CityU Today No. 36

May2011

二O一一年五月

NO.36

Saving lives with innovative sensors融合不同學科知識研發智能監測系統

Leadership and new thinking in an inter-disciplinary world跨學科世界需要的領導才能與新思維

Enriching education through discovery

From the Editor

Cover Story 封面故事

10

10 New era in academic planning Provost introduces unprecedented innovations in curriculum design 城大學術規劃引入教育新紀元

學務副校長闡釋探索創新課程精微

Editor-in-Chief : Professor Matthew Lee Kwok-on / 總編輯：李國安教授 • Managing Editor : Longgen Chen / 行政編輯：陳龍根 • Executive Editor : Ellen Chan / 執行編輯：陳倩茹 • English Editor : Michael Gibb / 英文編輯：鄭智友 • Design and Production : Communications & Public Relations Office and Pixels Graphics Limited / 設計及製作：傳訊及公關處及點子設計有限公司

Phone / 電話：(852) 3442 9317 • Fax / 傳真：(852) 2628 2812 Website / 網址：http://www.cityu.edu.hk/newscentre • E-mail / 電郵：[email protected] • Mail : CityU Today Editors, Communications & Public Relations Office, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong / 通訊：香港九龍達之路香港城市大學傳訊及公關處《今日城大》編輯部收

The single discipline approach to studying the plurality of problems confronting our fragile planet today is no longer considered broad or flexible enough to deliver much-needed solutions and insight.

Today the most interesting challenges tend to lie in inter-disciplinary areas where projects draw on the skills and knowledge of a wide cross-section of scholars.

In this issue of CityU Today, we look at several inter-disciplinary projects and initiatives viewed through the overarching new curricular focus on discovery and innovation.

As set out in our latest Academic Development Proposal, this unique feature of our curriculum promises to offer students and academic staff fresh impetus to strive for excellence in professional education and problem-driven research.

We also have reports on innovative advances in building safety, our regular books section and an update on technology developed for libraries.

Happy reading!

時至今日，脆弱的地球面臨着各種複雜多元的問題，單一的學科研究方式已被視為視野狹窄、有欠靈活，難以產生迫切需要的解決方案與真知灼見。

今天，最有意義的挑戰多半來自跨學科領域。此類研究課題凝聚了範圍廣闊的跨學科學者的技能與知識。

在本期《今日城大》中，我們透過新設置的探索為本創新課程，探討幾個跨學科的課題和舉措。

正如近期公布的「學術發展計劃書」所言，城大課程的新特色將為師生提供新的動力，在專業教育與「問題導向」研究中追求卓越，再建新功。

本期還報道了建築安全的創新進展，並包含定期的「新書推介」以及城大圖書館應用新技術的情況。

祝各位閱讀愉快！

Professor Matthew Lee Kwok-on 李國安教授Editor-in-Chief 總編輯

Every undergraduate will have the opportunity

to make an original discovery while a student at

CityU beginning in 2012–13, according to the

CityU Academic Development Proposal 2012–15.

從2012–13學年開始，城大的本科生在求學期

間將有機會參與創新探索；這是城大為實施

「2012–15學術發展計劃」推出的新措施。

FeatureS 專題

ColumnS 專欄

18

22

26

10 New era in academic planning Provost introduces unprecedented innovations in curriculum design 城大學術規劃引入教育新紀元

學務副校長闡釋探索創新課程精微

18 Saving lives with innovative sensors 融合不同學科知識

研發智能監測系統

22 Low-cost Smart Power Quality Meters 測量電能質量有新招

26 Check out new tech for libraries 新電子系統優化圖書館服務

30 Leadership and new thinking in an inter-disciplinary world 跨學科世界需要的領導才能與

新思維

2 newS & notable

城大動態

Creativity hub for professionals 創意樞紐專才搖籃

34 Gown to town

校園到社會

A business luminary pushing for environmental protection 商界翹楚馳騁環保世界

36 bookS

新書推介

today is published three times a year by City University of Hong Kong. The mission of the magazine is to inform the University’s stakeholders around the world of University issues, people, activities and achievements.

《今日城大》每年三期，旨在報導香港城市大學在教學、研究及外務發展上的最新動向。

24 throuGh the lenS

光影世界

Where the Light Lies 光之所在

May 2011 二O一一年五月

NO.36

May 2011 1

News & NotableNews &Notable Creativity hub for professionals

創意樞紐專才搖籃

President tackles reliability issues in hi-tech world城大校長探討高科技世界可靠度問題

The President of CityU, Professor Way Kuo, addressed some of the major reliability challenges facing

the use of nano-technologies in today’s high-tech and consumer-led industries at a special lecture

on 4 March. Professor Kuo began his lecture by pointing out that the use of nano and bio devices,

sensors and other similar products is rising because of the proliferation of technology-based

products such as iPhones, PDAs, HDTV, TFT-LCD, hybrid automobiles, new aircraft, and medical

instruments.

城大校長郭位教授於3月4日主持講座，題為「納米科技可靠嗎？」，探討當今高科技業和消費

產品行業應用納米技術時面對的重大可靠度問題。郭教授演講一開始便首先指出，由於蘋果手

機、掌上電腦、高清電視、薄膜液晶顯示屏、油電混合動力車、新型飛機、醫療器材等科技產

品的應用日益廣泛，納米及生物科技器件、感應器及其他類似產品的使用亦不斷增加。

The Creative Media Centre at CityU was officially named after Sir Run Run

Shaw at a ceremony on 17 March to thank the internationally renowned

movie and television magnate for his staunch support to the University

over the years.

Officiating guests included Mrs Mona Shaw (second from right),

Chairperson of The Shaw Foundation Hong Kong Limited, the Hon Henry

Tang Ying-yen (third from right), Chief Secretary for Administration of

the Hong Kong SAR Government, Dr Norman Leung Nai-pang (third

from left), Pro-Chancellor of CityU, the Hon Leung Chun-ying (second

from left), Council Chairman, Professor Way Kuo (far right), University

President, and Professor Roderick Wong Sue-cheun, Vice-President

(Development and External Relations).

城大3月17日舉行隆重典禮，正式以邵逸夫爵士的名字為城大創意媒

體中心命名，藉此感謝邵爵士多年來鼎力支持城大。

主持命名典禮者，有邵氏基金（香港）有限公司主席邵方逸華女士

（右二）、香港特別行政區政府政務司司長唐英年先生（右三）、

城大副監督梁乃鵬博士（左三）、校董會主席梁振英先生（左二）、

校長郭位教授（右一）、副校長（發展及對外關係）王世全教授。

2 二O一一年五月

New partnership inked with a mainland institution

城大與廈大結盟研究海洋環境

An agreement partners up CityU’s State Key Laboratory in Marine Pollution and Xiamen University’s

State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science. It was one of 60 items signed at a trade and

cultural promotion event hosted by a 500-strong Fujian delegation on 29 March. The event was called

the Presentation on Fujian–Hong Kong Cooperation and Development.

福建省高層領導人率領五百人代表團訪港，並於3月29日舉行閩港合作發展推介會，簽訂了60項

經貿文化合作協議。城大與廈門大學（廈大）簽訂一項協議，約定城大領導的海洋污染國家重

點實驗室和廈大的近海海洋環境科學國家重點實驗室結為戰略合作夥伴，以加強海洋研究方面的

交流。

城大動態

CityU (Shenzhen) Research Institute Building officially opens 香港城市大學產學研大樓啟用

The City University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen) Research Institute Building was officially opened at

a ceremony on 20 January. CityU has invested over HK$100 million in the building, which will be a

permanent base for applied research, incubation and professional education on the mainland. It is

also one of the capital projects aimed at developing CityU into a world-class institution.

Guests officiating at the ceremony included Mr Yuan Baocheng (centre), Vice Mayor, Shenzhen

Municipal Government, Mr Liu Yingli (far right), Chairman of the Shenzhen side of the Steering

Group on Shenzhen/Hong Kong Co-operation in Innovation and Technology, and from CityU, the

Hon Leung Chun-ying (second from right), Council Chairman, Professor Way Kuo (second from left),

President, and Professor Horace Ip Ho-shing, Acting Vice-President (Research and Technology).

城大投資逾一億港元在深圳興建的香港城市大學產學研大樓，於1月20日舉行啟用典禮。該大

樓是城大在內地的永久基地，從

事應用研究、孕育產業及推動專

業教育；這亦是城大致力發展為

世界級學府的多項重大工程項目

之一。

出席典禮的嘉賓有深圳市政府袁

寶成副市長（中）、「深港創新

及科技合作督導會議」深圳方劉

應力主席（右一）、城大校董會

主席梁振英先生（右二）、校長

郭位教授（左二）及署理副校長

（研究及科技）葉豪盛教授。

“Smart antenna” project receives $12 million funding 城大獲1200萬元資助研究「智能天線」

CityU has received over $12 million in funding

for developing a “smart antenna” system that will

enable seamless 4G mobile communications.

The funding support to the 2-year antenna

research project, which is undertaken by CityU’s

State Key Laboratory of Millimeter Waves, was

granted by the Innovation and Technology Fund.

城大獲得逾1,200萬元撥款資助，以供研製可令

4G移動通訊更高速流暢的「智能天線」系統。

為期兩年的天線研究計劃獲得創新及科技基金

撥款資助，由城大的毫米波國家重點實驗室負

責施行。

May 2011 3

News & Notable

Engineer receives national research output awards建築系學者獲頒國家高校科研獎

Dr Li Qiusheng, Associate Professor in the Department of Building and Construction, has received

the 2010 First Class Award at the Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Awards

(Science and Technology) from the Ministry of Education. An expert in structural dynamics and

wind engineering based at CityU, he won the Technological Innovation Award with a project

titled “Wind Effects on Super Tall Buildings: Field Monitoring, Wind Tunnel Testing and Numerical

Simulation”.

城大建築系副教授李秋勝博士研究強風對超高層建築物安全的影響，成就傑出，榮獲國家教育

部頒予2010年度高等學校科學研究優秀成果獎（科學技術）科技進步一等獎。李博士的獲獎項

目是「超高層建築風效應的現場實測、風洞實驗和數值模擬綜合研究及應用」。

Hong Kong’s first cross-disciplinary institute established 城大創立香港首間跨學科高等研究院

Globalisation has increased the complexity of societal problems around the world to the extent that single disciplinary-based research alone is

no longer sufficient for tackling current problems. CityU has established the Hong Kong Advanced Institute for Cross-Disciplinary Studies, the first

transdisciplinary research institute in Hong Kong, to reflect on solutions to challenges facing societies around the globe and here in Hong Kong. The

opening ceremony took place on 12 January.

