The scientific research system of China consists of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), institutions of higher learning, industrial departments, national defense departments, and local scientific research institutions, as well as the rational division of responsibilities and coordination among them. There are also over 160 national scientific and technological academic organizations under the jurisdiction of the China Association of Science and Technology, with branches in large and medium-sized cities, which are also an important force in scientific and technological research.
The Chinese Academy of Sciences is the country's highest academic institution and comprehensive research and development center in natural sciences, technological sciences and high-tech innovation. Within the Academy are five academic divisions, 108 scientific research institutes, over 200 science and technology enterprises, and more than 20 supporting units including one university, one postgraduate school and five documentation and information centers. More than 100 research agencies attached to CAS are located throughout the country. During the next decade, the CAS plans to establish some 80 distinctive research institutes with vast creative ability in science and technology, and immense ability of sustainable development, and about 30 of them will be recognized worldwide as famous high-level research organs.
The title of academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is the highest academic title of science and technology established by the state, and a tenured position. The CAS has some 651 academicians, including 159 senior academicians and 44 women academicians. One of them, Dr. Li Fanghua, a pioneer in the field of electron diffraction structure analysis of single crystals in China and a key figure in the development of the country's high-resolution electron microscopy, in January 2003 was one of five women in the world to receive the $20,000 L'Oreal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science in recognition of her contribution to research in material science (physics and chemistry), particularly her path-breaking work in the field of the electron microscopy of crystals. The award was presented in ceremonies in Paris.
The Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), founded in 1994 in Beijing, is the most respected and senior academic advisory institution in China's engineering community. It conducts strategic research on the state's important engineering issues, provides consultancy on policymaking, and commits itself to propel the development of the engineering cause. The CAE currently has 611 academicians and will select some 70 new academicians in 2003.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences covers research bodies in China consisting of the local academies of social sciences, institutions of higher learning, affiliated research units of government departments, and research units in the armed forces. Currently there are some 100,000 persons engaged in such studies. Established in 1977, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences is the highest academic institution for social sciences in China. The academy conducts creative theoretical exploration and policy study, and shoulders the mission of improving the level of the humanities and social sciences of China. The Academy now has 31 research institutes and 45 research centers. It employs more than 3,200 professional social science researchers, of whom 1,676 are senior researchers.
Research work in institutions of higher learning forms an important part of many research fields, especially of the studies of the basic theories of the natural sciences and humanities. In the past few years, rapid progress has also been made in studies on applied basic theories at institutions of higher learning. In their cooperation with other research institutions and industrial departments, the scientific and technological personnel of these institutions have invented a unique mode of development that starts from schools to scientific research and further to production. That is, use theories to solve problems in production first, return to the market to produce competitive products, so as to transform knowledge into an actual productivity. As this has proved to be successful, institutions of higher learning have now become important partners for small and medium-sized enterprises striving to develop scientific and technological products.
The State Natural Science Foundation Committee was established in February 1986, with the approval of the State Council. Its task is to render assistance to basic research projects and some applied research projects with funds allocated from the state treasury, in line with the state's guiding principles for the development of science and technology. In the past decade and more, the Committee has subsidized more than 52,000 research projects with 6.6 billion yuan, providing steady support to some 60,000 scientific and technological personnel in basic research work.
