BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's basic research capabilities have increased significantly, yielding a number of key original achievements with global influence, Vice Minister of Science and Technology Long Teng said at a State Council Information Office press conference on Thursday.

Long said that in the field of basic research, China has actively supported free exploration driven by curiosity during its 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

He cited accomplishments such as the development of a novel programmable technology for the precise manipulation of large chromosomal DNA fragments, as well as the first-ever revelation of young magmatic activity on the far side of the moon, which has provided key scientific evidence to improve our understanding of lunar evolution.

Currently, Chinese contributions account for about a third of the world's highly cited scientific papers, with China ranking second globally for four consecutive years. In 2024, 1,405 highly cited researchers were from China -- a 50 percent increase from 2021 and a fifth of the world's total, Long said.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China continued to advance the construction of sci-tech infrastructure and platforms, providing strong support for major research missions, he noted, citing the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) as an example. The telescope has discovered over 1,000 pulsars, which is more than the total number found by all other countries combined, making a significant contribution to exploring the mysteries of the universe.