在全球化的影響下，社會問題愈加複雜，以單一學科為本的研究模式愈來愈難以提供完善的解決方案。為配合全球社會轉變及本港教育制度改

變，城大創立本港首間以跨學科研究為主的「香港跨學科高等研究院」，並於1月12日舉行開幕典禮。


IFC exhibition showcases discovery and innovation 城大展覽「探索與創新」科研成果

A special five-day exhibition from 4 to 8 May at one of Hong Kong’s most visible landmarks, the

International Finance Centre Mall in Central, highlighted the professional education and problem-

driven research promoted at CityU.

Exhibits and installations included a fascinating

3D viewing experience at the iDome, a new

hemispherical projection system that offered a

glimpse of the cinema of the future, and a close

look at how medaka fish injected with fusion genes

reveal the presence of pollutants in coastal waters.

The exhibition also showcased advances by CityU

researchers in communication technologies,

3D painting, artificial intelligence, sustainability

research, and surveys on economic indicators.

城大於5月4至8日在中環國際金融中心商場舉

辦「探索與創新」展覽，向公眾介紹城大專業

教育和問題導向式學術研究的成果，及其為促

進本港、本地社會經濟發展、造福人群而作出

的貢獻。

參觀人士可走進新穎的半球體投射系統

iDome，親身體驗由球面鏡把影像反射出來的

三維視覺效果；又可近距離觀察植入人造基因

的鯖魚，從魚體顯示的綠色螢光看到檢測樣

品（產品或海水）受雌激素類內分泌干擾素污

染的情況。

創新展品還包括城大研發的通訊科技、三維繪

畫、人工智能技術、永續發展研究、經濟指標

調查等，從各個方面展現城大多方面的學術研

究成就。

城大動態

Distinguished mathematician wins Croucher Foundation prize傑出數學家獲優秀科研者獎

Professor Yang Tong, Chair

Professor in the Department of

Mathematics at CityU, has been

awarded this year’s Distinguished

Scientific Researcher Prize by

the Croucher Foundation for

his academic achievements. His

current research areas are the

conservation laws and Boltzmann

equation.

城大數學系講座教授楊彤，因學術

成就卓越而獲頒裘槎基金會本年度

「優秀科研者獎」。楊教授主要研

究物理學模型的數學理論，是守恆律及動力方程非線性數學理論研究領域的國際權威，在應

用數學方面成就卓越，享有盛譽。

Social Responsibility Day stresses commitment to the environment「社會責任日」體現城大履行社會責任的承諾

CityU further endorsed its commitment to engaging in activities that benefit

society at its Social Responsibility Day on 12 February under the theme

People and Planet.

The aim of the event, which was held at Noah’s Ark and Ma Wan Park, was

to encourage public and social organisations such as higher education

institutions to take more responsibility for the planet and its people. The

message was to treasure resources, protect the environment and reduce, or

even eliminate, pollution.

城大師生、校友以及社會福利機構的小朋友共約二百人，一同參與2月12

日舉行的「社會責任日」，體現了城大致力履行社會責任的承諾。

「社會責任日」活動在馬灣挪亞方舟及馬灣公園進行，主題是人類和地

球，城大希望透過活動倡導公眾和社會機構（例如高等院校）對全人類

和人類居住的地球負起責任，珍惜資源，愛護環境，力求減輕乃至杜絕

污染。

Graduate wins major scholarship to study sea turtles in Australia城大畢業生獲著名獎學金赴澳洲

研究海龜

Mr Jin Ling, an MPhil graduate from the

Department of Biology and Chemistry,

received a scholarship worth HK$1.7

million from the Australian government

and a coveted opportunity to conduct

PhD research on sea turtles at the National

Research Centre for Environmental

Toxicology, University of Queensland.

城大生物及化學系哲學碩士畢業生金靈先

生獲得澳洲政府頒予的170萬港元獎學金，

從而獲得一個令人欣羨的機會：前往澳洲

昆士蘭大學國家環境毒理學研究中心攻讀

博士學位，研究當地的海龜。

May 2011 5

News & Notable

CityU scholar elected as Fellow of American Meteorological Society城大學者獲美國氣象學會頒予院士銜

Professor Johnny Chan Chung-leung, Chair Professor of Atmospheric

Science and Dean of the School of Energy and Environment at CityU,

has been elected as Fellow of the American Meteorological Society.

He is the first scholar in Hong Kong, and only the second in the

entire Greater China area, to earn this highly prestigious honour. The

award is recognition of Professor Chan’s outstanding contributions

to atmospheric or related oceanic or hydrologic sciences, or their

applications, during a substantial period of years.

城大能源及環境學院院長陳仲良教授成為香港首位及大中華區第二

位獲得美國氣象學會院士榮銜的學者。陳教授是國際公認的熱帶氣

旋研究專家，現任城大大氣科學講座教授及佳達亞太氣候研究中心

主任。該項榮譽旨在表彰陳教授多年來致力研究大氣科學、海洋科

學、水文學及其應用而作出的卓越貢獻。

Experts in composite materials honoured with State Natural Science Award複合材料專家榮膺國家自然科學獎

Professor Robert Li Kwok-yiu, Associate Dean of the College of Science and Engineering, and scholars from Huazhong University of Science and

Technology, were conferred a second-class award under the State Natural Science Award 2010 for their outstanding achievements in the field of

composite structure, the injection moulding process and fracture behaviour of plastics.

城大科學及工程學院副院長李國耀教授和內地學者組成的研究小組，憑藉「塑膠的複合結構、注射成型過程與機械破壞行為的研究」方面的卓

越成果，榮膺 2010 年度「國家自然科學獎」二等獎。

Law school makes history in international moot 法律學院學生榮獲國際法律比賽亞軍

Law students from CityU made history when they became the first

team from Hong Kong to compete in the final of the Willem C. Vis (East)

International Commercial Arbitration Moot and coming second in the

competition to Bond University.

Both teams argued forcibly on jurisdictional, confidentiality issues and the

merits of the case for applicants and respondents in the problem set for the

moot court by the organisers.

城大法律學院六名學生參加本年度維斯（東方）國際商事仲裁模擬法庭

辯論賽，獲得空前優異的亞軍殊榮，並成為首次進入辯論賽決賽的香港

參賽隊伍。

在決賽中，根據模擬法庭比賽設定的論題，城大與邦德大學兩支參賽隊

就司法管轄權問題、保密問題、控辯雙方的實體權利問題激烈辯論。


城大動態

Sporting glory for CityU athletes體育殊榮

CityU has won its 4th consecutive grand slam—winning both the women’s and men’s overall titles—in

the 2010–2011 championships of the University Sports Federation of Hong Kong, China.

城大體育代表隊連續第四年獲得香港大專體育賽男女團體總冠軍，也是迄今第六次男女代表隊雙

雙獲得團體總冠軍。

Mr Lam Chi-chung, a graduate from the

School of Creative Media, took home the

Grand Award, the Best Animation and Best

Story awards at the 4th Hong Kong Mobile

Film Festival, with his film The Launch.

In his film, Mr Lam emphasises

the importance of cherishing our

surroundings. The film depicts how one

day a boy removes a component from his

loyal robot dog in order to help repair a

space rocket. But his plan goes terribly wrong because he can’t get his

robot dog or the rocket to move ever again.

Senior secondary school students shape their future 城大助高中生規劃成功之旅

CityU invited distinguished guests from various sectors to share their views

and experience with more than 150 students from over 40 secondary

schools on 26 March. The activity was aimed at opening the door of

success for the students by helping them plan their futures and deal with

challenges ahead.

城大3月26日為來自40多間中學逾150名高中學生舉辦「成功之旅˙今日

啟航」活動，邀請來自各專業領域的多位知名人士與學生交流，幫助他

們規劃未來、提升競爭力，以應對未來的挑戰，實現理想。

創意媒體學院畢業生林智

聰憑作品《The Launch》

奪得第四屆香港流動影片

節榮譽大獎，並同時獲

得最佳動畫獎及最佳故事

獎。

故事講述主角為了修理發

生故障的登月裝置，從一

直陪伴左右的機械狗身上

拆取零件。結果非但登月

失敗，機械狗也因此失去反應能力，令主人後悔不已。林先生希望

藉此故事傳達「珍惜眼前人」的信息。

Creative media graduate wins three prizes at Mobile Film Festival創意媒體畢業生榮獲香港流動影片節三大獎

May 2011 7

News & Notable

New m-learning scheme boosts learning 城大流動學習試驗計劃提升學習成效

Students at CityU will be able to study and share knowledge anytime, anywhere under an

innovative mobile-learning (m-learning) scheme offering access to hundreds of iPads and the

iPod Touch.

The aim of the pilot scheme launched

in March is to promote interactive

learning and knowledge exploration

both in and outside the classroom. It

also encourages teachers to devise

activities to cultivate students’

potential and promote better

communication between students and

teachers.

平板電腦iPad及觸控式播放器iPod Touch大受年輕人歡迎，不僅新奇有趣，也是學習的良

伴。最近城大推出全新的流動學習試驗計劃，購置約400部iPad和iPod Touch借予學生使

用，並配上新軟件支援電子學習平台，讓學生隨時隨地交流和學習，提升教與學的成效。

流動學習試驗計劃在三月推出，旨在促進學生在課堂內外的互動學習、創造知識，並鼓勵導

師設計啟發學生潛能的教學活動，使師生溝通和學生參與更上層樓。

International partnership inked between CityU, Arizona State University 城大與美國亞利桑那州立大學簽署伙伴協議

A strategic collaboration strengthening internationalisation in research and

education was signed between CityU and Arizona State University on 21

April.

The partnership will enhance ties in urban sustainability, digital and

creative media, flexible electronics for enabling human-scale and built

environment technologies, and product innovation. It will also encourage

the development of joint undergraduate and graduate programmes and

create opportunities for faculty and student exchange, studies and research.

城大與美國亞利桑那州立大學4月21日簽訂策略伙伴協議，以加強學術及

研究的國際化發展，並為學生及教研人員提供更多交流機會。

這項協議將加強兩校之間在四個主要領域的合作，分別是：城市可持續發展、數碼媒體及創意、軟性電子產品（供發展符合人性化尺度及建築環境

技術之用）、產品創新。兩校更會聯合開發本科和研究生課程，以及為教研人員和學生提供更多學習、研究和交流的機會。

Pioneer in wireless power transfer無線輸電的開路先鋒

In a lively, hands-on lecture, Professor Ron Hui

Shu-yuen, Chair Professor of Electronic Engineering,

traced the historical development of wireless power

transfer and explained the basic principles, challenges,

milestones and modern applications of the technology

at the President’s Lecture Series: Excellence in

Academia on 17 January.

城大電子工程講座教授許樹源教授在1月17日舉行的

「校長講座系列：學術薈萃」講座裏，追溯無線輸

電技術的歷史演進，生動地講解其基本原理、技術

難題、重大進展，以及現代應用，並當場做演示。


城大動態

Advanced training programme helps modernise Chinese judiciary城大「中國高級法官研修班」培育中港法律專才

A highly specialised programme that provides senior judges from mainland China with a greater

understanding of common law and international law drew to a close at a ceremony at City U on

19 April.

Thirty-four senior judges participated on the

Advanced Programme for Chinese Senior Judges

from 11 to 19 April, including vice-presidents

of China’s High People’s Courts, and presidents

and vice-presidents of China’s Intermediate

People’s Courts from various provinces and

cities. Those selected to join the programme are

typically involved in settling legal cases related

to overseas, Hong Kong and Macau issues.

