Newsletter No. 257

Research Centre for Chinese Ancient Texts Established T he Research Centre for Chinese Ancient Texts was established under the Institute of Chinese Studies on 1 st Ap r il 2005. The forerunner of the centre was the Chinese Ancient Texts ( CHANT) Project which was set up in 1988 to construct an electronic database of the entire corpus of traditional and excavated ancient Chinese texts and publish them via various media as valuable research tools for scholars, academia and the public. Prof. Ho Che Wah of the Department of Chinese Language and Literature has been appointed director of the centre. For the past 17 years, the centre has been granted over HK$18 million by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council (RGC) and the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange to conduct more than 10 grand-scale research projects, which fall into two main categories: excavated Chinese texts research projects and traditional Chinese texts research projects. Three of them were rated 'excellent' by the RGC. The centre's research projects on 'The Completion Project of A l l Ongoing CHANT Database', 'A Complete Study of the Numerous Citations from the Thirteen Classics Found in Pre-Han and Han Traditional Texts' and 'A Complete Study of the Parallel Passages Found in Pre-Han and Han Traditional Texts' are still underway. The research results were published in book form and electronically, and via the Internet. Over the years, the centre introduced two book series: The ICS Ancient Chinese Texts Concordance Series and The CHANT Series, as well as publications on the study of excavated texts: A New Compilation of Jiagu Characters and The Collected Explanations of Complete Collection of Yin-Zhou Bronze Epigraphy'. Over 100 titles were published, and more than 30,000 copies sold. The centre has collaborated with Yale University Press to invite scholars to translate the centre's edited ancient Chinese texts into Chinese. The first title, Balanced Discourses, was published in 2003 under the series of Culture and Civilization of China. Two sets of CD-ROM have also been published: one contains the entire corpus of the pre-Han and Han database and the other is on the excavated wood/bamboo and silk texts (Jianbo). The centre established six online databases which can benefit scholars and researchers immensely on data retrieval and preparation. The databases are especially helpful to studies of parallel passages and citation comparisons of ancient Chinese texts. Chun g Chioleg e Visitin g Artis t M r. R i c h a r d H e s t e k i n d, a renowned sculptor, v i s i t ed Chung Chi College between 7th and 24th March as the college's visiting artist. He also served as the artist-in- residence at the De p a r t me nt o f Architecture and the Department of Fine Arts of the Chinese University during his visit. A f t er graduating f r om Sophia Un i ve r s i t y, Japan, M r . Hestekind received his master's degree of fine arts in sculpture at the Un i v e r s i ty o f Washington, USA in 1971. With over 30 years' professional experience as a sculptor and landscape designer, he has wo r k ed on various public art commissions and projects. His works have been exhibited at various galleries and public areas. During his visit, Mr. Hestekind met with Chung Chi members and students. From 3rd to 11th March, a sculpture exhibition by Mr. Hestekind was staged at the Elisabeth Luce Moore Library. Mr. Hestekind spoke on 'Garden Design and Quality of Life' at the Tolo Nocturne on 8th March. He also spoke at the Chung Chi College Life Luncheon on 15th March 2005. Filmographer as Shaw Distinguished Visiting Scholar P rof. Su M u ( r i g h t ) o f Be i j i ng F i lm Academy paid a two-week visit to Shaw College between 18th February and 4th March as the college's Distinguished Visiting Scholar. He was invited j o i n t ly by Shaw Co l l e ge and the O f f i c e o f the A r t s Administrator of the Chinese University. Du r i ng his stay, he met w i t h staff and students and held talks and lectures about f i l m art. His three-evening workshop on digital video production was well attended by staff and students. Prof. Su w i l l donate the proceeds from his newly-published book New Century, New Films to Shaw College to support activities related to digital video production. The book is available (original price HK$39.8, discounted price HK$30) at the information counter of Wen Lan Tang, Shaw College. 新書 New Books Hong Kong Institute of Asia- Pacific Studies Occasional Paper No. 154 Family Changes and Income Inequality under Globalization: The Case of Hong Kong Stephen W.K. Chiu The development of an urban locale as a global city has been regarded in literature on urban development as a c r i t i c al determinant of growing social polarization. The author re-examines this thesis by using the case of Hong Kong, which has attained the status of a major global city through the development of producer and financial services resulted from the acceleration of globalization. While showing that the Hong Kong experience largely supports the polarization thesis as indicated by widening occupational and income polarization, the author also introduces a socio- demographic dimension into the analysis and argues that income disparity at the individual level is also reflected at the household level through different patterns of family formation and household employment strategies. Data from the Hong Kong Population Censuses were used to analyse trends in household income inequality between 1991 and 2001, a period of heightened globalization in Hong Kong By decomposing aggregate income inequality and isolating the contribution of husbands and wives and different types of households, this paper puts into sharp relief the ways in which local and socio- demographic factors mediate the economic processes of globalization. 香港教育研究所 Hong Kong Institut e of Educational Researc h 《教育學報》，第3 1卷第2期/第3 2卷第1期（專輯） Education Journal, Vol. 31 No. 2 /Vo l. 32 No. 1 (Special Issue) Special Issue: Analyzing the Quality of Education in Hong Kong from an International Perspective Guest Editor: Esther Sui-Chu Ho Articles 論文 Accomplishment and Challenges of Hong Kong Education System: What We Have Learned from PISA Esther Sui-Chu Ho The System and How Does It Work: Some Curricular and Pedagogical Characteristics of the Finnish Comprehensive School Jouni V ä lij ä rvi Reading Performance of Hong Kong's 15-Year-Old Students in PISA 2000 Cecilia Ka-Wai Chun, Choi-Wai Tong, and Paul Man-Man Sze Mathematical Literacy of Hong Kong's 15-Year-Old Students in PISA Ka-Ming Patrick Wong The Impact of PISA on Mathematics Education: Linking Mathematics and the Real World Margaret Wu Scientific Literacy of Hong Kong Students in PISA 2000: An Analysis of Performance on the Released Items Din-Van Yip What Can We Say About the Quality and Equality of Educational Systems from the First Cycle of the PISA? J. Douglas Willms 一百九十二頁，五十港元。 192 pages, HK$50 2 No. 257 4th April 2005