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Features

The Positive Circles of Inspiration

Interviews with TIWACT Members

On the eve of summer vacation in 2023, a group of university students, teachers, and community volunteers visited Chiputula Primary School in Mzuzu, Malawi. They announced the upcoming English reading workshops scheduled for mid-August and enthusiastically invited children to participate. Among the group, one Asian face stood out—Yokogawa Rena, a student from the Department of Sociology at National Taiwan University.
Rena, along with Blessings Chirambo from Mzuzu University, founded TIWACT in early 2023. They subsequently invited Jasmine (Zi-Ying Lee), Anna (Anna Lao), and Jennifer (Xin-Wei Chen), also from NTU, to join the team. Their mission was to reduce the dropout rate among Malawian students. Organizing English reading workshops and inviting local community members to share their career experiences, they worked to enhance learning opportunities for local children and provide them with role models.

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HONOR

Breakthrough in AI Medicine: NTU Wins the Alexander R. Margulis Award for Scientific Excellence

An NTU research team won the 2023 Alexander R. Margulis Award for Scientific Excellence from the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) for their development of an AI pancreatic cancer detection tool. Radiology, the official journal of RSNA, points out that the study discovered a new route for early pancreatic cancer detection to enable timely treatment, greatly increasing the chance of survival and benefiting millions of patients worldwide.

GLOBAL OUTLOOK

Biocredit Taiwan Initiative Wins Approval at COP28

A Taiwanese team led by NTU Prof. Ming-Jer Tsai was invited to present a solution to the ecological crisis at COP28 in 2023. In particular, the proposal won high praise for the application of “Biocredit Taiwan” and was hailed as a significant contribution to the conference.

Joint Conference with UTokyo on Sustainability Following the Lecture by UTokyo President Teruo Fujii

The 2023 NTU-UTokyo Joint Conference took place in last December, with scholars from both universities uniting under the theme “Towards a Sustainable Future Challenges and Resilience.” The conference featured an opening ceremony and plenary session, followed by 18 parallel sessions over two days. President Wen-Chang Chen of NTU and President Teruo Fujii of UTokyo both spoke at the opening ceremony, looking back on twenty years of strategic partnership and reaffirming mutual goals to advance research, education, and society. The plenary session included an International Collaboration Panel in which four panelists shared their experiences spearheading international research collaborations.

Director of Saxony State Ministry of Science and Culture Visits NTU

Fostering Global Tech Talent through Collaborative Engagement

Dr. Sebastian Gemkow, Director of the Saxony State Ministry of Science and Culture, along with his Chief of Staff, Dr. Michael Schmischke, visited NTU in March, accompanied by Dr. Josef Goldberger, the head of the Saxony State Ministry of Science and Culture's Taiwan office. They were warmly received by President Wen-Chang Chen, Associate Vice President for International Affairs Prof. Jiun-Haw Lee, and Chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering, Prof. Chien-Mo Li.

Orientation and Welcome Ceremony of “STIPT”

National Taiwan University (NTU) hosted the Orientation and Welcome Ceremony for the “Semiconductor Talent Incubation Program Taiwan (#STIPT)” on March 6. NTU officially began its collaboration with the program this year as the exclusive partner institution of TSMC and the Saxony government. The objective of the “Semiconductor Talent Incubation Program” is selecting 30 students from three German universities and six countries for a semester-long academic training in Taiwan. As the pioneering and sole partner, NTU is leading the way in a groundbreaking model of cross-border collaboration between industry and academia to foster talent development in Taiwan.

NTU, Yonsei U Forge Partnership in Quantum Science and Engineering

On December 7th, President Seoung Hwan Suh of Yonsei University led a distinguished delegation to National Taiwan University (NTU), including Vice President for University Planning and Development Kabsung Kim, Vice President for External Affairs and Development Heejun Park, and Prof. Hakbae Lee from the Department of Applied Statistics. They were warmly received by President Wen-Chang Chen and Vice President for International Affairs Hsiao-Wei Yuan. The primary purpose of their visit was to formalize the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between NTU’s Centre for Quantum Science and Engineering (CQSE) and Yonsei University’s Institute of Quantum Information Technology.

Enhancing Bilateral Research Between NTU and Northwestern U

On December 5th 2023, NTU had the honor of welcoming a delegation from Northwestern University, including Vice President for International Relations Dévora Grynspan, Vice President for Research Eric Perrault, and seven faculty representatives from Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, as well as Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Achievements

Unraveling the DNA Mystery: ATR and DHX9 in Genome Stability

The DNA in the billions of cells within the human body is under constant assault from various threats, both internal and external, collectively known as genotoxic stress, which can lead to DNA damage. If left unrepaired, this damage can result in genome instability, a significant factor in the development of cancer and various genetic diseases.