The programme has been organised by CityU’s

School of Law in collaboration with the National

Judges College and the Supreme People’s Court

of the People’s Republic of China for the last

three years.

城大法律學院與中華人民共和國最高人民法院

及其所轄國家法官學院合辦的第三屆「中國高

級法官研修班」在4月19日圓滿結業。研修班

迄今已連續開辦三年，為內地高級法官提供專業研修機會，並促進中港兩地司法界的交流。

最近這一期研修班於4月11日至19日舉行，來自中國內地各省份主理涉外、涉港澳案件的34位高

級法院副院長、中級法院正副院長，獲推薦前來香港參加研修。

Success for CityU, Ocean Park horseshoe crab programme城大馬蹄蟹校園保姆計劃成果豐碩

Over 100 horseshoe crabs were released into the

wild at Ha Pak Nai, an ecologically sensitive piece

of wetland in the northwestern part of Hong

Kong, on a programme launched by CityU,

Ocean Park Academy, Hong Kong, and Ocean

Park Conservation Foundation, Hong Kong on

17 April.

This milestone conservation event involved

120 students from 10 secondary schools. It was

the culmination of a 14-month programme for

rearing juvenile horseshoe crabs.

約120名來自10間中學的學生4月17日來到香港

西北部的下白泥，在這具生態價值的濕地將一

百多隻馬蹄蟹放歸大自然，標誌城大與香港海

洋公園合作推行的馬蹄蟹保育研究工作邁出成

功的一步。

Victory for Putonghua debating team城大普通話辯論隊奪冠

The CityU debaters outperformed their opponents from the Hong Kong

University of Science and Technology in the final of the Eight-corner

Cup competition on 2 April after completing five debates against other

local tertiary institutions. Three team members claimed the Best Debater

Awards.

The team members were highly commended by all the judges for their

thoughtful contributions and conscientious performances.

城大普通話辯論隊（普辯隊）參加2011年香港八角杯辯論賽，以辯才

無礙的精彩表現榮獲冠軍，數名隊員且贏得最佳辯論員獎。

香港八角杯辯論賽是本地大專院校辯論界的重要賽事，今年的賽程長

達九星期，包含小組賽及淘汰賽總共五輪較量。城大普辯隊受到評委

一致好評，以論述嚴謹、表現沉穩而獲得「王者之風」的讚譽，最後

在4月2日的決賽中戰勝香港科技大學代表隊而贏得冠軍。

May 2011 9

New era in academic planning Provost introduces unprecedented innovations in curriculum design

By Michael Gibb

文：鄭智友

城大學術規劃引入教育新紀元學務副校長闡釋探索創新課程精微


Cover Story

What kind of role does “discovery” play in the new ADP?We’ve made “discovery” a central theme in the

new ADP. The overarching objective in the

ADP is the University’s pursuit of excellence in

professional education. The framework around

which we have built this vision is the concept of

the Discovery-enriched Curriculum, or DEC. We

want all our students to have a chance to create

new knowledge, communicate that knowledge,

curate it, and cultivate it in a way that benefits

society. What we are saying is that in this era

where anyone, anywhere, at any time can come

up with a new idea and communicate it, this

notion of encouraging every one of our students

to explore the unknown is a different paradigm

that will better prepare them for the changes

they will experience during their careers. Some

fraction of our students, of course, have been

involved in research and creative projects for a

long time, but what we are saying is, let’s put this

front and centre and scale it: That is, find ways

so that every student will have the chance to

make an original discovery. The DEC represents

the nexus of teaching and research, where the

creation of new knowledge is integrally linked to

the teaching and learning process.

The Academic Development Proposal (ADP) 2012–2015 acts as a blueprint for an entire three-year period. It sets in motion new initiatives and fresh impulses aimed at carrying the campus towards the ultimate goal of achieving excellence in research and professional education, as described in our Strategic Plan. It is an opportunity for the whole University to reflect on fundamental aspects of our overall strategy, teaching and learning issues, advanced scholarship, and community linkages. CityU Today caught up with Professor Arthur Ellis, Provost, the member of the senior management team responsible for shepherding the ADP.

How are you planning to educate the campus community into the details of such a curriculum?We held an initial symposium, a poster session

and workshops in April called “Building the

Discovery-enriched Curriculum,” where we

brought our campus community together to

develop a broad range of examples from all

fields of scholarship illustrating how faculty

and teaching staff might do this. For instance

several guest speakers addressed the elements

of discovery associated with developing a

new toy. This concept has been introduced in

undergraduate courses at MIT. It gives students

the opportunity to envisage a new toy, design

it, and consider the engineering issues involved

with mass-producing it. More broadly, students

can consider the associated regulatory and

environmental aspects of their ideas, as well

as the social and human implications of their

innovations. Such a course would be an example

of our growing portfolio of Gateway Education

courses, which are meant to lay the foundation

for students to be able to realise that they can

innovate and make discoveries while they are

here at CityU.

Gateway Education is the name we are using

for what has commonly been called General

Education. But we find that “Gateway” conveys

more effectively what a GE course should be

doing, namely, giving the students a view of

the frontiers of knowledge and a sense of the

exciting things they might create while at CityU.

We want the Gateway courses to ignite a passion

for discovery and knowledge in our students.

This approach will help us achieve a key goal of

the transition to the 4-year curriculum, which

is for our graduates to have more breadth and

context for what they will do as professionals

when they enter the workplace. Moreover,

we see this as an opportunity to reframe the

conversation about what higher education looks

like as we think about the rapid changes that

globalisation and technology are bringing to the

world.

”We want the Gateway courses to ignite a passion for discovery and knowledge in our students. This approach will help us achieve a key goal of the transition to the 4-year curriculum.”

May 2011 11

封面故事

What mechanisms will be put into place to stimulate a culture of discovery and innovation?We have established the Interdisciplinary

Professional Development Awards (IPDAs) to

provide a kind of “in-house sabbatical” for teams

of full-time faculty and teaching staff to have the

time, space, and resources to develop cutting-

edge inter-disciplinary research initiatives and/or

associated signature GE courses that emphasise

discovery and innovation. We want the GE

courses to excite and inspire students so they

can be part of the campus’s creative engine.

A team comprising individuals from several

different academic units can obtain release

time, the space to co-locate and other resources

so that they can develop an inter-disciplinary

GE course with an emphasis on discovery and

innovation, an inter-disciplinary research area, or

both.

Why is there such a strong focus on inter-disciplinary approaches in the ADP?Inter-disciplinarity, or cross-disciplinarity,

is now a global trend in scholarship and,

correspondingly, in higher education.

Increasingly we are finding that interesting

problems, many of which are of great

importance to society, tend to cut across

traditional disciplines. We can see this in

areas such as energy and environment that

need experts with a range of, for example,

science, technology, law and social science

backgrounds. An IPDA could fund a GE course

in climate change or one in stem cell research

or environmental policy where a whole set

of concepts, ideas and issues from different

traditional disciplines are embedded.

The UGC [University Grants Committee]

has begun to invest substantially in inter-

disciplinarity by offering funding to teams

pursuing theme-based research. The output of

this kind of team-based work is often of great

interest to community partners such as the

government, NGOs, and local businesses.

We will facilitate the creation of teams through

our new plan for joint hires, whereby new

faculty can be jointly appointed to multiple

academic units. A scholar joining CityU might

have, for example, a 60% appointment in the

School of Energy and Environment and a 40%

appointment in the Department of Public and

Social Administration, and assist both academic

units in their teaching, research and service

missions.

Cover Story

“A CityU International Transition Team will join CityU from overseas for a semester to a year to help our students fine-tune their English-language skills and to work on collaborative research projects.”

Studying across the disciplines

A strong inter-disciplinary flavour already

runs through many of the Gateway Education

(GE) courses on offer at CityU.

For example, “Madness and Literature”

developed and taught by Dr Birgit Linder

(below), Assistant Professor in the

Department of Chinese, Translation and

Linguistics, provides students from across

campus with the space to debate concepts of

mental illness through the prism of a number

of fields, from philosophy and psychoanalysis

to history and sociology.


In 2012 CityU will be bringing in twice as many students as in previous years, the so-called double cohort. The DEC and the focus on inter-disciplinary learning will be new to these students, half of whom will be a year younger than undergraduates usually are when they start university. What support mechanisms are in place to guide them? We have begun to engage our colleagues in

secondary schools to make them aware of our

new admissions model and curriculum and

to seek their advice on how we can make the

transition to CityU as seamless as possible. We

are also piloting a new software package that

allows students and staff to share advising

information in a manner that ensures that

students receive timely, accurate information

about their studies and can explore the

course-taking implications of various scenarios

if they decide to change their field of study

while at CityU. We are working closely with the

Vice -President for Student Affairs, Professor Paul

Lam Kwan-sing, and his staff to make certain that

student-friendly, non-academic advising is also

in place for the double cohort.

Our new curriculum will be highly flexible.

Students will join a school or college in contrast

to our current practice in which they join a

programme. In the new system, students will not

choose their field of study until the end of their

first year at the earliest, after taking a mix of GE,

core and elective courses. We intend to allow

20% of the students, based on their first-year

performance, to have an unrestricted choice

of major in their school or college; and 10%

will have the opportunity to switch to another

college or school. This breadth of choice and

flexibility has not been possible in the past.

To assist us with meeting our upcoming staffing

needs, a CityU International Transition Team,

封面故事

“This course challenges students to think

anew about the psychological expressions

of the human mind within various cultural

contexts. It engages them in a critical

discussion of literary representations of

madness and mental illness from historical,

cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary

perspectives,” Dr Linder said.

Another example is “Science, Fiction and the

Supernatural” taught by two faculty from the

Department of Biology and Chemistry (BCH),

one from the Department of Building and

Construction, and one from the Department

of English.

“We offer students an inter-disciplinary

opportunity to explore and compare two

approaches of knowing—scientific knowing

and narrative knowing—and their impact on

society,” said Dr Richard Kong Yuen-chong,

Associate Professor in BCH, who convened the

course.

The students explore the basics of scientific

methods of enquiry, perceptions of reality and

truth, the biology of emotions, techniques to

balance the mind, the concept of yin yang,

UFOs, mythology, time travel, and apocalyptic

literature.

May 2011 13

so forth. The level of accountability is high and

colleagues know where the goalposts stand. It is

a feature of our strategy that we want to reward

individuals and teams that are moving the

campus forward to achieve the objectives of our

Strategic Plan and the ADP.

