FLASS Faculty Postgraduate Seminar: insights and perspectives

FLASS successfully held the latest Faculty Postgraduate Seminar (FPS) on 7 November. In the morning session of the seminar, Professor Dennis Lin from Purdue University in the US and Professor Raymond Lee from the University of Portsmouth in the UK were invited to give keynote speeches, sharing their profound insights into their fields and how to achieve successful research projects. This was followed by a poster presentation session featuring postgraduate students from various departments within the faculty. Two oral presentation panels were organised in the afternoon session of the seminar where postgraduate students outlined their research projects, shared difficulties encountered and answered questions from the floor.

In his opening speech, Professor Li Wai-keung, Dean of FLASS, welcomed the two keynote speakers, along with other academic staff and postgraduate students attending the seminar. “FPS is a platform for exchanging ideas, exploring new knowledge, establishing research collaborations, and promoting interdisciplinary research. This year, we are honoured to have Professor Dennis Lin, an expert in quality assurance, industrial statistics, data mining, and data science, and Professor Raymond Lee, a distinguished scholar in engineering and clinical sciences, joining the seminar. Our postgraduate students will be inspired by their academic knowledge and insights on conducting research,” Professor Li said. Both Professor Lin and Professor Lee serve as external members of the Faculty Development Advisory Committee (FDAC).

In his keynote address, Professor Raymond Lee, Associate Dean (Global Engagement) of the Faculty of Technology at the University of Portsmouth, clarified several key concepts regarding ageing. He stated that ageing is a lifelong process that begins early in life; therefore, people need to start preparing for it while they are still young. He also highlighted that while physical activities are pivotal to maintaining our physical and mental health, it is not just the duration of exercises that matters, but also their dosage, measured by duration, frequency, and intensity.

Professor Lee identified several success factors for a research project during his presentation. These included gaining fast access to data, engaging users throughout the entire research process, collecting and presenting evidence to demonstrate that research has social impact, publishing research on open-access platforms, and seeking international collaborations to increase citations of one’s work. He encouraged young researchers to consider these factors when selecting their research topics and added that originality, rigour and significance are always the primary parameters for assessing research outputs.

Professor Dennis Lin, Head of the Statistics Department at Purdue University, delivered a keynote speech addressing issues surrounding artificial, statistical, and biological intelligences – called AI, SI and BI respectively. He explained that artificial intelligence (AI) relies on vast amounts of training data, utilizes supercomputational power and memory of computers, and employs smart algorithms to create intelligence. In contrast, biological intelligence (BI) is the natural cognitive ability of humans that requires minimal or no input.

In his keynote address, he first discussed the fundamental issue of input (training data) for AI and emphasised that solutions provided by AI depend significantly on whether the input is relevant and informative. He also addressed issues such as input bias, data right versus right data (meaning the correctness and integrity of the data versus appropriateness of the data), and sample versus population in statistical research. The professor stated that statistical research employs relevant quality sample data alongside theoretically solid statistical inference models and natural intelligence to create statistical intelligence (SI). “While I believe AI will never replace BI, we humans should leverage artificial, statistical and biological intelligences to achieve our tasks more effectively,” stated the distinguished professor in statistics.

After the keynote speeches, a poster presentation was held outside the venue where nine postgraduate students from various departments presented their research projects on display boards. They answered questions from Professor Li, Professor Lee, Professor Lin, their research supervisors and other faculty scholars regarding their research questions, designs, and outcomes. Ms Tu Jiaxin from the Department of Social Sciences and Policy Studies (SSPS) received the highest mark from the adjudicating panel and won the title of best presenter.

In the afternoon, two oral presentation sessions were conducted allowing postgraduate students to share their research interests and expertise in greater depth. In Panel A moderated by Dr Claudia Wong Ming-yu from the Department of Health and Physical Education (HPE), Mr Linus Lo Shing-him from the Department of Science and Environmental Studies (SES) was awarded best presenter among four participants. In Panel B moderated by Dr Lo Chung-kwan from the Department of Mathematics and Information Technology (MIT), Ms Tao Lei from MIT was recognized as best presenter among five presenters. Starting with this edition of FPS, winners of poster and oral presentations will receive an award worth HK$5,000 to support future conference attendance or research-related activities.

Professor Daniel Chow Hung-kay, Associate Dean (Research and Postgraduate Studies), noted that FPS has enhanced postgraduate students’ understanding of research projects across disciplines as well as their presentation skills. He added that the faculty will continue to provide various funding opportunities for postgraduate students pursuing Doctor of Education studies or research programmes to attend academic conferences or related events. These include departmental financial support as well as annual teaching awards for Best Research Postgraduate Students and Outstanding Research Postgraduate Students Awards (OPSA) under the Dean’s Research Fund.

FPS is held twice every year in April and November. To further broaden our postgraduate students’ perspectives, the faculty has invited Dr Maxwell Hartt, an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography and Planning and the Director of the Population and Place Research Lab at Queen’s University, Canada, to join the next FPS scheduled for April 2025. An esteemed scholar in urban and regional planning, Dr Hartt will deliver a keynote speech on his expertise and latest research findings at the next seminar along with his own postgraduate students.

Presenters of poster presentation:

1.         Ms WANG Hanlin (HPE)

2.         Ms TAO Lei (MIT)

3.         Ms YUN Hange (MIT) and Ms CAO Wei (MIT)

4.         Ms QIAN Lingya (SES)

5.         Ms WANG Dongting (SES)

6.         Ms CHEN Sue (SES)

7.         Ms TU Jiaxin (SSPS) (Winner)

8.         Mr BUTAKHIEO Nantapong (SSPS)

Presenters of oral presentations: