handbook - HKU Common Core Curriculum - The University of Hong ...

CONTENTS 

Introduction 

What is the Common Core Curriculum? 

What are the goals? 

What will you study? 

What will you learn? 

How will you learn? 

How is it structured? 

How will you be assessed? 

Why are tutorials important? 

What are the requirements? 

• Table 1: Programme Requirements for 

Taking Common Core Courses for Students of 

the 3-Year Undergraduate Curriculum Entering in 2012-13 

• Table 2: Programme Requirements for 

Taking Common Core Courses for Students of 

the 4-Year Undergraduate Curriculum Entering in 2012-13 

Non-Permissible Combinations 

• Table 3: Non-Permissible Combinations of 

Common Core Courses 

The Areas of Inquiry: Rationale, 

Aims and Objectives, and Key Themes 

• Scientific and Technological Literacy 

• Humanities 

• Global Issues 

• China: Culture, State and Society 

Course Details 





1

4 

Introduction 

T 

his handbook is designed to acquaint you with the HKU Common Core Curriculum 

and to assist you in making an informed selection of the courses 

you wish to study. In order to maximize the benefits of your university education, 

it is important that you choose your courses carefully. To this end, the 

handbook provides you with detailed information of all the Common Core courses 

on offer in 2012-2013. This information includes the course description, the 

learning outcomes, the study load, the assessment requirements, the required 

reading, and the course teacher(s). Additional relevant information might be 

available on the course websites. 

What is the Common Core Curriculum? 

T 

he HKU Common Core Curriculum, a new requirement for undergraduate 

students, is an essential part of academic induction to facilitate the transition 

from secondary school to university. It is designed to provide key common 

learning experience for all HKU students and to broaden their horizons beyond 

their chosen disciplinary fields of study. It focuses on issues that have been, and 

continue to be, of deeply profound significance to humankind, the core intellectual 

skills that all HKU undergraduates should acquire and the core values that they 

should uphold. 

What are the goals? 

The goals of the Common Core Curriculum are: 

1. to enable students to develop a broader perspective and a critical understanding 

of the complexities and the interconnectedness of the issues that they are 

confronted with in their everyday lives; 

2. to cultivate students’ appreciation of their own culture and other cultures, and 

the inter-relatedness among cultures; 

3. to enable students to see themselves as members of global as well as local communities 

and to play an active role as responsible individuals and citizens in 

these communities; and 

4. to enable students to develop the key intellectual skills that will be further enhanced 

in their disciplinary studies.

What will you study? 

T 

he Common Core Curriculum is designed to help you see the interconnectedness 

and interdependence of human existence through exploring the 

following fundamental common human experiences: 

• the aesthetic (or symbolic) expressions of ideas and emotions 

• the relationship between individuals and communities, and the role of the former 

in the latter 

• the interaction amongst communities on various scales 

• the relationships and interdependencies between human beings, science, technology 

and nature 

• the beliefs and values that are essential to human bonding and to mediating 

tensions within and between groups 

• the relationship between our past, present and future. 

What will you learn? 

W 

hile the Common Core Curriculum as a whole will engage you in an exploration 

of issues of profound significance in relation to a number of fundamental 

human experiences, the detail of what you will learn will vary from course 

to course. Hence, each course has its own set of learning outcomes. These learning 

outcomes are statements that specify precisely what you should be able to do at the 

end of a course, usually expressed as knowledge, skills, or attitudes. 

How will you learn? 

S 

tudent workload hours for a 6-credit course, as endorsed by Senate, amount 

to 120-180 hours. Common Core courses normally consist of 36 contact 

hours, with a 2-hour lecture and a 1-hour tutorial per week. Within these sessions, 

you may have first-hand encounters with your subjects of study, be asked 

to solve problems, or be asked to decide on issues you wish to investigate. The remainder 

of the hours will be made up through engaging in a number of other relevant 

learning activities including reading, self-study, fieldwork, visits, group projects, 

research, and exam preparation. 

The one real goal of education is to leave a person asking questions. 

Max Beerbohm 

5

6 

How is it structured? 

I 

n order to ensure a broad and balanced exploration of the abovementioned 

common human experiences, the Common Core Curriculum is divided 

into four Areas of Inquiry (AoIs). However, it is important for you to realize that 

while these AoIs serve as a means of organizing the curriculum, they are interrelated 

rather than mutually exclusive. The Areas of Inquiry are: 





Within each AoI a number of key themes have been identified, each with an outline 

of the key issues that should be addressed. These themes and issues provide 

the building blocks for the individual courses. The AoIs and the key themes are: 

Scientific and Technological Literacy 

Themes // The Nature and Methods of Science 

Science, Technology and Society 

Science, Technology and Global Issues 

Science and Technology in Everyday Life 

Frontiers of Science and Technology 

Humanities 

Themes // The Creative Arts 

Historical Awareness: Past and Present 

Language, Communication and Society 

Mind-Body-Spirit 

Ethics and Society 

Global Issues 

Themes // Global Issues, Local Lives 

Challenges of Global Governance 

Globalization and Economic Development 

Global Ethics and Citizenship 

China: Culture, State and Society 

Themes // Chinese Culture: Thoughts, Values and Ways of Life 

Chinese Civilization: State, Society and Economy 

China’s Changing Environment 

China’s Quest for Modernization 

The Rise of China in the 21st Century: Challenges and Prospects

How will you be assessed? 

C 

ommon Core courses utilize diverse modes of assessment. As well as the more 

traditional exams, tests and quizzes, you are likely to be required to demonstrate 

your knowledge and skills in a variety of other ways, for example, by 

keeping a journal to reflect on lectures and readings, making a movie, engaging in 

fieldwork, undertaking research, constructing a website or doing group projects 

and presentations. 

Why are tutorials important? 

T 

utorials are an essential and compulsory element of study in the Common 

Core Curriculum. Tutorials will normally be conducted weekly in groups of 

no more than 12 students. The purpose of tutorials is to provide a context for 

you to clarify and deepen your understanding of ideas and issues arising from the 

course through dialogue with others in an interactive setting. Additionally, tutorials 

offer an environment for you to improve your communication skills and develop 

your confidence. You should therefore make every effort to participate actively and 

constructively in tutorials. Indeed, each member of the tutorial group has responsibility 

for creating an effective learning experience for all concerned. Thus, it is also 

important that you prepare adequately for tutorials by reviewing your understanding 

of the relevant lecture(s), formulating questions for discussion and completing 

any preset tasks and/or reading requirements. 

Education should be related to an intercultural and interdependent 

world. 

Miguel Ángel Escotet 

7

8 

What are the requirements? 

3-Year Undergraduate Curriculum 

You are required to take two 6-credit Common Core courses, chosen from two different 

Areas of Inquiry (AoIs), normally in your first year of study. However, the 

year and semester in which Common Core courses are taken vary from programme 

to programme. Please refer to Table 1 to find out the requirements for your programme. 

You are advised to check the accuracy of the information in the table with 

your home Faculty before choosing courses. If your programme permits, you may 

wish to take both courses in the same semester but if you decide to do so you will 

need to consider the implications for your overall workload and to check that there 

are no timetable clashes. All Common Core courses are taught on Wednesday afternoon 

apart from a few courses which are taught on Saturday morning. 

4-Year Undergraduate Curriculum 

You are normally required to take six 6-credit courses, one from each AoI and not 

more than two from any AoI. However, the number of courses required and the 

year and semester in which they are taken vary from programme to programme. 

Please refer to Table 2 to find out the requirements for your programme. You are 

advised to check the accuracy of the information in the table with your home Faculty 

before choosing courses. Please note that whatever the requirements for 

your programme you are not allowed to take more than one course from any 

AoI in an academic year. 

All things in the world are linked together, in one way or another. 

Not a single thing comes into being without some relationship to 

something else. 

Keiji Nishitani

Table 1: Programme Requirements for Taking Common Core Courses for 

Students of the 3-Year Undergraduate Curriculum Entering in 2012-13 

Students are advised to check the accuracy of the information below with their home Faculty before choosing courses. 

Faculty Programme Year(s) in which the Common Core courses are taken 

Architecture 

BA(ArchStud) 

BA(LS) 

Both in Year 1 

BSc(Surv) One in Year 1, one in Year 2 

Arts 

BA 

BA(Literary Studies) 


BBA Both in Year 1 

BBA(Acc&Fin) Both in Year 2 

BBA(IBGM) Both in Year 1 

Business and Economics 

BBA(IS) 

BBA(Law) 

BEcon 


BBA(Law) and BBA(Law) major in Accounting: One in Year 1, one in Year 2 

BEcon&Fin 

BSc(QFin) 


Dentistry BDS 

BA&BEd(LangEd) 

One in Year 1, one in Year 2 

BEd(LibSt) 


Education 

BEd(LangEd) 

BSc(Exercise&Health) Two courses to be taken by the end of Year 2 

BSc(Sp&HearSc) Both in Year 1 

BEng(CE) 

BEng(CivE) 


BEng(CivE-Law) 

BEng(Civ-EnvE) 


BEng(CompSc) Both in Year 1 

Engineering 

BEng(EComE) 

BEng(EE) 


BEng(IETM) 

BEng(InfoE) 


BEng(LESCM) 

BEng(ME) 

BEng(ME-BSE) 


BEng(MedE) Both in Year 1 

Law LLB 

BChinMed 

Four in Year 1, two in Year 2 

(same requirement as the 4-Year Undergraduate Curriculum) 

Medicine 

BNurs 

BPharm 


MBBS Both in Year 1 

Science 

BSc 

BSc(ActuarSc) 

BJ 

Two courses to be taken by the end of Year 2 


Social Sciences 

BSocSc 

BSocSc(Govt&Laws) 

BSW 


9

10 

Table 2: Programme Requirements for Taking Common Core Courses for 

Students of the 4-Year Undergraduate Curriculum Entering in 2012-13 

Students are advised to check the accuracy of the information below with their home Faculty before choosing courses. 

Faculty Programme Year(s) in which the Common Core courses are taken 

BA(ArchStud) 

BA(LS) 


Architecture 

BSc(Surv) Four in Year 1, one in Year 2, one in Year 3 

BA(Conservation) 

BA(UrbanStud) 


Arts 

BA 

1, 2 

BA(Literary Studies) 

BBA 

Six within the first 3 years 

Four within the first 2 years 

BBA(Acc&Fin) 

BBA(IBGM) 


Business and Economics 

BBA(IS) 

BBA(Law) 

BEcon 

One in Year 1, two in Year 2, three in Year 3 

BEcon&Fin 

BSc(QFin) 

Three in Year 1, two in Year 2, one in Year 3 

Dentistry BDS Four in Year 1, two in Year 2 

BA&BEd(LangEd) 

Education 

1 

Three in Year 1, one in Year 2 

BSc(Exercise&Health) 

BSc(Sp&HearSc) 


BSc(IM) 

Two in the first year of the curriculum [BSc(IM) is a curriculum admitting 

students to senior year places only, i.e. direct entry to Year 3] 

BEd&BSc 1 

BEd&BSocSc 1 

Two in Year 1, two in Year 2 

Engineering 

BEng(CE) 

BEng(CivE) 

BEng(Civ-EnvE) 

BEng(CompSc) 

BEng(ElecE) 

BEng(EE) 

BEng(IETM) 

BEng(LESCM) 

BEng(ME) 

BEng(ME-BSE) 

BEng(MedE) 

BEng(EngSci) 

Three in Year 1, three in Year 2 

Law LLB Four in Year 1, two in Year 2 

BBiomedSc Four in Year 1, two in Year 2 

BChinMed Three in Year 1, three in Year 2 

Medicine 

BNurs 

BPharm 

MBBS 


Science 

BSc 

BSc(ActuarSc) 

BJ 

Two in Year 1, two in Year 2, two in Year 3 

Social Sciences 

BSocSc 

BSW 

Six within the first 3 years 

1, 3 

BSocSc(Govt&Laws) Two in Year 1, two in Year 2 

1. Double degree -- four Common Core courses are required. 

2. Before the commencement of semester 1 in Year 3, students will be required to declare if they will continue with the LLB programme. 

Students who opt out of the LLB programme will be required to complete the remaining two Common Core courses by the end of Year 4 if necessary. 

3. Before the commencement of semester 2 in Year 3, students will be required to declare if they will continue with the LLB programme. 

Students who opt out of the LLB programme will be required to complete the remaining two Common Core courses in the second semester in Year 3 

and in Year 4 if necessary.

Non-Permissible Combinations 

Courses in which there is considerable overlap of issues covered will be listed as nonpermissible 

combinations, and you will only be permitted to take one course in those 

combinations. Please check Table 3 for non-permissible combinations before you choose 

your courses. 

Table 3: Non-Permissible Combinations of Common Core Courses. 

Course Code Course Title 

CCST9006 Biomedical Breakthroughs in a Pluralistic World 

CCST9011 Biotechnology -- Science and Impacts 

CCST9003 Everyday Computing and the Internet 

CCST9004 Appropriate Technology for the Developing World 

CCST9015 Electronic Technologies in Everyday Life 

CCST9013 Our Living Environment 

CCST9016 Energy: Its Evolution and Environmental Impacts 

CCST9002 Quantitative Literacy in Science, Technology and Society 

CCST9039 Statistics and Our Society 

CCST9017 Hidden Order in Daily Life: A Mathematical Perspective 

CCST9037 Mathematics: A Cultural Heritage 

CCST9010 The Science of Crime Investigation 

CCST9030 Forensic Science: Unmasking Evidence, Mysteries and Crimes 

CCST9028 Critical Thinking about Science and Technology 

CCST9035 Making Sense of Science-related Social Issues 

CCHU9007 Sexuality and Gender: Diversity and Society 

CCHU9015 Sex and Intimacy in Modern Times 

CCHU9039 Sexuality and Culture 

CCGL9004 Governance and Democracy in the Age of Globalization 

CCGL9006 Asian Regional Governance in an Age of Globalization 

CCGL9016 Feeding the World 

CCGL9017 Food: Technology, Trade and Culture 

CCGL9005 Poverty, Development, and the Next Generation: Challenges for a Global World 

CCGL9025 The Political Economy of Growth and Poverty in the World 

CCGL9002 Hong Kong Culture in the Context of Globalization 

CCGL9026 Think Global, Act Local: You, Hong Kong, and the World 

To the extent that we are all educated and informed, we will be 

more equipped to deal with the gut issues that tend to divide us. 

Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg 

11

12 

Rationale 

The well-being of our society owes much to science 

and technology. Science and technology 

transform our living conditions tremendously 

and contribute to profound changes in our society. 

However, while some of these changes bring 

great benefits to us (such as health, security and 

economic prosperity) some other changes bring 

damages and threats to the world (such as environmental 

degradation and ecological imbalance). 

Because of the high stakes involved, all 

members of our community need to be literate in 

science and technology. 

A scientifically and technologically literate individual 

is better able to cope with the demands 

of everyday life in an increasingly technologydominated 

society, better positioned to evaluate 

and respond critically to the supposed “scientific 

evidence” used by advertising agencies and politicians 

to promote particular products and policies, 

better equipped to make important life decisions, 

and more ready and willing to engage in debates 

on contemporary socio-scientific issues. 

AoI // Scientific 

and Technological Literacy 

Scientifically literate individuals benefit not 

only intellectually but also aesthetically and 

moral-ethically. A scientifically literate individual 

is better able to appreciate the beauty 

and wonders of nature, just as an individual 

who is knowledgeable in music and fine arts 

can appreciate a musical theme or a work of 

art. An understanding of the ethical standards 

and code of responsible behaviour that should 

be observed within the scientific community 

enables individuals to make better decisions in 

their personal and professional lives as responsible 

individuals and citizens. 

Increased scientific literacy will also benefit 

society as a whole, in that the humanities and 

the sciences can be brought together, and citizens 

will share a more common and holistic 

knowledge that can serve as a unifying force for 

democratic living. Scientific literacy promotes 

decision making that is more democratic (by 

encouraging people to exercise their democratic 

rights) and more effective (with people exercising 

their rights more wisely and responsibly) 

on the more and more complex issues of scientific 

and technological public policy.

Aim and Objectives 

The aim of raising students’ levels of scientific 

and technological literacy is to enable them to 

engage critically with knowledge and discourse 

on science and technology and to respond actively 

and appropriately to issues surrounding 

scientific and technological advancements. 

The objectives are: 

1. to equip students with a general understanding 

of the fundamental ideas, principles 

and theories of science and technology 

and of natural phenomena and the ways in 

which scientific and technological knowledge 

is generated, validated and disseminated, 

and to enable students to use this 

knowledge appropriately and effectively; 

2. to enable students to understand the form, 

structure and purpose of scientific language, 

to read and interpret scientific data 

and scientific arguments, and at a general 

level, to evaluate their validity and reliability 

or claim to knowledge; 

3. to arouse students’ general interest in science 

and technology, and to inculcate a willingness 

and capacity to update and acquire 

new scientific and technological knowledge; 

4. to enhance students’ awareness of the circumstances 

surrounding the history and 

development of some of the “big ideas” of 

science, and the social implications of important 

technologies; 

5. to enable students to be critically aware of 

contemporary socio-scientific and technology 

issues at the local, regional, national 

and global levels; 

6. to develop students’ appreciation of the 

complexity of inter-relationships among 

science, technology, society and environment, 

and the role played by science and 

technology in the progress of civilization; 

7. to raise students’ awareness of the moralethical 

issues associated with scientific and 

technology research and the deployment 

of scientific knowledge and technological 

innovations, and to enable them to engage 

actively with these issues in an ethically appropriate 

manner; and 

8. to enable students to see the interconnection 

between the humanities and the sciences 

and technology. 

Key Themes // 

Under this AoI, the following key themes will be addressed: 

> The Nature and Methods of Science 

> Science, Technology and Society 

> Science, Technology and Global Issues 

> Science and Technology in Everyday Life 

> Frontiers of Science and Technology. 

13

14 

Rationale 

AoI // Humanities 

The humanities engage with the fundamental 

questions of human existence. They unravel how 

humans make sense of the world from critical, 

interpretive and analytical perspectives. The issues 

that the humanities have tried to grapple 

with pertain to the intellectual, moral, aesthetic, 

and spiritual aspects of human existence. The 

study of the humanities raises our awareness of 

human qualities and experiences which are inextricably 

bound up with the context and culture 

in which they are embedded. Understanding how 

humans are related to each other and the moral 

responsibility of humans to their fellow humans 

and the community to which they belong is fundamental 

to the study of the humanities. Moreover, 

as Procter points out, “The humanities … not 

only give us a history of the modern self; they 

remind us that our own culture, our own past, 

contains experiences and ideals which can help 

us to transcend this self and find other ways of 

experiencing our humanity.” (1998, p. 174) In 

summary, the humanities are unified by (a) an 

attempt to address the various aspects of human 

existence through (b) the employment of 

interpretive, critical and analytical methods of 

inquiry. 

While the modes of thinking and enquiry of the 

humanities are critical and interpretive in nature 

whereas those of the sciences are mostly 

empirical in nature, we should not overlook the 

interconnection between the two. Although 

in the Common Core Curriculum, science and 

technological literacy and humanistic studies 

are organized as two separate AoIs, the courses 

in both AoIs should enable students to see the 

interconnection between them.


The aim of this AoI is to enable students to appreciate 

how intellectual, moral, aesthetic and 

spiritual aspects of human existence have been 

explored from critical, analytical and interpretive 

perspectives, to think about the meaning of 

our lives, and to seek wisdom and virtue, as embodied 

in the HKU motto: Sapientia et Virtus. 

The objectives are to enable students: 

1. to gain an understanding of the distinctive 

qualities and experiences of being human; 

2. to appreciate the ways in which humans express 

their experiences through literatures 

and arts; 

3. to become aware of the fact that human 

qualities and experiences are situated in 

the contexts and cultures of which they are 

a part; 

4. to understand human relationships and the 

social fabric of human communities; 

5. to become aware of the relationship between 

humankind and other forms of lives 

and the place of humankind in the “web of 

life”; 

6. to become aware of their moral responsibilities 

to their fellow humans and other 

forms of lives, and to uphold civic and moral 

values; 

7. to engage in critical, interpretive and analytical 

exploration of human qualities and 

experiences; and 

8. to appreciate the interconnection between 

studies of science and technology and those 

of humanities. 


