An Analysis of the Computer Industry as Part of China's Commitment to Modernize

Abstract

China has often been called the land of antiquity. This country of many imbalances, has the oldest recognizable civilization and the largest population in the world. Although the originator of many scientific inventions, China, because of its geography, traditional views, self-imposed periods of isolation, and violent and frequent political upheavals, has fallen far behind the world in progress. In 1978, the People's Republic of China made a new commitment to advancement by adopting the plan of the four modernizations. This plan pinpoints four sectors of the economy for improvement to the current state of the art: agriculture, military, industry, and science and technology. No one can really give a comprehensive representation of the Chinese computer development. The industry is very fragmented and controlled by a number of non-scientific factors. This paper tries to examine some of the facets of the developing industry, including a summary of the machines constructed to date. China continues to progress under a seeminly overwhelming group of social, political, and economic barriers, and all results point to a gradual, but continued advancement.