HKU Bulletin June 2011 (Vol. 12 No. 2)

The University's Computer Centre was honoured with the Best Green Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Gold Award in the Hong Kong ICT Awards 2011. The Hong Kong ICT Awards 2011 was organized by the Green ICT Consortium to honour companies in the industry for the environmentally friendly initiatives demonstrated in their operations which made contributions to the ICT industry as a whole. The Cloud Computing, Server and Storage Virtualization and HPC and Grid Computing System developed by the Computer Centre of HKU has been commended by the Judging Panel for demonstrating good cost effectiveness in deploying the cloud computing solution. The need for data centre space and the consumption of electrical power have also been reduced with the virtualization of servers and storage, as well as the adoption of cloud technology. Over the years, the Computer Centre has introduced a number of innovative Green ICT measures to maximize system performance and Hank Paulson discusses the Global Economic Outlook and China-US Economic Relations at HKU HKU Computer Centre Wins Best Green ICT Gold Award to reduce electricity and cooling requirements. Since 2002, the Centre has initiated and implemented more green solutions, including duplex printing, electronic forms and recycling of toner cartridges and obsolete equipment. In recent years, the Centre has been undertaking major developments in cloud computing infrastructure, which has generated good savings in power and space requirements, while reducing carbon emissions. Additionally, the High Performance Computing (HPC) and the largest Grid Computing systems in Hong Kong developed by the Centre have proved to be vital in supporting cutting-edge computer-intensive research projects. HKU Computer Centre homepage: http://www.hku.hk/cc/ At this year's ceremony, a total of 12 new Endowed Professorships were established, including the Sin Wai-Kin Distinguished Visiting Professorship in the Humanities, a university-wide scheme in support of the appointment of distinguished visiting scholars in the humanities. Also announced at the Inauguration was the establishment of the Zhou Guangzhao Professorship in Natural Sciences from the Zhou Guangzhao Foundation. It is the first time that an Endowed Professorship has been named after an academic on the Chinese Mainland. The occasion was also a milestone for the Foundation as it marked the first time it has given an award to a Hong Kong recipient. For more about HKU's Endowed Professorships, please go to http://www3.hku.hk/ephku/. Growing Stronger, Reaching Further The Fifth Inauguration of Endowed Professorships at HKU The University celebrated its Fifth Inauguration of Endowed Professorships on April 12, 2011. Endowed Professorships are established to support the scholarship or research endeavours of distinguished professors. They are the most significant awards given to academics within the University. "We are proud that, since they were first established in 2005, we have 54 Endowed Professorships at the University. We aim to create 100 Endowed Professorships and I am grateful to the community for its support of the University's goal," said Vice-Chancellor Professor Lap-Chee Tsui. Henry M. Paulson, Secretary of the Treasury under President George W. Bush, shared his views on China-US relations at HKU in April. A guest of the Faculty of Business and Economics and the HK Institute of Economics and Business Strategy, Mr Paulson is perhaps best known for the decisions made during the height of the financial crisis in 2008. He spoke to an audience of over 1,000 people, including the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Lap-Chee Tsui, Chairman of Council, The Hon Leong Che- hung, government, business and community leaders, alumni, and faculty and students. The session was moderated by Victor Fung, Chairman of the Li & Fung Group. On the current and future state of US-China economic relations, Mr Paulson stressed that the success of the US and China are dependent upon each other. "I think there will always be differences, but the key is to build up the shared interests." Asked what would be a potential wish list from the US business community, he said,"Opening up for investment and not as heavy regulation, and I always explain that every businessman loves competition unless it's in his market." 'Nature Publishing Index 2010 China' Puts HKU in Top 10 From left to right: HKU Computer Centre members Mr Geoffrey Dengate, HKU Director of Information Technology Services, Mr Frankie Cheung, Senior IT Manager, Cloud Computing, Mr Peter Li, Associate IT Director (IT Infrastructure), and Mr Walter Li, Senior IT Manager, Operations. The Nature Publishing Group (NPG) presented on May 12 the first 'Nature Publishing Index 2010 China' and ranked the University seventh among its fellow research institutions in China. The rankings are based on the number of research papers published in 2010 in Nature journals, including Nature and the 16 Nature research journals covering broad areas of basic research. The index is generally taken as an indicator of the strength of research institutions in high quality basic research. HKU Vice-Chancellor Professor Lap-Chee Tsui was delighted that HKU has been ranked among the top ten institutions in the Index, and was pleased to see the rise of China in publishing in top scientific journals. He said government support would be crucial to the development of research institutions. "The Hong Kong government should consider drastically increasing the funding to support scientific research of local higher institutions, which will surely help Hong Kong develop into one of the nation's leading city in scientific research. The Nature Index has clearly pointed to the strength and potential of Hong Kong in the area," said Professor Tsui. Over the years, HKU has cast its net wide and attracted funding, talents and international collaboration, enabling the University to produce numerous important discoveries. According to ISI Essential Science Indicators, HKU has 110 scientists who rank among the top one per cent in their field. International recognition has enabled the university to attract high-calibre researchers, teachers and students - not only from Hong Kong, but also Mainland China and around the world. News in Brief 05 The University of Hong Kong Bulletin June 2011 "Each country needs peace and stability in order to prosper, terrorism is an enemy for both of us, and there are both strong interests in national security. I think we need to build on the shared interest and common interests, and work through areas where there are differences," he said. From left: Dr Victor Fung and Mr Henry M. Paulson.