Bulletin Spring‧Summer 1993

other board members — Prof. Charles K. Kao from this university, Prof. Wang Gung-wu from the University of Hong Kong, Dr. Daniel Tse from the Hong Kong Baptist College, and Mr. Richard Williams, US consul general in Hong Kong. On the same occasion, Prof. James B. Meriwether of the University of South Carolina presented a collection of books by William Faulkner and other Southern American writers to the centre. The collection consisting of 2,500 volumes is unique in Asia in its comprehensiveness, and is matched by only a few research library collections in the US. Guests who attended the opening ceremony included the US ambassador to China, Mr. J. Stapleton Roy; two ethnic Chinese film-makers from the US, Ms. Shirley Sun andMs. Felicia Lowe ; and the founding donor of the centre, Mr. L. T. Lam of Forward Winsome Industries Ltd. Inaugural celebrations lasted for two more days on 28th and 29th April with a symposium entitled ‘Hong Kong 一 the Cultural Bridge', which took plac e at The Chinese University, the University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Donations Totalling $70 Million Pledged for University Development To commemorate the University's 30th birthday this year, several major donations have been pledged by long-time friends of the University in suppor t of its teaching and research activities. The total amount pledged exceeds HK$70 million and the donors' gestures have given the University a boost in its pursuit of academic excellence. The S.H.Ho Foundation Ltd. has pledged HK$40 million to establish a Ho Sin-Hang Education Endowment Fund at the University to support visiting professorships, medical education, research and large scale development projects. To give due recognition to the donor's generosity, the University Council has decided to name the new engineering building after Mr. Ho Sin-Hang. Another major donation of HK$ 13.5 millio n has been pledged by the Shanghai Fraternity Association to set up a research and development fund at the University. A new research facility on the campus will be named after the association as a permanent record of their generous gift. Mr. Thomas H. C. Cheung, member of the University Council and a staunch supporter of University alumni and student activities, has pledged to donate HK$10 million to the University for the establishment of an alumni fund to mark the University's 30th anniversary. The $10 million will be the first contribution towards the alumni fund and efforts will be made later this year to seek further contributions from the large network of CUHK alumni local and overseas. Last but not least, the Shaw Foundation (Hong Kong) Ltd. has recently made another substantial donation of $7 million to the University for the expansion of the Endoscopic Unit at the Faculty of Medicine. HK$1.6 Million from Croucher Foundation for Medical Research Two research projects proposed by member s of the Faculty of Medicine have recently succeeded in obtaining financial support from The Croucher Foundation. The first project is a two-year research on the role of calcium in anion secretion by cultured rat and human epididymal cells, conducted by Prof. P. Y. D. Wong of the Department of Physiology. The second project is a three-year research programme entitled 'Comparative studies on the effects of pharmacological anti-allergic agents on inflammatory release and intracellular calcium mobilization of purified rat peritoneal mast cells' proposed by Dr. Alaster H. Y. Lau of the Department of Pharmacology. The former has been granted HK$504,000, and the latter, HK$1,088,385. CUHK to Collaborate with UK Universities on Four Research Projects Four research projects proposed by members of the University recently received financial support from the UK-HK Joint Research Scheme, which was established in 1991 by the Britis h Council and the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong to promote cooperation in research between institutions of higher education in the UK and Hong Kong. The four projects are: • Development of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) Coordinator: Dr. John H. K. Yeung, Department of Pharmacology Main Partner: Liverpool University Grant: £5,123 • A molecular approach to tuberculosis: diagnosis, epidemiology and drug resistance Researcher: Dr. Augustine F. B. Cheng, Department of Microbiology NEWS IN BRIEF 22