香港理工大學高等研究院傑出學人講座系列

Renowned Chinese medicine scholar discourses on acupuncture development at PAIR Distinguished Lecture

Prof. LAO Lixing, Professor and President of the Virginia University of Integrative Medicine (VUIM), USA, delivered the 11th PAIR Distinguished Lecture titled “Acupuncture in the United States: From Exploration to Accessibility” on 8 December 2023. The hybrid lecture attracted over 140 participants joining in person and online from more than 18 countries and regions across Australia, Asia, Europe and North America. It was also broadcast live on multiple social media platforms, captivating a viewing online audience of over 12,500. The lecture commenced with a warm welcome address and brief speaker introduction by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PAIR. Prof. Lao’s sharing then followed. He outlined the differences in acupuncture between the past and present, and the East and West. He then expounded on the rapid development of acupuncture in the United States, highlighting how acupuncture as a therapeutic intervention gained acceptance by the public and mainstream healthcare system. Additionally, he underscored the significance of research endeavors in acupuncture, encompassing  clinical studies, collaboration, and dissemination in driving evidence-based acupuncture. In concluding his presentation, Prof. Lao shared his insights on the future direction for acupuncture research by citing a number of research priority areas set forth by a national complementary and integrative health centre in the United States. A question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. Daniel MOK Kam-wah, Associate Director of the Research Centre for Chinese Medicine Innovation (RCMI), was followed. The panel discussion was joined by Dr ZHANG Shi Ping, Associate Professor, Teaching and Research Division of the Hong Kong Baptist University and Dr LIN Wai Ling, Professional Consultant, School of Chinese Medicine of The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Prof. Lao and the panelists engaged in a productive discussion with the audience on various crucial topics in acupuncture practice, including quality assurance, research challenges and funding opportunities.   Please click here for an online review.  

圖靈獎得主 Jack DONGARRA 教授主講 PAIR 傑出講座　與160多名觀眾分享高效能運算

2023年12月6日，由2021年A.M.圖靈獎得主、美國田納西大學計算機科學傑出教授 Jack DONGARRA 主講的第十場香港理工大學（理大）高等研究院傑出講座「高效能運算概述及未來需求」，圓滿成功！ 是次講座吸引了來自澳洲、亞洲、歐洲、北美等 50 多個國家和地區共 160 多名現場和網上參加者， 以及超過 12,000 人次透過多個社交媒體平台觀看直播。 講座中，理大高等研究院院長陳清焰教授致歡迎辭，以及研究生院院長曹建農教授介紹講者，為活動揭開序幕。 隨後為 Dongarra 教授發表演講，他指出電腦運算已經滲透到社會生活的各個層面。此外，他提到雲端商致力在電腦處理器、加速器、互連和操作系統等系統架構尋求突破，從而實現高效能運算。同時，他也談到當今國際間競相建造百億億次級運算的「超級電腦」。Dongarra 教授亦指出，人工智慧和機器學習的興起需要軟體和硬體方面的進步配合。他在總結時強調，高效能運算的硬件不斷發展，與此同時，要軟件在廣域動態、分散、並行式運算環境下有效且可靠地操作軟件，需要新一代的軟件庫及演算法。 接著的問答環節由曹教授主持。一眾參加者與 Dongarra 教授就電腦運算發展進行了交流及討論，獲益良多，成果豐碩。 按此重溫

南韓浦項科大金哲洪教授主講「疫後醫療創新」

香港理工大學高等研究院於2023年10月27日成功舉辦第九場傑出講座。講座由南韓浦項科技大學（POSTECH）金哲洪教授主講，講題為「疫後醫療創新：醫學工程教育和技術商品化」，吸引來自澳洲、亞洲、歐洲及北美洲等30多個國家和地區近150名現場及網上參加者。講座亦於嗶哩嗶哩和微博等社交媒體平台進行直播，累計觀看人數超過12,000人。 金教授於講座中介紹了浦項科技大學開創全新的醫學工程學院。該學院致力透過應用創新技術，應對醫療挑戰，積極推動醫療技術商品化。金教授亦回顧科研之路，分享其成立初創公司「Opticho」，再轉化科研成果為商品的過程和挑戰。 隨後的問答環節由光子技術研究院副院長劉樹平教授及管理委員會成員賴溥祥博士主持，一眾參加者與金教授深入交流，討論成果豐碩。 按此重溫

