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The China Initiative (from 12) doctorate in chemistry from Stanford
University, and is is considered the pre-
eminent expert in nanotechnology.
The Chinese nationals indicted earlier in
the case are Yanqing Ye, 29, who was Under Lieber’s three-year, Thousand Tal-
charged with one count each of visa fraud, ents contract, WUT paid Lieber $50,000
making false statements, acting as an per month; living expenses of up to
agent of a foreign government and con- 1,000,000 Chinese Yuan (approximately
spiracy. $158,000 U.S. at the time) and awarded
him more than $1.5 million to establish a
Biological research research lab at WUT.
Zaosong Zheng, 30, the other Chinese
national, was arrested on Dec. 10, 2019, In total, Lieber was convicted of six felo-
at Boston’s Logan International Airport and nies.
charged by criminal complaint with at-
tempting to smuggle 21 vials of biological Many awards
research to China. The former Harvard chemistry chair holds
a plethora of awards in his field includ-
According to court documents, since 2008, ing the Feynman Prize in Nanotechnol-
Lieber, who has served as the principal ogy (2001), the Wolf Prize in Chemistry
investigator of the Lieber Research Group (2012), the IEEE Nanotechnology Pioneer
at Harvard University, received more than Award (2013), and the Welch Award in
$15,000,000 in grant funding from the Chemistry (2019) among others.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) and De-
partment of Defense (DOD). These grants “Lieber’s contributions to the rational
require the disclosure of significant foreign growth, characterization, and applications
financial conflicts of interest, including of a range of functional nanoscale materi-
funding from foreign entities. als and heterostructures have provided
concepts central to the bottom-up para-
Scientific talent digm of nanoscience,” notes Wikipedia.
China’s program is designed to attract
recruit, and cultivate high-level scientific Suffering from lymphoma
talent in furtherance of China’s scientific
development, economic prosperity and na- Lieber’s sentence will be imposed by fed-
tional security, the Justice Dept. says. eral district court judge Rya Zobel based
upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and
other statuatory factors.
These programs, according to the Justice
Dept. seek to lure Chinese overseas talent
and foreign experts to bring their knowl- Last spring, Lieber asked for his trial to
edge and experience to China and reward be expedited because he is suffering from
individuals for stealing proprietary infor- lymphoma.
mation.
In addition to letters sent to the attor-
WUT paid Lieber $50,000 per month, living ney general, scientists, such as Dr. Ross
expenses of up to 1,000,000 Chinese Yuan McKinney Jr., chief scientific officer of the
(about $158,000 at the time) and awarded Association of Amereican Medical Colleges,
him more than $1.5 million to establish a says the China Initiative is causing anxiety
among his colleagues.
research lab at WUT. Lieber earned his
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