Education in the humanities is traditionally organized 

under the following fields of study: language, history, 

literature, visual and performing arts, and philosophy. 

However, this AoI will comprise five interdisciplinary 

themes that cross these boundaries, all of which address 

the intellectual, moral, aesthetic and spiritual aspects of 

human existence: 

> The Creative Arts 

> Historical Awareness: Past and Present 

> Language, Communication and Society 

> Mind-Body-Spirit 

> Ethics and Society. 

15

16 

Rationale 

AoI // Global Issues 

Today we live in a world with an unprecedented 

level of interdependence. Our lives are profoundly 

affected by decisions and events that occur in 

places far away from us. Capital, products, services, 

information, ideas and people move across 

national borders much more easily and rapidly 

than before. Such domestic issues as food, energy, 

health, environment, economic development 

and national security have acquired a significant 

global dimension. How are we to comprehend the 

complex nature of globalization that significantly 

shapes our personal, social, cultural, economic, 

and political lives? What are the pros and cons of 

globalization? What duties and rights do people of 

this global village have towards each other? What 

are the opportunities and challenges that confront 

the contemporary world? These questions 

merit careful thinking by every HKU student, as 

one of the University’s six educational aims is to 

develop capabilities in intercultural understanding 

and global citizenship.


The aim of this AoI is to enable students to 

think globally and live as informed and active 

members of a global community. 

The objectives are to enable students: 

1. to understand that globalization is a multifaceted 

and contested concept; 

2. to develop an appreciation of the interconnectedness 

(or interdependence) of the 

world in which they live; 

3. to develop a critical awareness of how their 

daily lives are shaped by globalization; 

4. to develop an ability to critically analyze 

the nature of globalization, and its pros and 

cons; 

5. to develop a capability to reflect on their 

duties and rights as global citizens and to be 

critically aware of the moral controversies 

that confront existing international institutions; 

and 

6. to cultivate a willingness to become informed 

and active members of a global community. 


An understanding of globalization can be approached 

from various perspectives, including the impact 

of globalization on our daily lives, the processes of 

globalization and the resulting interdependencies and 

inequalities at local, national, international levels, 

the challenges of global governance in relation to 

globalization, and the duties and rights of global citizens. 

The following themes elaborate on these perspectives 

and serve as a framework for organizing courses: 

> Global Issues, Local Lives 

> Challenges of Global Governance 

> Globalization and Economic Development 

> Global Ethics and Citizenship. 

17

18 

Rationale 

China is a rich, enduring, yet progressing civilization 

that still instills awe or admiration across the 

globe. Understanding China from past to present 

enables our students not only to see how a major 

civilization in the world has experienced both 

grandeur as well as setbacks, but also to understand 

the historical processes and international 

forces that have shaped the conditions of the 

Chinese across time and space. In order to com- 

AoI // China: 

Culture, State and Society 

prehend the complexities of China’s changing 

fortunes and the fundamental challenges confronting 

her today, one has to examine how the 

Chinese have lived their lives, formed and debated 

their values, identities and heritage, and 

survived dramatic changes over the centuries. 

Since the late 1970s, China’s achievements in 

carrying out economic reforms and open door 

policy have not only improved the livelihood of 

the majority of the Chinese people, but also created 

enormous business opportunities for many

countries in the world. Its phenomenal economic 

growth has laid the foundation for China’s 

recent rise as a major power on the world stage. 

Hong Kong is the most cosmopolitan city on 

Chinese soil today. Yet her history reminds us 

of modern China’s precarious quest for modernity 

and her role in bridging China and the West. 

The future of Greater China, comprising the 

Mainland, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, will 

have far reaching repercussions for Asia and the 

world. Hong Kong, being a unique, dynamic part 

of China, is privileged intellectually, culturally 

and geographically to engage in a critical, intellectual 

inquiry of China’s civilization, people 

and environment. Reflecting upon China’s past, 

interpreting her present, and exploring the prospects 

of her progress and future pose a series of 

intellectual puzzles that merit the attention and 

thought of every student at HKU. 


The aim of this AoI is to enhance the interest 

and intellectual ability of students in understanding 

China from past to present and from 

different disciplinary perspectives and to engage 

them in critical inquiries of the issues and 

problems faced by China. 

The objectives are: 

1. to enhance the interest of students in understanding 

China’s civilization, people 

and environment and in searching and constructing 

the meanings of being Chinese; 

2. to guide students in an intellectual journey 

through key aspects of China’s social, economic 

and political transformation from a 

variety of disciplinary perspectives; 

3. to heighten the sensitivity and awareness 

of students in appreciating the characteristics 

and diversities of China’s culture and 

heritage, her cultural transformation and 

dynamism, as well as her changing relations 

with other cultures; 

4. to engage students in critically reflecting on 

the challenges and possibilities in China’s 

quest for modernity and the implications of 

her recent transformation; and 

5. to explore the many roles played by Hong 

Kong, Macau, Taiwan and overseas Chinese 

communities in the making of modern China 

and the shaping of her future. 


The following key themes will be addressed in the AoI: 

> Chinese Culture: Thoughts, Values and Ways of Life 

> Chinese Civilization: State, Society, and Economy 

> China’s Changing Environment 

> China’s Quest for Modernization 

> The Rise of China in the 21st Century: Challenges and Prospects. 

19

20 

Life 2.0: Synthetic Biology 

and the Future Bioeconomy 

Course Code: CCST9001 

Quantitative Literacy 

in Science, Technology 

and Society 


Everyday Computing 

and the Internet 


Appropriate Technology for 

the Developing World 


Science and Health: 

The Ever-changing 

Challenges and Solutions 


Biomedical Breakthroughs 

in a Pluralistic World 


Vision: The Science 

and Art of Perception 


Infectious Disease 

in a Changing World 


Living with Stem Cells 


The Science of Crime 

Investigation 


Biotechnology – 

Science and Impacts 


Our Place in the Universe 


Our Living Environment 


Science and Music 


Scientific and 

Technological Literacy 

p.24 

p.25 

p.26 

p.27 

p.28 

p.29 

p.30 

p.31 

p.32 

p.33 

p.34 

p.35 

p.36 

p.37 

Electronic Technologies 

in Everyday Life 


Energy: Its Evolution 

and Environmental Impacts 


Hidden Order in Daily Life: 

A Mathematical 

Perspective 


Origin and 

Evolution of Life 


Understanding Climate 

Change 


Sustainable Development 

of the Built Environment 


Hong Kong: 

Our Marine Heritage 


How the Mass Media 

Depicts Science, Technology 

and the Natural World 


The Oceans: 

Science and Society 


Blood, Beliefs, Biology 


Genetics and 

Human Nature 


Scientific Revolutions 

and their Impact on 

Modern Societies 


The Science of 

Irrational Thinking 


Critical Thinking about 

Science and Technology 


p.38 

p.39 

p.40 

p.41 

p.42 

p.43 

p.44 

p.45 

p.46 

p.47 

p.48 

p.49 

p.50 

p.51 

Cyberspace Crime: 

Technology and Ethics 


Forensic Science: Unmasking 

Evidence, Mysteries and 

Crimes 


“Intelligent” Architecture 

and Sustainability 


Left Brain, Right Brain: 

Science and Myth 


Living in 

a Hazardous World 


Making Sense of 

Science-related 

Social Issues 


Material World: 

Past, Present, and Future 


Mathematics: 

A Cultural Heritage 


Science and 

Science Fiction 


Statistics and Our Society 


The Science of Evidence: 

Is Medicine Scientific? 


The World of Waves 


It’s All About Time 


p.52 

p.53 

p.54 

p.55 

p.56 

p.57 

p.58 

p.59 

p.60 

p.61 

p.62 

p.63 

p.64

Designs on the Future: 

Sustainability of 

the Built Environment 

Course Code: CCHU9001 

Battles for Bodies: 

The Birth of 

Surveillance Society 


Making History: 

Engaging with the 

Powerful Past 


Catastrophes, Cultures, 

and the Angry Earth 


Food and Values 


Girl Power in a 

Man’s World 


Sexuality and Gender: 

Diversity and Society 


Moral Controversies in 

Contemporary Society 


Being Different: Understanding 

People with 

Disabilities 


Social Divisions in 

Contemporary Societies 


Body, Beauty and Fashion 


Cultural Heritages in the 

Contemporary World 


Humanities 

p.66 

p.67 

p.68 

p.69 

p.70 

p.71 

p.72 

p.73 

p.74 

p.75 

p.76 

p.77 

Spirituality, Religion and 

Social Change 


Sex and Intimacy in 

Modern Times 


The British Empire in Text 

and Image 


Stages of Life: Scientific 

Fact or Social Fiction? 


Arts and Ideas: 

East and West 


From Health to Well-being 


Being Good When No One 

is Watching: On Becoming 

an Ethical Professional 


Critical Thinking in 

Contemporary Society 


Journey into Madness: 

Conceptions of Mental 

Health and Mental Illness 


Shaping the Landscape: 

A Quest for Harmony between 

Nature and the City 


The Last Dance: Understanding 

Death and Dying 


Creativity, Technology 

and Law 


p.78 

p.79 

p.80 

p.81 

p.82 

p.83 

p.84 

p.85 

p.86 

p.87 

p.88 

p.89 

Cultures of War: 

Making Sense of the 

Human Fighting Instinct 


Happy Endings: 

How a Text Ends 


Language Play as Social 

Communication in 

Multilingual Settings 


Literature and the 

Environment 


Metropolitan Visions: 

Modernity, Architecture 

and the City 


Politics of Space 


Reflecting on Human 

Experience through 

Literature 


Music and 

the Human Body 


Sexuality and Culture 


Human Language: 

Nature or Nurture? 


p.90 

p.91 

p.92 

p.93 

p.94 

p.95 

p.96 

p.97 

p.98 

p.99 

21

22 

Hong Kong Cinema 

through a Global Lens 

Course Code: CCGL9001 

Hong Kong Culture in the 

Context of Globalization 


Contagions: 

Global Histories of Disease 


Governance and 

Democracy in the Age of 

Globalization 


Poverty, Development, 

and the Next Generation: 

Challenges for a Global World 


Asian Regional Governance 

in an Age of Globalization 


Youth in a Global World 


Cybersocieties: 

Understanding Technology 

as Global Change 


Local Cultures 

and Global Markets 


Sports Culture 

under Global Capitalism 


Media in the Age of 

Globalization 


Global Issues 

p.100 

p.101 

p.102 

p.103 

p.104 

p.105 

p.106 

p.107 

p.108 

p.109 

p.110 

Media, Politics 

and the Environment 


Globalization: 

African Experiences 


Thinking about 

Global Ethics 


Globalization and 

Migration 


Feeding the World 


Food: Technology, 

Trade and Culture 


Corporate Social 

Responsibility 


Economic Globalization: 

Issues and Challenges 


Environment, 

Globalization, and the Law 


Globalization and Tourism 


Internet, 

Media and Society 


p.111 

p.112 

p.113 

p.114 

p.115 

p.116 

p.117 

p.118 

p.119 

p.120 

p.121 

The Life and Death of Languages: 

Diversity, Identity 

and Globalization 


The Political Economy of 

Growth and Poverty 

in the World 


Think Global, Act Local: 

You, Hong Kong, 

and the World 


Criminal Organizations, Clandestine 

Globalization and the 

Illicit World Political Economy 


Understanding 

the Financial Crisis 


Entrepreneurship: Global 

and Social Development 


Rule of Law in a 

Globalizing World 


Weapons of Mass Destruction: 

Science, Proliferation 

and Terrorism 


English as a Global 

Language in Asian 

Contexts 


World Heritage and Us 


p.122 

p.123 

p.124 

p.125 

p.126 

p.127 

p.128 

p.129 

p.130 

p.131

Chinese House and Garden: 

Architecture, Landscape, 

and Material Culture 

Course Code: CCCH9001 

Chinese Cities 

in the 21st Century 


Modernity and Traditional 

Chinese Thought 


Ideas and Images of the 

West in Late Imperial China 


China’s Modernization in 

the East Asian Context 


China in the 

Global Economy 


Hong Kong’s Environment: 

Issues and Policies 


Protests, Rebellions and 

Revolutions in Modern China: 

From 1840 until Today 


Understanding China’s 

Governance: 

Challenges and Prospects 


China’s Rise 

and Asia’s Future 


China and World Order 


China: Culture, 

State and Society 

p.132 

p.133 

p.134 

p.135 

p.136 

p.137 

p.138 

p.139 

p.140 

p.141 

p.142 

Love, Marriage 

and Sex in Modern China 


Social Development 

Challenges in China 


Population, Society and 

Sustainable Development 

in Hong Kong 


Hong Kong: Becoming 

a Chinese Global City 


People, Propaganda and 

Profit: Understanding 

Media in China 


Buddhism and 

Chinese Culture 


Science and Technology: 

Lessons from China 


Chinese Business and 

Society: Past and Present 


Family and Development 

in Modern China 


Following the Dao: Ways 

of Life in Chinese Thought 


Humanity and Nature in 



p.143 

p.144 

p.145 

p.146 

p.147 

p.148 

p.149 

p.150 

p.151 

p.152 

p.153 

Hong Kong and China’s 

Economic Development 


Ideas and Practices of Healing 

in Traditional China 


Modernization and Constitutionalism 

in China 


Property Rights, Built 

Heritage and Sustainable 

Development in Hong Kong 


Sports and 

Chinese Society 


Sustainable Urban Development 

and Hong Kong 


Musicking the Silk Road 


Environmental Pollution 

in China 


Chinese Mythology 


Early Chinese Political 

Thought and the Law 


Curing the Chinese: 

Medicine and Society in 

Modern China 


p.154 

p.155 

p.156 

p.157 

p.158 

p.159 

p.160 

p.161 

p.162 

p.163 

p.164 

23

24 

Scientific & Technological Literacy 

Course Code // CCST9001 

Required Reading 

Biology 2.0. (2010, June 19). The Economist, 395(8687). [A 

special report on the human genome] 

ETC Group. (2010). Synthetic biology and the next assault 

on biodiversity and livelihoods. The New Biomassters. 

From http://www.etcgroup.org/ 

Geddes, L. (2008). Rewriting the code for life. The New 

Scientist, 198(2660), 6-7. 

Gibbs, W. W. (2009). Evolution in a bottle: Synthetic life 

oozes closer to reality. Scientific American, 330(4), 18-21. 

Greer, D. (2008, August). Building better biofuels. Biomass 

Magazine. 

Krauss, L. M. (2010). Life from a test tube? The real promise 

of synthetic biology. Scientific American, 302(2), 32. 

Unfinished business. (2009). The Economist, 390(8617), 72- 

74. 

Study Load 

Activities Number of hours 

Lectures 18 

Tutorials 9 

Laboratory experience 3 

Reading / Self-study / Tutorial and debate 

preparation 45 

Team assessment task preparation 30 

Individual assessment task preparation 15 

Total: 120 

Assessment: 100% coursework 

Assessment Tasks Weighting 

Performance in tutorials and online 

discussion forums 20 

Lecture minute assessments / 

In-class assessments 10 

Individual assessment: Essay 20 

Group assessment: Poster 30 

Individual and group assessment: Debate 20 

Course Learning Outcomes 

On completing the course, students will be able to: 

1. Discuss key concepts in molecular, evolutionary 

and synthetic biology, and recognize how 

all living organisms have compositional and organizational 

similarities at the molecular level. 

2. Review theories of evolution and the origins of 

life from both historical and theoretical perspectives, 

and examine the interconnections 

with changing values of society in the context 

of contemporary discoveries in biology. 

3. Critically analyze and debate scientific, philosophical 

and ethical issues pertinent to modern-day 

synthetic biology research. 

4. Evaluate how emerging and future biological 

technologies may benefit and/or potentially 

endanger the global population. 

Lecture Time // Second semester (Wed) 

Life 2.0: Synthetic Biology and the 

Future Bioeconomy 

Synthetic Biology has been heralded as the solution to many of contemporary 

society’s most pressing problems in energy, food and medicine. Will synthetic 

biology really deliver on its promises in our lifetimes, or is it just rebranded scientific 

technology? 

This course brings together molecular biology, evolutionary biology and insight 

into the origins of life to allow students to understand how synthetic biology is now 

attempting to solve many of humanity’s gravest challenges. We will discuss the 

sweeping discoveries of molecular biology with a particular perspective on the 

nature and origins of life, and reflect on the opportunities, possibilities and 

risks of technologies emerging from the synthesis of life de novo. 

The course content will be explored through a blend of lectures and 

video materials, supported by interactive learning tasks in small 

groups. The tutorials will be used to consolidate ideas and discuss 

issues in greater depth. 

Course Co-ordinator 

Dr J.A. Tanner 

Department of Biochemistry, 

Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine 

Tel: 2819 9472 

Email: jatanner@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr J.A. Tanner 



Tel: 2819 9472 

Email: jatanner@hku.hk 

Dr R.M. Watt 

Oral Biosciences, Faculty of Dentistry 

Tel: 2859 0482 

Email: rmwatt@hku.hk 

Dr S.J. Bevan 



Tel: 2819 9495 

Email: sambevan@hku.hk 

Dr W.K. Tsang 

Oral Biosciences, Faculty of Dentistry 

Tel: 2859 0484 

Email: pwktsang@hku.hk 

http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccst9001



Non-Permissible Combination: 

CCST9039 Statistics and Our Society 


Bennett, J. O., & Briggs, W. L. (2008). Using and 

understanding mathematics: A quantitative reasoning 

approach (4th ed.). Boston; London: Pearson Addison 

Wesley. [Chaps. 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9] 

Study Load 


Lectures / Seminars 22 

Tutorials 12 

Reading / Self-study 50 

Assessment: Group project (incl preparation, 

report writing and presentation) 30 

Assessment: E-forum 14 

Assessment: One individual assignment 

(linked with group project) 20 

Assessment: Quiz 2 

Total: 150 



Group project (incl written report 

and oral presentation) 30 

Individual assignment 

(linked with group project) 30 

E-forum 20 

Quiz 20 



1. Interpret, organize and report logically and 

analytically multiple representations of numerical 

information derived from daily life 

transactions. 

2. Make connections between issues such as consumers’ 

choice, resources and risk-taking in 

health and science. 

3. Analyze novel or ill-defined problem situations 

embedded in messages raised in the media concerning 

socio-scientific issues. 

4. Differentiate between objective and mal-use of 

statistics and scientific evidence in advertisement 

and media. 

5. Critically evaluate different models representing 

the growth and pattern of some phenomena 

such as virus-spread and population growth, 

etc. 

6. Communicate findings and views on socio-scientific 

issues with the support of quantitative 

data in platforms such as workshops, seminars 

and e-forum. 

Lecture Time // First semester (Wed) 

Quantitative Literacy in Science, 

Technology and Society 

This course aims to help students develop quantitative literacy for the understanding 

of the dialogue in science-technology-society issues. It consists of three themes: (1) 

Synthesizing multiple representations of quantitative data; (2) Understanding risk and 

uncertainty; and (3) Modeling and prediction of phenomena. The course will help students 

develop mathematical reasoning in contextualized scenarios. 

The course will focus on the use (and 

mis-use) of quantitative information 

in the understanding (and mis-understanding) 

of scientific and technological 

issues we face in our daily lives. 

The limitation of quantitative information 

is also highlighted. Through 

case studies of various issues with the 

use of quantitative information, students 

will be able to develop critical 

eyes when handling socio-scientific/ 

technological issues and to make informed 

decisions. Although the course 

addresses the use of mathematical 

reasoning in the better understanding 

of socio-scientific/technological 

issues, no pre-requisite specialized 

mathematics and science knowledge 

is required. 