Prof. Michael BATTY from University College London delivers distinguished lecture on science of cities (English only)

The PAIR Distinguished Lecture delivered by Prof. Michael BATTY, Bartlett Professor of Planning at University College London, was successfully held on 1 September 2023. The lecture was moved completely online given special arrangements under Super Tyhoon Saola. The webinar attracted over 300 participants from more than 30 countries and regions. It was also broadcasted live on multiple social media platforms, including Bilibili and Weibo, and viewed by over 11,000 online audience in total. In the lecture, Prof. Batty began by giving an overview of the development of science of cities in the last 50 years. Drawing on the system approach and complex theory, he shared how urban science involves top-down and bottom-up thinking, and is a systematic, complex and evolving discipline built on knowledge in social physics, economics, transportation and many scientific methods that yield theories. He illustrated this with city morphology examples from the UK and the Greater Bay Areas (GBA) generated by large-scale computer models. He concluded the lecture by speculating on some of the challenges with fractal geometry, size and scaling, networks, and building models in the field and suggesting the way forward for the discipline. A question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research and Prof. John SHI Wenzhong, Director of Otto Poon Charitable Foundation Smart Cities Research Institute, followed. The audience was inspired to have a fruitful exchange with Prof. Batty. Please click here for an online review. Please click here for the powerpoint slide.

香港理工大學高等研究院（PAIR）成功舉辦第七場傑出講座

香港理工大學高等研究院於2023年4月12日成功舉辦以「為高校現代科研締造有利環境」為題的傑出講座。講座由美國史丹福大學Kathryn Ann Moler教授主講，吸引了來自40多個國家和地區， 包括澳洲、亞洲、歐洲及北美洲等近330名現場及網上參加者，以及超過11,000人次透過嗶哩嗶哩和微博等社交媒體平台觀看直播。 講座由理大高等研究院院長陳清焰教授主持， 並由香港理工大學常務及學務副校長黃永德教授致歡迎辭。Moler教授於講座中分享了史坦福大學締造有利科研發展環境的經驗，並從「促進撰寫協作項目提案」、「規劃共享實驗設施、數據、電腦資源」、「大學治理變革」三方面舉例闡述。隨後的問答環節由陳清焰教授主持，一眾參加者與Moler教授進行了富有成果的交流。 按此重溫

圖靈獎得主 Joseph Sifakis 教授就人工智能和自主系統發表演講

香港理工大學高等研究院於2023年3月3日成功舉辦以「人工智能與自主系統」為題的傑出講座。講座由圖靈獎得主、法國國家科學研究中心名譽高級研究員 Joseph Sifakis 教授主講，吸引了來自50多個國家和地區， 包括澳洲、比利時、中國、芬蘭、法國、德國、希臘、香港、印度、意大利、馬來西亞、荷蘭、巴基斯坦、菲律賓、新加坡、西班牙、台灣、英國和美國等近800名線上參加者，以及超過12,000人次透過嗶哩嗶哩和微博等社交媒體平台觀看直播。 講座由理大高等研究院院長兼建築環境及能源工程系建築熱科學講座教授陳清焰教授主持， 並由理大副校長（研究及創新）兼熱能及環境工程講座教授趙汝恆教授致歡迎辭，及由理大高等研究院管理委員會委員兼視覺計算講座教授陳長汶教授介紹講者。 Sifakis 教授分享了他在系統設計形式化方面的重點工作，從而實現可按需求進行可靠、優化、能按構建逐步校正的系統。 他首先對人類和機器智能進行比較，然後回顧了可靠自主系統開發中從自動化到自主性的進程，最後通過討論人工智能系統的影響來總結講座。 隨後的問答環節由陳清焰教授和陳長汶教授主持，一眾參加者與Sifakis教授進行了富有成果的交流。 按此重溫

