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| QS World University Rankings by Subject 2017 |
In the latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings by Subject, PolyU ranked 10th in a tie with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich) for the study of Civil and Structural Engineering. Not far behind is the subject of Architecture and Built Environment at PolyU, which was ranked 15th. Both the subject areas are well represented by the academic expertise in the Faculty of Construction and Environment. In terms of one objective measure, namely H-index citations, PolyU tops the world in these two subject areas.
Launched in 2011, the annual QS World University Rankings by Subject is a comprehensive guide to a range of subjects. The rankings highlight the world’s top universities in 46 subjects, based on academic reputation, employer reputation, and research impact.
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Research Achievements/ Activities |
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| EC/RGC Collaboration Scheme 2016/17 |
| Dr Yu-hong Wang of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) has been awarded $2,522,619 from the European Commission/ Research Grants Council (EC/RGC) Collaboration Scheme. He will be developing new integrated porous pavement systems and implementing demonstrations of urban nature labs in Hong Kong for 4 years with Prof. Mimu Airaksinen of Teknologian tutkimuskeskus VTT Oy in Finland. |
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| Findings from Heat Stress Studies Adopted by CIC |
| Research findings from the anti-heat stress studies led by Prof. Albert Chan, Head of the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE), have been adopted in the latest reference materials by the Construction Industry Council (CIC) on Construction Site Welfare, Health, and Safety Measures. In addition to an anti-heat stress uniform designed by Prof. Chan’s research team for construction workers, the studies recommended regular rest periods for workers to reduce exposure to hot weather, including an extra 15-minute break for the summer months from May to September. This mention by the CIC testifies to the impactful research done by Prof. Chan and his team. |
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| FCE Research Salons |
A series of research salons was recently initiated by the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE) to cultivate a supportive research culture and provide a platform for each of its departments to develop its focused research areas. The 3rd FCE research salon was held on 6 March 2017 to discuss ways to enhance the research performance of the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics (LSGI), which has identified 3 areas with urban informatics as its research theme, namely smart positioning and mobility, spatial big data modelling and analytics, as well as urban sensing and measurement. In attendance were Prof. You-lin Xu, Dean of FCE, Prof. Xiangdong Li, Associate Dean (Research), and 9 academic staff of LSGI, including Prof. John Shi, Head of LSGI, and Prof. Michael Goodchild, Chair Professor of Geographic Information Science, who had joined LSGI earlier this year under the Distinguished Chair Professor Scheme.
The 2nd FCE research salon was held on 17 February with the participation of 5 academics and about 10 research staff from the Department of Building Services Engineering (BSE). The latest research developments on various topics related to building energy were discussed by Dr Choongwan Koo, Dr Fu Xiao, Dr Lin Lu, Prof. Shengwei Wang, and Prof. Hongxing Yang respectively. As key members of one of the focused research areas of BSE, they were encouraged by Prof. Xu to suggest how cross-disciplinary research collaborations in their field of interest could be nurtured to deliver impactful research.
The 1st FCE research salon was held on 13 January with a focus on digital construction, one of the research areas of the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE). Organized by Prof. Heng Li, who is a leading scholar in this area, the salon was attended by Prof. Xu and Prof. John Shi on behalf of FCE in addition to some BRE colleagues. |
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| At the 3rd FCE research salon |
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| UCEA Opening |
A ceremony to commemorate the official opening of the University Research Facility in Chemical and Environmental Analysis (UCEA) was held on 14 March 2017. The President of PolyU, Prof. Timothy W. Tong, officiated at the opening ceremony, which was attended by Prof. Philip Chan, Deputy President of PolyU, Prof. Wing-tak Wong, Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science and Textiles (FAST) and Director of UCEA, Prof. You-Lin Xu, Dean of the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE), and Prof. Xiangdong Li, Associate Dean (Research) of FCE and Associate Director of UCEA.
