china challenging u.s. research dominance: report
china’s research economy has seen a dramatic increase in quality and its research is increasingly valued beyond its borders, according to a report released by analytics and intelligence service companyon october 31. (photo: clarivate)
by staff reporters
china’s research economy has seen a dramatic increase in quality and its research is increasingly valued beyond its borders, according to a report released by analytics and intelligence service company on october 31.
the report from the institute for scientific information (isi)at clarivatesays china is diversifying beyond its traditional strengths into technology and physical sciences to focus on new areas such as biomolecular science.
according to the report, china is also accelerating its published research output, which increased five-fold between 2009 and 2021, well outpacing the u.s. and e.u. analysis suggests this trajectory is likely to continue.
china’s remarkable research productivity is matched by its increasing research excellence. the report states that china’s proportion of published research with citation impact above the global average now matches that of the u.s. and germany. in addition, china’s substantial volume of exceptional research in the form of highly cited papers exceeds 1,000 per year, indicating that the global scientific community is taking note of what china is doing and is seeking to collaborate with the researchers delivering these papers.
jonathan adams, chief scientist at the isi, said: “china continues its rise as a global science and technology power and our report findings show that the notion that its research output is lagging in quality can be effectively dispelled. while the u.s. remains a key international research partner, china is fostering closer collaboration with emerging research economies in the middle east as well as many others. this underlines the importance of research investment as an aid to cultural diplomacy.”
the report says that china exceededthe published research output of the u.s. in plant and animal sciences, agricultural sciences and pharmacology. between 2017 and 2021, over 40 percent of all articles and reviews published in areas such as automation control, telecommunications and nanotechnologywere from china.
