HKUST Genesis = 同創, Volume 2, Number 5

(1)

- ~

. . : ·._ I

- ·-· .... \-·: ~ ---·-::._

Developments

and

Perspectives

.:•... - »

Phase 1. Fi~-e of the labs ar~ desc.ri~ belci~·/ ..

~

.. -~---

.

~

_

What

;

s

';:;~~

:

11:::!:::::::1

Electronic Circuit &."instrumentation Lab. · ·

Inside...

··==::::::::~ All Engineering students will spend time in this lab,

ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT as first-year "core" courses will be taught here. In P. 2:

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONIC

Phase i,_there will be'24 work stations, designed for . _

. ·two students each and equipped with the latest, com-· · Staff-lntrod.uctIOFlS Last but not least of the Department Heads ·to.'· ~puter-coptrollei:l'instruments. "We believe the first-_{. _} · .. _{P. 3:}

come on board, Professor Peter Cheung reported for: year lab_ is one of the most important, and we· are

work as Head of Electrical & Electronic Engineer- · trying to ·make it exciting and meaningful in order to Transport

ing-'Triple-E" for short-on 1 January 1991. He stimulate our students from the very beginning," -then faced a short nine months to establish an office, notes Professor Cheung. P. 4:

teaching staff, curriculum, and research facilities for Implementing this philosophy, one of the first D~gon Boat Races what will be one of HKUST's largest departments.· . courses Triple-E students will take is one entitled

"People were a bit nervous," he notes, "but we are "How Things Work", a one credit-hour pass/fail HKUST in Action

managing well." course in which students will investigate how the P. S:

Duringhisfirstquarter(January-March),Profes- things around them work-from fax machines and

sor Cheung set recruitment as his highest priority. copiers to CD players and the Nintendo game. Energy Resources - -Within one month the Triple-E's office was fully DepartmentPCLab. UnlikeotherPClabs,this

A Bit of This, functional, with secretary, clerk, and executive offi- will be specifically designed to house professional

cer. Within two months he added two teaching fac- software for circuit design and will be equipped with A Bit of That u!ty; and by the end of the quarter five faculty industrial-standardelectronicdevelopmenttools. 'This _{P. 6,}

members were appointed and approved, arrived and is unusual for a university, because such tools are

began work. "We have a complete teaching staff very expensive. Educationaldiscountsandourcontacts JUPAS Interviews now, from Professor to Assistant Lecturer." with manufacturers have enabled us to procure these

During the second quarter (April-June), Profes- for HK.UST," says Professor Cheung. P. 7

sor Cheung set e.quipment as his highest priority, VLSI Circuit.Design Lab (where "VLSI" stands Graphically Speaking withcurriculumplanningaconcurrentbutlesscriti- for "Very Large Scale Integrated"). This

0

lab·will - - •·

cal activity. The goal is to plan and specify all house industrial-standard design tools

foi

designing On the Light Side equipment for the laboratories to be fitted out in the microprocessors which are _the "brains" of

Phase I; all faculty have been involved. "Our labora- microchips. -· Movie of tbe Month

tories will be quite unique," Professor Cheung as- Microprocessor Application Lab. Here

stu

· -

.

P. 8 serts. "In planning, we first asked the question, What dents will investigate the principles of digital logic,

can we do to make the labs unique and effective? and how it is applied in such products as burglar Staff Movements. Then we set about working with the realities." Like alarms, alarm clocks, and game-board type

of'ma-Souvenirs

building his own house in Washington, Professor chines. · ·

Cheung says he started without particular ideas, but Multi-Media Signal Processing Lab: ThiS lab Advertisements as he considered the problems and goals, the ways. represent~ yet another branch of Triple-E in which·

and means gradually took shape. images, speech, and text are integrated and inter- Announcements In equipping the labs, one approach which the converted, and which is developipg, for example,

Department has been using, with promising results, computerscreenswhichspeakandproject3-Dimages.

is working with industry and private vendors. In

some cases, single vendors will supply all the equip-ment for certain laboratories. "Our goals are to set up excellent teaching facilities and also to get the ven-dors actively involved-so they will appreciate ·the ·

impact of their equipment on students." · Ultimately, the Triple-E Department will have ten laboratories, of which nine will be set up in

Once writing specifications for designing and equipping the labs is finished, the Department will shift into designing curricula and writing syllabuses. "I think we have one of the hardest working Depart-ments," he comments, with some pride. In any case, like the microprocessors they produce, Triple-E is certainly one of the fastest.

