日媒:中國(guó)不斷優(yōu)化的科研環(huán)境正吸引日本青年人才 Young Japanese scholars head to China for stable, independent jobs
中國(guó)日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng) 2022-10-20 09:05
近年來,隨著中國(guó)科研實(shí)力增強(qiáng),科研環(huán)境不斷優(yōu)化,中國(guó)科研的國(guó)際吸引力也越來越強(qiáng)。據(jù)日本《朝日新聞》10月14日?qǐng)?bào)道,中國(guó)的學(xué)術(shù)影響力日益強(qiáng)大,寬松穩(wěn)定的學(xué)術(shù)環(huán)境吸引越來越多的日本年輕一代學(xué)者選擇來中國(guó)發(fā)展。以下為報(bào)道摘編:
Motoyuki Hattori was promising young scholar in Japan, held a position at the nation’s most elite university, and had career prospects that were far more solid than those of his peers.
服部素之是一位杰出的日本青年學(xué)者,曾在日本最頂尖的大學(xué)任職,其職業(yè)前景遠(yuǎn)比同齡人更有前途。
But Hattori left Japan seven years ago for a professorship at a university in China, and he has never looked back.
但是,七年前服部離開了日本,前往中國(guó)一所大學(xué)任教,他從未想過回頭。
Hattori, now 40, who specializes in structure and function of membrane transporters, wanted to quickly start his own laboratory. And that was possible at Fudan University in Shanghai.
現(xiàn)年40歲的服部專攻膜轉(zhuǎn)運(yùn)蛋白的結(jié)構(gòu)和功能研究,他希望盡快建立個(gè)人實(shí)驗(yàn)室。在上海復(fù)旦大學(xué),他的期望可以化為現(xiàn)實(shí)。
“In Japan’s academic culture, it usually takes 10 years or so until post-doctorate researchers can set up their own labs after completing the so-called ‘a(chǎn)pprenticeship’ period under professors,” he said in a recent online interview. “I contemplated about what I should do in my 30s, when I was physically and mentally capable of carrying out demanding work. My conclusion was to go overseas.”
服部在最近一次線上采訪中表示:“在日本學(xué)術(shù)界中,博士后研究員通常需要10年左右才能完成所謂的教授‘學(xué)徒期’,此后才能建立個(gè)人實(shí)驗(yàn)室。我思考了自己30多歲的人生,那時(shí)的身心條件允許我從事高強(qiáng)度工作。因此我的結(jié)論是出國(guó)?!?/p>
He is not alone.
服部并不孤單。
A number of Japanese scholars are opting to do research in China mainly because of something that most young workers want: job stability.
許多日本學(xué)者之所以選擇在中國(guó)開展科研工作,主要是因?yàn)檫@里可以為大多數(shù)年輕學(xué)者提供他們想要的:工作穩(wěn)定性。
Japan continues to use a funding system that critics say is pushing away young researchers.
批評(píng)人士稱,日本仍在采用的資助體系正在迫使青年科研人員出走。
To cover costs for personnel and research activities, Japanese national universities and research institutes had long relied on government grants and “competitive research funds,” which are supplied only for planned projects submitted by scientists and approved in a government review.
為了支付人員和研究經(jīng)費(fèi),日本國(guó)立大學(xué)和研究機(jī)構(gòu)長(zhǎng)期依賴政府撥款和“競(jìng)爭(zhēng)性研究基金”,這些資金僅用于科學(xué)家提交并經(jīng)政府審批的計(jì)劃項(xiàng)目。
Since 2004, the government has been scaling back university grants and increasing competitive funds.
自2004年以來,日本政府一直在縮減大學(xué)撥款,增加競(jìng)爭(zhēng)性基金。
But the competitive funds are awarded to projects that last only three to 10 years or so, leading to insecure employment situations.
但競(jìng)爭(zhēng)性基金僅資助持續(xù)三至十年左右的項(xiàng)目,這就導(dǎo)致沒有保障的聘用期。
Supporters of the shift say the fixed-term project contracts fuel mobility and competition, thus revitalizing scientific research.
該體系的支持者表示,固定期項(xiàng)目合同有助于資金流動(dòng)和競(jìng)爭(zhēng),從而振興科研。
With no guarantee for funding, however, aspiring researchers, particularly those in basic research, may be reluctant to tackle a challenging project while planning their personal lives from a long-term perspective, critics say.
