbsp;needs&nbsp;professional&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;of&nbsp;this&nbsp;sort,&nbsp;but&nbsp;fitting&nbsp;it&nbsp;in&nbsp;with&nbsp;traditional&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;organization&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;always&nbsp;easy.&nbsp;The&nbsp;importance&nbsp;of&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;modern&nbsp;bureaucracy&nbsp;has&nbsp;long&nbsp;been&nbsp;recognized,&nbsp;but&nbsp;that&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;would&nbsp;typically&nbsp;be&nbsp;nested&nbsp;in&nbsp;an&nbsp;organizational&nbsp;setting&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;clear&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;rules&nbsp;and&nbsp;regulations.&nbsp;Such&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;necessarily&nbsp;the&nbsp;same&nbsp;as&nbsp;professionalism,&nbsp;however.&nbsp;Normally,&nbsp;the&nbsp;definition&nbsp;of&nbsp;professionalism&nbsp;would&nbsp;include&nbsp;not&nbsp;only&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;but&nbsp;also&nbsp;principles&nbsp;of&nbsp;autonomy&nbsp;and&nbsp;fiduciary&nbsp;responsibility&nbsp;(i.e.,&nbsp;the&nbsp;responsibility&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;&ldquo;trustee&rdquo;&nbsp;that&nbsp;is&nbsp;less&nbsp;a&nbsp;function&nbsp;of&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;or&nbsp;political&nbsp;control,&nbsp;but&nbsp;is&nbsp;rather&nbsp;based&nbsp;on&nbsp;values&nbsp;internalized&nbsp;through&nbsp;the&nbsp;training&nbsp;and&nbsp;socialization&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;professional&nbsp;and&nbsp;enforced&nbsp;by&nbsp;self-governing&nbsp;professional&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;independent&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state).&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Hence,&nbsp;not&nbsp;surprisingly,&nbsp;the&nbsp;modern&nbsp;public&nbsp;organization&nbsp;is&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;considerable&nbsp;tension&nbsp;between&nbsp;demands&nbsp;for&nbsp;high&nbsp;levels&nbsp;of&nbsp;professional&nbsp;autonomy&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;demands&nbsp;of&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;responsibility&nbsp;and&nbsp;control.&nbsp;This&nbsp;is&nbsp;especially&nbsp;true&nbsp;with&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology-related&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;where&nbsp;the&nbsp;demands&nbsp;for&nbsp;professional&nbsp;expertise&nbsp;is&nbsp;especially&nbsp;important.&nbsp;Because&nbsp;of&nbsp;this&nbsp;tension,&nbsp;we&nbsp;can&nbsp;see&nbsp;that&nbsp;some&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;-&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;by&nbsp;altering&nbsp;bureaucratic&nbsp;regulations&nbsp;and&nbsp;changing&nbsp;the&nbsp;personnel&nbsp;management&nbsp;principles&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;civil&nbsp;service&nbsp;to&nbsp;permit&nbsp;the&nbsp;employment&nbsp;and&nbsp;compensation&nbsp;of&nbsp;high-quality&nbsp;engineers&nbsp;and&nbsp;scientists&nbsp;-&nbsp;manage&nbsp;it&nbsp;well&nbsp;and&nbsp;are&nbsp;successful.&nbsp;Others&nbsp;don&#39;t&nbsp;manage&nbsp;the&nbsp;bureaucracy-professionalism&nbsp;tension&nbsp;well&nbsp;and&nbsp;develop&nbsp;serious&nbsp;problems.