(2)

2

See-Chun Kot, Senior Lecturer, :Mechanical

Engineering. · Born 28 February, in Shanghai; married with two sons. Gra-duated from U. Illinois with a BS in

'Aeronautical & Astronautical Engin-eering; from Cornell with an 10:E and PhD in Aerospace Engineering. Dr Kot became a lecturer at HKU in 1974, and has held visiting lectureships in the US and UK. Skiing is Dr Kot's favourile leisure pursuit; after 25 years he has skied o_n

virtually every continent that_ has snow.

Amelia Fong Loc.hovsky, Senior Lec-turer, ComputefScicnce. Born 19 August' iii HK; married with two children. Graduated from U. Toronto with a BSc and from Princeton wilh

an

MSc, MA, and PhD. From 1978 until joining HKUST Dr Fong Lochovsky was wiLi U. Guelph (Canada), as an Assistant Pr,,fessor and then Associate Professor. In her spare time Dr Fong Lochovsky er.joys swimming, read··

ing; and listening to classical music.

- Kwan-F~i Cheung, !..ecturer, E!.

ectri-cal & Ele~tronic Engineering. · Born 5

July in HK; single; Graduated from U. Washington with a BS, MS and FhD in ElecLrical Engineering. After

gradual-. ing, Dr Cheung returned to HK to be-come a Lecturer at· City Polytechnic, later moving lo CUHK. In his spare time Dr Che.ung enjoys taking photo-graphs and attends church services.

Ho-Chi Huang, Lecturer, Electrical·& Electronic Engineering. Born 21 De-cember in Taiwan; married. Graduated from National Taiwan U. with a BS and Ms, from U. Washington with

a

PhD, all

. in Electri~al Engineering. Between his

· MS and. PhD, Dr Huang was a Com-puter Cenlre Manager, and taught at a junior college in Taipei. In his spare time he enjoys playing bridge and watching TV.

. Man-Chi Pong, Lecturer, Computer Science. Boin 6 August in HK; married. Graduated from HKU with a BSc and MPhil, from UC Los Angeles wilh an MSc, and from U. Kent with a PhD. He

. has worked as a Computing Officer at U. Edinburgh, an Associate Professor in the Instilllte of Software, Academia Sinica, Beijing, and a Research Fellow at U. Kent. For hobbies, Dr Pong enjoys reading and swimming.

Jack Lau,. Assistant Lecturer, Electrical &

Electronic Engineering. Born 25 Sep-tember in HK; single. Gradua!e.d from UC Berkeley with a BS and MS in Elec-trical Engineering. After graduation Mr Lau worked as a commercial design en-gineer. He claims that tennis and swim-ming are his favourite pastimes, and that'

May 1991

he has no bad habits. (The latter has been confirmed by an office colleague).

Kai-Leung Ku, EO T, Schcol of Engi-neering. Born 3 March in HK; married. Graduated from HKU with a bac!ielbr's degree in Social Science. Previously·

Mr Ku worked as a Planning & Control Officer for the KMB Co., and he

de-scribes his work at

HK

UST as much the same. Mr Ku pursues a wide variety of

"e.xtra-curricular" activities, from ceramics and gemology to windsurfing and soccer.

Iris Cheung, EO II, Mechanical Engi-neering. Born 7 November in HK; single. Graduated from-CUHK with a _BA in

-History. Subseque.ntJ)rt-.-f.s Cheung taught secondary school and worked for a ChiiIB. u·ade firm. At HKUST she is helping establish tl)e Department's general of-fice management system.

In her spare time, Ms Cheung enjoys

.. canoeing. Her most memorable experier.ce afloat was a three~

day voyage from Sai Kung, around Lantau Island, ar.d endi1ig at Cheung Chau.

Angela Yu, EO II, Computer Science. Born 30 October in HK; single.

Gradu-. ated from HKU with a BA in English. In lhe past Ms Yu edited Chinese secon-dary school textbooks, and was an administrative assistant at Ll-ie HK Poly-technic: 'At HKUST she describes her-.

self

as

a "resource person" for her

De'-partment Head. For fun, Ms Yu enjoys reading, swimming, hiking and meeting with friends.

Loretta Yuen, EO II, Electrical & Elec-tronic Engineering. Born 13 December in HK; single. Graduated with a Prof. Dip. in Business Studies from HK;Poly~

technic, and wiLi an MA from U. Kent. .

