HKUST Genesis = 同創, Volume 10, Number 4

Abstract

[evdate 1999-05-05] GENESIS, 5 May 1999 GENESIS, 5 May 1999 The Hong Kong University of Science and TechnologyVol.10 No.4 5 May 1999 Education Reform 2 Students Win Chemistry Olympiad 3 Busy Bees in Business 3 Business Students Triumph in International Case Competition 4 INSIDE THIS ISSUE In the news Doing More with Less A Tribute to Dr S. Y. Chung How do you use the Web? Email genesis with your ideas. STUDENT FOCUS "Chief Yahoo!" Teacher-in-Residence Gets Go-Ahead In Brief Engineering Teaching Excellence Awards Fall 1998 Dr C. M. Lee (COMP) was selected as the Silver Award winner of the Innovation Category of the first IT Excellence Awards for successfully developing the Vehicle and Container Number Recognition System (VECON) to identify printed characters on both moving and stationary cargo containers and vehicles. The system has been installed in the Airport Express, at the Man Kam To border checkpoint, in car parks, at entrance/exit gates of police stations and, recently, on a Guangzhou highway. Dr Lee was given the award by the Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting, Mr K. C. Kwong, on 1 March.

Apaper, which UST physics student (MPhil) Cheung Ho Yin wrote as an undergraduate, has been accepted for the postgraduate student session at the forthcoming ACAI-99 summer-school conference in Chania on the Greek island of Crete.

The postgraduate sessions of ACAI, the annual Advanced Course in Artificial Intelligence, enable students currently enrolled for a postgraduate degree to present the results of their ongoing work to a select group of leading research experts and teachers in the field of artificial intelligence.

Ho Yin's paper, entitled 'Prediction Using Simple Genetic Algorithm', was set as a voluntary task by his supervisor, Dr K. Y. Szeto. Ho Yin said: "The paper describes the use of genetic algorithms (GA) to implement a rule-based classifier system in order to make predictions. Applications of this technique include stock-index forecasting, artificial world simulation, high dimensional function optimization, and expert systems which are useful in social sciences and engineering."

Dr Szeto pitched the task at Ho Yin because he himself is very interested in GA in evolution research, and because he saw from his interaction with Ho Yin that he was motivated, organized, and already knew something about computing. As Dr Szeto put it: "I think Ho Yin and the students he collaborates with are our University's model students, not just because they want good grades but because of their positive attitude and dedication to learning."

"GA is not new but is still a popular topic of research," added Ho Yin. "I am also interested in the physics behind GA and such questions as what is the set of governing rules behind evolution, and how GA performance can be optimized from a theoretical basis."

All papers accepted for ACAI will be included in a Student Sessions Proceedings Volume, and a Best Paper Award will also be presented.

The Career Center and the Zonta Club of Hong Kong East jointly presented on 16 April a job-search program--Career Trek 2000--to help students discover their career niche and embark on their path to career success. Secretary for Security, Regina Ip, shared her views with the participants in the public administration group discussion.

As the community actively debates education reform, one of UST's initiatives in the development of secondary school education, the concept of the Teacher-in-Residence, is already being implemented at UST. The ultimate goal is to have several teachers-in-residence from local secondary schools spending one semester full-time at UST working on IT-education-related subjects.

The first teacher has been in place on campus since last September. With the help of engineering and science undergraduates, Mr C. K. Lit is designing a Chinese web site covering the history of mathematics, and including a Chinese database, literature on mathematics education, a list of mathematics web sites, and a forum for exchanging ideas and resources.

As an extension of this concept, Prof Ping Ko tabled at the recent Principals' Day held at UST the idea of the Professor-in-Residence, in which one UST professor will commit a certain amount of time to one particular secondary school, and assist with IT and science projects, curriculum/lab/subject development, career counseling, and the tutoring of top students.

The new emphasis on IT in education was again chosen by UST faculty to be the focus of Principals' Day, which saw representatives from Hong Kong's secondary schools join UST faculty for panel talks, small group discussions, and tours of IT facilities.

This second event attracted a total of 156 visitors from 106 secondary schools, all keen to further explore the practical applications of information technology in Hong Kong's secondary-school environment.

Presentations by UST faculty included: Case Studies of Using the Web in Teaching at UST; Subject-based IT Training Courses and Web Sites in Science Subjects; and Using IT in Teaching Accounting.

Small group discussions covered three topics: IT Training for School Teachers; IT Support for Secondary Schools; and Teacher/Professor-in-Residence.

Preliminary conclusions of the discussions indicate that there is a need for more training on IT applications in courseware; more advanced IT training courses, particularly in system administration; and implementation of the Teacher-in-Residence concept.

