Newsletter No. 260

New Facilitie s Devote d t oResearc h and Promotio n o fPhilosoph y and Genera l Educatio n From left: Prof. Cheung Chan-fai, Prof. Kwan Tze Wan, and Prof. Liu Xiaogan Two research centres and an archive have recently been established at the Chinese University thanks to a generous donation of HK$22.5 million by the Edwin S. L. Cheng Research Fund for General Education and Philosophy. At a ceremony held on 29th April 2005, Mr. Edwin S.L. Cheng and family presented the cheque to Prof. Lawrence J. Lau, vice-chancellor of the University. Prof. Lau praised Mr. Cheng for his philanthropic spirit and his support of humanities development at the University. New Centre Dedicated to General Education The Research Centre for General Education, set up under the Office of University General Education, strives to deepen discourse and reflection on general education and the idea of a university, foster exchange on general education practices in tertiary institutions in different regions, and promote general education development in Chinese communities. It w i ll be headed by Prof. Cheung Chan-fai, director of University General Education and professor in the Department of Philosophy. The functions of the centre include conducting research on general education, fostering links among higher education institutes in the region and the world, and developing related teaching support. It has plans to publish books under the General Education Series and monographs on research findings, organize conferences, seminars and teaching workshops, and invite renowned scholars to give lectures. The research centre w i ll produce a regular publication, University General Education Bulletin. The centre's plans for 2005 include pub l i s h i ng three titles under the General Education Series: Introduction to Physics, Introduction to Astrology, and Gazing at Death. To celebrate the inauguration of the centre, a conference will be held from 2nd to 4th June 2005. The conference w i ll feature Prof. Yang Chen-ning as the keynote speaker. Senior academics and educators from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan will discuss the possible common grounds among different knowledge domains, dialogue between scientists and scholars in the humanities, and other topics related to general education. Research Centre for Chinese Philosophy and Culture On 3rd May, the Research Centre for Chinese Philosophy and Culture opened at the Department of Philosophy. The new centre also held its first international conference, 'Western Interpretations, Chinese Responses: Reflections and Inquiries on the Methodology of Chinese Philosophy' on the same day. The research centre has three fundamental aims: to continue the Chinese humanistic tradition established by Ch'ien Mu, Tang Chun-I, and Mou Tsung-san at New Asia College and the Chinese University, to explore new directions in the study of Chinese philosophy and culture, and to promote academic exchange between researchers the world over. The centre w i l l be headed by Prof. L i u Xiaogan, professor in the Department of Philosophy. It will initiate research in new issues, methods, and areas of study, and facilitate communication and collaboration among scholars f r om different regions. I t w i l l also aim at furthering the modernization and internationalization of research on Chinese thought and culture. The centre plans to organize two or three international conferences with workshops and reading groups each year. It will also sponsor academic exchange programmes for scholars. Other activities include the publication of an academic journal, a monography series, and academic newsletters, and a website. Archive for Phenomenology and Contemporary Philosophy The new A r c h i ve f or Ph e n ome n o l o gy and Contemporary Philosophy o f the Department o f Philosophy marks a new phase in the development of phenomenology in Hong Kong, mainland China, and Asia. The archive w i l l leverage on the department's experience, network, and library resources on phenomenology. The archive is headed by Prof. Kwan Tze Wan, chairman of the Department of Philosophy. The work of the archive w i ll include setting up a working phenomenology library, building partnerships with major phenomenology archives in Europe and other regions, and incorporating major works from overseas archives. It w i ll also work closely with the Bibliotheca Phenomenologica of Peking University and explore opportunities for collaboration with other academic institutions on the mainland. It will organize conferences with the Research Centre for Phenomenology and the Human Sciences of the CUHK Department of Philosophy and engage, jointly with major academic organizations on the mainland, i n editing and translating important phenomenology literature and publishing books and journals. Besides the archive will work with the Research Centre for Humanities Computing of the CUHK Department of Philosophy to explore the possibility of setting up a web platform of phenomenology-related information. Seven CUHK Students Receive Croucher Awards for Overseas Studies T hree postdoctoral students and four doctoral students of the Chinese University were respectively awarded fellowships and scholarships by the Croucher Foundation to pursue research studies overseas. They were among 17 postdoctoral scientists and 10 doctoral students to receive the awards — totalling HK$23 million — this year. The 27 recipients comprised 20 students who are currently studying in universities in Hong Kong and seven Hong Kong students who are already doing their university degrees in the UK and the US. They were selected from 145 applicants after a competitive selection exercise conducted by 25 senior local and overseas scientists from various scientific disciplines. The Croucher scholarships are full scholarships covering tuition fees, stipends, airfare and allowances for attending international conferences. The awards are restricted to doctoral and postdoctoral levels of studies in natural science, technology, and medicine. The maximum for a doctoral scholarship may be as high as HK$1.21 million each while that of a postdoctoral fellowship for two years may be HK$760,000. The Croucher Foundation is a private endowment founded by the late Noel Croucher, who had spent his entire working life in Hong Kong at the end of which he decided to leave his entire fortune to Hong Kong for support of natural science, technology and medicine. CUHK Recipients of Croucher Fellowships/Scholarship** 2005 Name Subject Host Institution Ms. Chow Shuk-nga, Lilian* Cancer biology Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, USA Ms. Leung Bo-wah* Virology Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, UK Dr. Liu Kai-sui* Computer science Department of Computer Science, University of Bristol, UK Miss Choy Wai-yan** Ceil biology Department of Molecular & Cell Biology, U.C. Berkeley, USA Mr. Lam Hiu-wai** Mechanical engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA Mr. Mak Sui-Tung, Terence** Bioinformatics Department of Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Imperial College London, UK Mr. Ng Ping-Chung** Information engineering University of Oxford, UK 1 No. 260 19th May 2005

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