AtHKUST-in her first job after gradu-ating-?\1s Yuen is responsible for ad-ministrative work in the Department.

Attending lheatrical performances and reading Chinese novels are Ms Yuen's favourite pastimes.

(3)

Transport User Group to Aid

Administration in Arranging Bus Service

.

The General Administration and Committees Office has es-

Ii

Members of the Bus Service User Group: tablished an informal Bus Service User Group. It' has two

functions: to represent staff opinions and concerns to the:Atlmini.---= -

_..:.._

Mr

George Scott (Director of Administration}; Chairman stration as it plaps transport arrangements; and to'keep~staff - · MrMervynCheurig(AssistantSecretary,GeneralAdmin),

. infonned of progress, decisions, and dilemina.fas '·arfarigments Secretary . . . . .

· proceed The goal is to create a transport system which serves not only staff and their families, but also students as efficiently and economically as possible.

At the Group's first meeting on 20 May, Chairman George Scott recapped what has been done so far, what ·questions cur-rently face the Administration, and how the service __ seems !o be

shaping up: . . -'. · '· . .

The Personnel Office has done a computer analrsis of ihe distribution of staff throughout Hong Kong, Kowloon, and-the New Territories. Based on this and tempered by logistical considerations, initially four bus routes have been mapped out a HK island route from Pokfield Road through the Eastern Harbour··

Tunnel; a Kowloon route from Whampoa Plaza passing Ol Man Estate and Wong Tai Sin; one NT route from Tsuen Wan through Mei Foo Sun Chue.n; and a second NT route from Tai Wai KCR station through Shatin.

Commercial bus companies have been ask,ed to submit quotations of monthly fares for servjce on these routes; City bus will also be given a chance to bid on the routes. "It appears that City bus is eager to get involved with the University ,as part of their long- tenn goal to establish themselves in Hong Kong," said Mr Scott "We're hoping they will be able to give us not only a competitive pricing but also some comments on future develop-ment of bus service, as HK.UST grows to an institution of thousands of students and staff." The Administration envisages the vari-ous buses leaving their starting points be-tween 7:35 and 7:50 a.m., arriving at campus at 8:40. In the evening, buses will leave at 5:30 p.m. Bus service will begin as soon as staff move to campus, which is projected to be August. Before that, it is anticipated that a shuttle service from the Choi Hung

MTR

possibly in conjunction with TVB/Citybus, will be provided for those who must work on campus to prepare for the final move.

The question of Saturday working hours is also under consideration.

The next step, according to Mr Scott, is to receive all fare bids. When that infonnation is in hand, the Bus Service User Group will reconvene and, subsequently, details of pro-posed bus routes and fares will be circulated among staff.

Academic Staff

Dr Y.S. Wong (Senior Lecturer, Biology Department)

Administrative Staff

Mrs P~dora Yuen (Assistant Secretary, Student Affairs Offic~)

Genera{ and. Support Staff

-Mr K.S. Law (EO I, Estates Management) .

Ms Monita Cheung (Clerical Officer, Finance Office)

Ms Stella Cheng (Clerical Officer.Estates Management Office) Ms May

Lee

(Senior Personal Secretary, PVC-AA 's Office) Dr Martha Dahlen (EO

I.

Public Affairs Office)

·,

-

)

(4)

4

HKUST

To

Join Sai Kung

Dragon Boat Races

H".t<.UST will sponsor two-possibly three-boats Li the upcoming dragon boat races to be held

.. in Port Shelt.er in Sai Kung, 16 June. Organised by the Sai Kung Dragon Boat Racing Association, the races are the l.ighlight of festivities marking the Dragon BoatFestival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.

This-year more ::harr3{) organisations will participate, with each organisation fielding one or more boat~.

AtHKUST, Wayne Yung (CCST)is spearheading efforts to organise HKUST's entries. As of 1511.ay, 40 men have signed up, enough to plan for one medium size boat of 26 oarsmen and

. one small boat of eight oarsmen. At last report, two female members of smff from the Finance Office were also trying to recruit a women's team for a second small boat. Max Ivey (CCST) is the Team Manager for the larger boat, and Neal Wolfe

(Lab. Services) is the Manager for the smaller boat·

May 1991

·· Sai Kung ··

on: .three

Saiurday after-. · noons(2-6pm,25

May,

1 and 8 June): In addition to time (and sweat), each crew member is also asked to contribute $50 toward the cost of oarn, transpot~tion, crew -unifom1 (special designer T-shirts) and other general expenses. The Racing Association provides boats, but each tea.'Tl must provide its own oars,ata cost·

of $35 per pair.