Yip Chee-Tim, vice-principal of Pui Ching Middle School, said: "The inexorable trend is to go IT in education. Last year, we were here discussing the need for IT in education. Now we are here talking about how to make the best use of IT in education, developing a student-oriented, interactive, mutual teaching and learning process. We need to promote an IT culture in our schools. As universities and secondary schools join hands to bridge the gap, we know that we are not alone."

The University has already been active in organizing IT training for secondary school teachers. To date, more than 2,000 teachers have attended these IT workshops.

In addition to offering continuing and professional education, UST's new Center for Enhanced Learning & Teaching (CELT), will promote the quality of teaching and learning in primary and secondary schools, and tertiary institutions.

The second International Day was held on 21 April to take participants on a short trip around the world. The event was organized by the Language Center to broaden the students' exposure to different cultures. Highlights of the program included a display of language-learning software, video shows, Japanese music performance, Putonghua choral speaking, cuisine tasting, cosmetics show, and company booths featuring Air France, Bayer, JAL, Lufthansa and a host of other organizations.

Each semester, the School of Engineering presents Teaching Excellence Appreciation Awards to ten faculty members nominated by department heads for, in the words of Dean of Engineering, Prof Ping Ko, "their good work and devotion in striving for teaching excellence".

The ten winners of the Fall 1998 Teaching Excellence Appreciation Awards are: Dr Chih-Chen Chang (CENG), Dr Vincent Duffy (IEEM), Dr Mounir Hamdi (COMP), Dr Andrew Horner (COMP), Dr Neil Mickleborough (CENG), Dr Philip Mok (ELEC), Dr David Rossiter (COMP), Dr Johnny Sin (ELEC), Dr King Lun Yeung (CENG), and Dr Tianshou Zhao (MECH).

All the winners are first-time awardees, except for Drs Horner, Yeung, and Zhao, who have each won the award on one previous occasion.

"It is great to receive the award," said Dr Johnny Sin. "With this feedback, I know how to further improve my teaching technique in the future."

"Whatever my achievements," said Dr Neil Mickleborough, "the challenges and my goals have always been to motivate and inspire students to greater achievements."

Physics Paper to be Presented in Greece

More than 400 UST faculty and staff members as well as students packed into the Citibank Lecture Theater (LTA) on 12 April to listen to Yahoo! boss, Mr Jerry Yang, outline his vision of the future of interactive media. Entitled "The Future of Internet Media", the talk was live-broadcast to the whole campus via the University's intranet and to seven other tertiary institutions through the Internet.

Yang and his fellow PhD student, David Filo, co-founded Yahoo! initially as a search engine business that helps Internet surfers look up the web pages they want. Then they moved into the content business--offering web pages, such as Yahoo! Sports, catering to the interests of specific groups of patrons. In 1997, Yahoo! started its web-based communications business by offering services, such as Yahoo! Chat and Yahoo! MAIL, which allow users to conveniently distribute messages and information over the Web. Last year, they entered the trading business helping people locate buyers and sellers, and the community business enabling Yahoo! patrons to build their cyber-communities by helping them develop their own web pages.

"Anybody who wants to stay competitive in the next millennium has to take into account the fundamental shift of consumers to the Internet and the economic impacts brought about by it," said Jerry Yang. "Hong Kong is historically a gateway between the East and the West. By taking advantage of this heritage, Hong Kong can become an important gateway in the cyber-world where high quality human resources are the key to success."

Yang believes that Hong Kong has already built the infrastructure for the cyber-world. He said, "Now, what Hong Kong needs is to figure out how to take advantage of its information infrastructure and add value to it."

The Office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs, organizer of the Talk, has arranged with the Library to make available for circulation a video tape of the Talk in the Media Resources Section. The video can also be viewed on the University intranet on http www.ust.hk/ccst/yahoo.

Unveils Internet Future 25 March was a very special day for HKUST and for Dr S.Y. Chung, the inspiration and driving force behind the creation of this University.

It was a day on which the University's faculty and staff paid tribute to Dr Chung, who led the planning and building of the University as well as supervised its development throughout the years.

On 25 March, Dr Chung chaired a plenary session of the University Council and a joint meeting with the Court, held in the University's Council Chamber. This was the last of the Council meetings to be chaired by Dr Chung before he retired from the HKUST Council as founding Chairman.

After the joint Court and Council Meeting, a ceremony was held to name the Council Chamber after him. At the ceremony, President Chia-Wei Woo described Dr Chung as a man characterized by integrity, due process, good judgment, and trust.

"In governing the University, Dr Chung never bends under pressure, never considers his self interest, and never exercises favoritism. He believes in full consultation. He always does his homework; he reads every paper, never misses one line, and will not let slip even a simple typographical or punctuation error," he said.

"He never forgets anything we said we would do, even after years, and watches us like a hawk. While he is attentive to details, he never forgets his primary role, which is to make sure the University's macroscopic direction is right."