Jointly managed by the FAST and FCE, the UCEA provides an interdisciplinary platform for chemical and environmental research. It has 18 major equipment in 9 different laboratories, ranging from a high resolution mass spectrometer, a solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscope to a third generation DNA sequencer. |
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| Council Chairman’s Visit to FCE |
| On 15 March 2017, Mr Chan Tze-Ching, Council Chairman of PolyU, visited the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE) to get a better understanding of FCE and see how he could help it achieve more. He met with Prof. You-Lin Xu, Dean of FCE, Prof. Xiang-Dong Li, Associate Dean (Research), Prof. Geoffrey Shen, Associate Dean (Teaching), Prof. Albert Chan, Head of the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE), Prof. Asif Usmani, Head of the Department of Building Services Engineering, Prof. William Lam, Head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), and Prof. John Shi, Head of the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics (LSGI). Prof. Xu gave a presentation on the Faculty’s academic programmes and research impact as well as the direction of the Faculty’s development. Mr Chan congratulated FCE on its 2017 QS subject rankings, opining that the University should build on FCE’s strengths and support those areas which would have significant impact and scale. He added that leadership and critical mass were also important factors for success. |
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| The Council Chairman with the management of FCE and the Council Secretary |
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| Research Open Day 2017 |
| On 25 March 2017, a Research Open Day on environmental engineering and sustainable development was held as part of the celebrations for PolyU’s 80th anniversary. Organized by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), the all-day event drew hundreds of participants to the campus. After welcoming remarks from Prof. You-Lin Xu, Dean of the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE), and Prof. William Lam, Head of CEE, a speech on the formulation of government policies related to climate change was given by Ms Christine Loh, the Under-Secretary for the Environment of the Hong Kong government. It was followed by an overview of the BEng (Hons) programme in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Development by the programme leader, Prof. Shun-cheng Lee of CEE. In addition to presentations on different aspects of environmental engineering and sustainable development by Prof. Tao Wang, Prof. Chi-Sun Poon, and Prof. Wei Chu respectively, there were lab visits and a demonstration led by Dr Daniel Tsang. In the afternoon, alumni and current students of the BSc (Hons) programme in Environment and Sustainable Development were present to share their experiences. Besides posters of students’ final-year projects, some students gave oral presentations on their final-year projects. |
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| HKICM/ HKIPM Joint CPD Seminar |
| On 16 March 2017, a continuing professional development (CPD) seminar on a holistic risk assessment model for target cost contracts was held at PolyU. Jointly organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Construction Managers (HKICM) and the Hong Kong Institute of Project Management (HKIPM), the seminar was supported by the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE) and the Hong Kong Institute of Value Management (HKIVM). Altogether, 138 people attended the seminar, which was led by Sr Dr Joseph Chan, Lecturer in Quantity Surveying and Property Management at PolyU’s School of Professional Education and Executive Development, and Dr Daniel Chan, Associate Professor in Construction Project Management and Associate Head (Teaching and Learning) of BRE. The former shared with the audience the basic concepts and principles of target cost contracts, while the latter highlighted the out-turn performance of some local construction projects procured by target cost contracts or New Engineering Contracts (NEC), as well as the future development trend of target cost contracts and NEC in Hong Kong. |
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| Dr Daniel Chan speaking at the seminar |
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| FCE Hosts Visitors from Kazakhstan |
| On 30 March 2017, Mr Darkhanbek Kozhabekov, Vice President of the “Bilim-Innovation” International Social Foundation, and Mr Daniyar Izmailov, Career Counselor of Nurorda International School in Kazakhstan, paid a visit to PolyU to learn more about the University, particularly the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE). Prof. Xiaoli Ding, Associate Dean (Partnership) of FCE, introduced the Faculty to the visitors, while the undergraduate programmes of its 4 departments were introduced respectively by Dr Michael Sing of the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE), Prof. Shiu Keung Tang, Associate Head of the Department of Building Services Engineering (BSE), Prof. William Lam, Head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), and George Liu of the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics (LSGI). Besides touring the campus, the visitors also met with a few current students from Kazakhstan. |
