Bulletin Number Four 1985

served as Vice-Chairman o f the Hong Kong Research Council in Biological Education (1971-80 )， and was President o f the Hong Kong Society o f Microbiology (1982-84). Professor Chang was appointed Head o f the Hong Kong Delegation to the 12th Pacific Science Congress, Canberra, Australia, in 1971 and also to the 13th Pacific Science Congress, Vancouver, BC ， Canada, in 1975. Professor Chang's research interests and publi cations are mainly in the areas o f fungal genetics, protoplast fusion technology and the biology and cultivation o f edible mushrooms, particularly Volvariella volvacea, Pleurotus sajor-caju and Lentinus edodes. He has published six books and more than sixty papers in scientific journals. Pro fessor Chang is now the Editor-in-Chief o f the Mushroom Newsletter fo r the Tropics, which is the official publication o f the International Mushroom Society for the Tropics, Editor o f Microbiology Newsletter published by the Regional Network for Microbiology in Southeast Asia, and member o f the Editorial Board o f MIRCEN Journal o f Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, Oxford University Press, London. Depa r tmen t o f Chemi st ry Chemistry is a central science w ith Physics and Mathematics on one side and the Life Sciences, Earth Sciences and Medicine on the other. Traditionally Chemistry is classified into five main divisions: Ana lytical, Inorganic, Organic, Physical, and Theoretical, whereas crosslinking o f these parts leads to more specialized sub-fields such as Physical Inorganic and Organometallic Chemistry. Basic chemical researches, starting in the middle o f the last century, were mainly responsible for the discovery and production o f many new materials which had an enormous impact on the development o f human society. Important chemical industries now play an indispensable part in our daily lives, as evidenced by such products as synthetic fibres, dyes, plastics, rubbers, glass, paint, pharma ceuticals, fuels, petrochemicals, insecticides and herbicides. The modem chemist is essential to the rapid development o f new materials for high tech­ nology, e.g. in the design and manufacture o f micro­ processors, semiconductor devices, optical fibres, and liquid crystal displays. He is also involved in the broader aspects o f community life , as in teaching, patent law, pollution monitoring and control, forensic science, crime detection, and quality control. The extensiveness o f these activities means that the Chemistry graduate enjoys many and varied career prospects in manufacturing industry, government laboratories and education. In addition, w ith his training in analytical perception and logical deduction as well as command o f technical knowledge, a Chem­ istry graduate is well equipped to pursue a career in management and administration. The Department o f Chemistry is among the oldest and largest in the University. The smaller College Departments were physically amalgamated into a single unit when, in the summer o f 1972 ， the Department moved into five floors o f space totalling 3,300 sq. m. in the Science Centre. Currently the Department has sixteen faculty positions, 219 major students, and sixteen graduate students. Major instru ments for teaching and research include a Bruker WM250 superconducting NMR spectrometer, a VG 70-70 high resolution GC/MS system, and a Nicolet R3m four-circle X-ray diffractometer. Research Activities Research in pure and applied chemistry con tinues to develop at a rapid pace. Current activities o f the faculty members are briefly summarized as follows: Tze-lock Chan Synthesis o f cyclophanes via organosulfur com pounds; dimethyl sulfone-triggered generation o f dihalocarbenes from polyhalogenated methanes. Ping-kay Hon Trace analysis by atomic absorption, UV, VIS and fluorescence spectrometry; crystal structure deter mination. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 15