China: the New Global High-Tech Power

Andy Tai writes "This three-part news.com special report shows how mainland China has become the focus of high tech business opportunities during the global recession. The article compares today's China to 19th Century America as "a booming nation starved for products and driven by a new generation of entrepreneurs", points out China's "sheer numbers and ambitious work ethic are producing thousands of engineers--and U.S. companies are recruiting the best of them," and concludes "that this may eventually be known as China's high-tech century. " Another good article looking at China's rise as a global power can be found here."

Comments

China's high-tech *century*?

[electricmonk]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't their culture spend several thousands of years as the most advanced on Earth?

continued US predominance uncertain

[g4dget]

The US came into its current position of power through historical accident. Its rich resources, secure food supply, and geographic isolation allowed the US to become an influential power in WWII. Afterwards, it filled the power vacuum that was left by the self-destruction of Europe, and it managed to attract huge numbers of skilled immigrants from the rubble of Europe, which helped the US achieve technological and scientific predominance.

There is no reason to believe that this is inevitably a long-term state. The US is a mid-size country (by population), and food, geographic isolation, and natural resources are becoming less and less important. And other countries are becoming as attractive as the US for skilled international workers.

If the US continues to have a leadership role, it will be because it earns it. But that means that US politicians have to give up on their assumption that US predominance is a right that Americans are born with. Isolationist policies like those we have seen over the last few years will likely simply make the US less and less relevant to international affairs.