Plans for future industries in place
FOUR years ago, Peng Xiaobo, who had been engaged in the research, development and management of spacecraft technology for 25 years, established the Beijing Interstellar Glory Space Technology Co, to pursue his dream of commercial spaceflight.
The startup has successfully launched many sounding rockets. Peng, CEO of the company, believes the value of the aerospace industry has not been fully tapped. “Our goal is to become a global leader in commercial spaceflight,” he said.
Despite the limited scale of the company, its core competitiveness in the specific field has highlighted China’s emerging “industries of the future,” a new buzzword that points out the key direction of China’s most recent round of industrial revolution.
Although there is yet a clear definition, experts believe that industries of the future share the features of boasting leading-edge technologies and the prospect of explosive growth.
China has accelerated the layout of this major cause with provinces and cities such as Beijing, Hebei and Anhui gearing up for developing their “future industries” by making use of local advantages.
Origin Quantum, a 3-year-old startup focusing on quantum computers and related technologies, recently rolled out an operating system called Origin Pilot. The system will effectively improve the overall utilization of quantum chips and shorten the time it takes to put a new quantum computer into operation, experts said.
The company is based in Hefei, capital of east China’s Anhui Province, now a hub for China’s quantum technology. Yunfei Road where the company is located is dubbed
“quantum street” by locals as it has been home to over 20 quantum technology startups.
Some 150 kilometers east of Hefei, 10 5G-driven unmanned mining trucks rumble with full loads of iron ore in a mining field of Masteel (Group) Holding Co, one of China’s largest iron and steel complex in Ma’anshan, Anhui.
“Equipped with technologies such as laser radar, a satellite navigation system and 5G network, the truck can avoid obstacles and be operated remotely, improve mining safety and production efficiency,” said Yang Zhenyu, an on-site engineer with the Qingdao Huituo Intelligent Machine Co that develops the trucks.
Since China kicked off the commercialization of 5G services in 2019, 5G technology has been embedded in intelligently connected factories,
ports, driverless cars and various aspects of people’s lives, with some 700,000 5G base stations in operation.
China will further build more than 600,000 5G base stations in 2021 while accelerating the 5G coverage in major cities and advance co-construction and sharing, Xiao Yaqing, minister of industry and information technology, told a work conference last December.
“The development of future industries offers a great opportunity for China to keep pace with the rapid global innovation,” said Pan Jiaofeng, president of the Institutes of Science and Development under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, adding that the emerging middle class and ground-breaking technologies will bring new opportunities for China’s future industries.
In the next 15 years, China
will implement a number of forward-looking and strategic major national science and technology projects in the frontline fields of artificial intelligence, quantum information, integrated circuits, life and health, brain science, breeding, aerospace science and technology, and deep Earth and ocean exploration.
Provincial-level regions are taking advantage of their specific resources to cultivate future industries.
Shanghai, for instance, will strengthen scientific research and strategic planning in 6G, next-generation photonic devices, brain-computer fusion, hydrogen energy, stem cells and regenerative medicine, synthetic biology and new marine economy to lay a solid foundation for future industrial development.
Happy Birthday: Find your place, and live in the moment. Enjoy what life has to offer. Set a realistic pace that brings you the comfort and joy you deserve. Update the way you live, how you handle your money and personal matters, and aim to secure your position and status. Stop doubting, and start discovering what’s important to you. Your numbers are 4, 11, 20, 27, 31, 34, 45.
PISCES (Feb 19-Mar 20)
Make your space inviting. Move things around to suit your lifestyle. Share with people you love, and build better relationships and a strong foundation for whatever you want to pursue. Make self-improvements and show affection to loved ones.
ARIES (Mar 21-Apr 19)
Refuse to let your emotions interfere when making a decision. Stay calm, use discipline and verify facts before you take action. Put your energy into something original you want to pursue that will help avoid discord.
TAURUS (Apr 20-May 20)
Alter your life for the right reason. Your aim should be in your best interest, not trying to impress or please someone. Push your ideas and vision, and invest time and effort into pursuing what makes you happy.
GEMINI (May 21-Jun 20)
Recognize what’s possible, and success will follow. Your future depends on your ability to discard negativity and letting your innovative ideas set new trends. Promote peace and love; you’ll defuse anger and discord. Make romance and love priorities.