How does the ADP position CityU in the larger context of Hong Kong and the region?CityU has a great desire to support Hong Kong’s

further development by providing expertise,

research facilities, programmes of study and a

stimulating learning environment that will allow

people to achieve their professional goals and

objectives. In his recent policy address, the Chief

Executive of the Government of the HKSAR

emphasised the important role universities play

in Hong Kong and the ability of Hong Kong to

be an international education hub. Investment

in CityU is an investment in the future of Hong

Kong, and we see our campus’s borders as

the borders of Hong Kong. We have strong

alignment between what we wish to achieve in

our ADP and the development plans set forth

by the government, in particular in prioritised

research areas and an emphasis on professional

education.

As we state in our ADP, with our new Discovery-

enriched Curriculum, clear strategies, renewed

vigour in teaching and learning, active pursuit

of advanced scholarship and community

engagement, we believe now is the time

and CityU is the place for investment in next-

generation professional education.

Boosting English, internationalising campus

The CityU International Transition Team

comprises graduate students and visiting

faculty who are fluent English speakers and

who will join CityU from overseas to help our

students with their English-language skills.

Eventually we will hire around 100 of these

teaching assistants.

In addition to their teaching assistant duties,

the team members will work on research

projects relevant to their studies at their home

institutions and of interest to our academic

staff. They can take advanced courses, too.

“We have asked faculty to contact their

networks to identify candidates who might be

interested in spending a semester or two at

CityU at our expense,” Professor Ellis said.

The English language teaching duties will be

conducted through the English Language

Centre, the Self-Access Centre and the

Language Clinic, three major resources on

campus geared towards supporting the

English-language skills of the students.

“Internationalising campus is one of our

strategic aims, and these overseas teaching

assistants will bring a strong global

perspective to CityU,” Professor Ellis

said.

comprising graduate students and visiting

faculty who are fluent English speakers, will join

CityU from overseas for a semester to a year

to help our students fine-tune their English-

language skills and to work on collaborative

research projects with our scholars and

students. This will create a win-win situation

for everyone involved and add to the on-going

internationalisation of campus.

Could you elaborate on the top-slicing process in the ADP? We have used the UGC’s 6% top-slicing

and bidding exercise to demonstrate our

commitment to portfolio management, which

includes investing in new opportunities directly

relevant to Hong Kong’s needs. This is why

we would like to jump-start three emerging

inter-disciplinary areas: energy science and

engineering, bioengineering and global studies.

All three are natural fits for CityU in terms of

growth and expertise. We have set aside some

funds to seed these areas, and we are requesting

that the UGC provide some additional matching

funds as part of our bid.

Has CityU included the performance-based pay review scheme in the ADP?Yes, the performance-based pay review scheme

is featured because the ADP is required to

have a strong focus on accountability. Over

the course of the past year, academic units

have been asked to develop criteria to define

an “outstanding” performance, a “good”

performance, a “satisfactory” performance, and


Cover Story

城大提交給大學教育資助委員會的「2012–2015學術發展規劃」(ADP)是未來三年的發展藍圖。該規劃為構思的新措施、新想法注入新動力，將引領城大發展成為學術研究卓越、專業教育出眾的高等學府，而這恰恰是城大「策略性發展計劃」的宗旨。城大將把握契機，通盤思考整體發展策略、教學問題、高層次的學術研究、與社區的聯繫等大政方針。《今日城大》就此採訪了負責ADP的城大管理層成員、學務副校長Arthur Ellis教授。

