Research Institutes’ IP Protection
On April 22, 2004, OCED officials and member representatives gathered together with IP policy experts at a high level forum on research institutes’ intellectual property strategy, co-sponsored by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology and OECD. Participants discussed research institutes’ IP strategies, and IP exchange and sharing management. Mr. LI Xueyong, Vice Minister of Science and Technology said at the meeting that the Ministry of Science and Technology has listed “patent strategy” a priority in both today’s and future S&T activities. The Ministry will strive to establish an IP guidance framework for innovative S&T activities, together with other efforts, including working out policies to strengthen the IP management in S&T programs, encouraging innovation entities to strengthen their IP capacity building, conducting patent trends analysis for major S&T fields, supporting patent information processing and applications, supporting the development of IP services, and intensifying the study of new IP issues raised by new technologies.
According to a keynote speech by Mr. ZHANG Jing’an, Director of the Department of Policies, Laws and System Reform, a part of the Ministry of Science and Technology, China has, through its many-decade efforts, established a well-covered research system, made up of more than 4,000 independent R&D institutes, over 3,000 campus research institutes, 1,000 and odd industrial institutes for technical development, more than 1,000 productivity promotion centers, and exceeding 400 S&T incubators which have produced 23,000 enterprises.
China’s S&T Week
China’s S&T Week-2004 lifted up its curtain in May 2004. Under an annual theme “S&T contribution to the full-fledged construction of a well-to-do society, with human resources as the basis of everything”, the S&T week focuses on three major objectives: 1) giving weighted attention to the concept of scientific development. The S&T week, making itself in line with actual public needs and hot issues, works to enhance the public awareness of the scientific development concept, and of the latest cutting edge and hot issues concerning biotechnology and life science. The event makes public health issues a major concern involving the all-round development of human society, advocating for healthy and civilized production modes and living styles. 2) Strengthening S&T’s role in serving farmers. The S&T week gives more attention to farmers, mobilizing S&T personnel to go to the countryside and grassroots units. S&T personnel are encouraged, in the forms of “popular science train”, “popular science van” and “popular science volunteers”, to promote farmers’ technical skill training, green efficient farming and healthy living styles. 3) Paying due attention to improving teenagers’ scientific literacy, through organizing assorted popular science activities.
China Improves Its Space Laws
China is establishing and improving its space laws and regulations, said an official of China National Space Administration at an international space laws forum.!!!
According to a briefing, China became a formal member of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Use of the Outer Space (COPUOS) in 1980, and ratified UN’s outer space treaty, obligation convention, registration convention and rescue convention in 1983 and 1988 respectively. While fulfilling its obligations in international conventions and treaties, China has become an active part of space legislation activities working together with other countries, and has intensified its domestic efforts in the same field.
Up to date, China has promulgated a number of space related laws and regulations, covering space objects registration, civil space research project management, civil space launch licensing, and space industry policies. China is currently working on laws and regulations on launch damage compensations for foreign customers, space commercialization management, and international space cooperation and coordination.
China National Space Administration official believe that along with the establishment and constant improvement of its space laws and regulations, China’s space industry will be moving in the direction of legitimization and systemization. As a government agency in charge of nation’s space activities, the China National Space Administration will strengthen its macro governance and policy guidance role in the nation’s space activities, accelerating the construction of related legal environment, and promoting China’s space industry to develop better and faster.
Satellite Constellation for Disasters Monitoring
In the coming few years, China will create an environment and disaster monitoring satellite constellation by deploying a number of optic and synthetic aperture mini-satellites in space, said China National Space Administrator Mr. LUAN Enjie, at a high level forum on scientific management of disasters sponsored by UN ESCAP on April 27,2004. The satellite constellation will become the world first space-earth based integrated disasters management system, taking advantage of both ground disaster information system and space resources.
According to Mr. LUAN, the satellite constellation will be constructed in two phases. Phase I project is expected to be completed within 2005-2006, during which 2 optic mini-satellites and 1 synthetic aperture mini-satellite will be deployed. The 2+1 deployment pattern will produce a 48-hour satellite return visit capacity to meet partial disasters alleviation needs. Phase II project is scheduled to become operational in 2010. By that time the 4+4 deployment pattern (4 optic mini-satellites and 4 synthetic aperture mini-satellites) will make a 12-hour return visit possible.
The three satellites designed for Phase I project are currently under development. They will be blast off, one after the other, operating in an orbit around the sun 500-700 km away from the earth. Equipped with sophisticated cameras and instruments, the satellites will reach a ground resolution up to 30m.
While relying on its own expertise and resources to complete the phase I project, China hopes that it will work on the phase II project through international cooperation, and share constellation resources and data with its international partners.
China’s Reusable Carriers in 2020
China sets up its near term space carrier development targets as enhancing the overall level and capacity of Chinese made carrier rockets, widening applications of the space transport system, and laying a solid foundation for establishing an integrated space transport system. Mr. LU Yu, Deputy Director of the China Institute of Carrier Rocket unveiled the above mentioned China’s space carrier technology development ‘road-map’ at a recently held international space law forum. China’s long term objectives for the same field include establishing a fully functioned space transport system, and developing a two-phase reusable carrier for the earth-space round-trip transport system to meet preliminary market needs. China plans to blast off the first generation of reusable carriers around 2020. Meanwhile, Chinese researchers will work on key technologies for single-phase carriers, with priorities on developing an advanced propelling system made of light materials. China will eventually come up with single-phase reusable carriers with fast, mobile, economic and reliable features.