然而,批評(píng)人士認(rèn)為,在沒有資金保障的情況下,有抱負(fù)的研究人員,尤其是從事基礎(chǔ)研究的人員,可能不愿意在長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)的個(gè)人生活規(guī)劃中選擇應(yīng)對(duì)一個(gè)具有挑戰(zhàn)性的項(xiàng)目。
Hattori said the availability of more secure positions at Chinese universities is the biggest reason Japanese scholars relocate to China.
服部說,中國(guó)大學(xué)提供了更多穩(wěn)定的機(jī)會(huì),這是日本學(xué)者涌入的主要原因。
“As far as I know, dozens of young and mid-career Japanese scientists are doing research in this country,” he said. “They left Japan because the bulk of appointments available were fixed-term contracts.”
服部說:“據(jù)我所知,很多中青年日本科學(xué)家正在中國(guó)開展科研工作。他們離開日本是因?yàn)榇蟛糠秩温殭C(jī)會(huì)都是固定期合同。”
A majority of them, Hattori said, are in basic research, such as theoretical physics, astronomy and life sciences.
他說,其中大多數(shù)人從事基礎(chǔ)研究,如理論物理、天文學(xué)和生命科學(xué)。
A study by the education ministry’s National Institute of Science and Technology Policy (NISTEP) found that 67.6 percent of postdoctoral researchers at Japanese universities and publicly supported research institutes were working under contracts lasting less than three years in fiscal 2018.
日本文部科學(xué)省下屬國(guó)立科學(xué)技術(shù)政策研究所的一項(xiàng)研究發(fā)現(xiàn),日本大學(xué)和公共資助研究機(jī)構(gòu)67.6%的博士后研究員在2018財(cái)年的合同期限不到三年。
When he was 32, Hattori was an assistant professor of life sciences under a fixed-term contract at the University of Tokyo. The government-affiliated Japan Science and Technology Agency selected him as a recipient of research grants for promising young scholars.
服部32歲在東京大學(xué)任生命科學(xué)系助理教授,簽訂了固定期合同。他還獲得了日本政府下屬日本科學(xué)技術(shù)振興機(jī)構(gòu)提供給優(yōu)秀青年學(xué)者的資助。
Still, he chose Fudan University from among the offers provided by several overseas universities.
盡管如此,服部還是從幾所海外大學(xué)的錄取通知書中選擇了復(fù)旦大學(xué)。
Fudan University ranks eighth in Asia, one notch above Kyoto University, according to the latest QS World University Rankings by Britain’s Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd.
根據(jù)最新的英國(guó)QS世界大學(xué)排名,復(fù)旦大學(xué)在亞洲排名第八,比京都大學(xué)高一名。
Shanghai was not a totally unfamiliar world for Hattori. His wife hails from the metropolis.
對(duì)于服部來說,上海并不是一個(gè)完全陌生的地方,他的妻子就來自這里。
But it was China’s fast changing academic landscape that made it easier for Hattori to take the leap abroad.
但是,正是中國(guó)快速變化的學(xué)術(shù)環(huán)境吸引服部走出國(guó)門。
Hattori said his Chinese colleagues who landed professorships at Fudan University around the same time as he did were in his generation.
服部表示,與他同時(shí)獲得復(fù)旦大學(xué)教授職稱的中國(guó)同事都是他的同齡人。
His annual pay is about 8 million yen ($55,000), comparable with a scientist of a similar age on a tenure track in Japan.
服部的年薪約為800萬日元(約合人民幣40萬元),與終身聘用的同齡日本科學(xué)家相當(dāng)。
The big difference, however, is that Hattori is receiving the equivalent of more than 100 million yen over a six-year period for his startup lab.
然而,最大的區(qū)別在于,六年內(nèi),服部剛組建的實(shí)驗(yàn)室獲得了相當(dāng)于1億多日元的資金。
As China’s economy grew, it began accepting more students at universities. The number of college students has grown tenfold over the past 20 years.
隨著經(jīng)濟(jì)飛速發(fā)展,中國(guó)開始招錄更多大學(xué)生。在過去20年里,大學(xué)生的數(shù)量增長(zhǎng)了10倍。
The number of faculty members has also expanded.
教師隊(duì)伍也在擴(kuò)大。
For example, the School of Life Sciences at Fudan University where Hattori works has more than doubled its number of professors over a decade.
以服部所在的復(fù)旦大學(xué)生命科學(xué)學(xué)院為例,在過去十年里,該學(xué)院的教授人數(shù)翻了一倍多。
Hayato Shimabukuro, 34, gained a Ph.D. in astronomy from Nagoya University, conducted research at the Paris Observatory, and then moved to China’s elite Tsinghua University in Beijing in 2018.
