Why do heavyweights in the scientific world want to go to China ?

« Brain drain” alone is not enough to explain this status quo… Recently, news of some Japanese scientists joining Chinese universities has become a hot topic. Akira Fujishima, the 79-year-old former president of Tokyo Institute of Technology, is a leader in Japan’s “photocatalyst” research. Not long ago, he led a research team to join the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology. Akira Fujishima is a Japanese heavyweight scientist and a popular candidate for the Nobel Prize.

In addition to Akira Fujishima, Shanghai also has a Japanese scientist who is expected to win the Nobel Prize, Miko Chai Keyan, a 76-year-old neurologist, currently a professor at the Institute of Immunochemistry at Shanghai University of Science and Technology. He is considered a strong contender for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Shiba Katsuhiko is also a “smart brain” that Japan is proud of. Like them, there are many Japanese scientists engaged in research in China.

Why did Japan’s heavyweight scientists go to China one after another?

Professor Ueda Domen previously chose to study concrete engineering at Shenzhen University. The 67-year-old Honorary Professor Ueda of Hokkaido University has just been elected as Japan new president of the Civil Engineering Society. Talking about why he went to China, Ueda stated, « the retirement age of Haidao University is 65 years old. After retiring, if you want to continue to study in Research, the school will no longer provide research venues. When I retire, Shenzhen University Xuexue sent me an invitation, although some universities in Thailand and other countries invited me, but the research environment and scientific research facilities of Shenzhen University are outstanding, so I decided to go to China. “At present, Ueda’s laboratory in Shenzhen University is better than in Japan since it is equipped with many expensive experimental equipment that are not available in Japan »

Increasing research funding is the key to supporting the improvement of China’s scientific research environment.

According to statistics from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan, research funding in China has increased in the past 20 years.

It is the fastest growing among major countries. For Japan’s domestic customs, Ueda does not agree with the argument of “exodus of talents”. He said, «  As far as the woodworking industry is concerned, nothing has happened to the detriment of Japan. Now, Japan has been surpassed by China in many fields, and Japan needs to share with China efforts to bring back more technologies (from China) that are not available to Japan ». 

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