On Dec. 27, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences announced 26 major achievements of its Innovation Program for 2017.

On Dec. 27, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences announced 26 major achievements of its Innovation Program for 2017.

The major achievements were selected out of nearly 300 monographs, more than 4,000 papers, more than 200 research report and thesis collections, and more than 100 categories of academic materials, collated ancient books, translation books, popular readings and textbooks that CASS scholars finished in 2017, the year marking the 40th anniversary of the premier think tank. 

The series “Socialist Path with Chinese Characteristics and Implications for the World,” which elaborates on core socialist values and criticizes bourgeoisie values, includes four papers: “On the Anti-Scientific, Hypocritical and Deceptive Nature of ‘Universal Values,’” “How to Recognize the Implications of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in the 21st Century for the World,” “On the New Concept of Democracy and Comprehensive Political Development,” and “Firming the Confidence in Core Socialist Values: Developing and Surpassing Core Capitalist Values.”

Fundamental research has always been a priority of CASS. One of the achievements, the seven-volume Chinese translation of The Cambridge Ancient History, was completed after 10 years of efforts. Consisting of 14 volumes in 19 books, The Cambridge Ancient History covers prehistory and the ancient histories of Egypt, the Near East, Greece, Rome, Christianity and Islam as well as a variety of ancient texts, such as Egyptian hieroglyphs, West Asian cuneiform, ancient Greek and Latin. 

The Photo Album of Ancient Chinese History was collectively produced by more than 10 authors over a span of nearly 60 years. The work comprises 11 volumes, 17 books, more than 2 million Chinese characters and more than 9,600 pictures. It includes newly discovered pottery, bronzeware, bamboo slips, documents, inscriptions, murals and terra cotta sculptures, and lost calligraphy and paintings that are housed in foreign libraries and rarely seen in China.

The two-volume Archaeology of Pre-Qin Cities is a collection of archaeological materials and history on Pre-Qin cities obtained in the last seven decades. It keeps track of more than 100 cities and provides a panoramic view of the evolution of Pre-Qin cities over 7,000 years. 

The three-volume Lugu Village in Huixian City absorbs materials about the excavation of Han graves that the Institute of Archaeology at CASS conducted from April 2006 to December 2017 in Lugu Village in Huixian City, Central China’s Henan Province. It is valuable for research of the burial system in the Han Dynasty in northern Henan.

Based on solid fundamental research, CASS has achieved results on major theoretical and practical issues. The conference released 13 research outcomes in this regard, accounting for half of the total achievements. They include the Commentary and Annotation of the Civil Law of the People’s Republic of China, Study of China’s Systemic Economic Reform under the Developmental New Normal and the Balance Sheet of Chinese Government 2017. The Series on Chinese Systems provides an introduction to Chinese legal, economic, distribution, social security and political systems. 

The Economy of China: Analysis and Forecast (2018) and the Society of China: Analysis and Forecast (2018) offer analysis and forecast of the macroeconomic situation and social development, respectively, and the Annual Report on Combating Corruption and Upholding Integrity in China (No.7) presents an overall portrait of the progress of anti-graft work since the 18th CPC National Congress.

In addition, CASS also performed its think tank duties in 2017, providing valuable materials to inform the decision-making of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. It submitted a host of confidential research reports to the central government, shedding light on such issues as supply-side structural reform, rule of law, targeted poverty alleviation and the building of the Xiongan New Area. 

The release conference was sponsored by CASS and organized by the Bureau of Scientific Research Management at CASS.