Academic Freedom in China

[Basilm]

Yes, there's "academic freedom" in the so-called hard sciences (natural sciences) no matter if its in China or the world, because it is so easy to quantify natural sciences. You invest X amount of money and you know that you will roughly end up with Y as a result. Hence why all major nations pour money into the natural sciences, while humanities / social sciences tend to be less funded as "immediate results" are difficult to discern, if even possible...might take a generation to 'digest' eventual findings/conclusions.

 

With that said, people promoting natural sciences over anything else don't seem to be aware that all of them make philosophical assumptions, when for example conducting an experiment, or looking through a microscope, or whatever you will. Metaphysics 101 teaches us this, just that no one is willing to listen - it is a sharp dichotomy between the "real sciences" and the "humbug humanities", sadly.

 

As indicated from my previous post, I was referring to the humanities and social sciences, as that's where I have some insight, in both China and Europe. 

 

In a nutshell: go against the master narrative with your research in China = it will be disallowed, your position compromised from the get-go, and you either need to get in-line or get booted.

 

In Europe: it's okay to go against the master narrative, what we want to 'push', but if your results or conclusions of your research is not in at least indirect (slight) accordance with what the uni (government) want to foster = you get no funding / difficult time being promoted. 

(As unis even in Europe are become more and more intertwined with the market, and politics....at least in Northern Europe and the UK)

 

There's academic freedom in all disciplines, all over the world, as long as you're willing to conduct that research from your couch with no salary