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The University works extensively in promoting and expanding opportunities for students to engage in research activities to strengthen their research capability and gain hands-on experience. In this issue, we are proud to introduce some of the high-quality work and awards received by our research postgraduate students, whose achievements shine across multiple disciplines in the international arena and local community.

Faculty of Architecture

 Groundbreaking Study on How Heatwaves Affect Biological Ageing 

PhD student Miss Siyi Chen, under the supervision of Professor Cui Guo and Professor Shenjing He from the Department of Urban Planning and Design, has recently co-authored a groundbreaking study published in Nature Climate Change, a world-leading journal in environmental studies. It has also been selected by Springer Nature for a press release, underscoring its global significance. 

In this study, the team analysed data from 24,922 adults in Taiwan, with an average biological age of 46.3 years, to examine how long-term exposure to heatwaves influences biological ageing in the general population. Over a 15-year period (2008–2022), researchers assessed multiple heatwave characteristics using advanced models and sensitivity analyses. Their findings revealed that cumulative exposure to heatwaves was significantly associated with faster biological ageing. Manual workers, rural residents, and communities with limited access to air conditioning were identified as especially vulnerable. 

As one of the first investigations into the long-term effects of heatwaves on ageing, this study not only advances academic understanding but also highlights the exceptional contributions of an emerging scholar. The findings also call for urgent policy measures to reduce environmental inequalities in heat exposure and to strengthen adaptation strategies that protect vulnerable groups and guide more efficient healthcare resource allocation. 

Faculty of Arts

 HKU Applied Linguistics PhD Student Shares How Digital Landscape Shapes Academic Literacies of Multilingual Students  

Siqi Song, a PhD student in Applied Linguistics from the Centre for Applied English Studies, presented her research at the Asia TEFL International Conference in July at the Education University of Hong Kong. Her research explored how multilingual students’ digitally integrated repertoires shape their academic literacies. 

Her qualitative study followed three multilingual student writers in different academic disciplines over an academic year. Findings showed that the contextual language and literacy practices were mobilised and linked to digital writing, which reshaped language use and enhanced language proficiency in disciplinary writing. Their lived writing experience reshaped academic literacies in the digital era, and they became more resourceful multilingual writers.  

The findings have pedagogical implications for supporting the digital generation of students in English-medium instruction higher education and beyond: to compare and reflect on the uses of different languages and modes in meaning-making, and to combine and manipulate meanings with different digital discourses when creating one’s own content. 

This research has also been presented in different international and local academic conferences, such as the TESOL International Convention and the Hong Kong Association of Applied Linguistics. It has won the Award for International Participation of the TESOL International Association.   

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Celebrating the Achievements of a PhD Student in Music

The orchestral work, ... aux cendres [study II for orchestra], by Angus Lee, a part-time PhD student and also Assistant Lecturer in the Department of Music, was commissioned and premiered by the Hong Kong Philharmonic on 22 November 2024, under the baton of the internationally acclaimed conductor Elim Chan. This major commission not only solidifies Angus’s growing reputation as a composer but also showcases his ability to craft complex orchestral textures with sensitivity and innovation. 
 
Angus was also commissioned to compose hic / nunc, a new piece for ensemble and fixed media. This work was featured as the closing piece of the prestigious Music Biennale Zagreb in April 2025. He also conducted the concert, which included world premieres by Camilo Mendez, Sonja Mutić, and Pilar Miralles. His engagement with the Biennale extended beyond performance; he also presented a paper at the International Musicology Conference held during the festival. In his paper, he explored the aesthetics and cultural significance of vaporwave, an internet-born musical genre that is the focus of his PhD thesis.

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PhD Student Recognised for Her Groundbreaking Research in Ethnomusicology

Tung Tsz-ching, a PhD student in music, has distinguished herself with groundbreaking research in ethnomusicology. At the 2025 American Musical Instrument Society (AMIS) meeting held in June at Georgia Southern University, Tsz-ching received the prestigious Frederick R. Selch Award for Best Student Paper. Her attendance at the conference was supported by the William E. Gribbon Memorial Award for Student Travel, also granted by AMIS. 
 
