Newsletter No. 112

CUHK MBA Programme Makes Asia's Top Four T he University has been listed as one of Asia's top 25 MBA schools in Asia Inc.'s 1997 ranking. A leading business magazine in Asia, Asia Inc. evaluated over 73 universities from 13 regions in the Asia-Pacific which offer full-time two-year MBA programmes primarily in English. Ranking is based on three criteria — quality of incoming students, quality of education, and the market value of the students. Analysis is coupled with interviews with aspiring students, recent graduates, alumni and deans, and large companies with MBA recruitment programmes. The University ranks fourth this year, after the Melbourne Business School, The University of New South Wales, and the Indian Institute of Management at Ahmedabad. It is the only institution from Hong Kong that is listed among the top ten. The results of the ranking are carried in the September 1997 issue of the magazine. CUHK Hosts 100th Anniversary Congress of International Mathematical Union Over 350 mathematicians from more than 20 countries attended the 'International Congress in Algebras and Combinatories' held from 19th to 23rd August in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the International Mathematical Union. Organized by the Southeast Asian Mathematical Society (SEAMS) and sponsored by the CUHK Department of Mathematics and Chung Chi College, the event aimed at promoting research interest in algebras and combinatorics in the Far East. Participants included many leading and award-winning mathematicians: 1994 Fields Medallist Prof. Efim Zelmanov of Yale University; 1995 Gold Medallist of the IEEE Prof. H.-J. Hoenke of Universität Potsdam; Prof. Kyoji Saito, director of the Research Institute of Mathematics in Kyoto; Prof. Z. Arad, president and rector of Bar-Ilan University in Israel; and Prof. L.A. Bokut, director of the Institute of Mathematics in Russia. Together with other eminent mathematicians, they explored the application of algebras and combinatorics in the design of high-speed computers and the electronic transmission of messages. At the opening ceremony of the congress held on 19th August at the Hong Kong International Trade and Exhibition Centre, welcoming speeches were delivered by Prof. Polly Sy, president-elect of SEAMS, Prof. P.L. Law, acting head of Chung Chi College, and Prof. Arthur K.C. Li, vice-chancellor of The Chinese University. Four days later at the Lady Shaw Building, Prof. Shum Kar-ping of the CUHK Department of Mathematics gave a closing talk on 'Equivalence of Infinite Matrix Rings'. 1994 Fields Medallist Prof. Efim Zelmanov J o i n t Lab t o B o o s t GIS D e v e l o pme nt The first laboratory for g e o - i n f o r m a t i on science in Hong Kong was officially opened on 28th August at the University. The lab is set up by the University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences with resources and facilities from the two institutions. Officiating at the inauguration ceremony were the heads of the two institutions — Prof. Arthur K.C. Li and Prof. Lu Yong-xiang, and representatives of relevant foundations and committees from Hong Kong, mainland China, and the United Nations. The Joint Laboratory for Geo- information Science will serve as a base for interdisciplinary and collaborative research in geo-information science, which covers the mechanisms of remote- sensing, geographic modelling, the integration of geo-information systems, and global positioning systems. It will stimulate the development of geo- information science-related programmes in Hong Kong, and enable local academics and researchers to participate in important experiments and application programmes on the mainland. In turn, Hong Kong experts are expected to contribute to the development of aerial and satellite remote sensing programmes in mainland China. Capitalizing on VOD Technology The Chinese University of Hong Kong Foundation Ltd., on behalf of its wholly owned subsidiary, Information Networking Laboratories Ltd. (INL Ltd), recently signed an agreement with Singapore's EastGate Group to form a joint venture company in Hong Kong. The new company, named Vserve Technology Ltd., w i l l engage in interactive multimedia-on-demand products and services. It is granted an exclusive world-wide marketing right of video-on-demand (VOD) video server technology 一 VIOLA (video-on-lan). The VIOLA project was developed by the University's Department of Information Engineering with grants from the Hong Kong Industry Department. The VIOLA video server runs on the industry-standard WINTEL (Microsoft Windows NT and Intel Pentium processor) platform, offering a low-cost VOD video server solution with unique features of scalability and server- level fault tolerance. It provides an ideal solution for small to medium VOD installations in karaokes, hotels, and private housing estates. INL Ltd aims at facilitating transfer of information networking technology developed by University staff members. It manages a set of intellectual property portfolios transferred from the University and strives to cultivate partnerships with industries for the commercialization of new technology. EastGate started out as a pioneer in compact disc manufacturing in southeast Asia, and is now a leader in the CD-ROM business, producing over 30 million discs each year. Its clients include Microsoft, IBM, and Compaq.