比肩北京上海！合肥再次向世界展示魅力
7月24日，中国国家英文日报《中国日报》以一个整版重磅推出“壮丽70年 奋斗新时代”特别报道安徽篇，讲述安徽70年发展成就。主稿讲述的是合肥科技创新的故事，再次向世界展示了合肥的创新力量和科技魅力。
中国国家英文日报《中国日报》
Facilities in place to attract best scientific minds and make province's capital an international research powerhouse.
If people ask which Chinese cities are the most attractive to foreigners, the results of an annual poll by the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs offer some valuable insights.
The administration started releasing the poll results last year after surveying thousands of expatriates living in China over several months. The three cities to top the list in the last two surveys were Shanghai, Beijing and Hefei, the capital of Anhui province.
"Many people may ask, why Hefei?" said Yang Fan, a spokesman of the University of Science and Technology of China, one of the country's top universities and based in Hefei.
While acknowledging that Hefei is not as well-known internationally as the two first-tier cities, Yang said the result was not unexpected. "Our university alone received more than 1,600 visiting foreign experts last year."
It's no coincidence then, that the central government plans to make Shanghai, Beijing and Hefei national science centers. Planning documents show Hefei will focus on information technology, new energy sources, life sciences and environmental protection. Scientists based in Hefei will also aim for research breakthroughs in quantum communications, nuclear fusion, smog prevention and cancer treatments.
The city is already home to several major scientific projects, including the Steady High Magnetic Field Facility and the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak, which is key to a nuclear fusion reactor. The EAST program is key to both the China Fusion Engineering Test Reactor project and the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project.
In November, scientists involved in the EAST project declared the facility had for the first time achieved a plasma central electron temperature of 100 million C, marking a major breakthrough for an "artificial sun", which aims to help tackle the world's energy problems using fusion technology.
At the end of last year, ground was broken on construction of major new facilities for the CFETR project in Hefei, marking a major step forward in fulfilling the city's research and development ambitions.
The facilities, scheduled for completion in five years, were listed in the country's 13th Five-Year Plan for Science and Technology Innovation. "The facilities will provide strong support for cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary fields including energy, information, health and environment, and will become a user platform open to the world's fusion community," said Kuang Guangli, president of the Hefei Institute of Physical Science at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which leads the CFETR project.
The facilities will assist CFETR by providing extreme test conditions that allow research on the key components of fusion reactors, according to the institute. Many overseas scientists have participated in research at the institute due to the availability of major research facilities.
"The facilities to be built here will provide the development of new technologies for CFETR and will enable a pathway for fusion energy worldwide," said Tony Taylor, director of General Atomics, a nuclear physics institute based in San Diego, California.
Hefei has also been at the center of China's quantum information science and technology development, with the work of Pan Jianwei and his USTC team attracting attention at home and abroad.
Pan, a CAS academician, began putting together his team at USTC in 2001. He has been leading research and development and experiments on the world's first quantum experimental satellite, which was launched in 2016.
Pan said an exciting development in recent years has been the whole of society, especially private companies, becoming more enthusiastic about and supportive of basic scientific research.
Five private companies engaged in fast computing, precise measurements and long-distance secure communications using quantum technology have been founded in the Hefei National High-tech Industry Development Zone.
"As the new technologies are brought closer to people's lives, these companies will lead industrial development in the future," said Lyu Changfu, deputy director of the zone's administration committee.
Private sponsors donated 100 million yuan ($14.5 million) to found the nonprofit Micius Quantum Foundation in Hefei in April, which aims to promote development of quantum information science and technology.
A total of 12 million yuan will be granted to 12 international scientists for their academic contributions to the fields of quantum computation and quantum communications. Six laureates, announced annually, will receive 1 million yuan each for the Micius Quantum Prize.
"Anhui province and Hefei city both provide good conditions for scientists to do cool research here," Pan from USTC said.
中文翻译如下
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一系列重大科研装置吸引来全球顶尖的科研人员，使合肥这个省会城市成为全球科研重镇。
如果有人问外国人眼中最具吸引力的中国城市是哪些，那么中国国家外国专家局可以提供有价值的参考答案。
国家外国专家局从去年开始每年发布“外籍人才眼中最具吸引力的城市”榜单，由成千上万名外国专家参与，历时数月调查得出。在2018年和2019年的榜单中，前三名分别是上海、北京以及安徽省会合肥。
安徽创新馆
“很多人会问，为什么是合肥？”位于合肥的中国科学技术大学的一位宣传负责人杨凡说。
杨凡承认合肥的国际知名度不及这两个一线大城市，但他却认为合肥进入前三也并非出人意料。“仅中国科学技术大学去年就接待了1600多名来访的外国专家。”
中国还宣布要在上海、北京和合肥建设综合性国家科学中心。如此看来，在榜单上合肥比肩这两个城市也就不是什么巧合。规划文件显示合肥将聚焦信息技术、新能源、生命科学及环境保护。合肥的科学家们也将在量子通信、核聚变、雾霾防治和癌症治疗等方面取得更多突破性的成果。
合肥目前已经是众多大科学装置的所在，比如稳态强磁场装置和超导托卡马克，而后者对于中国聚变工程实验堆项目和国际热核聚变实验堆计划都至关重要。
去年11月，参与中国聚变工程实验堆项目的合肥科学家就宣布实现了1亿摄氏度的等离子体中体电子温度，意为着人类在用核聚变技术制造“人造太阳”解决能源危机的道路上又迈出了关键的一步。
去年底，中国聚变工程实验堆项目的一系列重大装置在合肥开工建设，意为着合肥离它的研发雄心又近了一步。
有“人造太阳”之称的世界首台全超导托卡马克大科学装置EAST
这些新装置的建设计划在五年内完工，是国家十三五期间科技创新的关键工程。领衔中国聚变工程实验堆项目的中科院合肥物质科学研究院院长匡光力说，这些装置将为能源、信息、健康和环境等领域的前沿跨学科研究提供重要的支撑，也将成为面向国际核聚变研究开放的新平台。
这些装置将为中国聚变工程实验堆项目在核聚变反应堆的关键系统研发创造必需的极限试验条件。许多国外的科学家也因为这些大科学装置而来到合肥开展他们的研究。
科学岛
位于美国加利福尼亚州圣迭戈市的通用原子能公司副总裁托尼·泰勒说，“在合肥建设的这些装置将为中国聚变工程实验堆提供技术支撑并为全球的核聚变研究开拓新的道路”。
合肥还一直是中国量子信息科技研究的中心，最受国内外关注的是潘建伟和他的团队。
在中国科大量子存储实验室，潘建伟院士正在了解科研情况。
作为中科院院士，潘建伟2001年开始在中国科学技术大学组建他的团队。他也领导了2016年发射的世界首个量子通信科学实验卫星的研发。
潘建伟说他注意到一个可喜的变化，那就是全社会对于基础科研的关注和支持越来越积极。
到目前为止，在合肥高新技术产业开发区内已经有了五家直接运用量子技术实现高速计算、精密测量和远距离安全通信的民营企业。
“因为这样的新技术离人们的生活越来越近了，未来这些企业将引领产业的发展，”合肥高新区管委会副主任吕长富说。
今年4月，民营企业还捐资1亿元在合肥成立了墨子量子基金会，以促进量子信息科技的发展。
十二位在量子计算和量子通信领域做出杰出贡献的国际科学家将分走首笔1200万元的奖金。“墨子量子奖”每年将评选出6位科学家，每人分获100万元。
潘建伟说，“安徽省和合肥市都为科学家提供了很好的条件，让我们在这里做很好的研究”。
中国日报（作者：朱立新）
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