Newsletter No. 332

No. 332, 19.2.2009 十 方 吐 露 TEN QUESTIONS FOR Yes, I do think that the real estate market is very important to Hong Kong. But then that creates some dilemmas. For example, if government releases more land for development, it will bring down the price. While real estate is important, that does not mean it’s good to have high prices. It’s rather a pity that prices went up as high as they did in the last few years. Inevitably they then went down. It would be better if this time government were to increase the supply and stop prices from going way up again. 8 中文大學作為一所高等院校，有甚麼優勢？怎樣可 以充分發揮這些優勢？ What are the advantages of CUHK as an institution of higher learning and how can they be put to the best use? 中大有一群非常優秀的教授，是任何大學不可或缺的。它 吸引了香港不少頂尖的學生，以及中國大陸的優異學生。 校園遠離煩囂，地點不俗，優美環境委實有利於激盪思 維。要盡得其利，關鍵是盡量讓人們有充足的時間，獨立 思考，從事研究，特別是讓能者居之，那或意味著少些文山 會海，繁文縟務吧。 It’s got a bunch of very good professors, which is essential for any university. It attracts a lot of the best students from Hong Kong, and also a lot of very good students from mainland China. It is away from the city centre and has quite a good site. Being in an attractive environment is actually quite helpful in stimulating the brain. To put these advantages to the best use, the key thing is to allow people as much time as possible for thinking independently, to spend time on their research, and particularly to get the most able people to do that, which may mean fewer and smaller committees and events. 9 你熟悉牛津與劍橋的書院，中大的晨興書院有多大 程度以它們為楷模？ You are familiar with the colleges in Oxford and Cambridge. To what extent will Morningside College be modeled on any or some of these colleges? 我們常常提到要借鏡別處的書院，也不只是牛津和劍橋。 晨興會行同宿共膳制，這是很重要的，很接近牛津和劍橋 的書院，儘管它們也漸漸偏離這個模式，學生再也不像從 前那樣每晚都回來吃飯，但是我仍然認為這是個好模式。 我很高興可以在這兒參與籌劃書院。牛津和劍橋的書院收 生自決，而且本身負責很多小組教學。我當然希望中大也 可以在書院的層面開辦更多小組課程。不過，我們不比牛 津和劍橋，他們的學生時間表有較大的空間，這兒的學系 教得太多，講課太多了。學生應該有多點時間—去閱讀， 去思考，解決困難和問題，搞點研究，與老師面對面討論。 現在，教學進度把我們逼得太緊了。實際的空間對我們反 而不是問題，晨興書院的飯堂上蓋將有一個露天平台，附 近還有些地方讓人隨意交流閒聊。也許你會詫異，牛津和 劍橋的庭園並不是人們散步、閒坐或聊天的地方，因為只 有院士和園丁才可在草地上走，學生是不可以的，而院士 們並不常走到那兒論辯滔滔。 We’ve been talking quite a bit about drawing examples, not only from Oxford and Cambridge, but also from colleges in many places. Morningside is going to operate on a fully residential basis with communal dining. That’s very important. And that’s much more like colleges in Oxford and Cambridge; though these colleges are moving away from that model: people don’t come in to dine in college every night the way that they used to. But I still think it is a good model. I was very happy to join in the project, to get involved here. Oxford and Cambridge colleges decide who are the students they will have, and quite a lot of Prof. Chau Kwai-cheong, associate professor in the Department of Geography and Resource Management, has been appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a panel member of the Municipal Services Appeals Board and a member of the Advisory Council on the Environment for three and two years respectivley from 1 January 2009. Prof. Lam Kin-che, professor in the Department of Geography and Resource Management, has been re-appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as the chairman of the Advisory Council on the Environment for one year from 1 January 2009. Prof. Lim Wan-fung Bernard, professor in the Department of Architecture, has been re-appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Antiquities Advisory Board for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Lu Liedan Tracey, associate professor in the Department of Anthropology, has been appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Antiquities Advisory Board for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Shek Tan-lei Daniel, professor in the Department of Social Work, has been appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as the chairman of the Action Committee Against Narcotics and as a panel member of the Witness Protection Review Board for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Shen Xuhui Simon, research assistant professor in Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, has been re-appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Antiquities Advisory Board for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. So Kee-long Billy, Professor of History, has been appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Antiquities Advisory Board for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Yu Tak-sun Ignatius, professor in the Department of Community and Family Medicine, has been appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Advisory • • • • • • • • Council on the Environment for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Lawrence J. Lau, Vice-Chancellor, has been appointed by the Chief Executive of the HKSAR as a