Newsletter No. 62

CUHK Newsletter No.62 4th January 1995 3 Oldest Indigenous Settlement Found on Lantau A recent find by the University's Centre for Chinese Archaeology and Art has disproved the decades-old theory that Hong Kong's earliest inhabitants lived on boats. Discovered at Pa Tau Kwu near the Tsing Ma Bridge on Lantau Island, the remains o f the 3,500-year-old fishing village include domestic tools and hut foundations wh i ch show that these Neolithic inhabitants lived on land. The excavation was made possible by a generous grant from the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club. However, more funding is needed for further excavation and for preserving the relics before work on the No. 9 Container Termi nal commences. Foundation of one of the round structures found at the site, believed to be the homes of the early inhabitants. P r o f e s s o r i a l Inaugural L e c t u r es Advance s i nLive r Operation s Giv e Lif e t o Man y F r o m time immemorial, the liver has been considered the organ of life,' said Prof. Joseph L au Wan-yee, professor of surgery, who delivered his inaugural lecture in Lecture Theatre 1 of the Science Centre on 25th November 1994. The title of the lecture, 'Surgeons and the First Sovereign Throne', is an allusion to Shakespeare's reference to the liver, brain, and heart, in that order, as 'sovereign thrones' in Twelfth Night. Prof. Lau claims that recent advances in liver surgery have saved, prolonged, and improved the lives of many patients. Owing to improvements in preoperative preparation, intraoperative monitoring, and postoperative intensive care therapy, liver surgery has become much safer and has therefore been extended into areas previously regarded as inoperable. Prof. Lau joined the University as senior lecturer in surgery in 1989, was promoted t o reader i n 1992, and professor in August 1993. CUH K Pioneer s Orthopaedi c Sport s Medicin e i n the Territor y S p o r t s medicine and sports science are gaining profile i n academia i n response to a heightened awareness among city dwellers of the role sports play in a healthy life. Prof. Chan Kai-ming, professor of orthopaedics and traumatology, expounded on the subject in his inaugural lecture 'Citius, Altius, Fortius—The Challenge o f Orthopaedic Sports Medicine' on 9th December 1994 i n the lecture theatre of the Prince o f Wales Hospital. In his lecture, Prof. Chan said that sports medicine has evolved quickly and has been brought into th e international limelight by the Olympic games. This trend is matched locally by analogous developments i n the f i e l d, pioneered by The Chinese University in the 1980s. The sports injury clinic, established in the Prince of Wales Hospital in 1984, is now one of the leading referral centres in the Asia Pacific region. This was followed by the setting up of a sports clinic i n the then Jubilee Sports Centre, a dance clinic at the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, the introduction o f isokinetic technology in the assessment and rehabilitation o f sports injury in 1985, and the hosting of the first Asia Pacific symposium on the subject i n 1990. The University's latest contribution takes the form o f the Hong Kong Centre o f Sports Medicine and Sports Science, established on campus in 1991. Prof. Chan went on to give an account o f the accomplishments o f the Univerity in the field, highlighting three major areas: arthroscopic surgery, isokinetic technology, and orthopaedic sports medicine research. A ll these have meant more and brighter hopes of recovery for injured athletes. Prof. Chan joined the University in 1983; was promoted to reader i n 1989, and professor in 1993. NEW ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES The Senate approved in its last meeting of 14th December the introduction o f seven new postgraduate programmes i n 1995-96. The actual date for launching such programmes w i l l however b e dependent on the availability of resources and student quota. The seven programmes are: 1. Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical and Automation Engineering 2. Master of Philosophy in Mechanical and Automation Engineering 3. Master of Philosophy i n Environmental Science 4. Master of Philosophy in Food and Nutritional Sciences 5. Master o f Science i n Computer Science 6. Master o f Social Science i n Industrial- Organizational Psychology 7. Master of Science in Nursing Item 7 will be a taught programme, likely to be organized on a self-financing basis; the name o f the degree t o be awarded may in due course be changed to Master of Nursing, subject to successful amendment o f relevant Un i ve r s i ty Statutes. On the same occasion the School of Continuing Studies obtained approval from the Senate to introduce a diploma programme in critical care nursing this April, and a certificate programme i n traditional Chinese medicine in September 1995.