Dr I.A.C. Mok 

Division of Science, Mathematics and 

Computing, Faculty of Education 

Tel: 2859 2536 

Email: iacmok@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr I.A.C. Mok 



Tel: 2859 2536 

Email: iacmok@hku.hk 

Dr M.M.W. Cheng 



Tel: 2859 2532 

Email: mwcheng@hku.hk 

Mr A.M.S. Lee 



Tel: 2859 2717 

Email: amslee@hku.hk 

Mr K.L. Wong 



Tel: 2857 8397 

Email: klwong3@hku.hk 

http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccst9002 

25

26 




CCST9004 Appropriate Technology for 

the Developing World / 



Adleman, L. M. (1994). Molecular computation of solutions 

to combinatorial problems. Science, 266(5187), 1021- 

1024. 

Benenson, Y., Gil, B., Ben-Dor, U., Adar, R., & Shapiro, E. 

(2004). An autonomous molecular computer for logical 

control of gene expression. Nature, 429(6990), 423-429. 

Conry-Murray, A. (2007). 5 keys to social networking 

success. InformationWeek. From http://www. 

informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/08/5_ 

keys_to_socia.html 

Google. (2009). Google Flu Trends. From http://www.google. 

org/flutrends/ 

Hölzle, U. (2009). Powering a Google search. Google: Official 

Blog. From http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/ 

powering-google-search.html 

Kling, R. (1980). Computing people. Society, 17(2), 14. 

Layton, J. (2009). How MapQuest works. How Stuff Works. 

From http://money.howstuffworks.com/mapquest.htm 

Watson, C. (1994). An image processing tutorial. From 

http://www.cs.washington.edu/research/metip/tutor/ 

tutor.html 

Wing, J. M. (2006). Computational thinking. 

Communications of the ACM, 49(3), 33-35. From http:// 

www.cs.cmu.edu/~CompThink/ 

Timely articles published on the Web and in other 

magazines (e.g., Science, Nature, Time, Newsweek, The 

Economist, Psychology Today, etc.) 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 12 

Seminars 4 


Short one-page survey + 3-minute talk 30 

Assessment: Essay / Report writing 15 

Assessment: Presentation (incl preparation) 15 

Assessment: Simple quantitative homework 

assignments 15 

Total: 141 



Performance in classes (lectures and tutorials) 20 

Short survey 10 

3-minute talk 15 

Critique essay 20 

Group presentations 15 

Homework assignments 20 



1. Describe and explain, in a high-level manner, 

various representative computational algorithms 

(e.g., Google search, MapQuest route 

finding, etc.). 

2. Use the understanding of limitations on computability 

to judge whether a certain problem is 

computable. 

3. Apply the various “tricks” learned in designing 

algorithms (e.g., recursion) to come up with a 

rough solution to a new problem. 

4. Demonstrate appreciation of the various technology 

frontiers and make informed judgments 

as to what new services/products we can expect 

to be derived from them. 

5. Critically judge whether a certain computing 

service/facility is likely to be beneficial to society. 

6. Demonstrate understanding that “computing” 

as a tool is a double-edge sword, and thus, reflect 

critically on whether we have been relying 

too much on computing devices in educating 

and entertaining young people. 

Lecture Time // First semester (Sat) 

Everyday Computing and the Internet 

In order to make informed decisions 

in this information age, everyone 

needs to have an efficient way to sift 

through and evaluate the myriads of 

information that is available through 

the Internet. The ultimate objective 

of this course is to help students 

develop a “computational” state of 

mind for everyday events. Specifically, 

the course will enable students 

to answer the following questions: 

What daily problems need to be 

solved by a computational method? 

Are such problems solvable? By what 

means can such problems be solved? 

Is it worthwhile to compute such 

problems? How do all these problems 

relate to the Internet that we use on 

a daily basis? We will also discuss 

intensively the societal impacts of 

computing technologies on our daily 

life. The course will be taught with 

minimal levels of mathematical and 

technical detail. 


Professor Y.K. Kwok 

Department of Electrical and Electronic 

Engineering, Faculty of Engineering 

Tel: 2859 8059 

Email: ykwok@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor Y.K. Kwok 



Tel: 2859 8059 

Email: ykwok@hku.hk 





CCST9003 Everyday Computing and the Internet / 



Hazeltine, B., & Bull, C. (1999). Appropriate technology: 

Tools, choices and implications. San Diego, CA: Academic 

Press. 

Smith, C. E., & Cooper-Hewitt Museum. (2007). Design 

for the other 90% (1st ed.). New York: Cooper-Hewitt, 

National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 10 

Seminars 6 


Assessment: Oral presentation 

(incl preparation) 10 

Assessment: Mini project (incl preparation) 10 

Assessment: Design project (incl preparation) 50 

Total: 150 



Tutorial discussion 5 

Oral presentation 15 

Mini project 20 

Final project 60 

Appropriate Technology for 

the Developing World 



1. Explain the challenges in designing technologies 

for the developing world. 

2. Identify the key design considerations pertinent 

to technologies intended for deployment 

in the developing world. 

3. Assess how technology can actively contribute 

to the betterment of life in the developing 

world. 

4. Formulate a design model for a technology that 

has potential to be developed into a working 

prototype for use in the developing world. 

Lecture Time // Second semester (Sat) 

This course introduces students to the opportunities, barriers, and challenges in designing 

technologies for the developing world. Students will examine the design constraints 

and resource limitations encountered in the developing world from different perspectives. 

The overall aim of the course is to broaden the vision of the students on how properly 

designed technologies can make positive contributions to the developing world. 

Throughout the course, students will be introduced to four key intellectual ideas that 

form the cornerstones of developing-world technologies: 

• A developing-world technology should be considered as appropriate only if it can 

fulfill all the design constraints and resource limitations. 

• Design constraints for a developing-world technology should be defined in terms 

of at least four aspects: technical, social, political, and economical. 

• We must think outside the box when designing and assessing a technology intended 

for third world deployment, as technologies that form part of daily life in the 

developed world usually do not meet the needs of the developing world. 

• Properly designed technologies can help developing-world people solve their 

basic needs and improve their standard of living, while inappropriate ones may 

phase out rapidly. 

In taking this course, students will have the opportunity to think more critically about 

the impact of science and technology on the cultural values and quality of life in the 

developing world. In doing so, they can become more mindful of the comparatively 

luxurious living conditions in Hong Kong where technology is abundant and plays an 

integral role in daily living. 

The course will be taught using a combination of lectures, small-group tutorials, and 

hands-on design activities. Another key component of this course is a group design 

project where students will work collaboratively to propose a piece of appropriate 

technology to address an ill-defined problem that is related to real-world challenges 

faced by people living in the developing world. 


Professor L.G. Tham 

Department of Civil Engineering, 

Faculty of Engineering 

Tel: 2859 1965 

Email: hrectlg@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor L.G. Tham 



Tel: 2859 1965 

Email: hrectlg@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr A.C.H. Yu 



Tel: 2857 8482 

Email: alfred.yu@hku.hk 

Professor K.A. Laidler 

Department of Sociology, 

Faculty of Social Sciences 

Tel: 3917 2059 

Email: kjoe@hku.hk 

Dr A.W.Y. Ko 


Tel: 2219 4860 

Email: albertko@hku.hk 


27

28 




Study Load 


Hong Kong Observatory 

Hewitt, P. G. (2007). Conceptual integrated science (1st ed.). 

San Francisco, CA; London: Pearson/Addison Wesley. 

[Chap. 1] 

Lafaille, R., & Fulder, S. (1993). Towards a new science of 

health. London: Routledge. 

Westwood, O. M. R. (1999). The scientific basis for health 

care. London: Mosby. [Chap. 21] 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 10 

Fieldwork / Visits 30 



Assessment: Debate 10 

Total: 127 


Field trip reports 30 

Debates 20 

Problem-based Learning tutorials 20 

Problem-based Learning tutorial case reports 30 



1. Recognize from history dramatic improvements 

in the health of human beings attributable to the 

innovation of our predecessors in the development 

and discoveries of scientific advances. 

2. Identify the difficulties, challenges and drawbacks 

encountered when science is applied to 

improve the health of human beings and hazard 

prevention and minimization. 

3. Show awareness of the moral-ethical considerations 

in applying a scientific achievement to the 

health of human beings, especially in imminent 

and imperative clinical situations e.g. outbreaks 

or epidemics. 

4. Apply optimization techniques when placing 

priorities on utilization of limited resources in 

scientific research of health improvement, promotion 

and prevention. 

5. Demonstrate awareness of the utmost importance 

of social, national and global responsibilities 

and moral obligations to ensure equity and 

justness to enjoy the scientific achievement for 

human health. 

6. Think critically on how the impact, difficulties 

and consequences of health improvement foster 

and influence further new scientific research to 

maintain sustainability of health improvement 

and continuity of the human species. 


Science and Health: The Ever-changing 

Challenges and Solutions 

For thousands of years human beings have been striving hard to survive, get healthier 

and improve their standard of living. Numerous methods have evolved to improve and 

maintain health, in the context of different cultural and ethnic backgrounds among various 

regions in the world. However, obstacles and limitations are always ahead during the 

development of scientific achievements to improve health. More importantly, even when 

we have attained certain levels of achievement, the human ambition to further improve 

our health and create more achievements by developing more advanced scientific techniques 

is never-ending. We are always at the crossroads of how much more we should 

achieve in one respect at the expense of others. This course will enable students to: (i) 

acknowledge from history the improvement of health through scientific achievements 

as well as realize the limitations of science in solving health-related problems; (ii) be 

aware of the motives and challenges when developing, making judgments and applying 

scientific achievements from theories to real practice on human health; (iii) recognize 

the dilemma of decision making on placing priorities on utilization of limited resources 

in fostering scientific research and health promotion with special emphasis on recent 

health challenges in Hong Kong and China; (iv) realize the importance of moral and ethical 

obligations/considerations when performing scientific research on human beings; (v) 

identify the actual social, national and global judgments and conscience to ensure equity 

and justness to enjoy scientific achievements; and (vi) comprehend the cross-influences 

between science and health and how health improvements develop and foster new motives 

and discoveries in future scientific research. Field trip visits to the Hong Kong 

Observatory, Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station and the Department of Clinical Oncology 

at Queen Mary Hospital will be arranged to keep abreast of the recent hot issues of radiation 

leakage, safety and surveillance (see photo). 


Dr V.H.F. Lee 

Department of Clinical Oncology, 


Tel: 2255 4698 

Email: vhflee@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr V.H.F. Lee 



Tel: 2255 4698 

Email: vhflee@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr J.K.C. Leung 

Department of Physics, 

Faculty of Science 

Tel: 2859 2858 

Email: jkcleung@hku.hk 

Professor D.L.W. Kwong 



Tel: 2255 4521 

Email: dlwkwong@hkucc.hku.hk 





CCST9011 Biotechnology – Science and Impacts 


Carlson, E. A. (2006). Times of triumph, times of doubt: 

Science and the battle for public trust. Cold Spring Harbor, 

NY: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. 

Nobel Prize in Medicine. Nobelprize.org. From http:// 

nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/ [Selected 

presentations, press releases and/or information] 

Widmaier, E. P., Raff, H., & Strang, K. T. (2011). Vander’s 

human physiology: The mechanisms of body function (12th 

ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 12 

Laboratory 2 




Total: 150 



Reading assignment (formative) 0 

Short essay 40 


Poster presentation 30 



1. Explain the basic process of scientific discovery 

and the historical and scientific background 

behind major biomedical breakthroughs. 

2. Describe and explain how major biomedical 

discoveries have improved human health globally 

by providing the basics of disease mechanism, 

diagnosis and treatment. 

3. Explain and evaluate the social and ethical implications 

of major biomedical discoveries. 

4. Apply the above knowledge to critically evaluate 

other biomedical discoveries and their social 

and ethical implications. 


Biomedical Breakthroughs in a 

Pluralistic World 

The aim of this course is to help students develop critical, balanced and multi-dimensional 

perspectives on the power of modern biomedical science in offering solutions 

to complex health problems against the new societal and ethical challenges brought by 

such technological advancements. It is hoped that by attending to the scientific, social 

and ethical ramifications of what modern medicine does to our lives and society, we 

may be able to shape biomedical progress to best suit our values. The course contents 

include: (i) Literacy in biomedical science – basic process of scientific discovery, combat 

with microbes, drug development, genes and the human genome; (ii) Interdisciplinary 

nature of scientific research for technological empowerment – organ transplantation; 

(iii) Complexity of the dynamic interactions between science and humanities in 

finding pragmatic solutions to major health problems. 


Dr S.Y.W. Shiu 

Department of Physiology, 


Tel: 2819 9261 

Email: sywshiu@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.Y.W. Shiu 

Department of Physiology, 


Tel: 2819 9261 

Email: sywshiu@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr N.S. Wong 



Tel: 2819 9142 

Email: nswong@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr K.M. Yao 



Tel: 2819 9275 

Email: kmyao@hkusua.hku.hk 


29

30 




Alissa, I. (1995). The illusion of reality or the reality of 

illusion – Hallucinations and culture. British Journal of 

Psychiatry, 166, 368-373. 

Bainbridge, D. (2009). Teenagers: A natural history. London: 

Portobello. 

Bottino, A., & Laurentini, A. (2010). The analysis of facial 

beauty: An emerging area of research in pattern analysis. 

Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 6111, 425-435. 

Cobb, M. (2006). The egg & sperm race: The seventeenthcentury 

scientists who unravelled the secrets of sex, life 

and growth. London: Free Press. 

Cross, J. F., & Cross, J. (1971). Age, sex, race, and perception 

of facial beauty. Developmental Psychology, 5(3), 433-439. 

Hrabosky, J. I., Cash, T. F., Veale, D., Neziroglu, F., Soll, E. A., 

Garner, D. M., et al. (2009). Multidimensional body image 

comparisons among patients with eating disorders, body 

dysmorphic disorder, and clinical controls: A multisite 

study. Body Image, 6(3), 155-163. 

Jefferson, Y. (2004). Facial beauty – Establishing a universal 

standard. International Journal of Orthodontics, 15(1), 

9-22. 

Miller, K. J., Gleaves, D. H., Hirsch, T. G., Green, B. A., Snow, 

A. C., & Corbett, C. C. (2000). Comparisons of body image 

dimensions by race/ethnicity and gender in a university 

population. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 

27(3), 310-316. 

Patnaik, V., Rajan, S., & Sanju, B. (2003). Anatomy of “A 

beautiful face & smile”. Journal of the Anatomical Society 

of India, 52(1), 74-80. 

Powell, N., & Humphreys, B. (1984). Proportions of the 

aesthetic face. New York: Thieme-Stratton. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Movie viewing 4 

Finding materials from the Internet/magazines, 

newspapers or books 10 

Assessment: Short essay (formative) 6 

Assessment: Dissertation 20 

Assessment: Photo essay 16 

Total: 132 



Essay writing 40 

In-class presentation 20 

Class discussion 30 

Literature review 10 



1. Compare the way pictures are captured by 

a camera with the perception we acquire 

through sight. 

2. Analyze how images can be digitally manipulated 

to influence our perceptions. 

3. Differentiate when it comes to beauty, the subjective 

from the objective. 

4. Critically debate the value-system of a society 

based on outward appearance. 


Vision: 

The Science and Art of Perception 

We use vision as a means to illustrate that perception depends on the interaction of 

body and mind. The course will cover the following topics: (i) “Seeing is believing” – 

Our eye can be easily fooled and sometimes we see what we want to or expect to see. 

Under this topic, we will learn how we see and explore the nature of illusion, delusion 

and hallucination; (ii) “Can we trust our eyes?” – This looks at digital photography and 

photojournalism. We will examine how a picture tells a story and find out how our perception 

can be manipulated to influence our perception; and (iii) “Looking at you, looking 

at me” – Popular culture can objectify our bodies and endorse a value system that is 

based on self-image and physical attractiveness. The way we see ourselves and others 

affects the way we think, feel and behave. 


Professor D.S.H. Wong 

Eye Institute, 


Tel: 3962 1413 

Email: shdwong@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor D.S.H. Wong 



Tel: 3962 1413 

Email: shdwong@hku.hk 

Professor G.C.F. Chan 

Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent 

Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine 

Tel: 2255 4091 

Email: gcfchan@hku.hk 

Dr M.M. Marcet 



Tel: 2817 5085 

Email: marcet@hku.hk 





Greenwood, D. (2007). Medical microbiology: A guide to 

microbial infections: Pathogenesis, immunity, laboratory 

diagnosis and control (17th ed.). Edinburgh: Churchill 

Livingstone. 

Nelson, K. E., & Williams, C. M. (2007). Infectious disease 

epidemiology: Theory and practice (2nd ed.). Sudbury, 

MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. 

Pommerville, J. C., & Alcamo, I. E. (2007). Alcamo’s 

fundamentals of microbiology (8th ed.). Sudbury, MA: 

Jones and Bartlett Publishers. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 8 

Practical classes 6 

Visit to the Hong Kong Museum of 

Medical Sciences 3 




Assessment: In-class test 3 

Total: 120 



In-class test 30 

Topic presentation and report 40 



Infectious Disease in a Changing World 

Infectious disease is one of the key threats to global health. The emergence of new 

pathogens, the re-emergence of old pathogens, the growing problem of antimicrobial 

resistance, and the threat of bioterrorism pose substantial difficulties to public 

health and patient management. HIV, SARS, avian influenza and pandemic influenza, 

extensively-resistant tuberculosis, cholera, community-acquired methicillin-resistant 

Staphylococcus aureus are just some recent reminders that emerging infections can 

strike both the developing and industrialized countries equally. China, as the most populous 

country in the world and one of the fastest growing economies, has also been one 

of the epicenters for emerging infectious diseases. This course aims to: (i) introduce 

the concepts of microbes and infection; (ii) introduce the concepts of emerging and 

re-emerging infectious diseases and their local and global significance; (iii) illustrate 

the importance of infectious disease in the history of humankind; (iv) study the role of 

nations in the global control of emerging infectious diseases, with special reference to 

China and Hong Kong; (v) examine some basic tools to understand infectious diseases 

and the pathogens; and (vi) explore some of the controversial issues in the prevention 

and management of infectious diseases. 



1. Demonstrate understanding of the interaction 

between microbes and humans in infectious 

diseases. 

2. Describe the environmental, ecological, social, 

historical, and human factors in determining 

the epidemiology of infectious diseases. 

3. Balance the risk and benefits of vaccination as 

a preventive measure for infectious diseases. 

4. Demonstrate understanding of the ecology and 

epidemiology of some important emerging and 

re-emerging infectious diseases that are locally 

or globally important. 

5. Demonstrate understanding of the importance 

of a free flow of information in the global control 

of infectious diseases. 


Dr S.S.Y. Wong 

Department of Microbiology, 


Tel: 2255 4892 

Email: samsonsy@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.S.Y. Wong 



Tel: 2255 4892 

Email: samsonsy@hku.hk 

Professor K.Y. Yuen 



Tel: 2255 4892 

Email: kyyuen@hku.hk 

Professor J.S.M. Peiris 



Tel: 2255 4888 

Email: malik@hku.hk 

Dr P.L. Ho 



Tel: 2255 4193 

Email: plho@hku.hk 


31

32 




Hogan, K. A., & Palladino, M. A. (2009). Stem cells and 

cloning (2nd ed.) (The Benjamin Cummings special 

topics in biology series). San Francisco, CA; London: 

Pearson/ Benjamin Cummings. 

Park, A. (2009, January 29). Stem cell research: The quest 

resumes. Time. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 

Laboratory 3 

Movie viewing 4 


Assessment: Group tasks 15 

Assessment: Individual tasks 25 

Assessment: In-class test (incl preparation) 5 

Total: 125 



In-class continuous assessment 

(discussions, debates, activities) 20 

Group projects 20 

Individual assignments 40 


Living with Stem Cells 



1. Define the basic characteristics of different 

types of stem cells and discuss their applications 

in medicine. 

2. Express the implications of stem cell technologies 

on individuals, families, societies and humankind. 

3. State the principles of biomedical ethics and 

apply ethical and moral understanding to 

evaluate the benefits and dilemmas of stem cell 

technologies. 

4. Analyze and evaluate case scenarios for informed 

decision making and recommend strategies 

for stem cell research policy making. 