Anyone who would like to see the racc·anct support the team

in person should contact Mervyn Cheung (Ext. 1415). lfinterest warrants, the Social Club will charter a bus to take an HKUST cheering squad to Sai Kung on 16 June. _

Co~;G~(!~:.b;~~;~~~~;:;t:t1

::~ I~:::~~~

.

..

.

THE

i;:

~;;:=:~;

,

T

fi

E

· )t::::

i;ci;:~:~:

:

~

~;:~~~

.

!:

~i~::::t:;aD~~~~~

1•i::1

•:::J

Hi$:¢:

}

Ri~gQp

f

ffi:

9. j(

I

ii:

•J

vir.iii.~

:I

§

:

~

=

B:

J

i;~

:

~

··

;

)

t4

:

tH

•

1 ••••Iili

and the 10.8-Sai Kung SL'.uf Association. The-w1imers ofU~ )(YangJ Fcsti_val falls on tlie fifth

,wi

y

· of

ilie-fi-fth~lunaL-:. -~

;::if:i::;;:£~;:::::,~;:i!~

..

llf1111111111ltl

ll

~~1~g;g{~~i{{:}?i.~(~~~~tt;

·

lltllllillll

·.

Anyone who has the time and strength

to

join the race should

[

j:lf.~fa

?h

f:

¢.9:g[:§H~irnfl~mff\9§.~n4

W1\

@

f:i(

§

t?.t9p;~m

·

contact Michael Cheng on Ext. 1487. The teams will practice in .

HKUST IN

ACTION

•

Dr Dit-Yan Yeung (Compuier Science) was invited by the·

HK Section of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) to be an organiser and speaker in a short course on the theory and applications of artificial neilral .

networks held 13 April in HK.

Dr Yeung also gave a tal~ at CUHK on 1 May as part of the Engineering Seminar Series co-sponsored by the Cortl-puter Chapter of IEEE (HK ~ection) and the Engineering Progra1nme of CUHK ..

• Vice-Chancellor and Presid~nt Chia-Vhi Woo delivered the keynote speech at a dinner held on 24 April and sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania Alumni Association of HK for ivy league school alumni living in Hong Kong.

• On May 1, the Biology Department hosted a tea reception · for 40 of the most outstanding applicants for undt:rgradnate

· places in the Biology Department in 1992-93. After aslide sho\\' i1_1troducing the University, faculty and students got to know each other over tea and biscuits.

Biologybept.Head

m

Prof. Ernes.t Chu

(far right) er.joys a laugh with students.

(5)

5

.May 1991

··

· ··---mm! ... _____ ... _

.f .. :·::

I

nJuly, a monthly lecture ser:ies will begin at tbe newly opened solar theimalystems forheatingorcoolingof

air.

water, oroil, and

Hong Kong Museum of Science, presented by lecturerslom hydroelectric-are now operational andcosteffoctive·in specific

HK.UST on topics related to their fields of expertise. The lectures applications. In t.1e United States renewable energy now

contri-·are open to the public, a,idwill oqcur on the last Su11day of each· butes more to the natfonal energy needs-than n'uclear·etjergy anct

month. Pro-\lii::e~Cha11cellor for Research and Development, .· is g10wing much faster. · ' . _· (.. .

Professor Tho,;1.11sSte/son, wili initiaie the series with/ii~ leci1i.re_ : . · .insun1maiy,.thereiiaf\ipdan1el1t,ahel!iuil<Jirigbf_energy usiiig.

or.

28 July entitled, -" Conser,;ation., and Renewable. Erie'rgike--· ..

and

generating systems around the world,tliat:n·ol,oniy:fedilc~

elli·

:

sources< Bi/ow are :Sum1naries ()fhis upcgmi-~J iectiii<c'.:_ . .. , . i. ergy use butaiso creates 111any ?Ptions

tl1ar~{ve

ro~nkind.11~\VOP~'.

· · .,.. · · · · ·poitmlitie.~ frfiihprove q4ality oflife for~ ·ofus. ·

CONSERVATION

ANDREI\TEWABLEEI\TERGY

.

