The Council of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology is very pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Paul Ching-Wu Chu as the next President of the University to succeed Professor Chia-Wei Woo.

Prof Chu is currently the T. L. L. Temple Chair of Science, Professor of Physics and the Director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston.

Aged 58, Prof Chu obtained his BS degree (1962) from the Cheng-Kung University in Taiwan, MS degree (1965) from Fordham University in New York and PhD degree (1968) from the University of California at San Diego. After two years of industrial research with Bell Laboratories in New Jersey, he entered the academic world and progressed rapidly to full professorship, which he attained in 1975. In 1979, he joined the University of Houston as Professor of Physics. Prof Chu served as Director of the Solid State Physics Program at the National Science Foundation in 1986-87. He also served at various times as consultant and visiting staff at Los Alamos National Lab, the Marshall Space Flight Center, Argonne National Lab, and Dupont.

A distinguished physicist, Prof Chu gained international renown with his outstanding achievements in the field of superconductivity. In 1987, he discovered stable superconductivity above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen, an epoch making discovery both in basic science and in applications, which opened the door to subsequent developments in high temperature superconductivity.

Recognizing the enormous potential of his research breakthrough, the legislature of the State of Texas created the Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston in 1987 and appointed Prof Chu as its founding Director. The Center is home to the largest university superconductivity research effort in the world, with major funding provided by the State of Texas. On taking up the presidency at HKUST, Prof Chu will maintain an association with the Center in a non-paid capacity to continue his research on high temperature superconductivity.

Prof Chu is a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Academia Sinica (Taiwan), and Third-world Academy of Sciences. The numerous awards he has received include the National Medal of Science (the highest honor for a scientist in the US), the NASA Achievement Award, the Comstock Award, and the International Prize for New Materials. In 1990, he was selected Best Researcher in the US by the US News and World Report. He was an Invited Contributor to the New Millennium Time Capsule of the Great Discoveries of the 20th Century by the White House, and was selected as one of the 100 most influential people in gas and electricity of the century by the Century of Power, 2000. Prof Chu has received seven honorary doctorates and five honorary professorships.

In addition to being the author of over 450 refereed articles in scientific journals, Prof Chu has co-edited several books and written popular articles for various encyclopedia and science year books.

Born in Hunan, China, to parents from Guangdong Province, Professor Chu is married with two children and speaks Cantonese and Putonghua.

The University Council is very excited about Prof Chu's appointment. "As Hong Kong repositions itself as a knowledge-based society," says Council Chairman Dr Vincent Lo, "HKUST, a leading research university in science and technology, has a crucial role to play. Members of the Council are confident that Professor Chu, building on the solid foundation which Professor Chia-Wei Woo has successfully laid down during the past twelve years, will provide strong leadership to HKUST as it soars to still greater heights both internationally and to meet the science and technology agenda of Hong Kong."

Prof Chu is expected to take up his appointment on 1 July 2001. He will be visiting Hong Kong in mid December 2000.

HOUSTON, Nov. 20, 2000 - University of Houston professor Paul Chu, whose groundbreaking research in the field of High Temperature Superconductivity earned him international acclaim, has been named President of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) by that institution's Council.

Chu's appointment takes effect in late summer 2001. It is expected to last a few years. HKUST is known for its excellent faculty and research facilities and is recognized as a premier university in science and technology in Asia.

During his term as President of HKUST, Chu, 58, will continue an appointment at UH as the T. L. L. Temple Chair of Science in non-salaried status. He will spend some time here each year in Houston to continue to lead his research program at the Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston (TCSUH) http://www.uh.edu/tcsuh.

In his roles of President of HKUST and TCSUH chief science advisor, Chu plans to work with faculty and administrators at both universities to explore future relationships that would bring the University of Houston into contact with an ever-widening group of major international universities that have forged partnerships with the 9-year-old HKUST and would connect the Hong Kong institution to Houston's leading research programs.

Chu, who speaks both Cantonese and Putonghua, views the HKUST presidency as a unique opportunity.

"I envision that HKUST will continue her tradition of excellence and strengthen her world-class status, and play an important role in the high technology drive recently proposed by the Hong Kong government," Chu said. "I also see the university as a hub to promote scientific and educational collaboration between Hong Kong, all of Asia, Europe, the United States, and the world, as science recognizes no border."

In 1987, Chu served a year-long term as Director of the Solid State Physics Program at the National Science Foundation in Washington, D.C. During his residency there, he established and received NASA funding for the then-new Space Vacuum Epitaxy Center. During this time he also made the breakthrough in high temperature superconductivity research that received world recognition and helped to rejuvenate international interest in science and technology.

University of Houston President Arthur K. Smith said the university is looking forward to developing research and educational collaborations with HKUST through Chu's new appointment.

"We see this as a great opportunity for both Paul and the University of Houston," Smith said. "Paul is actively involved in many things on an international level. By serving as President of HKUST and continuing his research at UH, he is helping to forge new links between our universities."

Chu plans to actively participate in High Temperature Superconductivity research at UH both by e-mail and periodic visits. His research remains an important part of his life as Chu and his team continue to make breakthroughs in materials science and high temperature superconductivity. "My research work will continue to be very important to me," Chu said.

According to the TCSUH Strategic Plan announced in 1998, Chu planned to relinquish the title of director of the center, becoming director emeritus and chief science advisor when a new director was hired. As a result of the ongoing national search for a new director, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology is a member of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities whose membership list includes CalTech, Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley, the University of Southern California, the University of Oregon and the University of Washington, as well as research universities in Canada, Chile, China (the Mainland and Taiwan), Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Australia, Russian, Thailand and Singapore.

HKUST is also a member of the Association of East Asian Research Universities and the Association of University Presidents of China.

"As Hong Kong repositions itself into a knowledge-based society, HKUST, a leading research university in science and technology, has a crucial role to play," said Council Chairman Dr. Vincent Lo. "Members of the Council are confident that Professor Chu, building on the solid foundation which Professor Chia-Wei Woo has successfully laid down during the past 12 years, will provide strong leadership to HKUST as it soars to greater heights both internationally and to meet the science and technology agenda of Hong Kong."