HKU Bulletin May 2012 (Vol. 13 No. 2)

News in Brief Endowed Professorships are established to support the academic pursuits of distinguished professors. They are the most significant awards bestowed upon academics at HKU and are a reminder of the importance of the ongoing partnership between academia and those who support our endeavours. On April 20, 2012, HKU was pleased to celebrate its Sixth Inauguration of Endowed Professorships. In recognition of their research endeavours, remarkable scientific achievements and significant contributions to the international scientific community, three distinguished HKU academics were awarded prestigious Senior Research Fellowships by the Croucher Foundation. The awards were presented by Mr Kenneth Chen JP, Under Secretary for Education of the HKSAR Government, on March 29, 2012. The Croucher Senior Research Fellowships are awarded to local academics who have excelled in scientific research work, as judged by leading international scientists invited to provide confidential reviews of Professor Vivian Yam Wing-wah, Philip Wong Wilson Wong Professor in Chemistry and Energy, Department of Chemistry, has been elected as a Member (Foreign Associate) of the US National Academy of Sciences, in recognition of her distinguished and continuing achievements in original research, particularly on light-emitting materials and innovative ways of capturing solar energy. An elected membership to the Academy is regarded as one of the highest honours for a scientist. Professor Yam felt proud and privileged to have been chosen: “The most gratifying thing is that when a purely homegrown HKU graduate receives such recognition and acclaim, I can in turn reassure my students and their parents that Hong Kong is able to groom At the ceremony, the announcement of the Joseph Needham – Philip Mao Professorship in Chinese History, Science and Civilization took the spotlight. This professorship was established in honour of the late Dr Joseph Needham, who directed the monumental work ‘Science and Civilization in China’, and the late Dr Philip Wen Chee Mao, the Founding Chairman of the East Asian History of Science Foundation (Hong Kong). scientists of world-class standing who are recognised internationally.” Vice-Chancellor Professor Lap-Chee Tsui was delighted with the news: “We are thrilled that Professor Yam’s work has been recognised with this rare honour. Her pioneering research has helped put HKU on the academic map nationally and internationally, and her outstanding teaching will be a big draw for talented graduate students and junior faculty.” The National Academy of Sciences announced the election of 84 new members and 21 foreign associates from 14 countries on May 1, 2012, bringing the total number of active members to 2,152 and the total number of foreign associates to 430, of whom around 200 are Nobel laureates. M The establishment of the Y W Kan Professorship in Natural Sciences was also announced at the Inauguration. Created by the Croucher Foundation, this Professorship is named after Professor Y W Kan, in recognition of his many contributions to the work of the Foundation and to the discipline of science in Hong Kong for over two decades. At the ceremony, Vice-Chancellor Professor Lap-Chee Tsui noted proudly: “Since the first inauguration in 2005, we now have 66 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.” M For more about HKU’s Endowed Professorships, please go to http://www.hku.hk/ephku/. candidates nominated in a competitive exercise. The 2012–13 Fellows are Dr Lu Liwei of the Department of Pathology in the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, Dr Alice S.T. Wong of the School of Biological Sciences in the Faculty of Science and Professor Ed X. Wu of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering. Each fellowship includes not only a personal grant of $60,000 to the recipient for research expenses, but also funding that will enable the university of the recipient to recruit replacement teachers to take over the award winner’s duties for the period of the fellowship. This enables the awardees to devote more time and effort to research work. M From left: Dr Lu Liwei, Department of Pathology, Dr Alice S.T. Wong, School of Biological Sciences and Professor Ed X. Wu, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Newest Fellow of the NAS Professor VivianYam Our Legacy of Excellence Grows The Sixth Inauguration of Endowed Professorships HKU Academics Sweep 2012 Croucher Senior Research Fellowships Professor Tony Fung Wing-kam, Chair Professor of the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society founded in 1848. Professor Fung’s research interests cover statistical diagnostics, robustness, longitudinal data analysis, DNA profiling, forensic statistics and genetic epidemiology. He is a fellow of the American Statistical Association and the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, and was also awarded the prestigious Croucher Senior Research Fellowship in 2008. Professor Fung was elected by the AAAS Council through the strength of his remarkable contributions to statistical DNA forensics, robust statistics, professional services, and dissemination of statistical knowledge. In recognition of their contributions to scientific advancement, a total of 539 AAAS members were elected as Fellows in 2011 and the awards were presented at the AAAS Fellows Forum held in Canada in February 2012. M Professor Tony Fung Elected Fellow of the AAAS 03 May 2012 The University of Hong Kong Bulletin