China is catching up extremely quickly in both the quantity and quality of published papers, and doubled the number of patents filed by the US in 2021. (Source: Xinhua)

At a scientific conference held in June in Washington, National Academy of Sciences (NAS) President Marcia McNutt said that the US is still the world's largest investor in research and development (R&D), but China is rising and will quickly take over this position in the near future.

According to Ms. McNutt - a geophysicist and the first female president of NAS, in 2021, the US spent $806 billion on R&D, while China spent $668 billion, but Beijing's investment rate was twice as high as Washington's.

According to this scientist, since the end of World War II, the US has “not only led but also dominated the world” in the field of science and technology, with up to 60% of the Nobel Prizes belonging to the US. However, China is catching up extremely quickly in both the quantity and quality of published articles, while doubling the number of patents filed by the US in 2021.

“This is a worrying trend for the United States,” she said.

Various ranking methods, including those used by analytical organizations in the US, UK and Japan, show that China is surpassing the US in the number of cited articles - the most accurate measure of the impact and influence of a study.

To stem this trend, the US needs to adapt to the emerging research environment and dare to try “new things,” according to Ms. McNutt.

Ms McNutt also warned that the US is becoming “particularly dependent” on international students in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), including students from China and India.

Currently, the number of international students is outnumbering domestic students in graduate programs at American universities, 65% of international students choose to stay in the US for at least 10 years, helping to maintain the STEM workforce in the country.

“Literally, America cannot have enough human resources for STEM fields without these foreign students coming and staying in the United States,” said the head of NAS.

Yet while China’s efforts to boost its R&D sector have increased, American universities have seen a decline in the number of Chinese students in recent years. “There are many choices for international students, and the United States is no longer the preferred destination,” the official warned, recommending that America maintain its leadership in science by strengthening STEM education and building a domestic workforce for the future.

The United States should make an effort to attract “the best and brightest talent” from around the world by cutting red tape in issuing student visas, Ms. McNutt said.

Fan-Gang Zeng, a scientist at the University of California, commented that the comments by the top US science official have many good ideas, but implementing some recommendations will be challenging due to different competing goals or interests.