Academia Sinica, Taiwan

Academia Sinica, Taiwan
www.sinica.edu.tw
Academia Sinica, the most preeminent academic institution in Taiwan, was founded in 1928 to pursue research excellence. It undertakes the mission to conduct cutting-edge research in sciences and the humanities, nurture academic talents and issue policy advisories. It has 24 institutes and 7 research centers that are organized into three divisions: Mathematics and Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Humanities and Social Sciences. At present, there are about 800 principal investigators, 700 postdocs, and more than 1000 Ph.D. students, supported by an annual budget over US$400 million. Among its 246 academicians, there are 6 Nobel laureates

RECENT ACHIVEMENTS

As Taiwan's national academy of sciences, Academia Sinica shoulders the responsibility of studying key national issues and reporting on them to the government for policy-making. Two recent reports on energy and health care have been issued and are well received. Academia Sinica has also helped enact the Taiwan Biotech and New Pharmaceutical Development Act which, similar to the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act in the US, is expected to assist Taiwan to upgrade further by entering the knowledge-based biotech industry, in addition to the well-established high-tech sector.

Taiwan's biotech research strength is in early-stage discoveries. Academia Sinica is making great efforts to help translate its research results into commercial opportunity and consistently seeking to protect intellectual property and facilitate technology transfers. In terms of the number of biotech patents issued by the United States, Taiwan is now ranked number 13 in the world and one-third of the patents are from Academia Sinica. It is hoped that Taiwan will have at least 5% of the world biotech market within 10 years.

Academia Sinica is making advances in the recruitment of top researchers, the improvement of research environment, integration of areas of study, and sharing of intellectual wealth with society. Academia Sinica has seen an increase in the hiring of top-notch foreign researchers while trying to create a more globalized environment to better facilitate their integration in our society. It has also seen a rapid growth in research productivity. The number of citations per paper has increased to 9.15, exceeding many leading universities and institutions in the region.

The Yuan Tseh Lee Array for Microwave Background Anisotropy (AMiBA) on Mauna Loa, HawaiiIn terms of talent cultivation and training, Academia Sinica has collaborated with local universities on University Degree Program (for local students) and Taiwan International Graduate Program (TIGP, for international and local students, with all-English teaching and research environment). These joint Ph.D. Programs, focused on interdisciplinary studies, will help strengthen graduate education in Taiwan and attract a growing number of students who can become internationally competitive.
To integrate its existing resources and expand research facilities and space, Academia Sinica is now working on an ambitious campus expansion project. It would get 62 acres of land from the government, merging with its present 94 acres of campus. That area is planned to house a National Biotechnology Research Park, including facilities for biology, translational medicine, and international studies, plus an incubation center for biotechnology and additional housing units. This biotech park, enjoying an advantage of easy transportation (where the MRT, Taiwan Railway and the Taiwan High-Speed Rail meet), will not only lead cutting edge research in biology but offer better chances for international venture capital and companies looking for business partners in the greater Chinese community including China and Hong Kong.
In the future, Academia Sinica will continue its proud academic tradition of pursuing excellence in research while working with other academic institutions around the world to