Newsletter No. 134

CUHK Opens Bei j ing Liaison Office T he University has established a liaison o f f i ce in B e i j i ng to promote greater academic cooperation and organize more development strategies w i th universities on the mainland. The liaison office, located in Peking University, was officially opened on 6th October. Officiating at the opening ceremony were Prof. Chen Jiaer, president o f Peking University, Prof. Arthur K.C. Li, vice- chancellor of CUHK, and Mrs. Xie Weimin, division chief of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council. The first tertiary institution in the t e r r i t o ry to establish exchange relations w i th mainland academic institutions, the University has signed exchange agreements with over 30 mainland universities and academic organizations. These include Peking University, Tsinghua University, Fudan University, Beijing Medical University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Some examples o f ex i s t i ng c o l l a b o r a t i ve p r o j e c ts are the establishment of a Joint Laboratory for Geoinformation Science w i th the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the establishment of the Shanghai-Hong Kong Joint Laboratory in Chemical Synthesis at the Shanghai Institute of O r g a n ic C h e m i s t r y, and the recruitment of, with assistance from Pe k i ng U n i v e r s i ty and Fudan University, outstanding high school graduates from the mainland to enrol in the Un i v e r s i t y 's f i r s t - d e g r e e programmes. In the near future many more joint ventures will be launched. The new liaison office will play an important role in f a c i l i t a t i ng communication with v a r i o u s p r o j e c t partners, supplying up-to-date information about the University, and providing logistics support to CU members responsible for o r g a n i z i n g s u ch p r o j e c t s on t he mainland. Prof. Arthur K.C. Li, vice-chancellor of the University, addressing the gathering at the opening ceremony of CUHK's liaison office in Beijing Ef fort to Boost Religious and Ethics Teaching in H K Schools T he Department of Religion has launched its Programme for Strengthening the Teaching of Ethical, Civic, and Religious Education in Schools since the beginning of the 1998-99 academic year. Funded by the UGC, the programme aims at strengthening the relationship between schools and the University by providing direct support to the schools and their teachers in the teaching of these three closely related subjects. Letters have been sent to all secondary school principals and subject chairs and teachers concerned to invite their participation in three projects: (1) A survey on the teaching of ethical, civic and religious education (ECRE), the findings of which are expected to help focus the needs and difficulties faced by teachers and to provide the schools and teachers with the necessary resources. (2) ECRE outstanding teaching plan awards, wh i ch are intended as encouragement for outstanding ECRE teachers. (3) ECRE website ( www.schooLnet.hk/~ecre) , an on-line resource centre where ECRE teachers can share their experiences and exchange ideas. Technically supported by the Hong Kong School Net run by the University's Department of Information Engineering, the site is in an early stage of construction and testing. Prof. Yang Chen Ning Wins Onsager Prize P r o f. Yang Chen N i n g was selected unanimously by the 1998 Onsager Prize Committee as this year's recipient of the coveted Onsager Prize in recognition of his contributions to statistical mechanics. The award w i l l be presented to Prof. Yang at the centennial celebration of the American Physical Society (APS) in Atlanta next March. Prof. Yang's contribution to physics is profound and far-reaching. His work with Prof. T.D. Lee on the non-conservation of parity in weak interactions leaves a permanent imprint on the symmetry principles in modem physics. His formulation with Robert Mills on the theory of non-Abelian gauge theories lays the foundation for the unification of all interactions. His work on statistical mechanics and the theory of quantum f l u id has led to novel quantum phenomena in macroscopic scales. Prof. Yang is currently Distinguished Professor-at-Large of the University. The Onsager Prize is part of the APS Prize and Awards Program. Its purpose is to give recognition to outstanding research in theoretical statistical physics including the quantum fluids. It consists of US$10,000 and a certificate citing the contribution made by the recipient. It was first presented in 1995 and has been awarded on an annual basis since 1997. M u s i c Teac h er Selected as Outstanding Young P erson 1998 P rof. Victor Chan Wai-kwong, associate professor in the Department of Music, was one of six recipients of the Outstanding Young Persons Awa rd chosen f r om just over 50 nominations this year. A composer and conductor, Prof. Chan is actively engaged in the promotion of modern music. He has performed extensively in local arts and music festivals and represented Hong Kong in international events. His compositions have also been performed worldwide. He joined the Department of Music in 1989. He was appointed composer-in-residence of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra in 1997. Candidates for the award are judged on their achievement in one of four categories 一 culture and art, entertainment, professional, and civic- social services. The awards ceremony will take place on 7th November at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Visits of Medical Professionals from the Mainland A delegation of nine members from the Chinese Medical Association (Shanghai Branch), headed by Prof. Tai Yao, president of Shanghai Medical University, visited the University's Faculty of Medicine from 20th to 26th September. They were given a tour of the Prince of Wales Hospital, the CUHK/WHO Collaborating Centre of Sports Medicine and Health Promotion in Union Hospital, as well as the Department of Community and Family Medicine in Lek Yuen Health Centre. The delegation was highly interested in the combined use of Chinese and western medicine. They met with Prof. P.C. Leung, chair of the Planning Committee on the Chinese Medicine Programme, and paid a visit to the Chinese Medicinal Material Research Centre. They also participated in a seminar wherein they exchanged views with members of the faculty on their medical curriculum, teaching methodology, and future developments. About three weeks later on 13th October, Prof. Xiaofu Hu and Prof. Huiming Tang from Shantou University Medical College also visited the Faculty of Medicine. They were given a tour of the Shaw Endoscopy Centre and the Sir Pao Yue Kong Cancer Centre at the Prince of Wales Hospital and met with Prof. C.K. Lee, dean of the faculty, Dr. Alison Reid, chief executive of the hospital, Prof. Dennis Lam, chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Prof. P.C. L e u n g, p r o f es sor o f o r t hopaed i cs and traumatology, and Dr. W.L. Cheung, chief of service o f the Ac c i dent and Emergency Department. The visitors also attended a telemedicine conference linking up the faculty w i th the University of Southern California organized by Prof. M . N. Hjelm, coordinator of Area of Excellence in Telemedicine. Issues on further collaboration among the three universities were discussed during the conference. The Shanghai delegation observing teaching at the Prince of Wales Hospital