CANCER (Jun 21-Jul 22)
Be a vessel for information. An open mind will encourage you to try something new. Express your thoughts and feelings. Share something special with someone who can contribute to your plans. A legal contract or partnership looks promising.
LEO (July 23-Aug 22)
Stay on course; you will make progress. Look for the right opportunity and put everything into your objective. If you take on too much, you will fall short of your goal. Use intelligence, bring about change and persuade others to follow suit.
VIRGO (Aug 23-Sep 22)
Information, education and communication will lead to positive changes. Focus on your relationship with your peers and what you have to offer to get ahead. Adapting to what’s trending will draw attention and help you excel. Don’t be afraid to make the first move.
LIBRA (Sep 23-Oct 22)
Don’t let an unexpected change bring you down. Look for the silver lining and proceed. Take advantage of any opportunity that comes your way, and let your positive attitude transform your dream into a reality without compromising your financial status or health.
SCORPIO (Oct 23-Nov 21)
Don’t let uncertainty or confusion be your demise. Look at the possibilities and use your skills to bring about the changes that will make your life better. Put an end to bad relationships, outside interference and responsibilities that don’t belong to you.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22-Dec 21)
Settle into something you do well or love to do. Opening up to someone you love will help you make decisions that add to your comfort and wellbeing. Don’t let others make decisions for you. Ask questions, and follow your heart.
CAPRICORN (Dec 22-Jan 19)
Consider how you earn and handle your cash, and make amendments that will stabilize your financial future. Look at what’s trending and how you can take advantage of an opportunity to use your skills and services efficiently and effectively.
AQUARIUS (Jan 20-Feb 18)
Weigh the pros and cons of every situation you face. Be careful when dealing with peers, relatives and people who work for institutions. Choose your words carefully, and agree only to changes that will not compromise you in any way.
JIADING registered 1,025 technology contracts last year with a contract turnover of 22.5 billion yuan (US$3.8 billion), an increase of 0.33 percent and 178.2 percent respectively over the same period of the previous year, ranking second in the city in terms of turnover.
Technology contracts are entered into by the parties to confirm the rights and obligations for technology development, transfer, licensing, consulting or services.
After a contract is identified and registered, parties can enjoy relevant preferential policies. Last year, Jiading cultivated the main body of innovation, boosted the innovative development of enterprises, screened more than 1,400 key cultivated enterprises for catchup services and strengthened policy publicity, counseling and training.
Twenty-six achievements in Jiading won 2019 Shanghai Science and Technology Awards.
Shanghai P&C Information Technology Co Ltd completed 64 technology development contracts last year, with technology output areas covering 21 provinces. One of the contracts is to use the e-ID system to break the authentication bottleneck for users of online financial services, providing a solution of simultaneous authentication for a large number of users within the same period.
“With the e-ID system, we can quickly recognize a user’s identity and provide a safe, reliable and easy customer identification service for online accounts opening, payment authentication, loan entry, mobile entry and small and micro enterprise account opening,” said Wu Liwei, finance director of Shanghai P&C Information Technology. “Customers can apply for banking and financial services without leaving home not only to minimize personnel gathering, but also to ensure the normal business of the bank.”
Also, Autoliv (Shanghai) Automotive Safety Systems R&D Co Ltd performs well in contract transactions. Producing safety products for automakers, the company has set up Research and Development centers in 14 countries and regions.
INFECTIOUS diseases expert Zhang Wenhong has teamed up with Chen Lei, a comic painter with the pen name of Brother Hunzi, to issue a popular science comic book about germs and their place in human history.
The new book combines the popularity of comics with Zhang’s medical knowledge and tells the story of plagues that have changed human history.
In the book, Zhang, who is also called Papa Zhang, is responsible for making the medical knowledge in the book accurate and reliable as an expert. Brother Hunzi is in charge of humanities, analyzing the impact and changes of the plagues on history, politics, economy and society.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 early last year, Chen’s team has published a series of books on the virus and the vaccine against it.
“However, we are not professionals so we had the idea of asking Zhang for help,” Chen said. “In the book, Papa Zhang has a dialogue with Brother Hunzi about the different angles of the pandemic.”
“This experience is very interesting, and there is no pressure on my side as our readers are eager to know the facts and science. So the key for readers to understand the virus and pandemic is for our team to tell the story well,” Zhang said.