Sci-tech's future: Ocean deep, sky high

On Tuesday, China celebrated its first Science and Technology Workers' Day, marking a year since the country declared its intention to become a leading power in the field by the middle of the century. And things have moved pretty swiftly, from the depths of the sea to the heavens.

China's manned submersible, the Jiaolong, went literally to the bottom of the ocean this week, diving three times into the Mariana Trench and reaching a depth of 6,699 meters on Tuesday. Scientists collected samples of seawater, rock and marine life, including sea cucumbers, sponges and starfish. The geological samples will help them understand how the trench was formed.

Space is another frontier to be conquered. In southwest China in September, the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope, the world's largest radio telescope, began scanning the skies. Its mission is to increase understanding about the origin and structure of the universe, and perhaps bring the search for extraterrestrial life closer to what would be an astonishing conclusion.