RESOURCES

~~f·li-~ilf ~ &ft!;!~,m

-~it!Mtt:*:$lIUtiHl Mf11Ha~rl:±~

·

· nm~w~wMm

. , The finiteness of world supp°ijes or fossil fuels.i.s no\v well'.-. · .

. understood. Furthermore, theenyironmentaldegradation caused ,

4 ~, -:-~JNA

tEIJJ31~Hl¥Al?&N

:if{f

'A! (

lflC~:~fr, ffl·z~·-·,

by excessive combustion offo.ssil foe.ls is also now bet~r under:.. -~

J

tB;

~*~g:;

A

ttifflf!li

stHt!l!lwm.;f.;f jJlt~i'5~li!Jl

stood. Many new technical innovations have developed options o

¥ffiHa:~.A.J,li"ffJ}~ml~~lmJ:lf7 .IEl'fJnUh

~JU·

tl}atreduce energy use, are more economical, and improveenvi-

{i:mi1.it*J>1mf~!.8}~~, U:tr.iJJJ,t

®~~~, i.t.D]W,O( .

ronmental conditions. The principal barrier to impl~mentir,ig

~li~

0

-JN:.A.J.tit-W8!~,

PJJ;(~ifu{l'~~~l'f)

thesegreatimprovementsispublicignoranceand lackofrelevant jfl1ttt&.ttz, ::k::kfl/i~7?fli~!1,llB:Jliiffl O ffiiiWAl! ~P;f;~ {t ·

·. information so thatindividuais can make personal decisions that

ffl~~ffi~!!J3X ~.!Uii%W.~l~iiH±~tr:JmM:

0

~'.l!iil¥3iilii~

.

~~~-AITT~J:m-m,4Rffl~·d·~~R

result in public good. Energy conservation does not require ti:at · "' 111 · '" ,_i,..h91',i;,₁ :11-.~ ~ .,r M ~ -·

· Jl!~Jf]~i,l'R,

f:211~::f.§r.iJ.!2,.W,al((~tt, l,)(.c,~>Yf>I ~PJ.P..,.isl}

people "shiver in the dark" .. Energy efficiency-iin proveme.n_L'> . , ~-H, · ::!! ~ >+' •;r. 11.l!i~,

.:x ""'

::r.l~"

mean that individuals can save money, live better, use less ·energy

~~+ii:~,

t!tff~'ltHBtl6~1.{Al\1Ua~ffl'.iEtt:J~m ,

.

{Ji1iffi

and create

an

improve.d environment

']'~e~H¥iiff~o ~

_7~,

Pf.:{:f~fflfg~z!ffii'r:J!f:J8lt-

-filJ'!S~tu:l

_

·

_ Allencrgy-usingdevices-refrigcrators,automoj)iles, build-=-

liJ::flh

r~~,

~~~-\

Iixift1h 11H~~~- -~cJi@1M\lr

ings, radios, airplanes--and manufac_ruring proct!sses hr:r~-e now

ant,

i@Jltt.7, ~:f,{.e.[JD'.?97l?ff-HBHf~,

t.t{fl~

been technicrulyredevelopedsothatthey not only uselessene.rgy -~4%~1J'~{i~{f'.§'.J";

mHtw.HtfutbW.

ITTJ~

~ 0

but also cost less ~md are more operationally effecti vr. .. The~e ..:.

·y""'

11=:;,;;'m tob:.r.sht,~i+. ,1,i,,;;i;w i:r,-'.:. <,I,. • .,i:,-.;;+:i:i.

~*:l!-t

h h .. red' th '] fifo ·h ' !$_ ~/i\cc,/1:JJltH\iJ\P:JfiltCZH flb~,)\l~n3mwdbi1X11 U:./.VBL-.X.,

c.,an~es. ave occu,r . m e ast teen y_ears as t ~ uncerLJUnty 1 .

~

0

~Hiifi~~fl'Hl3tH~

_

-f0J:tlt]f:h'\jJ,

31;~ P

1:f:0

-

:i:,

~i'¥:

about world energy supply and cost has SLlmulated,new researc 1 ,_

~ifi!3Wft,

fJffl:i(~~fJt~!1i~*',

*,

tml'i-~iist:~

7.l<t.J~

:

andproductredevelopmenL

~

:

~~-

· -m_tl:~~~fflti;

~*~~1&fl~

:(£~~,·n~Wi(P}'

At the £ame time L~at energy efficiency ha:, improved, re-

J:iHif:l:.~fi~imt~~,

-

~~ttJ!~o

newab!e systems of generating energy have also been grcnlly.

improved. All of the varied renewable energy technologies-wind, photovoltaic, biomass, ocean thermal energy conversion,

Hungry Students and

Visiting Professors

In afar away country, N students have been arrested b)' !he··

government for boycotting student canteens (by means of fasting) without the consent of their professors.

