https://www.scmp.com/rss/520169/feed Latest news and updates on Chinese scientists, including the hundreds of researchers who in recent years have switched affiliations from American universities to institutions in China. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Dannie Peng Dannie Peng Chinese researchers have introduced a new methodology for evaluating medical and life science journals worldwide that does not rely on the “impact factor” traditionally used in the academic world. Experts view this as part of China’s broader efforts to strengthen its “academic discourse power”. Two new Dongbi Index journal lists, covering 4,027 medical and 3,064 life-science journals selected from more than 40,000 worldwide, were unveiled in Shanghai on March 21. They were developed by the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3348247/china-proposes-new-way-measure-academic-influence-departure-impact-factor?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3348247/china-proposes-new-way-measure-academic-influence-departure-impact-factor?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 02:00:13 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik A former top-ranking scientist in the Chinese military and one-time nuclear test site commander, Liu Guozhi, has been removed from the website of the country’s top national research institute. In 2016, Liu was named head of the science and technology commission of the Central Military Commission – China’s top military decision-making and command body – a position he is believed to have held until the early 2020s. Liu, 65, was elected to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in 2009. Some Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3347200/liu-guozhi-former-top-pla-scientist-and-nuclear-test-commander-delisted-cas-website?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3347200/liu-guozhi-former-top-pla-scientist-and-nuclear-test-commander-delisted-cas-website?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:58:48 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Beijing intervened and helped get charges dropped against three Chinese scientists at the University of Michigan who were accused of helping a colleague smuggle biological materials into the US, defence lawyers said. The materials turned out to be mostly tiny, transparent worms – nothing dangerous – though US officials last year hailed the arrests as a victory for national security. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the government must be vigilant when foreign nationals try to “advance a malicious... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344673/us-drops-charges-against-chinese-scientists-smuggling-worms-after-diplomatic-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344673/us-drops-charges-against-chinese-scientists-smuggling-worms-after-diplomatic-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Feb 2026 03:07:19 +0000 Ling Xin Ling Xin Zhu Ziqiang, one of the world’s leading experts in electric motor engineering, has left his four-decade career in Britain to take up a full-time position at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. In his new role as chair professor of electrical machines and control systems, Zhu will continue his long-standing work on high-efficiency permanent magnet motors, according to his faculty page on the PolyU website. Zhu spent 38 years at the University of Sheffield, where he eventually established what was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3344399/world-leading-ev-motor-expert-joins-hong-kong-polyu-after-38-years-britain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3344399/world-leading-ev-motor-expert-joins-hong-kong-polyu-after-38-years-britain?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Feb 2026 06:00:09 +0000 Shi Huang Shi Huang Mathematician Ngo Bao Chau, who made history in 2010 as the first Vietnamese recipient of the prestigious Fields Medal, will join the science faculty at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) as a chair professor in June. Ngo, 53, currently distinguished service professor and chair of the University of Chicago’s mathematics department, is a pre-eminent figure in Vietnamese mathematics. HKU announced his new appointment last Thursday. Born in Hanoi in 1972, Ngo showed early brilliance, winning gold... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3342872/vietnams-legendary-maths-genius-ngo-bao-chau-join-university-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3342872/vietnams-legendary-maths-genius-ngo-bao-chau-join-university-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 08:00:08 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier Most Americans favour cooperation with China in spite of Washington’s tougher stance on visas, research collaboration and tariffs, according to a new survey by the Committee of 100 (C100) civic group. The results of the polling, conducted in June 2025 shortly after US President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff onslaught and released this month, found relatively broad support for greater cooperation between Washington and Beijing on “diplomatic issues and policies that affect both... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3341469/us-china-cooperation-backed-most-americans-new-national-survey-reveals?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3341469/us-china-cooperation-backed-most-americans-new-national-survey-reveals?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Jan 2026 20:44:44 +0000 Kandy Wong Kandy Wong The United States could be at risk of falling behind China in the technology race unless it halts the “wholesale onslaught” on scientific research programmes taking place under US President Donald Trump, according to the Nobel Prize-winning economist Joel Mokyr. The American-Israeli scholar, who shared the 2025 prize for economics, said “all areas that are at the cutting edge of science” in the US were “suffering” under the current administration, which appeared to be “against any kind of... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3340698/us-losing-ground-china-onslaught-cutting-edge-research-nobel-laureate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3340698/us-losing-ground-china-onslaught-cutting-edge-research-nobel-laureate?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 13:00:09 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo In the early 2000s, the news media were full of stories about the near completion of the human genome project, which promised scientific and medical wonders to come. Back then, I even wrote a story or two about the mainland Chinese contributions to the groundbreaking international project. The memory came back to me more than a week ago when a press release landed in my inbox, announcing the human genome imaged in 4D. The latest project shows how genes interact, fold and reposition themselves.... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3338412/we-can-now-watch-our-own-genes-dance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3338412/we-can-now-watch-our-own-genes-dance?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Jan 2026 01:30:18 +0000 SCMP SCMP Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest stories about scientists in China this year. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. After decades in the US, star Chinese mathematician couple returns home Mathematician Chen Min has left Purdue University’s maths department to join the Eastern Institute of Technology, Ningbo as a full-time faculty member, the latest Chinese academic to return home from the US. 2. Maths star Joshua Zahl leaves Canada for China after... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3336730/7-scientists-mathematicians-physicists-and-experts-who-moved-china-2025?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3336730/7-scientists-mathematicians-physicists-and-experts-who-moved-china-2025?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Dec 2025 07:00:08 +0000 Victoria Bela Victoria Bela A US-based chemist has been awarded one of Russia’s top science honours, prevailing over a competitive field of applicants from 40 nations, including some of the “strongest applications” from China, according to the prize chair. Valery Fokin, a professor at the University of Southern California (USC), was awarded the Vyzov Prize in the Discovery category for inventing a reaction that redefined the concept of click chemistry and transformed molecular science and the chemistry of living... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3337128/us-based-scientist-valery-fokin-wins-vyzov-prize-beating-fierce-chinese-rivals?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3337128/us-based-scientist-valery-fokin-wins-vyzov-prize-beating-fierce-chinese-rivals?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Dec 2025 04:00:21 +0000 Bochen Han Bochen Han China is still trying to recruit US-based researchers despite years of heightened scrutiny, members of Congress were told on Thursday at a hearing where multiple science agencies warned that tighter security measures must go hand in hand with efforts to retain foreign talent. “Just in the past week, I have received three emails that were forwarded to me from researchers in the community who had been approached for recruitment by Chinese malign foreign talent recruitment programmes,” said Rebecca... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3337024/china-still-targeting-us-based-researchers-malign-purposes-lawmakers-warned?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3337024/china-still-targeting-us-based-researchers-malign-purposes-lawmakers-warned?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 07:00:13 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng The renowned Chinese-born architect Wang Fei has died at the age of 45 following an accident in London. The China Academy of Art, where he had worked as a visiting professor between 2009 and 2011, confirmed that Wang, who taught at Syracuse University in New York state, had died on Monday. Some friends and colleagues leaving tributes online suggested that Wang had been killed in a car accident. Li Lexian, an architectural designer, wrote on social media that Wang had died at the Royal London... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3335794/chinese-born-architect-wang-fei-dies-suspected-car-crash-london?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3335794/chinese-born-architect-wang-fei-dies-suspected-car-crash-london?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Dec 2025 12:00:49 +0000 Shi Huang Shi Huang Scientists from Northwest A&F University in China have developed an innovative technology to extract and collect boron from seawater. Boron is a lightweight element used as solid fuel in scramjet engines on some advanced Chinese hypersonic weapons. Neodymium-iron-boron rare earth magnets – used extensively in industrial and military applications – have drawn particular attention amid ongoing trade tensions over critical minerals. These high-performance rare-earth magnets not only rely on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3335618/chinese-scientists-report-way-extract-hypersonic-weapon-fuel-boron-seawater?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3335618/chinese-scientists-report-way-extract-hypersonic-weapon-fuel-boron-seawater?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Dec 2025 14:00:12 +0000 Victoria Bela Victoria Bela Guo Wei, the chief scientist of China’s top naval institute, has been suspended as a foreign academician to the Russian Academy of Engineering after he became the subject of a police probe over alleged academic misconduct. The Chinese headquarters of the Russian academy announced on its social media page on Friday that it had taken note of the case against Guo and was verifying information regarding his election as a foreign academician earlier this year. The Beijing News reported on Sunday that... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333973/russian-academy-breaks-chinas-top-naval-institute-chief-scientist-under-probe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333973/russian-academy-breaks-chinas-top-naval-institute-chief-scientist-under-probe?