KE Spotlight - Community Engagement - HKU Knowledge Exchange

HKU-led study accurately tracks COVID-19 spread with big data

An international research team led by HKU developed a new method to accurately track the spread of COVID-19 using population flow data, and establishing a new risk assessment model to identify high-risk locales of COVID-19 at an early stage, which serves as a valuable toolkit to public health experts and policy makers in implementing infectious disease control during new outbreaks. Dr Jayson Jia, Associate Professor of Marketing at the Faculty of Business and Economics of HKU and lead author of the study, and his team used nation-wide data provided by a major national carrier in China to track population movement out of Wuhan between January 1 and 24, 2020, a period covering the annual Chunyun mass migration before the Chinese Lunar New Year to a lockdown of the city to contain the virus. The movement of over 11 million people travelling through Wuhan to 296 prefectures in 31 provinces and regions in China were tracked. Combining the population flow data with the number and location of COVID-19 confirmed cases up to February 19, 2020 in China, Dr Jia’s team showed that the relative quantity of human movement from the disease epicentre, in this case, Wuhan, directly predicted the relative frequency and geographic distribution of the number of COVID-19 cases across China. The researchers found that their model can explain 96% of the distribution and intensity of the spread of COVID-19 across China statistically which helps to identify high risk area.

HKU startup “Hollo” – a mental health companion and therapist

“Hollo”, a social technology startup by a group of students from HKU Faculty of Science, provides a platform for NGOs and therapists to advance therapy practices using technology such as Big Data and AI. By improving the diagnosis and treatment delivery with proprietary technology and detection algorithms, the platform allows patients to spend less time in the system and keep professionals more informed. The team will further enhance the accuracy rate and is working with local NGOs for a pilot scheme targeting 100 to 200 people. They hope the App can be formally launched in September 2020.

iPark: Core Technologies of Intelligent E-Commerce Logistics Parks

E-Commerce has developed exponentially in the Greater China region in recent years, while logistics, which deliver the orders, have become bottlenecked. Traditional logistics operations are no longer able to cope with the challenges, such as long order fulfillment time and low utilization in space, under fluctuating huge demands. Led by Professor Guo Quan Huang of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering, iPark is expected to elevate the logistics services to match the growth of E-Commerce.

The project is delivered in two forms. One is a private form for leading enterprises with operations in the Greater China Region. The other is a public platform that is shared by participating Hong Kong SMEs involved in Ecommerce logistics. Eventually, the platform will be “transplanted” to logistics and industrial parks.

Jockey Club Lab for Cultural Diversity Study launches multi-lingual booklet and documentary video and video highlight of Human Library cum Concert

The Jockey Club Lab for Cultural Diversity Study (JCLCDS) produced a multi-lingual booklet entitled “Youth in Transition: Growing up experiences of the ethnic minority youth in Hong Kong”. The booklet reports on selected stories of youth and young adults from the longitudinal and oral history studies between the ages of 18 and 33 with family heritage in South or Southeast Asia. The booklet aims to promote a better public understanding of youth transitions to adulthood and challenge some of the existing stereotypes of ethnic minority communities in Hong Kong. JCLCDS has also produced a set of documentary video and event video highlights of a Human Library-cum-Concert held on June 2, 2019, and commissioned a documentary by an ethnic minority videographer under the Project’s Human Library Programme. The booklet and videos have been made available on the Project website. JCLCDS, funded by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust and co-created by the HKU Faculty of Social Sciences, is a component under the C-for-Chinese@JC initiative.

HKU launches mindfulness resources package to support HKDSE students

Jockey Club “Peace and Awareness” Mindfulness Culture in Schools Initiative (JC PandA), a project organised by the Faculty of Social Sciences in HKU, has launched ‘Mindfulness in the Face of Academic Stress’ resources package to encourage HKDSE candidates and students to create a mindful space amidst the epidemic, so as to better adjust their emotions for their mental well-being. This package is a follow-up of an earlier resources package, ‘Mindfulness in the Time of Coronavirus Epidemic’, that supports the general public in this difficult time.

HKU Engineering VAYU Project sets new Guinness World Record for “The Fastest 50m Swim by a Robotic Fish”

Supported by the Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing, a VAYU robotic fish project developed by a student team from the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Hong Kong set the Guinness World Record of 26.79s for “The Fastest 50m Swim by a Robotic Fish” on January 23, 2020. Compared with the world records set by human swimmers in long course swimming pools ratified by International Swimming Federation (FINA), the robotic fish swim faster than women in breaststroke (29.40s) and backstroke (26.98s). Led by the Department of Mechanical Engineering, the VAYU Project is a joint effort with the Departments of Electrical & Electronic Engineering and Computer Science of the Faculty of Engineering. More than 40 students contributed to the project over four years.

Knowledge Exchange (KE) Excellence Award 2019

The university-level KE Excellence Award was introduced in 2015-16 to recognise the significant impact that our academic staff had made to benefit society. The KE Excellence Award 2019 was awarded to Professor Zhiwei Chen of the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine.