On May 11th 2017, member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Air Force Aeronautical Medicine Institute of Aviation Research Center Director Yu Mengsun and Shanghai Jiaotong University Institute of Mechanical Biology Honorary Professor Professor Jiang Zonglai came to SUSTech to give a talk on “Human Health Engineering Problems” and “Biomechanics: Progress on the Mechanics of Biology”. The lectures were overseen by Prof. Guo Xiangdong, chair professor of the Department of Biomedical Engineering.

Lecture Hall

Yu Mengsun is a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, as well as the director of the Air Force Aeronautical Medicine Institute of Aviation Research Center, making him one of the leading minds in the field. He pioneered Chinese aviation’s biomedical engineering since the early 1960s, when he developed the “aeronautical telemetry device” and “physiological oscillatory recording device” successfully at 12,000 meters altitude and 300 km flight radius. In these conditions the human body faces physiological pressures in the heart, brain and other aspects and for this physical information telemetry is a key field to study. After the United States and the former Soviet Union, China was the third country to develop aviation medical telemetry technologies, and this can mainly be attributed to Yu’s comprehensive work.

Professor Jiang Zonglai is an honorary director of the Institute of Mechanical Biology of Shanghai Jiaotong University and a member of the World Biomechanics Council (WCB), honorary vice chairman of the China Society of Biomedical Engineering, National Biology Deputy director of the Journal of Biomedical Engineering and deputy editor-in-chief of the Journal of Medical Biomechanics. He has been engaged in cardiovascular morphology, biomechanics and mechanical biology for nearly 40 years.

Yu Mengsun lecturing

In the report, Yu repeatedly tells the students to work on a healthy lifestyle, and particularly pay attention to getting enough sleep. Being over 80 years old Professor Yu knows what he is talking about as he is still full of vitality and humour, frequently exchanging with the students in a good-humoured and hearty atmosphere.

Jiang Zonglai for the report

Jiang Zonglai then took to the stage to give a presentation on the development of modern biomechanics and the contributions of Feng Yuanshi, analyzing the progress and current situation of biomechanics to mechanical biology. He reviewed the development and research progress of biomechanics in China, and also introduced the field of mechanical biology’s Biology of Vascular Mechanics. He pionted out that biomechanics have a good prospect for the future in China.

At the end of the lecture, Yu Mengsun wrote in the “SUSTech Lecture Guestbook”: “SUSTech will make an outstanding contribution to human health!” Jiang later addressed a message directly to the department of Biomedical Engineering: “The development of biomechanics, the benefit of human health are key research areas and I wish SUSTech to make major progress in human health research”.

Text: Peng Yu Lei

Photo: Zhang Haofan, Sun Zhanrui

Edited by: Jeremy Welburn