Helen Zhang's University of Zhejiang scientific journal was the first in China to use CrossCheck text analysis software to scan for plagiarism. She discovered that over a two-year period, 31 percent of all papers showed unreasonable copying or plagiarism. The results are a symbol of the country's uphill battle to become a global leader in innovative scientific thought. Louisa Lim/NPR hide caption
China's Great Science Gamble Leaders in Beijing are pouring money into research and development — 698 billion yuan ($108 billion) last year — in what some see as a form of techno-nationalism.
Special Series
China's Great Science Gamble
Beijing is pouring money into research and development.The $60 million Tianhe-1A supercomputer in Tianjin, China. Louisa Lim/NPR hide caption
A researcher works at the Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics in central China's Hubei province on June 9. Beijing's spending on research and development has increased over the past few years in an effort to re-establish the country's scientific prowess. AFP/Getty Images hide caption