News

PAIR scholars honoured by National Natural Science Foundation of China

Dr HUANG Xinyan, Member of the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development (RISUD) and Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Research Institute for Smart Energy (RISE) and Associate Professor in the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering, has been awarded the 2023 Excellent Young Scientists Fund (Hong Kong and Macao) by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), to support his research. Three research projects led by Prof. WANG Zuankai, Associate Vice President (Research and Innovation), Prof. DING Xiaoli, Director of the Research Institute for Land and Space and Chair Professor of Geomatics, and Prof. XU Zhao, Management Committee Member of the RISE, respectively, have been selected as NSFC Key Programmes.   Online coverage (Chinese only): Ta Kung Pao - https://polyu.me/45WNVBt Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/3PDxDHQ

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.

RISUD Member conferred as RGC Senior Research Fellow

Prof. NI Meng, Member of the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development (RISUD), Associate Dean of the Faculty of Construction and Environment and Professor in the Department of Building and Real Estate, has been awarded in the Research Grants Council (RGC)’s Senior Research Fellow Scheme (SRFS).   Prof. Ni was conferred the title “RGC Senior Research Fellow”, and awarded funding for his interdisciplinary project which aims to promote sustainable and clean energy generation. The project “Protonic ceramic fuel cells for clean power generation: From new cathode materials to new stack designs” will integrate engineering, chemistry, physics and material science in developing new cathode materials for enhancing the performance of protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs) for clean power generation.   The SRFS aims to provide sustained support to exceptionally outstanding researchers at the UGC-funded universities in Hong Kong. It provides ten places to scholars from all academic disciplines. The supporting university of each awardee will receive a fellowship grant at around HK$7.8 million for a period of 60 months.   Press release: https://polyu.me/3q5zewd   Online coverage: Sing Tao Daily - https://polyu.me/3QbxtIq (Chinese only; subscription required)

RISUD MC member receives Ministry of Education’s Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Award (Science and Technology)

Prof. WANG Tao, Management Committee Member of the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development (RISUD), Associate Director of the University Research Facility in Chemical and Environmental Analysis, Chair Professor of Atmospheric Environment in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and other five mainland research collaborators received the 2022 Second-Class Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Award (Science and Technology) from the Ministry of Education for their research project on the chemical transformation mechanism of atmospheric reactive nitrogen oxides and their impacts on ozone and smog pollution. Online coverage (Chinese only): Oriental Daily News - https://polyu.me/3XsTrIt Sing Tao Daily - https://polyu.me/3pnKP9D (subscription required) Ta Kung Pao - https://polyu.me/43U5elE Wen Wei Po - https://polyu.me/3Xqn3Gw Hong Kong Commercial Daily - https://polyu.me/3XGIgwh Dot Dot News - https://polyu.me/3XqWyAK Yahoo HK - https://polyu.me/46locDp Hong Kong China News Agency - https://polyu.me/430UZKY East Money - https://polyu.me/3CONKLO Sohu - https://polyu.me/3XsZM6R

Prof. ZHENG Zijian receives inaugural Hong Kong Engineering Science and Technology Award

Prof. ZHENG Zijian, Associate Director of the Research Institute for Intelligent Wearable Systems (RI-IWEAR), Member of the Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Research Institute for Smart Energy (RISE), and Chair Professor of Soft Materials and Devices of the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology of the Faculty of Science, received the Hong Kong Engineering Science and Technology Award (HKEST Award) 2022. Newly launched by the Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences last year and supported by the Innovation and Technology Commission of the HKSAR government, the Award aims to recognise and commend outstanding contributions and excellence among younger generations in Hong Kong for their dedication and achievements in the arena of engineering science and technology.   Online coverage (Chinese only): Ta Kung Pao - https://polyu.me/43FngYo ETNet - https://polyu.me/42tIzLo Hong Kong Commercial Daily - https://polyu.me/45Q3ZVR

Prof. Marco PANG receives World Physiotherapy International Service Award in Research

Prof. Marco PANG, Member of the Research Centre for SHARP Vision (RCSV), Director of University Research Facility in Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience (UBSN), and Professor of Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, received the International Service Award in Research at the recent World Physiotherapy Congress held in Dubai in June 2023. Prof. Pang is the first physiotherapist from Hong Kong to receive this prestigious recognition. The World Physiotherapy awards, which are presented by World Physiotherapy every four years, recognise awardees’ outstanding contributions to the profession and/or global health at an international level. Among the various award categories, the International Service Awards honours individuals who have made distinguished contributions through service in one or more of the following areas: practice, education, research, management/administration, advocacy.

ADoRCRE elected as President of APSE Executive Board

Congratulations to Dr LENG Zhen, Associate Director of the Research Centre for Resources Engineering towards Carbon Neutrality (RCRE) and Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, for being elected as the President of the Executive Board of the Academy of Pavement Science and Engineering (APSE) for the 2023–25 period. The APSE is a global community of academics working together to educate, innovate, and advance the profession of pavement science and engineering.

MHRC Member Prof. Eric CHUI appointed as member of Mental Health Review Tribunal

Prof. Eric CHUI Wing-hong, Member of the Mental Health Research Centre, Professor and Head of the Department of Applied Social Sciences, Co-Director of Policy Research Centre for Innovation and Technology, was appointed as a member of the Mental Health Review Tribunal for a term of two years from 15 April 2023 to 14 April 2025. Prof. Chui has been actively involved in community and public services. He currently serves on the editorial boards of several SSCI journals and has served as a committee member or advisor of many social and public service organisations in Hong Kong. The Tribunal comprises a Chairman, 15 medical members, 15 social work members, and 15 other members with suitable experience in and knowledge of administration or clinical psychology, or other suitable qualifications or experience. The Tribunal was set up in 1989 pursuant to the enactment of the Mental Health (Amendment) Ordinance. The function of the Tribunal is to consider applications or cases of patients who are liable to be compulsorily detained in mental hospitals or to compulsory guardianship, as well as to determine whether these patients should be discharged in accordance with the Mental Health Ordinance (Cap. 136).

Prof. Daniel TSANG named among Best Environmental Scientists in China by Research.com

Prof. Daniel TSANG, Management Committee Member of the Research Centre of Resources Engineering towards Carbon Neutrality (RCRE) and Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, was ranked eighth nationally in the list of “Best Scientists (Environmental Sciences)” by leading academic research portal Research.com. The ranking is based on a scholar’s D-index (Discipline H-index), which includes exclusively papers and citation metrics for an examined discipline.  Full list of the ranking: https://research.com/scientists-rankings/environmental-sciences/cn

PolyU wins record-breaking number of awards at 48th Geneva Inventions Expo

PolyU has won a record-breaking 31 accolades at the 48th Geneva Inventions Expo in Switzerland. Among the 28 award-winning innovations, 17 are driven by members of PAIR’s constituent research units – a testimony of the PolyU community’s excellence in developing inventions and innovations that create long-lasting, real-world impact. Read more: https://polyu.hk/NfgoB