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Since&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;political&nbsp;principles&nbsp;have&nbsp;left&nbsp;little&nbsp;room&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;genuine&nbsp;realm,&nbsp;or&nbsp;sphere,&nbsp;of&nbsp;professional&nbsp;life&nbsp;independent&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state,&nbsp;it&nbsp;remains&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;seen&nbsp;what&nbsp;sorts&nbsp;of&nbsp;institutional&nbsp;innovations&nbsp;emerge&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;that&nbsp;would&nbsp;allow&nbsp;for&nbsp;a&nbsp;significant&nbsp;professional&nbsp;role&nbsp;in&nbsp;research&nbsp;administration.&nbsp;Will&nbsp;that&nbsp;role&nbsp;simply&nbsp;be&nbsp;an&nbsp;extension&nbsp;of&nbsp;state&nbsp;power&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;new&nbsp;guise&nbsp;of&nbsp;&ldquo;enhanced&nbsp;expertise,&rdquo;&nbsp;or&nbsp;will&nbsp;it&nbsp;reflect&nbsp;opportunities&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;exercise&nbsp;of&nbsp;genuine&nbsp;professional&nbsp;autonomy?&nbsp;As&nbsp;Don&nbsp;K.&nbsp;Price&nbsp;has&nbsp;pointed&nbsp;out&nbsp;in&nbsp;his&nbsp;classic&nbsp;study&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;government,&nbsp;there&nbsp;is&nbsp;always&nbsp;a&nbsp;significant&nbsp;challenge&nbsp;in&nbsp;finding&nbsp;the&nbsp;right&nbsp;balance&nbsp;between&nbsp;professional&nbsp;autonomy&nbsp;and&nbsp;government&nbsp;accountability.&nbsp;③&nbsp;The&nbsp;conditions&nbsp;for&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century&nbsp;add&nbsp;new&nbsp;dimensions&nbsp;to&nbsp;this&nbsp;challenge.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;Internationalization&nbsp;of&nbsp;liangzhang&nbsp;pi&nbsp;.&nbsp;Clearly,&nbsp;one&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;driving&nbsp;forces&nbsp;behind&nbsp;current&nbsp;reform&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;is&nbsp;to&nbsp;come&nbsp;up&nbsp;with&nbsp;effective&nbsp;new&nbsp;ways&nbsp;of&nbsp;overcoming&nbsp;the&nbsp;long-standing&nbsp;problem&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;being&nbsp;separated&nbsp;from&nbsp;production&nbsp;or,&nbsp;from&nbsp;users&nbsp;more&nbsp;generally.&nbsp;This&nbsp;problem&nbsp;has&nbsp;deep&nbsp;roots&nbsp;going&nbsp;back&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;pre-reform&nbsp;era,&nbsp;and&nbsp;in&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;series&nbsp;of&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;beginning&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;1980s,&nbsp;aspects&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;problem&nbsp;remain&nbsp;unsolved.&nbsp;China&nbsp;has&nbsp;changed&nbsp;remarkably&nbsp;since&nbsp;the&nbsp;initiation&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;era,&nbsp;but,&nbsp;again,&nbsp;path&nbsp;dependencies&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;organizational&nbsp;separation&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;production&nbsp;are&nbsp;often&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;to&nbsp;overcome,&nbsp;and&nbsp;this&nbsp;is&nbsp;the&nbsp;case&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;liangzhang&nbsp;pi&nbsp;problem.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> Historically,&nbsp;the&nbsp;liangzhang&nbsp;pi&nbsp;problem&nbsp;has&nbsp;involved&nbsp;a&nbsp;misalignment&nbsp;of&nbsp;interests&nbsp;and&nbsp;incentives&nbsp;between&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;system,&nbsp;and&nbsp;industrial&nbsp;producers.&nbsp;While&nbsp;economic&nbsp;reforms,&nbsp;as&nbsp;well&nbsp;as&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;reforms,&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;30&nbsp;years&nbsp;have&nbsp;made&nbsp;progress&nbsp;in&nbsp;realigning&nbsp;these&nbsp;interests&nbsp;and&nbsp;incentives,&nbsp;it&nbsp;is&nbsp;clear&nbsp;that&nbsp;more&nbsp;needs&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;done.