Newsletter No. 146

Groundbreaking Ceremony for School of Public Health A groundbreaking ceremony for the new School of Public Health took place on 2nd May 1999. Located at the Prince of Wales Hospital and to be ready by the end of the year 2000, the building of the School of Public Health was made possible by a generous donation o f $51 m i l l i on from the Hong Kong Jockey Club. It w i l l have a total floor area of 5,600 square metres, providing academic, computer and laboratory facilities for teaching and research in public health. The school will strive to improve Hong Kong's health care system to meet the challenges brought about by ageing and escalating health care costs, and to facilitate the control of communicable and chronic diseases, and the maintenance of occupational and environmental health. Vice-Chancellor Prof. Arthur K.C. Li (middle) breaking new ground with Dr. Margaret Chan (right 3) of the Department of Health, Dr. E.K. Yeoh (right 2) of the Hospital Authority, Mr. David Eldon (right 5) of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Ltd, and other faculty members. Fair Showcases University's Engineerin g Strength T he Faculty of Engineering organized an I n n o v a t i on and Technology Fair from 30th April to 1st May to promote better understanding and f os t er greater collaboration between the faculty and industry. The fair highlighted the research expertise and accomplishments of the faculty in six areas, namely communication, Chinese computing, Internet technology, multimedia, speech and image processing, and intelligent automation. Demonstrations were staged on novel products and processes developed by faculty members. Visitors also had the opportunity to try their hands on some of the innovative systems on display. Conference Examines Role of G e rman in Asia T o celebrate the 30th anniversary of the German Studies Programme at the University, the Department of Modem Languages and Intercultural Studies and Goethe-Institut Hong Kong organized a symposium on 'German as a Second Foreign Language in East Asia — New Horizons' from 27th to 30th Ap r i l. The conference was co-sponsored by Chung Chi College, Lufthansa German Airlines, and Bayem Gourmet Food. The conference covered a wide range of topics including curriculum and course materials, methodology, examinations, learners' motivation, region-specific problems, intercultural learning, and German for specific purposes. Officiating at the opening ceremony, on the morning of 27th April, were Prof. S.T. Kwok, dean of arts, Mr. Wolfgang Gerz, Consul-General of the Federal Republic of Germany, Dr. Ulrich Sacker, Director of Goethe-Institut Hong Kong, and Prof. Rance P.L. Lee, head of Chung Chi College. Healthy Ageing Enabled by New Centre T he Orthopaedic Learning Centre of the Faculty of Medicine was officially opened on 26th April. The centre, located at the Prince of Wales Hospital, is the first of its kind in Hong Kong to train professionals to utilize new technology in the management of various musculoskeletal conditions. It was established w i th generous donations from L i Ka Shing Foundation Ltd., the estate of Mr. Tang Yuk Wai, and Stryker- Howmedica International. Equipped with the latest information technology and a bioskill laboratory, this innovative and comprehensive training centre provides hands-on bioskill training for orthopaedic surgeons in specialty areas such as joint replacement, trauma, arthroscopic surgery, microsurgery, spinal surgery, and other essential orthopaedic procedures. It has a closed-circuit video connection to the operation theatre allowing trainee doctors to observe surgery live. It also provides telemedicine facilities for orthopaedic learning to be linked with and delivered to other international centres. 1999 has been designated as the International Year of the Older Person and ageing is often associated with orthopaedic problems such as osteoporosis which lead to fractures, degenerative arthritis, and spinal disorder. With the advent of new technology such as that provided in the centre, however, advanced orthopaedic care is available and ageing in the musculoskeletal system should no longer be a deterrent to an active lifestyle. Nine to Receiv Suppor t from Germany/Hon g Kong Joint Research Schem Thefollowing is the list of successful applications by staff of the University for funding support from the Germany/Hong Kong Joint Research Scheme 1998-99: CUHK Investigator German Partner/Institution Project Name and Amount Awarded Prof. Dennis K.P. Ng Chemistry Prof. J. Buchler/TU Darmstadt Sandwich-like Metal Bis (tetrapyrroles) (HK$29,680) Prof. C.K. Wong Computer Science & Engineering Prof. U. Geske/GMD FIRST Parallel and Distributed Computing for Job Shop Scheduling (HK$29,960) Prof. Yu Huang Physiology Dr. M. Gollasch/HU Berlin Study on Calcium Sparks in Smooth Muscle Ceils (HK$24,800) Prof. Ko Wing Hung Physiology Dr. J. Leipziger/U Freiburg Ca 2+ Signaling in Polarized Epithelia Ceils (HK$25,592) Prof. Zou Jun Mathematics Prof. P. Maass/U Potsdam Numerical Methods for Ill-posed Problems in Computed Tomography (HK$30,000) Prof. Wong Ka Sing Medicine & Therapeutics Prof. E.B. Ringelstein/ Westfalische Wihelms-Universita t The Frequency of Microembolic Signals in Acute Stroke Patients with Middle Cerebral Artery Stenosi (HK$26,600) Prof. Chi Wu Chemistry Prof. M. Schachner/U Hamburg Tracer Diffusion in Confined Geometry (HK$17,310) Prof. Raymond Chan Mathematics Prof. G. Steidl/U Mannheim Preconditioners for III-conditioned Toeplitz Matrices (HK$24,752) Prof. Mary Waye Biochemistry Dr. R. Zimmerman/ MPIf. Exper.Kardiol Study on the Expression of LIM-domain Proteins in Human and Animal Myocardial Tissues (HK$29,980)