http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/07/world/asia/07scholar.html?hp ... although perhaps too corrupt to truly succeed?
why I can't buy chinese solar panels or chinese cars in Europe ? On the article I will quote : "Quantity is not quality, and despite its huge investment, China still struggles in many areas of science and technology. No Chinese-born scientist has ever been awarded a Nobel Prize for research conducted in mainland China, although several have received one for work done in the West." "Chinese students continue to leave in droves. Nearly 180,000 left in 2008, almost 25 percent more than in 2007, as more families were able to pay overseas tuition. For every four students who left in the past decade, only one returned, Chinese government statistics show." Why ? because the free life of the western world is still farmore appealing that a post communist life. US college life still rocks the world, the greatest parties... However in a few year, I hope that China will succeed in opening itself. Anyway they will need a real freedom of speech to make a future index work... From there, everything is possible...
I think you're gonna have to wait a while. Even with Moore's Law, fact of the matter is China is still at most a developing country with a lot of problems. Until food, clothing, shelter and transportation is no longer a problem is when they can finally start innovating.
Under the Chinese government's "Golden Sun" policy, China has become the world's largest producer of solar cells. Production capacity quadrupled last year alone. What does Moore's Law state?
China's achievement has left a lot of nations in dust. It threatens their self-worthiness. They are obssessed with China, manufacturing and maginifying China's faults. They are in denial and delusional. there is not point to argue with them. They could be dangerous though. Just select right time and circumstance strike back in heavy terms, not in words.
China and Usa have to sit togheter at a table and discuss an Unified Intellectual Propriety right agreement. I don't know the point of view of the chineses... neither the one of the Us... But I am sure there is a common ground. But I am sure as both people are really creative and inventive it will be in their best interrest to agree on a common definition of intellectual propriety.