Newsletter No. 130

Sympos i ums t o Celebrate 35 t h Anniversary T wo international symposiums were organized in June and August respectively to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the University. The International Symposium on Decision Sciences was organized by the Department of Decision Sciences and Managerial Economics on 13th and 14th June at the Regal Riverside Hotel in Sha Tin. Over 80 scholars from the UK, US, mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong attended the function, wh i ch comprised sessions on management i n f o rma t i on systems and decision sciences. Prof. Eden Yu was convener of the programme committee. From 2nd to 7th August, the Department of Chemistry hosted the Ninth International Symposium on Novel Aromatic Compounds (ISNA-9) at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. It was the first international conference held in Hong Kong that had been endorsed by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). The event attracted over 250 participants and was officially opened by Prof. Arthur K.C. Li and Prof. Zhang Cunhao, president of the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Prof. Lawrence T. Scott of Boston College, a renowned scholar in the field, delivered the first Nozoe Memorial Lecture entitled 'Geodesic Polyarenes with Exposed Concave Surfaces' on 3rd August. Plenary lectures, invited lectures, and poster sessions were also given by leading professional chemists the world over. Aromatic compounds are compounds which, owing to particular arrangements of π-electrons in them, possess unusual chemical, physical, and b i o l og i cal properties. The spectrum of aromatic compounds today spans f r om high potency pharmaceuticals to hi-tech materials with special electronic, optical, and magnetic responses. Some of them can mimic the functions of enzymes in biological systems. CUHK and TWGHs Pool Efforts to Promote Chinese Medicine T he University signed a memorandum w i t h the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals on 5th June to collaborate in the promotion of education, training, and research in Chinese medicine. The University will admit its first batch of 15 full-time students in Chinese Medicine in 1999. Under this memorandum, the students w i ll go to the Chinese Medicine Clinic of Kwong Wah Hospital for clinical attachment during the course of their study. The memorandum also paves the way for the organization of symposia, seminars, and meetings on Chinese medicine, the development of the clinical practice of Chinese medicine, as well as the promotion of clinical research on the safe and proper administration of Chinese medicine. Scholars invited to teach on the University's Chinese Medicine Programme w i l l be attached to the Chinese Medicine Clinic of Kwong Wah Hospital while selected Chinese medicine practitioners of TWGHs will be appointed as honorary/adjunct teachers of the programme. Royal Party Given a Taste of CU's Bicultural Tradition T heir Royal Highness The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester visited the University on 21 st July during their first official visit to Hong Kong since 1st July 1997. The Duke and Duchess were greeted by Prof. Arthur K.C. Li, vice-chancellor, who introduced to them Dr. Lee Hon Chiu, chairman of the University Council, Dr. the Honourable Lee Quo Wei, past chairman and Life Member of the University Council, and Profs. Ambrose K i ng and Kenneth Young, pro-vice-chancellors. The royal couple were given a tour of the Art Museum and the Department of Architecture. Incidentally the University was the only tertiary institution they visited in Hong Kong. The Duke of Gloucester (left), himself a qualified architect, was presented a bracket set by Prof. Tunney Lee, chairman of the Department of Architecture. The department applied computer-aided design techniques to create a three- dimensional virtual model which was then tendered in physical form by the Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering using rapid prototype techniques. The set is one of the most distinctive features in traditional Chinese wood construction. The royal couple, flanked by Prof. Arthur K.C. Li and Dr. Lee Hon Chiu, were presented a memento of their visit to the University. CUHK Co-hosts Tufts University Leadership Institute Closing ceremony of the programme. Wong Hiu-yung is pictured second from right and Lee Mei-bo second from left. Prof. Kenneth Young (seated third from left), pro-vice- chancellor, who made welcoming remarks is seated next to Dr. Harry Fang (seated middle) who delivered the keynote address. T he University was one of four universities working collaboratively to launch the Tufts Institute for Leadership and International Perspective this summer. The first of its kind, the institute prepares students for leadership across cultures in the Asia Pacific. On this inaugural programme, seven students from Tufts University in the US were paired with seven students from The Chinese University, the University of Hong Kong, and Peking University. The University's representatives are Computer Science and Engineering student Wong Hiu-yung and Government and Public Administration student Lee Mei-bo. For six weeks, the students worked w i th their mentors in the corporate community who posed real-life problems for them to solve. The problems may cover areas including human resource issues, marketing, finance, and health care. In February 1999 they will spend two weeks in Boston to present their findings and recommendations. They will spend the next several months communicating via e-mail to refine and develop their projects prior to the Boston symposium. During the summer programme, the students also participated in cross-cultural leadership seminars and discussed global issues. The sponsors were Hongkong Telecom, International Management Group, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Pacific Health Group, Saatchi & Saatchi, and Time Inc., Asia.