member of the Executive Council with effect from 21 January 2009. Mr. Leung Kwong-hon Philip, director of the Information Technology Services Centre, has been re-appointed by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development as a member of the Consumer Council for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Liu Pak-wai, Professor of Economics, has been re- appointed by the Financial Secretary as a non-executive director of the Securities and Futures Commission for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Tuan Chyau, adjunct professor in the Department of Decision Sciences and Managerial Economics, has been re- appointed by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development as a member of the Hong Kong Productivity Council to represent professional/academic interests for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Wong Kam-fai, associate dean (external affairs) of the Faculty of Engineering, has been re-appointed by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development as a member of the Assessment Panel for the Small Entrepreneur Research Assistance Programme under the Innovation and Technology Fund for two years from 1 January 2009. Prof. Lau Wan-yee Joseph, Master-Designate of Lee Woo Sing College, has been appointed by the Secretary for Food and Health as a member of the Medical Council of Hong Kong for three years from 24 January 2009. Prof. Lee Chi-kin John, dean of the Faculty of Education, has been appointed by the Secretary for Education as a member of the Working Group on Textbooks and E-learning Resources Development, and as a member of the Working Group on ‘Education and Manpower Training’ under the Steering Committee on the HKSAR’s Support for Reconstruction in • • • • • • • the Sichuan Earthquake Stricken Areas up to end of October 2009. Prof. Lee Pui-leung Rance, Professor of Sociology, has been appointed as the chairman of the Advisory Committee on Social Work Training and Manpower Planning for two years from 9 January 2009. Prof. Prof. Wong Wing-shing, dean of the Graduate School, has been appointed by the Council of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers as the deputy chairman of the Accreditation Committee for Computer Science Programmes and as an appointed member of the Fellowship Committee for 2008–09. Prof. Ho Chan Sut-ying Suzanne, research professor of community and family medicine, has been appointed as a visiting professor of the Faculty of Health Sciences at Macau University of Science and Technology for two years from 1 September 2008. Prof. Chan Wai-sum, professor in the Department of Finance, has been awarded the designation of Chartered Enterprise Risk Analyst (CERA) by the Society of Actuaries in the United States. Awards Prof. Cheung Siu-hung, professor in the Department of Statistics, won the second-class award of the Ninth National Best Statistics Research Award by the National Bureau of Statistics. Co-authored by Prof. Virginia Yip, professor in the Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, and Prof. Stephen Matthews, The Bilingual Child: Early Development and Language Contact , published by Cambridge University Press won the Research Excellence Award of CUHK and the Leonard Bloomfield Book Award of the Linguistic Society of America. Information in this section is provided by the Communications and Public Relations Office. • • • • • • small group teaching is provided by the colleges. I would certainly love to see more small group teaching at the college level in the Chinese University. But we don’t have as much room in the student’s timetable as they have. The departments teach too much; there are too many lectures; students should have more time, much more time to read, think for themselves, tackle problems and questions, carry out projects, and engage in face-to-face discussion with teachers. As things are, we feel cramped by the demands of the teaching schedule. In another sense, I think we will not be cramped for space. Morningside College will have a nicely open podium on top of the dining hall, and some grounds around, where people can interact casually and informally. It’s perhaps surprising that the college courts in Oxford and Cambridge aren’t places where people go out and talk to one another. The students are not allowed to walk on the grass. Only the fellows and the gardeners can do that. The fellows don’t usually go out there and have long arguments. 10 晨興書院的籌劃進度如何？ What is the progress on the planning for the new College? 我們將在2010年收生，希望工程在2011年初完竣。不能早 一點，真是遺憾！ We’re admitting students in 2010. I hope that the building will be there by the beginning of 2011. It’s a shame that we can’t get it sooner! 下回〈十方吐露〉將訪問廖柏偉教授 The next interviewee of ‘TEN QUESTIONS FOR’ is Prof. P.W. Liu. 預告 Coming