Nobel Laureate Prof. Reinhard GENZEL delivers PAIR Distinguished Lecture (只有英文版本)

The PAIR Distinguished Lecture delivered by Nobel Laureate Prof. Reinhard GENZEL, Director and Scientific Member of the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, Garching, Germany, was successfully held on 8 February 2023. The webinar attracted over 500 participants from more than 60 countries and regions, including Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Macau, the Netherlands, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was also broadcasted live on multiple social media platforms, including Bilibili and Weibo, and viewed by over 18,000 online audience in total. The webinar was kick-started by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), Chair Professor of Building Thermal Science in the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering at PolyU, followed by a welcome speech by Prof. TENG Jin-Guang, President of PolyU, and a speaker introduction by Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Chair Professor of Thermal and Environmental Engineering at PolyU. Prof. Genzel shared his 40-year journey in testing the massive black hole paradigm in the galactic centre. He discussed the development of the relevant research by different scientists, from Albert Einstein to Stephen Hawking, as well as how he and his colleagues conducted precise, long-term studies using the motions of gas and stars as test particles of the space time, showing the existence of a four million solar mass object. A question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. Chao and Prof. Chen followed. The audience was inspired to have a fruitful exchange with Prof. Genzel. Please click here for an online review.

President of Westlake University, Prof. SHI Yigong delivers the PAIR Distinguished Lecture (只有英文版本)

The PAIR Distinguished Lecture delivered by Prof. SHI Yigong, President of Westlake University, China, was successfully held on 6 December 2022. The webinar attracted over 420 participants from over 40 countries and regions, including Australia, Belgium, China, Canada, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Russian Federation, Singapore, Sweden, the United States, the United Kingdom, etc. The lecture was also broadcasted live on multiple social media platforms, including Bilibili, Baidu, Weibo and Weixin, and viewed by over 131,000 online audience in total.  The webinar was attended by senior administrators from local and overseas universities, who had a short exchange with President Shi before the lecture. They include: (in alphabetical order by last name) Prof. Kevin ASHFORD-ROWE, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Digital Learning) of Queensland University of Technology, Australia Prof. Patrick CHAU, Vice Provost for Research & Knowledge Exchange of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, China Prof. Geoff CRISP, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic) of the University of Canberra, Australia Prof. Simon EVANS, Interim Vice-Chancellor and CEO of the University of New England, Australia Prof. GAO Song, President of Sun Yat-Sen University, China Prof. Paul LAM, President of Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Hong Kong Prof. LIU Bin, Senior Vice Provost (Faculty and Institutional Development) of National University of Singapore Prof. LUO Xishen, Vice President of the University of Science and Technology of China, China Mr Eric NG, Vice-President (Administration) and University Secretary of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Prof. Catherine SUN, Senior Vice President of Hong Kong Shue Yan University, Hong Kong The webinar was hosted by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), Chair Professor of Building Thermal Science in the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering at PolyU. He briefed the audience about PAIR’s commitment to addressing societal challenges and responding to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.   In the welcome speech, Prof. TENG Jin-Guang, President of PolyU, thanked President Shi for giving a lecture for PolyU, which sheds light to the future of higher education. He stated that the role of universities is not confined to teaching and learning per se. “Universities are responsible for generating solutions through research and technology transfer to great societal problems we are facing … Westlake University aims to become a global leader in frontier scientific research and a reformer in higher education. Their objectives are to take on the greatest challenges facing humanity in the 21st century and vow to find scientific and technological solutions”, Prof. Teng added.   Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Chair Professor of Thermal and Environmental Engineering at PolyU, then introduced President Shi, giving the audience a brief background about Westlake University and President Shi’s academic and career accomplishments in the higher education sector.   President Shi began the lecture by providing a brief historical background about China’s education reform in the 1970s—millions of Chinese students enjoyed the new opportunities for overseas education brought by China’s reform and opening up, and students returned home with the knowledge that significantly impacted China’s development in education, science, and technology. President Shi also stressed that China always has a role in human civilisation—as indicated by the four inventions in ancient times. Thus, the Nation should contribute a large share of scientific and technological breakthroughs to the humanities and the world through exchange and collaboration.   President Shi further explained the distinctiveness of the Westlake University. The university pioneered a new model of a world-class university strongly supported by the government, philanthropies, and the private sector. The central government, the provincial government of Zhejiang, the municipal government of Hangzhou, as well as the local government of the West Lake district provided enormous support for the development of the university. The university also established the Westlake Education Foundation to raise funds from all sectors of society, integrating societal resources for promoting the establishment and development of the university.   After that, President Shi talked about the interdisciplinary culture of the Westlake University and gave illustrative examples in terms of the composition of its Board of Trustees and international advisors, global faculty recruitment, as well as student education.   To conclude the lecture, President Shi presented some recent cutting-edge scientific and technological achievements at Westlake University which benefit the world and humankind. These include the analysis of the structure of the receptor of the SARS-CoV-2; the development of an anti-COVID-19 oral drug WPV01; the deciphering of the structure of CatSper, the mammalian sperm cation channel complex; the discovery of the crucial role of bacteria in breast cancer metastasis for the first time; the revelation of the chemical catalytic process before oxygen formation in photosynthesis; as well as the design of a new strategy to improve the stability of perovskite solar cells.   A question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. Chen followed. The audiences were inspired to have a fruitful exchange with President Shi on the challenges of higher education reform, the positioning of Westlake University, the criteria for higher education success, global faculty recruitment, the importance of governmental support, and student recruitment.   Please click here for an online review.