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Nov 2025 11:11:25 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo James Watson was probably racist and sexist, but possibly no worse than many people. He was just less inhibited in saying such things out loud. Such views got him into serious trouble late in his life. He was cancelled before “cancel culture” was a thing. But in criticising Watson – a towering figure in 20th-century science who died early this month aged 97 – you need first to understand two things: the evolution – pun intended – of biology from its inherent Western racism to its more recent... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3333620/not-all-genetic-questions-about-race-are-racist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3333620/not-all-genetic-questions-about-race-are-racist?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Nov 2025 01:30:09 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng The chief scientist at a university that plays a major role in developing China’s navy has been detained as part of an investigation into alleged academic misconduct and misuse of state research funds, according to local media reports. Jiangsu University of Science and Technology confirmed on Tuesday that Guo Wei’s case was under investigation and said his academic contract had been terminated over the accusations. The university was founded in 1953 in response to Mao Zedong’s call for the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333522/chief-scientist-chinas-top-naval-research-institute-detained-over-faked-credentials?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333522/chief-scientist-chinas-top-naval-research-institute-detained-over-faked-credentials?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Nov 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng When Nobel laureate James Watson died at 97 in November, obituaries around the world painted a divided portrait: a scientific visionary who co-discovered the double helix of DNA – and a controversial figure long condemned for making racially charged statements about intelligence and genetics. In the West, the American molecular biologist’s legacy was increasingly overshadowed by the fallout from those remarks, culminating in New York’s Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory (CSHL) severing ties with him... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332771/why-racist-biologist-james-watson-remembered-china-respect?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332771/why-racist-biologist-james-watson-remembered-china-respect?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Nov 2025 15:00:12 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A Chinese scientist charged in Michigan with smuggling biological materials pleaded guilty on Wednesday, but was given no additional time in jail beyond the five months she already spent in custody. Jian Yunqing, who was a temporary researcher at a University of Michigan lab, will be released and quickly deported. A judge called it a “very strange” case involving an “incredibly accomplished researcher”. Jian, 33, was arrested in June and accused of conspiring with a boyfriend to study and nurse... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3332558/chinese-scientist-pleads-guilty-us-toxic-fungus-case-will-be-quickly-deported?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3332558/chinese-scientist-pleads-guilty-us-toxic-fungus-case-will-be-quickly-deported?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Nov 2025 22:14:24 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng A database tracking the deaths of young Chinese scientists has triggered a heated debate amid growing concern about whether there is a disturbing pattern emerging among the academic community. But the list also triggered a public backlash, with critics raising ethical concerns about the way the information was used and questioning whether it was giving the full picture. According to the file posted on CSND, an online platform for computer programmers, last week, at least 76 researchers under the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331244/database-younger-scientists-deaths-triggers-heated-debate-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331244/database-younger-scientists-deaths-triggers-heated-debate-china?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 04:00:09 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik Deep-sea animals in the Pacific Ring of Fire off Japan are rapidly growing and adapting, scientists observed in crewed submersible dives. Creatures in the deep, dark ocean have evolved diverse strategies to survive, adapting to varying depths and nutrient availability. The team from the University of Western Australia (UWA) and Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology published their findings gleaned from studies in the Ring of Fire – a Pacific belt that contains hundreds of active and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330216/biologists-discover-ring-fire-creatures-have-array-deep-sea-survival-mechanisms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330216/biologists-discover-ring-fire-creatures-have-array-deep-sea-survival-mechanisms?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Oct 2025 09:00:10 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik One of Venice’s most iconic symbols – the majestic winged Lion of St Mark – has its origins not in Europe but in ancient China, according to a new study by Italian researchers. However, some scholars in China are disputing the researchers’ theory that the celebrated bronze figure in Venice’s St Mark’s Square may have begun its life more than 1,000 years ago as a Tang dynasty tomb guardian, before being transported across continents and transformed into a symbol of Venetian power. Analysis by the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3327832/was-venices-winged-lion-made-china-and-delivered-marco-polos-family?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3327832/was-venices-winged-lion-made-china-and-delivered-marco-polos-family?