Jan ObergPhD, director, The Transnational Foundation for Peace and Future Research, TFFLund, Sweden October 2, 2026 This is my full original manuscript. The Chinese Academy of Social Science, CASS, makes two publications out if it. 1. China’s Five-year plan emphasized the capabilities of basic research and original innovation. It is regarded as the goal of the future social development, which, as required, should be significantly enhanced. Can you comment on the importance of original innovation in research and academic study? I believe it is easier to define “original innovation” in the natural sciences than in social sciences. The breaking points of what constitutes something new, or innovative, are not quite as sharp in the latter. But in both fields it is about opening up something that was closed, unseen, unexplored before – making manifest what was earlier latent. Innovations come in many forms and shapes – naming something that was not...
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Great intellectual conversation. I Especially found two points interesting. First Jan’s perspective about how the West only have one solution on everything, and dont think in multiple, different solutions. I agree. That seems to be a cultural thing in western thinking. That leads to narrow thinking. Second, Jeff’s points about academic institutions and experts very interesting. I would like to read more about cases, where people got fired in the academic world and in the media because they had a wrong opinion. Jeff was an interesting acquaintance and seems like a hard working man, at the end of interview 🙂 “Everyday I wake up and go, I gotta get back out there and keep writing and keep reporting no matter how depressing it gets”