Hong Kong

Lingnan University (LU) and Shenzhen University (SZU) in the Mainland signed a Letter of Intent on Collaboration on 25 May 2021, aiming to foster academic cooperation in various areas, including the offering of joint undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degree programmes, undertaking research and development projects, and exploring the feasibility of establishing a joint campus in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) to nurture top-notch talent.

A recent survey conducted by Lingnan University (LU) and the Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) finds that 11 to 14 per cent of older adults eligible for the current three cash welfare subsidies do not claim them, mainly because of the complexity of application procedures, high transaction costs and perceived stigma. The research team suggests the Government should reduce administrative burdens, and re-brand welfare subsidies for older adults.

Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) has launched a brandnew Distinguished Freshmen Package and introduced additional scholarships to high academic achievers admitted in 2021-22. Students with a total score of 22 or above, without subject weightings, in their best five subjects in the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE), as well as those with a total score of 28 or above in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma and those with grade B or above in three A-level subjects in the General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (GCEAL) examinations will be offered the Distinguished Freshmen Package. School leavers with an HKDSE score of 25 or above in their best five subjects (including level 4 or above in English Language), or a total score of 32 or above in the IB Diploma, will be offered full tuition fee scholarships for up to four years.

Printing electronic circuits could soon get easier and cheaper.

Everyone has to wear a mask to curb the spread of COVID-19. However, this is an additional communication barrier for people with a hearing impairment as they cannot read lips or facial expressions behind a mask. Invited by The Hong Kong Society for the Deaf, the Lingnan Entrepreneurship Initiative of Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) recently designed a transparent ASTM Level 3 face mask based on the needs of hearing-impaired people, and its fully transparent and anti-reflective design makes lip-reading easier.

A survey conducted by Lingnan University in Hong Kong's (LU) Department of Cultural Studies finds 65 per cent of lesbian and bisexual female respondents perceived a glass ceiling in financial services in Hong Kong. The research team noted an urgent need for employers to build inclusive workplaces for LGBT+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and related communities) employees.

A new device can light up 100 LED bulbs with a single drop of water.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted personal lives and created a great deal of uncertainty, imposing additional pressure as well as new challenges at work. However, a survey of healthcare professionals in Wuhan during the COVID-19 lockdown conducted by the Faculty of Business of Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) found that individual employees with proactive personality do well in the face of challenging circumstances. The research suggests that individual employees also play critical roles in managing crisis and uncertainty, thus maintaining effective organisational functions.

Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) is ranked third in the world for “Quality Education” at the latest Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings 2021 released today (21 April).

Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) - ‘LU Jockey Club Gerontechnology and Smart Ageing Project’ (the project) organised a two-day conference entitled “Gerontechnology Conference⸺Partnership Strategies for a Collaborative Society’ on 15 and 16 April 2021. The guests of honour, Dr Lam Ching-choi, Chairman of the Elderly Commission and Mr Leong Cheung, Executive Director, Charities and Community of The Hong Kong Jockey Club, officiated at the launch ceremony with Prof Leonard K Cheng, President of Lingnan University , and Prof Joshua Mok Ka-ho, Vice-President of Lingnan University .

Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) honoured 33 scholars, students and graduates in a Research and Knowledge Transfer Excellence Awards Presentation Ceremony held yesterday (19 April) for their important achievements in original research, knowledge transfer projects of real social relevance and impact, and success in obtaining competitive research grants.

A series of studies led by HKBU researchers have revealed that hyocholic acid and its derivatives (collectively known as HCAs), a component of bile acids that facilitate fat digestion, are a promising risk indicator of type 2 diabetes. The strong efficacy of HCAs in regulating blood glucose levels and protecting against diabetes has also been uncovered.

To promote sustainable development and the use of eco-coffins, Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU)’s Lingnan Entrepreneurship Initiative (LEI) has taken the lead in developing dual-use coffins as furniture for environmental purposes. The Lingnan University team is collaborating with Forget Thee Not, a social enterprise promoting green burial and funerals, to design furniture that can be conveniently reassembled into coffins. They aim to add a personal and heartfelt touch to honour the deceased, and the coffins are also more ecologically sustainable and cost-effective than the traditional funeral and burial process.

A study led by scientists at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) has decoded the genomes of the deep-sea clam (Archivesica marissinica) and the chemoautotrophic bacteria (Candidatus Vesicomyosocius marissinica) that live in its gill epithelium cells. Through analysis of their genomic structures and profiling of their gene expression patterns, the research team revealed that symbiosis between the two partners enables the clams to thrive in extreme deep-sea environments.

Prof Darrell Rowbottom, Professor of the Department of Philosophy of Lingnan University (LU) in Hong Kong received “The 8th Outstanding Scientific Research Output Award (Humanities and Social Sciences) for Higher Education Institutions -- 2nd Class Award” from the Ministry of Education of the Mainland for his study about unconceived theories.

The Science Unit of Lingnan University (LU) in Hong Kong has reported a novel form of reproductive behaviour observed in a native frog species, Lau’s Leaf Litter Toad (Leptobrachella laui). Unconventionally, the female frog positions herself on top of the male, which is a reverse of the more usual mating arrangement.

