In this Olympic year, all eyes are on China. On track to become the world’s third largest economy, with just the United States and Japan bigger and Germany about to be displaced to fourth, China is also becoming a science superpower. Nature takes the China road too this week, with the accent on what is happening in science. See the panel in the Editorial on page 367 and on the web landing page (www.nature.com/news/specials/china/) for a full contents listing. Highlights include a look at the prospects for clean coal technology [page 388], the perils of climate change in Tibet [page 393], and a look back at the achievements of Joseph Needham, who championed the Chinese cause for nearly fifty years and edited the influential Science and Civilisation in China series [page 409]. And this week’s podcast covers China as well [www.nature.com/podcast]. The cover image is of course the iconic ‘birds’ nest’, the main stadium for the Beijing Olympics, which open on 8 August. (Picture: AP Photo/Greg Baker)