(Yicai Global) Dec. 15 -- Applications for science fund projects in China have hit record highs in recent years, but the trend of ever younger project managers is obvious, noted Yang Wei, a member of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and Chinese Academy of Sciences, as the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.

Yang made these remarks at a national natural science fund management meeting held recently.

The average annual growth rate of applications for science fund projects has reached 11 , while the age distribution of project leaders has shifted from 40 to 50 years' old in 2010 to the current 30 to 45, Yang said.

Part of the reason is that, in recent years, the enthusiasm of young scientists returning home from overseas has been high, Yang said. In the past, small numbers of people returned home for development, but now the number of those going abroad and returning home has formed an equilibrium.

Against the backdrop of an upsurge in the number of applications for projects, the project funding rate this year will basically be the same as last year's, but the amount of funding for young researchers has increased. Financing for science fund projects for youthful talents this year has risen to nearly CNY230,000 (USD33,000) per project, up 18 percent over last year, Yang added.

Relevant statistics show that the number of citations to international scientific papers published by Chinese scientists has jumped from 10th in the world in 2008 to number two this year.