在新的ADP中，「探索」將起到甚麽樣的作用？

我們把「探索」定為ADP的主題。城大矢志成

為學術專業教育出眾的學府，而這正是ADP的

主要目標。設置「探索創新課程」（DEC）

有助實現這一願景。我們希望所有城大學生都

有機會參與創造新知識、交流和展現新知識，

然後加以改進，造福社會。我們的意思是，在

當今這個時代，任何人在任何時間任何地方，

都會產生新的想法，並與人交流這一想法。鼓

勵每個城大學生探索未知領域，無疑可以創立

一個不同的範例，幫助他們在日後的職業生涯

中順勢應變。當然，城大早有部分學生參與研

究工作和創意項目，這種做法由來已久；但我

們現在要從一開始就強調探索創新的重要性，

並擴大範圍。換句話說，我們要尋求多種路

徑，使得每一個學生都有機會參與原創性的發

現。DEC代表着教學與研究的紐帶；使知識創

新與教學緊密相連。

你打算怎樣向校內同事介紹DEC的細節呢？

4月份，我們舉辦了研討會、交流會及工作坊，

召集學術和教學人員共同商定涉及各學科領域

的一系列範例，示範具體做法。例如，有幾位

嘉賓以製作新玩具為例，講解了探索發現的要

素。麻省理工學院在本科課程中就已引入這個

概念，讓學生有機會去構思和設計新玩具，並

思考如何批量生產等工程問題。此外，學生還

須從法規和環境等角度衡量自己的設想，並要

考慮由此造成的社會與人文後果。城大設置的

通才教育課程將以這類課程作為範例，幫助學

生打好基礎，明白他們在城大求學期間可以參

與創新，有所發現。

我們改用通才教育取代慣常使用的通識教育，

因為我們發現Gateway更能代表這類教育的宗

旨。換句話說，可以讓學生大致了解知識的疆

域，感受在城大求學期間有可能創造一些有趣

事物的振奮之情。我們希望通才教育課程能激

發城大學生的求知熱忱，鼓勵他們發現探索。

這種途徑有助於城大實現本科學制改為四年的

一個重要目標：即讓我們的畢業生踏入社會成

為專業人士後，擁有較寬廣的知識面而又不乏

「我們希望所有城大學生都有

機會參與創造新知識、交流和

展現新知識，然後加以改進，

造福社會。」

May 2011 15

封面故事

深度。另外，我們在思考全球化和科技技術給

世界帶來急劇變化的同時，亦將視此為重新討

論如何規劃高等教育的契機。

請問會採用甚麽機制營造探索創新文化？

我們已經設立了「跨學科專業發展獎」計劃，

為城大的全職學術及教學人員提供「校內學術

休假」，讓他們有時間、空間和資源去制定尖

端跨學科研究計劃，或者設計強調發現與創新

的特色通才教育科目，兩者也可同時進行。我

們希望通才教育課程能真正激勵學生、啟迪

學生，成為城大創意引擎的一部分。不同學術

部門的人可以組成一個小組，申請學術休假時

間、共處的空間，以及其他資源，共同設計強

調發現與創新的跨學科通才教育科目，或從事

某一跨學科領域的研究；亦可兩者兼做。

為甚麽如此注重跨學科教學與研究？

跨學科已成為全球學術研究及高等教育的大趨

勢。我們發現，愈來愈多有意思的問題都會橫

跨多個傳統學科，其中很多對社會來說極其重

要。舉個例子，在能源和環境等領域，我們可

能需要多個學科背景的專家，如具有科技、法

律和社會科學背景的專才。「跨學科專業發展

獎」可以用來資助氣候變化、幹細胞研究或環

境政策通才教育科目，這些科目融入一整套不

同傳統學科的概念、創意和議題。

大學教育資助委員會（教資會）已經開始向跨

學科投入大量資源，撥款資助主題研究團隊。

政府、非政府組織和本港商界等社群夥伴對此

類團隊工作獲得的成果通常很感興趣。

我們將通過聯合聘請僱員的新計劃，為成立這

類團隊提供便利，即由幾個學術部門聯合聘任

教員，例如，聘請某位學者到城大任教，六成

資源可能由能源及環境學院負責，其餘四成由

公共及社會行政學系負責。這位學者則會同時

擔負兩個學術部門的教學、研究和服務工作。

「我們希望通才教育課程能真正激勵學生、啟迪學生，

成為城大創意引擎的一部份。」

應勢推廣跨學科學習

在新的四年本科學制中，學生修讀的很多通才教育課程都具有很強的跨學科特色。以下兩

個例子可資證明。

中文、翻譯及語言學系助理教授彭吉蒂博士開設了一門「瘋狂與文學」的通才教育科目。修

讀該科目的學生可以從多個角度討論精神疾病的各種觀念，涵蓋生理學、心理分析、靈性、

歷史、社會學等多個領域。

彭吉蒂博士說：「這門課程旨在要求學生在多種文化語境中，重新思考人類思維的心理表

現方式，讓學生從歷史、跨文化與跨學科視角，對瘋癲與精神疾病的文學表現做批判性的

討論。」

另一門跨學科通才教育科目叫作「自然科學、科幻小說和超自然現象」，授課教員有四位，

兩位來自生物及化學系，一位來自建築系，一位來自英文系。

統籌開設這一科目的生物及化學系副教授

江潤章博士（左）說：「設立這個科目的目的

是為學生提供跨學科學習的機會，探索和比

較兩種認知方法—— 一種是科學認知法，一

種是敘事認知法，並且研究它們對社會的影

響。」

修讀該科目的學生可以探究下述知識要點：科

學的調查方法、對現實與真理的感知、情緒生

物學、平衡心態的方法。他們將研究科學

哲學、陰陽、不明飛行物體、神話學、

時間旅行、啟示文學等。


Cover Story

到了2012年，因為雙學制，城大招收的學生人

數將較往年多一倍。對於這些學生，DEC與跨

學科學習都是新的概念，他們中的一半人更要

比目前入學的本科生小一歲。我們有甚麽機制

協助他們學習呢？

我們已經開始向中學老師做介紹，幫助他們了

解城大新的收生模式和新課程，聽取他們的建

議，盡可能幫助學生順利過渡。我們還在試行

一套新的電腦軟件，學生和教師可以定期分享

諮詢信息，確保學生能及時收到學習情況的準

確資訊，並可幫助學生了解求學期間如決定轉

換專業，修讀不同科目有甚麼不同的意義。我

們正與副校長（學生事務）林群聲教授和他的

同事緊密合作，確保雙學制學生可以獲得非學

術性諮詢服務。

城大的新學制將會非常靈活。學生可以報讀某

個學院，而不是像目前那樣直接修讀某個課

程。在新學制中，學生入學第一年先修讀不同

課程，包括通才教育課程、核心課程和選修課

程。最早也要到大一快結束時，才選定要修讀

的專業。根據學生在大一取得的成績，我們允

許兩成的學生在報讀的學院內任意選讀主修課

程；另有一成學生有機會轉到其他學院。過去

是沒有這麼多選擇的，也不可能這麼靈活。

為了滿足未來的教員需求，我們會組建一支

「城大國際銜接團隊」，成員均是能說流利英

語的研究生和客座學術人員。他們來自海外，

到城大任教一個學期到一個學年不等。他們將

提升英語水平加強校園國際化

「城大國際銜接團隊」的成員由能夠說流

利英語的研究生和客座學術人員組成，他

們來自海外，以幫助城大學生進一步提升

英語能力。城大最終會聘請約一百名這類

教學助理。

除了承擔教學助理職責外，這些成員還將

在所屬院系從事與母校修讀的學科相關及

城大學術人員感興趣的研究項目。成員也

可修讀高級課程。

Ellis教授說：「我們邀請城大教員聯繫自

己的熟人朋友，確定有興趣到城大度過

一兩個學期的人選，由城大負責一應費

用。」

英語教學任務將由英語中心、語文自學中

心、精「英」互動廊統籌管理。校園內這

三大重要資源主要擔負提升學生英語能力

的工作。

「推動校園國際化是策略發展目標之一。

這些來自海外的教學助理將為城大帶來豐

富的環球視野，」Ellis教授說。

幫助城大學生提升英語能力，並與城大學者與

學生合作從事研究。對於所有人來說，這將是

個雙贏局面，同時有助於城大校園的國際化

發展。

可否詳述一下ADP「上繳」學額的程序？

我們利用教資會提供給各院校互相競逐的6%

既有學額，以此彰顯對組合管理的承諾，包括

對與香港需求有直接關係的新機會投入人力物

力。正因如此，城大將先行發展能源科學及工

程、生物工程、國際研究這三大跨學科領域。

這三大領域既符合城大的發展方向，又可發揮

我們的專長。我們已經撥出一些發展這三個領

域的種子資金，並向教資委競逐申請額外配對

基金。

在ADP中，城大有沒有列入「績效獎勵計劃」？

是的。ADP着重各盡己責，因此「績效獎勵計

劃」已列入其中。過去一年裏，各個學術部門

受命制定標準，釐清「優秀」、「良好」、

「滿意」等績效評分標準。訂立的責任水平很

高，城大同事知道標準的高低。對於能夠幫助

城大達到策略性計劃與ADP目標的個人和團

隊，都要予以嘉獎，這是我們的大政方針的重

要特色。

ADP為城大在香港和亞太區設定甚麼樣的

位置？

城大希望憑藉自己的專長、科研設備、設置的

課程、良好的學習環境支持香港的進一步發

展，讓來城大修讀的學生都能實現

自己的專業目標。特首曾蔭權在施

政報告中強調了香港各大院校的重

要作用，並表示香港有能力成為國

際教育樞紐。投資城大正是投資香

港的未來。在我們的眼中，城大的

邊界就是香港的邊界。我們希望在

ADP中實現的目標與特區政府的發

展計劃是一致的，尤其是幾個優先

研究領域以及對專業教育的重視這

兩個方面。

誠如我們在ADP中所表示的，憑着我們新推出

的「探索創新課程」、清晰的策略、努力不

懈的教學活動，以及積極追求高層次的學術研

究、擴大社區聯繫，我們相信，投資城大即是

投資下一代的專業教育，機不可失，時不我

待。

May 2011 17

封面故事

Professional Education & Research


Two lifts plunged to the ground last summer, one at a Yau Ma Tei hotel and one at a factory on Castle Peak Road. Engineers later discovered that the steel traction ropes supporting and hoisting the lift cab had snapped. Fortunately, there were no casualties but the issue of elevator safety was thrown into the spotlight.

Dr Peter Tse Wai-tat, Associate Professor from the

Department of Manufacturing Engineering and

Engineering Management, said lift ropes could

snap if they were not properly maintained. Use

over a long period of time can lead to abrasions

and metal fatigue, increasing the risk of an

accident.

However, maintenance technicians might not

have the time or equipment to do more than

visually inspect the ropes on routine checks.

Another problem, especially with steel cables

twisted and bunched together to form combined

ropes, is it might not be possible to see the entire

structure of the ropes under inspection.

A professional engineer needs specialised

technologies and techniques to detect dangers

that might be hidden from the naked eye, Dr Tse

said.

”It takes only a few seconds to check one lift rope, and the technology is capable of identifying even millimetre-wide breaks .”

Saving lives with innovative sensors

專業教育與研究

May 2011 19

By Scarlett Leung and Ellen Chan

文：梁瑞景及陳倩茹


form combined ropes. Like the MsS that has hard coils, the FPC sends waves

up and down the ropes, allowing the engineer to detect possible clefts.

It takes only a few seconds to check one lift rope, and the technology is

capable of identifying even millimetre-wide breaks.

“This device is the result of the integration of electronic engineering and

mechanical engineering techniques, a true mechatronic device,” Dr Tse said.

The FPC-based MsS can be wrapped into multiple layers because it is

thin and flexible. Because of multiple layers, the amount of wave energy

increases. Hence, when it is acting as a transmitter, it can cover a long rope;

as a receiver, it detects defects that the hard coil MsS cannot.

“The overall advantage of the FPC smart sensors is that they can be easily

installed to ropes even without a free end, they can be wrapped around

different size ropes, they are relatively cheap and very efficient. They can

also check the core wire of combined ropes hidden from sight,” Dr Tse

remarked.

And the potential for saving lives is high, which is the driving force behind

the new technology. In the event of an accident, material damage can be

dealt with, but the loss of human lives is irreversible.

“As scientists, engineers and technicians, we work on new devices to ensure

security, serve society and benefit human kind,” Dr Tse said.

Technicians currently use magnetostrictive sensors (MsS) to detect possible

faults. The sensors locate clefts using guided electromagnetic waves and

consist of hard sensing coils wrapped around a bobbin attached to which

are electric wires. The guided waves generated by the static and dynamic

magnetic fields can identify clefts, but the equipment is bulky and cannot

fit different sized ropes. It has to be mounted on the ropes through a free

end, which is normally not available in serving ropes. The hard coils are also

costly to make.

An alternative has been developed by Dr Tse, Director of the Smart

Engineering Asset Management Laboratory and the Croucher Optical

Nondestructive Testing Laboratory at CityU. He achieved a significant

breakthrough recently with the innovative flexible printed coil (FPC).

The project grew out of a collaboration with Beijing University of

Technology using a grant from the National Natural Science Foundation of

China and Research Grants Council of the HKSAR Joint Research Scheme to

research techniques on guided waves for defect inspection. The fruit of his

work was a set of smart inspection techniques capable of detecting hidden

risks in steel ropes/strands.

The innovation is that the FPC can be wrapped around the rope structures,

making it more adaptable than the conventional hard coils. It doesn’t

matter if the steel structure is 2 centimeters in diameter or 10, or even if a

group of several steel cables are bunched together for added strength to



近年來，本港升降機斷纜事故時有發生。去年6月，油麻地某家酒店升降機七條鋼纜中的一條斷纜，幸好及時發現，未釀成意外事件。同年9月，青山道某工廠大廈一部升降機發生故障，五條鋼纜中的一條斷裂，所幸亦未有人受傷。雖然出事的升降機仍然正常運作，沒有造成人命傷亡，但已引起公眾的憂慮。

城大製造工程及工程管理學系副教授謝偉達

博士表示，鋼纜斷裂，多因維修不當或磨損

多時、金屬疲勞出現裂紋導致。問題未能及早

被發現的原因有多種，一是某些保養公司一般

只是派出技工以肉眼觀察檢查鋼纜。謝博士指

出，即使是專職工程師親自檢查升降機，也需

要藉助科學技術，才能察覺潛在的故障。

磁致伸縮傳感器是目前纜索檢測技術中的研究

熱點。檢測時，將其安裝在纜索上，利用傳感

器中的硬質線圈產生的磁場引起磁致伸縮作

用，從而激發超聲導波檢測纜索。但這種感應

器的缺點是結構笨重、安裝困難，而且需要為

不同纜索特製檢測線圈，成本不低。

監測技術大突破防患未然有保障身兼智能工程資產管理實驗室及裘槎光學無損

測試實驗室主任的謝博士研發出一套智能設備

監測技術，能夠靈敏地測出管道是否有潛在故

障，以便及時作檢修處理，避免事故發生。數

年前，謝博士與北京工業大學合作，成功申請

國家自然科技基金進行導波技術研究，研發管

道檢測技術，從中又研發出另一套嶄新的纜索

安全檢測技術，能測出纜索是否有裂紋。

謝博士帶領兩名內地研究生，開發出使用新型

柔性薄片線圈的磁致伸縮傳感器，以其代替現

時所用的硬質線圈。他將用於發射及接收超聲

導波的磁圈印在柔軟的薄片上，然後將薄片纏

繞在鋼纜上，由此發出的超聲導波會沿着鋼纜

傳播，遇到纜索上的裂紋便會反射回來。工程

師可以透過接收到的導波反射信號，檢測和分

析鋼纜上的裂紋位置。大約幾秒之內即可檢測

完一條升降機鋼纜，即使小至若干毫米的裂紋

亦可清楚反映出來。

融合不同學科知識研發智能監測系統

「該研究成果融合了電子工程和電機工程

技術。由於FPC感應線圈軟薄如紙，可多層

包裹纜索，令傳感器的檢測距離更長，對

微小的缺陷也更加敏感，」謝博士說。此

外，FPC的調整簡單方便，適用於任何直徑

的纜索。更為重要的是，檢測效果勝過舊式

硬質感應線圈。

生命無價安全第一謝博士表示，新型磁致伸縮傳感器適用於檢

測各種鋼纜，例如升降機的吊機鋼纜。吊機

鋼纜和其他鋼纜一樣，都是由多股鋼絲絞合

而成。鋼絲在負荷作用下產生不同損耗，而

纜芯內的鋼絲磨損最難檢測。

「FPC的智能檢測技術可全面檢測鋼纜（包

纜芯），而且安裝簡便，成本低、效率高，

適用於檢測不同鋼纜的潛在故障，」謝博士

說。

一旦發生事故，經濟損失尚可彌補，但生命

無價，人命關天。「我們的研究人員殫精竭

慮，研發能夠及早檢測故障隱憂的技術和產

品，目的就是為了確保安全第一，服務社

會，造福人類，」謝博士說。

「FPC感應線圈軟薄如紙，

可作多層包裹纜索，令傳感

器的檢測距離更長，對微小

的缺陷也更加敏感。」

May 2011 21

Imagine for one moment the multitude of electronic devices at work every day in someone’s flat or office. Keeping tabs on the power supply needed would be virtually impossible without the smart metering systems commonly used in Hong Kong. These systems provide a fast, reliable and cost-effective solution to demand-side management.

By Ellen Chan

文：陳倩茹

Measuring the quality of power


測量電能質量有新招


But while smart meters can easily measure power consumption for

monitoring and billing purposes, they cannot detect power quality. That

is, they don’t provide information on voltage, current, total harmonic

distortion as well as individual harmonics, compatibility between power

devices and waveforms for event reporting.

But measuring power quality is as important as calculating consumption,

according to Dr Norman Tse Chung-fai, Senior Lecturer in the Division of

Building Science and Technology.

“Equipment that has not been properly designed to cope with a disturbance

in the supply of power might fail,” he said.

It is currently possible to get readings on power quality, but the cost is

prohibitive for most building projects. In view of the proliferation of smart

meters and other devices for saving energy, though, the challenge is to

lower costs and improve accessibility to information.