The applause for Dr Chung reached its climax in the evening when over 130 faculty and staff members turned up at a Court and Council dinner at the University's Chinese Restaurant to pay tribute to him.

Former Vice-President for Administration and Business Ian MacPherson said, " Dr S.Y. is a remarkable task master and a great leader. He is also insistent on lateral thinking. We will miss him sorely--he is really a hard act to follow."

Prof Peter Dobson, Associate Vice-President for Academic Affairs, talked humorously about Dr the Hon Sir S. Y. Chung's long string of titles and degrees. "In short, we are working under the shadow of a giant," he mused.

In addition to verbal compliments, a "treasure-box" of souvenirs was presented to Dr Chung. "While we do not have the money to buy an extravagant momento for Dr Chung, we came up with a better idea--to present Dr Chung with a selected batch of souvenirs that highlight some of the research results of the University and reflect the University's mission which he espouses," said President Woo.

Hence the souvenirs, each personally presented to Dr Chung by the faculty member involved (in parentheses), included:

*a pack of tablets that sustain the release of medication for asthma (Prof Jeffrey Wong),

*a drug called NDA--the achievement of a 3-year R&D program in traditional Chinese medicine (Dr Robert Ko),

*a tiny bottle of cream that enhances the growth of skin cells, particularly in the epidermal layer, thus reducing wrinkles

(Dr Wan Keung Wong), *a piece of bamboo fiber reinforced polypropylene composites (Dr Yongli Mi), *a silicon chip based liquid crystal display (Prof Hoi-Sing Kwok), *materials on a 3-D garment program that promises to help revive Hong Kong's garment industry (Dr Matthew Yuen),

*a plastic optical cable showing the HKUST logo (Prof Chi-Ming Chan), *a set of newspaper clippings made into a small book about "Hong Kong Supernet a service developed at HKUST (Prof Vincent Shen),

*Materials on an on-line Chinese/English Web translation service developed at HKUST (Dr Dekai Wu),

*a biomedical chip that measures human fitness (Prof Reinhard Renneberg). The dinner ended with Council Vice-Chairman, Dr Vincent Lo, sharing his impressions of Dr S. Y. He said, "I first worked with Dr S. Y. on the Basic Law. On my courtesy visit to Dr S. Y., I was utterly amazed to find that he could almost recite the Sino-British Joint Declaration backwards! He knew every single word and detail, and could discuss every subtlety related to the issue. Having worked with him all these years, Dr S. Y. has become my dear friend, colleague and mentor."

Dr Chung beams as he picks up a miniature 'red bird' sundial symbolizing HKUST. Members of the Court and Council posing outside the newly-named Sze-Yuen Chung Council Chamber.

With the aid of a wooden horse, Prof Renneberg (right) describes the functions of his biomedical chip, later presented to Dr S. Y. as a souvenir.

GENESIS, 5 May 1999 GENESIS, 5 May 1999 STUDENT FOCUS E-mail your questions to genesis or fax to 2358-0537. The women's handball team in action in Heifei. 〔左起〕：丁鎧、謝雪兒、楊作衡、文曉君及周淑儀。 校園生活 Photo by Teresa Law (CHEM, PhD) Campus Calendar Until 8 May Exhibition of Computer Engineering Students Tour into the Picture: Creative Computer Project Exposition Hall Until 5 July Impressions of Light and Shadow: An Exhibition of Watercolors by Zhinan Jiang Library Gallery 7 May Piano Recital by Choi Sown-le Exposition Hall 1 pm New Yueju "Kong Yiji" Exposition Hall 7 pm 13 May I-Ching in Many Perspectives Prof Lin Yun Leung Yat Sing Lecture Theater (LTF) 6 pm 15 May Garage Sale LG2 Car Park 10:30 am-2:30 pm 19 May State of the University Report President Woo Citibank Lecture Theater (LTA) 4 pm QWill UST set up a Center of Contin- uing Education to offer part-time undergraduate degree programs as other tertiary institutions, such as HKU, CU,

Baptist U and City U, are doing?

A Prof Peter Dobson, AVP-AA: "The University has a policy on Continuing and Professional Education. According to this policy, it is the University's intention to offer continuing and professional education programs of an advanced type as a service to industry, business and the professions. These programs are offered on a self-support basis by the individual Schools and Departments with overall policy guidance from the Continuing and Professional Education Sub-Committee of the University Administrative Committee. The offering of regular University credit courses on an extended basis to part-time students is not encompassed within this definition.

"In any case, we already fill our UGC approved quota for undergraduates with our full-time program, so we could not offer an additional part-time program using UGC funding. The cost of any such new program would have to passed on 100% to the students. We have no plans at this time to introduce such a program."

