Source: Richard Stone, Science, 5 September 2008: Vol. 321. no. 5894, p. 1279.
"Confronted with land degradation, chronic water shortages, and a growing population that already numbers 1.3 billion, China is looking to a transgenic green revolution to secure its food supply. Later this month, the government is expected to roll out a $3.5 billion research and development (R&D) initiative on genetically modified (GM) plants. 'The new initiative will spur commercialization of GM varieties,' says Xue Dayuan, chief scientist on biodiversity at the Nanjing Institute of Environmental Science of the Ministry of Environmental Protection."
Sunday, September 14, 2008
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2 comments:
What a contrast to the agricultural policies of Mao! Mao's idea was just to work people harder. Despite all the negative things about today's Chinese state, they often seem to make responsible moves - like this one.
Thanks for the comment!
Clearly some things have been going very "right" for the Chinese economy. Clearly China is making some very large investments in science and technology, and my guess is that these scientific investments will pay off in a big way.
On the other hand, I continue to worry about human rights, including the right to participate in ones own governance, and the record of the Chinese government in these areas.
Still, I have no doubt that the vast majority of Chinese think it is vastly better to live in today's China than it was to live in Mao's China.
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