region and its development is not yet significant. Nevertheless, the development of new
materials is expected to become more and more important in resource scarce countries
which are attempting to climb the technology ladder. New materials such as reinforced
plastics and advanced ceramics are of higher commercial value than the traditional
materials in terms of durability and weather resistance. Artificial intelligence (AI) is
a branch of computer science designed to enable machines to deal not only with
numbers, but also with knowledge and ideas, and to think and reason. Among the four
ANIES, AI is most developed in Singapore and has just started in Hong Kong. AI
consists of computer programmes designed to train non-experts to perform tasks
normally handled by experts. A new technician or engineer can quickly pick up the new
skill via the use of the AI programme. In other words, the design and implementation
of labour training can be conducted via the computer. Besides, robotics, another branch
of computer science, is also a new development in the ANIES. Although robots are also
designed to replace human tasks; different from AI, the tasks which a robot replaces
are rather mechanical and manual.
In future, we expect to see the concurrent development of heavy and light industries
in the ANIES. Heavy industry is not important in Hong Kong but will become more and
more significant in the other three ANIES. Traditional heavy industries, such as
petroleum, shipbuilding, automobile and steel manufacturing will continue to be
emphasized. It is noteworthy that two new heavy industries are emerging in the ANIES,
namely the aerospace industry and the chemical industry. Strictly speaking, these
industries are not new in Asia Pacific. But the ANIES seem to have found new niches
in these industries. The aerospace industry is developing very rapidly over the past five
years in Singapore and Taiwan. While the aircraft industry of Singapore is more
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