Graduates Remain Competitive Despite Downturn 校園活動

畫中遊-電腦動畫系統 展期至 5 月 8 日 展覽廳 水色印象-蔣智南水彩作品展 展期至 7 月 5 日 圖書館畫廊 蔡崇力鋼琴演奏會 5 月 7 日下午一時 展覽廳 越劇新作《孔乙己》 5 月 7 日晚上七時 展覽廳 '易經面面觀'講座 林雲教授 5 月 13 日下午六時 梁日盛講堂〔LTF〕 跳蚤市場 5 月 15 日上午十時半至下午二時半 LG2 停車場 大學報告 吳家瑋校長 5 月 19 日下午四時 萬國寶通銀行演講廳〔LTA〕 Home Affairs *Gopal K. Basak (MATH) announces the birth of Siddhartha Basak on 14 December 1998.

*Debbie Poon Lai-Kuen (MATH) announces her marriage to Yue Man-Keung on 12 December 1998.

*Queenie Liu Sin Ling (SEPO) announces the birth of Chow Po Yu on 27 November 1998.

*Samuel Kwan Shu Kin (CCST) announces the birth of Kwan Chi Hang on 10 November 1998.

*Chan Kwong Chau (CCST) announces his marriage to Connie Lai Yuen Kwan on 26 October 1998.

*Sze Kong Hung (BICH) announces the birth of Sze Kin Ning on 17 October 1998. *Yau Shek Chung (CCST) announces the birth of Yau Yiu Lun on 13 October 1998.

教職員消息 數學系白高柏的兒子 Siddhartha Basak 於 1998 年 12 月 14 日出生。 數學系潘麗娟於 1998 年 12 月 12 日與余文强結婚。 安全及環保處廖蒨鈴於 1998 年 11 月 27 日誕下女嬰，取名周葆諭。 計算及電訊中心關樹建的女兒關知行於 1998 年 11 月 10 日出生。 計算及電訊中心陳廣就於 1998 年 10 月 26 日與黎婉君結婚。 生物化學系時港洪的女兒時健寧於 1998 年 10 月 17 日出生。 計算及電訊中心丘石松的兒子丘曜綸於 1998 年 10 月 13 日出生。 手球{????}欖球 壘球{????}柔道

壘球奪標 {????}{????}男子壘球隊在 4 月 4 日舉行的壘球錦標賽中，勇奪冠軍；女子壘球隊則獲亞軍。這是男子壘球隊第一次奪魁。隊 長梁啓健〔計算機工程學三年級〕認為，緊密的練習，技術的進步，經驗的積累，促成了這 次勝利。他們除了每周例行集訓外，周六也會練習，有些熱心的隊員更會爭取時{????}b宿舍前 的停車場摸黑苦練哩！

Corrigendum In the Awardees Supplement of April Genesis, it should have been mentioned that two student groups were awarded the ECC Shell Environmental Awards for University Students. They are the Biology student group "Promotion of Environmental Protection Awareness" (PEPA), who won the first prize, and the Nature Club who won the third prize.

UST graduates have maintained their competitiveness in the employment market despite the current economic restructuring. According to the annual survey recently released by the Career Center, more than 95% of 1998 graduates had found jobs, started businesses, or been accepted for further studies by December last year.

Less than 5% of the graduates were unemployed. Of these 86 graduates, 36 individuals had received offers but declined them in search of better opportunities.

Of the 1,807 respondents, 80% were working full-time, 3% were doing part-time or temporary jobs, while 12% were pursuing advanced degrees at local or overseas institutions. Of the 217 graduates who opted for further studies, 78% chose to return to their alma mata.

Commerce and business continued to be the largest employment sector, accounting for 67% of the graduates. More than 16% joined the manufacturing and industries sector, 6% education, 4% government, 4% community and social services, and 3% construction.

Engineering (21 systems analysis and computer programming (19 marketing and sales (16 accounting (16 and administration and management (8%) were the five major lines of work taken up by UST graduates.

The survey indicates that their median gross monthly salary was $11,917; their mean gross monthly salary was $12,269; while their mean basic salary was $11,143.

"There has been misleading media coverage recently on the salary of UST's 1998 graduates. The 'median basic monthly salary' of our graduates was compared with the 'mean gross monthly salary' of other tertiary institutions, which is somewhat misleading," said Ms Cheryl Lee, counselor at UST's Career Center who was responsible for the survey.

"When compared with other university graduates, the salaries of our graduates are in fact relatively higher, and our unemployment rates are among the lowest in Hong Kong institutions," continued Cheryl (see graphs below).

The difference between basic monthly salary and gross monthly salary is that the latter takes into account the basic monthly salary as well as the number of payments, commissions and allowances.