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Oct 2025 08:01:26 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik Could the secrets of Albert Einstein’s brain – preserved since his death in 1955 – be unlocked by modern Chinese technology? A new technique developed by Chinese scientists has shown potential in analysing old biological samples, including cancer tissues stored for nearly 10 years under less than ideal conditions. While cautious about the challenges posed by ageing preservation methods, the team behind the advanced RNA-mapping technology known as Stereo-seq V2 does not rule out the possibility... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326104/can-chinas-new-tech-crack-einsteins-brain-scientists-hope-give-it-try?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326104/can-chinas-new-tech-crack-einsteins-brain-scientists-hope-give-it-try?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Sep 2025 13:00:09 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng The death of three prominent young scientists from top Chinese universities in recent months has again put the country’s ambitious science goals and ruthless academic system under scrutiny. While none of their institutions has issued any official statement about the deaths, the cases have once again prompted criticism of China’s flawed talent system, which is characterised by cutthroat competition that can push young academics to the limits. Issues within China’s academic system include an “up... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325470/or-out-death-bright-young-scientists-highlights-chinas-ruthless-academic-system?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325470/or-out-death-bright-young-scientists-highlights-chinas-ruthless-academic-system?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Sep 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Shi Huang Shi Huang Alex Kot, a top AI and computer expert who has been with Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore for more than 30 years, has joined a university in China that was jointly built with Russia. Kot will serve as a distinguished professor and chief scientist at Shenzhen MSU-BIT University (SMBU), a Chinese-foreign cooperative university. SMBU was jointly founded by the Shenzhen government, Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU), and the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT), a top... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325460/singapores-leading-ai-scientist-alex-kot-moves-sino-russian-university-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325460/singapores-leading-ai-scientist-alex-kot-moves-sino-russian-university-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Sep 2025 11:00:10 +0000 https://www.scmp.com/news/china/series/3325286/abandoning-us-top-chinese-scientists-return-home?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/series/3325286/abandoning-us-top-chinese-scientists-return-home?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Sep 2025 04:49:02 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik Mathematician Zhang Yitang, who joined Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou from California in June, has called the wave of Chinese researchers exiting the US a “positive trend”. Zhang, known for his prime number research, told Phoenix TV, a partially state-owned broadcaster, in a programme aired on Monday that he had been thinking about returning to the mainland “in light of recent international political issues that have strained China-US relations”. The Shanghai native, 70, is now a full... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322381/mathematician-zhang-yitang-says-he-left-us-china-due-political-climate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322381/mathematician-zhang-yitang-says-he-left-us-china-due-political-climate?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Aug 2025 15:00:09 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The University of Michigan is under federal scrutiny after two Chinese scientists linked to the school were separately charged with smuggling biological materials into the United States. The US Education Department on Tuesday opened an investigation into the university’s foreign funding, citing the pair of cases that were announced days apart in June. It said the “highly disturbing criminal charges” raise concerns about Michigan’s vulnerability to national security threats from China. “Despite... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3318359/university-michigan-investigated-after-2-chinese-scientists-charged-bio-smuggling?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3318359/university-michigan-investigated-after-2-chinese-scientists-charged-bio-smuggling?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jul 2025 21:34:35 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen When the United States’ twin GRACE satellites spotted an anomaly southeast of India while mapping the oceans, Chinese researchers spotted an opportunity. Over a relatively flat seabed thousands of metres deep, Nasa detected a spike in gravity readings and then put that data online, free for all to use. Chinese oceanographers who saw the data decided to find out more. In 2022, they loaded the Shiyan 6 vessel, one of the world’s most advanced research ships, with cutting-edge equipment and sailed... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3318282/chinese-scientists-thank-nasa-sharing-data-critical-deep-sea-mining-indian-ocean?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3318282/chinese-scientists-thank-nasa-sharing-data-critical-deep-sea-mining-indian-ocean?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jul 2025 12:00:09 +0000 Shi Huang Shi Huang Chinese scientists have, for the first time, cultivated a beating heart structure with human cells in a pig embryo, reporting that the heart continued to beat for 21 days unaided. The study, led by Lai Liangxue’s team from the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was announced at the International Society for Stem Cell Research’s annual meeting in Hong Kong on June 12. Previously, the team had cultivated human kidneys in pigs for up to 28... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316851/human-heart-structure-beats-21-days-pig-embryo-says-chinese-chimera-research-team?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316851/human-heart-structure-beats-21-days-pig-embryo-says-chinese-chimera-research-team?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Jul 2025 02:00:13 +0000 Ling Xin Ling Xin The family of late neurology professor Jane Wu has filed a civil complaint against a US university, saying the university’s actions became “a decisive factor in her decision to end her life”. In a civil complaint filed last week in Cook County Circuit Court, Wu’s family – acting through her legal estate – accused Northwestern University of discrimination and isolation. Wu took her own life in July 2024 after years of China-related investigations in the US. According to the filing, the university... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316534/family-china-born-neuroscientist-jane-wu-files-death-related-civil-complaint?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316534/family-china-born-neuroscientist-jane-wu-files-death-related-civil-complaint?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Jul 2025 15:55:07 +0000 Ling Xin Ling Xin Chinese-American mathematician Yitang Zhang has left the United States to join Sun Yat-sen University in southern China as a full-time professor. The 70-year-old number theorist has been appointed to the university’s newly established Institute of Advanced Study Hong Kong and will live and work in the Greater Bay Area, the university announced at a ceremony on Friday afternoon. While the university did not give further details about his appointment, it noted that Zhang had relocated to China... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316222/trailblazing-mathematician-yitang-zhang-leaves-us-job-chinese-university?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316222/trailblazing-mathematician-yitang-zhang-leaves-us-job-chinese-university?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Jun 2025 13:00:08 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik Chinese scientists say they have restored the damaged outer ear in mice, a mammal that lacks natural regenerative abilities. The researchers said the pathway they identified could be applied to different tissue types and play a significant role in advancing regeneration in vertebrates. The team found that a mouse’s failure to regenerate stemmed from an inability to produce sufficient retinoic acid, a derivative of vitamin A that regulates what cell type emerges during a cell’s development and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316131/mammals-could-regenerate-damaged-tissue-turning-genetic-switch-chinese-team?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3316131/mammals-could-regenerate-damaged-tissue-turning-genetic-switch-chinese-team?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Jun 2025 13:00:10 +0000 Victoria Bela Victoria Bela Advances in the transplant of cells into the spleen could transform one of the body’s “expendable” organs into a hub for treating diabetes, two Chinese studies have found. Research published last month by scientists at Nanjing University and other institutes found that “shielding” islet cells could improve their survival after being transplanted into the spleen to treat type 1 diabetes. They also found that the spleen – a more promising long-term survival site than the conventionally used liver... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3315369/unsung-spleen-may-play-big-role-fighting-diabetes-chinese-scientists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3315369/unsung-spleen-may-play-big-role-fighting-diabetes-chinese-scientists?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Jun 2025 08:00:10 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Two University of Michigan scholars from China accused of smuggling biological material into the US agreed on Friday to be jailed without bond while their criminal cases are pending in federal court. The decision by Han Chengxuan and Jian Yunqing came amid concerns that the Chinese nationals would flee the US if released on bond while facing criminal charges. That concern has increased in the two weeks since prosecutors charged another Chinese national studying at UM, 19-year-old Haoxiang Gao,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3314413/chinese-scholars-accused-smuggling-biological-material-us-agree-stay-jail?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3314413/chinese-scholars-accused-smuggling-biological-material-us-agree-stay-jail?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Jun 2025 18:41:03 +0000 Shi Huang Shi Huang Imagine a childhood where becoming a carpenter felt like the ultimate dream. That was the world of Xie Yimin, a shepherd from Changzhou, China. His journey, however, propelled him to become a globally celebrated scientist and mechanical engineer in Australia, renowned for his Evolutionary Structural Optimisation (ESO) method that transformed global design. After a stellar career spanning decades and earning Australia’s top accolades, Xie has chosen a homecoming: leaving Down Under to return to... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3314119/shepherd-world-renowned-scientist-xie-yimin-leaves-australia-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3314119/shepherd-world-renowned-scientist-xie-yimin-leaves-australia-china?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Jun 2025 09:19:26 +0000 Ling Xin Ling Xin Another Chinese researcher has been arrested upon entering the United States, amid an escalating federal probe into the alleged smuggling of biological materials – marking the second such case in less than a week. Han Chengxuan, a PhD candidate at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) in Wuhan, was accused of shipping four undeclared packages containing biological materials from China to a University of Michigan lab—and lying to federal agents about it. Her arrest on Sunday... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3313764/us-arrests-another-chinese-scientist-no-permit-send-biological-material?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3313764/us-arrests-another-chinese-scientist-no-permit-send-biological-material?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Jun 2025 20:52:26 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng The arrest of a Chinese researcher in the United States for allegedly importing an illegal biological pathogen that could kill crops was “politicised” by the US government and could speed up an exodus of Chinese talent from the country, according to some researchers. According to a press release from the US Department of Justice on Tuesday, Jian Yunqing, 33, and her boyfriend, Liu Zunyong, 34, allegedly attempted to smuggle the fungus pathogen Fusarium graminearum into the country. Jian, a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3313083/will-chinese-scientist-jian-yunqings-arrest-risk-further-us-talent-exodus?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3313083/will-chinese-scientist-jian-yunqings-arrest-risk-further-us-talent-exodus?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Jun 2025 14:26:51 +0000 Victoria Bela Victoria Bela Two Chinese scientists were charged with conspiracy and smuggling on Tuesday after attempting to clear US customs with a plant disease-causing fungus that officials called a “potential agroterrorism agent”. The Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Jian Yunqing, a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan, for the alleged smuggling of the fungus Fusarium graminearum. Her partner, Liu Zunyong, a researcher at Zhejiang University, has also been charged in the case. But he was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3313081/common-fungus-fusarium-graminearum-agroterrorism-agent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3313081/common-fungus-fusarium-graminearum-agroterrorism-agent?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Jun 2025 13:16:33 +0000 Bernard Chan Bernard Chan The Trump administration’s astonishing decision to revoke Harvard’s ability to enrol international students has reverberated far beyond the university. This action, characterised by the unpredictability and brinkmanship that defines recent US policy, escalates tensions, dominates headlines and wields uncertainty as leverage. It undermines the very essence of America’s academic and scientific leadership and its role as a beacon to global talent. The impact is personal for the nearly 6,800... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3312169/trumps-harvard-blow-risks-irreversible-damage-us-academic-leadership?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3312169/trumps-harvard-blow-risks-irreversible-damage-us-academic-leadership?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 May 2025 12:30:07 +0000 Massoud Amin Massoud Amin American dominance in science and innovation was not inevitable. It was a deliberate, strategic achievement born of open borders, inclusive institutions and forward-looking investment in education and research. That edge, forged over a century, is eroding – quietly but rapidly threatening the foundations of US leadership worldwide. In today’s polarised national discourse, headlines focus on tariffs, immigration and the culture wars. But behind the noise lies a far more consequential trend: the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310036/trumps-attack-science-risks-dismantling-century-innovation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310036/trumps-attack-science-risks-dismantling-century-innovation?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 May 2025 12:30:10 +0000 Shi Huang Shi Huang From a former community college student to a Yale-affiliated researcher, Sun Huanbo’s academic journey defies convention. Now, the computer scientist has made another unexpected leap: returning to China as a rising star in robotics and haptics. In March 2025, Peking University’s school of engineering proudly announced his appointment as assistant professor, doctoral mentor and head of the Haptic Perception Laboratory – a hub open to talent at all levels, from undergraduates to visiting... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3304067/underdog-genius-yale-computer-scientist-sun-huanbo-returns-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3304067/underdog-genius-yale-computer-scientist-sun-huanbo-returns-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Mar 2025 07:00:09 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng Tsinghua University chip expert Sun Nan’s return to China went largely unnoticed in the wave of Chinese scientists returning from abroad – that is, until last week, when the prestigious university in Beijing put a social media spotlight on the professor who has helped create more than 50 cutting-edge chips in a little over four years. According to an article published on Tsinghua’s social media account on Thursday, Sun came back after many years in the United States with the hope of “training... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3298274/top-chip-designer-sun-nan-leaves-us-and-finds-room-play-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3298274/top-chip-designer-sun-nan-leaves-us-and-finds-room-play-china?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Feb 2025 01:00:14 +0000 Ling Xin Ling Xin Prominent blockchain researcher Chen Jing has left the United States to join Tsinghua University in Beijing as a full-time professor. The award-winning scholar and chief scientist said she would bring “a dual perspective from academia and industry” to help develop computational economics in China, according to an announcement by the university on Tuesday. Chen, who returned to China last year after spending 15 years in the US, said she aimed to address gaps in domestic research and develop... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3295774/chen-jing-award-winning-computer-scientist-and-blockchain-expert-returns-china-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3295774/chen-jing-award-winning-computer-scientist-and-blockchain-expert-returns-china-us?