&nbsp;The&nbsp;various&nbsp;measures&nbsp;to&nbsp;stimulate&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;activities&nbsp;in&nbsp;industry&nbsp;through&nbsp;positive&nbsp;(e.g.&nbsp;special&nbsp;subsidies)&nbsp;and&nbsp;negative&nbsp;(e.g.&nbsp;reduction&nbsp;of&nbsp;policy&nbsp;preferences&nbsp;in&nbsp;state&nbsp;owned&nbsp;enterprises)&nbsp;incentives&nbsp;have&nbsp;clearly&nbsp;had&nbsp;positive&nbsp;effects,&nbsp;as&nbsp;have&nbsp;policies&nbsp;to&nbsp;encourage&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes&nbsp;and&nbsp;universities&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;more&nbsp;engaged&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;marketplace.&nbsp;The&nbsp;overall&nbsp;strengthening&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;IPR&nbsp;regime&nbsp;has&nbsp;also&nbsp;had&nbsp;positive&nbsp;consequences&nbsp;for&nbsp;reducing&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;to&nbsp;production&nbsp;problem,&nbsp;and&nbsp;new&nbsp;measures&nbsp;such&nbsp;as&nbsp;the&nbsp;san&nbsp;quan&nbsp;regulations,&nbsp;are&nbsp;expected&nbsp;to&nbsp;facilitate&nbsp;technology&nbsp;transfers&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;leading&nbsp;centers&nbsp;of&nbsp;research.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> While&nbsp;domestic&nbsp;reform&nbsp;policies&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;years&nbsp;have&nbsp;impacted&nbsp;the&nbsp;path&nbsp;dependencies&nbsp;associated&nbsp;with&nbsp;liang-zhang&nbsp;pi,&nbsp;the&nbsp;realities&nbsp;of&nbsp;global&nbsp;production&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;networks&nbsp;may&nbsp;have&nbsp;played&nbsp;a&nbsp;greater&nbsp;role.&nbsp;The&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;research&nbsp;system&nbsp;is&nbsp;no&nbsp;longer&nbsp;focused&nbsp;solely&nbsp;on&nbsp;technology&nbsp;transfer&nbsp;to&nbsp;domestic&nbsp;firms&nbsp;and,&nbsp;of&nbsp;course,&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;industrial&nbsp;enterprises&nbsp;are&nbsp;acquiring&nbsp;technology&nbsp;from&nbsp;many&nbsp;sources,&nbsp;not&nbsp;the&nbsp;least&nbsp;of&nbsp;which&nbsp;are&nbsp;international&nbsp;sources.&nbsp;Thus,&nbsp;questions&nbsp;of&nbsp;international&nbsp;cooperation,&nbsp;in&nbsp;relation&nbsp;to&nbsp;national&nbsp;interests,&nbsp;constitute&nbsp;a&nbsp;prominent&nbsp;background&nbsp;condition&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;whole&nbsp;range&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;reforms.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> China&nbsp;has&nbsp;benefitted&nbsp;enormously&nbsp;from&nbsp;its&nbsp;&ldquo;open-door&rdquo;&nbsp;(kai&nbsp;fang)&nbsp;policies,&nbsp;including&nbsp;those&nbsp;which&nbsp;have&nbsp;led&nbsp;to&nbsp;expanded&nbsp;international&nbsp;cooperation&nbsp;in&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology.&nbsp;It&nbsp;is&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;to&nbsp;imagine&nbsp;turning&nbsp;back&nbsp;from&nbsp;such&nbsp;international&nbsp;exposure,&nbsp;and&nbsp;today&rsquo;s&nbsp;policy&nbsp;statements&nbsp;all&nbsp;call&nbsp;for&nbsp;expanding&nbsp;international&nbsp;cooperation.&nbsp;On&nbsp;the&nbsp;other&nbsp;hand,&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;industrial&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;policies&nbsp;have&nbsp;often&nbsp;shown&nbsp;strong&nbsp;techno-nationalist&nbsp;tendencies,&nbsp;and&nbsp;elements&nbsp;of&nbsp;cultural&nbsp;nationalism&nbsp;are&nbsp;evident&nbsp;in&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;research&nbsp;as&nbsp;well.