"With the worsening unemployment situation, graduates will find competition increasingly tough. Our survey shows that there is a drop of six percentage points in the number of graduates joining the commerce and business sector, with a significant drop from 6% to 3% in banking and finance, the sector hardest hit by the financial turmoil," said Cheryl.

The Career Center is organizing career forums, job-searching skills training workshops, and mentoring schemes to enhance the competitiveness of UST graduates. An annual Pathfinders Job Search Orientation will be held from 4 to 5 June to offer students practical advice on how to sharpen their competitive edge in the employment market. Strong links have also been developed between the University and potential employers.

The survey covered a total of 1,842 full time bachelor's degree recipients who completed their courses in June 1998. The response rate was 98%.

Gross Monthly Income of 1998 University Graduates

Gross Monthly IncomeHKUSTHKUPOLYUCITYUHKBU Median11,91713,27111,00010,83310,000 Mean12,26914,25912,64611,89711,060

Unemployment Rate of 1998 University Graduates

HKUSTHKUPOLYUCITYUHKBU 4.8%6.6%6.5%10.9%2.7%

男子手球隊三連冠 {????}{????}科大男子手球隊在 4 月 4 日舉行的第六屆大專手球邀請賽中，以一分之微險勝香港教育學院，連續第三年勇奪大專男 子手球賽冠軍。女子隊也不遑多讓，榮獲亞軍。

{????}{????}區區一分，得來不易。科大與教院勢均力敵，戰況激烈。雙方在法定時間內以十五分打 成平手；加時射七公尺定點球，每隊各派五人，依然難分高下；最後不得不以先得分者即為 勝方決勝負。科大李球新〔電機及電子工程學系二年級〕一球定冠，最後賽果為 21 分比 20 分。隊員們高興得將'功臣'李球新拋高，歡呼喝采。

{????}{????}隊長何中和〔財務學系三年級〕自中學已開始打手球，身經百戰。他說：'我從未試過 打這樣一場要過三關的比賽。在現場觀賽的同學告訴我，他們也感受到緊張的氣氛，心噗通 噗通地跳。我們在場內，心裏只敢想著如何打好這場比賽，贏取冠軍。'

欖球創佳績 {????}{????}去年底成立的欖球隊起步晚，步子卻邁得很大，在 4 月 10 日舉行的第一屆大專帶式欖球銀碟組中勇奪冠軍。隊長曾繁耀〔物理學系二年級〕說：'我 們以戰術、耐力及團隊精神取勝。'卻原來，他們賽前只在足球場練習過兩次，其餘時{????}{????}在非正規場地的第三期草坪練習。

{????}{????}欖球隊逢星期三晚上六時至八時在人造草皮足球場練習，歡迎同學加入。 柔道學會榮登盟主寶座 {????}{????}柔道學會在 4 月 4 日舉行的第十屆大專盃柔道賽中，技壓群雄，勇奪隊際賽及全場總冠軍。這是柔道學會首次 獲取這兩個奬項。

{????}{????}柔道學會派出了二十多位同學參賽，戰績彪炳，共奪取了 16 個奬盃，囊括了近四成奬項。隊長梁向發說：'我們今年招募了一些實力很强的新人，陣容 鼎盛，加上在隊際賽的比賽次序對我們有利，才能有如此佳績。'

{????}{????}慶祝活動一波緊接一波。獲奬當天，他們一起吃晚飯舉行慶功宴。意猶未盡，第二天隊 員聯袂吃自助餐。第三天相約在科大捧盃拍照，記下光榮戰績。四月底再搞了一個告別會， 歡送快將畢業的隊員。

University Graduates Gross Monthly Income, 1998 University Graduates Unemployment Rate, 1998 Note: the above are tertiary institutions in Hong Kong that have recently released their job surveys.

連 連 報 捷 九九年五月五日出版 同創{????}一九九九年五月五日 科技新知 同創{????}一九九九年五月五日 大學動態 黃安發博士說：'回歸祇有一次，如果我們的電腦網絡出現問題，整個回歸過程是不可能停 下來等我們的。'

Editor Jacky Tsang Writers Frank Davies, Lisa Li Design & Production Timothy Ngan Photography Crystal Lo (SBM, 1) Genesis is published by the Office of Public Affairs to keep members of the UST community in touch with University news and views.

The next issue of Genesis will be published on 5 May 1999. Contributions are welcome, but must be received at least two weeks before publication date. Email your contribution to genesis.