One promising development has been initiated by Dr Tse and Dr Ricky

Lau Wing-hong, Associate Professor in the Department of Electronic

Engineering. Together they have developed a novel cost-effective algorithm

for analysing power quality. Their method collects information on time-

variant electrical power signal for instant analysis by measuring basic power

and harmonic data on commercial micro-controller units, Dr Tse explained.

“The algorithm can measure power consumption and display the

disturbance of power quality on smart meters. In addition, it can transmit

highly-compressed data on voltage and current waveform to a remote

central management system for storage and further analysis,” Dr Tse said,

adding he has filed for a US patent for the algorithm.

The data transmitted helps engineers perform prompt analysis in the event

of a power failure.

Dr Tse said the new algorithm can be applied to low-cost smart meters. A

prototype sponsored by the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology

Research Institute has been constructed and tested by scientists at CityU,

and some corporations have already expressed an interest in applying

the technology to the commercial production of monitoring devices. The

prototype won the outstanding product award at the China Hi-Tech Fair a

few months ago.

“The algorithm can help build a micro-grid system that can improve energy

efficiency in the future,” Dr Tse said.


近年來，人們愈來愈關注節省能源，除了開始使用較節省電力的電器外，不少家居引入智慧型電錶系統測量總消耗的電力。一方面減省電費，同時亦可為環保盡一份力。

不過，敏感儀器及電子產品愈來愈多，除了節省能源外，在建築管理

中，人們漸漸開始關注電能質量。

城大建築科技學部高級講師謝松輝博士表示，電能質量涉及電壓、電

流、頻率與運作中電力設備之間的兼容性。「發生電力干擾時，若有

關設備並未附有適當設計以適應此類供電情況，該設備便可能無法如

常運作，」謝博士說。

目前普遍使用的智慧型電錶系統，主要由基本能量錶和專用網絡組

成，能夠提供快速、可靠且經濟實惠的電力需求管理方案。智慧型電

錶一般測量電度值，並監控能量和計算賬目，但不會測量電能質量，

而能夠測量電能、電壓、電流、功率系數及諧波失真並能為事故報告

提供獨立諧波和波形計算等信息的電能質量監控電錶，卻又安裝成本

高昂，未能普遍應用在建築物主要電路和設備中。

為此，謝博士與電子工程學系副教授劉永康博士研究出一種新型低成

本智慧型電錶電能質量分析算法。這種算法能用於市場上的微控制裝

置，並能測量基本功率和諧波信息，還可提供隨時間變化的功率信

號，便於瞬時分析。

「這種算法的特點是，除了可以計算功率和顯示電能質量干擾外，還

可以向智慧型電錶系統的遠程中央管理系統傳輸高度壓縮的電壓和電

流波形，以便儲存和作進一步分析，」謝博士說。他表示已為這種算

法在美國申請專利。出現電力供應事故時，這些數據便於工程師及時

作出分析。

謝博士表示，這種新算法適用於低成本智慧型電錶。目前，執行新型

電能質量分析算法的原型電錶已經由香港應用科技研究院贊助製成，

並通過測試，及於中國國際高新技術成果交易會獲獎，多家公司有興

趣將這項技術付諸應用，生產相關的監控設備。

「這種算法有利於將來建設微電網系統，改進能源效益，」謝博士

說。

May 2011 23

An exhibition titled “Where the Light Lies” showcased the talent of the highly

respected British landscape artist Professor Mike Knowles and the garden

painter Mrs Veronica Knowles. The 60 paintings and drawings on display

were selected from the artists’ careers spanning the past 40 years.

Through the Lens

Where the Light Lies


光之所在城大舉辦「光之所在」畫展，展出英國著名畫家

Mike Knowles教授和Veronica Knowles夫人的60多幅山水畫和園林畫。這些作品是兩人四十年來

的藝術精華。

光影世界

May 2011 25


By Michael Gibb

文：鄭智友

Check out new tech for libraries

One of the most labour-intensive jobs in a library is checking out books and restocking shelves. Both tasks tie up staff for long periods during the work day, preventing them from doing other duties, such as cataloging new materials, assisting academic staff and students with research, or working on technical support.

A solution to the perennial problem of processing individual library items

has been under investigation for at least a decade: using radio-frequency

identification (RFID) to tag books.

RFID has many applications, especially in supply chain management to

check inventory lists, and the benefits are manifold compared to the

barcode technology that dominates logistics today, especially for libraries.

One of the biggest advantages over barcode technology is checking

out books. RFID can “read” a pile of books in a single operation whereas

barcode technology necessitates a librarian, or automatic scanner if

available, handling each item individually. Another major plus is RFID has

memory capability, which means librarians can look for books that have

been misshelved, an otherwise impossible task in a library stacked with

hundreds of thousands of publications.

“Technology has evolved at an incredible rate in the past decade. It

changes the way librarians serve their patrons and perform their work,”

says Professor Steve Ching Hsianghoo, University Librarian at CityU.

But, as Professor Ching explains, technology is just a means to an end. “The

choice of technology is an important decision because it is the selection of

a service transformation tool that is supposed to bring about benefits and

improvements.”

新電子系統優化圖書館服務


The key issue now is what kind of RFID is most suitable for libraries. “When

libraries started to use RFID, HF [high frequency] was the only available

technology and thus naturally became the de facto choice by the system

suppliers at that time,” Professor Ching explains.

An alternative is ultra-high frequency (UHF)“UHF RFID is definitely gaining more attention in recent years and has been

widely deployed in the logistics and retail industry. Many big companies,

such as Wal-Mart, Metro, Marks & Spencer, are using UHF RFID at their retail

outlets,” Professor Ching says.

Another example is Hong Kong International Airport, the world’s first

airport to fully implement an end-to-end UHF RFID baggage handling

system.

“We felt that UHF, though still maturing, can perform equally well if

not superior to HF in the library environment,” Professor Ching says, a

hypothesis he set out to prove.

EasyService, a pilot project involving UHF RFID, was introduced in CityU’s

semi-closed collection room, which contains 8,000 course-related items

that can be loaned out for a maximum of five hours or one day. A parallel

pilot project was conducted in the CD/DVD collection room using HF RFID.

The conclusions were clear as far as CityU was concerned. “We found that

UHF RFID outperformed HF RFID in terms of tag reading rate, multiple-item

detection rate, orientation of tag detection, and read range for self-check

machines and detection gates,” he says.

CityU found that checkouts increased by 50% for all months during the

semester time when compared to the equivalent figures of the previous

two years, and that there was a strong correlation between the use of UHF

RFID and the increase. A post-pilot survey gave positive feedback with

users describing EasyService as convenient, user-friendly, quick and well

designed.

“Checkouts have increased because EasyService is 100% self-service, which

means staff has more time for backend duties such as restocking shelves.

Items are simply more available,” Professor Ching says.

One concern with UHF RFID is that the antennas are so powerful that

they can “read” books belonging to other people in the queue or sitting

nearby.

“We overcame this problem by making sure the antennas processed

information vertically rather than to the sides,” Professor Ching says.

The pilot project, which took place in 2008, is now a fully-fledged part of

the library’s operations.

The next step is to apply UHF RFID to the entire collection of books in

the long run. “This means we have to invest an initial sum to finance the

project—there are 800,000 books in our library. But UHF RFID is not as

expensive as you might think,” Professor Ching says, since tags for UHF

RFID are potentially much cheaper. “The economy of scale is driving

down the cost of UHF tags.”

Professor Ching says that implementation of UHF RFID in the library will

take place in different phases with different applications. The first phase

will focus on using the technology to increase the service efficiency for

book loans and returns. In the phases that follow, efforts will be paid on

developing new tools with UHF RFID to further enhance users’ access to

and use of library materials in-house.

“Human resources in the library should no longer be locked up in

manual chores related to the handling of physical print books. Instead,

more valued-added services in the process of knowledge creation,

management and dissemination will be necessary for the future,”

Professor Ching says.

May 2011 27


辦理借書手續和圖書重新上架是圖書館最繁重的工作之一。這兩項工作佔用圖書館職員很多時間，剩下做其他工作的時間就少了，例如給新文獻編目、幫助教學人員與學生做研究或提供技術支援等。

處理圖書出借工作反覆發生，圖書館十多年前開始，就考量如何利用無

線射頻識別技術（RFID）解決這個問題。

RFID應用廣泛，特別是在供應鏈管理行業中，主要用來清查庫存。與

目前物流業佔主流的條碼技術相比，RFID具有更多優點，對圖書館而

言更是如此。

在處理圖書出借方面，RFID較條碼技術尤佔優勢，只要操作RFID一

次，即可「讀入」一疊圖書；而用條碼技術，一名圖書館員或一台自動

掃描儀（如有的話）須每次逐本單獨處理。RFID的另外一大優點是具備

存儲能力，圖書館員可藉此尋找上錯架的圖書。在藏書量數十萬冊的圖

書館內，以前這是無法辦到的事。

「過去十幾年裏，技術發展一日千里。圖書館員的服務和工作方式全都

改變了，」城大圖書館館長景祥祜教授說。

不過景教授表示，技術只是達到目的的手段而已。「選擇哪項技術是一

個重要決定，因為這意味着選擇改換服務的工具，並期望藉此得益及提

高效率。」

甚麼類型的RFID最適合圖書館呢？這個問題很重要。「圖書館開始使用

RFID 時，只有高頻技術，因此系統供應商當時理所當然地選擇了高頻

RFID，」景教授解釋說。

另一選擇則是超高頻RFID景教授說：「近年來，超高頻RFID日益受到關注，已經廣泛應用於物流

業和零售業。沃爾瑪、麥德龍、馬莎等大型公司都會在其零售店使用超

高頻RFID。」

香港國際機場則是另一個例子，在全球率先全方位使用端到端超高頻

RFID行李處理系統。

Bringing libraries to standardFor UHF RFID to be widely adopted in libraries for

maximum benefit, well-established standards at

the technical and operational level are crucial in

determining whether the technology concerned

will take off.

“UHF RFID practitioners on the supply side and

the libraries on the demand side need a common

vision and expectation of the technology and

how it can be applied to meet practical needs,”

says Professor Ching.

In light of greater integration between Hong

Kong and the mainland, the library is using UHF

RFID as an opportunity to create a platform for

CityU to collaborate with mainland universities.

“The Higher Education Libraries ‘UHF RFID

Application’ Working Group was formed in March

2010. The founding members are City University

of Hong Kong, Tsinghua University and Shanghai

Jiao Tong University,” says Professor Ching. “It

serves as an exchange forum for great ideas to

be shared.”

A conference in March 2011, co-organised by the

Working Group and GS1 Hong Kong, brought

together top librarians from mainland China

and Hong Kong and representatives from the

business sector to discuss standardisation issues

and UHF RFID data models.