&nbsp;The&nbsp;larger&nbsp;national&nbsp;reform&nbsp;agenda&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;government,&nbsp;especially&nbsp;with&nbsp;regard&nbsp;to&nbsp;information&nbsp;policies,&nbsp;also&nbsp;shows&nbsp;the&nbsp;influence&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;growing&nbsp;nationalism.&nbsp;Such&nbsp;tendencies&nbsp;have&nbsp;raised&nbsp;concerns&nbsp;among&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;international&nbsp;partners&nbsp;and&nbsp;work&nbsp;against&nbsp;the&nbsp;building&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;trust&nbsp;needed&nbsp;for&nbsp;long&nbsp;term,&nbsp;sustainable&nbsp;collaborations.&nbsp;Whether&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;are&nbsp;likely&nbsp;to&nbsp;push&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;direction&nbsp;of&nbsp;greater&nbsp;techno-nationalism&nbsp;and/or&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;nationalism,&nbsp;remains&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;seen.&nbsp;In&nbsp;a&nbsp;world&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;globalization&nbsp;of&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation,&nbsp;a&nbsp;nationalistic&nbsp;turn&nbsp;in&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;policy&nbsp;deriving&nbsp;from&nbsp;reforms,&nbsp;seemingly&nbsp;would&nbsp;be&nbsp;ill-advised;&nbsp;it&nbsp;remains&nbsp;to&nbsp;seen,&nbsp;however,&nbsp;whether&nbsp;the&nbsp;broader&nbsp;political&nbsp;environment&nbsp;will&nbsp;push&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;program&nbsp;in&nbsp;that&nbsp;direction.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> In&nbsp;spite&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;variety&nbsp;of&nbsp;farsighted&nbsp;policies&nbsp;to&nbsp;exploit&nbsp;opportunities&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;international&nbsp;environment&nbsp;for&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;and&nbsp;technological&nbsp;progress,&nbsp;China&nbsp;is&nbsp;still&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;early&nbsp;stages&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;genuine&nbsp;internationalization&nbsp;of&nbsp;its&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;systems.&nbsp;Increasing&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;expenditures&nbsp;to&nbsp;world&nbsp;leading&nbsp;levels&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;enough&nbsp;if&nbsp;China&nbsp;is&nbsp;to&nbsp;become&nbsp;a&nbsp;global&nbsp;leader&nbsp;in&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;and,&nbsp;thus,&nbsp;a&nbsp;magnet&nbsp;for&nbsp;talent&nbsp;and&nbsp;investment&nbsp;in&nbsp;leading&nbsp;areas&nbsp;of&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology.&nbsp;In&nbsp;a&nbsp;world&nbsp;of&nbsp;globalized&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation,&nbsp;a&nbsp;key&nbsp;question&nbsp;that&nbsp;should&nbsp;be&nbsp;near&nbsp;the&nbsp;center&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;agenda&nbsp;is&nbsp;whether&nbsp;the&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;will&nbsp;make&nbsp;accomplished&nbsp;scientists&nbsp;and&nbsp;engineers&nbsp;from&nbsp;other&nbsp;countries&nbsp;feel&nbsp;comfortable&nbsp;in&nbsp;making&nbsp;careers&nbsp;in&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;institutions?&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">Conclusion&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">The&nbsp;various&nbsp;reform&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;discussed&nbsp;above&nbsp;have&nbsp;important&nbsp;implications&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;emergence&nbsp;of&nbsp;China&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;&ldquo;superpower.