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No.193

　

CHINA  SCIENCE  AND  TECHNOLOGY
NEWSLETTER
The Ministry of Science and Technology
People's Republic of China
 



N0.193 July 20,1999
　
IN THIS ISSUE
  • China's Huge Investment in S&T Development
  • CAS Scholarship for 20 Universities
  • Peking University Made Breakthroughs in Nanometer Studies
  • China-Japan Afforestation for Upper Yangtze River
  • Bush Co. and Xinhua Finance Co. Serve for China High Tech
  • Huawei's Dual Frequency Mini Cellular Base

    SPECIAL    ISSUES

China's Huge Investment in S&T Development

      Chinese Government has decided to invest RMB 5 billion in establishing a new national S&T system in the period starting from 1998 to the end of 2000. The new system will constitute a strong technical support for the sustainable development to be realized in the 21st century and for a higher and brighter peak of China's S&T development.

      A senior official of Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology expressed that China wanted to ensure itself to be among the top ten in the world in terms of national S&T competitiveness through implementing national programs on knowledge innovations.

      Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has defined its priority research fields including high and new technologies for agriculture, population and health, information science and technology, energy, new materials and advanced manufacturing techniques and basic and major cross-section disciplines. CAS, the top academic body on scientific research in the country, is planning to restructure 100 national research institutes of internationally advanced level and create 20 national comprehensive inter-disciplinary and inter-regional research bases before 2005.

      Taking into account the strategic needs and world S&T development trend, CAS has selected some new orientations for strategic studies while paying attention to its own strong aspects. Up to date, it has screened out a number of major research topics including functional genome of major agricultural plants, development and utilization of major biological resources, information process of agricultural technology, biological chips, new high molecule materials, nanometer, superconductivity and its applications and global changes and environmental variations.

      CAS's officials said while organizing major projects, main attention has been paid to those possibly producing breakthroughs in medium or long term such as wide band network telephone system of national importance to economic and high tech development, industrial robots and robots serving for special purposes, network security and information countermeasure techniques and exploration of major mineral resources.
      　

    CAS Scholarship for 20 Universities


      Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has decided to offer its scholarship to selected higher learning institutions in the country starting from 1999. Senior officials from Dept. of Learners, Chinese Ministry of Education, Administrative Office of Academic Record Committee and State Council, and presidents of the said higher learning institutions and CAS's authorities concerned were present at the news briefings held on the matter recently.

      As revealed by Bai Chunli, Vice-president of CAS, the selected higher learning institutions are Peking University, Tsinghua University, Chinese University of Science and Technology, Nanjing University, Fudan University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Zhejiang University, Harbin Industrial Polytechnics, Nankai University, Northeast University, Wuhan University, Huazhong Polytechnics, China University of Geography, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Sichuan University, Lanzhou University and Shandong University. Each year will see 20 students be granted with CAS scholarship for each selected university. 10 will be undergraduate students with the amount of RMB 1000 for each, 5 master students with the amount of 2000 and 5 doctorate students at RMB 2000 each.

      The scholarship is the first of its kind in the country offered by a national non-manufacturing institution for universities. Bai Chunli said at the news briefing that CAS hoped to improve its collaboration with universities and strengthen all-round information exchanges and sharing through granting the scholarship for them. It also advocates for intensifying the exchange flow of teachers and scientific research personnel between CAS and the universities, joint research, joint labs, joint nurturing graduate students, joint running for workshops and joint efforts for knowledge dissemination.
      　

    RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Peking University Made Breakthroughs
in Nanometer Studies　

      Peking University has recently applauded for its major breakthroughs in manometer studies. The study group, headed by Prof. Xue Zengquan with Dept. of Electronics, has for the first time in the world erected single-walled manometer carbon tube on a metal surface and assembled the probe of channel scanning microscope, the thinnest one with the best performance in the world.

