Reporter’s Diary: Innovation drives Chinese economy

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At a press conference on Saturday, China's Minister of Science and Technology outlined the country key sci-tech achievements – Dark Matter Particle Explorer satellite “Wukong,” the 500-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope, quantum entanglement research, and the successful cloning of two monkeys.

Meanwhile, major projects in telecommunications, new medicine, high-speed railways, renewable resources, and industries such as new-energy vehicles and artificial intelligence (AI), have led to changes in citizens' daily lives.

Innovation has changed many aspects of our lives, something unimaginable even three years ago.

As a reporter, I have interviewed many innovators. They are using their persistence and perseverance to push the technology going forward and to not only change many people’s life experiences in China, but also around the world.

As virtual reality (VR) devices become more affordable, schools and institutions have started using them in classrooms to enrich students’ learning experiences.

In 2017, I went to one school in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, and saw students fully immersed in the geographical world, enjoying the full view of the global atmospheric circulation, while learning the principles of geography. Students say learning has become much easier; what teacher draws on the board does not have the 3D effect. VR is very real and exciting.

The technology has enhanced learning in a way that books or online media are unable to accomplish. By touching the trackpad of the VR glass, students can search the content as well as interact with data sets that they may have previously found inaccessible.

Innovation is not easy; it takes lengthy research and investment to support it. The company I visited has invested heavily in researching VR. It has applied for over 300 patents, of which 100 have been rewarded. They have also developed 35 generations of position tracking system, the core technology of VR.

CGTN reporter Liu Yang tests an 8k-based VR device in Chengdu. /Screenshot from CGTN

What they have developed in their secret room is called Fiber Scanning Retina Display, the technology for which is currently under closed-door development, and will be used on future VR glass.

IDC China forecast that China's VR industry was expected to expand more than 4-fold in 2017 as competition intensified in an increasingly diverse market.

In the past five years, entrepreneurship and innovation policies have created two billion more jobs. China’s pushing of mass entrepreneurship and innovation, also known as “shuangchuang,” has seen the number of new companies grow by 21.6 million since 2012.

On March 8, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with deputies from Guangdong Province. He told them building a modern economic system is essential for China to take the lead in the global scientific revolution and achieve the “Two Centenary Goals.” The Government Work Report also stressed that China will do more to implement an innovation-driven development strategy and keep the Chinese economy competitive.