Back in the 1970's, for the first time ever, the total number of doctoral students in engineering in the U.S. was lower than that of all other countries on Earth combined. In 1972, many futuristic economist and sociologists predicted that this signified the end of the American Era, because in the age of manufacturing and industry, engineer and technicians in R&D were the most important part of human resource. Also in 1972, the decoupling of the US dollar from gold along with two oil crises in the world, led the U.S. economy to drop from 40% of world's total GDP to less than 30% in 1990, which seemed to have validated the above mentioned predictions.

Yet since the 1990s, not only did the U.S. economy discontinue its downward spiral, driven by a series of innovations in technology and business management, a gradual revival actually emerged. Even though the percentage of doctoral students in engineering in the U.S. versus that of the rest of the world continued its decline, the latest technological breakthroughs and their commercial applications all took place in America in the past 20 years. In science and technology, a whole new development in society has been brought about by advances in aerospace, computer science, and the Internet. Those leading tech companies have all been American, so do the traditional industries such as express shipping, fast food, and grocery and merchandise super centers.

20 million Americans lost their jobs in two decades in the 1970's when brick and mortar industries declined, which is quite shocking given that the total U.S. population was just over 200 million. But unlike what happened in Europe, long term unemployment did not persist at high level in the U.S. Those laid off in the old economy in the U.S. were quickly absorbed by the new economy, keeping the U.S. unemployment rate at a relatively low level.

Visionary management guru Peter Drucker coined the term "Innovation Economy" for the new reality. At the end of the last century, the then 80 year-old Drucker indicated that only the U.S. had successfully transformed into an "entrepreneurial innovation economy", whereas countries such as Japan, however, had only done so haphazardly.

Innovation requires creativity, and not just new, creative ideas. Innovation is a form of culture that supports social, culture and economic environment in which the innovation economy could flourish.

A nation's spirit is shaped by its culture, which is especially the case when the nation is faced with adversary conditions. Almost all of the most popular icons in the United States were created during the Great Depression in the 1930's. From Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, to Superman and Batman, American characters are portrayed in these animated images. The latter represents heroism that saves the world, while the former represents the humorous, relentless, and optimistic nature of America.

And, cultural innovation in America during the Great Depression was not limited to just animate productions. Broadway musicals, Hollywood films, and modern music all started during that time and reached the climax in the following decades. Movies such as "Gone with the Wind" and "The Sound of Music" are some of the world's favorite productions from that period. With inflations taken into considerations, box office proceeds of these works of art far exceeded that of contemporary Hollywood blockbusters.

In scientific research, this phenomenon is also quite prominent. Over the past four or five decades, the United States has accounted for almost two-thirds of all the Nobel Prize winners in science.

This reminds us of the European Renaissance and the Hundreds of Philosophers Period of Chinese history prior to the Great Tang Dynasty. Culture and artistic revivals create the character and spirit of a nation, which is quite analogous to modern day America. The only difference is that the increasingly fast pace of modern society has eliminated the need for hundreds of years to pass on the spirit to the whole country.

For the re-emergence of the Chinese nation, the same process is necessary. However, the Chinese Communist regime has created an institutional and structural barrier to this cultural and artistic renaissance. It has then become a tremendous responsibility and duty for the isolated island of Taiwan to shoulder this task. How to utilize modern conceptualization to re-interpret the intricate Chinese tradition and culture has become the keystone in the revival of Chinese nation, not because of the economic benefit that can be garnered in the cultural markets, nor the need to seek 「soft power」 in global politics.

That, in itself, is the purpose of this special issue on the significance of cultural innovation.◇