In 2022, a series of important events, such as the 2022 Fall Meeting of the Chinese Physical Society, the Future Science Prize, and the second Xplorer Forum, were held at the University, reflecting its continued growth and development in academic circles. The Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) has developed and implemented "Three Major Development Strategies" and "Five Major Action Plans", and will build major scientific and technological infrastructures and scientific research institutions to produce groundbreaking results and contribute to the county's scientific and technological advancement.
Scientific research results recognized among the international physics community
On December 20, the American Physical Society's (APS) Physics website reviewed the year's major advances in international physics. They released ten of the most representative important works of 2022 as the "Highlights of the Year". Professor Jingyun Fan's research group from the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), with their work entitled "Fundamental position of complex numbers in quantum mechanics," was included in the list alongside other significant research achievements, including breakthroughs in laser fusion, the turning on of an upgraded Large Hadron Collider, the first photograph of the Milky Way's black hole, stunning images from the James Webb Space Telescope, Spacecraft Crash Changes Asteroid Orbit, and deciphering Protein Folding.
SUSTech establishes new scientific research institutions
In 2022, to promote the rapid development of research work in the fields of new materials, biomedicine, carbon neutrality, nanotechnology, precision optics, urban civilization, and clean governance, the University established seven new institutions. These scientific research institutions included the Institute of Nanoscience and Applications (INA), Center for Precision Optical Engineering, Institute of Health Medicine, Guangming Advanced Research Institute, Institute of Clean Governance, Energy Institute for Carbon Neutrality, and Institute of Global Urban Civilization.
Experts gather at SUSTech as it hosts the 2022 Fall Meeting of the Chinese Physical Society
The 2022 Fall Meeting of the Chinese Physical Society (CPS) took place from 17-20 November, as the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) hosted the academic conference this year. It attracted extensive attention from experts in related fields, and provided cutting-edge views and ideas for the future direction and innovative development of physics in China. The conference was carried out in a hybrid format, with the number of live viewers of the broadcast reaching almost 300,000.
The Fall Meeting is an annual academic conference hosted by the CPS. At present, it has become the largest and most comprehensive academic event in the field of physics in China. This year, it lasted for four days, consisting of 3,456 registered participants and 1,493 accepted reports.
This year also marked the 90th anniversary of CPS, and on November 18, it celebrated its anniversary at SUSTech. Nearly 400 guests attended the celebration, including experts and scholars from the CPS, various universities, research institutes, enterprises, and representatives of faculty members and students from the University.
In his remarks at the event, Jie ZHANG, President of the CPS and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), noted that the CPS had brought together a group of outstanding intellectuals who are making important contributions to the development of science and technology in the country. He said that this year's Fall Meeting was held in SUSTech and Shenzhen because it is a city full of innovation and vitality, and that the Department of Physics of the University has made a lot of achievements in the world's scientific and technological frontiers.
From October 2022, several Future Science Prize events were held at SUSTech. On October 23, the Hong Kong Symposium - Science for the Future, which was jointly sponsored by the Future Science Awards Foundation and the Academy of Sciences of Hong Kong (ASHK), was held in Hong Kong. Three Future Science Prize Laureates from SUSTech participated in the hybrid format event and presented keynote reports. They included SUSTech President Qikun XUE, Vice President Xueming YANG, and Chair Professor Dawei MA.
On November 9, Prof. Xueming YANG presented a keynote report entitled "Quantum Properties in Chemical Reactions" at the College of Science at SUSTech. He held exchanges with faculty members and students in attendance, and discussed in-depth his motivation for carrying out scientific research and the unique skills required for it, the development of cutting-edge instruments, and the application of basic research. On November 27, Prof. YANG also held dialogues both in-person and virtually with students, discussing his scientific research work and offering advice for those who wish to embark on scientific research in the future.
At the end of the year, the 2022 Future Science Prize Award Ceremony was held simultaneously in Beijing, Hong Kong, and Shenzhen. SUSTech hosted the ceremony in Shenzhen, which was attended by representatives of the Future Science Prize Council, renowned academics, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders. The event was jointly organized by the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and SUSTech. Established in 2016, the Future Science Prize is a science award initiated by a group of scientists and entrepreneurs. It aims to reward scientists who have made outstanding scientific achievements in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macao SAR, and Taiwan province, encouraging the promotion of basic science research in China and the development of science.
In November, the second Xplorer Forum, co-sponsored by SUSTech and Tencent, was held at the University. It is a high-level, interdisciplinary academic exchange platform provided for winners of the Xplorer Prize.
Scientific and technological achievements reach a record high
In 2022, the University received more than 50 scientific research awards at various levels. The Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Committee announced the recipients of the 2022 Shenzhen Science and Technology Award. SUSTech won a total of ten awards, of which four are first prizes, ranking first among the city's universities and scientific research institutions and accounted for about 50% of the total number of the first prizes.
Many scholars from the University also received international scientific research awards and honors. Qikun XUE, President of SUSTech, won the Fritz London Memorial Prize, becoming the first Chinese scientist and only the second from Asia to win the award; Xueming YANG, Vice President of SUSTech, won the 2022 Future Science Prize in physical sciences; Jian LIN, Chair Professor of the Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, was elected as a member of the Academia Europaea (Academy of Europe); Xumu ZHANG, Vice Dean of the College of Science, was elected as a foreign member of the Russian Academy of Engineering (RAE); Guozhi XIAO, Vice Dean of the School of Medicine, was selected as a foreign academician of the Ukrainian Academy of Engineering Sciences; Qiang ZHU, Chair Professor of the Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, won the Outstanding Contribution Award for the Application of Semi-Solid State Technology from the China Foundry Association (CFA); Mingzheng TENG, Associate Professor of the Research Center of Ideological and Political Education, won the first prize in the second Higher Education Scientific Research Outstanding Achievement Award of Guangdong Province.
Municipal, provincial, and national high-level talents and team projects also achieved outstanding results. The University has been approved for five National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars projects and four National Science Fund for Excellent Young Scholars projects. The Pearl River Scholar Program team project declared in 2021 received notification of the project approval results this year, with a total approved funding of 70 million yuan. The University was also approved for three Outstanding Young Scholar Projects and five Young Scholar Improvement Projects from the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province.
For three consecutive years, one project from SUSTech has been approved by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Research Team of the Guangdong Regional Joint Fund (only three projects are approved in the province each year). The University has also been approved for four Outstanding Young Scholar projects in Shenzhen and eight Excellent Young Scholar projects in Shenzhen. Additionally, it has been approved for four high-level talent teams in Shenzhen, with a total funding of 55 million yuan, ranking first in the city in terms of the number of funding teams and funds.
In 2022, SUSTech published 5,544 high-level academic papers, including 3,999 SCI papers, a year-on-year increase of 15.3% and 14.8%, respectively. It published 19 influential papers in journals such as Nature, Science, and Cell. The weighted fractional count (WFC) of SUSTech's Nature Index of Chinese Universities also increased to 252.68 (September 1, 2021 - August 31, 2022), ranking 12th in the list of Chinese Universities, and 29th in the World University Natural Index Rankings, once again setting a record high.
SUSTech's approved soft science projects hit a record high in funding
SUSTech made significant strides in the development of its liberal arts through various projects, platforms, and awards. In 2022, the University received more than five million yuan for the first time in project funding. Lan LI, Chair Professor of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, said that the Chinese Local Records Language Data Platform Construction and Dictionary Compilation was approved this year as a major project of the National Social Science Fund, with an approved fund of 800,000 yuan. For the first time, it was approved as a separate project of art by the National Social Science Fund.
The University has made new breakthroughs in many ministerial and provincial projects, such as the Ministry of Education Humanities and Social Sciences Project and the Philosophy and Social Sciences Planning Project of Guangdong Province. It has also been approved for one Social Science Popularization Base in Guangdong Province, one Key Research Base for Humanities and Social Sciences in Shenzhen, and two university-level sciences research institutions in liberal arts.
SUSTech will continue to implement its major strategies and action plans to achieve innovative and original breakthroughs in scientific research and key core technologies, and make greater contributions to the development of Shenzhen, the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area, and the country.