KE Stories

Something New and Blue for Display and Lighting Applications

Breakthrough in Treating Cancers

Maximising Our Impact

Knowledge Exchange (KE) has firmly become the third mission of HKU – it cuts across all disciplines and is the "natural" process in the University's interactions with the community, from licensing inventions to developing models to address social problems to engaging the public in culture and the humanities. But rewind a few years back and the KE management was facing the challenge of a much narrower focus in the local higher education sector.

Start it Up with TSSSU@HKU: From Student Club to Start-Up

Here's a golden opportunity for the entrepreneurial-minded to translate their new technologies and inventions into business opportunities. TSSSU@HKU is a new award programme with an annual budget of HK$4 million, and the HKU edition of the Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities (TSSSU) launched by the Innovation and Technology Commission in October 2014. It provides funding support to technology startup companies formed by HKU students, staff and alumni.

Locating the Right Place for Blood Donation in Hong Kong by Data Analytics

Big data is the use of data mining techniques to analyse large amount of data that were collected from different sources in order to derive useful insights. When the Hong Kong Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service (BTS) was looking for a site for a new donor centre, they sought academic help to find the best location. Dr Michael Chau, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Business and Economics at The University of Hong Kong, took on the project with the aim of finding a suitable site that would ultimately increase blood donations.

Monitoring Light Pollution to Save the Night Sky

Hong Kong has one of the worst light pollution problems in the world. Apart from the energy, health and environmental costs, light pollution has another price – the loss of the night sky. For the last 10 years Dr Jason Pun of the Faculty of Science at The University of Hong Kong and his team have been researching the extent of light pollution across Hong Kong, and looking into ways that it can be reduced without the city losing its lustre as the “Pearl of the Orient”. He has also been working with the Hong Kong Space Museum and other organizations to reach out to the general public and to school students, educating them of the negative consequences of light pollution.

Using Cryptography to Track Cybercriminals

Cybercrime is one of the fastest growing, most lucrative and destructive areas of criminal activity in the world today. Dr KP Chow, Associate Director of the Center for Information Security and Cryptography at The University of Hong Kong, is developing software specifically targeting these activities. He has been working closely with the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department to help the authorities track down cybercriminals.

Storeys of Modern History

In 2011 debate was heating up in Hong Kong over plans to redevelop the Central Government Offices (CGO), which were built in the 1950s. To architecture aficionados, they represented a fine example of the modern movement that influenced much of 20th century design. But to some in the community, they were eyesores. How could the doubters be won over?

Dental Help for a Neglected Group

Some 140,000 Indonesian domestic helpers are employed in Hong Kong to look after families here, but how well are they looking after themselves?