China's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) research environment: A snapshot.

In keeping with China's President Xi Jinping's "Chinese Dream," China has set a goal of becoming a world-class innovator by 2050. China's higher education Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) research environment will play a pivotal role in influencing whether China is successful in transitioning from a manufacturing-based economy to an innovation-driven, knowledge-based economy. Past studies on China's research environment have been primarily qualitative in nature or based on anecdotal evidence. In this study, we surveyed STEM faculty from China's top 25 universities to get a clearer understanding of how faculty members view China's overall research environment. We received 731 completed survey responses, 17% of which were from individuals who received terminal degrees from abroad and 83% of which were from individuals who received terminal degrees from domestic institutions of higher education. We present results on why returnees decided to study abroad, returnees' decisions to return to China, and differences in perceptions between returnees and domestic degree holders on the advantages of having a foreign degree. The top five challenges to China's research environment identified by survey respondents were: a promotion of short-term thinking and instant success (37% of all respondents); research funding (33%); too much bureaucratic or governmental intervention (31%); the evaluation system (27%); and a reliance on human relations (26%). Results indicated that while China has clearly made strides in its higher education system, there are numerous challenges that must be overcome before China can hope to effectively produce the kinds of innovative thinkers that are required if it is to achieve its ambitious goals. We also raise questions about the current direction of education and inquiry in China, particularly indications that government policy is turning inward, away from openness that is central to innovative thinking.

Will they stay or will they go? International graduate students and their decisions to stay or leave the U.S. upon graduation.

The U.S. currently enjoys a position among the world's foremost innovative and scientifically advanced economies but the emergence of new economic powerhouses like China and India threatens to disrupt the global distribution of innovation and economic competitiveness. Among U.S. policy makers, the promotion of advanced education, particularly in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields, has become a key strategy for ensuring the U.S.'s position as an innovative economic leader. Since approximately one third of science and engineering post-graduate students in the U.S. are foreign born, the future of the U.S. STEM educational system is intimately tied to issues of global competitiveness and American immigration policy. This study utilizes a combination of national education data, a survey of foreign-born STEM graduate students, and in-depth interviews of a sub-set of those students to explain how a combination of scientists' and engineers' educational decisions, as well as their experience in school, can predict a students' career path and geographical location, which can affect the long-term innovation environment in their home and destination country. This study highlights the fact that the increasing global competitiveness in STEM education and the complex, restrictive nature of U.S. immigration policies are contributing to an environment where the American STEM system may no longer be able to comfortably remain the premier destination for the world's top international students.

Health and safety practices in the nanomaterials workplace: results from an international survey.

This article reports the findings of an international survey of nanomaterials firms and laboratories regarding their environmental health and safety (EHS) programs, engineering controls, personal protective equipment (PPE), exposure monitoring, waste disposal, product stewardship, and risk beliefs. While many participants reported not believing that nanomaterials pose special risks, nanospecific EHS programs were still widely reported. Most nanospecific EHS programs appeared to build from general EHS programs but included nanospecific workplace engineering controls and recommendations for clothing, gloves, eye protection, and respirators. Organizations with nanospecific EHS programs also reported providing product (safe use) guidance to consumers. However, workplace monitoring and nanospecific waste disposal were uneven and were only associated with the subset of organizations believing in special risks. A majority of organizations expressed a need for more toxicological information and EHS guidance. Overall, this study suggests that nanomaterials firms and laboratories are already attentive to nanospecific EHS and product stewardship issues. However, improved risk communication is needed to further the implementation of related programs. Organizations that are wholly inattentive to EHS would likely engage in nanospecific EHS upon implementing a staffed, general EHS program.