News

RILS scholar finds causes for wild weather swings from drought to flood

A collaborative study by Dr WANG Shuo, Member of the Research Institute for Land and Space (RILS) and Associate Professor of the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics (LSGI), Miss QING Yamin, PolyU doctoral student, and researchers from the University of Texas and Columbia University, found that wild weather swings from severe drought to heavy rains are becoming more common with climate change, based on analysis on climate data during 1980–2020. The team also discovered the “land-based feedback loops”, which explains how the movement of moisture from humid regions to dry regions increases the chance of downpours after drought. These results can be useful to help increase the accuracy of predictive climate models and help communities to better prepare for swings between drought and flooding.   The study has been published in Communications Earth & Environment https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-023-00922-2   Online coverage: Yahoo UK - https://polyu.me/45x6Faq

RISA Member wins 1st Runner Up in Health Future Challenge 2023 to develop a hearing-cognitive training system for older adults with hearing loss

Dr Ivy ZHAO, Member of the Research Institute for Smart Ageing (RISA), was awarded the 1st Runner Up in the Health Future Challenge 2023 organised by the Knowledge Transfer and Entrepreneurship Office and received Translational Research Grant from the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences for her start-up project “A web-based game-like dual-task hearing-cognitive training system”. The project aims to develop a web-based, game-like, dual-task hearing-cognitive training system for older adults with hearing loss to enhance their hearing efficiency, cognitive functions and social engagement. Health Future Challenge is a start-up ideation competition for students, researchers, alumni and industrialists to team up and come up with health-tech ideas and business models.

Prof. WU Bo featured in China Surveying and Mapping magazine

Prof. WU Bo, Associate Director of Research Centre for Deep Space Explorations (RCDSE), Associate Head (Research) and Fiona Cheung Professor in Spatial Science in the Department of Land Surveying and Geo-Informatics, was featured in an interview in the China Surveying and Mapping magazine, sharing his research team’s active participation in national space missions over the years. Since 2011, the team has been using a large amount of lunar remote sensing data to conduct topographic and geomorphological analysis of the landing sites for the “Chang’e-3” and “Chang’e-4” missions, utilising innovative lunar topographic mapping and geomorphological analysis technologies to evaluate and select safe and scientifically valuable landing sites. Since 2016, the team has been assisting relevant national space agencies with the analysis and evaluation in the “Tianwen-1” Mars exploration mission, screening possible landing sites, and conducting detailed topographic, geomorphological and geological characterisation analysis of each candidate landing sites to help select landing sites. On 15 May 2021, the “Tianwen-1” lander carrying the “Zhu Rong” rover successfully landed near the centre of the optimal landing ellipse, leaving a Chinese mark on Mars for the first time and taking an important step in the Nation’s interstellar exploration. Prof. Wu highlighted the importance of innovation in the interview. He mentioned that in addition to the continuous innovation in traditional surveying and mapping, remote sensing, and geographic information technologies, technologies such as machine learning and deep learning have great potential in the big data, automation, and intelligent analysis in the field of deep space exploration. Moreover, real-time and chip-based surveying, mapping and remote sensing technology are also in urgent demand in the field, and further breakthroughs are needed. To promote better public understanding of the Nation’s achievements in deep space exploration, Prof. Wu’s team developed a virtual reality system based on images and data of the lunar and Mars surface, restoring the various stages of the lunar and Mars landing process and allowing the public to experience roaming various landing sites on the lunar and Mars surface. The interactive exhibit “Moon | Mars VR” is now open to the public at the Hall of the Cosmos of the Hong Kong Space Museum. Online coverage: China Surveying and Mapping - https://polyu.me/3qErWQi (Chinese only)

PolyU-developed Liverscan to launch in China, enabling mobile, non-invasive assessment of liver fibrosis