&rdquo;&nbsp;On&nbsp;one&nbsp;hand,&nbsp;one&nbsp;could&nbsp;argue&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;changes&nbsp;introduced&nbsp;during&nbsp;the&nbsp;past&nbsp;year&nbsp;will&nbsp;better&nbsp;align&nbsp;the&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;of&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;national&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;with&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;spending&nbsp;increases&nbsp;and,&nbsp;thus,&nbsp;ensure&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;funding&nbsp;that&nbsp;is&nbsp;being&nbsp;pumped&nbsp;into&nbsp;research&nbsp;will&nbsp;better&nbsp;serve&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;aspirations&nbsp;for&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;distinction&nbsp;and&nbsp;technological&nbsp;leadership.&nbsp;But&nbsp;these&nbsp;reform&nbsp;activities&nbsp;also&nbsp;introduce&nbsp;major&nbsp;uncertainties&nbsp;into&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;environment,&nbsp;uncertainties&nbsp;that&nbsp;are&nbsp;also&nbsp;exacerbated&nbsp;by&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;anti-corruption&nbsp;drive&nbsp;which&nbsp;affects&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology-related&nbsp;organizations&nbsp;as&nbsp;well&nbsp;as&nbsp;many&nbsp;other&nbsp;sectors&nbsp;of&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;society.&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;scientists&nbsp;and&nbsp;engineers&nbsp;are&nbsp;therefore&nbsp;facing&nbsp;an&nbsp;environment&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;by&nbsp;significant&nbsp;additional&nbsp;administrative&nbsp;unpredictability&nbsp;which&nbsp;affects&nbsp;R&amp;D&nbsp;routines,&nbsp;professional&nbsp;incentives&nbsp;and&nbsp;career&nbsp;paths,&nbsp;and&nbsp;adds&nbsp;considerable&nbsp;uncertainty&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;broader&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;policy&nbsp;environment.&nbsp;It&nbsp;remains&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;seen&nbsp;whether&nbsp;organizational&nbsp;and&nbsp;administrative&nbsp;uncertainties&nbsp;hold&nbsp;back&nbsp;progress,&nbsp;or&nbsp;whether&nbsp;good&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;development&nbsp;can&nbsp;still&nbsp;occur&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;face&nbsp;of&nbsp;widespread&nbsp;organizational&nbsp;churn?&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> While&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;reform&nbsp;leaders&nbsp;seem&nbsp;to&nbsp;recognize&nbsp;the&nbsp;disruptive&nbsp;potential&nbsp;of&nbsp;change,&nbsp;and&nbsp;have&nbsp;therefore&nbsp;called&nbsp;for&nbsp;more&nbsp;gradual,&nbsp;multi-year&nbsp;implementation&nbsp;of&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;reforms,&nbsp;the&nbsp;fact&nbsp;remains&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;longer-term&nbsp;consequences&nbsp;of&nbsp;administrative&nbsp;churn&nbsp;are&nbsp;largely&nbsp;unknown.&nbsp;For&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;as&nbsp;noted&nbsp;above,&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;current&nbsp;funding&nbsp;system&nbsp;has&nbsp;fostered&nbsp;a&nbsp;hyper-competitive&nbsp;search&nbsp;for&nbsp;research&nbsp;grants&nbsp;which&nbsp;has&nbsp;often&nbsp;resulted&nbsp;in&nbsp;support&nbsp;of&nbsp;projects&nbsp;with&nbsp;short&nbsp;time&nbsp;horizons,&nbsp;and&nbsp;to&nbsp;wasteful&nbsp;duplication&nbsp;of&nbsp;expenditures&nbsp;in&nbsp;support&nbsp;of&nbsp;&ldquo;hot&rdquo;&nbsp;topics.