The pace of the creation of new technology depends on the system allowing the creation. In a free-to-create system you can have unrelated conditions coming together to create new technologies where those technologies formerly did not exist. The examples are the Wright Brothers creating an aircraft in their bicycle shop, or Hewlett-Packard being founded in a one-car garage in Palo Alto by William (Bill) Redington Hewlett and Dave Packard to create a personal computer market where one did not exist before. Or even Apple computer being started by founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak in a garage to go on to create an industry that did not exist before.
The point is that China is not set up like that. China is not set up to allow seemly unrelated technologies to come together in a manner that gives birth to a completely new direction.
And this is why the constant cry in China is to innovate. Innovation is the weak spot in the Chinese system. And to state that pushing the fringe of new technologies goes at a slower rate than those trying to catch up fails to take into account the creative energies flowing in cultures that make it possible for somebody in a garage to come with something that can spawn a completely new industry seemly out of nowhere.
There will always be innovation flowing that will maintain the creative edge for those countries with the lead. They realize that their lead is maintained by out the box thinking. Its literally in the DNA. And that out the box thinking makes it very difficult for those countries with a step by step incremental approach to development of technology to ever gain a lead. The more they become dependent upon following the more they will be followers
There goes your silly argument about environmental condition to inhibit innovative thinking. There goes your bashing that the Chinese system is just too inferior to create anything on its own. Uhh...the Chinese has been inventing for thousands of yours through out many forms of governments and dynasties. In the end it's all about the scientific talents, knowledge and skills that makes it happen. You don't think Leonardo De Vinci couldn't be as instrumental during his time considering he has to face challenges and accusation of witch craft from the Catholic Churches inquisition? The man just focus on his work, don't care about the politics, but yet being careful of the situation outside of his lab. All countries are inherited with a scientific DNA to do research and developed. It's the country that continues to promote science, math, and research with the discipline can achieve greatness.
The so called "constant cry of innovation" in China is more about the manufacturing of goods and services for the public, NOT high tech stuff. But here a list of modern Chinese inventions:
Anti-ship ballistic missile: The anti-ship ballistic missile is a quasiballistic missile designed to hit a warship at sea. The Chinese military developed the "world’s first anti-ship ballistic missile system", although officials at the United States Navy are uncertain of the weapon's efficacy. According to the U.S. Navy, the ASBM is currently in "initial operational capability" and is approaching deployment.
Arteminisinin, anti-malarial treatment: The antimalarial drug of compound artemisinin found in Artemisia annua, the latter being a plant long used in traditional Chinese medicine, was discovered in 1972 by Chinese scientists in the People's Republic led by Tu Youyou (???) and has been used to treat multi-drug resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum malaria.
Cloning, fish: In 1963, Chinese embryologist Tong Dizhou produced the world's first cloned fish by inserting the DNA from a cell of a male carp into an egg from a female carp. He published the findings in a Chinese science journal. This occurred eleven years after the first alleged cloning of an animal, tadpoles in 1952, and 34 years before the cloning of Dolly the Sheep in 1996.
Electronic cigarette, electronic cigar, electronic pipe: The electronic cigarette, an electrical device that attempts to simulate the act of tobacco smoking, was invented in 2003 by Hon Lik, a Chinese pharmacist in Beijing. The patent for the invention is owned by Ruyan, a pharmaceutical corporation based in Hong Kong. The electronic cigarette consists of "a small lithium battery that atomizes a liquid solution of nicotine", producing a vapor that is inhaled.
Heterosis in rice, three-line hybrid rice system: A team of agricultural scientists headed by Yuan Longping applied heterosis to rice, developing the three-line hybrid rice system in 1973. The innovation allowed for roughly 12,000 kg (26,450 lbs) of rice to be grown per hectare (10,000 m2). Hybrid rice has proven to be greatly beneficial in areas where there is little arable land, and has been adopted by several Asian and African countries. Yuan won the 2004 Wolf Prize in agriculture for his work.
Maglev wind power generators: In 2006, a new type of wind power generator employing magnetic levitation (maglev) was showcased at the Wind Power Asia Exhibition in Beijing. Li Guokun was the chief scientific developer of the new maglev wind power generator, in collaboration with the Guangzhou Energy Research Institute under the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Zhongke Hengyuan Energy Technology Company based in Guangzhou. Li Guokun states that traditional wind turbines need high wind speeds to start, due to friction caused by their bearings. The new frictionless maglev wind generator requires wind speeds of only 1.5 m per second (or 5 km an hour) to start and are expected to cut operational costs for wind farms by half, i.e. overall cost of roughly 0.4 Chinese yuan per kilowatt hour.
Synthesis of crystalline bovine insulin: In 1965, Chinese scientists synthesized bovine insulin, with the "same crystalline form and biological activities as natural insulin."[529][530] The project began in 1958, and is considered one of the "first proteins ever synthesized in vitro.
Tianhe interconnect, supercomputing: According to Ashlee Vance, Chinese researchers have developed an interconnect that "can handle data at about twice the speed of InfiniBand." This interconnect is essential to the Tianhe-IA, which is currently the second fastest supercomputer in the world.
And that's just the tip of the ice berg my friend.