5. Explain the positions taken by different individuals, 

organizations and cultures with respect 

to stem cell technologies. 


Discoveries in biological and medical sciences in recent decades have transformed our 

life and society. The potential of stem cells to replace ‘new cells for old’ offers great 

hope for the treatment of many diseases, yet it is uncertain whether these cells will 

live up to the expectations of doctors and society at large. Some bioethicists have expressed 

concerns that society’s drive to find cures is obscuring our judgment and forcing 

us to step over inappropriate moral boundaries. 

This course will guide you through the scientific discoveries to allow you to appreciate 

how stem cells can be a therapeutic tool, both now and in the future. It will give you the 

opportunity to explore the relevant moral issues and bioethical framework for evaluating 

the benefits and dilemmas of stem cell-based regenerative medicine. It will also allow 

you to examine Hong Kong’s current stem cell policies and regulations in relation 

to other countries, providing you with both the scientific and ethical perspectives necessary 

to inform future stem cell policy making. 

The topics will be addressed through scientific, literary and popular media in a combination 

of lectures, tutorials and case studies. There will be many opportunities for 

interactive groupwork and sharing of ideas during the classes. 


Dr M.H. Sham 



Tel: 2819 9240 

Email: mhsham@hku.hkv 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.J. Bevan 



Tel: 2819 9495 

Email: sambevan@hku.hk 

Dr M.H. Sham 



Tel: 2819 9240 

Email: mhsham@hku.hk 

Dr D. Chan 



Tel: 2819 9482 

Email: chand@hku.hk 





CCST9030 Forensic Science: Unmasking Evidence, 

Mysteries and Crimes 


About forensic DNA. The DNA Initiative. From http://www. 

dna.gov/basics/ 

Casey, E. (2004). Digital evidence and computer crime: 

Forensic science, computers and the Internet (2nd ed.). 

London; San Diego, CA: Academic Press. [Chaps. 1-7] 

Collected writings on the washing away of wrongs. 

Chinaculture.org. From http://www1.chinaculture.org/ 

library/2008-01/31/content_26879.htm 

Lee, H. C., Palmbach, T., & Miller, M. T. (2001). Henry Lee’s 

crime scene handbook. San Diego, CA; London: Academic. 

[Chaps. 1-7] 

Saukko, P. J., & Knight, B. (2004). Knight’s forensic pathology 

(3rd ed.). London; New York: Arnold. [Chaps. 1, 2] 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 8 




Assessment: Development of case file 10 

Total: 124 



Portfolio collection of references (individual) 20 


Analysis and preparation of a case file 20 

Presentation case analysis and conclusions 

(individual and small group) 30 



1. Demonstrate understanding of the scientific 

principles that underline and support the practical 

application of various scientific disciplines 

that are involved in the forensic sciences. 

2. Analyze and integrate various sources of scientific 

data and understand their validity and limitations 

hence allowing critical appraisal of their 

value in providing answers for solving a crime. 

3. Display interpersonal communication and collaboration 

skills in working with students from 

different backgrounds. 

4. Demonstrate awareness of the importance of 

professional standards and ethical practices. 


The Science of Crime Investigation 

This course introduces students to the scientific, 

legal and ethical concepts that underpin 

forensic science. Forensic science spans all 

scientific disciplines such as anthropology, biology, 

chemistry, computing, medicine, physics, 

etc. Students will explore and develop an 

understanding of the principles of forensic 

science through an overview as well as more 

topic-specific lectures, and experience handson 

some of the simple skills involved in scientific 

analysis. Knowledge gained will be applied 

and students will be required to work on 

an assigned case and offer solutions. 


Dr S.L. Beh 

Department of Pathology, 


Tel: 2255 4863 

Email: philipbeh@pathology.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.L. Beh 



Tel: 2255 4863 


Professor F.C.C. Leung 

School of Biological Sciences, 


Tel: 2299 0825 

Email: fcleung@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr K.P. Chow 

Department of Computer Science, 


Tel: 2859 2191 

Email: chow@cs.hku.hk 


33

34 




CCST9006 Biomedical Breakthroughs 

in a Pluralistic World 


Selected reading materials (2-3 assigned articles 

per week) from Scientific American, the science and 

technology section of The New York Times and The 

Washington Post, and the Internet. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 

Discussion (reading and self-study) 48 



Total: 129 



In-class participation and quizzes 15 

Essays and reports 20 

Discussion forum 35 

Poster and oral presentation 30 



1. Describe and explain the principles of inheritance, 

recombinant DNA and cloning. 

2. Determine, explain and appraise the benefits 

and shortcomings of the application of biotechnology 

knowledge. 

3. Select and justify the use of advanced biotechnology 

products through bioethical consideration. 

4. Demonstrate professional and ethical approaches 

in presenting findings and analyses in 

a coherent and effective manner. 


Biotechnology – Science and Impacts 

This course provides students with 

the facts about the scientific discovery 

leading to the development of 

this new and revolutionary technology, 

and challenges them to think, 

investigate and evaluate how this 

technology can help solve medical 

and health, agricultural and food, 

and environmental and sustainable 

resources problems and also its potential 

risk and hazards. Students 

will gain general understanding and 

knowledge of basic genetic, molecular 

biology and biotechnology, 

and interest in and awareness of 

the modern advancement of molecular 

biology and biotechnology. 

Students will be challenged to gain 

understanding about the impacts 

of biotechnology in human medical 

health, agriculture and environment. 

The moral-ethical issues associated 

with the biotechnology industry will 

be discussed and debated leading 

to the appreciation of the potential 

significant interconnection between 

biotechnology knowledge and humanities. 





Tel: 2299 0825 


Teacher(s): 




Tel: 2299 0825 






Koestler, A. (1968). The sleepwalkers: A history of man’s 

changing vision of the universe. New York: Penguin 

Books. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 8 



Laboratory 4 


Assessment: Examination 4 

Total: 150 

Assessment: 60% coursework; 

40% examination 


Assignments 20 

Laboratory reports 20 

Mid-term test 20 

Examination 40 

Our Place in the Universe 



1. Describe the scientific method and explain how 

the scientific method was developed and applied 

to explain and predict motions of celestial 

objects. 

2. Evaluate the role of science in transforming our 

philosophical thinking. 

3. Identify qualitative and quantitative everyday 

astronomical phenomena and describe how 

such understanding has evolved over history. 

4. Describe the emergence of rational thinking 

and assess the effects of social environment on 

intellectual development through historical 

examples. 


This course discusses the historical changes in the perception of our place in the universe 

as a result of astronomical development. We begin with ancient models of the 

universe in different cultures and the religious and philosophical interpretation of celestial 

objects, through the Copernican revolution and the work of Kepler, Galileo and 

Newton, towards our current physical model of the universe. 

Topics include: 

• Changing perceptions of our place in the universe as the result of astronomical 

development. Illustration of the development of the scientific method and how 

science has influenced the evolution of our philosophical thinking and cultural 

development; 

• Ancient models of the universe and the early philosophical and religious interpretation 

of celestial objects; 

• The development of concepts of time and calendars through the observation of solar, 

lunar, and planetary motions; 

• The Copernican revolution and the change from geocentric to heliocentric cosmology; 

• The application of scientific method and a physical interpretation of the universe 

through the work of Kepler, Galileo and Newton; 

• The expansion of the spatial scale of the universe as the result of modern astronomical 

observations; 

• Expansion of the time domain in cosmic history through the study of the history 

of the Earth, biological evolution, and cosmic evolution. 


Professor S. Kwok 


Tel: 2859 2682 

Email: deansci@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor S. Kwok 


Tel: 2859 2682 

Email: deansci@hku.hk 

Dr J.C.S. Pun 

Department of Physics, Faculty of Science 

Tel: 2859 1962 

Email: jcspun@hkucc.hku.hk 


35

36 




CCST9016 Energy: Its Evolution and 

Environmental Impacts 


Sections from: 

Jones, G. E. (2004). People and environment: A global 

approach. New York: Pearson Prentice Hall. 

Simmons, I. G. (1989). Changing the face of the earth: 

Culture, environment, history. Oxford: Blackwell. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 8 


Palaeoclimate laboratory 4 


Workshops on essay writing 2 



Assessment: Quizzes 2 

Total: 148 



Literature reviews 20 

Paleoclimate laboratory (report and quiz) 30 

Lamma field trip 10 

Concept mapping with explanations 20 

Multiple choice quiz 20 

Our Living Environment 



1. Recognize and describe the reciprocal relationships 

between humans and their environment 

influenced by scientific discovery and technological 

development. 

2. Analyze the impacts of scientific discovery 

and technological development on the natural 

environment and human societies at different 

spatial and temporal scales. 

3. Demonstrate an awareness of the impacts of 

science within the broader economic, environmental 

and socio-cultural context, and apply 

knowledge gained to evaluate solutions appropriate 

to the specific cultures and environments. 

4. Produce written evidence, in the form of individual 

course work, of their aquisition of 

knowledge and analytical skills in the topic. 

5. Present, in the form of internet searching for 

relevant information and group digital presentation 

of research results, their IT and communication 

skills. 


This course will introduce to students the diverse ways in which human society has 

interacted with the natural environment, raise their awareness of the complexity of 

environmental issues, and encourage them to explore various aspects of global and 

local environmental problems. The teaching will focus firstly on how scientific and 

technological development has influenced human society in gaining economic benefits 

from understanding and being able to modify and manage the natural environment. It 

will then draw students’ attention to the consequences of human’s modification of the 

natural environment, including an increase in the scale of natural hazards recently occurring 

across the world. Students will be guided to examine global (resources, climate 

change, economic growth, etc.) and local (pollution and resource depletion in China 

and Hong Kong) environmental issues, and explore possible scientific and technological 

solutions along with political, social and economical considerations to these environmental 

problems. 


Dr S.C. Chang 

Department of Earth Sciences, 


Tel: 2857 8577 

Email: suchin@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.C. Chang 



Tel: 2857 8577 


Dr J.A. King 



Tel: 2241 5473 

Email: jessking@hkucc.hku.hk 





Hall, D. E. (2002). Musical acoustics (3rd ed.). Pacific Grove, 

CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing Co. [Chaps. 2, 11, 12, 18] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 




Assessment: In-class tests (incl preparation) 20 

Total: 137 



In-class tests 40 

Project component 1 (content) 30 

Project component 2 (portfolio) 10 

Project component 3 (presentation) 20 

Science and Music 



1. Demonstrate appreciation of the close ties 

there have been between the study of music 

and science over the centuries, and how in the 

modern era close ties still exist but for various 

reasons are largely ignored. 

2. Explain the production of musical tone and 

timbre in musical instruments using the scientific 

principles and understanding of sound 

propagation, waves and harmonics. 

3. Apply simple mathematics to the construction 

of different musical scales ( just, equal, meantone) 

and appreciate the historical development 

of scales in both Europe and China. 

4. Realize and discuss coherently philosophical 

issues at the science and music interface. 

5. Demonstrate academic research capabilities by 

carrying out a research project on some topics 

relating science and music. 


The course aims at an appreciation of the close connection between music and science 

that has existed historically from Pythagoras on into modern times. The essential 

physics of musical sound production and analysis will be provided in order to facilitate 

the elementary principles behind wind, string and percussion instruments and their 

characteristic timbre. The development of scales from fundamental principles will be 

dealt with leading to an appreciation of some of the subtle differences between Chinese 

and Western music. Contemporary music and science interactions will focus on 

electronic music and the working principles of modern instruments such as the electric 

guitar. Finally some scientific understanding of musical appreciation will be given 

by looking at the factors that make music pleasing. 


Dr H.F. Chau 



Tel: 2859 1925 

Email: hfchau@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr H.F. Chau 



Tel: 2859 1925 

Email: hfchau@hku.hk 

Dr H.Y. Chan 

School of Humanities (Music), 

Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 5210 

Email: tlychan@hkucc.hku.hk 


37

38 




CCST9003 Everyday Computing and the Internet / 

CCST9004 Appropriate Technology for the 

Developing World 


Class notes, news clips, and advertisement excerpts. 

Selections from: 

Baase, S. (2009). A gift of fire: Social, legal, and ethical issues 

for computing and the Internet (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle 

River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. 

Hayles, N. K. (2008). Electronic literature: New horizons for 

the literary. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame. 

Jarvis, J. (2011). Public parts: How sharing in the digital age 

improves the way we work and live. New York: Simon & 

Schuster. 

Kraut, R. E., Brynin, M., & Kiesler, S. (2006). Computers, 

phones, and the Internet: Domesticating information 

technology. New York: Oxford University Press. 

Levine, R. (2011). Free ride: How digital parasites are 

destroying the culture business, and how the culture 

business can fight back. New York: Doubleday. 

Muller, R. (2010). Physics and technology for future 

presidents: An introduction to the essential physics every 

world leader needs to know. Princeton, NJ: Princeton 

University Press. 

Pernick, R., & Wilder, C. (2008). The clean tech revolution: 

Discover the top trends, technologies, and companies to 

watch (1st Collins pbk. ed.). New York: Collins Business. 

Seidensticker, B. (2006). Future hype: The myths of 

technology change. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler 

Publishers. 

Tapscott, D. (2009). Grown up digital: How the net 

generation is changing your world. New York: McGraw- 

Hill. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Total: 120 



Homework tasks 40 

Group project report 30 

Peer-review of group project presentation 15 

Group project presentation 15 



1. Differentiate true innovation from marketing 

hypes. 

2. Locate caveats in marketing hypes. 

3. Identify key merits of a new technology. 

4. Discuss the socio-economical impact of major 

technologies from recent years. 


Electronic Technologies in Everyday Life 

In this age of information explosion, it is easy for one to get lost in the labyrinth of new 

technology surfacing everyday in mass media and the Internet. While some of these 

new technologies will eventually change our ways of living, some, unfortunately, are 

mere marketing hypes. This course aims to: (i) arouse students’ general interest in 

science and technology, particularly with regard to current “high-tech” products that 

they encounter everyday; and (ii) train students to develop critical intellectual enquiries 

concerning existing and latest technologies they encounter in their everyday lives 

through examining scientific evidence and information. Through lectures and discussions, 

students will not only be able to recognize the latest advancement in technologies 

and identify misinformation presented in the mass media, but also be able to understand 

their social implications, as well as to develop critical thinking and to carry 

educated discussion about merits and common misconceptions associated with new 

technologies. 


Dr H.K.H. So 



Tel: 2859 2702 

Email: hso@eee.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr H.K.H. So 



Tel: 2859 2702 

Email: hso@eee.hku.hk 

Dr E.Y. Lam 



Tel: 2241 5942 

Email: elam@eee.hku.hk 

Dr K.K.Y. Wong 



Tel: 2857 8483 

Email: kywong@eee.hku.hk 





CCST9013 Our Living Environment 


Fanchi, J. R. (2005). Energy in the 21st century. Hackensack, 

NJ: World Scientific. 

Gibilisco, S. (2007). Alternative energy demystified. New 

York: McGraw-Hill. 

International Energy Agency, & Organisation for Economic 

Co-operation and Development. (2000). Energy 

technology and climate change: A call to action. Paris: 

OECD/IEA. 

Kostic, M. M. (2007). Energy: Global and historical 

background. Encyclopedia of Energy Engineering and 

Technology, 1(1), 601-615. [Also available from http:// 

www.kostic.niu.edu/Energy_Global_Historical-Kostic. 

pdf ] 

Lam, P., & Hong Kong Centre for Economic Research. (1996). 

The scheme of control on electricity companies. Hong 

Kong: The Chinese University Press. 

Mitchell, C. (2008). The political economy of sustainable 

energy. Basingstoke, UK; New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Fieldwork / Visits (incl report writing) 10 



Assessment: Examination (incl preparation) 20 

Total: 152 




Essays and reports 25 

Quizzes 25 

Final examination 50 



1. Describe and explain various energy conversion 

technologies. 

2. Assess the social benefits and environmental 

impacts of the fossil fuel economy and present 

their own views. 

3. Evaluate the potential of renewable energy technologies 

for future sustainable development. 

4. Demonstrate understanding of the ways energy 

was discovered and used in human history. 

5. Formulate informed arguments in responding 

to energy-related environmental issues. 


Energy: Its Evolution and Environmental 

Impacts 

Energy is essential to our daily lives. Electricity, fuel gas and fuel oil have brought us 

much convenience, luxury and prosperity. However, our present heavy reliance on 

fossil fuels has caused a serious energy crisis, air pollution and climate change problems. 

Active technological development is needed on both the supply and demand 

sides to enhance the energy industry to achieve sustainability. This course is designed 

to enable students to develop a broader perspective and critical understanding of energy 

issues that they are confronted with, to cultivate their appreciation of various 

viewpoints and responsibilities 

as global and local citizens, 

and to develop their problemsolving 

ability through lectures 

and discussion of the key energy 

and environmental issues. The 

course topics include: (i) world 

energy resources; (ii) fossil fuelbased, 

nuclear and hydro energy 

technologies; (iii) energy conservation 

and energy efficiency; 

(iv) clean and renewable energy 

technologies; (v) scheme of control 

and deregulation in electricity 

supply; (vi) environmental 

impacts of energy industry; (vii) 

social, economic and political 

issues; and (viii) remedial measures 

and policies. 


Dr T.S.P. Feng 

Department of Mechanical Engineering, 


Tel: 2857 8554 

Email: hpfeng@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr T.S.P. Feng 



Tel: 2857 8554 

Email: hpfeng@hku.hk 

Dr S.C.M. Hui 



Tel: 2859 2123 

Email: cmhui@hku.hk 

Dr G.C.K. Lam 



Tel: 2877 3122 

Email: glam@nt.com.hk 


39

40 




CCST9037 Mathematics: A Cultural Heritage 


Bryan, K., & Leise, T. (2006). The $25,000,000,000 

eigenvector: The linear algebra behind Google. Siam 

Review, 48(3), 569-581. 

Gura, E.-Y., & Maschler, M. (2008). Insights into game 

theory: An alternative mathematical experience. 

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Chap. 3] 

Haigh, J. (2003). Taking chances: Winning with probability 

(New ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. [Chap.14] 

Lysyanskaya, A. (2008). How to keep secrets safe. Scientific 

American, 299(3), 88-95. 

Shermer, M. (2008). The doping dilemma. Scientific 

American, 298(4), 82-89. From http://www.sciam.com/ 

article.cfm?id=the-doping-dilemma 

Taylor, A. D., & Pacelli, A. M. (2008). Mathematics and 

politics: Strategy, voting, power and proof (2nd ed.). New 

York: Springer. 

Woolfson, M. M. (2008). Everyday probability and statistics: 

Health, elections, gambling and war. London: Imperial 

College Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: In-class test 1.5 

Assessment: Assignments 30 

Total: 138.5 



Written assignment 35 

Mini project and group presentation 35 


Hidden Order in Daily Life: 

A Mathematical Perspective 



1. Demonstrate understanding of important applications 

of mathematics in our everyday life. 

2. Apply mathematical ideas and methods to decision 

making on everyday issues. 

3. Investigate the mathematical foundation of 

topics that are related to everyday life. 

4. Communicate daily life problems and solutions 

using appropriate mathematical terminology 

and good English. 

5. Solve real-life problems using mathematics 

and present the solutions using appropriate 

software. 


Although not obvious, mathematics actually permeates many areas of our modern society, 

affecting us fundamentally on an everyday basis. For example, the Human Genome 

Project, GPS systems, and mobile phones use mathematics extensively as well as 

other non-science matters such as financial investment, data encryption, and internet 

searching. Even voting systems, an important feature of our democracy, can be analyzed 

with the help of mathematics, enabling us to gain a deeper understanding of what 

is meant by fairness of a voting system or a social choice procedure and its limitations. 

Through exploring non-technically some mathematically rich daily life topics, this 

course aims to help students gain essential mathematical literacy for living in the 21st 

century. Students will learn the mathematical concepts and principles of things that 

they encounter in modern society, and learn how to handle and interpret numerical 

and other forms of mathematical data that affect their daily life. 

* Note: Mathematics beyond the level of general school mathematics is not required. The 

focus of the course is on demonstrating analytical reasoning, formulating evidential 

and logical arguments, and presenting and communicating the coherent body of knowledge 

acquired. 