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| Some FCE staff with the visitors from Kazakhstan |
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| LSGI Receives Overseas Visitors |
| The Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics (LSGI) has been active in exploring student exchanges and research collaborations with overseas universities. In this connection, Prof. John Shi, Head of LSGI, Prof. Xiaoli Ding, Associate Dean (Partnership) of the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE), Prof. Wu Chen, Associate Head (Research), Dr Lilian Pun, Associate Head (Academic), and Dr George Liu, Chairman of LSGI’s Partnership Committee, have recently met with several visiting delegations, including a delegation led by Prof. Kai-Wei Chiang, Chairman of the Department of Geomatics, National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan, a team from the University of Jaen in Spain, and Prof. Brian Leung, Head of the Department, Nazarbayev University in Kazakhstan. Cooperation between LSGI and the visiting universities can be expected to intensify in the future. |
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| LSGI staff with visitors from National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan |
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| New Academic Staff |
| The Department of Building Services Engineering (BSE) welcomed a new assistant professor on 1 March 2017. Dr Sunliang Cao obtained his doctoral degree (Doctor of Science (Technology)) in April 2014 from the School of Engineering, Aalto University (formerly known as Helsinki University of Technology), Finland. His Master of Science Degree was obtained in June 2010 from the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland, while his Master thesis project was conducted at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Norway. Before joining PolyU in 2017, he was successively employed as a research assistant, doctoral researcher and postdoctoral researcher in Aalto University, Finland. Moreover, in January and February 2016, Dr Cao also worked as a Visiting Scientist at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), Germany, for a joint research between Fraunhofer ISE and Aalto University. His main research expertise is in the fields of low-energy and zero-energy buildings, advanced on-site renewable energy systems, building integrated energy storage solutions, HVAC technologies, and the integrations between buildings, hybrid smart grids and new energy vehicles. In addition, he participated in the International Energy Agency (IEA) - the Solar Heating and Cooling Programme (SHC) Task 44/ Heat Pump Programme (HPP) Annex 38 and IEA - Energy in Buildings and Communities (EBC) Annex 67 as a Finnish representative and Finnish observer, respectively. So far, he has published more than 20 scientific publications, including 13 high-IF (impact factor) international SCI journal papers. |
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| Special Issue of FCE Magazine Published |
| A special issue of the FCE magazine has been published to mark the 80th anniversary of PolyU. Its theme highlights the impact of the research made by FCE scholars. 4 cases from each of its 4 departments have been featured. Together, they have advanced the frontiers of knowledge and brought about practical benefits for society. More details on the 16 impact cases can be found at
https://www.polyu.edu.hk/fce/news_fce/FCE_Magazine_012.pdf
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| Honourable Mention for FCE Students in Youth Competition |
| A strong team of 7 students, mostly from the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE) has won an Honourable Mention for their entry in the World Sustainable Built Environment Conference International Youth Competition 2017. The FCE students were Pei Wu, a final-year student in building engineering and management; Dongyang Wei, a student in environmental engineering and sustainable development; Chuanrui Yu, a student in building services engineering; Jueqi Chen and Yining Hong, 2 students in surveying. They would like to thank Dr Patrick Fong, Associate Head (Partnership) of the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE), for encouraging them to enter the competition. Their entry was a feasibility study adopting BIM technology on implementing sustainable and innovative technologies for tong lau’s rehabilitation work. |
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| 9th RICS-RISM International Surveying Conference for Undergraduates |
5 surveying students from the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE) have been nominated by their supervisors to attend the 9th RICS-RISM International Surveying Conference for Undergraduates 2017 at the Kuliyyah of Architecture and Environmental Design, International Islamic University Malaysia on 7th and 8th April 2017. The theme of the conference is "i-Surveyor: The Profession in The Digital Age." Supported by PolyU’s International Competition and Conference Participation Scheme, the students will be presenting papers based on their dissertations. Following are their details:
| Name of Student |
Title of Paper |
Supervisor |
| HON Kin Wa |
Risks of Running Design and Build Projects: Future Promotion in Hong Kong |
Dr Edmond LAM |
| LI Man Ling |
A Comparative Study of Built Heritage Conservation System between Hong Kong, Singapore and the United Kingdom |
Mr Thomas POON |
| LAU Chung Him |
The Challenges of Adopting New Engineering Contract: A Hong Kong Study |
Dr Jayantha WADU MESTHRIGE |
| CHAN Hoi Ho |
Revitalizing Industrial Buildings (Wholesale conversion) On Land Use Optimization |
Dr Edmond LAM |
| POON Ka Lun |
Economic Feasibility of Developing Urban Underground Space in Hong Kong |
Mr Stephen MAU |
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| Outstanding PolyU Alumni Awards |
| 2 recipients of the Departmental Outstanding Alumni Awards in 2016 have been chosen for the Outstanding PolyU Alumni Awards this year. Mr Mike Wong, Department of Building and Real Estate Outstanding Alumnus (Higher Diploma in Surveying (Building Surveying)/1977 and Master of Science in International Real Estate/2003) and Ir Eric Ma, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Outstanding Alumnus, will be honoured in an award ceremony on 25 April 2017. |
| As an Adjunct Professor of BRE, Mr Mike Wong has staunchly supported his alma mater over the years. Designated a Distinguished Building Surveyor by the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors, Mr Mike Wong is a registered professional surveyor and an Authorized Person. Currently Deputy Managing Director of Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited, he has supervised hundreds of residential and commercial projects over the years, covering ICC and IFC, the two tallest landmark skyscrapers in Hong Kong. Professional commitments aside, he is equally dedicated to the betterment of the community, serving as a member of the Hong Kong Housing Society and a council member of the Construction Industry Council. |
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| Mr Wong |
| As Secretary for Development of the HKSAR Government, Ir Eric Ma oversees a broad portfolio of policy areas ranging from urban planning to heritage conservation, with a special focus on addressing the supply-demand imbalance for land and housing in Hong Kong. His previous experience gained from senior positions in construction and consulting firms has made him eminently qualified to take up the challenge. He was Managing Director of Maunsell Consultants Asia Ltd, responsible for major development projects in Hong Kong. In 2010, he was tasked by AECOM with expanding its overseas business in Asia, and was the Group’s Executive Vice President for Civil and Infrastructure Business in the Asia-Pacific Region before he was appointed Under Secretary for Development in January 2014. |
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| Jointly organized by PolyU and the Federation of PolyU Alumni Associations, the biennial Outstanding PolyU Alumni Awards honour outstanding graduates of PolyU and its forerunning institutions – the Government Trade School, the Hong Kong Technical College and the Hong Kong Polytechnic – for their remarkable professional achievements and contributions to the community and their alma mater. |
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| Outstanding BRE Alumnus Stays Active in Retirement |
| A recipient of the 2012 Outstanding Alumni Award from the Department of Building and Real Estate (BRE) has kept himself busy in his golden years. Ir Peter Mok was recently interviewed by Ming Pao about his retirement, which began 10 years ago. According to a plan he made in his early 20s, he has led a full life by spending the first 20 years of his life learning as much as possible, the next 40 years in work before retiring at the age of 60. He did a thorough self-assessment one or two years before his retirement to ensure he was mentally prepared for it and would continue to live happily. For Ir Mok, life does not stop with retirement. Perhaps because he does not have to worry about anything now, he sticks to a routine of playing golf and learning about Chinese medicine on Mondays, playing tennis and occasionally attending meetings of the Hong Kong Institute of Construction Managers on Tuesdays, spending time with his grandchildren and learning to play the saxophone on Wednesdays, as well as doing whatever he likes on Thursdays and Fridays. His thirst for knowledge has made him try to learn a little bit of everything. For half a year, he has been learning how to draw and sketch in the style of the world-famous painter Xu Beihong. Firmly believing that it is important to go with the flow and adapt to a new way of life in retirement, he is prepared to step out of his comfort zone to explore the world. He has plans to go backpacking in English-speaking European countries by himself in the future. This was something he never had time to do when he was young. He is certainly making up for that now. |
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Programme Admission |
Invitation for Programme Admission 2017/18
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Applications are now invited for the following undergraduate and taught postgraduate programmes.