Tsz-ching’s award-winning scholarship is the result of research project on the transmission and tradition of Cantonese music that she has been working on since 2019. This ambitious initiative has garnered consistent support, including major funding from the Arts Development Council (2019), the Arts Capacity Development Funding Scheme (ACDFS, 2022), and the National Arts Fund (CNAF, 2022). In early 2025, she published Everlasting Cantonese Music: The Inheritance and Conservation Practice of Hong Kong’s Cantonese Music Styles, a landmark study and the culmination of her ACDFS-supported research. 

Looking ahead, Tsz-ching will further her research and broaden her academic horizons as a visiting graduate student at UCLA in the fall of 2025. Her semester abroad, under the mentorship of Professor Helen Rees, is supported by the Culture, Sports, and Tourism Bureau in recognition of her achievements under the CNAF award.​

 

 

 

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The 8th Forum on Cantonese Linguistics (FoCaL-8) Concludes Successfully

The School of Chinese, HKU, and The Linguistic Society of Hong Kong jointly organised the 8th Forum on Cantonese Linguistics (FoCaL-8) on June 21, 2025. The forum aimed to provide a platform for postgraduate and undergraduate students to share their latest research findings on Cantonese Linguistics. 

FoCaL-8 attracted over 70 participants from global institutions, e.g., France’s École Normale Supérieure de Paris, the Netherlands’ Leiden University, and the United Kingdom’s University of Oxford, and local and mainland institutions. Mr. Au Ho Hei, an MPhil student from the Department of Music, presented on the topic of ‘Cantonese Tone-Melody Mapping Mechanism’.

FoCaL-8 showcases the diversity and vibrancy of current Cantonese linguistics research. It also injects new vitality into the field and motivates participants to elevate their research to new heights. Moreover, it acts as a rare and practical learning experience beyond the classroom for students. 

Further information and event photos: https://focalhongkong.wordpress.com/ ; Event photos

Faculty of Engineering

HKU Engineering Team Develops Quadrupedal Robots on Challenging Terrains

Professor Peng Lu and his team—including PhD students Erdong Xiao and Yinzhao Dong from the Adaptive Robotic Controls Lab (ArcLab), the Department of Mechanical Engineering—have developed a physical intelligence controller for quadrupedal robots: TumblerNet. The learning-based controller can enable quadrupedal robots to perform stable bipedal locomotion on various challenging terrains, even including a sandy beach. The research was published by Nature Portfolio Journal Robotics.

(This article is adapted from https://mech.hku.hk/post/quadrupedal-robots-on-challenging-terrains.) 

 

Faculty of Law

HKU Law Postgraduate Demonstrates Exceptional Commitment in Arbitration, Mediation, and Pro Bono Services 

Franklin Koo is a student under the Doctor of Legal Science programme of the Faculty of Law. Earlier this year, he participated and enhanced his expertise at the prestigious and extremely competitive Winter Academy on International Arbitration by the Russian Institute of Modern Arbitration. Also, through the Hong Kong Legal Services Forum in Xi’an, Franklin showcased Hong Kong’s strengths and role as a leading hub for international legal and arbitration services in the Belt & Road Initiative. 

Franklin was honoured by the Chief Secretary for Administration’s Office for contributing over 50 hours of pro bono legal services in 2023-2024. “It was a profoundly rewarding experience that reaffirmed the core purpose of our legal system: accessible justice,” he said. “The moment of watching both parties shake hands was more powerful than any judgment.”  

His experience in providing pro bono services inspired him to further his research in alternative dispute resolution here at HKU. “This work has been a powerful reminder that the law is not just an adversarial tool, but a framework for problem-solving,” Franklin said. “It has motivated me to integrate a more empathetic, solutions-oriented approach, striving not to being just an advocate, but a facilitator of resolution.” 

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 HKU Law Students are 2nd Runner-up in FDI Moot Shenzhen 2025 

The Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) held the Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitration Moot’s Chinese national qualifying rounds on July 26-27, 2025. Congratulations to the HKU team of law students who took 2nd runner-up out of 44 universities: Yang Chung Hei Jethro (JD 1), Li Jiazhen (LLB 4), Ng To (BBA(Law)&LLB 5), Ng Wai (PCLL), and Wong Man Kit (PCLL), backed by the Faculty of Law and coached by Eugene Ye (BBA(Law)&LLB 4). Wong Man Kit and Ng Wai showcased excellent oral advocacy as oralists, whilst Ng To and Yang Chung Hei Jethro served as researchers. The team will face the Boston Globals in November 2025.