Dr T.W. Ng 

Department of Mathematics, 


Tel: 2241 5631 

Email: ntw@maths.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr T.W. Ng 



Tel: 2241 5631 


Dr K.H. Chan 



Tel: 2857 8571 

Email: mkhchan@hku.hk 





Grady, M. M. (2001). Astrobiology. Washington, DC: 

Smithsonian Institution Press in association with the 

Natural History Museum, London. 

NASA. Astrobiology Magazine. From http://www.astrobio. 

net 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials (incl preparation) 18 




Total: 126 



Video critiques / Self-produced video interview 20 

Debate 10 

Mini-essay 20 


Quizzes and tutorial activities 20 

Origin and Evolution of Life 



1. Describe how advances in technology have 

influenced scientific thinking on the origin, 

evolution and future of life. 

2. Discriminate between scientific explanations 

and other belief-based explanations for the origin 

and evolution of life. 

3. Describe and explain the societal implications 

of scientific discoveries relating to the origin, 

evolution and future of life. 

4. Evaluate how technological advances can affect 

the long-term future of humankind. 


Among the most fundamental questions we can ask ourselves as human beings are: 

Where do we come from – how did life begin and evolve? Are we alone – is the Earth 

unique in our universe in supporting life? and Where are we going – what is the longterm 

future for humankind? These questions focus on the origin, evolution and future 

of life, a field of study collectively termed astrobiology. Answers have been sought via 

scientific inquiry throughout human history, and technological advances have created 

paradigm shifts in the way that society reconciles new scientific findings with accepted 

norms and belief-systems. The course will examine: (i) how the conditions for life 

arose in the universe and how scientific and technological advances have changed this 

perception over time; (ii) the various scientific threads supporting the appearance of 

life including humans, and their evolutionary changes over time; and (iii) the societal 

implications of discovering extraterrestrial life. 


Dr S.B. Pointing 



Tel: 2299 0677 

Email: pointing@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.B. Pointing 



Tel: 2299 0677 

Email: pointing@hku.hk 

Dr G.W. Porter 


Tel: 2241 5195 

Email: porterg@hku.hk 


41

42 




Caron, Z., & May, E. (2009). Global warming for dummies. 

Mississauga, Ontario: J. Wiley & Sons Canada. 

Weekly or bi-weekly reading from the Internet such as 

Science News, Science, The Washington Post, The New York 

Times, South China Morning Post, etc. 

Study Load 


Lectures 16 

Practical classes 4 

Tutorials 8 

Seminars 4 



Palaeoclimate laboratory 4 

Blog participation 2 



Total: 148 



Essay 20 

Multiple choice quiz 20 

Group presentation and blog 20 

Field trip worksheet 10 

Laboratory report 30 



1. Describe, explain and connect the basic principles, 

concepts and theories, pertaining to the 

climate change debate using appropriate scientific 

language. 

2. Describe and explain how climate change impacts 

everyday life and society. 

3. Critically assess films and other media information 

(e.g. from the Internet, the popular 

press, books, journals) on the climate change 

debate. 

4. Work constructively in peer-selected groups to 

produce a presentation. 

5. Demonstrate public speaking skills. 


Understanding Climate Change 

Climate change is consistently in the news, yet there is little public understanding of 

what is now one of the biggest issues facing humanity. This course will provide students 

with the scientific literacy needed to understand climate change and consider 

existing and proposed solutions. The guiding objective is to promote the understanding 

needed to evaluate, develop and propose emerging and creative solutions at individual, 

local and global levels. Students will be required to critically examine different media 

on the subject including critiques of “An Inconvenient Truth” and “The Great Global 

Warming Swindle” films that present opposing sides of the climate change argument. 

Besides lectures, the course will use self-directed web-based learning and “blog” discussions 

together with a climate lab and field trip to stimulate student thinking. An interest 

in climate change issues and the ability to think critically and express ideas are 

the only prerequisites for the course. 


Dr Z.H. Liu 



Tel: 2859 2831 

Email: zhliu@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr Z.H. Liu 



Tel: 2859 2831 

Email: zhliu@hku.hk 

Dr J.A. King 



Tel: 2241 5473 






Anderson, R. C. (1998). Mid-course correction: Toward a 

sustainable enterprise: The Interface model. Atlanta, GA: 

Peregrinzilla Press. 

Granade, H. C., Creyts, J., Derkach, A., Farese, P., Nyquist, 

S., & Ostrowski, K. (2009). Unlocking energy efficiency 

in the U.S. economy. McKinsey Global Energy and 

Materials, McKinsey & Company. 

Additional required readings will be provided in class by 

the teachers. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 10 




Assessment: Assignments and reports 36 


Total: 122 




In-course quizzes 10 

Participation in tutorial discussions 15 


Field visit report 20 




1. Demonstrate understanding of abstract to 

semi-technical issues relating to sustainable 

development in the context of the built environment. 

2. Demonstrate awareness of the impact of human 

activity on the natural and built environment 

and argue the role professionals have played 

and will play. 

3. Describe modern day built environment systems 

and sustainable technologies. 

4. Formulate strategies to ensure sustainable development 

of current and future built environments. 


Sustainable Development of the Built 

Environment 

“First we shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us.” (Winston Churchill) 

An ever growing awareness of the adverse impacts that humans are having upon the 

natural environment is prompting a greater public awareness of the need to live in a 

sustainable manner. An opportunity to enact such a manner of living is no greater than 

the very place we spend a significant portion of our lives; the built environment. The 

sustainable functioning of large cities, such as Hong Kong, offers an ideal opportunity 

to positively influence the present and future impact of human activity on our planet. 

Students of this course should gain an informed understanding of the central issues associated 

with sustainable development of the built environment and the ways in which 

these issues have been responded to throughout history and the present day as well as 

how they could be responded to in the future. Students will also develop an ability to 

formulate clear strategies by drawing upon relevant best practices and technologies. 

Topics specific to this course include (i) global issues related to the natural and built 

environment, (ii) the science of sustainable development and associated technologies, 

(iii) relevant ethical, socioeconomic, philosophical and political issues as well as the 

role of professionals, (iv) energy, and (v) case studies and the future. In this course students 

will be expected to attend lectures and tutorials, participate in tutorial discussions, 

search literature and read widely, and to also undertake a field trip (within Hong 

Kong) and report the results. 


Dr S.T. Smith 



Tel: 2241 5699 

Email: stsmith@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr S.T. Smith 



Tel: 2241 5699 

Email: stsmith@hku.hk 

Dr K.M. Shih 



Tel: 2859 1973 

Email: kshih@hku.hk 


43

44 




Blewitt, J. (2008). Understanding sustainable development. 

London: Earthscan. [e-book] 

Environmental Protection Department. (2006). 20 years 

of marine water quality monitoring in Hong Kong, 

1986-2005. Hong Kong: Environmental Protection 

Department, HKSAR Government. From http://www. 

epd.gov.hk/epd/misc/marine_quality/1986-2005/ 

Rogers, P. P., Jalal, K. F., & Boyd, J. A. (2008). An introduction 

to sustainable development. London; Sterling, VA: 

Earthscan. [e-book] 

Tsang, S. Y. S. (2004). A modern history of Hong Kong. 

London: I. B. Tauris. [e-book] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Self-learning exercises through museum 

and site visits 20 

Assessment: Group project / Presentation 



Total: 160 



Self-learning exercises 30 

Group project 30 

Tutorial participation and individual 

presentation 20 




1. Demonstrate in-depth understanding of our 

marine heritage in relation to its historical, societal, 

physicochemical, and ecological aspects. 

2. Critically analyze the various situations, problems 

and conflicts with respect to the use and 

management of our marine resources. 

3. Apply essential principles and skills to resolve 

the environmental problems in relation to the 

sustainable development of marine natural resources. 

4. Appreciate our own culture related to history 

of the unique marine heritage in contrast to the 

cultures in other jurisdictions. 

5. Demonstrate understanding of the potential 

positive and negative impacts of science and 

technology such as those demonstrated in fishing 

gears’ evolution. 

6. Ascertain self-learning habits, problem solving 

and communication skills through various 

learning activities. 


Hong Kong: Our Marine Heritage 

This course will provide students 

with an in-depth understanding of 

our marine heritage in relation to its 

historical, social, economical, physicochemical, 

and ecological aspects. 

In particular, the course will acquaint 

students with key principles and 

skills to resolve the environmental 

problems with respect to the sustainable 

development of marine natural 

resources. Students will also explore 

the positive and negative impacts of 

science and technology such as those 

demonstrated in the evolution of 

fishing gear and chemical use. Eventually, 

students will learn how to critically 

analyze the various situations, 

problems, conflicts and solutions 

regarding the use and management of 

our marine resources. 


Dr K.M.Y. Leung 



Tel: 2299 0607 

Email: kmyleung@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr K.M.Y. Leung 



Tel: 2299 0607 

Email: kmyleung@hkucc.hku.hk 

Professor Y. Sadovy 



Tel: 2299 0603 

Email: yjsadovy@hku.hk 





Day, R. A., & Gastel, B. (2006). How to write and publish a 

scientific paper. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. 

Erickson, M. (2005). Science, culture and society: 

Understanding science in the twenty-first century. 

Cambridge, UK: Polity. 

Goldacre, B. (2009). Bad science. London: Fourth Estate. 

Gregory, J., & Miller, S. (1998). Science in public: 

Communication, culture, and credibility. New York: 

Plenum Trade. 

Hargreaves, I., & Ferguson, G. (2000). Who’s 

misunderstanding whom? Swindon, UK: Economic and 

Social Research Council. 

Sagan, C. (1997). The demon-haunted world: Science as a 

candle in the dark. New York: Ballantine Books. 

Scanlon, E. (1999). Communicating science: Contexts and 

channels. London; New York: Routledge. 

Silverstone, R. (1985). Framing science: The making of a BBC 

documentary. London: British Film Institute Publishing. 

The nature of Nature. (2009, April 25). The Economist, 

390(8628), 83-84. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 10 



Assessment: Case study 15 

Assessment: Mini-project 15 

Assessment: In-class quizzes (incl revision time) 8 

Total: 145 



In-class quizzes 20 

Individual mini-project 30 

Group presentation 20 

Case study 30 



1. Define the scientific method and recognize how 

it is applied in the real world. 

2. Describe how the mass media shapes our view 

of the modern world. 

3. Explain how the public understanding and 

perception of science and technology issues is 

shaped by the mass media. 

4. Critically appraise the depiction of science in 

the media and in popular culture: learning to 

formulate opinions on facts depicted, seeing 

how it shapes our society. 


How the Mass Media Depicts Science, 

Technology and the Natural World 

Public understanding and perception of science and technology issues are heavily 

shaped by their depictions in the mass media. This course aims at helping students to 

understand what is science from the point of view of scientists, to become discerning 

and critical consumers of science and technology as depicted in the mass media, and 

to be able to critically understand how science and technology influence our daily life 

from multiple perspectives. In this course, we first introduce the scientific method (i.e., 

observations, hypothesis, prediction, experiment, and theory) and how it is applied in 

the real world (e.g., issues such as public/private funding source, control sample, statistics, 

and press-release versus peer-reviewed publications). We then introduce elements 

of media criticism and how the media shape our view of the world. 


Dr H.F. Chau 


Tel: 2859 1925 

Email: hfchau@hkusua.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr H.F. Chau 


Tel: 2859 1925 

Email: hfchau@hkusua.hku.hk 

Mr T. Abraham 

Journalism and Media Studies Centre, 


Tel: 2219 4017 

Email: thomas@hkucc.hku.hk 


45

46 




These readings are subject to change. More appropriate 

literature may be available later. 

Charnock, H. (1973). H.M.S. Challenger and the development 

of marine science. The Journal of Navigation, 26(1), 1-12. 

Imbrie, J., & Imbrie, K. P. (1979). Ice age: Solving the mystery. 

Short Hills, NJ: Enslow Publishers. [The Deep and the 

Past, pp. 123-133] 

Kious, W. J., Tilling, R. I., & Geological Survey (U.S.). 

(1994). This dynamic earth: The story of plate tectonics. 

Washington, DC: U.S. Geological Survey. [Developing the 

Theory, pp. 14-30; Also available from http://pubs.usgs. 

gov/publications/text/developing.html] 

Powell, H. (2008). Fertilizing the ocean with iron. Oceanus, 

46(1), 4-9. 

Reves-Sohn, R. (2004). Unique vehicles for a unique 

environment. Oceanus, 42(2), 25-27. 

Safina, C. (1995). The world’s imperiled fish. Scientific 

American, 273(5), 46-53. 

Smith, L. (2008, May 24). Titanic search was cover for 

secret Cold War subs mission. The Times. 

Viviano, F. (2005). China’s Great Armada. National 

Geographic, 208(1), 28-53. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 8 

Practical (laboratory) classes 4 



Assessment: Field trip quiz (incl preparation) 2 

Assessment: Essay / Laboratory report writing 15 

Assessment: Debate presentation 


Assessment: Final class MCQ (incl preparation) 15 

Total: 144 



Black box assignment 15 

Field trip worksheet and MCQ 15 

Laboratory report 15 

Essay 10 

Mini-debate 15 

Final class MCQ 30 



1. Describe the scientific process and how it relates 

to oceanography. 

2. Describe how global conflict and the quest for 

food and resources led to advancement in our 

understanding of the oceans. 

3. Evaluate critically the physical, chemical and 

biological impacts of human activities on the 

ocean systems. 

4. Apply knowledge on the human dependence on 

the oceans to decision making on policies pertaining 

to their management. 


The Oceans: Science and Society 

The oceans are the last frontier on earth. They cover 70% of the earth surface, and yet 

we have mapped only 5% of the ocean floors. Given that the oceans are the primary reason 

that the Earth is habitable, increasing our understanding of this system and its role 

in the development of civilization, and our interdependence on the oceans’ many resources 

is critical. In this course we will explore the interactions between humans and 

the oceans throughout civilization. Humans rely on the oceans for water supply, food, 

energy, and military and economic activities. We will discuss how historical and recent 

oceanographic explorations have enlightened our understanding of the earth and 

contributed to the advancement of technology. The course will also explore the human 

impacts on the oceans and how such impacts could in turn produce adverse effects on 

civilization – including climate change. 


Dr S.C. Chang 



Tel: 2857 8577 


Teacher(s): 

Dr S.C. Chang 



Tel: 2857 8577 


Dr J.A. King 



Tel: 2241 5473 


Dr C.E. Dingle 



Tel: 2241 5484 

Email: cdingle@hku.hk 





Selected chapters from: 

Harrison, E. (2007). Blood cells for sale. Scientific American, 

297(5), 108-109. 

Hoffbrand, A. V., Moss, P. A. H., & Pettit, J. E. (2006). 

Essential haematology (5th ed.). Malden, MA; Oxford: 

Blackwell. 

Kline, R. M. (2001). Whose blood is it, anyway? Scientific 

American, 284(4), 42. 

Netting, J. (1999). Viral gene screen. Scientific American, 

281(2), 31-32. 

Nucci, M. L., & Abuchowski, A. (1998). The search for blood 

substitutes. Scientific American, 278(2), 72-77. 

Porter, R. (2003). Blood and guts: A short history of medicine. 

London: Penguin Books. 

Starr, D. P. (1998). Blood: An epic history of medicine and 

commerce (1st ed.). New York: Alfred A. Knopf. [Also 

available from Scientific American] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 


Fieldwork/ Visits 5 


Practicals 4 

Films and videos 5 


Assessment: Field work visit report 6 

Total: 120 



Short essays 30 

Practical quiz and worksheet 10 

Field trip presentation 20 

Participation in Problem-based Learning 

tutorials 10 

Problem-based Learning portfolio 30 

Blood, Beliefs, Biology 



1. Explain how scientific discoveries and technolgoical 

innovations shape our understanding 

of blood, its biological properties and potential 

uses. 

2. Discuss how blood maintains our body in 

health, and describe why transfusions of blood 

and its products have been viewed to bring both 

benefit and harm to human beings. 

3. Demonstrate understanding of how cultural 

and personal beliefs shape engagement with 

blood through rituals, ceremonies, and in films 

and stories associated with vampirism. 

4. Articulate how science is distinct from, and 

connected with, other areas of investigation 

in the humanities, the social sciences, and in 

everyday life. 


This course will enable students 

to understand the reasons for the 

fascination which blood holds 

over human beings from a number 

of different, but interrelated, 

perspectives. They will be able to 

articulate how our views of blood 

are not only changed in time 

through scientific discoveries 

and technological innovations, 

but are also affected by cultural 

and religious beliefs. Under the 

theme “Nature and Methods of 

Science,” the course will address 

the historical understanding of 

blood and its function viewed 

from both a western perspective 

as driven by scientific discoveries 

and from the traditional Chinese 

concept of blood and its relationship 

to qi. Under the themes “Science, 

Technology and Society” 

and “Science and Technology in 

Everyday Life,” the student will 

understand how advances in science 

coupled with innovations in 

technology have expanded the uses of blood e.g. blood banks (and the need for screening 

for infectious agents), blood as source of stem cells, and blood tests in forensic 

and legal medicine. Finally, the course will examine the meanings which blood bring 

through cultural and religious beliefs e.g. the role of blood in sacrifice and rituals; the 

prohibition of transfusion of blood by Jehovah’s Witnesses, the global fascination with 

taking and giving of blood in vampirism and its association with immortality. 


Professor L.C. Chan 



Tel: 2255 4872 

Email: chanlc@pathology.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor L.C. Chan 



Tel: 2255 4872 

Email: chanlc@pathology.hku.hk 

Dr J.C.C. So 



Tel: 2255 4570 

Email: scc@pathology.hku.hk 

Dr S.L. Beh 



Tel: 2255 4863 



47

48 




Dawkins, R. (2006). The selfish gene (30th anniversary ed.). 

Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: Online discussions 10 

Total: 160 



Online discussions 20 


Essay 50 

Genetics and Human Nature 



1. Describe and explain the basic principles of genetics 

and evolution, and give an account of the 

principal historical figures and their major ideas 

and contributions. 

2. Evaluate the evidence concerning the relative 

roles of nature and nurture (or genes and 

environment) in the determination of human 

individual differences, and to discuss the implications 

of the findings of such studies. 

3. Analyze how humankind’s evolutionary past 

may have shaped our emotional makeup and 

thereby impact on how we behave to each other 

and the material world. 


The overall theme of this course is that genetics and evolution provide a useful perspective 

for understanding many important aspects of our lives, including our psychological 

makeup and how we relate to others. The course will draw on multiple intellectual 

disciplines – genetics, evolution, mathematics, statistics and psychology – to 

address the following fundamental issues: 

• How life is maintained from one generation to the next through genes, and how 

living organisms can adapt the environment through changes in the genes. 

• How human individual differences in important domains such as personality and 

health are influenced by genetic and environmental differences. 

• How the nature or humankind may have been shaped by our evolutionary past, 

and the implications this has on the future of our species. 


Professor P.C. Sham 

Centre for Genomic Sciences, 


Tel: 2831 5425 

Email: pcsham@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor P.C. Sham 



Tel: 2831 5425 

Email: pcsham@hku.hk 

Dr S.S. Cherny 



Tel: 2831 5079 

Email: cherny@hku.hk 

Dr W.L. Yang 



Tel: 2831 5077 

Email: yangwl@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr M.M. Garcia-Barcelo 



Tel: 2831 5073 

Email: mmgarcia@hkucc.hku.hk 






Barrow, J. D. (2005). The artful universe expanded. Oxford; 

New York: Oxford University Press. 

Barrow, J. D. (2008). Cosmic imagery: Key images in the 

history of science (1st Amer. ed.). London: Bodley Head. 

Feyerabend, P. (1987). Farewell to reason. London; New 

York: Verso. 

Galison, P., Gordin, M. D., & Kaiser, D. (2001). Science and 

society: The history of modern physical science in the 

twentieth century. New York: Routledge. 

Hall, A. R. (1994). Science and society: Historical essays 

on the relations of science, technology, and medicine. 

