China, unlike the U.S., doesn’t bash the U.S. It doesn’t have to. America does it to itself. The recent government shutdown is the latest lasting testimonial.
It is not only on the dollar financial front that the U.S. is getting shellacked by China. It is taking a beating from the depths of the ocean to the moon. On the plane, train, supercomputer, drone and GPS fronts, China is catching up and overtaking America. China has produced the world’s darkest dark-matter detector, the longest long-range quantum teleporter, the deepest deep-sea exploration submarine and a supercomputer that leaves its foreign competitors in its dust.
China’s seizing the lead in pioneering cutting-edge frontiers once dominated by the U.S. is a rude shock. Supercomputer technology has been hijacked by China with its new fastest supercomputer in the world ─ the Tianhe-1A which can perform a mind-numbing 2.57 quadrillion calculations per second.
The supercomputer is a key research tool in such fields as climate change, product design and weapons development. It is an expensive and serious national security issue for both countries. China is rapidly catching up with the U.S. in the supercomputer installation business. So why not work together on joint projects that are not security threats in the interest of building mutual trust, and stop wasting taxpayer money?
China’s ability to build drones, commercial jets and get a satellite to Mars, launch GPS satellites that can show people how easy it is to get around on earth, without getting lost and not using GPS, ends America’s role as the sole provider of global GPS services. China is now challenging America on earth and in the skies.
Unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, are considered the future of military aviation and could one day replace the fighter jet. China has developed more than 25 different models of drones ─ a fact that is causing anxiety in the Pentagon because “when deployed, [they] will expand the PLA Air Force’s options for long-range reconnaissance and strike” capability.
Drones will dominate future air wars because they are cheaper to build and operate than conventional aircraft. So much so that America is now training its first drone test pilots to develop more effective fighting machines. Like climbers who blaze a path up a mountain peak, test pilots help those that follow them avoid costly mistakes.
China has more than a dozen satellites capable of covering the Asia-Pacific region and by 2020 it will have complete global coverage with 35 satellites that will give it strategic independence and another commercial gold mine. The GPS was a navigation revolution comparable to the invention of the compass, except that it has been controlled by one power. America is no longer the world’s sole traffic cop in the sky at the dawn of the new space age.
By 2014 China’s new C919 commercial passenger jet is set to take wing ─ and take on industry giants Boeing and Airbus. The two Western aircraft manufacturers currently dominate a Chinese market estimated by Boeing to be worth $480 billion over the next two decades.
As someone who prefers train travel over other modes of transportation, I was delighted to hear that China has cemented itself in the No. 1 position in the world’s high-speed rail sector and that it has partnered with GE in its bid to build high-speed train lines in California. The mainland has built 13,000 kilometers of high-speed tracks and plans to have 16,000 kilometers by 2020, including a link to Hong Kong.
I just hope the U.S. and California don’t bash each other going over the financial cliff as China cashes in as the U.S. bashes itself again.
Photo Courtesy Olympic.org