34歲的島袋隼士在名古屋大學(xué)獲得天文學(xué)博士學(xué)位,曾在巴黎天文臺(tái)進(jìn)行研究,于2018年來到中國(guó)頂尖學(xué)府清華大學(xué)。
In late 2019, he landed his current post of associate research professor of astronomy at Yunnan University’s Southwestern Institute for Astronomy Research, also in China.
2019年末,他獲得了云南大學(xué)中國(guó)西南天文研究所天文學(xué)副教授職位。
“The No. 1 reason I came to China was for a secure position,” Shimabukuro said.
島袋說:“我來中國(guó)的主要原因之一是為了工作保障?!?/p>
Shimabukuro earns about 6 million yen in annual salary plus about 30 million yen in research funds over a three-year period.
島袋在三年內(nèi)的年薪約為600萬日元(約合人民幣29萬元),研究基金約為3000萬日元(約合人民幣145萬元)。
The Japanese science community was both stunned and alarmed when Akira Fujishima, an 80-year-old chemist who is widely regarded as a potential Japanese Nobel laureate for his photocatalysis studies, relocated to China with his research team last year.
80歲的化學(xué)家藤島昭因其在光催化領(lǐng)域的研究而被視為有潛力獲得諾貝爾獎(jiǎng)的日本學(xué)者,去年他和研究團(tuán)隊(duì)遷至中國(guó),此舉震驚日本科學(xué)界。
Fujishima, a former president of the Tokyo University of Science, accepted a full-time position at the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology.
藤島曾任東京理科大學(xué)校長(zhǎng),現(xiàn)在他接受了上海理工大學(xué)提供的全職職位。
Observers said Fujishima and his team were looking for an education facility where they could continue their studies—and that school was located in China.
評(píng)論人士稱,藤島和他的團(tuán)隊(duì)正在尋找一個(gè)可以繼續(xù)研究的高校環(huán)境,而這所學(xué)校就在中國(guó)。
China’s research clout is impressive.
現(xiàn)在,中國(guó)的科研影響力令人刮目相看。
The NISTEP’s “Japanese Science and Technology Indicators 2022” report showed that between 2018 and 2020, China ranked No. 1 globally in terms of the number of papers it published in science and engineering journals around the world.
日本國(guó)立科學(xué)技術(shù)政策研究所發(fā)布的《科學(xué)技術(shù)指標(biāo)2022》報(bào)告顯示,2018年至2020年,中國(guó)在全球科學(xué)與工程期刊上發(fā)表的論文數(shù)量排名世界第一。
China also placed at the top both in its share of papers in the top 10 percent and the top 1 percent by number of citations in such publications over the same period.
同期,中國(guó)在此類出版物中的論文引用數(shù)量分別位居全球前10%和前1%。
Japan ranked fifth, 12th, 10th in each of the three categories, respectively, extending a sliding trend.
日本在三個(gè)類別中分別排名第五、第十二、第十,呈下滑趨勢(shì)。
China spends three times more than Japan on research and development.
中國(guó)的科研投入是日本的三倍。
Chinese represent the largest group of foreign students earning doctorates at US schools.
美國(guó)高校授予博士學(xué)位的留學(xué)生中,中國(guó)人占比最多。
The Chinese figure is 50 times the number of Japanese who earn their Ph.D.s in the United States.
中國(guó)在美國(guó)獲得博士學(xué)位的人數(shù)是日本人的50倍。
Hattori noted that the Chinese government has increased support to regional universities to raise academic standards across the country.
服部指出,中國(guó)政府加大了對(duì)地方大學(xué)的支持力度,以提高全國(guó)的學(xué)術(shù)水平。
Some of Hattori’s colleagues at Fudan University have moved from Shanghai to work at regional schools in line with this effort.
為此,服部在復(fù)旦的一些同事已從上海遷至地方學(xué)校工作。
“It is essential for progress in science to have large numbers of scholars and to have them in broader areas,” he said. “It is the same as a mountain. The higher a mountain is, the larger its foundation is.”
服部說:“擁有大量的學(xué)者,并且讓學(xué)者們?cè)诟鼜V泛的領(lǐng)域開展研究,這對(duì)于科學(xué)進(jìn)步是至關(guān)重要的。就好比一座山,山越高,山底的基石越龐大?!?/p>
來源:朝日新聞
編輯:董靜