(c) 1998 by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. All rights reserved. 下期《同創》將於 1999 年 5 月 5 日出版。 《同創》園地公開，歡迎投稿。來稿請傳眞 2358-0537 或交公共事務處《同創》編輯收。 截稿日期：出版前兩週。 GENESIS 〔請將問題傳眞至 2358 0537 或電子郵件 genesis。〕

問大學會否效法港大、中大、浸大及城大，設立持續教育中心，開辦夜間兼讀本科學位課{????}{

答協理副校長杜家磊教授覆：'按照大學的持續及專業教育的政策，大學希望為工商及專{????}~界服務，開辦高等持續及專業教育課程。這些課程由院校及學系自行開辦，自給自足，並{????}悀j學行政委員會的持續及專業教育小組指引政策。因此，大學不會為兼讀學生開設正規的{????}エ擠牷C

{????}{????}大學獲教育資助委員會資助的全日制本科生學額已滿，不能再運用教資會的資助開辦額 外的兼讀課程，所有成本須由學生承擔。我們沒有計劃於此時開辦兼讀本科課程。'

與工業界結盟

普通話朗誦更上一層樓 Salaries will be paid on Thursday, 27 May 1999.

1999 年 5 月份薪金將於 5 月 27 日發放。

向校董會創會主席鍾士元博士致意 蕭雅茵〔中〕與校長吳家瑋教授〔左〕及馬會主席李福深出席奬學金頒授典禮。

Editor Ross Lai Writers Frank Davies, Lisa Li, Jacky Tsang, Bosco Wong Design & Production Timothy Ngan Photography Tang Chi Chuen (Acct, 2), Crystal Lo (SBM, 1) Genesis is published by the Office of University Development and Public Affairs to keep members of the UST community in touch with University news and views.

The next issue of Genesis will be published on 2 June 1999. Contributions are welcome, but must be received at least two weeks before publication date either by fax at 2358-0537, or by email to genesis.

(c) 1999 by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. All rights reserved. 下期《同創》將於 1999 年 6 月 2 日出版。 《同創》園地公開，歡迎投稿。來稿請傳眞 2358-0537，或電郵 genesis。 截稿日期：出版前兩週。

Payday 科大的朗誦隊在最近的第三屆大專生普通話朗誦比賽中過關 斬將，終於同時榮獲散文組和詩歌組冠軍，而個人參賽方面，亦有三位同學獲奬；她們分{????}O為王龍昂、莫穎君及馬東升。

{????}{????}這是科大第三年參加這個比賽，而這三年來我們的成績一年比一年好。去年，科大已獲 詩歌組集誦冠軍及散文組獨誦冠軍。

{????}{????}今年，科大共有六十多位同學參賽。負責訓練學生們參加比賽的語言中心導師蔣治中說 ：'最初，同學們的普通話水平頗為參差，所以須要為他們提供有關發音和吐字的基本訓練 。此外，我也著重引發他們代入作品的情景中，盡量使他們表達內心感覺。'

{????}{????}散文組的朗誦作品為《海燕》。領誦的黃海宏同學說：'除了著重咬字技巧之外，動作 也須要講究。最初，我們很不習慣，覺得動作就是造作。但克服了這心理障礙之後，反而覺 得整體上蠻有氣勢！'

{????}{????}詩歌組的朗誦作品是家傳戶曉的《木蘭辭》。負責領誦並扮演花木蘭的洪圓圓同學說： '老師將我們分成不同聲部，以求達到不同層次的效果，就像協奏曲一樣，主奏樂器與樂隊 互相呼應，互相對答。'

{????}{????}科大電機及電子工程學系研究生梁加能最近開發了一項可以改善手提式電子器材的技術 ，並獲選在美國舉行的國際固態電路研討會上發表這項研究成果。他的論文是有史以來第二 篇來自香港〔也是第一篇來自中國〕的獲選論文。第一篇來自香港的論文於兩年前發表，作 者也是科大的研究生-張爾寧。被譽為'芯片奧運會'的國際固態電路研討會，是固態電路 領域的國際盛事；獲選論文水準非常高，並具備工業發展的前景。

{????}{????}梁加能開發的頻率補償技術，可以讓工程人員設計出'完美'的放大器-既有廣闊的頻 帶寬度，又有穩定的性能表現。

{????}{????}梁加能的博士論文導師、電機及電子工程學系助理教授莫國泰博士指出，很多電路設計 都需要放大器，而梁加能的技術可以把放大器的效能提升 20 倍，應用前景非常理想。他們已通過科大向美國申請有關技術的專利權。

{????}{????}是次獲得資助成立的新型水泥基建築產品合作研究中心直接與本港的支柱工業 建築業 相聯繫。此中心負責人，土木工程學系助理教授李宗津博士介紹說，他們主要研究不同水 泥建築製品的模具和配方，尤其注重利用工業廢料〔如粉煤灰〕生產粘土磚，開發隔熱保溫 性能良好的水泥製品等，也正在嘗試用水泥基加上適當的添加材料來代替木材。他們不僅向 業內的公司進行技術轉讓，還與中威混凝土預製有限公司合作，準備在工廠進行電纜溝、隔 牆板及模板等產品的中試及批量生產。

