The current spurt in life science activity in China has been driven by repatriating researchers trained in the prestigious institutions of the world. China's publications show a clear concentration in the physical sciences and technology, with materials science, chemistry, and physics predominant. Also clear is that the growth areas include agricultural sciences, displaying the highest growth, then life-sciences including immunology, microbiology, and molecular biology and genetics. In this commentary, the author shares his opinion on why he believes China will have an enormous effect on education and research throughout the world. (Contains 1 figure.)