HKU Bulletin April 2010 (Vol. 11 No. 2)

30 The University of Hong Kong Bulletin 31 April 2010 06545"/%*/( :06/( 3&4&"3$)&3 "8"3% &YDFQUJPOBM SFTFBSDI QPUFOUJBM JO ZPVOH TDIPMBST BHFE CFMPX JT SFDPHOJ[FE CZ UIJT BXBSE XIJDI CSJOHT XJUI JU QFS ZFBS GPS UXP ZFBST UP GVSUIFS SFTFBSDI BOE B SFTFBSDI QPTUHSBEVBUF TUVEFOUTIJQ Dr Giorgio Biancorosso School of Humanities (Music) Dr Biancorosso is an Assistant Professor in Music in the School of Humanities where he teaches courses in Music History, Opera, and Film Studies. He come to Hong Kong as a Visiting Assistant Professor in 2004–05, and considers it a great stroke of luck that his visiting appointment has become permanent. His work addresses the relationship between music and the moving image in cinema from a variety of perspectives: psychological, philosophical, and critical. He has published a number of articles and anthology chapters on such topics as film sound, music and the psychology of expectation, and the role of pop in Wong Kar-wai’s cinema. He is an adviser for major university presses and has lectured at Columbia University, Stanford, NUS, and UC Berkeley. This year, he will be Visiting Professor in Musicology at the National Taiwan University (Taipei) and is currently completing a book entitled Musical Aesthetics Through Cinema for Oxford University Press. Dr Lui Wing-yee School of Biological Sciences Dr Lui is a HKU graduate who won numerous awards and scholarships – including the Sir Edward Youde Fellowship and the University Women Scholarship – during her pre-doctoral training. Currently an Assistant Professor in the School of Biological Sciences she believes that perseverance with a positive mindset makes everything a possibility and is grateful for the opportunities that HKU has given her since her undergraduate studies. Her research interests are in cell adhesion and male reproductive biology and focus on understanding the precise mechanism of cell junction restructuring pertinent to germ cell movement and development. Abnormality in junction restructuring could result in male infertility. Results obtained from her studies not only provide new insights for the development of non-hormonal male contraceptives, but also improve our understanding of unexplained male infertility. Dr Nikolaos Mamoulis Department of Computer Science Dr Mamoulis joined the Department of Computer Science in 2001, and focuses his research on the effective management and mining of complex data types, including spatial, spatio-temporal, object-relational, multimedia, text and semi-structured data. He has developed efficient data structures and search algorithms for large-scale practical applications, including the assignment of service facilities to users, location-allocation, and navigation in transportation maps. His work is driven by the joy of problem solving and bringing new results to life. He believes that life’s ever-evolving complexity guarantees that there will always be new challenges ahead to keep him busy. Dr Mamoulis has published over 100 articles in prestigious journals and has chaired five international conferences and workshops and served on more than 80 programme committees. He is an editorial board member of Springer’s Geoinformatica journal. He appreciates the great support from the University and would like to credit to his graduate students for their energetic efforts in research. Dr Gavin James Smith Department of Microbiology Dr Smith’s initial training was in ecology and evolution at the University of Melbourne, and he gained his PhD from HKU in 2003 and went on to complete his postdoctoral training in virology at the State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases and Department of Microbiology at HKU. He studies the ecology and evolution of emerging infectious viruses and uses computational methods to determine genetic factors involved in the spread and adaptation of influenza virus in different hosts. His work has been published in top international journals such as Nature and PNAS , and he has made major contributions to influenza research by introducing cutting- edge methodologies in bioinformatics and molecular evolution analysis. His research is highly collaborative and this award is dedicated to the many people who have helped along the way. In 2007 he was awarded a prestigious seven-year Career Development Award by the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID/NIH). Mr Simon Young Ngai-man Dr Judy Yam Wai-ping Department of Pathology Diligence and determination are the key drivers in Dr Yam’s scientific pursuit, which she has directed towards investigating liver cancer. Her aim is to contribute to better clinical management of the disease and provide insights into the development of new therapies. Dr Yam’s research focuses on the functions and signalling pathways of focal adhesion molecules, which are closely associated with liver cancer. Their deregulation contributes to the acquired aggressiveness of cancer cells. Her work has answered fundamental questions about the subcellular localization, intracellular translocation and binding activity of these molecules, and have unveiled the molecular basis of liver cancer progression. Dr Yam deeply appreciates the support of her mentors and research team members. She obtained her BSc from the University of Washington and her MS and PhD from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology. Dr Kenneth Wong Kin-yip Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Dr Wong is both an outstanding researcher and teacher. He has developed a photonic signal processor that advances fibre optical communication technologies and promotes research in other fields, such as biophotonics and green energy systems. He is author and co-author of more than 150 journal and conference papers and in 2003 received the Optical Society of America New Focus Student Award. Alongside these research achievements, he has received excellent evaluations of his teaching performance and was recipient of the Best Teacher Award in 2005 – 06. His commitment to teaching includes participating in service trips to Mainland China, and in 2010 he joined the Empower the Teachers Programme organized by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr Wong received his MS and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University. He also worked in HP Laboratories as a Research Engineer in 1998 – 99 and as an independent consultant for Sumitomo Innovation Core USA in 2004, and is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. Mr Simon Young Ngai-man Department of Law In the sixth grade, Mr Young first experienced a ‘eureka’ moment of discovery through research. He was working on a class project to see what people threw away over lunchtime and found uneaten sandwiches, unopened soft drinks, and even money. Today, he sees his research into criminal and constitutional law and human rights as the pursuit of the coin at the bottom of the litter bin. Mr Young’s research has impacted on public policy making in Hong Kong through his work with the Law Reform Commission, his submissions on security measures and political reform, and his ongoing research on torture claimants. He set up the Basic Law Drafting History Online and his publications are cited by judges in Canada, Hong Kong and Australia. Mr Young is Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Faculty’s Centre for Comparative and Public Law. He is a graduate of the University of Toronto law school and obtained his LLM from the University of Cambridge. Dr Giorgio Biancorosso Dr Lui Wing-yee Dr Nikolaos Mamoulis Dr Gavin James Smith Dr Judy Yam Wai-ping Dr Kenneth Wong Kin-yip 5FBDIJOH "OE 3FTFBSDI "XBSET 5FBDIJOH "OE 3FTFBSDI "XBSET