Premier Wen Jiabao yesterday (January 11) called for scientific innovation to help the country cope with the global economic downturn and serve as an impetus to realize lasting economic prosperity.
He made the call at a grand ceremony to present the 2009 State Top Scientific and Technological Award.
Wen said greater efforts should be made to embrace global scientific and technological development and build China into an innovation-driven economy.
Independent innovation should always play a key part in economic restructuring and transformation of the country's development pattern, he said.
Efforts should be made to achieve scientific breakthroughs on issues related to people's living standards, national security and competitive power.
Wen called for intensified efforts to develop new emerging industries such as new energy resources, information and the Internet as well as life sciences.
He also underlined the importance of training scientific talents to provide support for the country's modernization drive.
Gu Chaohao, a mathematician, and space scientist Sun Jiadong received the top science honor yesterday for their outstanding contributions to scientific and technological innovation.
But the announcement generated mixed feelings among academics.
The life stories of established scientists are a reminder many university faculty should spend more time on research than on reputation and salary.