Undergraduate Programmes
Broad Discipline of Construction and Environment 建設及環境廣泛學科 #
BSc(Hons) in Building Engineering and Management 建築工程及管理學(榮譽)理學士學位
BSc(Hons) in Property Management 物業管理學(榮譽)理學士學位
BSc(Hons) in Surveying 地產及建設測量學(榮譽)理學士學位
BEng(Hons) in Building Services Engineering 屋宇設備工程學(榮譽)工學士學位
BEng(Hons) in Civil Engineering 土木工程學(榮譽)工學士學位
BEng (Hons) in Environmental Engineering and Sustainable Development 環境工程與可持續發展學(榮譽)工學士學位
BSc(Hons) in Environmental and Occupational Safety and Health 環境及職業安全與健康(榮譽)理學士學位# *
BSc(Hons) in Geomatics
(Land Surveying / Geo-Information Technology / Utility Management and Surveying)
測繪及地理資訊學(榮譽)理學士學位(土地測量 / 地理資訊 / 管線設施測繪與管理)
#not applicable for international applicants
*a top-up degree programme for Associate Degree and Higher Diploma Graduates |
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Master of Science (MSc)/Postgraduate Diploma (PgD)
Building Services Engineering 屋宇設備工程學
Civil Engineering 土木工程學
Construction and Real Estate
建築及房地產學
Construction Law and Dispute Resolution 建築法及爭議解決學
Environmental Management and Engineering 環境管理及工程學
Facility Management 設施管理
Fire and Safety Engineering 消防及安全工程學
Geomatics (Geographic Information Systems) 測繪及地理資訊學(地理資訊)
Geomatics (Surveying) 測繪及地理資訊學(測量)
High Performance Buildings 高效能建築
Project Management 項目管理
Sustainable Urban Development 可持續城市發展學
For details, please visit:
Undergraduate programmes- https://www.polyu.edu.hk/fce/programmes_degree_sub-degree.html
Taught postgraduate programmes- https://www.polyu.edu.hk/fce/postgrad-scheme/acad.html
For PolyU’s e-Prospectus, please visit https://www.polyu.edu.hk/study
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Faculty Public Lectures |
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The Faculty of Construction and
Environment was honoured to have the following speakers giving lectures
at FCE: |
Professor Michael Goodchild
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FCE Distinguished Chair Professor Inaugural Lecture
"Technologies of Space and Place"
Date: 8 March 2017 (Wednesday) (Details)
Speaker:
Professor Michael Goodchild
Member, US National Academy of Sciences
Foreign Member, Royal Society of Canada
Member, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Foreign Member, Royal Society
Corresponding Member, British Academy
Emeritus Professor of Geography
University of California, Santa Barbara
USA
Distinguished Chair Professor of Geographic Information Science
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong
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Professor José L. Torero
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FCE Distinguished Lecture
"Integrating Fire Safety into Modern Building Design"
Date: 17 March 2017 (Friday) (Details)
Speaker:
Professor José L. Torero
Fellow, Royal Academy of Engineering
Fellow, Royal Society of Edinburgh
Fellow, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering
Professor of Civil Engineering and Head of School
The University of Queensland
Australia
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FCE DISTINGUISHED LECTURE AND DISTINGUISHED CHAIR PROFESSOR INAUGURAL LECTURE SERIES |
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In celebration of the 80th Anniversary of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), the Faculty of Construction and Environment (FCE) has launched the FCE Distinguished Lecture and Distinguished Chair Professor Inaugural Lecture Series. A total of ten lectures will be delivered in 2017 by distinguished scholars from different parts of the world and newly appointed Distinguished Chair Professors of PolyU. The lectures are generously sponsored by the FCE Alumni Associations. Details of the speakers are available at: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/fce/events/80_lectures/
The date and topic of each lecture will be announced in due course.
To download the poster, please click here |
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Forthcoming Events |
Times Higher Education (THE) Innovation and Impact Summit
Theme: Sustainable Urban Development
Date: 31 May 2017 |
International Youth Competition – World Sustainable Built Environment Conference 2017 HK
Date: 5-7 June 2017
Details: http://www.wsbe17hongkong.hk/iyc |
International Summer School 2017
Dates: 10 June - 6 July and 15 July - 10 August
Venue: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Details: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/summerschool/application.php |
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Copyright © Faculty of Construction and Environment, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. All rights reserved.
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