&nbsp;While&nbsp;the&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;are&nbsp;intended&nbsp;to&nbsp;overcome&nbsp;such&nbsp;outcomes,&nbsp;one&nbsp;can&nbsp;well&nbsp;imagine&nbsp;that&nbsp;churn-induced&nbsp;uncertainty&nbsp;would&nbsp;nevertheless&nbsp;increase&nbsp;incentives&nbsp;for&nbsp;short-term&nbsp;opportunistic&nbsp;behavior&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;research&nbsp;community&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;expense&nbsp;of&nbsp;well&nbsp;conceived&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;programs&nbsp;requiring&nbsp;sustained&nbsp;efforts&nbsp;over&nbsp;the&nbsp;longer-term.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;current&nbsp;reform&nbsp;initiatives&nbsp;suggest&nbsp;that&nbsp;China&nbsp;is&nbsp;struggling&nbsp;with&nbsp;a&nbsp;legacy&nbsp;of&nbsp;policies&nbsp;and&nbsp;institutions&nbsp;that&nbsp;have&nbsp;led&nbsp;to&nbsp;a&nbsp;number&nbsp;of&nbsp;successes&nbsp;but&nbsp;which&nbsp;now&nbsp;impede&nbsp;movement&nbsp;toward&nbsp;the&nbsp;type&nbsp;of&nbsp;innovative&nbsp;society&nbsp;China&nbsp;hopes&nbsp;to&nbsp;create&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century.&nbsp;As&nbsp;we&nbsp;have&nbsp;seen,&nbsp;defining&nbsp;the&nbsp;proper&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;nation&rsquo;s&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;systems&nbsp;continues&nbsp;to&nbsp;be&nbsp;a&nbsp;key&nbsp;challenge.&nbsp;As&nbsp;noted,&nbsp;China&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;alone&nbsp;in&nbsp;confronting&nbsp;this&nbsp;challenge,&nbsp;and&nbsp;China&rsquo;s&nbsp;approach&nbsp;to&nbsp;confronting&nbsp;it&nbsp;will&nbsp;certainly&nbsp;be&nbsp;of&nbsp;interest&nbsp;to&nbsp;other&nbsp;countries.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> That&nbsp;said,&nbsp;a&nbsp;preliminary&nbsp;assessment&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;direction&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;would&nbsp;suggest&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;solution&nbsp;to&nbsp;this&nbsp;challenge&nbsp;is&nbsp;not&nbsp;quite&nbsp;yet&nbsp;in&nbsp;hand.&nbsp;In&nbsp;large&nbsp;measure,&nbsp;this&nbsp;is&nbsp;because&nbsp;changes&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;system&nbsp;are&nbsp;ultimately&nbsp;wrapped&nbsp;up&nbsp;with&nbsp;larger,&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;questions&nbsp;of&nbsp;economic&nbsp;and&nbsp;political&nbsp;reform.&nbsp;An&nbsp;especially&nbsp;apt&nbsp;illustration&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;importance&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;larger&nbsp;questions&nbsp;is&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;successful&nbsp;national&nbsp;retirement&nbsp;system.&nbsp;A&nbsp;critical&nbsp;problem&nbsp;limiting&nbsp;the&nbsp;effectiveness&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system,&nbsp;for&nbsp;instance,&nbsp;has&nbsp;been&nbsp;the&nbsp;low&nbsp;levels&nbsp;of&nbsp;mobility&nbsp;of&nbsp;technical&nbsp;personnel&nbsp;moving&nbsp;among&nbsp;research&nbsp;institutes,&nbsp;universities&nbsp;and&nbsp;industry,&nbsp;a&nbsp;problem&nbsp;deeply&nbsp;rooted&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;absence&nbsp;of&nbsp;a&nbsp;system&nbsp;which&nbsp;would&nbsp;allow&nbsp;retirement&nbsp;benefits&nbsp;to&nbsp;move&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;individual.&nbsp;Recent&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;retirement&nbsp;system&nbsp;to&nbsp;facilitate&nbsp;the&nbsp;portability&nbsp;of&nbsp;benefits,&nbsp;though&nbsp;not&nbsp;part&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;re-forms,&nbsp;may&nbsp;have&nbsp;more&nbsp;benefits&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;national&nbsp;innovation&nbsp;system&nbsp;than&nbsp;some&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;themselves!