“While UHF RFID is penetrating into the library

arena, standards and common practices at both

the technical and operational level should be

established early enough to ensure reliability,

sustainability, interoperability, and compatibility

of the technology throughout its development

cycle. The conference has provided participants

with the opportunity to discuss all these issues,”

says Professor Ching.



「我們認為，雖然超高頻技術尚未完全成熟，但用在圖書館裏即使不比

高頻技術優越，也絕不會遜色，」景教授說，並着手證實此言非虛。

城大圖書館半封閉典藏室所用的EasyService，就是一項引進超高頻

RFID的試點工程。該典藏室內藏有8,000本與課程相關的藏書，最長可

外借5小時或一天。CD/DVD收藏室則也同時率先使用高頻RFID。

就城大的試點結果而論，孰優孰劣，結論很清楚。「就標籤讀寫率、多

本圖書探測率、標籤探測定位、自助借書機的讀寫範圍與檢測門而言，

我們發現超高頻RFID優於高頻RFID，」景教授說。

城大的試點結果發現，與前兩年的數字相比，開學期間所有月份的圖

書借閱量增長了一半，顯然與使用超高頻RFID有關。據項目完成後的

調查顯示，用戶多給予積極評價，認為EasyService使用方便、操作容

易、既快又好。

景教授說：「借閱量增加是因為EasyService是百分之百自助式服務，

館員有更多時間做後端工作，例如圖書重新上架，因此有更多圖書可供

借閱。」

由於天線功能很強，曾有顧慮，怕它「讀入」正在排隊者或坐在附近看

書人的圖書。

圖書館走向標準化

要讓超高頻RFID在圖書館裏得到廣泛應用，獲

得最大效益，關鍵在於制定良好的技術標準和

運作標準，才能決定相關技術能否發揮作用。

景教授說：「對於怎樣用這項技術滿足實際需

要，超高頻RFID供應商與作為需求方的圖書

館，要確立共同的設想和期待。」

城大圖書館把超高頻RFID視作一個契機，藉此

為城大與內地高校的合作創造平台，加強香港

與內地的融合。

「高校圖書館『超高頻RFID 應用』工作小組

在2010年3月成立，創辦成員有城大、清華大

學、上海交通大學，」景教授說。「它提供了

一個交流的平台，讓各方可以分享好主意。」

在2011年3月，該工作小組與香港貨品編碼協會

協辦了一次研討會，會上討論了超高頻RFID的

標準化問題與數據模型，與會人士有內地和香

港一流高校的多位圖書館館長與商界代表。

景教授說：「圖書館愈來愈依賴超高頻RFID。

儘早制定技術和操作層面的標準和慣例，可以

在整個開發週期內確保可靠性、可持續發展

性、互用性和兼容性。今年三月的研討會給與

會者提供了探討這些問題的機會。」

景教授說：「我們讓天線只能垂直而不是從兩邊處理信息，從而解決了

這個問題。」

試點工程2008年啟動，目前已發展成熟，成為城大圖書館運作功能的一

部份。「所有調查結果都證明，在圖書館環境中，超高頻RFID的性能與

高頻RFID不相仲伯，但在很多情況下更有效率。」

下一步是用超高頻RFID處理存放在流通處的所有圖書。

「這意味着開始時必須為該項目投放資源，城大圖書館藏書量達80萬

冊。不過超高頻RFID並不如人們想像得那麼昂貴，」景教授說，因為超

高頻RFID標籤便宜多了。「規模效益有助降低超高頻標籤的成本。」

景教授說，圖書館中的超高頻RFID在不同階段將會有不同用途。第一階

段主要應用該項技術提高借還書的服務效率。到了第二階段，主要致力

於用超高頻RFID來開發新工具，讓讀者更易於在館內獲取、利用圖書館

資源，目的是幫助使用者在圖書館得到更多「創新」與「發現」。

景教授說：「圖書館的人力資源不應再局限於瑣碎的體力勞動，例如處

理圖書借還服務；在將來，我們更應考慮在知識創造、管理和傳播過程

中提供增值服務。」


May 2011 29


In the Know

It’s now generally accepted that a person’s career-path is likely to be diverse; the rarity— not the norm—is to hold a job for 40+ years until retirement. The choices for overseas education, holidays and employment mean that many of us experience different cultures from an early age. But while we might be comfortable with cultural diversity, the unsettling rapidity of worldwide change requires us all to be more responsive to new concepts, new situations and new challenges. Adept at acquiring the new communication skills offered by social networks, we must be agile in responding to the changed world they produce. The boundaries are down, and that is true for our intellectual borders, too.

Leadership and new thinking in an inter-disciplinary world 跨學科世界需要的領導才能與新思維By Dr Josie Close,

Senior Teaching Fellow, School of Energy and Environment

文：Josie Close博士

能源及環境學院高級特任講師

May2011 31

For the past 22 months I have been fortunate to

contribute to the development of CityU’s new

School of Energy and Environment (SEE) at the

invitation of the dean, Chair Professor Johnny

Chan Chung-leung. It’s an opportunity I greatly

appreciate. The setup of the school resonates

well with the acknowledgement that we must

all pursue a low-carbon, low-energy life-style. A

university is a key place to encourage such an

attitude.

The school is now approaching its second birthday

and the completion of its first cohort of the

taught Energy and Environment MSc programme.

The course’s strength is linking the science and

technology of energy and the environment with

the business world. Our advisory committee

comprises senior executives from Hong Kong’s

leading companies and government agencies

directly involved in energy and environmental

issues. That firm grounding will bolster our

graduates’ confidence in responding to an

increasingly environmentally regulated business

scene with skills that encourage new thinking

and leadership in an increasingly inter-disciplinary

world.

Leadership and new thinking in an inter-disciplinary world 跨學科世界需要的領導才能與新思維

My first career was as an architect working in

the UK. Designing buildings is all about inter-

disciplinary collaboration, integrating the services,

structure and site works with the functional

building requirements (plus a little bit of flair), on

time and within budget. It demands exceptional

collaboration. When innovative materials, systems

or construction processes are also involved, the

complexity ratchets up.

Pursuing PhD studies in mid-life is certainly a bit

of a shake-up. It can be argued that maturity plus

專家妙筆

motivation are potent ingredients. In my case, the

research has brought a direction and resolve to the

remainder of my working life.

Exploring energy issues led me through

international and government policy to specifically

building aspects. Vernacular buildings had been

undergoing a re-appraisal for their abilities to

provide comfort conditions in structures built

from local materials, by craftspeople familiar with

the local climate. They use strategies described

as “passive design” because no electrical or

mechanical systems were involved. That reappraisal

has been enormously important and is part of the

growing appreciation—and now mimicking—of

the exceptional properties of some natural

materials. But in high-rise, high-density Hong Kong,

my studies increasingly turned to the potential of

new technologies. Particularly, I investigated the

development of “smart” glass with its sophisticated

coatings enabling the rejection or acceptance of

solar rays and via the related metal-oxide coatings

to the sophistry of thin-film photovoltaic (PV)

technology and its building integration.

“Exploring energy issues led me through international and government policy to specifically building aspects.”


In the Know

Our inter-disciplinary research team at various

times included computer scientists, electrical

and mechanical engineers, computational fluid

dynamics analysts, solar and wind analysts, building

cost specialists and educationalists, as well as

other architects. Approaching PV modules as

a building element—as a cladding, roofing or

shading panel—was quite different from their

assessment as simply an alternative means of

generating electricity. Thus the costs were assessed

in comparison with other building materials rather

than with the electricity tariff. Manufacturers’

lack of attention to their modules’ properties as

construction components is generally holding

back building integration, but research at the

fundamental level proceeds apace to achieve lower

production costs through nanotechnology.

Marine energy is an emerging technology with

immense promise, too. The scope of the research

touches on so many disciplines and skills,

extending from an appreciation of the marine

ecology to the development of new materials that

withstand the marine environment’s aggressive

force and the economics of viable marine energy

production. Our team-building links researchers in

mainland China as well as the UK. Navigating the

route to practical application requires input from

business and industry as much as from academic

researchers, and we appreciate the importance of

the early development of industry links for critical

input on market development and investment

criteria necessary for effective capacity production.

Recognising that such a collaboration is a

necessity, SEE has led the establishment of the HK

Marine Energy Forum to facilitate the development

of marine energy in Hong Kong and other Asian

locations. It’s a long-term project, launched

towards the end of 2010 with representatives from

the government, utilities and the business sector,

one that is worthwhile for a region with such

extensive coastal waters.

