A scientist from Taiwan first time chosen as academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering; A "zero" breakthrough made in the three autonomous regions and province of Tibet, Ningxia and Qinghai; Engineering specialists working at the forefront ranked in academicians; Academicians first time selected from among Academy of Learning for Engineering Control and foreign academicians first time selected simultaneously with the Chinese.

According to the news from the People's Daily, Dec 12 saw a scientist from Taiwan chosen for the first time as academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, five academicians being selected from the Academy of Learning for Engineering Control which was set up last year and three from the remote and frontier autonomous regions and province, realizing a zero-breakthrough plus another three specialists from factories and mines to be ranked among academicians and the simultaneous selection of foreign academicians with the Chinese¡­.The announcement of the additional academicians here today presents lots of new features in the selection of academicians for the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

After a year's work of selection, 81 outstanding specialists working in engineering and technological fields stood out from among the 733 valid candidates to be added into the academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said Wang Dianzuo, vice-president of the Academy. And up to now the number of engineering academicians has come to 616 in total. Starting from this year onwards the selection of foreign academicians is carried out simultaneously with the Chinese with seven new ones emerging out from among 11 foreign candidates, thus making the number of foreign academicians in the Chinese Academy of Engineering to reach 24 in all. They are spread out in the following seven countries of the USA, Britain, Germany, Russia, France, Japan and Sweden.

With the election of other academicians, Zhang Xinshi, a urorogical specialist, former president of Taiwan Yang-Ming University, was selected academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the first scientist from Taiwan province.

The 81 newly selected academicians are from the eight engineering sectors belonging to the mechanical and conveyance engineering, information and electronic engineering and medical and health as well. Their age averages at 63 and those below the age of 65 come to a total of 47 with the youngest aged at 41 coming from the PLA Naval Engineering College.

The Academy of Learning for Engineering Control, which was established in September last year, was composed of 32 trans-scientific academicians specialized in various subjects. This time it has become an eye-catching sight to have five more academicians added onto the list.

The academicians first time additionally selected for the Academy of Learning for Engineering Control will exert a far-reaching influence on its development in the future, said Song Jian, President of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. How to evaluate correctly the achievements and academic levels of the specialists of the engineering control department is still a new subject for us to learn and study. And how to handle appropriately the relations between their professional level and achievements in scientific control still needs to be improved and perfected in the practice in future.

(People's Daily December 14, 2001)