News

Professor Kathryn Ann MOLER, Vice Provost and Dean of Research of Stanford University, delivers the 7th PAIR Distinguished Lecture

The PAIR Distinguished Lecture delivered by Professor Kathryn Ann Moler was held on 12 April 2023. The hybrid lecture successfully attracted over 330 participants joining in person and online from more than 40 countries and regions in Australia, Asia, Europe and North America. It was also broadcasted live on multiple social media platforms, including Bilibili and Weibo, and viewed by over 11,000 online audience. The lecture was kick-started by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU), followed by a welcome speech by Prof. WONG Wing-tak, Deputy President and Provost of PolyU. In the lecture, Prof. Moler shared the experience of Stanford University in designing the university for modern research teams in the 21st century via fostering collaborative proposal writing; planning for shared capabilities in experimental facilities, data, and computation; and transforming academic structures. A question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. Chen followed. The audience was inspired to have a fruitful and inspiring exchange with Prof. Moler. Please click here for an online review.  

DoRiFood appointed Member of Advisory Council on Food and Environmental Hygiene

Dr Wong Ka-hing, Director of the Research Institute for Future Food and Associate Professor in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition, has been appointed as a serving member of the Advisory Council on Food and Environmental Hygiene by the HKSAR government for a term of two years from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2025.    Established on 1 April 2000, the Council is to advise the Government on food and environmental hygiene issues. Press release from the HKSAR government: https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202303/31/P2023033100259.htm

PAIR Public Seminar in Green Chemical Engineering and Zeolite Catalysis

PAIR will organise a hybrid Public Seminar in green chemical industry and molecular sieve catalysis at 4:00pm on 21 April 2023 (Friday) on campus and via Zoom.  Prof. YANG Weimin, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, will be the keynote speaker.  Seats are limited, please register now! Find out more or register at: https://polyu.hk/UADTG

RCRE research paper named High Impact Papers by ScienceDirect

A research paper titled “Sustainable Practice in Pavement Engineering through Value-Added Collective Recycling of Waste Plastic and Waste Tyre Rubber” with Dr LENG Zhen, Associate Director of the Research Centre for Resources Engineering towards Carbon Neutrality (RCRE), as the corresponding author, has been named by ScienceDirect platform as one of the “High-Impact Papers” among the 234 papers indexed in Engineering since 2021. The paper was recognised as an ESI Hot and Highly Cited Paper. Read the Abstract: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095809920303738

PAIR scholars visit Futian Shenzhen

On 30 March, Prof WONG Wing-tak, Deputy President and Provost of PolyU, and Prof Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) of PolyU, led a delegation of PolyU scholars, including Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR) and directors of PAIR’s constituent research units, to visit “Shenzhen–Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Co-operation Zone” located in Futian district to learn about its latest development. The delegation joined a meeting chaired by Mr OUYANG Huiyu, Vice-District Mayor of the Futian District People’s Government, exploring research projects suitable for Futian and relevant support needs. The delegation also visited Jinjiang Municipal People's Government Office in Shenzhen to explore how to strengthen university-industry cooperation.  In February, PolyU and the city government of Jinjiang signed a framework agreement to jointly establish the PolyU–Jinjiang Research Institute to strengthen interdisciplinary industry-academia research collaboration to support the development of the Belt and Road Initiatives. Read more about the collaboration: https://polyu.hk/LZBkJ

PAIR Debut Conference Coming in May! Registration is Now Open!

The PAIR Conference 2023 – Research Excellence for Societal Impact is the very first conference organised by the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR) in hybrid mode (online and on PolyU campus) on 8–11 May 2023 (Monday–Thursday). Watch our latest promotional video to learn about the main highlights and eminent speakers of the upcoming conference!   https://polyu.hk/xahJF Register now to grab your opportunity to learn about the latest happenings in interdisciplinary research and development! https://polyu.hk/JIGuV

SCRI project awarded in ETNet Smart Living Partnership Awards 2022

An interactive platform for COVID-19 status and risk prediction developed by the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Smart Cities Research Institute (SCRI) won the “Outstanding One-stop Virus Decision Support Platform” award in the “Health Technology (HealthTech)” category of the ETNet Smart Living Partnership Awards 2022.  An award presentation ceremony was held on 27 February 2023 at Cyberport. Funded by the Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre (LSCM), the platform provides spatiotemporal predictions for COVID-19 symptom onset risk in future three days for Hong Kong, other cities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), Taiwan, Malaysia, etc.

DoMHRC introduces PolyU’s COVID-19 research and tech-aided cognitive training for elderly on RTHK radio programme

Prof. David MAN, Director of the Mental Health Research Centre and Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences of PolyU, was featured on RTHK radio programme “Under the Sun” on 12 and 19 March. He introduced respectively, research studies on COVID-19, including viral tracing, post-infection rehabilitation, and the Prevention-Protection-Promotion approach in preventing infection and enhancing recovery, as well as how technologies like VR, AR, MR (Mix Reality) and AI can be applied in the cognitive training for elderly.   Online coverage: RTHK - https://polyu.me/3nBfTOH (12 March 2023 04:00 - 24:20) (Cantonese only) RTHK - https://polyu.me/3nBfTOH (19 March 2023 0:55 - 21:55) (Cantonese only)

Prof. David Cardwell of University of Cambridge shares insights on future higher education in PAIR Newsletter

In Issue 5 of PAIR Newsletter, PAIR was honoured to have invited Prof. David CARDWELL, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Strategy and Planning) of the University of Cambridge, to share his insights on the way forward for global higher education and his vision for learning, research and engagement. Prof. Cardwell visited PolyU in January 2023 and had previously delivered PAIR Distinguished Lecture “The Future of Global Universities” online. Read the feature story now: https://polyu.hk/McRpZ

PAIR Distinguished Lecture Series: Designing the university for modern research teams

PAIR cordially invites you to join our Distinguished Lecture on 12 April 2023 (Wednesday) at 4:00-5:30pm (HKT) on PolyU campus and via Zoom. The lecture "Designing the university for modern research teams” will be delivered by Prof. Kathryn Ann Moler, Vice Provost and Dean of Research, Marvin Chodorow Professor, Professor of Applied Physics, of Physics and of Energy Science Engineering of Stanford University, U.S.A.  Prof. Moler has held numerous leadership positions at Stanford University and served as the transition dean of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. She is a world-renowned materials physicist and develops tools that image nanoscale magnetic fields to study quantum materials and devices. Among other honours, she received a national Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, a Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering, the William L. McMillan Award, and the Richtmyer Award for Outstanding Leadership in Physics Education. She is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Don’t miss the chance to learn from distinguished scholar! Find out more and register at:  https://polyu.hk/IzWhb