&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> The&nbsp;emphasis&nbsp;placed&nbsp;on&nbsp;the&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;market&nbsp;forces&nbsp;since&nbsp;the&nbsp;convening&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;18th&nbsp;Party&nbsp;Congress&nbsp;suggests&nbsp;that&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;leadership&nbsp;is&nbsp;serious&nbsp;in&nbsp;reducing&nbsp;many&nbsp;aspects&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;state&rsquo;s&nbsp;role&nbsp;in&nbsp;managing&nbsp;or&nbsp;administering&nbsp;the&nbsp;economy,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;S&amp;T&nbsp;reform&nbsp;policy&nbsp;initiatives&nbsp;of&nbsp;2014,&nbsp;reflect&nbsp;this&nbsp;preference.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;as&nbsp;the&nbsp;experiences&nbsp;in&nbsp;other&nbsp;countries&nbsp;illustrate,&nbsp;the&nbsp;role&nbsp;of&nbsp;government&nbsp;is&nbsp;often&nbsp;critical&nbsp;for&nbsp;maintaining&nbsp;and&nbsp;advancing&nbsp;a&nbsp;nation&rsquo;s&nbsp;capabilities&nbsp;for&nbsp;research&nbsp;excellence&nbsp;and&nbsp;technological&nbsp;innovation,&nbsp;and&nbsp;can&nbsp;therefore&nbsp;elicit&nbsp;strong&nbsp;action&nbsp;from&nbsp;political&nbsp;leaders,&nbsp;as&nbsp;we&nbsp;have&nbsp;seen&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;current&nbsp;Chinese&nbsp;government.&nbsp;The&nbsp;performance&nbsp;of&nbsp;an&nbsp;effective&nbsp;government&nbsp;role,&nbsp;however,&nbsp;requires&nbsp;talented&nbsp;and&nbsp;farsighted&nbsp;individuals&nbsp;of&nbsp;integrity&nbsp;who&nbsp;are&nbsp;able&nbsp;to&nbsp;rise&nbsp;above&nbsp;parochial&nbsp;interests&nbsp;to&nbsp;help&nbsp;formulate&nbsp;and&nbsp;guide&nbsp;a&nbsp;broader&nbsp;national&nbsp;strategy.&nbsp;The&nbsp;challenges&nbsp;of&nbsp;this&nbsp;role&nbsp;have&nbsp;only&nbsp;become&nbsp;more&nbsp;difficult&nbsp;in&nbsp;light&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;socio-technical&nbsp;complexities&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;early&nbsp;21st&nbsp;century.&nbsp;Science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;reforms&nbsp;in&nbsp;China&nbsp;are&nbsp;occurring&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;face&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;complexities,&nbsp;but&nbsp;also&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;face&nbsp;of&nbsp;deep&nbsp;and&nbsp;widespread&nbsp;anti-corruption&nbsp;initiatives&nbsp;from&nbsp;which&nbsp;science&nbsp;and&nbsp;technology&nbsp;are&nbsp;not&nbsp;immune.&nbsp;Such&nbsp;circumstances&nbsp;again&nbsp;point&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;difficulties&nbsp;of&nbsp;defining&nbsp;a&nbsp;proper&nbsp;role&nbsp;for&nbsp;government&nbsp;at&nbsp;this&nbsp;point&nbsp;in&nbsp;time&nbsp;and,&nbsp;thus,&nbsp;predicting&nbsp;the&nbsp;likely&nbsp;success&nbsp;or&nbsp;failure&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;reform&nbsp;initiatives.&nbsp;</p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">BIBLIOGRAPHY&nbsp;(略)</span></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: break-all; word-wrap: break-word;"> <span style="font-size: 1em;">[责任编辑 胡志强&nbsp;李斌]</span></p> <div> &nbsp;</div> </div> <p> &nbsp;</p>
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  • 黄昆半导体物理学术谱系初探
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    页码: 77-83
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    页码: 71-76
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    页码: 65-70
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