{????}{????}工業自動化技術合作研究中心則力圖將科大在馬達驅動技術、運動控制技術、傳感器技 術、系統集成、機構設計等五方面已有的基礎研究成果集中開發，以成為有工業應用價値的 綜合技術。該中心推行會員制，吸引對自動化技術有興趣的公司參加，參加的會員需提供一 定的資助經費，並分享研究成果。該中心負責人、電機及電子工程學系副教授李澤湘博士披 露，到目前為止，已經有三家公司成為會員。中心將根據這些會員公司的需求，為他們'度 身定製'所需的機電一體化、製造、模具等方面的應用技術。從事半導體封裝工業的世界第 四大上市公司 ASM 已成為該中心的會員。ASM 公司的晶片封裝焊接設備過去由於位置控制方面的問題而影響工效，李澤湘博士等人利用力 控制技術，令振動週期壓縮為零，顯著提高了功效。李澤湘博士表示，他們計劃逐步將中心 發展成大學與工業結盟的'研究、生產合作實體'。除了依靠工業界資助開發產品外，此中 心還打算在開發新產品的基礎上成立新公司，並幫助研究生在本港及內地創業。

{????}{????}親友遍佈世界的人，一定為昂貴的電話帳單而大傷腦筋。電機及電子工程學系的曹希仁 教授和李波博士所負責的異步傳輸模式與互聯網電話通訊系統合作研究中心或許能幫助我們 以低廉價格與海外親友開懷暢談。目前最經濟快捷的通訊方式是電子郵件，可是電子郵件代 替不了親身聆聽親友聲音的感受。用互聯網打電話已經有人嘗試，且不說音質不好，那常常 發生的信號延遲，更令人不能忍受。曹教授介紹說，他們與 AT&T、香港通訊中心以及廣東電信局合作發展的 ATM 異步傳輸模式試圖解決這一問題，期望將電話與互聯網的優點集於一身，在三、五年內達到 一般人可以接受的滿意程度。

{????}{????}俗話說'百聞不如一見'，是指圖像比文字包含更多信息。為了經濟地傳輸和儲存圖像 ，必須經過壓縮編碼的步驟。在接收圖像的終端，又必須經過解壓和解碼的步驟。為防止信 號混亂，編碼和解碼的技術都需要標準化。MPEG 4 是一個由國際標準組織〔ISO〕所屬的活動影像專家組〔簡稱 MPEG〕所推薦的最新編碼標準。這一標準雖然可用硬件技術構成，但是缺乏靈活性，很難根 據需要進行變動；而且，壓縮影像的品質固定，很難作進一步的改善。由計算機科學系副教 授麥雅達博士〔Dr Ishfaq Ahmad〕與電機及電子工程學系劉名雷教授所領導的 MPEG 4 資訊科技合作研究中心，將利用軟件為基礎的方法來改進上述不足之處。

{????}{????}該研究中心利用基於過去研究而發展出來的先進技術，作為以軟件為基礎的編碼和解碼 的方法。在給定的壓縮程度上，他們的方法比以硬件方法有更好的品質；在影像品質固定時 ，他們的方法可以提供較高的壓縮度，還非常經濟，從而可以應用於數碼影像廣播〔DVB〕{????}B高分辨電視〔HDTV〕、DVD、無線影像和電話、多媒體通訊、科學可視化、遊戲等多方面的 資訊科技。

MPEG 4 資訊科技合作研究中心的研究人員在工作。

QWill UST set up a Center of Contin- uing Education to offer part-time undergraduate degree programs as other tertiary institutions, such as HKU, CU,

Baptist U and City U, are doing?

A Prof Peter Dobson, AVP-AA: "The University has a policy on Continuing and Professional Education. According to this policy, it is the University's intention to offer

Home Affairs Noreen Lee Lai Shan (VPAAO) announces the birth of Tsang Wing Yan on 24 March 1999.

教職員消息 副校長〔學術〕辦公室李麗珊於 1999 年 3 月 24 日喜誕女嬰，取名曾穎欣。 香港研究資助局今年撥出兩千萬經費，資助本港大學成立八個合作研究中心。科大的四所合 作研究中心共成功獲得港幣 1,225 萬元的資助，超過總資助金額的半數。

同 創 未 來 可以彎曲的水泥，給工業應用帶來廣闊的空間。

ASM 公司晶片封裝焊接設備的主件。 李波博士〔左〕及曹希仁教授。 電子技術研究成果再次揚威國際 通 告 科大教職員會稍後將舉行會員大會，選舉新一屆幹事。詳情將以電子郵件公布，敬希垂注。

科大教職員足球隊首次參加城大十五周年足球邀請盃，榮獲亞軍。隊長羅炳輝〔學生事務處 〕說：'我們贏了浸大、中大、城大 及理大，惜未能打敗港大，爭取更好的成績。'足球隊今後將加强訓練，多與其他球隊比賽 ，切磋球技。