To realize the near-term targets, China is accelerating the development of the new generation of carrier rockets. New rockets will be designed under the theme lines of “common applications, serialization and integration”, and featured with the non-toxicant and pollution free propellant. New rockets will make a family scaling down from 5m to 3.35m, and further down to 2.25m, with a low-orbit carrying capacity for 1.5-25 tons, and a GTO capacity of 1.5-14 tons. The new rockets’ technical capacity will basically meet domestic and international launching needs in the next two to three decades. In addition, China’s new rockets will be designed with a sustainable development capacity, in line with the future reusable space transport system.
According to Mr. LU, before turning for the new generation of rockets, China will continue to improve its existing carrier rockets, making them more reliable and flexible for diversified launching needs in the near future. At the same time, China will develop air-born carrier rockets to meet mini-satellites’ needs for mobile, flexible and fast launch.
Life Starter Discovered in Crucian Carp
Dr. GUI Jianfang, Head of the Institute of Aquatic Organism, a subsidiary of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and her doctoral students discovered that silver crucian carp has target molecules to start a life. The finding was published in the recent issue of the Journal of Developmental Biology.
Dr. GUI and her collaborators found that silver crucian carp is able to realize the development regeneration simply based on female nuclei. As soon as the life process starts, sperms get into eggs and make the stimulation, but not being a part of the development. Eggs’ genetic matters can independently direct the embryo to reach a full-course development. With the help of advanced techniques, incmuding protein purification, molecule cloning, and bioinformatic analysis of biochemical properties, expression specificity and immune fluorescent positioning, researchers have identified a new matter named C-agglutinin, a new protein participant in eggs’ role-shifting process that was unknown before. The new protein is a combination of calcium ions and D-mannose.
Having physically observed silver carp eggs’ role-shifting and associated releases in insemination, researchers believe that C-agglutinin is a new element in egg cell cortex, playing a phosphate decoration role after insemination. The phosphate decoration, therefore, may possibly be a key molecular switch in earlier embryonic development.
Nanotech for Efficient Fuel
Based on its 15-year long efforts, the Beijing Yuantong Co. Ltd. recently unveiled its ESP nanometer oil burning technique in Beijing. The new technique has been repeatedly proved technically valid by the Institute of Fluid Dynamics, a part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Nuclear Physics’ Neutron Lab under the Chinese Academy of Nuclear Sciences, and the US National Institute of Standard and Technology. The fuel oil processed by the ESP system becomes a nano-fuel oil, characterizing a fuller combustion and greatly improved energy efficiency.
According to a briefing, the ESP nanotechnique has obtained patent grants in China and 20 other countries. The Beijing Municipal Science Committee has recently approved the new technique to be demonstrated in several hundred taxi cars in Beijing. The new technique can improve tail gas purification by 50%-90%, save fuel 20%-30%, and increase power 10%-30%. In addition, it works better in reducing engine noises, having a cleaner combustion chamber, and prolonging engine’s life. The new system is currently sold at RMB 580 a piece, and is available in 20 and more auto garages in Beijing.
China’s High Resolution TV Chip
Zhongshi 1, China’s first proprietary chip for high resolution digital TV ground mobile transmitting and receiving system called success, at a technical verification meeting and associated demonstration event held recently at Fudan University. Experts who scrutinized the chip thought highly of the result. The verification panel concludes that the proprietary chip has found successful applications in a number of domestic TV manufacturers, with its performance indicators up to the system requirements, and its overall level reaching an internationally advanced level.
Design with a million-line capacity under a multi-clock set, “Zhongshi I” chip, using 0,18-micron technique, has become an international lead in terms of its simulation, design, verification, layout and wiring, testing and sealing.
Progress in SARS Mutation Study
A study team, headed by Mr. WANG Fusheng, Deputy Director of the Institute of Transmitted Diseases, a subsidiary of No. 302 Military Hospital, has for the first time in the world described the composition of quasi SARS virus strains and associated gene mutation paths. The findings have been respectively published in the recent issues of the New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of Newly Discovered Transmitted Diseases.
The study team analyzed, using cloning and bioinformatic techniques, the SARS viruses separated from the first group of SARS patients taken by the Hospital last year. Researchers have spotted more than 110 mutation points over the viruses’ full-length S-gene, of which 9 are important first discoveries in the world. Researchers have for the first instance discovered the co-existence of different SARS virus strains, unveiling quasi SARS strains’ features at the genetic level. These findings show that, SARS viruses have a lower mutation frequency as compared with hepatitis B or AIDS viruses, which gives possible explanations to the fact that SARS viruses only launch acute attacks.
Researchers said these findings will help clinic doctors to understand SARS viruses’ toxicity in treating the diseases. It also makes an important guidance for developing SARS vaccines.
China’s Largest Online Science Database
Thanks to 20-year long construction efforts, the CAS Computer Network Information Center, the largest of its kind in the nation, was recently inaugurated for its formal operation. Since China S&T Network opened the nation’s first Internet website in 1994, Science Database has, via China S&T Network, opened for public data search and consultation. Science Database has created more than 40 websites connecting to 200 and odd special databases, providing its scientific data service for research activities, national decision making process and public search through China S&T Network’s online platform.
CAS formally made the proposal to establish a “science database and associated information system” in 1982, in an attempt to integrate, consolidate and share, using advanced computer, database and networking technologies, the massive scientific data cumulated in the past. The project began its construction in 1986 with the involvement of 45 CAS institutes. As of the end of October 2003, the database has recorded an 820 billion-byte data volume, of which online data volume reached 430 billion bytes.
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