September 11, 2017
Is China leaping past us?
Sixty years ago this fall, the Soviet Union shocked the world by launching into orbit Earth’s first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1. The beach ball-sized spacecraft was an astounding scientific achievement, one previously thought beyond the reach of Moscow. As Sputnik circled the globe and emitted radio signals detectable by anyone with a short-wave receiver, the American public experienced a crisis of confidence over their country’s standing in the world and its Cold War competitiveness.
We know the rest of the story. American scientists and policymakers were shaken out of the complacent assumption that their technological edge was insurmountable. American government, universities, and industry mobilized for a competition of scientific innovation – and won.
Read the full article in POLITICO.
More from CNAS
-
Stemming the Flow: The United States Needs a Strategy to Address China’s Strategic Exportation of Digital Authoritarianism
Commentary
Many of China’s technology companies perfect their products in the domestic market by facilitating the party-state’s oppression and data control, and subsequently seek to expo...
By Joshua Fitt
-
Understanding China’s Military-Civil Fusion strategy
Video
Elsa Kania discusses myths she has seen about China’s Military-Civil Fusion strategy and the actual scope of MCF in China....
By Elsa B. Kania
-
Top Trump administration official's advice to India on China, Quad
Podcast
Lisa Curtis was interviewed for the In Focus Podcast with The Hindu's Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar. Listen to the full interview from The Hindu....
By Lisa Curtis
-
The U.S.’s China Strategy Needs New Tools
Commentary
Policymakers maintain an unparalleled capacity to push back using sanctions, export controls and investment restrictions. Trade, however, presents a unique dilemma....
By Jordan Schneider & David Talbot
