By Clement Chalwe

New missions and tasks of the new era require to develop new concepts, designs and strategies regarding technological innovation. Truly, technology has become the backbone of developing and developed countries.

In economics, it is widely accepted that technology is the key driver of economic growth of countries, regions and cities. Technological progress allows for the more efficient production of more and better goods and services, which is what prosperity depends on. The book Xi Jinping The Governance of China II says “Science and technology are the bedrock upon which a country relies for its strength, enterprises for success, and people for a better life”. For real science and technology respond to the call of times and have a global impact.

One of the leading countries in technology is China. But one may wonder and ask, when did the invention of things commenced in China? What makes China’s technology so superior?

History has it that China held the world’s leading position in many fields in the study of nature from the 1st century BC to the 15th century AD, with the four great inventions having the greatest global significance. This includes the invention of compass, gunpowder, papermaking and printing. The four great inventions of ancient China-are significant contributions of the Chinese nation to world civilization.

China was the first nation to invent paper. Before its invention, words were written on various natural materials by ancient peoples-on grass stalks by the Egyptians, on earthen plates by the Mesopotamians, on tree leaves by the Indians, on sheepskin by the Europeans and strangest of all, even inscribed on bamboo or wooden strips, tortoise shells or shoulder blades of an ox by the early Chinese. Later, inspired by the process of silk reeling, the people in ancient China succeeded in first making a kind of paper called “bo” out of silk.

China went on and invent Printing. Before the invention of printing, dissemination of knowledge depended either on word of mouth or handwritten copies of manuscripts. Both took time and were liable to error. The first book with a verifiable date of printing appeared in China in the year 868, or nearly 600 years before that happened in Europe.

From the way back up to date, China keeps on improving in the field of science and technology. Let look at some of the latest technology inventions.

The fastest electric racing car in the world: Shanghai has long been China’s capital for the automobile industry.  From the immense development of the car industry in this region, the fastest electric racing car, Nio, was born. This car startup was founded by Li Bin, in 2015,

Smart glasses giving vision to the blind: Angeleye is a pair of extraordinary wearable tech that allows blind people to navigate their world through the use of AI and sensors, similar to that used in autonomous car. Not only can the smart glasses detect objects, but they can also recognize money bank notes, assist in text reading, recognize colours and distinguish different levels of light intensity.

They are many Technological invention in China which is applicable for day to day life and we can’t manage to list them all. However, other technology development includes:

Autonomous Vehicles: In China you will find autonomous shuttle minibuses provide scheduled pickups for passengers, while self-driving sanitation vehicles perform automated sweeping tasks.

Artificial intelligence: Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have enabled security systems to learn and adapt to changing threats. Facial recognition technology, for example, can identify individuals in real-time and alert security officers of potential security threats.

The above technology development are just few of the many technology improvement in China. For instance in railways China’s first high-speed railway started operating in 2008 between Beijing and Tianjin. Since then, the country has built a network that spans nearly 40,000km (25,000 miles) and is now the world’s largest for bullet trains that can travel up to 350km/h (220mph). The network is getting bigger, with plans to extend it to 50,000km by 2025, and 200,000km by 2035.

China has made rapid advances in areas such as education, infrastructure, high-tech manufacturing, academic publishing, patents, and commercial applications and is now in some areas and by some measures a world leader. China is now increasingly targeting indigenous innovation and aims to reform remaining weaknesses.

But how has China managed to achieve all this technology? First and foremost, the Chinese government has made technology development a top priority. Through initiatives like the “Made in China 2025” plan, they’ve provided substantial funding and resources to support the growth of high-tech industries.

In conclusion, China is in a position to become the world’s top technology superpower, with its dominance already spanning defence, space, robotics, energy, the environment, biotechnology, artificial intelligence (AI), advanced materials and key quantum technology, according to the report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI). Let’s embrace what Science and technology brings for it is bettering mankind lifestyle.