MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR WISSENSCHAFTSGESCHICHTE Max Planck Institute for the History of Science

Event

Jan 26, 2023
Dancing with Dragons: Higher Education, China and the Geopolitics of Global Science

An evaluation of international scientific research partnerships that include China and leading research economies shows that China plays a critical role in global science, by some measures rivaling or even surpassing the United States both in the volume of scientific papers produced and the quality of the work as measured by citations.This trend of China’s scientific advancement has collided with hardening geopolitics that have caused some countries to re-think scientific collaboration with China.  However, China’s central role in global science means that it occupies a vastly different space from Russia, which was recently excluded from much of global science because of its invasion of Ukraine. These trends have coincided with, according to survey data, scientists of Chinese descent at American universities experiencing greater discrimination and increased fear regarding their academic pursuits. Dan Murphy’s work explores what this means for higher education engagement with China. He argues for a rational approach that recognizes both the tremendous value of international academic collaboration and the need for firm boundaries around areas critical to national security.

 

DanMurphyPoster

Biography

  • Portrait of Daniel Murphy
    Daniel Murphy

    Dan Murphy is executive director of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government (M-RCBG) at the Harvard Kennedy School where he works in support of the Center’s mission to advance the state of knowledge and policy analysis concerning some of society’s most challenging problems at the interface of the public and private sectors.

    Before joining M-RCBG, Dan served for nearly five years as executive director of the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies and Harvard China Fund, which together are among the world’s leading research centers for the study of China. During his tenure Dan broadened awareness of the Fairbank Center and China Fund both within Harvard and beyond; reinvigorated programming and engagement with stakeholders; and played a key role in fundraising efforts which left both units in solid financial standing. In 2019, he was a key member of the team that traveled with Larry Bacow to Greater China for meetings with academic partners and government officials.

    Before coming to Harvard Dan served as the inaugural program director for Yale Center Beijing. In that role, he worked in partnership with deans, faculty, and contacts in China to produce programming at Yale’s facility in Beijing. From 2008-14 Dan was at the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, finishing as director of special initiatives. At the National Committee, he grew the Public Intellectuals Program, which connects America’s next generation of leading scholars with policymakers and the media. He also led delegations of senior American Congressional staff on study visits to China, directed a range of other programming, and led successful grant initiatives that were funded by the State Department and private foundations.

    Dan received a full scholarship to pursue graduate studies at the Johns Hopkins University-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies, where he studied politics. He also holds an M.A. in Chinese Studies from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and a B.A. in English and Chinese Language and Literature from Connecticut College. In 2001, Dan was a Thomas J. Watson Fellow.

    His recent writing and speaking have focused on China, higher education, and global science.

    Dan is a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and serves on the advisory board of SupChina. He speaks fluent Mandarin.

Organizer(s)
Address
MPIWG, Boltzmannstraße 22, 14195 Berlin, Germany
Room
Main Conference Room
Contact and Registration

This event is open to all and also accessible via Zoom.
Please register at the following link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIpcu-gqDwtGNR14eiakGcbRf3PoTkSf-0a

About This Series

China’s push to become a leading science power is unprecedented in its speed, scope and, arguably, success. Reactions to China’s rise in global science are dichotomous: some anticipate that science made in China may come to dominate global academia while others deem it impossible to achieve scientific leadership under an authoritarian regime. A focus on rankings and statistics alone is apparently not enough to grasp the origins, characteristics, and the possible futures of China as a science superpower.

This monthly lecture series will bring together fresh empirical insights and intriguing theoretical reflections about the development of the science system in the People’s Republic of China and its global integration. Representing a variety of social science perspectives, our guest speakers will explore the evolution of Chinese science policy, interactions of societal norms and values and academia in the PRC, factors that enable or constrain scientific innovation, the global reception of scientific output and investment from China, the securitization of international collaboration, and much more.

DanMurphyPoster

Mossavar Rhamani-Center for Business and Government
Dan_Murphy_Poster.pdf
2023-01-26T14:00:00SAVE IN I-CAL 2023-01-26 14:00:00 2023-01-26 15:30:00 Dancing with Dragons: Higher Education, China and the Geopolitics of Global Science An evaluation of international scientific research partnerships that include China and leading research economies shows that China plays a critical role in global science, by some measures rivaling or even surpassing the United States both in the volume of scientific papers produced and the quality of the work as measured by citations.This trend of China’s scientific advancement has collided with hardening geopolitics that have caused some countries to re-think scientific collaboration with China.  However, China’s central role in global science means that it occupies a vastly different space from Russia, which was recently excluded from much of global science because of its invasion of Ukraine. These trends have coincided with, according to survey data, scientists of Chinese descent at American universities experiencing greater discrimination and increased fear regarding their academic pursuits. Dan Murphy’s work explores what this means for higher education engagement with China. He argues for a rational approach that recognizes both the tremendous value of international academic collaboration and the need for firm boundaries around areas critical to national security.   Biography Daniel Murphy Dan Murphy is executive director of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government (M-RCBG) at the Harvard Kennedy School where he works in support of the Center’s mission to advance the state of knowledge and policy analysis concerning some of society’s most challenging problems at the interface of the public and private sectors. Before joining M-RCBG, Dan served for nearly five years as executive director of the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies and Harvard China Fund, which together are among the world’s leading research centers for the study of China. During his tenure Dan broadened awareness of the Fairbank Center and China Fund both within Harvard and beyond; reinvigorated programming and engagement with stakeholders; and played a key role in fundraising efforts which left both units in solid financial standing. In 2019, he was a key member of the team that traveled with Larry Bacow to Greater China for meetings with academic partners and government officials. Before coming to Harvard Dan served as the inaugural program director for Yale Center Beijing. In that role, he worked in partnership with deans, faculty, and contacts in China to produce programming at Yale’s facility in Beijing. From 2008-14 Dan was at the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, finishing as director of special initiatives. At the National Committee, he grew the Public Intellectuals Program, which connects America’s next generation of leading scholars with policymakers and the media. He also led delegations of senior American Congressional staff on study visits to China, directed a range of other programming, and led successful grant initiatives that were funded by the State Department and private foundations. Dan received a full scholarship to pursue graduate studies at the Johns Hopkins University-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies, where he studied politics. He also holds an M.A. in Chinese Studies from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and a B.A. in English and Chinese Language and Literature from Connecticut College. In 2001, Dan was a Thomas J. Watson Fellow. His recent writing and speaking have focused on China, higher education, and global science. Dan is a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and serves on the advisory board of SupChina. He speaks fluent Mandarin. MPIWG, Boltzmannstraße 22, 14195 Berlin, Germany Main Conference Room Anna Lisa AhlersDieu Linh Bui Dao Anna Lisa AhlersDieu Linh Bui Dao Europe/Berlin public