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Jan 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Dannie Peng Dannie Peng Distinguished biologist Wang Cunyu has left the University of California, Los Angeles and joined Peking University to head its Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine (IACM). Wang – who left China in 1990 and had been in the United States for more than three decades – delivered a speech as the institute’s newly appointed head at a conference last week to mark the body’s anniversary on December 18, the Peking University Health Science Centre said on Friday. Wang was quoted as saying that it was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3292050/china-born-biologist-wang-cunyu-returns-decades-us-head-advanced-institute?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3292050/china-born-biologist-wang-cunyu-returns-decades-us-head-advanced-institute?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:00:10 +0000 Catch up on some of SCMP’s biggest stories about scientists in China this year. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Leading cancer scientist Sun Shao-Cong returns to China amid US investigations After three decades of distinguished work in the United States, world-leading cancer researcher Sun Shao-Cong has returned to China to establish a new lab in Beijing, following what a source said were investigations of him by the US government. 2. French... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3291509/7-scientists-mathematicians-physicists-and-experts-who-moved-china-2024?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3291509/7-scientists-mathematicians-physicists-and-experts-who-moved-china-2024?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Dec 2024 04:15:07 +0000 A top Chinese space expert who specialised in weather monitoring and early warning systems died in a car crash in Beijing on Sunday night aged 62. Zhang Xiaoxin, a space expert who had long been involved in space weather research, was mourned in an obituary issued on Tuesday by the National Satellite Meteorological Centre (NSMC), an affiliate of the China Meteorological Administration (CMA), where he worked. Zhang won a top award given by the Chinese military for science and tech progress,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3291249/chinese-space-defence-expert-zhang-xiaoxin-dies-car-crash-beijing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3291249/chinese-space-defence-expert-zhang-xiaoxin-dies-car-crash-beijing?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Dec 2024 12:44:30 +0000 Holly Chik Holly Chik China should focus on developing original technologies and scientific knowledge and leverage the expertise of scientists returning from the United States, according to a top Chinese-American mathematician. Yau Shing-Tung retired from Harvard University in 2022 to teach at Tsinghua University and help China become a maths powerhouse. He said many ethnic Chinese students had been driven away from the US by discrimination from the government, including accusations of misusing American research... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3289766/brain-drain-top-mathematician-says-chinese-scientists-have-no-choice-leave-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3289766/brain-drain-top-mathematician-says-chinese-scientists-have-no-choice-leave-us?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Dec 2024 14:00:10 +0000 Victoria Bela Victoria Bela After more than a decade of working in the US, at the start of this year, star geometer Sun Song made the move back to China. He joined Zhejiang University’s Institute for Advanced Study in Mathematics after leaving his most recent post as a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Sun, who has been hailed as a strong candidate for the Fields Medal, also known as the “Nobel Prize for mathematics”, said in a university statement that he wanted to help students in China pursue maths,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3288447/why-are-top-scientists-leaving-west-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3288447/why-are-top-scientists-leaving-west-china?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Nov 2024 10:00:12 +0000 Victoria Bela Victoria Bela Chinese researchers say they have found a way to continuously produce electricity from water within a sealed container, drawing heat from the surrounds to create vapour for power generation. While solar-based hydrovoltaic cells need sunlight to work, the team from the Chinese Academy of Sciences say their cell does not – and its resistance to wind and humidity means it could be used in harsh environments like deserts and in the dark. “We fabricate a hermetic hydrovoltaic cell (HHC) to harvest... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3288316/chinese-teams-cell-turns-ambient-heat-power-no-sunlight-required?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3288316/chinese-teams-cell-turns-ambient-heat-power-no-sunlight-required?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Nov 2024 11:00:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Technology developed by Chinese scientists that gives fighter jet engines an unprecedented level of thrust when the afterburner is activated could give the Chinese military the edge in air combat, according to researchers with the Aero Engine Academy of China in Beijing. According to ground tests, this novel technology boosts the efficiency of afterburning to 99 per cent, matching the fuel efficiency of long-distance cruising conditions. It also reduces engine vibration by 80 per cent under... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3287740/chinese-scientists-increase-fighter-jet-afterburner-efficiency-nearly-100-study?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3287740/chinese-scientists-increase-fighter-jet-afterburner-efficiency-nearly-100-study?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Nov 2024 22:00:09 +0000