Marine research in China

This paper is a personal travel report from a visit to the People's Republic of China in September and October 1976. Oceanographic research, as seen from visits to institutes, participation in fieldwork and personal contacts, is discussed, with some emphasis on the physical and chemical aspects. There is a tangible striving for utility in research policy. Research activities are also to a large extent integrated with other functions of society. Marine research is of increasing importance in China today; there is a growing cognisance of the hazards involved in pollution of the marine environment. The technical standard varies; some institutes are equipped with older apparatus based on manual methods, whereas others had access to modern analytical instruments. Information about the important centres for oceanographic research, at Tsingtao on the Yellow Sea coast and at Kwangchow for the south China Sea is presented.