香港理工大學高等研究院（PAIR）於2022年9月2日成功舉辦第三場傑出講座

香港理工大學高等研究院（PAIR）於2022年9月2日成功舉辦第三場傑出講座。是次以「論產業數字化與智能化」為題的講座由知名攝影測量與遙感專家丶中國科學院院士丶中國工程院院士丶國際歐亞科學院院士丶國際宇航科學院院士李德仁教授主講，並由理大副校長（研究及創新）趙汝恆教授主持。 在專題演講中，李教授簡要介紹了武漢大學測繪遙感資訊工程國家重點實驗室的歷史、研究重點、發展概況，以及獲頒獎項及殊榮等。李教授隨後總結了地理資訊科學在物聯網時代的新興趨勢。當中的五項特點包括：(一) 衛星定位技術將從全球定位衛星系統（GNSS）轉為定位、導航和實時（PNT）系統，進而發展到定位、導航、實時、遙感和通信（PNTRC）系統。(二) 遙感技術將對地觀測衛星（EOS）提升到對地觀測腦（EOB）。(三) 未來的GIS地圖數據庫開發，將實現準確的 3D 影像和「數碼對映」。(四) 移動測繪將結合GIS、RS和GNSS，以發展智能機械人服務。(五) 側重於觀測地球動態和環境變化的 GIS，日後將會強調對人類及相關活動的觀測，如車流、熱圖、人流等。李教授亦闡述當中三項科學挑戰，包括：(一) 需要開發同時切合人類和機械人需求的地圖產品、(二) 提升遙感圖像智能解譯在圖像分類描述和語義描述之間取捨的技術，以及 (三) 利用地理大數據支持人類與大自然和諧共生，實現可持續發展。 在緊接其後的問答環節中，討論小組成員包括理大高等研究院院長陳清焰教授和土地及空間研究院副院長翁齊浩教授，帶領一眾網上參與者與講者作進一步互動及探討，成果豐碩。是次講座共吸引了超過300名來自全球24個國家和地區的線上參加者，以及有超過18,000人次透過即時網絡直播觀看。 按此重溫