 

 

 

Faculty of Science

HKU Chemistry PhD Graduate Completes Research Exchange at the University of Oxford

Tehseen Nawaz, a ​Presidential PhD Scholar,​ recently graduated from HKU’s Department of Chemistry. Her journey at HKU has led her to become an exchange researcher at the University of Oxford, where she had the opportunity to work with Professor Anna Regoutz, whose groundbreaking work on ​structure-electronic structure relationships in inorganic solids​ opened new dimensions in her thinking. 
 
What stood out most to Tehseen was the culture of generosity in her research group. “Professor Regoutz exemplified the ideal academic mentor – patient with questions, enthusiastic about sharing insights, and genuinely invested in helping visiting researchers thrive,” Tehseen said. “The Oxford research ecosystem surprised me with its perfect balance of ​intellectual rigour and collaborative spirit.” 

Beyond the technical skills that Tehseen gained from this exchange experience, she also brought back something even more valuable: a model for how truly collaborative research should feel.  “The way Professor Regoutz’s team blended cutting-edge science with human connection showed me the best of what academia can be,” she remarked. 

Tehseen expresses her deepest gratitude to both HKU and Oxford University for making this transformative exchange possible. 

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 HKU Geologists Suggest Early Continents Formed through Mantle Plumes, Not Plate Collisions

HKU geologists have made a breakthrough in understanding how the Earth’s early continents formed during the Archean time, more than 2.5 billion years ago. Their findings, recently published in Science Advances, suggest that early continental crust likely formed through deep Earth processes called mantle plumes, rather than the plate tectonics that shape continents today. 
 
This study—led by HKU PhD graduates and postdoctoral fellows Dr Dingyi Zhao and Dr Xiangsong Wang in Mok Sau-King Professor Guochun Zhao’s Early Earth Research Group at the HKU Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, together with international collaborators—has uncovered strong evidence that a distinct geodynamic mechanism shaped the Earth’s formative years. Rather than the plate tectonic processes we see today, the research points to a regime dominated by mantle plumes—towering columns of hot, molten rock ascending from deep within the Earth. It also identifies a phenomenon known as sagduction, wherein surface rocks gradually descend under their weight into the planet’s hotter, deeper layers. These findings shed new light on the dynamic processes that governed the early evolution of Earth’s lithosphere. 
 
(This article is adapted from https://www.scifac.hku.hk/news/early-continents-formed-through-mantle-plumes-not-plate-collisions.)

 

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 HKU Ecologists Lead Global Study Revealing Dam Construction's Harmful Impact on Migratory River Species  

A global review of research on the impacts of dams has revealed that they are significantly harmful to diadromous species—fish, crustaceans, and snails that migrate between fresh water and the sea, relying on intact, connected rivers to complete their life cycles. 

Published in Biological Reviews, the study is the first comprehensive global synthesis of the impacts of dam-induced fragmentation on diadromous species. Drawing on over 100 research outcomes, it finds that while dams pose a major threat to freshwater biodiversity, the full extent of the impacts is underestimated on a global scale due to knowledge gaps and research shortfalls that urgently need to be addressed. 

The study is led by PhD student Jeffery Chan and supervised by Emeritus Professor David Dudgeon of the School of Biological Sciences, HKU, in collaboration with researchers including Billy Lam from Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behaviour-Caesar and Dr Jia Huan Liew from the University of Tasmania. The team found that dams cause widespread disruptions to migratory species, reducing their abundance, species diversity, and genetic diversity. 

(This article is adapted from https://www.scifac.hku.hk/news/revealing-dam-construction-s-harmful-impact-on-migratory-river-species.)

Faculty of Social Sciences

 

Psychology PhD Student Presents Research at PNIRS Annual Meeting in France  

Rachel Run Jin, a PhD candidate under the supervision of Professor Tatia Lee from the Department of Psychology, presented her research on ‘The Effect of Acute Stress on the Glymphatic System’ at the 2025 PsychoNeuroImmunology Research Society (PNIRS) Annual Meeting in June 2025 in Bordeaux, France. Her work investigates acute stress-associated changes in the glymphatic system—an essential immune component responsible for waste clearance in the brain. Findings suggest that maintaining dynamic plasticity of the glymphatic system in response to psychological challenges is essential for mental health. 
 