三月二十五日是科大的特別日子，對策劃這所大學的幕後大功臣 鍾士元博士來說，這天也是一個非常特別的日子。 {????}{????}大學教職員在這天一起向鍾博士致以誠摰的敬意，感謝他在過去十多年間，從大學籌備 成立，到校舍建設，以至大學正{????}言葖嶊漁桹{????}o展，一直領導大學邁步向前，成為國際知 名的學府。

{????}{????}鍾博士是科大校董會的創會主席。當天，鍾博士主持了大學校董會及顧問委員會聯合會 議，這是他榮休前最後一次主持科大校董會會議。之後，大學舉行命名儀式，把校董議事室 命名為鍾士元校董會議事廳，紀念鍾博士多年來為校董會所作的貢獻。

{????}{????}校長吳家瑋教授形容鍾博士是一個堅守原則、講究程序、判斷力强和忠實可靠的人。他 說：'鍾博士從不向壓力低頭，不計較私利，也絕不偏袒徇私。他喜歡徵詢各方面的意見， 但他自己一定會做足準備-所有文件他都會逐頁、逐行審閱，甚至連一些簡單的排版和標點 符號錯誤也不會放過。

{????}{????}'他也從不會忘記我們說過會做的事，即使過了好幾年，他還是記在心頭，並會像鷹一 般精明地監督我們。雖然他對每一個細節都關注入微，但卻不會忘記他作為校董會主席的基 本任務-確保大學發展的宏觀方向正確無誤。'

{????}{????}當晚，科大一百三十多位教職員出席為鍾博士特設的校董會及顧問委員會晚宴。 {????}{????}席間，多位同事及好友公開表達了他們對鍾博士的印象。 {????}{????}機械工程學系教授陳介中向鍾博士致送一幅飛機的照片，機身髹上科大的名字。他說： '這架飛機從美國飛來香港時，途經一個俄羅斯空軍基地加油。科大人員需要大費唇舌，說 服俄羅斯人這架飛機並非進行間諜活動。他們問誰是科大的領導人；我們說是鍾士元博士， 並講述他的豐功偉績，以及對香港作出的貢獻。最後，我們獲准順利飛來香港，'他說。

{????}{????}工學院院長高秉强教授說：'我曾問鍾博士如何在八十高齡還保持活力充沛，他{????}L的 秘方很簡單-每天游泳。自此，我一直落實他的建議。'

{????}{????}工商管理學院院長陳玉樹教授說：'鍾博士很重視會議的效率。有時候，他會對校長說 ：你祇有三分鐘提出你的論點！我也希望可以這樣做！'

{????}{????}除了各人的稱許外，科大亦送了一個'寶盒'給鍾博士。裏面有一些可以反映科大研究 成果及鍾博士所推行的大學宗旨的小小禮物，由有關的教研人員呈送。紀念品包括：

{????}{????}校董會副主席羅康瑞博士在晚宴的尾聲分享他對鍾博士的印象：'記得我和鍾博士第一 次合作，是一起參與起草《基本法》的工作。當我禮貌性拜訪他時，發現他對《中英聯合聲 明》極之熟悉，幾乎可以倒背如流，還能夠暢論每一個微妙的字眼！與鍾博士合作多年，他 已成了我的好友、同事和導師。'

羅康瑞博士為鍾博士肖像揭幕。 * 一包採用緩釋技術維持適當釋放劑量的哮喘藥〔王子暉教授〕； * 一種稱為新抗氧化劑的藥物-這是從一項歷時三年的中藥研究項目中開發出來的新一代藥{????}哄]高錦明博士〕；

* 一瓶可以促進皮膚細胞生長的藥膏，可以有效減少皺紋〔王允强博士〕； * 一塊竹纖維增强聚丙烯複合材料〔弭永利博士〕； * 一顆整合在硅晶片上的液晶顯示器〔郭海成教授〕； * 一個展示三維成衣設計軟件技術的小模型〔袁銘輝博士〕； * 一塊顯示科大校徽的高分子光纖材料〔陳志明教授〕； * 一本有關'Hong Kong Supernet'新聞剪報的小冊。Supernet是科大創辦的互聯網服務公司，為本港開創了一門新 行業〔沈運申教授〕；

* 有關即時網上中英傳譯服務的示範材料〔吳德愷博士〕； * 一顆可以測量人體健康狀況的生物醫學晶片〔任能博教授〕。

獲贈迷你科大標誌，鍾博士笑逐顏開。 化學系任能博教授(Prof Renneberg)借助木馬模型介紹他發展的生物醫學晶片，然後作為紀念品送了給鍾博士。

普通話朗誦更上一層樓