The students were sent to a prison with N cells, labelled 1 to

N. Each student was put into solitary confinement in a cell. Each cell

has

a toggle button ~n the d~r: if the door is already dosed ·. . ...

then pressing the button opens it, and if the door is already open

then pressing the button locks it . · · .. ~ . ·

.... _;_.

have persuaded the government to

free students -sele.cted ::ic.r.:ording to

tht;

follo\.vmg scherrie. , .

Initially all the ceHdoots areiocked. First, Professor 1 \>isfts·

. e,;qry cell, pressing every toti,Ie,button·once. Next;)>i-'ofessor2 vishs cells numbered

2,

4,

6/

;

..

;

.pressing each oLthose toggle : buttons

once.

Then, Professor 3 visits ~lls numbered],

6;

9, ... ,

. . pressing each of those togglebuttons once. The seberije conrinues

. fu this manner with each:professor visiting the appropriate ''cells ·. ofmultiples". At the end of the

da)

1, some cells will be opened,

and some cells will still be locked. Students in.cells which are

open are then allowed to go free. . To ensure that the professors would have

no

:

diarice of •

boycotting staff canteens without the consent of. their

vice

~

,

·

chancellors, the government appointed N professors as guards, identified by numbers ranging from 1 to N.

. The government is eager to study the implications of this _pro-posal, and believes that to investigate this complicated scheme

thoroughly, a team of consult.ants (preferably from overseas,

where the food is even worse) will have to be hired. Do you have anything to say to this government?

The professors, however, are very sympatheti~ Lo the stu-dents-they were probably fed by the same group of cooks. They

(6)

6 May 1991

JUPAS INTERVIEWS

In the most massive interviewing exercise HKUST has ever

undertaken, some 4000 students met individually with HKUST staffmembersfrom 25-29 April.as the first step in the undergraduate admissions exercise for 1992-93. These students were selected from roughly 11,000 who applied for the 1040 places which will

be available in October 1992. A majority of HKUST' s staff were involved in some aspect of the

exercise, whetherassupportstaff or as members of the interview panels. More than 200 people sat on the panels, including academic staff, administrative staff, and outside professionals. Each interviewer saw a steady stream of students, one every 15 minutes, from 9:30 until 5:30, with equally rigidly scheduled breaks for lunch and tea (orcoffee) in the morning and afternoon.

As _pa result, conditional offers _.

'

.

la Prof. Nelson Cue describes opportunities in Physics lo an inlcrviewee.

will be sent to the most outstanding students, guaranteeing them a place in the freshman class in 1992 if they can achieve specified grades on their A-level examinations.

When the dust had cleared, was the exercise worthwhile? What lasting impressions of the students were made? Here are com

-ments from a few of the interviewers:

Philip Chan (Electrical & Electronic Engineering): "After being away from Hong Kong for 22 years, I appreciated this opportunity to 'calibrate' myself to the current situation and to get an idea of the standards of different secondary schools. The students for Triple-E were mostly very good, though I was a little disappointed in their English as many had difficulty expressing themselves. All in all, it was quite a useful experience."

Allanus Tsai (Mathematics): "In general the students were very good. Their English was better than I expected (compared to when I was a student); most had a good attitude and seemed really interested in math. 60-70% wanted to go on for postgraduate studies, but were concerned about job opportunities as, tradition-ally, math is not very popular. Their ambition pleases me-but whether they will be competent to do graduate work is a question only time can answer."

Prof. Din-Yu Hsieh •

interviews a student aspirin£ to study

Mathematics in 1992.

Maria Lung (Biology): "It

was a strange experience ... When· I asked if they had any questions, they often tried to figure out who I was-where I came from. Or they were worried whether the campus facili-ties would be ready, whether they could get a spot in the dorms."

Gregory J an1es (Language .

. Centre): "I wish they had liad experience being interviewed! For many of them, this may·

have been the first time in their life they ever spoke English to a stranger. And for some it may have been the first time since

0-Level that they have spoken English, because A-level English does not include oral skills. Also-they tended to tell the truth ...

their weaknesses. One chap began by sayirig he thought he should be modest 'Heavens no,' I told him, 'You're here to sell yourself!' Quite a difference from UK students."

