Chinese embrace science and technology achievements

BEIJING — Chinese have been inspired by recent landmark achievements in science and technology that have increased convenience in everyday life and boosted the national economy.

Lian Yawen, 22, is excited about a new high speed railway linking the city of Baoji in Northwest China's Shaanxi province with Lanzhou, capital of neighboring Gansu province, which began operating Sunday.

As a Lanzhou native, Lian travels to Beijing for college, and the new high-speed train has reduced her journey from 20 hours to just nine.

"The new high-speed railway really makes a difference to my life," said Lian.

The 401-kilometer Baoji-Lanzhou high-speed railway has operating speed of 250 km per hour.

Construction began in 2012 on the route that opens up northwest China's Gansu and Qinghai provinces as well as Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, which are now connected to the national high-speed rail network.

The new railway line is also part of China's efforts to boost connectivity along the Belt and Road Initiative, where transportation demand is surging as regional ties and cooperation continue to strengthen.

Over the weekend, Chinese also expressed expectation online for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, which will open at the end of the year. The bridge will slash travel time between Hong Kong and Zhuhai from three hours to just 30 minutes, further integrating cities in the Pearl River Delta.

The main structure of the bridge was completed on July 7, and electric vehicle charging stations will be built on an artificial island off the bridge, according to local authorities.

In an effort to connect Beijing and Xiongan New Area, which was established in April, high-speed trains started running between Beijing and the city of Baoding, near the proposed area, on July 6. A one-way 190-km trip takes 80 minutes.

"In the past when I returned home to Baoding from Beijing, I had to transfer in Tianjin," said Wei Xian, a passenger who travels between the two cities weekly. "Now with direct trains, it will be much easier."

Located some 100 km southwest of downtown Beijing, Xiongan will cover Hebei's Xiongxian, Rongcheng, and Anxin counties.

China Global Television Network (CGTN) Monday triggered discussion online with reports of Beijing-based biotech company Sinogene's announcement that they had created a genetically-engineered cloned dog.

On CGTN's account on WeChat, the country's leading social network, one commenter wrote "This is naturally seen as progress in biological science, but we must be cautious as we still know very little about what we are playing with."

China has always prided itself on innovation and the best is yet to come.

The completion of a 60-day trial in mining gas hydrates, commonly known as combustible ice, in the South China Sea, marked breakthroughs in the search for alternative clean energy sources.

"Combustible ice is considered a strategic alternative to oil and natural gas," China Geological Survey Bureau's deputy director Li Jinfa said. "Not just China, but the whole world is looking towards it."

The ARJ21, China's first domestic regional jet, began commercial operations in June 2016 and has just won approval to be mass produced.

A project to create 50,000 metric tons of high purity silicon and its supporting new energy began in Southwest China's Sichuan province recently. It is expected to relieve China's heavy dependance on imported polycrystalline silicon, which is used primarily in producing products for the photovoltaic industry including silicon chips and battery pieces and packs.

China has set innovation as the core of it's 13th five-year plan (2016-2020), with the aims to become an "innovation nation" by 2020, an international leader in innovation by 2030, and a world powerhouse in scientific and technological innovation by 2050.

Such efforts will help the country improve the convenience of transport, raise the standard of living, resolve a shortage in energy resources, and boost economic development.