CHICAGO (WBBM) -- A Northwestern University specialist in U.S.-Chinese relations says the world will be a different place with China increasing in military and economic power.

But professor Benjamin Page, author of Living with the Dragon: How the American Public Views the Rise of China, also says there is no reason for the anxiety many Americans feel about China.

LISTEN: Newsradio 780's John Cody reports

Page says while China is the second largest individual economy in the world, it still has quite a way to go on a individual basis.

"It's hard for people to remember that China is still a rather poor country," Page said. "We talk about how big the economy is getting, but that's only the total size because it's such an enormous population, so they don't have a lot of money."

The CIA fact book has gross domestic product per capita at $47,000 for the U.S., compared with a mere $7,400 for China.

Chinese president Hu Jintao arrives in Chicago for a two-day visit Thursday afternoon.