Loretta Pang (Vice-Chancellor's Office): "I'd like to do it again. As an administrator, I seldom contact students, so I enjoyed this chance to meet them ... Surprisingly, I wasn't bored-even after 26 interviews in one day. After the first ten or so, I developed a technique: get them relaxed, then pick up something__c.any-thing-from their cv's to get them talking. Then dig deeper to discover their thought processes. Sometimes the results were disappointing, but mostly it was quite a humbling experience. So many bright young stars! Finding and talking wiili those excep-tional students made the whole exercise worthwhile."

Catherine Lai (General Admin): "I remember one candidate in particular. She spoke with perfect English although she'd come to Hong Kong from China for only seven years. She was versatile and lively, with interest in the arts-particularly architecture and languages. But her school results were only mediocre. I couldn't believe it-and am so glad we are not relying wholly on exam results for our selection."

One final comment came from Candy Scalberg (P AB) who, when asked about her experiences interviewing students, replied with a laugh, "Never again!"

I . I

(7)

-- --- . • It.• It • ••. • .. • . ... 0 • ... 11 .. • .• • .•.• . • • -~·-· -.~ ..

,

!

.,.

• ,,

• .

• •

"'

• :,:,:;:':\:::::}:::::·:,:::::::;(:;" ,. ": ·'·" .. •. • . .. .... ·.••· • • • • • ',',:,:-:;:;:;:~:,;:::~:,<;:;:,< ii ·.·.··:::::::::;.··

• · .. ·:I

--

-

-- -

-=--:

_.

··

-

_.

~o:w

_{_.,.} _.

High~

the

~

Moon

-- .

' . . . ~ ... ,.

.. . : ~ . ; ·>

: · · S~nior" Ass~i;ti'.J,~~-cir,Professor Robert W-.-Wbng.: ·

(there

was

still so.me2brtfusimi'about the new titles, but this'·' . ,, ..:

··one

will d6

fd(the

preseilftafo

)got

i:o

the station very.early,. · . · .

. It was his very first atieinptto.cbmmute to campus on the'..·'

Univ·ei::;ity shuttle.

He

had aris~ an h_our ear.lier

than

usual;:,. -arid-;_was s~IJ.quite sleepy

_

as

h.e ~~

tack

ip the comfortable ---.._

. seat and waited while less punctual members cf the staff.

boarded the shuttle ... the shuttle-.. , The·shzutle ... :.., · ·· ·

.. :-:·,

The shuttle lifted off the launch padjUst outside 1he · Causeway Bay Typhoon Sheiterprecisely on timl!. Prof. Fr'ong couldfeel)iis.b~i~j.case p,:_essi11g against hi~ c)i_g_s_t as_·

ilie gJorc..e-s built ilp.-The shuttle'·s'r9ll manoeuvrebrougbt

-. Hvng

Kong!

sTand znto .. vievnn

1he

pve-r1kad

w{ifdew

t

but

..

within se1:·onds ihe shuule

had

pierced· the' clouds: it ·

seerned only a mi;;~nt.i,nfi/'the boosters separated cmdfc/l.

away,

19.

be rer;o.~ered later in thi:SouthCr.ina Sed:As tlie'·

sh wile ·~;.1 tefre(i, J,-_bit,

)1

orig. Kong was. a· barely visible · sj)e¢k;6,d jhe, C[!ast oi the Asian continent. . .. '

. h·

.

...

-:·.-.. ' · ... :~ .

Prof Wong joinedihe others·in line:to transfer. to. the. ·

"tu·n°M orbiter. On -the outbound leg, he marvelled at the

view of the Earth, hanging in the blackness of space like ·, somi luminous blue and white gemstone. Soon· the orbiter

.po.ssld

beyo:,rd.'{he portio~.of the moon visible from Earth,

As the lander dropped towards the surf a~e, Prof }Vong=

. : coµld se'c Oie/ainil~r

q.uilin¢-o/l

he

I-l

kUST campus. From

:

)

liis

;alh.t,4e; it, l~d~d;jµsdike~the pictures of the arc hi- ..

. tetts_!c"rripd.ei'.. Vt'~en iifiru,(lylanded at the station some dis-.:,

· ·iancefromtheAtri1;,,,.Prof. Wong suddenly noticed there

were-no spacesuits on 'thilandet.. .

{

/

(,

:c

/.

(Wf.

,

c.(ii/J

r

g.¢.'f\off}'

he shouted, llthere's IW air!" ... ..

)h{re'.~':ni./fli~ •. :; there's no air ...

.•.,, · .. · ..

. • ,\. ' I ( :

~-;\::::

i>ror:

.

wimg:.s

.

eyes

opened'as theperson in the seat next·

.. 'futiirti:'~hookhis:armandsaid"Calmdown. We've·arrived,

· an~i:.o'i-~6~;se;

th~

driver has turned off the air

condition-,

irii;;

ks

iiin~61<~

out tlfe bus window at the Academic

Building, Prof. Wong wasfl0oded with a feeling of relief. · The HKUST campus wasn't on the far side of the moon

(8)

8

HKUST Souvenirs for Sale

All of the following can be seen and purchased at the Office of Public Affairs, Room 9, 12/F.

• HK.UST Sweatshirt. Only one style in two sizes (small and medium) left*: 100% cotton, without collar, n~vy blue with 2"-HKUST!ogo in gold on the left side and "HKUST"printed in gold on the back ... _$41. • Man's Tie. Pure silk; navy blue with wide-spaced, narrow gold, diagonal stripes and small gold HK.UST logo placed at loweredge ... $88. • Scarf. Pure silk; 32" square; navy blue with wide-spaced,

narrow gold; diagonal stripes and small gold HKUST logo in onecomer ... : ... $85. • Umbrellas. 48" diameter, with spring-release expansion; in one design (with 4" logos on each panel of the umbrella) and two colour schemes (yellow with blue logo; royal blue with yellow logo) ... $36.20. • Decal. Peel & stick; 2"-wide x 2 5/8" tall; silhouette-style, i.e., background white with logo cutout and clear ... FREE.

*

The Office of Public Affairs regrets that it must disappoint staff members who still want to purchase·T-shirts and sweatshirts. We intend to produce more--not only. T-shirts and sweatshirts, but also windbreakers and ties, and in

new

designs; however, they will not be available until late September.

t C ' U ' t e :HMCMtert'

I.

Admissions, Registration & Records Office: Miss Cheung So-.

ching, Temporary Clerical Assistant(TCA); Miss LaiSau-nang, TCA; Miss Lu Ngar-san, TCA; Miss Mo Ming-chu, TCA; Mr Chan Chi-chiu, TCA; Miss Yam Lap-yin, Sophia, TCA. Estates

Management Office: Mr WongKuen-wai, Chief Technician; Mr

Pau Wai-keung, Senior Technician (ST); Mr Lee Ping-kuen, ST; Mr Cheung Wai-lun, Tech.; Mr Tam Man-hin, Tech.; Mr Fan Poon-keung, Tech.; Mr Leung Kai-tim, Tech.; Mr Poon Tsan -sang, Tech.; Mr Soo Kwing-yim, Tech. Finance Office: Miss Kwan Shuk-ling, Iris, Clerk II. Personnel Office: Miss Ho Pui-yin, Yvonne, Administrative Assistant.

Resignations

L(znguage Centre: Mr Lam Wai-ming, Clerk IJ. Admissions, Registration & Records Office: Mr Wong Wai-ming, TCA; Mr Tan Wai-lok, John, TCA. Student Affairs Office: Mrs Ng Chan Siu-ching, Carmen, Clerk II.

Completion of Contract

Admissions, Registration & Records Office: Miss Soo Sui -ching, TCA; Miss Wong Yiu-king, Joan, TCA; Miss Lai Wing -yu, TCA.

• w

ANTED: Laptop/portable computer: Please send detailed

::

ff1

::

ftii:r~

R

:p,,

:

J§r

:

§P:$

l

W:h

:]

configuration, expected price to Clara Li, Finance Office, by

You are welcome to visit i

the cemetery where fa-

I

mous Russian and Soviet f

composers, artists, and

f

writers are burled dally fil

except Thursday.

i

phone (Ext 1405) or by E-mail (FOCLARA).

• WANTED: Dehumidifier. Please phone Candy Scalberg (Ext 1661).

The following sign was found in the lobby of a Moscow hotel across from

a Russian Orthodox monastery: ~,:,:.;...:-:.::n.:..:..:.::.::-:.::.:: -.:.:-: ... -.;.::a~-..;.:.;,:.:.:..:.:.::...-,;.;,:.;.:.:·:·:·.··