PAIR Successfully Hosts Its Second Distinguished Lecture Series by Professor David Cardwell of University of Cambridge (只有英文版本)

The PAIR Distinguished Lecture Series was successfully held on 17 May 2022. We were honoured to have renowned scholar, Prof. David Cardwell, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Strategy and Planning), University of Cambridge, UK, as the invited speaker.  The webinar was hosted by Prof. Christopher Chao, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Chair Professor of Thermal and Environmental Engineering of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU).  It attracted over 430 participants from 30 countries and regions.  Honourable participants include: (In alphabetical order of their last names) Prof. Mohamed Ibrahim Abdul Mutalib, Vice-Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Malaysia Prof. Kent Anderson, Deputy Vice Chancellor Global of The University of Newcastle, Australia Prof. Sean Brawley, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Strategy & Planning) of University of Wollongong, Australia Prof. Chetwyn Chan, Vice President (Research and Development) of The Education University of Hong Kong Prof. Caroline Chan, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Global Partnerships of The University of Newcastle, Australia Prof. Haydn Chen, Chief Strategy Officer of National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taiwan Prof. Tim Cheng, Vice-President for Research and Development of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Prof. Archie Clements, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Health Sciences of Curtin University, Australia Prof. Lianzhen He, Vice President of Zhejiang University, China Prof. Peter Høj AC, Vice-Chancellor and President of The University of Adelaide, Australia Prof. Ian Holliday, Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) of The University of Hong Kong Prof. Elizabeth Johnson, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic of Deakin University, Australia Dr Chao-Hsin Lin, International Advisory Committee Member of the PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research Prof. Yu-hon Lui, Vice President (Resources and Development) of Hong Kong Metropolitan University Prof. Charlie Xue, Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) of RMIT University STEM College, Australia Prof. Man-Sung Yim, Associate Vice President, International Office of Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea Prof. Qingyan Chen, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), Chair Professor of Building Thermal Science of Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering of PolyU, briefed the audiences about the establishment of PAIR aiming to address societal challenges as outlined in the 2030 agenda for 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations. In the introduction, Prof. Jin-Guang Teng, President of PolyU, expressed appreciation for Prof. Cardwell to be speaker of PAIR’s distinguished lecture, he said, “As the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Strategy and Planning at the University of Cambridge with a wealth of valuable experience, the vision of Prof. Cardwell is not only important for Cambridge and the United Kingdom, but also for the entire world.” Prof. Cardwell began with an overview of the challenges posed to modern day universities by the breadth and diversity of international further education curricular of pre-university students in which results in evolving of the university curriculum of moving towards problem-based learning. Subsequently, Prof. Cardwell presented his views in the implications for higher education within the context of both teaching and research.  He pointed out that the key to the future of global universities would be their response to education post Covid-19, the move towards on-line and hybrid teaching and reformation of established examination and assessment processes. Universities need to place increased focus on widening participation, transferable skills in teaching and learning, partnerships with industry, and on subject-based innovation as move to an environment-led economy.  Prof. Cardwell further explained that metrics such as gender balance, ethnicity, employability, and diversity of academic content would become increasingly indicative of good university performance, the reason is universities become more selective in the range of courses that they offer.  All of these would lead to wider collaborations between universities and industries to deliver sector specific training for graduate students. To conclude, Prof. Cardwell advised that the future of global universities would be on the basis of their ability of engagement, especially in the increasingly large, collaborative international projects and talent recruitment. Besides, the reduced need for physical travel underpinned by artificial intelligence, mental health and well-being pivotal of students and staff, the ability to demonstrate diversity and quality, as well as the imminence of addressing global warming are also the major factors. The lecture was followed by a 30 minutes fruitful discussion, which was moderated by Prof. Wong Kwok-yin, Vice President (Education) and Chair Professor of Chemical Technology of PolyU, and Prof. Andrew Cohen, Director of HKUST Jockey Club Institute of Advanced Study, Lam Woo Foundation Professor and Acting Dean of Science of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.  Please click here for online review.