A Nanophotonic Breakthrough: Mie-Tronics Under Microscopy

For centuries, the mesmerizing colors of stained glass windows and the Lycurgus Cup captivated us, their physics shrouded in mystery. It took Gustav Mie's electromagnetic wave scattering theory in the 20th century to explain the magic behind these colors – grinding metals to specific sizes creates optical resonances, intensifying absorption and scattering to produce vivid hues. Fast forward to the 21st century, this nanoscale Mie resonance now extends to high-refractive-index semiconductors like silicon.

Revolutionizing Agriculture: NTU Wins National Agricultural Science Award

The R&D team led by Distinguished Professor Ta-Te Lin from NTU Department of Biomechatronic Engineering has been awarded the first prize in the Industrial Pioneer Category of the Ministry of Agriculture's 2023 National Agricultural Science Award. This prestigious national recognition honors outstanding achievements in developing agricultural science and technology. The team's groundbreaking project— Smart Pest Monitoring System—was developed through a collaborative effort involving experts from NTU's Department of Biomechatronic Engineering, the Department of Entomology, the Ministry of Agriculture's Tainan District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, and Taiwan Hipoint Corporation. The system has been lauded for its innovative approaches and wide applications in the agricultural sector.

Teaching & Learning

From Classroom to Community: Exploring the Realm of Biodiversity Assessment and Conservation Management

At the heart of the Master's Program in Biodiversity (MPB) lies the "Biodiversity Workshop," a comprehensive course led by Assistant Prof. Chun-Chia Chou. This dynamic class is designed to cultivate both theoretical understanding and practical skills in the realm of biodiversity conservation management.

“Design Your Life”: Creating a Wonderful Life by Making Your Dreams a Reality

“Design Your Life” is one of the popular courses at NTU D-School. This course focuses on guiding students to explore themselves; moreover, at the end of the semester, the significant others in the students’ lives will be invited to a sharing session, where they will reflect on their process of exploration, their new understanding of themselves, as well as their future aspirations.

Applying Generative AI to Produce VR Teaching Materials

The Digital Learning Center (DLC) of NTU Office of Academic Affairs continues to promote VR immersive teaching. Among the courses, “Applying Generative AI for Producing VR Teaching Materials” taught by Prof. Chia-Pin Yu at the Department of Forestry and Resource Conservation teaches students to efficiently script VR lesson plan structures with generative AI tools, as well as learn teaching design principles, capturing real-life images with 360° cameras, image editing and other technologies, allowing the students to create VR lesson plans through team-based learning.

People

Students' Voices Valued at the College of Life Science Symposium

Earlier this year, the College of Life Sciences held an engaging symposium, bringing together nearly 50 enthusiastic master's and doctoral students along with Dean Bor-Luen Chiang. Dean Chiang set the tone for the event by sharing his vision for the future of the College. "While the College of Life Science is still young, I envision it as a hub for cultivating the next generation of professionals in life science and biochemical technology, laying the groundwork for Taiwan's advancement in this field," remarked the Dean.

Lifting Others Up: Students Devoted to Social Work

Each year, NTU's Student Social Devotion Special Award recognizes the exceptional efforts of students dedicated to promoting social well-being and demonstrating the spirit of altruism. These students are awarded for taking tangible actions to address the needs of the disadvantaged. The 2023 award celebrated three individual winners and one group winner: Pei-Shen Shi from the Department of Chemistry in the College of Science, Wu-Qi Wang from the Department of Political Science in the College of Social Science, Ke-Xuan Shao from the Department of Bio-Industry Communication and Development, and TIWACT, a transnational education program.

Garmin Co-Founder, Dr. Min-Hwan Kao, Pledges US$20 million to NTU for Professorships and Faculty Housing Construction

Dr. Min-Hwan Kao, recipient of the National Taiwan University (NTU) Distinguished Alumni Award and Chairman and Co-Founder of Garmin Ltd., has pledged US$20 million to his alma mater. This donation, facilitated through the Kao Family Foundation, aims to bolster NTU's College of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) and College of Engineering (COE) by establishing the "Garmin Chair and Garmin Scholar Award Fund" and the "Garmin Faculty Dormitory Construction and Maintenance Fund." The fund will appoint 22 distinguished individuals as Garmin Chair Professors and Garmin Scholars, each receiving an annual incentive of US$30,000 for three years, with the possibility of reappointment. Additionally, US$6.25 million will be allocated to the construction and maintenance of the "Garmin Faculty Dormitory."