KE Spotlight - Community Engagement - HKU Knowledge Exchange

HKU research team develops a software for re-construction of crime scenes in three-dimension space

A research team led by HKU Computer Science Professor Yu Yizhou has developed a new software which can re-construct an informative and easy-to-comprehend three-dimension (3D) re-enactment of a past event to assist in crime investigation. The project received funding of over HK$5 million from the Innovation and Technology Fund in 2012. A trial version of the software is expected to be commercially available in one to two years.

International Conference on Grief and Bereavement in Contemporary Society (ICGB) held at HKU

Over 1,000 scholars, health professionals and experts took part in the tri-annual conference, which was held in Asia for the first time. Over 250 papers and reports were presented during the four-day conference and 20 professional training workshops were held to enhance the skills of healthcare professional and practitioners. According to a study conducted by the HKU Faculty of Social Sciences, death avoidance score of Hong Kong adults aged under 59 (which ranged from 1 to 7 with higher scores indicating greater fear) had reduced significantly from 4.23 in 2007 to 2.2 in 2014, which reflected the general public's attitude towards death had become much more open.

A lesson in respecting the past through a student knowledge exchange project

A team of students with a student knowledge exchange project grant in 2012/13 produced a video about life in the historic Blue House in Wanchai. It highlights frustrating inconsistencies in the Government's heritage policy.

HKU promotes light pollution awareness among students and within the community

HKU Department of Physics partnered with the Ho Koon Nature Education Cum Astronomical Centre and the Hong Kong Space Museum to organize the ''Light Pollution Awareness Community Engagement Project''. A total of 42 student teams from 17 secondary schools participated in the ''Light Pollution Project Competition 2014''. The University also held the ''Light Pollution Photography Competition 2014'' in which 154 entries were received. Outstanding projects and winning photographs from the two competitions will be on display for free at the Space Museum from July 9 to August 11 to further spread the message of night sky preservation and educate people the adverse effects of light pollution to the natural environment and our daily lives in Hong Kong. This project is supported by the HKU Knowledge Exchange Fund granted by the University Grants Committee.

HKU partners with HK Public Libraries to organise "Explore the World of Medicine" public lecture series

HKU Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine has partnered with the HK Public Libraries to co-organize the "Explore the World of Medicine" public lecture series. HKU Head of Nursing Professor Agnes Tiwari and Psychiatry Clinical Assistant Professor Dr Sherry Chan Kit-wa will speak on stress-related topics on June 14 to increase public awareness on the prevention of and latest treatments for diseases. Another lecture on genomic medicine will be held on June 8. Drs. Jenny Ho and Vivian Lui from the University will speak on cancer-related topics to enhance people's understanding and interest on genomic medicine in Hong Kong.

HKU Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences provides speech therapy to children from low-income families

HKU Faculty of Education's Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences has partnered with Sunshine Children Foundation to establish a speech therapy sponsorship programme for children from low-income families. Students from the Division provide assistance and therapy to children who have speech impairments under supervision of their clinical supervisors. About 70 children have benefited since the programme was introduced in 2013. In Hong Kong, the number of children aged 12 or below diagnosed with speech impairments rose from about 2,600 in 2011 to nearly 3,100 in 2013 while there are only nine speech therapists with the Department of Health's Child Assessment Service.

HKU develops bird information free mobile app

HKU Department of Computer Science and Hong Kong Bird Watching Society have jointly developed the first cross-platform bird information mobile app of Hong Kong. The mobile app "HKcBirds: Common Birds of HK" consists of multimedia information of over 200 species of common birds in Hong Kong. It is now available for free in both App Store and Google Play. This mobile app is supported by the HKU Knowledge Exchange Fund granted by the University Grants Committee.