      Gu Zhennan team of Manometer S&T Research Center of Peking University has prepared many single-walled manometer carbon tubes with length ranging from 15 to 20 nanometers and diameters 1.1 to 1.4 nanometers. On the basis, Xue Zengquan team erected the tubes on the surfaces of gold, platinum and tungsten respectively with vacuum processing techniques and worked out the finest probes in the world through which beautiful atom formic image of pyrolytic graphite was obtained. By using single-walled tubes as electron sources of electronic microscope, the atomic form images that could not be seen before were pictured. Meanwhile, the photoelectric and mechanical properties of single-walled manometer tubes have been determined.

      Experts believed that the result turned out by Xue Zengquan team was of internationally advanced level and made China on the same starting line with other advanced countries in the competition of manometer technology. The photoelectric properties they measured have laid fine foundation for further studies of amplifiers, oscillators and switches of manometer based electronic components and created conditions for manometer circuit assembling.
      　

    Panda Earlier Embryo Cloned


      Not long ago, Chinese scientists have successfully cloned panda embryo in earlier stages, which marked a solid step in the final direction of panda cloning.

      It is reported that the study group headed by Chen Dayuan, a research fellow of Zoology Institute of Chinese Academy of Sciences, cultivated earlier panda embryo through transplanting panda body cells into denucleated rabbit egg cells. The said phase research result of Chinese scientists was published recently in China Science.

      As early as March 1997, Chen Dayuan put forward the initiative of panda cloning and was soon greeted with CAS's support. The initiative was further supported by Ministry of Science and Technology as a special project sometime later.

      Experts believe that the successful cloning of panda embryo in earlier stages implies the solution to the first key issue in panda cloning. In other words, it suggests that panda body cells may split in denucleated egg cells of other animals and acquire full characteristics in its earlier embryo. It also indicates that it is feasible to rescue endangered animals through cloning techniques.

      It is reported that Chen Dayuan and his team will further their studies on the second key issue: bedding of embryos.
       

     TechBush Co. and Xinhua Finance Co.
    Serve for China High


      The domestically renowned Xinhua Financial Information Consultation Co. Ltd. and US Bush Co. announced recently in Beijing that they would establish a new joint consultation service aiming at raising money for innovative S&T enterprises in the country. The new joint venture will be headquartered in Beijing with an equal equity share for both sides. Its major potential clients are Chinese companies and enterprises who are of bright perspectives but in need of more investment for future operation and enhancing their strength. These clients will have to go through screening process before being introduced to overseas institutional or individual investors. The investors will provide the companies with assistance either through direct investment or through purchasing the companies’ original stocks. The new venture will focus on high tech and emerging small and medium enterprises with great developing potentials supported by Chinese government.　

      It is reported that the capital amount promised by overseas institutional and individual investors for Chinese enterprises in the coming three-year period has reached as high as USD 3 billion.
       

    INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

      China-Japan Afforestation for Upper Yangtze River

      On June 29, 1999, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Japanese Global Greening Center and Chongqing Municipal Government have formally signed the agreement on afforestation over the upper reaches of Yangtze River. Three parties decided to plant trees over the coastal areas of Yangtze River with Chongqing as the center.　

      The afforestation initiative between China and Japan is scheduled to conduct air-born seeding over Wushan mountain and other areas in addition to growing cash forests and some timbers so as to make the total afforestation reaching 1 million trees. Experts from CAS will provide guidance on soil erosion prevention and soil improvement, regional planning, introduction of fine species and rational fertilizer applications for growing trees in the said region. Japanese side will provide technical and fund support to the efforts. In addition, an afforestation team will be dispatched from Japan to reinforce the activity. Three parties have agreed to break ground for the initiative in Jiangjin City starting from July 1999 and will be involved in the construction of Yangtze River Ecological Construction Demonstration Base in the same city.

      The said cooperation of China and Japan will play an active role in the implementation of greening the upper reaches of Yangtze River, increasing its forest coverage, improving the ecological environment and promoting economic development in the region. It is also of great importance to enhancing S&T, economic and cultural exchanges between two countries and deepening the understanding and friendship of two peoples.


    　

    NEWS BRIEFS

    China Unicom Authorized for CDMA in China

      Mr. Wang Jianyu, Executive Vice President of China Unicom, declared recently that by the end of 2000 China Unicom would establish a CDMA network of 10 million lines covering 250 cities above the county level in China and by 2003 its CDMA volume would be expanded to 40 million lines with 28 million subscribers.

      Mr. Wang also disclosed that China Unicom has been authorized to construct and operate a unified CDMA network and National Paging Network has been incorporated into China Unicom. China Unicom will soon open its own international in and out terminals for international telecommunication business. He expressed that in building a high quality CDMA network, Unicom will take full advantage of its existing telecommunication resources and infrastructures such as GSM network, long distance telephone network and date telecommunication network so as to reduce the operational costs. Meanwhile, it will add more mobile telecommunication functions and new services to further improve its service. He pointed out that China Unicom has paid great attention to the transition of CDMA to the third-generation mobile telecommunication system.

      It is reported that up to date China Unicom's GSM network has covered 119 cities in the country with a total volume of 4 million lines and 2 million subscribers. China Unicom's long-distance transmission network has covered major cities in the east of China and key cities in the middle section with its optical fiber cable and microwave transmission capacity of over 10,000 km. Unicom has also opened its IP network in 12 major cities in the country, providing IP telephone services.
       

    Huawei's Dual Frequency Mini Cellular Base

      　
      BTS22c 900/180M, a duel frequency mini cellular base developed by Shenzhen Huawei Technology Co. Ltd. made its debut before clients both at home and abroad at the end of May, 1999, in Xi'an. This demonstrated the company's capability of manufacturing series products of compatible cellular bases from small to large and from outdoor to indoor along with the extensive applications of GSM in the country.

      It is briefed that Huawei's new dual frequency cellular base is of the merits of lightweight, small size and simple maintenance. It can be installed both indoors and outdoors. Applied with internationally advanced radio frequency and frequency hopping technologies, individual base is able to support two E1 interfaces either grouped in star or chain forms. With maximum smooth expansion to 6 carrier frequencies, its highly sophisticated integration has made the base more reliable with better performance. Meantime, its compact design and flexible installation possibility have greatly reduced investment cost of network construction and ensured the overall coverage and larger system volume. This will help Huawei to provide better service for its clients through improving the quality of its products. 　
      The World Largest High Grain Magnesium Powder Plant

      In late June, 1999, the world largest high grain magnesium powder plant was put into operation in Beijing Miyun Industrial Development Zone. Co-established by Beijing Jinlihua Magnesium Powder Research Institute and China General Corporation for Traveling Abroad Services, the joint venture is a modern high grain magnesium powder manufacturer with a floor space of 4230 m2 which is able to house 25 full automatic magnesium powder producers. After being put into full operation, the new plant with the designed annual capacity of 20,000 tons of magnesium powder will become the largest of its kind in the world.

      In the early 1990s, Beijing Jinlihua Magnesium Powder Research Institute had developed in-depth processing techniques for ball-shaped magnesium powder, in-depth processing techniques for magnesium-aluminum alloy and full automatic magnesium powder producer of high speed vortex flow, the first of their kinds in the country. It has developed a strong capacity to produce magnesium powder of diversified specification ranging from 10 to 325 grains, magnesium-aluminum alloy powder of 600 grains, nickel powder , rubber powder and high performance fire resistant. The full automatic magnesium powder producer of high-speed vortex flow is of excellent cooling property, low energy consumption and large output of 200-kg ball-shaped magnesium powder per hour per producer with the loss less than 1%. On the basis, the Institute has for the first time in the country developed AZ91D, the most desirable magnesium-aluminum alloy material for lap top computers, super thin TV sets, electronic tools, auto parts, mountain climbing bicycle frames and fitness products with an annual output capacity of 20,000 tons.

      The successful development of the products mentioned above has turned China, a magnesium powder importing country, into an exporting one. In this context, Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology has rated the products in high tech category.
       

            Comments or inquiries on editorial matters or Newsletter content should be directed to:Mr. Dong Jianlong, Department of International Cooperation, MOST 15B, Fuxing Road Beijing 100862, PR China  Tel: (8610)68512650 Fax: (8610) 68512594, or Mr. Wang Jianping, Editor,NEWSLETTER, 15 Fuxing Road Beijing 100038, PR China, Tel:(8610) 68515544 Ext. 2954