By Li Han
Staff Writer of the Tsinghua News Center
China’s Ministry of Science and Technology recently announced approval of China’s National Basic Research Program (the 973 Program) and the Major Research Plan projects in 2008. Five Tsinghua research projects will be sponsored by the 973 Program and two by the Major Research Plan. Seven professors were appointed as chief scientists for the projects. Tsinghua has undertaken 28 projects since the 973 Program’s inception involving 28 chief scientists and eight Major Research Plan projects involving eight chief scientists. Tsinghua is one of the country’s leading institutions for supervision and conduct of 973 Program projects.
The five research projects approved by the 973 Program are: “Basic Research on Manufacturing Equipment in Super-large-scale Integration” led by Professor Luo Jianbin from the Department of Precision Instruments and Mechanology; “Basic Research on the Architecture and Protocols of New Generation Internet” led by Professor Wu Jianping from the Department of Computer Science and Technology; “Research on Theory and Technological Foundations of Integrated Control Systems for Complex Production Manufacturing Processes” led by Academician Chai Tianyou; “Some Fundamental Issues of Functional Ceramics and their Devices for Information Technologies” led by Professor Nan Cewen from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering; and “Astrophysical Research on Black Holes and other Compact Objects” led by Professor Zhang Shuangnan from the Department of Physics. The two projects sponsored by the Major Research Plan are: “Structure and Function of Important Disease-Causing Membrane Proteins” led by Professor Shi Yigong, Vice Director of Tsinghua’s Institute of Biomedicine, and “Exploring and Exploiting Exotic Quantum Effects at the Single Atom/Molecule Level” led by Academician Xue Qikun from the Department of Physics.