Rachel received both the PNIRS Trainee Scholar Travel Award and the Michael Irwin Travel Award—being one of only two recipients from Asian institutions for each award, and the only trainee to receive both honours. “This is an excellent opportunity to enhance our visibility in the international research community,” Rachel shared. “Being recognised in interdisciplinary research has motivated me to tackle clinically meaningful questions in neuropsychology and mental health by integrating multidisciplinary methodologies and theories, thereby contributing to promoting mental wellbeing worldwide.” 
 
These achievements would not have been possible without tremendous support from her mentor and teammates. Rachel expressed her gratitude: “I am deeply grateful to my supervisor, lab mates, and research collaborators for their inspiration; to our department and HKU for cultivating a supportive research environment, and for the funding support from the HKU Presidential PhD Scholarship and the Hong Kong PhD Fellowship.”

 

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HKU PhD Student Wins a ‘Space-Out’ Competition  

Denis Hong-Wang Kwan, an educational psychologist and PhD student from the Faculty of Social Sciences, is the champion of a Space‑Out competition—a contest about doing nothing. First held in Seoul in 2014 by the Korean artist Woopsyang, the competition was a performance-art piece that involved people competing to effectively do nothing and ‘space out’ for 90 minutes. There have since been competitions all over the world, held several times a year. 

Although it was a ‘space-out’ competition, Denis was doing quite the opposite: actively practising mindfulness, observing his mind and breath. He describes the experience as a “a luxury”, especially in this world where people’s minds are stimulated all day long. 

“For many people, sitting in silence for 90 minutes would be a nightmare, but I found it very enjoyable. I think it’s vital to take time to come back to ourselves. People live day in, day out, never stopping—it’s as if stopping is a kind of laziness. Although the event was just 90 minutes, it gave us a way to just be ourselves, and I hope it reminds people that productivity isn’t always the most important thing.” 

(This article is adapted from https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jul/18/experience-world-champion-of-doing-nothing-space-out-competition.) 

 

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 HKU Sociology PhD Student Wins First Place in the U21 Challenge Competition

Wendy Ka Yin Lee represented HKU as a delegate at the U21 School for Sustainable Policy Leadership 2025 — an inspiring multidisciplinary gathering of future changemakers from around the globe. She and her team won first place in the U21 Challenge competition, selected by the jury from amongst nine proposals. Their project, Repair & Create Together: An Intergenerational Circular Hub, addresses campus waste, climate anxiety, and generational disconnect by transforming disposal into meaningful connection. Through Repair Cafés, Waste-to-Art labs, and storytelling initiatives, they designed a scalable model to foster community resilience, circular skills, and creative reuse—with real-world applicability and long-term impact.

They also visited the UN City Copenhagen, where they gained insights from energy and carbon emission experts—further deepening their understanding of global sustainability efforts. Wendy remarked, “The experience was truly humbling, as I learned from world-class sustainability experts and collaborated with passionate, like-minded peers.”

 

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Sociology PhD Student Presents Research at the 30th International Population Conference in Brisbane

Wanying Ling, a PhD candidate from the Department of Sociology, collaborated with Professor Tarani Chandola to investigate the association between reporting anxiety on Mondays and HPA-axis dysregulation. Their study, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, analysed data from over 3,500 UK adults aged 50 and above. 

Among older adults who reported feeling anxious on Mondays, cortisol levels measured in hair samples up to two months later were 23% higher at the 90th quantile of the cortisol distribution compared with those who felt anxious on other days. Interestingly, no significant differences in cortisol levels were observed for anxiety experienced on non-Monday days. 

“I am honoured to contribute to this intriguing study—exploring social time rhythms has always been a research interest of mine,” Wanying said. “By integrating sociological perspectives with social epidemiological methods, this study provides new empirical insights into the phenomenon of Monday anxiety, underscoring the physiological impact of Monday-related stress.”  

Wanying also had the opportunity to present her collaborative study on household wealth and health, titled ‘The Wealthier, the Psychologically Healthier? Assets, Debt, and Depressive Symptoms in Urban and Rural China’ at the 30th International Population Conference (IPC) in Brisbane, Australia. Her research examines the complex relationship between wealth and mental health, specifically how different components of wealth—assets and debt—impact depressive symptoms in both urban and rural Chinese settings.