Dead bodies of cetaceans, aquatic mammals like whales and dolphins, are occasionally found washed ashore. A research team from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) is the first team worldwide to routinely apply “virtopsy”, a pioneer dead body examination technique, on stranded cetaceans to find out their causes of death, health conditions, as well as the anthropogenic impact on their well-being. The team’s valuable experience and findings could facilitate governmental agencies and stakeholders to implement effective marine conservation plans and policy decisions for vulnerable cetaceans worldwide.

Cleaning and disinfecting public spaces have become increasingly important during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on Lingnan University (LU)’s development of a successful free sanitisation service for over 1,000 subdivided flats by a mobile UV-C germicidal system last year, LU has achieved another breakthrough by constructing a smart Autonomous UV-C Disinfection Robot to provide thorough and efficient UV disinfection for large indoor establishments. While the whole disinfection process is automatic, it is far more effective and five times faster than manual disinfection with 1:99 diluted bleach.

The Faculty of Business of Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) recently received the accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International) for another five-year term. This is the third time in a row that the Faculty of Business has been received accreditation from AACSB International since 2011, reaffirming the Faculty’s continuing outstanding performance in teaching and learning, engagement, strategic management and innovations.

Researchers from Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) and the Faculty of Medicine at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CU Medicine) have jointly developed the Spermine Risk Score which, coupled with the use of a urine test, provides a non-invasive and more reliable method for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. In a study conducted by the researchers, about 37% of the patients, who were ultimately found to have no prostate cancer, can avoid undergoing a prostate biopsy procedure.

Researchers from the School of Chinese Medicine (SCM) at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) have developed a Chinese medicine formula named NeuroDefend that offers a potential novel treatment for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Mouse model experiment results showed that the formula reduces the levels of amyloid-beta (Aβ) and insoluble hyperphosphorylated-tau protein, which are the major hallmarks of AD, in mice brains. It also improves cognitive function and memory in mice.

The COVID-19 outbreak has brought unprecedented challenges to Hong Kong and, according to data from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the highest fatality rate has been in adults aged over 80. In view of this, Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) has launched a brand new programme to promote using Chinese medicine to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 in older adults, and reduce the infection risk in the spirit of “prevention is better than cure”.

A survey “Understanding Hong Kong working adults’ aspiration for taking up residence in China's Greater Bay Area cities”, conducted by the School of Graduate Studies of Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU), found that the psychological distance definitely reduces people’s intention to move to the Greater Bay Area (GBA). The research team noted an urgent need for policymakers to raise public awareness of the positive aspects of the GBA and its future development.

Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) has recently established a publicly accessible Natural History Collection (the Collection) of specimens of local amphibians and reptiles to document Hong Kong’s biodiversity, and for research, conservation and education purposes.

Lingnan University in Hong Kong (LU) has won three awards in The 22nd Qi Yue Recitation Arts Festival and National College Students Recitation Conference. LU is the only winning team from Hong Kong this year, and also the first local university to have received awards in this competition. Lee Wenxin, a second-year undergraduate student of the LEO Dr David P. Chan Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Data Science Programme of the Faculty of Business, won the “Young Talent Special Award” with her work “Jia Wen”; Dr Zhou Bo, Senior Lecturer of the Chinese Language Education and Assessment Centre (CLEAC) received the “Teaching Excellence Award”. LU also won the “Outstanding Organisation Award”.

The COVID-19 outbreak has created upheavals for everyone. Working from home (WFH) has become a new normal and is not expected to end even after the pandemic. Teaching and learning are no exceptions, although a recent study conducted by Lingnan University (LU) shows that both undergraduate students and community partner organisations generally prefer face-to-face interaction to the working-and-learning-from-home (WLFH) mode of internships.

A Lingnan University (LU) survey assessing how undergraduate students perceive their development from service-learning programmes showed that the respondents’ overall personal qualities and skills were significantly strengthened. In particular, “knowledge application” and “personal and professional skills” rose by 10 per cent. The research team noted that, during the COVID-19 pandemic, 70 per cent of respondents had to adopt the new mode of “service-learning from home”.

Lingnan University (LU) hosted the annual Conference for Higher Education Research (CHER) 2020 On 13 and 14 November, offering the education sector a chance to take stock of the valuable lessons that have already been learned, and propose ways forward into a radically different, post-COVID future.

A recent survey “Understanding Hong Kong and Mainland university students’ intentions to study overseas after the COVID-19 crisis”, conducted by the School of Graduate Studies of Lingnan University (LU) finds that only 16 per cent of respondents have plans to pursue postgraduate studies abroad. In addition, Hong Kong is the second most popular post-COVID study destination, just behind the US and ahead of the UK. The research team points out that the pandemic is shifting the mobility flow of international students, and that East Asian countries and regions are facing more opportunities in the increasingly competitive higher education sector for international students.

Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) scientists have invented a novel contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which enables real-time visualisation and detection of the size and number of amyloid-beta in the brain, a main hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The invention offers hope for early detection and large-scale routine screening of AD. It can also help to assess the efficacy of drugs used to treat it.