Liverscan, a palm-sized real-time B-mode ultrasound imaging guided system for liver fibrosis assessment developed by Prof. ZHENG Yongping, Director of the Research Institute for Smart Ageing (RISA), and his research team, will soon be introduced to the mainland Chinese market. The technology marks a major step in promoting the precise prevention and effective diagnosis of liver diseases in China. Liver fibrosis is a common condition of chronic liver inflammation, which may lead to cirrhosis, loss of liver function or cancer. Liver biopsy, which has been the gold standard in the diagnosis of liver diseases, requires puncturing the skin of patients’ abdomen using needles and collecting a small sample of liver tissues. Liverscan provides a novel, non-invasive technology for liver fibrosis assessment. Liverscan was developed after five years of development by the team based on PolyU’s related research results and patents. During the period, the team obtained the supports from Incu-bio incubation program of Hong Kong Science and Technology Park, Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities, and other funds.  Prof. Zheng founded Eieling Technology Limited, a PolyU-supported start-up, together with former and current team members, to develop, manufacture and market Liverscan. At present, Liverscan equipment is being trialled among some hospitals and medical examination centres in Hong Kong, as well as some top hospitals in mainland China. Online coverage: ifeng.com - https://polyu.me/4521I9o

Global Smart Cities Summit cum the 3rd International Conference on Urban Informatics commences

The Global Smart Cities Summit cum the 3rd International Conference on Urban Informatics (GSCS & ICUI 2023), organised by the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Smart Cities Research Institute (SCRI) and the International Society for Urban Informatics (ISUI) commenced on 21 August 2023. This three-day conference has attracted over 500 participants globally and over 230 speakers will share their insights and research on urban informatics and smart cities. The Opening Ceremony was attended by Prof. SUN Dong, Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, HKSAR Government; Prof. TENG Jin-guang, President, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU); Prof. John SHI Wenzhong, Director of SCRI and President of ISUI; Mr Tony WONG, Government Chief Information Officer; Prof. Michael GOODCHILD, Member of the National Academy of Sciences; Prof. Michael BATTY, Fellow of the British Academy and the Royal Society; Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation), PolyU; Dr Otto POON, Founder of the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation; Prof. GONG Peng, Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor, The University of Hong Kong; and Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR). As an emerging interdisciplinary field, urban informatics is the foundational science and technology for smart cities. The GSCS & ICUI 2023 aims at promoting global smart city development and advances in urban informatics. This year’s conference received 300 abstract submissions from 21 countries and regions. The Conference features keynote speeches by world leading scientists, forums and technology innovation exhibitions. It provides an excellent platform for exchanging information about state-of-the-art technologies and innovations in smart cities and urban informatics. Don’t miss the last chance to join the GSCS & ICUI 2023! Register at: https://www.isocui.org/icui2023 Read more: https://polyu.hk/CHUEO Online coverage: ETNet - https://polyu.me/3qvYrjS Hong Kong Commercial Daily - https://polyu.me/3YLpDYl Ticker Technologies - https://polyu.me/45f0PdG BizWire Express - https://polyu.me/3E91RMx CISION PR Newswire - https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/polyu-hosts-the-global-smart-cities-summit-cum-the-3rd-international-conference-on-urban-informatics-attracting-over-500-global-scholars-and-industry-professionals-301905551.html

PAIR researcher releases interim findings of Study on Effective Transitional Housing Delivery in Hong Kong with multiple policy recommendations

Prof. K. K. LING, Associate Director of Research Institute for Land and Space (RILS) and Director of Jockey Club Design Institute for Social Innovation, and his team released the interim findings of “Study on Effective Transitional Housing Delivery in Hong Kong” and its report on policy recommendations. Funded by the Strategic Public Policy Research Funding Scheme of the HKSAR government, the Study is the first comprehensive study of Hong Kong’s transitional housing programme.   The Government plans to complete 84 transitional housing projects and provide over 21,000 housing units by 2024–25, among which over half are in the New Territories. The Study examined 35 Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) housing projects at open-air sites, which provide about 86% of transitional housing (TH) units delivered under the programme. The Study concluded that Hong Kong’s TH programme, as compared to the relocatable modular building projects in other cities, has the largest scale, fastest construction speed and widest societal participation. The Study supports the Government for taking up the role of builder in the Light Public Housing (LPH) programme to enhance the efficiency of housing delivery, and makes the following recommendations: 1. Recognise the function and position of TH 2. Integrate TH and LPH  3. Standardise the design of MiC units 4. Assist tenants to settle down in the Northern Metropolis 5. Engage NGOs in the community-building of LPH development 6. Advance planning on the re-use of MiC units Read the full study: https://polyu.hk/nnJYh Online coverage: RTHK “Hong Kong Today” - https://polyu.me/47EoNR4 (31:28 – 41:35) RTHK - https://polyu.me/3OBcAUR Commercial Radio - https://polyu.me/3OHZaq8 Oriental Daily News - https://polyu.me/3qDEpnt Ming Pao Daily News - https://polyu.me/3KLPYzX; https://polyu.me/3YDrluO Hong Kong Economic Times - https://polyu.me/3OZRMaL Sing Tao Daily - https://polyu.me/3OWTsSt am730 - https://polyu.me/3QJpBOQ Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/3qEPqov; https://polyu.me/3P13X7r HK01 - https://polyu.me/3YEqCJS  

