Newsletter No. 11

CUHK Newsletter Symposium on The State, Education and Development in the New Industrialized Economies' T h e School of Education and the Hong Kong Centre for Economic Research hosted a symposium on 'The State, Education and Development in the New Industrialized Economies: Social and Economic Consequences' from 20th to 22nd September, with participants coming from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States. The symposium aimed at examining the economic development of the Tour Dragons of Asia', i.e. Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and Singapore, and the relationship between their rapid growth and the education standard of their citizens. Scholars also explored how state educational and economic policies had affected the development of the four dragons in the past and how they would affect these places in the future. Ten papers were presented in the symposium. The function was sponsored by the University of California Pacific Rim Committee, which has provided funds for scholars to undertake research in the four areas. Academic Exchange with the Academia Sinica, Beijing A n agreement to promote academic exchange between the University and the Academia Sinica was signed on 6th September on the campus. Mr. Zhou Guang-zhao, director of the Academia Sinica, attended the signing ceremony and visited the University at the invitation of Prof. Charles K. Kao, the vice-chancellor. A similar agreement was signed between the two institutions four years ago in 1986. The present agreement makes it possible for the two institutions to further develop collaborative programmes in the coming three years. These will include exchange of visits, joint supervision of Ph.D. and research students, collaborative research, and cosponsorship of conferences and seminars. The ICS booth at the Singapore Book Fair '90 T h e Institute of Chinese Studies participated in the 22nd Singapore International Festival of Books and Book Fair '90. The Book Fair was held in the Singapore World Trade Centre from 1st to 9th September and saw a record turn-out of one million visitors. A large number of international publishers were represented at the Fair and the Institute of Chinese Studies was the only direct participant from Hong Kong. Besides generating public interest in the Institute's publications, the exhibition of ICS books also served to bring about several business deals, including an exclusive distribution arrangement for the Renditions Paperbacks in Singapore. The Computer Services Centre Offers In-house Microcomputer Maintenance Services A n in-house microcomputer maintenance service (IMS) has recently been introduced by the Computer Services Centre (CSC) to provide a more cost-effective solution to maintenance issues faced by microcomputer users in the University. The service is self-financing and jointly administered by the CSC and the University Bursary. By offering comprehensive, speedy, and high-quality services on campus at a reasonable cost to user- departments, the IMS can indirectly help to reduce the University's overall expenses on microcomputer maintenance. The package offered by the CSC covers the following areas: Telephone Hotline Support - Professionals will answer questions on hardware technical problems and basic software operational problems over the phone during office hours. Field Service 一 On-site remedial and assistance service including system setup, disk formating and DOS configuration. hardware and software installation, trouble shooting, problem identification, hardware problem rectification, and parts replacement and repairing will be available within three hours after a request has been lodged. Continuous Remedial Maintenance — Continuous service will be provided until a problem is solved. Scheduled Preventive Maintenance — Preventive maintenance service can be arranged at the user-department's convenience, usually when the work-load is low or before a peak-season sets in, to keep the systems up-to-date and efficient. Service History Record - A 'health-record' of each of the machines maintained will be kept for easy reference by the user- department as well as IMS specialists. Advisory Support from CSC's Microcomputer Application Support Section (MCAS) 一 All clients can seek MCAS, support and advice on hardware/software 2