
PolyU launches advanced education programme, offering short courses to keep learners abreast of sci-tech developments
To raise the community's understanding of interdisciplinary collaboration and its importance in driving positive transformations within societies, the Academy launches the PAIR Advanced Education Programme, to disseminate foundational and advanced knowledge in science and technology on topics that are closely related to daily living.
The first course, focusing on 'Healthy Life and Smart Living', will start this fall. This thirteen-week course, designed by PolyU experts in related disciplines, covers six applied science disciplines including: food and nutrition, sports, smart ageing, mental health, sharp vision, and Chinese medicine. Through the course, learners will understand the overall landscape of some of the pressing problems currently facing the world, as well as PolyU-led innovations that aim to tackle these issues, and technology challenges in related fields.
The course does not require learners to have relevant knowledge background and is particularly suitable to individuals who wish to broaden their understanding of interdisciplinary science and know about recent developments in science and technology. The course is offered in dual mode, that is, students can choose to attend classes in-person or online, providing flexible learning options to interested learners coming from Hong Kong and abroad. Learners fulfilling attendance requirement are eligible to apply for a certificate of completion.
To encourage the community's active participation in sci-tech learning, the first course is offered free of charge to eligible members of the public. The course has received enthusiastic response since its launch. Quota for physical class attendance is now full, while quota for online attendance is available on a first come, first served basis. Course enrolment will close on 31 July. For enrolment or details, please visit the programme website: https://www.polyu.edu.hk/pair/education/.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Star
9 hours ago
- The Star
Humanoid robots embodiment of China's AI ambitions
SHANGHAI: Serving craft beer, playing mahjong, stacking shelves and boxing, the dozens of humanoid robots at Shanghai's World AI Conference (WAIC) last weekend were embodiments of China's growing AI prowess and ambition. The annual event is primed at showcasing China's progress in the ever-evolving field of artificial intelligence, with the government aiming to position the country as a world leader on both technology and regulation as it snaps at the United States' heels. Premier Li Qiang announced China would set up a new organisation for cooperation on AI governance, warning the benefits of development must be balanced with the risks. But in the cavernous expo next door, the mood was more giddy than concerned. "Demand is currently very strong, whether in terms of data, scenarios, model training, or artificial construction. The overall atmosphere in all these areas is very lively," said Yang Yifan, R&D director at Transwarp, a Shanghai-based AI platform provider. This year's WAIC is the first since a breakthrough moment for Chinese AI this January when startup DeepSeek unveiled an AI model that performed as well as top US systems for an apparent fraction of the cost. Organisers said the forum involved more than 800 companies, showcasing over 3,000 products – the undeniable crowd pleasers being the humanoid robots and their raft of slightly surreal party tricks. At one booth, a robot played drums, half a beat out of time, to Queen's We Will Rock You while a man in safety goggles and a security vest hyped up a giggling crowd. Other droids, some dressed in working overalls or baseball caps, manned assembly lines, played curling with human opponents or sloppily served soft drinks from a dispenser. While most of the machines on display were still a little jerky, the increasing sophistication year-on-year was clear to see. The Chinese government has poured support into robotics, an area in which some experts think China might already have the upper hand over the United States. At Hangzhou-based Unitree's stall, its G1 android – around 130 centimetres (four feet) tall, with a two-hour battery life – kicked, pivoted and punched, keeping its balance with relative fluidity as it shadowboxed around a ring. Ahead of the conference's opening, Unitree announced it would launch a full-size humanoid, the R1, for under US$6,000 (RM 25,413) . 'Digital humans' Most high-tech helpers don't need hardware though. At the expo, AI companions – in the form of middle-aged businessmen, scantily clad women and ancient warriors – waved at people from screens, asking how their day was, while other stalls ran demos allowing visitors to create their own digital avatars. Tech giant Baidu on Saturday announced a new generation of technology for its "digital humans" – AI agents modelled on real people, which it says are "capable of thinking, making decisions, and collaborating". The company recently ran a six-hour e-commerce broadcast hosted by the "digital human" of a well-known streamer and another avatar. The two agents beat the human streamer's debut sales in some categories, Baidu said. Over ten thousand businesses are using the technology daily already, the department's head Wu Chenxia told AFP. Asked about the impact on jobs – one of the major concerns raised around widespread AI adoption – Wu insisted that AI was a tool that should be used to improve quality and save time and effort, which still required human input. In China, the integration of AI into everyday life is beginning to pick up pace. At WAIC, Baidu also announced it had been granted a permit to operate fully driverless robotaxis in parts of the massive Pudong district, the service's first foray into downtown Shanghai. For now, few visitors to the WAIC expo seemed worried about the potential ramifications of the back-flipping dog robots they were excitedly watching. "When it comes to China's AI development, we have a comparatively good foundation of data and also a wealth of application scenarios," said Transwarp's Yang. "There are many more opportunities for experimentation." – AFP


Malaysian Reserve
17 hours ago
- Malaysian Reserve
NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 Mission to Advance Stem Cell Manufacturing and In-Orbit Data Processing
Crew members will support ISS National Lab-sponsored investigations with important applications in regenerative medicine, advanced materials, and edge computing KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla., July 30, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Four astronauts are set to launch to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 mission. Over the coming months, the crew will support research to produce stem cells in space, study engineered liver tissue, and advance in-orbit data processing. The mission is scheduled to launch no earlier than 12:09 p.m. EDT on July 31, 2025, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA astronauts Zena Cardman (commander) and Mike Fincke (pilot), along with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Kimiya Yui (mission specialist) and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov (mission specialist), will serve as part of the Expedition 73 and 74 crew. During the mission, the crew will work on several payloads sponsored by the ISS National Laboratory® to benefit humanity and foster a robust economy in low Earth orbit (LEO). Below are some ISS National Lab-sponsored investigations the crew is expected to work on. Two projects focus on the production of stem cells in space to improve their maturation into different