Aldershot, UK: Variorum. 

Kuhn, T. S. (1996). The structure of scientific revolutions (3rd 

ed.). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. 

Popper, K. R. (2002). The logic of scientific discovery. 

London: Routledge Classics. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 11 

Seminars 2 




Total: 133 




Individual mini-project-essay 20 


Reading assignments 20 



1. Describe and explain the most important scientific 

revolutions that took place in science, 

their causes, and their historical context. 

2. Use the relevant information about the scientific 

revolutions to critically examine their 

social impact. 

3. Apply the knowledge obtained from the course 

to assess the impact on society of the major scientific 

discoveries of the future. 

4. Examine the role of science in modern human 

history. 

5. Analyze the impact of science in larger sociocultural 

context. 


Scientific Revolutions and their Impact 

on Modern Societies 

The main purpose of this 

course is to review some of 

the most important scientific 

revolutions that took 

place in the history of science 

(Heliocentric, Newtonian, 

the Chemical, the 

Relativistic, the Quantum, 

and the Darwinian revolutions), 

and to present and 

discuss their historical context, 

and origin, the struggle 

of the individual scientists 

for scientific truth, and how 

they succeeded in changing 

the dominant views on nature 

and society. The scientific 

revolutions had a deep 

social impact, by changing 

the world and the way of life 

through the development 

of new technologies, and 

shaping a new social order. 

The course will promote 

open discussion on the social 

contexts and socio-cultural impacts of the major scientific discoveries. Scientific 

knowledge and the procedures used by scientists influence the way many individuals 

in society think about themselves, others, and the environment, and deeply influence 

the way of life of common people through technology. The course will address the following 

fundamental issues: what is science and how it works; the nature of research; 

normal science (paradigm), and its development; scientific anomaly and the shift in 

professional commitments to shared assumptions; the scientific revolution and its 

meaning and consequences; and the social impact of the scientific revolution. 


Professor K.S. Cheng 



Tel: 2859 2368 

Email: hrspksc@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor K.S. Cheng 



Tel: 2859 2368 

Email: hrspksc@hkucc.hku.hk 

Professor A.S.C. Cheung 

Department of Chemistry, 


Tel: 2859 2155 

Email: hrsccsc@hku.hk 

Dr T.C. Harko 



Tel: 2241 5747 

Email: harko@hkucc.hku.hk 


49

50 




Core readings: 

Ariely, D. (2008). Predictably irrational. New York: 

HarperCollins. 

Gilovich, T. (1991). How we know what isn’t so: The fallibility 

of human reason in everyday life. New York: The Free 

Press. 

Schwartz, B. (2004). The paradox of choice: Why more is less 

(1st ed.). New York: ECCO. 


Gigerenzer, G. (2007). Gut feelings: The intelligence of the 

unconscious. New York: Viking. 

Groopman, J. E. (2007). How doctors think. Boston: 

Houghton Mifflin. 

Lewis, M. (2003). Moneyball: The art of winning an unfair 

game (1st ed.). New York: W. W. Norton. 

Piattelli-Palmarini, M. (1994). Inevitable illusions: How 

mistakes of reason rule our minds. New York: Wiley. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 10 


Demonstrations 10 

Homework 40 


Total: 125 





Small assignments 10 



1. Describe and give examples of common errors 

in intuitive judgment and decisions. 

2. Recognize and identify these errors in real 

world situations. 

3. Explain psychological theories for these errors 

and supporting empirical evidence. 

4. Discuss and critically evaluate psychological 

theories of intuitive judgement and decision 

making. 

5. Apply knowledge and theories to analyze judgments 

and decisions in real world situations. 


The Science of Irrational Thinking 

Human judgment and decisions are often irrational. People subscribe to fallacies, 

hold superstitious beliefs, make inconsistent judgments, and allow irrelevant factors 

to influence decisions. Often, such errors are not due to lack of knowledge or 

intelligence, but are consequences of the way our brains work. The mental processes 

that allow us to make decisions in the complex situations of everyday life can 

also lead us to errors and irrational thinking. 

This course examines irrational 

thinking from a scientific 

perspective. We will 

survey a range of systematic 

errors and biases that have 

been identified, discuss scientific 

evidence and explanations, 

and analyze how these 

biases manifest themselves in 

domains like medicine, economics, 

and consumer choice. 

A number of class demonstrations, 

modeled after actual 

studies, will help illustrate 

the effects. 


Dr J.A. Saunders 

Department of Psychology, 


Tel: 3917 8596 

Email: jsaun@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr J.A. Saunders 



Tel: 3917 8596 

Email: jsaun@hkucc.hku.hk 





CCST9035 Making Sense of Science-related Social Issues 


Easton, T. A. (2010). Taking sides: Clashing views on 

controversial issues in science, technology, and society 

(9th ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill Higher Education. [Older 

editions are also acceptable] 

Vaughn, L. (2008). The power of critical thinking: Effective 

reasoning about ordinary and extraordinary claims. New 

York: Oxford University Press. 

Yudkin, B. (2006). Critical reading: Making sense of research 

papers in life sciences and medicine. London: Routledge. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 




Assessment: Poster 

(incl preparation of own poster and 

grading other posters) 20 


Total: 156 




Assignments 0 

Poster 45 

Group presentations and debates 30 




1. Find the information on a specific topic, understand 

the scientific terminology, explain and 

interpret the relevant information, and examine 

its validity. 

2. Describe and explain the interplay between 

science and technology, government policies, 

economics, and society. 

3. Critically examine different science and technology 

issues relevant to their daily life. 

4. Compare information from different sources, 

discriminate between information with different 

reliability, and form an informed opinion 

about scientific controversies. 


Critical Thinking about Science and 

Technology 

Science and technology are important parts of modern life, and understanding of scientific 

concepts is necessary to form an informed judgment on a range of topics from 

claims in product advertisements to policies on global issues. This process can be 

complex due to the abundance of easily available information. Thus, it is necessary 

to be able to distinguish between facts and fallacies and discriminate between different 

claims. 

This course aims to help students to develop critical thinking skills and to apply 

them to a variety of science and technology issues. To achieve this aim, the course 

will first cover the general topics about scientific method and critical thinking, with 

numerous examples of both good and bad research practices, examples of misleading 

advertising, and controversial policy issues. The principles of critical thinking and 

sound scientific research will then be applied to several specific topics, which will be 

selected among the following areas: nanotechnology, global warming, pesticide use, 

nuclear energy, biofuels, alternative medicine and health supplements industry, genetic 

engineering, cloning and stem cell research, health risks of modern lifestyles, 

and threats of global epidemics. 


Dr A. Djurisic 


Tel: 2859 7946 

Email: dalek@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 



Tel: 2859 7946 



51

52 




Aker, P. (2007, November 6). Schools’ Internet filters let in porn. The 

Columbus Dispatch. From http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/ 

local/2007/11/06/School_Porn.ART_ART_11-06-07_A1_L98CSNE. 

html 

Department of Justice, The Government of the Hong Kong Special 

Administrative Region. (2011). The Prosecutions Division. From 

http://www.doj.gov.hk/eng/about/pd.htm [Obscene articles and child 

pornography] 

Dillner, M. (2000, January). Internet safety and ethics for the classroom. 

Reading Online. From http://www.readingonline.org/editorial/edit_ 

index.asp?HREF=/editorial/ethics.html 

Donoghue, A. (2008, August 15). Growth in password theft from online 

games. SC Magazine UK. From http://www.scmagazineuk.com/growthin-password-theft-from-online-games/article/115454/%25253e/ 

Filby, M. (2007). Big crook in little China: The ramifications of the 

Hong Kong BitTorrent case on the criminal test of prejudicial effect. 

International Review of Law Computers and Technology, 21(3), 275-283. 

Hong Kong Police Force, The Government of the Hong Kong Special 

Administrative Region. (2011). Technology crime. From http://www. 

police.gov.hk/ppp_en/04_crime_matters/tcd/index.html 

Information Services Department, The Government of the Hong Kong 

Special Administrative Region. (2008, September 25). Secretary for 

Security talks about crime situation [Press release]. From http://www. 

info.gov.hk/gia/general/200809/25/P200809250258.htm 

Legislative Council Panel on Home Affairs. (2008). Protection of personal 

data privacy [LC Paper No. CB(2)2454/07-08(01)]. From http://www. 

legco.gov.hk/yr07-08/english/panels/ha/papers/ha0704cb2-2454-1-e. 

pdf 

Matte, C. (n.d.). Why you may need an Internet filter. From http:// 

familyinternet.about.com/od/computingsafetyprivacy/a/needfilter.htm 

Moy, P. (2008, July 17). Child porn hoarders may be locked up for 3 years. 

The Standard. From http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail. 

asp?pp_cat=11&art_id=68738&sid=19788009&con_type=1 

Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, Hong Kong. (2008, 

June 5). The Director of Immigration Department signed formal 

undertaking [Media statement]. From http://www.pcpd.org.hk/english/ 

infocentre/press_20080605.html 

Twist, J. (2005, February 25). Solutions to net security fears. BBC News. 

From http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4273135.stm 

Weinstein, S., & Wild, C. (2007, April). The Hong Kong BitTorrent Case: 

Why should big crook do down big time for a little infringement? Paper 

presented at the 22nd BILETA Annual Conference 2007, Hertfordshire, 

UK. From http://www.bileta2007.co.uk/papers/images/stream_6/ 

WeinsteinS_WildC.pdf 

Wong, K. C. (2005). The discovery of computer crime in Hong Kong: A case 

study of the crime creation process. Journal of Information, Law and 

Technology, 2005(1). From http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/law/elj/ 

jilt/2005_1/wong/ 

Yoskowitz, A. (2008, September 22). 14-year-old arrested for music uploads. 

Afterdawn. From http://www.afterdawn.com/news/archive/15458.cfm 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 

Seminars 4 




Total: 148 



Quizzes 40 

Case study 35 

In-class presentation / Class discussion 25 

Cyberspace Crime: 

Technology and Ethics 



1. Demonstrate understanding of what actions or 

application of technology in our everyday life 

might constitute a crime in the cyberspace. 

2. Describe and explain the legal challenges of 

cyberspace crime in Hong Kong. 

3. Formulate arguments in responding to cyberspace 

crime related ethical issues. 

4. Demonstrate understanding of real-world issues 

relating to the balance between the use of 

cyberspace technologies, legal challenges and 

ethical responsibilities. 


The Internet (aka cyberspace) has become a platform in many arenas, 

including social, cultural, and public policy. Consequently, great 

amounts of information and data transmitted by and stored in cyberspace 

are vulnerable to attack by hackers and abuse by Internet users. Moreover, 

some cyberspace users perform unethical or criminal acts with the belief that 

his or her identity cannot be reviewed in cyberspace, such as sharing of copyright-protected 

materials and spreading of rumors. 

This course will adopt a holistic approach to introduce the fundamental concepts 

of cyberspace crime, not only from the technological point of view, but also from the 

legal and ethical points of view. Through the discussion of different case studies, the 

course aims to help students to become a scientifically and technologically equipped 

and responsible individual and citizen. The topics of these case studies include: internet 

piracy, internet privacy and data leakage, freedom of speech in cyberspace, online 

pornography, and cyberspace theft. Famous cyberspace crime and non-crime cases in 

Hong Kong and the rest of the world will be included. 


Dr K.P. Chow 



Tel: 2859 2191 


Teacher(s): 

Dr K.P. Chow 



Tel: 2859 2191 


Dr A.T.C. Tam 



Tel: 2859 7073 

Email: atctam@cs.hku.hk 

Dr L.C.K. Hui 



Tel: 2859 2190 

Email: hui@cs.hku.hk 





CCST9010 The Science of Crime Investigation 


General 

Saferstein, R. (2007). Criminalistics: An introduction 

to forensic science. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson 

Prentice Hall. 

Case studies 

Evans, C. (2003). A question of evidence: A casebook of great 

forensic controversies, from Napoleon to O. J. Hoboken, 

NJ: John Wiley & Sons. 

Evans, C. (2004). Murder two: The second casebook of 

forensic detection. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. 

Lee, H. C., & O’ Neil, T. (2004). Cracking more cases: 

The forensic science of solving crimes. Amherst, NY: 

Prometheus Books. 

Owen, D. (2000). Hidden evidence: 40 true crimes and how 

forensic science helped solve them. Willowdale, Ontario: 

Firefly Books. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Case study of a crime scence 20 



Assessment: Laboratory practicals 

(incl preparation, performance and 

report writing) 20 


Total: 150 



Case studies and Problem-based 

Learning tutorial 20 

Individual collection of references into 

a personal reference folder with a summary 

report and a group presentation 20 

Assignments and laboratory reports 30 

Quizzes 30 


On completing the course, students will be able 

to: 

1. Describe and explain how scientific and 

technological principles are being applied in 

modern forensic science. 

2. Demonstrate good understanding of how 

modern forensic science is being applied to 

uphold justice in the society and solve crimes 

in everyday life. 

3. Investigate and apply forensic principles and 

analysis on evidences/samples gathered by 

students. 

4. Apply critical thinking and scientific knowledge 

systematically on uncertain and unfamiliar 

situations, starting from identifying 

and defining problems, gathering evidences, 

analytical reasoning and group discussion, to 

finally generating solutions to solve the problem 

of crime case studies. 

Course will be offered twice 

Lecture Time // Section 1 -- Second semester (Wed) 

Section 2 -- Second semester (Wed) 

Forensic Science: Unmasking Evidence, 

Mysteries and Crimes 

Modern forensic science covers multiple scientific disciplines such as chemistry, 

physics, biology, medicine, computing, engineering, etc. This course will lead students 

to explore the world of modern forensic science through a series of selected forensic 

science topics interplayed with interesting, famous or mysterious crime case studies 

and Problem-based Learning tutorials. Additionally, hands-on practicals will enable 

students to carry out the collection of, and examination and analysis on, several types 

of forensic materials, including hairs and fibers, fingerprints and soil samples, which 

can be found in everyday life. Through the hands-on work, students can appreciate 

the possible gap between theory and practice, which will help them develop in-depth 

understanding of the scientific topics taught in lectures or read from books as well as 

applying and verifying ideas and theories in practice. In additional to introducing students 

to the underlying scientific, legal and ethical concepts of crime investigation, 

knowledge gained in the course will be used by students to critically analyze assigned 

crime cases and generate logical solutions. All course contents including practicals are 

designed to be suitable for students having little or no science training. 


Professor D.L. Phillips 



Tel: 2859 2160 

Email: phillips@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 




Tel: 2859 2160 

Email: phillips@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr W.T. Chan 



Tel: 2859 2156 

Email: wtchan@hku.hk 

Dr A.S.T. Wong 



Tel: 2299 0865 

Email: awong1@hku.hk 

Dr B.L. Lim 



Tel: 2299 0826 

Email: bllim@hkucc.hku.hk 


53

54 




Benyus, J. M. (1998). Biomimicry: Innovation inspired by 

nature. New York: Quill. 

Fox, M., & Kemp, M. (2009). Interactive architecture (1st 

ed.). New York: Princeton Architectural Press. 

Rudofsky, B. (1987). Architecture without architects: A short 

introduction to non-pedigreed architecture. Albuquerque, 

NM: University of New Mexico Press. 

Van der Ryn, S., & Cowan, S. (2007). Ecological design (10th 

anniversary ed.). Washington, DC: Island Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Seminars 4 





Assessment: Homework assignments 18 

Total: 132 



Group report and presentation 15 

Group assignment activity and presentation 25 

Homework assignments 25 

Quizzes 15 

Individual final report 20 

“Intelligent” Architecture and 

Sustainability 



1. Demonstrate their understanding of how 

nature has inspired and continues to inspire 

innovative intelligent responsive systems in 

buildings. 

2. Analyze and discuss how smart buildings/environments, 

technology and society mutually 

spur their collective development. 

3. Demonstrate their understanding of ways in 

which intelligent buildings respond to and 

shape culturally diverse values as well as influence 

each of our daily lives. 

4. Identify and describe key developments in 

building technology that contribute to and inspire 

smart building systems that react and appropriately 

respond to various human actions 

and needs as well as environmental conditions 

or phenomena. 

5. Explain how intelligent building systems contribute 

to sustainability. 


Emerging in our midst is intelligent 

architecture which in this course 

refers to intelligent built environments: 

dynamic systems with the 

capacity to respond intelligently and 

immediately to various human and 

environmental stimuli for our benefit. 

What makes these built environments 

“intelligent” is their ability to 

react positively and spontaneously 

to forces of nature, to fluctuating climates, 

to human activity, to cultural 

nuances and to human expectations. 

Intelligent architecture harnesses 

not only evolving technology but also 

valuable insights and lessons from 

the forms and processes that occur in 

nature. This enables it to provide enhanced 

productivity, safety, comfort 

and quality living to society. The central 

aim of this course is to explore 

the world of intelligent built environments 

and the mutual impact, relationships 

and evolution they have in 

the culture and daily lives of people. 

First-hand exploration involving 

experiential learning and direct activation 

of the senses, will be a key component of the course. This complements discussions 

that would uncover and reveal, in broad and general terms, the underlying principles 

and technologies that allow buildings to perform smartly. Students will also be 

encouraged to unleash their imagination to construct future scenarios that the concept 

of intelligent architecture may lead to. 


Mr R.C. Garcia 

Department of Architecture, 

Faculty of Architecture 

Tel: 2859 2281 

Email: rjgarcia@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Mr K.P. Cheung 



Tel: 2859 7963 

Email: kpcheuna@hku.hk 

Dr B.S. Jia 



Tel: 2219 4260 

Email: bjiaa@hku.com 

Mr R.C. Garcia 



Tel: 2859 2281 

Email: rjgarcia@hku.hk 





Springer, S. P., & Deutsch, G. (2001). Left brain, right brain: 

Perspectives from cognitive neuroscience (5th ed.). New 

York: W. H. Freeman and Company/ Worth Publishers. 

Selected primary journal articles. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 






Total: 132 




Oral presentation of group project 10 


Participation in discussions on the 

class blog 10 

Quiz 35 

Left Brain, Right Brain: 

Science and Myth 



1. Describe and explain, in general and non-technical 

terms, the general principles that govern 

neural function and hemispheric specialization 

in the human brain. 

2. Critically evaluate the nature of brain organization 

that underlies different human abilities 

(e.g., seeing, language, creativity). 

3. Effectively communicate and collaborate with 

teammates in developing a term project that 

critically evaluates the link between cerebral 

laterality and domains of human expression. 

4. Demonstrate an understanding of the general 

principles by which the scientific method can 

be used to evaluate complex, ill-defined problems. 


The human brain is made up of about 100 billion neurons, and contains trillions of connections 

between cells. Somehow, activity of these neurons results in “consciousness”, 

and gives us our memories, abilities, creativity, and dreams. In this course, we will focus 

on how the brain controls some of the processes that we think of as making us human, 

such as language, memory, musical ability, learning, emotion, and so forth, and, 

in particular, whether there are differences between the two cerebral hemispheres, 

known colloquially as the “left brain” and the “right brain”. For each topic we will look 

at the way these abilities are instantiated in the brains of all of us, and also at what differences 

there might be in, say, musical processing between a skilled violinist and a 

complete novice. In addition, we will also look at fascinating case studies of people 

who have suffered brain damage and then lost some aspects of their conscious experience. 

Our aim is to critically evaluate claims about differences in function between the 

left brain and the right brain, for example in terms of “right brain learning”. 


Dr J.H.W. Hsiao 



Tel: 3917 4874 

Email: jhsiao@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr J.H.W. Hsiao 



Tel: 3917 4874 

Email: jhsiao@hku.hk 


55

56 




United Nations Development Programme. (2004). Reducing 

disaster risk: A challenge for development. New York: 

United Nations Development Programme, Bureau for 

Crisis Prevention and Recovery. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Assessment: Hazard portfolio 46 



Total: 150 




Hazard portfolio 35 

Short presentation 20 



Living in a Hazardous World 



1. Describe and explain the origins, occurrence, 

and characteristics of various hazards. 

2. Compare and contrast the impacts on human 

society of various hazards for different regions 

of the world. 

