Dr Phoebe Lin Develops Intelligent System for English Learning

Dr Phoebe Lin from the Faculty of Humanities was invited by PolyU Milestones to talk about her intelligent English learning software “IdiomsTube” in the September 2018 issue. Dr Lin has conducted three projects integrating psycholinguistics, big data and computer-assisted language learning to provide a solution for self-directed English learning through online television programmes. Read full story

Dr Pan Lu Wins Prize at 32nd Image Forum Festival in Japan

Miasma, Plants, Export Paintings, a film collaboration between Dr Pan Lu of the Department of Chinese Culture and artist Wang Bo, was honoured with the Award of Excellence at the 32nd Image Forum Festival. The film competed against 450 entries in the category of “East Asia Experimental Competition” and was one of the five films awarded with prizes. It examines the peculiar dynamics between imperialism, scientific research, race and the right to look in 19th Century Canton. Started in 1987, the Image Forum Festival is the largest art film festival in Japan. It is dedicated to screening works with a high degree of expression, artistry and creativity.

Prof. William S-Y. Wang Receives Honorary Degree from UChicago

Prof. William S-Y. Wang, Chair Professor of Language and Cognitive Sciences (Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies), was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters by the University of Chicago. The honorary degree, presented on 9 June 2018, recognises Prof. Wang’s distinguished achievements in scholarship and discovery, particularly the transformative nature of his intellectual impact in the field of linguistics.

PolyU’s Linguistics Ranked 40th Worldwide

PolyU’s Linguistics, the discipline to which a majority of FH staff members belong, is consistently ranked among top 50 in the world. It is ranked 40th worldwide in the 2018 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings by Subject. PolyU’s Arts and Humanities is ranked 21st in Asia and 115th in the world. QS rankings are based on universities’ subject performance in terms of academic reputation, employer reputation and research impact. (Source: Quacquarelli Symonds University Rankings 2018) *By regional filtering of Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings by Faculty 2018.

PolyU 80th Anniversary Open Day - Faculty of Humanities Activities

To celebrate the PolyU 80th Anniversary, the Faculty of Humanities offers various activities on 2 and 3 December 2017:

23rd Congregation - FH Sessions

First Session Date 11 November 2017 Time 10:00am Venue PolyU Jockey Club Auditorium The programme will be conducted in English. Invitation Letter Opening Remarks Congratulatory Address Valedictory Speech Second Session Date 11 November 2017 Time 1:00pm Venue PolyU Jockey Club Auditorium The programme will be conducted in English. Invitation Letter Opening Remarks Congratulatory Address Valedictory Speech Third Session Date 11 November 2017 Time 4:00pm Venue PolyU Jockey Club Auditorium The programme will be conducted in English. Invitation Letter (BABS Only) Opening Remarks Congratulatory Address Valedictory Speech Conferment Procedure on the Stage: Video Congregation Arrangements: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/as/webpage/for-graduates/congregation-arrangements Award Parchment Collection: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/as/webpage/for-graduates/award

Dr Zhang Caicai Debunks the Myth of Tone Deaf in PolyU Milestones

Dr Zhang Caicai from the Faculty of Humanities was invited by PolyU Milestones to talk about her research findings on congenital amusia in tonal language speakers in the September 2017 issue. The research found that Cantonese speakers who suffer from congenital amusia have abnormal brain activities that affect both music and language tone processing. These differ from those observed in speakers of non-tonal languages with the same disorder. Read full story

New Book: An Oral Biography of Professor William S-Y. Wang

Drawn from original interviews with Prof. William S-Y. Wang, Prof. Kong Jiangping and Dr Wang Feng from Peking University compiled the biography of one of the most influential contemporary linguists. Prof. William S-Y. Wang, Chair Professor of CBS, is a pioneer in interdisciplinary linguistics studies and a distinguished scholar of evolutionary linguistics. His influence and contributions are well recognised in the international and regional communities. This book is a fascinating insight into the personal experience, academic philosophy and achievements of Prof. Wang. The recollections, as stated by Prof. Wang at the book launch held at Yunnan University, reflect not only his academic journey, but also the upheaval and displacement that people of his era went through.

Two PhD theses from CBS Shortlisted for FiCL Thesis of the Year Award 2016

CBS current Postdoctoral Fellow Dr Chen I-Hsuan and PhD graduate Dr Ding Jing have been shortlisted for the first Frontiers in Chinese Linguistics (FiCL) Thesis of the Year in Chinese Linguistics Award. The selection result was announced by Peking University Press and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University-Peking University Research Centre on Chinese Linguistics (RP2U2). The selection panel decided not to award a thesis of the year award this year but five PhD theses in total have been shortlisted as finalists. The revised version of all five theses will be published in Frontiers in Chinese Linguistics (《語言學前沿叢書》). Chinese monographs are published by Peking University Press, while English monographs will be published jointly by Springer Nature internationally and by Peking University Press in China. The finalists and their upcoming monographs are listed below (with their PhD award and their current affiliation) in alphabetical order: 1. Chen I-Hsuan (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University; PhD, University of California at Berkeley) The Diachronic Development and Synchroni Distribution of Minimizers in Mandarin Chinese [The monography is exceptionally recommended to Studies in East Asian Linguistics, book series of Springer Nature due to publication quota of our series.] 2. Ding Jing (South China University of Technology; PhD, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University) A Lexical Semantic Study of Chinese Opposites 3. Liu Mingming (Hunan University; PhD, Rutgers University) Varieties of Alternatives: Focus Particles and Wh-expressions in Mandarin 4. Yan Hanbo (Shanghai International Studies University, PhD, University of Kansas) The Nature of Variation in Tone Sandhi Patterns of Shanghai and Wuxi Wu 5. Zhang Weiran (Communication University of China, PhD, Peking University) 〈基於認知形態學的漢語類詞綴構詞研究〉 Xiong Jiajuan, former Postdoctoral Fellow of CBS, will soon have her monograph Chinese Middle Constructions published in FiCL. It is the first book to apply a parametric approach to the study of Chinese middle constructions. Thesis of the Year in Chinese Linguistics Award 2017 is now open for application. Please contact Li Lynn (lilynn00@163.com) of Peking University Press or Tracy Luo (tracyxin.luo@polyu.edu.hk) of RP2U2 for details. More information of Frontiers in Chinese Linguistics can be found at: http://www.springer.com/series/15591

New Book by Faculty Dean Prof. Chu Hung-lam

The Faculty of Humanities is delighted to announce the recent publication of a new book Anthology of Liangfu’s Poems by the Faculty Dean Prof. Chu Hung-lam. Anthology of Liangfu’s Poems was published by Chu Hai College of Higher Education, Hong Kong, in August 2017. The collection includes 162 classical Chinese verses and 25 Chinese lyrical poems written by Prof. Chu between 1972 and 2016, with a preface by Prof. Yu Ying-shih (Yu Yingshi) in 2014, a preface by the author and a postface by Prof. Mok Wan-hon (Mo Yunhan) in 2017. Accompanying the poems are 155 pieces of illustrated painting and calligraphy by 24 artists from Wenzhou, China.