types of tissues. Research teams at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the University of Colorado will determine whether stem cells grow faster in space, resulting in larger numbers of cells for therapies to treat conditions like heart disease, neurodegenerative diseases, and more. A project from the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine will study engineered liver tissue containing blood vessels in microgravity. Results from the project, which was part of NASA's Vascular Tissue Challenge, could lead to new regenerative therapies for patients on Earth and, eventually, to the production of human tissues in space for organ transplants. New York high school students Isabelle Chuang and Julia Gross, winners of the 2024 Genes in Space™ competition, aim to use phages—viruses that attack bacteria—as therapeutic agents to combat microbial infections in space. Genes in Space, founded by Boeing and miniPCR bio and supported by the ISS National Lab, invites students in grades 7-12 to propose pioneering DNA experiments that leverage the unique environment of the space station. The ISS National Lab has a longstanding partnership with the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) to support fundamental research in LEO, and multiple NSF-funded projects will launch in the coming months. One such investigation from the University of California, Berkeley will study how tiny particles move within a liquid droplet and then stick to the droplet's surface. Understanding this process is useful for many things like producing advanced materials and removing pollutants in the environment. A project from Axiom Space, an ISS National Lab Commercial Service Provider, and Red Hat, a leading provider of open-source solutions, seeks to increase in-orbit data storage and edge-processing capabilities with the Red Hat Device Edge platform. These capabilities would enable near real-time analytics to support scalable expansion and iteration of experiments while they operate in space—which will be paramount to scaling R&D and manufacturing on future space platforms. This mission is the 11th SpaceX crew rotation to the orbiting laboratory as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, including research and technology demonstrations that have flown on previous missions, visit our launch page. Download a high-resolution image for this release: NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 About the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory:The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that enables research and technology development not possible on Earth. As a public service enterprise, the ISS National Laboratory® allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve quality of life on Earth, mature space-based business models, advance science literacy in the future workforce, and expand a sustainable and scalable market in low Earth orbit. Through this orbiting national laboratory, research resources on the ISS are available to support non-NASA science, technology, and education initiatives from U.S. government agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space® (CASIS®) manages the ISS National Lab, under Cooperative Agreement with NASA, facilitating access to its permanent microgravity research environment, a powerful vantage point in low Earth orbit, and the extreme and varied conditions of space. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, visit our website. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CASIS accepts corporate and individual donations to help advance science in space for the benefit of humanity. For more information, visit our donations page. Media Contact: Patrick O'Neill 904-806-0035 PONeill@ International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory Managed by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space® (CASIS®) __________________________________________________________________________1005 Viera Blvd., Suite 101, Rockledge, FL 32955 • 321.253.5101 •


Borneo Post
2 days ago
- Borneo Post
China's R&D-to-market pipeline emerges as global innovation magnet
A staff member (R) of Westwell, a Chinese technology company, introduces a Q-Tractor P40 Plus new energy unmanned vehicle to a visitor during its debut at the 2025 World AI Conference in east China's Shanghai, July 27, 2025. – Xinhua photo BEIJING (July 29): For Liu Qing, director of the National Innovation Center par Excellence (NICE), the first half of 2025 has been an exceptionally busy but rewarding period to expand China's global research footprint. Through efforts like hosting science and innovation forums in countries including Denmark and Australia, the center added 11 new overseas strategic partners during the six months, bringing the total number of its international partners close to 100. 'The market prospects for industrial development in China are indeed attractive to overseas scientists,' said Liu, while speaking on the latest episode of China Economic Roundtable, an all-media talk show hosted by Xinhua News Agency. 'They see it as a place to truly make their results serve humanity.' Behind the center's successful global push lies China's rapidly advancing innovation ecosystem — which puts emphasis not only on research and development (R&D), but also on the commercialization and industrialization of new technologies. Official data showed that China's R&D expenditure exceeded 3.6 trillion yuan (about 503.73 billion U.S. dollars) in 2024, ranking second in the world. Notably, enterprises played a key role in driving such innovation. Data reveals that the corporate sector contributes over 75 percent of national R&D spending and employs more than 75 percent of R&D personnel. These expenditures have turned into tangible breakthroughs. In the fields of quantum technology, life sciences and artificial intelligence, China saw significant recent progress — with many of its industries leading the world. 'Our innovations fuse scientific discovery with industrial capability,' said Gao Qianfeng, co-founder and vice president of GalaxySpace, a Beijing-based commercial space firm. For Gao, the secret behind turning scientific breakthroughs into commercialized products lies in China's robust industrial ecosystem. Noting that the space firm's supply chain spans over 1,000 partners across enterprises, universities and research institutions, Gao said that navigating this extensive ecosystem requires deep collaboration. 'Open collaboration creates catalytic chemistry between labs and factories,' Gao explained. Policy frameworks reinforce this integration. Gan Xiaobin, an official with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said global evidence shows that advanced sci-tech services catalyze deeper industry-academia convergence. Earlier this year, China released an implementation guideline on accelerating the high-quality development of the science and technology services sector — which outlined specific tasks across key areas such as R&D, technology transfer and commercialization, business incubation and technology promotion. The ministry will work with other government departments to accelerate the transformation of research into market-ready products to seed emerging industries, Gan said. Looking forward, Liu of NICE said sustained progress requires increased basic research spending. 'Scientists need to have enough funding to dedicate their time to a single field for three to five years to yield truly groundbreaking discoveries,' he said. This commitment, coupled with robust industrial strength and global outreach, will continue to position China as a central player in global innovation, the experts said. China innovation market RD