3. Describe and evaluate the various measures 

that can be used to reduce the impact of environmental 

hazards. 

4. Demonstrate an awareness of information 

sources regarding hazards. 

5. Demonstrate critical understanding of the contrasting 

vulnerability of different societies to 

specific hazards. 


We are living in an increasingly hazardous world. Since the beginning of this century 

we have experienced unprecedented disasters: the Asian tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, 

the 2003 European heat wave, devastating earthquakes in Sichuan and Haiti and the 

volcanic eruption in Iceland in April 2010, to name just a few of the most notable. This 

course will examine the causes and characteristics of a broad range of environmental 

hazards and their destructive impact on human society. The impact of global environmental 

change on the nature and occurrence of recent and possible future hazards will 

be discussed. In addition the role that technology has played in the occurrence of various 

hazards will be explored. Particular emphasis will be placed on who is most vulnerable 

to specific hazards. The responses available to different societies in dealing with 

these hazards, including adjustment, mitigation and the role of science and technology 

will be evaluated. Governance in the form of hazard planning and management will 

also form a focus. 


Dr M.R. Peart 

Department of Geography, 


Tel: 3917 7021 

Email: mrpeart@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr M.R. Peart 



Tel: 3917 7021 

Email: mrpeart@hkucc.hku.hk 





CCST9028 Critical Thinking about Science 

and Technology 


Jarman, R., & McClune, B. (2007). Developing scientific 

literacy: Using news media in the classroom. Maidenhead, 

UK: McGraw-Hill/Open University Press. 

McComas, W. F. (1998). The principal elements of the nature 

of science: Dispelling the myths. In W. F. McComas (Ed.), 

The nature of science in science education: Rationales 

and strategies (pp. 53-70). Dordrecht; Boston: Kluwer 

Academic Publishers. 

Study Load 


Lectures/ Seminars/ Workshops 24 

Tutorials 10 


Assessment: Group video production 

and presentation 10 

Assessment: Group poster production 

and presentation 40 


Total: 144 



Video report on a SSI 15 

Peer-evaluated poster presentation 25 

Essay 60 



1. Identify and describe relevant features of science 

and technology as reflected in history of 

science and contemporary science practice. 

2. Explain the intricate relationship between 

facts and opinions, and evaluate arguments as 

presented in different sources of the media on 

the same issue. 

3. Apply the understanding of the nature of science 

and technology and news media in critical 

analysis of SSI. 

4. Communicate ideas related to science, technology 

and society in an organized manner with 

appropriate terminologies. 

5. Critically evaluate a SSI and make sensible 

judgments and decisions on the SSI based on 

evidence and ethical values, etc. 


Making Sense of Science-related 

Social Issues 

The course aims to enhance students’ understanding about science and technology, and 

to enable them to critically evaluate socio-scientific issues (SSI) as reported in the media. 

Such critical evaluation should enable them to make rational and responsible decisions on 

these issues, and to be aware of the implication of such decisions. 

The course will consist of three components: (1) Features about science and technology 

aims to promote an understanding of the nature of science and technology. Cases on frontier 

scientific research such as the development of anti-cancer drugs and prenatal diagnosis, 

and their implications and controversies, will be discussed. (2) The making of sciencerelated 

news in the media aims to develop an understanding of the agendas behind the 

inclusion of certain SSI in media reports. Operation of the media, criteria of ‘news worthiness’ 

of science news, and editorial stances of different media, etc. will be considered. (3) 

Critical evaluation of SSI and making of sensible decisions aims to develop transferable 

skills such as reasoning, analytical and evaluative skills through critical analysis of the impact 

of scientific and technological development on issues like equity, public health, and 

socio-cultural practices. 


Dr A.S.L. Wong 



Tel: 2859 1958 

Email: aslwong@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr A.S.L. Wong 



Tel: 2859 1958 

Email: aslwong@hku.hk 

Dr M.M.W. Cheng 



Tel: 2859 2532 

Email: mwcheng@hku.hk 


57

58 




Arunachalam, V. S., & Fleischer, E. L. (2000). Behind the 

themes and between the lines: Materials challenges for 

the next century. MRS Bulletin, 25(1), 3. 

Arunachalam, V. S., & Fleischer, E. L. (2001). Materials 

challenges for the next century: A concluding note. MRS 

Bulletin, 26(12), 1020-1021. 

Cottrell, A. (2000). A centennial report: Looking back on 100 

years of materials of development. MRS Bulletin, 25(2), 

125-132. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Seminars 4 


Practical sessions 12 




Assessment: Group project 40 

Total: 140 



Mini group project 30 

Presentation of project 15 

Participation in practical sessions 10 

Participation in discussion group 5 

Quiz 40 

Material World: 

Past, Present, and Future 



1. Identify, describe, and compare some essential 

materials used by human in the past and present, 

and to explain the basic scientific principles 

of how there materials function. 

2. Describe and explain the relationship between 

the usage of materials and advancement in human 

civilization. 

3. Identify problems related to the improper usage 

and disposal of materials, and describe the 

impact of these problems to our society. 

4. Analyze simple scientific problems related to 

materials, to design and conduct simple experiments 

to solve these problems, and to organize, 

present, and discuss their findings in public or 

other workshops. 


The civilization and technology of humankind in the pre-historical period may be 

described by the type of materials used. The transition from one period to another 

reflects the evolution in human civilization and their skills in making and processing 

materials. Analyzing the chemical components in archaeological objects is indeed a 

very important tool to identify when these objects were made. The rapid advancement 

in modern technology is also a consequence of the development of many new types of 

materials. For example, the discovery of silicon in 19th century and the invention of 

the transistor in 20th century paved the road for the “information age”. 

This course is designed to equip students with a general understanding that the development 

of materials by humankind in history has a close relationship with human civilization. 

The organization of the course will be based on the development of materials 

by humankind in chronological order, and the underlying scientific principles. The 

principles related to the preparation, processing, and functions of different types of 

materials will be integrated into the topics presented. 


Professor W.K. Chan 



Tel: 2859 8943 

Email: waichan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor W.K. Chan 



Tel: 2859 8943 

Email: waichan@hku.hk 





CCST9017 Hidden Order in Daily Life: 

A Mathematical Perspective 


Selected sections from: 

Calinger, R. (1999). A contextual history of mathematics. 

Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. 

Davis, P. J., & Hersh, R. (1998). The mathematical experience. 

Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 

Selected excerpts from other books. 

Selected articles from journals, magazines, and newspapers. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 



Assessment: Weekly assignments 20 

Total: 144 



In-class worksheets 10 

Weekly assignments 30 

Tutorial discussions 20 

Essay 40 


On completing the course, students will be 

able to: 

1. Appreciate and describe the beauty, the 

utility, and the “Way” of mathematics. 

2. Comprehend and describe how mathematics 

was and is being developed as a work of 

human culture. 

3. Investigate and describe the interplay 

among mathematics and other areas of human 

culture. 

4. Investigate and explain the role of mathematics 

in the development of civilization. 


Mathematics: A Cultural Heritage 

Mathematics is one of the major threads, together with language, science, and the arts, 

that have woven the beautiful fabric of human civilization. Through examples gathered 

from the long history of humankind, around our daily lives, and in diverse areas of human 

activities, this course aims to help students to comprehend how mathematics was, 

and is being, developed as a work of human endeavour with cultural, intellectual, and 

social contexts. We will also investigate the role of mathematics in the development 

of other areas of our civilization. In particular we shall examine the interplay between 

mathematics and other cultural pursuits such as philosophy, the arts, and science and 

technology, and to study how they have affected each others’ development. Rather than 

transmitting a body of technical knowledge in mathematics, our emphasis is placed on 

appreciating, contemplating, and examining the beauty, the utility, and the “Way” of 

mathematics, as well as the intricate relationship between mathematics and other human 

cultural pursuits. 

The demand on technical preparation in mathematics is minimal, say up to the level 

of the general mathematics curriculum in secondary school, but the student is expected 

to possess intellectual curiosity and willingness to participate in the reasoning 

process. 


Dr N.K. Tsing 



Tel: 2859 2251 

Email: nktsing@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr N.K. Tsing 



Tel: 2859 2251 

Email: nktsing@hku.hk 

Dr S.P. Yung 



Tel: 2859 1992 

Email: spyung@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr T.W. Ng 



Tel: 2241 5631 



59

60 




Lambourne, R. J., Shallis, M., & Shortland, M. (1990). Close 

encounters? Science and science fiction. Bristol, UK: 

Adam Hilger. 

Stocker, J. H. (Ed.). (1998). Chemistry and science fiction. 

Washington, DC: American Chemical Society. 

At least one of the books from the list of examples of works 

provided. Science fiction books not on the list can be 

acceptable if approved by the course coordinator. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 161 



Debates in tutorials and short assignments 0 




Science and Science Fiction 

Science fiction represents a blend of science, social science and arts. It frequently 

draws inspiration from science, as well as addressing the social issues relevant today 

by highlighting certain social aspects. Science fiction also serves to popularize science 

and affects public opinion about certain scientific and technological issues. Therefore, 

there is a complex relationship between science and science fiction, and understanding 

this relationship requires its analysis from multiple perspectives. 

This course will cover the topics of the influence of science on science fiction, the influence 

of science fiction on science, and the influence of science fiction on public perception 

of science and scientists. These topics will be discussed in the context of examples 

of science fiction works dealing with space exploration and space travel, time 

travel, near future fiction, and science fiction dealing with social issues. The science 

concepts involved in these topics will be briefly explained at a layperson level, and the 

main emphasis will be placed on critical thinking and analyzing interdisciplinary connections 

and relationships. 



1. Describe what is science fiction and classify 

different types of science fiction. 

2. Illustrate the use and misuse of science as a 

plot device. 

3. Describe and explain the influence of science 

on science fiction and vice versa. 

4. Appraise and evaluate scientific and societal 

relevance of science fiction works. 





Tel: 2859 7946 


Teacher(s): 



Tel: 2859 7946 





The course seeks to expose students to a range of statistical concepts 

and perspectives essential to the understanding of different 

scientific, social and economic issues. The course consists of two 

parts. The first part aims at enhancing students’ understanding of 

some fundamental statistical principles and concepts. This enables 

them to comprehend and assess critically the statistical analyses 

presented in various sources, such as news media and research reports 

which they would frequently come across in their daily lives. 

The second part introduces students to a range of major official 

statistical series compiled by the Government and selected statistics 

compiled by non-government organizations, the academia, and 

private companies. Key concepts and methodologies underlying the 

compilation of these statistics will be covered. The focus of this part 

is on analyzing and interpreting the inter-relatedness among Hong 

Kong, Mainland China and other major territories in the world, and 

understanding various socio-economic issues through studying different 

sets of statistics. Through a more in-depth understanding of 

the proper interpretation and application of statistics, students will 

be able to compare and formulate solutions using appropriate statistics 

in discerning the complexities and cross-disciplinary nature of 

real life issues. 


CCST9002 Quantitative Literacy in Science, Technology and Society 


There is no official textbook for the course. Lecture 

notes will be distributed and all required readings will be 

provided. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Total: 126 

Assessment: 100% 60% coursework; 

coursework 



Group project (written report) 40 

Tutorial participation and performance 20 


Statistics and Our Society 



1. Demonstrate understanding of some commonly 

used probability and statistical concepts. 

2. Evaluate and interpret critically statistics 

reporting from the press and various research 

reports. 

3. Analyze problems and make logical decisions 

from a statistical perspective. 

4. Analyze the inter-relatedness among different 

territories, appraise the socio-economic wellbeing 

of a territory through statistics. 



Dr K.C. Cheung 

Department of Statistics and Actuarial 

Science, Faculty of Science 

Tel: 2859 1987 

Email: kccg@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr K.C. Cheung 



Tel: 2859 1987 

Email: kccg@hku.hk 

Professor W.K. Li 



Tel: 2859 2743 

Email: hrntlwk@hku.hk 

Dr L.H. Yu 



Tel: 2857 8321 

Email: plhyu@hku.hk 


61

62 




A (1842-word) consideration. Truth and science (Originally 

published on April 30, 2007). Seed. From http:// 

seedmagazine.com/content/article/truth_and_science/ 

Barnes, B., & Bloor, D. (1982). Relativism, rationalism and 

the sociology of knowledge. In M. Hollis & S. Lukes (Eds.), 

Rationality and relativism (pp. 21-47). Oxford: Blackwell. 

Beder, S. (2002). Global spin: The corporate assault on 

environmentalism (Rev. ed.). White River Junction, VT: 

Chelsea Green Publishing Company. [Chaps. 2, 6, 9] 

Belton, P. S., Belton, T., & Food Science and Society. (2003). 

Exploring the gap between expert advice and individual 

behavior. Berlin: Springer-Verlag. [Chap. 3] 

Boseley, S. (2010). Lacet retracts “utterly false” MMR paper. The 

Guardian. From http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/ 

feb/02/lancet-retracts-mmr-paper 

Brom, F. W. A. (2000). Food consumer concerns and trust food 

ethics for a globalizing market. Journal of Agricultural and 

Environmental Ethics, 12, 127-139. 

Brown, J. R. (2001). Who rules in Science? : An opinionated guide 

to the wars. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 

Cook, J. (2010). Is the science settled? From http://www. 

skepticalscience.com/news.php?p=3&t=119&&n=136 

Cummins, S., & Macintyre, S. (2002). “Food deserts” − evidence 

and assumption in health policy making. British Medical 

Journal, 325, 436-438. 

Dingelstad, D., Gosden, R., Martin, B., & Vakas, N. (1996). The 

social construction of drug debates. Social Science and 

Medicine, 43(12), 1823-1838. 

Dolby, R. G. A. (1996). Uncertain knowledge. Cambridge, UK; 

Cambridge University Press. [Chaps. 5, 7, 8] 

Elster, F. (1982). Belief, bias and ideology. In M. Hollis & S. 

Lukes (Eds.), Rationality and relativism (pp. 123-148). 

Oxford: Blackwell. 

Feynman, R. P. (1999). The pleasure of finding things out. 

Cambridge, MA: Perseus Books. [Chaps. 6, 8] 

Greenpeace USA. (2010). Koch Industries secretly funding the 

climate denial machine. From http://www.greenpeace.org/ 

usa/en/media-center/reports/koch-industries-secretlyfund/ 

Lacey, H. (1999). Is science value free? : Values and scientific 

understanding. London: Routledge. [Chap. 7] 

Lang, T. (2005). Food control or food democracy? Re-engaging 

nutrition with society and the environment. Public Health 

Nutrition, 8(6A), 730-737. 

Lang, T., Barling, D., & Caraher, M. (2009). Food policy: 

Integrating health, environment and society. Oxford: Oxford 

University Press. [Chap. 2] 

Marmot, M. G. (2004). Evidence based policy or policy based 

evidence? Willingness to take action influences the view of 

the evidence-look at alcohol. British Medical Journal, 328, 

906-907. 

McIntyre, N., & Popper, K. (1983). The critical attitude in 

medicine: The need for a new ethics. British Medical Journal, 

287, 1919-1923. 

Morkegerg, A., & Porter, J. R. (2001). Organic movement reveals 

a shift in the social position of science. Nature, 412(6848), 

677. 

Plitz, R. (2010). Koch Industries multibillionaire Koch brothers 

bankroll attacks on climate change science and policy. From 

http://www.climatesciencewatch.org/2010/03/18/kochindustries-multibillionaire-koch-brothers-bankrollattacks-on-climate-change-science-and-policy/ 

Rosenstock, L., & Lee, L. J. (2002). Attacks on science: The risks 

to evidence-based policy. Ethics and Public Health, 92(1), 14- 

18. 

Tauber, A. I. (2005). Patient autonomy and the ethics of 

responsibility. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Chap. 1] 

Vazquez-Torres, A. (1999). Dangers of over-dependence on 

peer-reviewed publication. Nature, 401(6755), 387. 



1. Offer related theoretical explanations for different international 

recommendations on food components and 

their consumption. 

2. Integrate features of examples of established knowledge 

systems that have been overturned by evidence and extrapolate 

this to one or more relevant current “debates”. 

3. Rationalize the use of evidence in claims to knowing 

within different complex debates. 

4. Relate the evidence for harmfulness of drugs to their legal 

status: offer reasoned explanations for any inconsistencies. 

5. Analyze the moral and ethical issues inherent in societal 

and personal application of and responses to the use of 

evidence for population based decision making. 

6. Integrate the above and synthesize implications for 

knowing how evidence is contextualized in our perceptions 

of the world. 

Study Load 


The Science of Evidence: Is Medicine 

Scientific? 

The aim of this course is for students to understand the 

complexity involved in the application of scientific knowledge 

to the improvement of the human condition, both 

from the individual and societal perspective. As such, the 

course will require the students to think critically about 

topical, ill-defined, societal issues with complex ramifications 

from a number of perspectives. Science is a tool 

with which we can test reality to determine that which is. 

Hence, the course will examine the science of evidence – 

what is it and how do we know it? Knowing what is “true” 

is not necessarily straightforward. 

The course provides a vehicle within which students can explore the issues of how and where evidence 

for and against certain truths comes about. This is particularly important in a world that is 

increasingly being filled with “evidence” and countervailing “evidence” in support of such issues 

as global warming vs. global cooling; evolution vs. intelligent design; “healthy” and “unhealthy” 

food; drugs -- bad chemicals, bad people or bad science? The course covers how evidence is used 

to support particular value-based orientations through a series of example cases. 

The course requires students to explore a series of in-depth case studies which underpin the 

basis of “evidence”, its influences and contexts, and how these influence meaning and knowing. 

Teaching is by core lecture-based material supplemented by snowballed small group learning to 

enable students to pursue in-depth, self-directed learning for several exemplary problems and to 

debate these openly within the class. It is crucial for this course that students are fully engaged 

in this process of debate and discussion as this exemplifies the mechanisms by which evidence 

is used in the real world. Small-group sessions will be managed using a “floating tutor” approach 

– Following the presentation of some core material, students are then asked to synthesize and 

derive related short-term learning goals that they research and present at the next session’s small 

groups. These will be guided by provision of Problem-based Learning (PBL) materials. Following 

small groups, large group integrative discussions will wrap up each session. 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Assessment: Reflective diary 36 

Total: 172 


Dr J. Johnston 

Department of Community Medicine, 


Tel: 2819 9108 

Email: jjohnsto@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Dr J. Johnston 



Tel: 2819 9108 

Email: jjohnsto@hku.hk 

Professor R. Fielding 



Tel: 2819 9288 

Email: fielding@hku.hk 



Continuous reflective diary 40 

Essay 30 







Krauskopf, K. B., & Beiser, A. (2006). The physical universe 

(11th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. 

Spencer, E. W. (2003). Earth science: Understanding 

environmental systems (1st ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw- 

Hill. 

Tillery, B. W. (2007). Physical science (7th ed.). New York: 

McGraw-Hill Higher Education. 

These three books are all written at a level suitable for first 

and second year students without quantitative background. 

Typically one or two chapter(s) from each book will be 

required for the preparation of the mid-term quiz and final 

examination. The “Recommended Reading” list (available 

from http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccst9042 ) contains books 

relevant for a term paper. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 12 


Laboratory demonstrations 1 



Assessment: Quizzes (incl preparation) 30 

Total: 138 



Mid-term quizzes 60 

Term paper 30 

Presentation 10 

The World of Waves 



1. Recognize the importance and widespread occurrence 

of wave motion, the primary process in 

the transmission of energy and information in 

Nature. Comprehend the working principles of 

several selected inventions and phenomena, e.g. 

radar, mirage, and telescope, as examples of how 

wave motion has brought changes to the society. 

2. Describe the historical development of optical 

fiber and wireless communications, and identify 

and analyze the capability and the limitations of 

these two modern inventions of technology. 

3. Realize that waves of gigantic scales occurring in 

Nature (e.g. tsunamis and earthquakes) cannot be 

seen nor heard, and since measurements of these 

motions are difficult, international collaboration 

must be sought to mitigate potential damages. 

