When Trump announced the "Liberation Day" tariffs on April 2nd, multiple AI-generated videos began to go viral on China's internet as if to say, "Are you sure you want to do this yourselves?"

China questions whether the West has the ability to sustain an advanced technological society in the long term while emphasizing its own "strategic composure," which the West lacks.

This statement stems from a low-key declaration by China in the nuclear field. China has built a small thorium molten salt reactor, achieving a significant breakthrough in fourth-generation nuclear energy technology.

Xu Hongjie, leader of the Thorium Molten Salt Reactor Nuclear Energy System Pilot Special Project, compared the perseverance of Chinese engineers with that of their Western counterparts and fickle policy elites when announcing this achievement.

In an interview with Chinese media, he said that the U.S. abandoned the development of molten salt reactors in the 1970s and made all research and development technical data public, waiting for "future beneficiaries."

Regarding nuclear energy issues, Xu Hongjie said, "Rabbits sometimes make mistakes or slack off, which is when the tortoise wins the race." "To accomplish something in this field, one must have composure and be prepared to focus on one thing for two or three decades."

These words are indeed hurtful because we know they are true: we lack "strategic composure."

Xu Hongjie's words also carry deeper meaning: a challenge to civilization.

James Wadoux, guest professor of forecasting and innovation at London South Bank University, said, "We should feel worried. Contrary to popular belief, humans are defined not by their communication methods or psychological characteristics, but by their productive achievements."

The decline of civilizations has many reasons, but one of them is that they no longer take important things seriously. Our policy elites are obsessed with speculative issues rather than focusing on resilience and energy security. Policy experts only focus on minor adjustments and tactics that bring marginal benefits, neglecting the bigger picture.

People with scientific and technical backgrounds are almost extinct in Whitehall and policy think tanks in the UK. Innovation activities led by engineering in key technical fields vital to maintaining social prosperity are being neglected.

China's recent statement is akin to rubbing salt into our wounds, and we are well aware of it—this pain is self-inflicted. (Translated by Wang Dongdong)

This article was published on the website of Britain's Daily Telegraph on May 6th, with the original title "Civilizations Decline When They No Longer Take Important Things Seriously," written by Andrew Olovsky.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7501968859893596726/

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