Prof. GUO Song gives keynote speech at international conference on data science in cyberspace in Hefei

Prof. GUO Song, Leading Member of the Research Institute for Artificial Intelligence of Things (RIAIoT) and Professor in the Department of Computing, delivered a keynote speech titled “Neural-enhanced Edge: Towards Operationalised AI in Cooperative Cloud-Edge Ecosystems” at the 8th IEEE International Conference on Data Science in Cyberspace held from 18 to 20 August 2023 in Hefei, China.   Online coverage: Toutiao - https://polyu.me/3swPdEi  

PAIR Distinguished Lecture Series: Developing a Science of Cities

PAIR cordially invites you to join our Distinguished Lecture on 1 September 2023 (Friday) at 3:00–4:30pm (HK Time) on PolyU campus and via Zoom. The lecture “Developing a Science of Cities” will be delivered by Prof. Michael BATTY, Bartlett Professor of Planning at University College London, Chair of the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, and Fellow in the Alan Turing Institute.   Prof. Batty is amongst the most highly-cited urban planners worldwide, contributing significantly to urban design and planning as well as related technology development with his influential publications, extensive research works and global network engagements. Prof. Batty’s excellence in the field has been recognised nationally and internationally by many awards as well as fellowships. Among the many honours, he received the 2013 Vautrin Lud Prize (as known as the “Nobel” for Geography).   In the lecture, Prof. Batty will share on the rudiments of a science of cities building on ideas in social physics, economics, transportation and a wide array of techniques and tools that are being developed using new methods of computation and big data. He will illustrate how large scale computer models that are now being built for systems of cities. Prof. Bay will also speculate on some of the dilemmas of prediction that dominate the field and discuss the way forward for our urban future.   Don’t miss the chance to learn from distinguished scholar!   Find out more and register at: https://polyu.hk/ZcQjg

RCRE Director featured in Master Insight’s exclusive interview: Waste incineration is not a comprehensive solution to waste management, and Hong Kong needs to promote producer responsibility

Ir Prof. C. S. POON, Michael Anson Professor in Civil Engineering, Chair Professor of Sustainable Construction Materials, Head of Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of Research Centre for Resources Engineering towards Carbon Neutrality, in an exclusive interview with Master Insight, shared his views on the global efforts on municipal waste management and Hong Kong’s waste incineration strategy in recent years. Prof. Poon pointed out that landfills in Hong Kong will phase out in nearer future, and the new “land mining” technology, which is currently being developed in Europe and mainland China, may be the future development direction for Hong Kong. The technology aims to excavate closed landfills so that the “emptied” landfills are converted back to its original state for use again. He emphasised that incineration is not a comprehensive solution to waste management and recommended the government to promote producer responsibility, introducing a waste levy to encourage recycling in the public. “If there is a waste levy, citisens or enterprises may try to avoid paying so by setting up some recycling networks to reduce the cost of waste disposal, reducing the use of disposable products, and formulating some policies for waste sorting. This is how economic incentives can bring real effects.”   Online coverage: Master Insight - https://polyu.me/47kAxbx (Chinese only)

RI-IWEAR researcher featured in Sing Tao Daily, introducing novel bone graft to expedite bone healing

Dr ZHAO Xin, Member of the Research Institute for Intelligent Wearable Systems (RI-IWEAR), Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Limin Endowed Young Scholar in Biomedical Engineering, in an interview with local news Sing Tao Daily, introduced her award-winning research project “Biomimicking Photocrosslinkable Nanocomposite Bone Grafts”. Mirroring the structure of natural bone, the grafts developed by Dr Zhao’s team can load and release bioactive molecules and activate cell-signaling pathways to simultaneously promote osteogenesis and angiogenesis while providing optimal mechanical support to the injured area to expedite the bone healing process. The project has won the TechConnect World Innovation Conference and Expo 2023 Global Innovation Awards in the area of “medical devices and materials. Online coverage: Sing Tao Daily - https://polyu.me/3DvtgrC (Chinese only; subscription required)