Xin Zhongguo yu xin kexue: Gaofenzi kexue zai xiandai Zhongguo de jianli 新中國與新科學:高分子科學在現 代中國的建立 [New Science for a New China: The Institutionalization of Polymer Science in Modern China], and: China's Scientific Elite (review)

The People's Republic of China is now more than sixty years old, and its science has experienced five different periods corresponding to the country's dramatic social changes: start-up (1949–1956), strong development (1956–1966), abnormal development (1966–1976), revival (1976–1992), and prosperity (1992–present). This trajectory is vitally interrelated with the development of politics, economics, education, and many other fields. In general, research into the scientific history of the People's Republic of China has just begun. Scholarly achievements in this area are few, still fewer the high-quality works, let alone the research developed from a social history perspective. Two representative books, developed from doctoral dissertations, are Xin Zhongguo yu xin kexue and China's Scientific Elite. Both offer insights into the establishment and development of science in the People's Republic of China from the perspective of social history. They share a number of salient features.

1. The objects selected are representative of the history of science in the People's Republic of China

During the 1950s and 1960s, China was making the transition from building democracy to building socialism. Virtually every element of society and the economy had been destroyed and needed to be reconstructed. The state encouraged the people to believe that science could stimulate the recovery of the national economy, get industrialization going, and meet the demands of national defense. Unfortunately, science was involved in an unending cycle of political campaigns aimed at consolidating power. As a result, the relationship between science and politics, economics, education, society, and many other fields became very complex. For the sake of a clear research program, Zhang Li chose to trace the history of polymer science, a new discipline.

One month after the foundation of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereafter CAS) was established. To strengthen its position as an academic leader, the CAS created the system of academic membership (xuebu weiyuan) in 1955, renaming the basic position "academician" (yuanshi) in 1994. The academicians represented the scientific elite and played an important role in the country's social development. This system is the subject of Cong Cao's study: he reviews the history of modern China's scientific development and then examines the social stratification in the scientific elite, revealing the interactions between science and its political, economic, and social context in different postrevolutionary periods. His pioneering work is of real significance.

Unlike Zhang, who presents the history of a single discipline, Cao has researched the scientific community in general. Their studies are highly representative in choosing the time and space in researching the scientific history of the republic and are good examples for studying and exploring the scientific history of the People's Republic of China.

2. The research perspective and methods selected are valuable in the study of the scientific history of the People's Republic of China

The history of science can focus on either internal history or external history—or both. Internal history means the history of internal development of science itself, and external history means the history of interaction between science and society. At present, the discipline is young; most historians of science do little besides finding and classifying historical facts, far from the methods used to carry out effective research. Working from reliable historical facts and her detailed study of the CAS's internal history, Zhang has exploited the basic analytical methods of the social history and the sociology of science to outline the development of polymer science in the early period. Her book benefits from her broad vision, in particular her fine grasp of studies of scientific institutions. She moves among different academic venues, from research...