May2011 33

透過探索能源問題，我從研究國際與政府的政

策聚焦到建築的某些特定範疇。傳統民居得到

重新評價，因為它們是由熟悉當地氣候的工

匠、使用當地材料建築而成，提供舒適宜人的

居住環境。這些民居採用了「被動式建築設

計」方法，因此不須使用電器或機械系統。重

新評價民居極為重要，使我們更加了解一些天

然材料的優質特性，而這些特性在使用天然材

料建造的房產中廣被模仿。但在高樓林立、人

煙稠密的香港，我的研究慢慢轉向研究新技術

的潛力，尤其是薄膜太陽能電池（PV）技術及

如何將其融入建築物，以及「智能」玻璃的發

展。這種玻璃表面塗有可接收或抵擋太陽光線

的特殊塗層和相關的金屬氧化物塗層。

我們的跨學科研究小組不時會有不同專長的研

究人員參與，包括電腦科學家、電機工程師、

計算流體力學的分析師、太陽能與風能分析

師、建築成本專家、教育專家、建築師等。將

PV模塊僅僅看作另類產電方式，與將其當作

建築構件（比如覆面、屋頂、遮陽板）加以

評估，兩者之間差異甚大。估算成本時須與

其他建材作比較，而不是僅僅考慮電費。製

造商如對用作建築部件的PV模塊缺乏認識，

通常會阻礙這類建築部件融入建築的進程，

但基礎層面的研究已有長足進展，運用納米

技術可望降低生產成本。

海洋能是一種前景美好的新興能源。海洋能

研究的範圍很大，涉及到多種學科和專業技

能─從了解海洋生態學到開發可經受海洋環

境侵蝕的新材料，以及海洋能生產的可行性

經濟學。我們小組與內地和英國的研究人員

都有聯繫。要探索投入實際應用的途徑，需

要商業和產業的參與，同樣亦需要學術研究

人員的參與。我們明白，能夠儘早與產業界

建立聯繫，就市場開發和有效投產所需的投

資標準提供關鍵的意見，十分重要。

能源及環境學院明白產學協作的必要性，為

此牽頭籌辦「香港海洋能論壇」，希望以

此促進本港與亞洲其他地區的海洋能開發。

這項論壇計劃發起於2010年底，將會長期進

行下去，參加論壇的代表來自政府、公用事

業、工商界。香港沿海水域遼闊，這是一件

值得做的益事。

過去22個月裏，我有幸應院長陳仲良講座教授

之邀參與籌辦城大新成立的能源及環境學院，

深感機緣難得。成立能源及環境學院與追求低

碳、低能耗生活方式的倡議正相吻合。提倡這

種生活態度，大學責無旁貸。

能源及環境學院成立即將兩年，第一批授課式

能源及環境理學碩士生亦快將完成學業。課程

的優勢在於將能源及環境科技與工商界相聯

繫。學院顧問委員會成員包括直接處理能源與

環境事務的香港各大公司及政府機構高層管理

人員。這一牢固基礎將提升學院畢業生的信

心，能夠憑學到的技能因應日漸受環境條例約

束的企業之需求，在愈來愈注重跨學科合作的

世界裏萌生新想法、鍊就領導才能。

我的第一份工作是在英國當建築師。建築設計

講究跨學科合作，需要把服務、結構、工地工

作與建築功能需求融合在一起（再加入一點自

己的創意），並且要按時交貨、不超預算。建

築設計需要緊密無間的協作。若是涉及創新材

料、系統或建築過程，就更為複雜了。

人到中年才修讀博士課程，無疑是不小的變

動。只能說，成熟加上動機會產生巨大的動

力。就我而言，博士研究為我今後的職業生涯

指引了方向，並堅定了我的決心。

專家妙筆

如今大家公認，一個人的職業生涯可能很多樣化，只有少數人（不是常態）才會40多年都從事同一項工作，直到退休。現在，我們可以選擇去海外接受教育、度假、就業等，很多人從小就有機會體驗不同的文化。我們也許對多元文化已經安之若素，但世界瞬息萬變，面對新觀念、新形勢、新挑戰，所有人都須更快作出應變。我們擅長使用社交網絡提供的新溝通技巧，因此亦須靈活適應新的溝通技巧創造的新世界。溝通已沒有界限，我們的知識疆界也不應有界限。

「透過探索能源問題，我從

研究國際與政府的政策聚焦

到建築的某些特定範疇。」

Gown to Town

By Christina Wu

文：胡幗欣

If acquiring a range of knowledge broadens one’s outlook, Dr William Yu Yuan-ping certainly has a fine view of the world. He has used his inter-disciplinary education to transform himself from a financial sector insider into a businessman and manager dedicated to environmental protection.

商界翹楚馳騁環保世界

A business luminary pushing for environmental protection

Dr Yu started out with a bachelor’s degree in international business from

CityU and went on to take an MBA at the Thunderbird School of Global

Management in the US. At the same time, he was working for a US-based

transnational corporation, a firm he stayed with for about ten years,

devoting himself to exploring markets in Asia. He then went into academia,

got a PhD and at the end of 2008 assumed the role of Head of Climate

Programmes at the World Wide Fund for Nature, Hong Kong.

The jobs might seem unrelated but there are several internal connections.

“The experience I gained promoting commodities is a big plus when we

advocate environmental protection and a green lifestyle,” Dr Yu said.

When he swapped his career in the private sector for a teaching position at

CityU, his alma mater, he found that he had important skills to impart.

“As a university teacher, I helped my students understand abstract ideas

and then communicate their thoughts and ideas in plain language, a skill I

have to deploy every time I face an audience or the media,” he said.

Keen to develop his academic career further, he left CityU and enrolled

on a doctoral programme at the Judge Business School, University of

Cambridge, in 2004. Inspired by the energy economists from the school,

he decided to research energy and environment issues from an economic

perspective and devote himself to environment protection. It wasn’t long

before he had transformed himself into an expert on climate change, using

his business acumen to promote related concerns.

But such an inter-disciplinary journey was not without its problems. “In the

past, I turned to my wide circle of friends and people I knew in the business


在不同知識領域縱橫馳騁，視野更闊更廣。城大校友余遠騁博士擁有城大國際商業學士學位和美國Thunderbird商學院行政人員工商管理碩士學位，有豐富的商界工作經驗；在英國劍橋大學修讀博士課程期間卻闖進環保世界，成為研究氣候變化的專家，更得心應手地運用商界銷售技巧來推廣環保工作。

余博士在美國跨國公司工作十年，主力開拓亞洲市場，並曾在城大和澳

洲的大學裏任教，2008年底出任世界自然基金會香港分會氣候項目主

管。這三份工作看似風馬牛不相及，其實卻息息相關。

「過往推廣產品的經驗，對現在舉行大型活動推廣環保概念和生活方式

有很大幫助，」余博士說。「此外，我在大學任教時要用深入淺出的方

法教導學生，這些經驗使我更有信心面對公眾和傳媒。」

余博士多年來一直關心候氣變化問題，有感這問題迫在眉睫，2004年負

笈英國劍橋大學攻讀博士學位時，在商學院能源及環境學部教授的薰陶

下，開始從經濟角度研究能源及氣候變化問題，短時間內已經在新的知

識領域內發揮自己的特長，且決意日後投身環保事業。

追求知識的過程令他獲益良多。「以往在商界人脈較廣，遇到問題會找

別人幫忙，但讀博士研究的課題十分專精，遇到問題時無人可問，連導

師也不一定懂得，需要靠自己主動尋找答案，」余博士說。

跨領域研究是大勢所趨，掌握不同領域的知識，更是無往而不利。余

博士鼓勵年輕人建立自己的第二專長，並與第一專長相輔相成。「例

如環境問題，不僅涉及生物學，也與社會學、社群營銷學、商界有

關，所以以前所學的商業知識和經驗都可大派用場。」

他認為，年輕人除了需要具備跨學科知識，還要關心社會。

「在自己的專業上打好基礎、取得成就後，要運用專長貢獻社

會，幫助其他社群。成功的商人既可以推動環保，也可以運用

自己的知識協助社會企業改善管理，」余博士說。

余博士1995年以第一名成績畢業於城大國際商學學士學位課

程，三年大學生活過得很愉快，認識了很多好朋友。那是他

人生的轉捩點。如今，他全情投入環保工作之餘，不忘回饋

城大。他說：「城大有甚麼事需要我，我都會義不容辭，積

極相助！」

校園到社會

community when I was in difficulty. But my PhD meant

I had to deal with a demanding subject and a project

that required profound knowledge and expertise. So I

couldn’t ask for help when I encountered problems. Even

my tutor found my problems beyond him. That’s when

I started to learn how to find solutions on my own,” he

said.

Inter-disciplinary studies, though, is now a global

movement, and Dr Yu is very supportive of anyone who

ventures into research that draws on different fields.

“The environment involves biology, sociology, social

marketing and business practices. That’s why the

knowledge and experiences I acquired in the past are so

valuable today in my role with WWF,” he said.

He holds that in addition to multi-disciplinary

knowledge, young people should concern

themselves with social issues. “When you have laid

down a solid foundation and achieved success in

your academic studies, you should apply yourself to

working for the community. A successful businessman

can promote environmental protection and also lend a

helping hand to those in need,” he said.

Dr Yu said he enjoyed his time as a student at CityU,

partly because he made a lot of good friends on

campus. He now sees giving back to CityU as a means of

contributing to society.

“I see it as my duty to do anything CityU requires of me,

and I will do it with all my heart,” he said.

May 2011 35

Books

Dr Chris Chan King-chi, Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Social StudiesThe Challenge of Labour in China New York/London: Routledge, 2010

China’s economic success has been founded partly on relatively cheap

labour, especially in the export industries. In recent years, however,

there has been growing concern about wages and labour standards

in China. This book examines how wages are bargained, fought over

and determined in China by exploring how the pattern of labour

conflict has changed over time since the 1970s. It focuses in particular

on the city of Shenzhen where labour conflict and workers’ protests

have been especially prevalent. This book includes a detailed account

of the transformation of labour relations

and labour policy in China more broadly

during 2004 to 2009, a period when

there have been significant

changes in the labour market,

labour regulation and labour

relations.

應用社會科學系助理教授陳敬慈博士

《中國面對的勞工挑戰》，紐約/倫敦：Routledge，2010年

中國經濟發展得以成功，部分原因是出口業得到大量的廉價勞工。

不過，近年來中國的工資及勞工水平備受關注。本書探討自七十年

代以來勞資衝突的規律，檢討中國勞資雙方如何磋商、爭拗以至訂

定工資。本書集中研究現時經常出現勞資衝突及工人抗議的深圳市

發展，詳細論述中國勞工市場、勞工條例及勞資關係在2004-2009

年間的重大轉變，深入探討中國勞資關係及勞工政策的轉型。

作者認為這些最新發展，為中國建立工人抗議的基礎，並全面推翻

後馬克斯主義所說的身份政治。本書對工業和勞工研究以及中國研

究作出重要貢獻。

Edited by Ng Sik-Hung, Chair Professor, Department of Applied Social Studies, Stephen Cheung Yan-leung, Braham PrakashSocial Capital in Hong Kong—Connectivities and Social Enterprise. HK: City University Press, 2011

Given the rapid pace at which the Hong Kong Special Administrative

Region (HKSAR) and other Asian economies are growing and the

global volatility that these societies are experiencing, social capital and

its diverse connectivities can furnish useful anchoring to communities,

neighbourhoods, local governments and social protection networks.

This volume in twelve chapters provides a critical analysis of social

capital, its indigenous evolution and spread in the HKSAR. Some of

the experiments and activities narrated in these chapters indicate

the ingenious blending of the local ethos and culture with modern

organisational forms and information networks.

Policy makers, development practitioners, researchers of civil society

organisations and welfare agencies will find this book a helpful

reference source.

應用社會科學系伍錫洪講座教授、張仁良、Braham Prakash編

《社會資本在香港 —— 互聯性與社會企業》，香港：香港城市大

學出版社，2011年

鑒於香港特別行政區與亞洲其他經濟體的高速發展，而這些地域的

社會正經歷着全球性的動盪，社會資本及其多樣互聯性可以為各個

社群、社區、當地政府、社會保障系統帶來穩定。

本書共分十二章，剖析了社會資本及其在

香港的本土演化與傳播。書中提

到的一些試驗及活動，

顯示了本港的道德

文化與現代組織形態

及信息網絡之間的奇妙

交融。

對於決策者、發展工作者、

公民社會組織與福利機構的研

究人員，此書頗有參考價值。


Organised by: Sponsored by:Co-organised by:

International Workshop on the Science and Conservation

of Asian Horseshoe Crabs

The Hong Kong Wetland Park, Hong Kong, China

13 - 16 June 2011

City University of Hong Kong 香港城市大學

Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 香港特別行政區九龍達之路

Global outreach and international competitiveness加強全球發展及提高國際競爭力CityU is commited to creating an internationalised space for learning, pursuing a research agenda designed to bring benefits to society, establishing a culture of innovation and discovery and nurturing the talents of our students.城大致力營造國際化教學環境，竭誠推動造福社會的科研規劃，

樹立激勵創新、崇尚發現的校園風氣，奉行品學並重、培育人才

的辦學宗旨。

www.cityu.edu.hk

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CityU Today No. 36