4. Demonstrate (a) understanding of how a body of 

scientific knowledge is created; (b) ability to apply 

established scientific principles to everyday 

devices and phenomena, and (c) capability to 

evaluate claims and conjectures in newspaper 

and media. 

5. Identify the distinctions, restrictions and interconnectedness 

between elegant, rigorous scientific 

principles and the demand for cost, efficiency 

and performance of products in technology. 


The primary objective of this course is to elucidate the dynamics and physics of wave 

propagation in applied sciences and Nature. Understanding these principles and applying 

them wisely have dramatically improved the living conditions, safety and comfort 

of humankind. Wave motion acts as an agent for conveying information and energy. Elementary 

concepts of optics and acoustics will first be introduced, highlighting light and 

sound as examples of wave motion. The working principles of many novel devices and 

instruments – e.g. telescopes in astronomy, Doppler radar in detecting speeding vehicle 

and ultrasound imaging machines in the health care sector – will be explained. A major 

thrust will be placed on two modern devices, namely, optical fiber and mobile phones. 

The relation between mobile phones and radio wave transmission will be identified. Optical 

fiber networks are marvelous systems with tremendous capacity for carrying information 

electronically. Historical account, technical designs as well as social significance 

will be described. Finally, large scale wave motions in Nature, especially phenomena associated 

with earthquakes and tsunamis, will be presented. 


Professor K.W. Chow 



Tel: 2859 2641 

Email: kwchow@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor K.W. Chow 



Tel: 2859 2641 

Email: kwchow@hku.hk 

Dr K.K.Y. Wong 



Tel: 2857 8483 

Email: kywong@eee.hku.hk 

Dr Y.C. Wu 



Tel: 2859 7090 

Email: ycwu@eee.hku.hk 


63

64 




Davis, P. (1996). About time, Einstein’s unfinished revolution. 

New York: Simon & Schuster. 

Holland, C. H. (1999). The idea of time. Chichester, UK: 

John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 10 

Seminars 12 



Movie and discussion 5 

Problem-based Learning sessions 10 




Total: 131 




Problem-based Learning sessions and 

group poster presentation 30 

Essay 50 


It’s All About Time 



1. Describe and explain the concept of Time and 

how it has been measured and perceived in different 

stages of the story of human civilization. 

2. Elaborate critically on an ordinary, everyday 

phenomenon such as Time, and on its role in 

the development of knowledge and its consequences 

for modern society. 

3. Use the familiar concept of Time to derive 

connection and commonalities between different 

aspects and disciplines of science and 

the humanities. 

4. Demonstrate an understanding of the universal 

beauty of natural science and obtain a better 

understanding of the nature of Time as perceived 

in different cultures. 

5. Realize the importance of good management 

of time. 


This course will introduce students to a well-known but poorly understood phenomenon, 

time. We all have a personal concept of time since it drives our lives minute by 

minute, and day after day. It changes us over our lifetime yet it is one of the greatest 

mysteries to humankind. In this course, we will discuss the concept of time and how it 

profoundly affects our everyday lives from different yet connected angles: cosmological, 

biological, geological, historical and cultural. We will explore the fundamental definition 

of time, how we measure it, how it is essential to the development of humankind. 

We will examine the patterns and laws that are exposed in the progression of events. 

We will investigate the concept of evolution, one of the greatest discoveries in the history 

of science as an intrinsic property of life and other components of nature. 


Professor J.G. Malpas 



Tel: 2859 2103 

Email: jgmalpas@hku.hk 

Teacher(s): 

Professor J.G. Malpas 



Tel: 2859 2103 

Email: jgmalpas@hku.hk 

Dr Y. Li 



Tel: 2859 8021 

Email: yiliang@hku.hk 


Education in the critical faculty is the only education of which it 

can be truly said that it makes good citizens. 

William Graham Sumner 

65

66 

Humanities 

Course Code // CCHU9001 


The set readings which the students are required to read 

and make a written response to, will be announced in the 

previous week’s lecture. The readings are on current issues 

and will be in a variety of media, but typically will be between 

1500 and 3000 words each. 

Study Load 


Lectures 16 

Tutorials 12 

Workshop / Seminars 16 


Assessment: Written assignments 48 

Total: 136 



Critical writing 50 


Assignments and presentation 25 



1. Demonstrate understanding of the concept of sustainable 

living environments, and discuss ideas about the 

interdependent relationship between humans and their 

environment, and the values and responsibilities placed 

on humans as custodians of the environment. 

2. Identify prevailing ideas and philosophies in sustainable 

development and evaluate the extent to which these influence, 

and are influenced by the built environment. 

3. Explore, interpret, and critically analyze expressions 

of the future environment, through time and its attendant 

physical and socio-cultural contexts, challenge 

traditional processes and thinking, and appreciate how 

visions of the future can inspire innovation in thinking 

and design. 


Designs on the Future: 

Sustainability of the Built Environment 

The course examines a broad range 

of sustainability issues such as 

population and urbanization; transportation 

and logistics; resourceswater; 

resources-energy and food; 

(natural) disasters; community and 

governance; technology and mobility. 

These are explored through the 

perspective of contemporary and 

historical examples of how people, 

in their visions of the future, have 

sought to perfect built environments 

as the setting for model communities. 

The ideas raised are discussed 

in weekly tutorial sessions 

and are brought together at the 

end of the course with an intensive 

workshop, in which students look to 

define their own vision of a sustainable 

community. This course is intended 

to inspire thinking about the 

way we should construct our living 

environments in future, in order to 

find a sustainable balance. 


Mr M.R. Pryor 

Division of Landscape Architecture, 


Tel: 2859 7961 

Email: matthew.pryor@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Mr M.R. Pryor 



Tel: 2859 7961 

Email: matthew.pryor@hku.hk 

http://commoncore.hku.hk/cchu9001

Humanities 



Extracts from: 

Arnold, D. (1993). Colonizing the body: State medicine and epidemic 

disease in nineteenth-century India. Berkeley, CA: University of 

California Press. 

Casper, M., & Moore, L. J. (2009). Missing bodies: The politics of 

visibility. New York: New York University Press. [Electronic 

resource] 

Elbe, S. (2010). Security and global health. Cambridge: Polity. 

Fairchild, A. L., Bayer, R., & Colgrove, A. (2007). Searching eyes: 

Privacy, the state, and disease surveillance in America. Berkeley, 

CA: University of California Press. 

Farmer, P. (2005). Pathologies of power: Health, human rights, and 

the new war on the poor. Berkeley, CA: University of California 

Press. 

Foucault, M., & Rabinow, P. (1991). The Foucault reader. London: 

Penguin Books. 

Lemke, T. (2011). Biopolitics: An advanced introduction. New York: 

New York University Press. 

Lupton, D. (1995). The imperative of health: Public health and the 

regulated body. London; Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. 

Lyon, D. (2007). Surveillance studies: An overview. Cambridge: 

Polity. 

Porter, D. (1999). Health, civilization, and the state: A history of 

public health from ancient to modern times. London; New York: 

Routledge. 

Rosen, G. (1993). A history of public health (Expanded ed.). 

Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press. 

Youde, J. R. (2010). Biopolitical surveillance and public health in 

international politics. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 




Total: 120 



Continual assessment and task focused activities 25 

Online portfolio 25 

Course project 50 



1. Analyze the historical role of the state in regulating 

health. 

2. Reflect upon and critically consider the relationship 

between health and societal organization. 

3. Apply comparative historical approaches to examine 

the political, social and ethical issues which underlie 

current public health debates. 

4. Reflect upon and critically consider how Western 

and non-Western health systems have impacted 

upon each other. 


Battles for Bodies: 

The Birth of Surveillance Society 

What is the state’s final frontier? How and why have governments around the world 

been vested with the authority to manage the most intimate aspects of our existence: 

from the food we eat to our sexual behaviour? What has the impact of this encroachment 

been on our sense of self ? Engaging with these questions from an historical perspective 

provides a critical lens for re-evaluating our own relationship to society and 

the state, as well as furnishing a context for considering the extent to which we are ever 

fundamentally ‘free’ to possses our own bodies. Exploring the birth of ‘surveillance 

society’ enables us to reflect upon – and challenge – the inherited assumptions which 

underpin our reliance on government and our aspirations for personal autonomy. This 

course ranges from the formation of the modern state in Europe and the techonologies 

it developed for managing populations, to global health surveillance and recent 

biomedical advances which have resulted in progressively interventionist governmental 

measures, with profound social, political and ethical implications. Topics include: 

surveillance; ‘medical police’ and state-sponsored interventions in eighteenth and 

nineteenth-century Europe; 

the invention of the 

‘population’ as a collective 

body; colonialism and 

the global exportation of 

ideas about what is ‘normal’; 

‘healthy citizens’: 

the coercive state and the 

democratization of society; 

and, finally, the limits 

of public health in the 

twenty-first century. 


Dr R.S. Peckham 

School of Humanities (History), 


Tel: 3917 7048 

Email: rpeckham@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 7048 


http://commoncore.hku.hk/cchu9002 

67

68 

Humanities 



Bloch, M. L. B. (1953). The historian’s craft. New York: Knopf. 

Gaddis, J. L. (2002). The landscape of history: How historians 

map the past. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. 

[Chap. 6, pp. 100-109] 

Hayden, D. (1995). The power of place: Urban landscapes as 

public history. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. 

Jenkins, K. (1991). Re-thinking history. London; New York: 

Routledge. [Extracts] 

Kikumura, A. (1998). Family life histories: A collaborative 

venture. In R. Perks & A. Thomson (Eds.), The oral history 

reader. London; New York: Routledge. 

Lowenthal, D. (1997). The past is a foreign country. Cambridge: 

Cambridge University Press. [Extracts] 

Moore, K. (1997). Museums and popular culture. London; 

Washington: Cassell. [Chap. 2, pp. 13-22, 28-31] 

Rosenstone, R. A. (1995). Visions of the past: The challenge 

of film to our idea of history. Cambridge, MA: Harvard 

University Press. [Chap. 8, pp. 169-197, 254-255] 

Tetlock, P. E., Lebow, R. N., & Parker, G. (2006). Unmaking the 

West: “What-if” scenarios that rewrite world history. Ann 

Arbor: University of Michigan Press. 

Wallis, B. (1994). Selling nations: International exhibitions 

and cultural diplomacy. In D. J. Sherman & I. Rogoff (Eds.), 

Museum culture: Histories, discourses, spectacles. London: 

Routledge. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 





Total: 120 



Project 40 

Fieldwork report 30 

Meeting participation 30 



1. Engage critically with representations of the past. 

2. Analyze and use evidence to construct historical accounts. 

3. Critically interpret interconnections between past and 

present. 

4. Reflect upon and critically consider the value of historical 

awareness. 


Making History: 

Engaging with the Powerful Past 

The past is no longer present, 

but its influence can be felt everywhere. 

We connect with the 

past in many ways in our everyday 

lives. But what relevance 

or value does the past have in a 

globalizing world? Why should 

we care about the past? Could it 

help us to build a better future? 

Is there such a thing as a ‘true’ 

historical account? What is the 

relationship between commercial, 

political and professional 

discourses of the past? And how 

do these relate to our own memories 

of the past? This course 

engages with these questions 

from multiple perspectives. It 

brings students face to face with 

the myriad ways in which the 

past is present in our lives today, 

and the importance of thinking 

historically. The course introduces 

students to the richness 

and value inherent in reading, 

writing and reflecting on the 

past; or in other words, making 

history. 


Dr D.M. Pomfret 



Tel: 3917 2865 

Email: pomfretd@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr D.M. Pomfret 



Tel: 3917 2865 

Email: pomfretd@hkucc.hku.hk 


Humanities 



Antoine, R., & Katrina Narrative Project. (2008). Voices rising: 

Stories from the Katrina Narrative Project. New Orleans: UNO 

Press. [Excerpts] 

Atwater, B. F. (2005). The orphan tsunami of 1700: Japanese clues 

to a parent earthquake in North America. Seattle: University of 

Washington Press. [Excerpts] 

Cardona, O. D. (2004). The need for rethinking concepts of 

vulnerability and risk from a holistic perspective. In G. Bankoff, 

G. Frerks & T. Hilhorst (Eds.), Mapping vulnerability: Disasters, 

development, and people (pp. 37-51). London: Earthscan. 

Hoffman, S. M., & Oliver-Smith, A. (2002). Theorizing disasters: 

Nature, power, and culture. In S. M. Hoffman & A. Oliver-Smith 

(Eds.), Catastrophe and culture: The anthropology of disaster (pp. 

23-47). Santa Fe, NM: School of American Research Press. 

Kanamori, H., & Heaton, T. H. (1996). The wake of a legendary 

earthquake. Nature, 379, 203-204. 

Levitt, J. I., & Whitaker, M. C. (2009). Hurricane Katrina: America’s 

unnatural disaster. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press. 

[Selected chapters] 

Ludwin, R. S., Dennis, R., Carver, D., McMilan, A. D., Losey, R., 

Clayue, J., et al. (2005). Dating the 1700 Cascadia Earthquake: 

Great coastal earthquakes in native stories. Seismological 

Research Letters, 76(2), 140-148. 

Oliver-Smith, A. (1999). What is a disaster? Anthropological 

perspectives on a persistent question. In A. Oliver-Smith & S. 

M. Hoffman (Eds.), The angry earth: Disaster in anthropological 

perspective (pp. 18-34). New York: Routledge. 

Oliver-Smith, A. (2002). Why anthropologists should study 

disasters. In S. M. Hoffman & A. Oliver-Smith (Eds.), 

Catastrophe and culture: The anthropology of disaster (pp. 3-22). 

Santa Fe, NM: School of American Research Press. 

Padgett, T. (2010, March 1). Chile and Haiti: A tale of two 

earthquakes. Time, 1-3. 

Satake, K., et al. (1996). Time and size of a giant earthquake in 

Cascadia inferred from Japanese tsunami records of January 

1700. Nature, 379(6562), 246-249. 

Schencking, J. (2007). The Great Kantō Earthquake of 1923 and 

the Japanese nation. Education about Asia, 12(2), 20-25. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Seminars / Tutorials 8 


Group work (debates, disaster management 

plan, disaster relief poster) 36 



Total: 150 



Class tests and written assignments 70 

Tutorial / Seminar projects 30 


Catastrophes, Cultures, and the Angry 

Earth 

This course explores how natural disasters have influenced cultures and societies 

across time and geography. It will encourage students to reflect upon the interconnections 

between nature, society, and the built environment in new and exciting ways. Using 

disasters as revealers, the course will assist participants to think critically and creatively 

about: what makes a natural phenomenon such as an earthquake, a tsunami, a 

volcanic eruption, or a cyclone a natural disaster; how have pre-modern, early modern, 

and modern societies interpreted disasters and what does this tell us about our evolving 

relationships with religion, science and technology; and how and why have people 

portrayed disasters through art, literature, and the media. Students will also examine 

how governments have responded to disasters and used reconstruction processes to 

redevelop landscapes, remake societies, and reorder politics. Disasters will thus be 

examined not only as events that cause suffering and devastation, but as occurrences 

that inspire opportunism and unleash contestation. Disasters studied will include the 

1700 Cascadia Earthquake and Tsunami, the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004, the Great 

Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011, 

hurricanes in the Atlantic world including Hurricane Katrina 2005, Cyclone Nargis of 

2008, and the Sichuan Earthquake of 2008. 



1. Interpret, analyze, and critically and creatively reflect 

upon how natural disasters have been understood, interpreted, 

explained, and expressed across cultures and 

over time since 1700 to the present. 


upon how governing elites and non-governmental actors 

have attempted to use catastrophes and the reconstruction 

processes that follow to redevelop landscapes and 

reorder societies. 


upon how historical knowledge and understanding of 

past natural disasters can help us better understand and 

develop solutions to problems posed by future catastrophes 

in our region of the world. 


upon how the study of natural disasters can illuminate 

the interconnections between science, technology, religion, 

politics, economics, society, and the humanities. 


Dr J.C. Schencking 



Tel: 3917 2875 

Email: jcharles@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr J.C. Schencking 



Tel: 3917 2875 

Email: jcharles@hku.hk 


69

70 

Humanities 



The case for legalisation: Time for a puff of sanity. (2001, July 

26). The Economist, 360(8232), 11-12. From http://www. 

economist.com/node/709603 

Gardner, S. (1995). Aesthetics. In A. C. Grayling (Ed.), 

Philosophy: A guide through the subject (pp. 583-628). 


Kaplan, D. M. (Ed.). (2012). Introduction. The philosophy of 

food. Berkeley: University of California Press. From http:// 

www.food.unt.edu/philfood 

Singer, P. (1997). The drowning child and the expanding circle. 

New Internationalist, 289. From http://www.newint.org/ 

issue289/drowning.htm 

Sunstein, C. R. (2004). Introduction: What are animal rights? 

In C. R. Sunstein & M. C. Nussbaum (Eds.), Animal rights: 

Current debates and new directions (pp. 3-15). Oxford; New 

York: Oxford University Press. 

Telfer, E. (1996). Food as art. Food for thought: Philosophy 

and food (pp. 41-60). London: Routledge. [Ebook version 

available through HKU library website] 

Whitman, D. B. (2000). Genetically modified foods: Harmful 

or helpful? Discovery Guides. From http://www.csa.com/ 

discoveryguides/gmfood/overview.php 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 


Assessment: Writing assignments 40 

Assessment: Special project 40 

Total: 152 



Short writing assignments 60 

Special project 30 

Tutorial participation 10 

Food and Values 



1. Compare and contrast the various absolutist, relativist 

and contextualist positions about morality and values. 

2. Identify the critical factors to consider in moral evaluation 

and apply such knowledge in analyzing selected 

ethical problems related to food. 

3. Critically examine the nature of subjectivity in aesthetic 

and taste preferences and the possibility of objective 

evaluative standards, and demonstrate an awareness of 

their connections to moral reasoning. 

4. Use relevant research information related to the course 

to collaborate with others in presenting ideas creatively, 

clearly and systematically. 


Lecture Time // Section 1 -- Second semester (Wed) 

Section 2 -- Second semester (Sat) 

Food is a fundamental aspect of human existence. This course examines philosophical 

issues about food and its relation to ethics, objectivity and values. Topics include 

moral issues such as the debate about animal rights, world hunger, the use of genetic 

engineering in agriculture and animal husbandry, and the justification of healthcare 

policies about food and drugs. We shall also look at issues about objective standards in 

food, such as the relationship between food and art, and how we evaluate taste and food 

preferences. The main objective of the course is to help students adopt new perspectives 

in thinking critically about what they might normally take for granted in their 

daily lives. 


Dr J.Y.F. Lau 

School of Humanities (Philosophy), 


Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: jyflau@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr J.Y.F. Lau 

School of Humanities (Philosophy), 


Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: jyflau@hku.hk 


Humanities 



Arnett, J. (2007). Emerging adulthood: What is it, and what is it good for? 

Child Development Perspectives, 1(2), 68-73. 

Chang, L. T. (2008). Factory girls: From village to city in a changing China 

(1st ed.). New York: Spiegel & Grau. [http://www.worldvisionreport. 

org/Stories/Week-of-February-27-2010/Factory-Girls] 

Gonick, M. (2006). Between “girl power” and “reviving Ophelia”: 

Constituting the neoliberal girl subject. NWSA Journal, 18(2), 1-23. 

Hargreaves, J., & Boler, T. (2006). Girl power: The impact of girls’ 

education on HIV and sexual behaviour. ActionAid International, 

Education and HIV Series 01. From http://www.ungei.org/ 

resources/1612_1065.html 

Jackson, C., & Tinkler, P. (2007). “Ladettes” and “modern girls”: 

“Troublesome” young femininities. Sociological Review, 55(2), 251- 

272. 

Kam, I. C. P. (2012). Absence of girl images: The gender construct in 

personal and social education in Hong Kong. Sex Education, 12(1). 

King, E. M., Klasen, S., & Porter, M. (2007, November). Women and 

development. Copenhagen Consensus 2008 Challenge Paper. From 

http://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/The%2010%20challenges/ 

Women%20and%20Development.aspx 

LeVine, R., LeVine, S., & Schnell, B. (2001). “Improve the women”: Mass 

schooling, female literacy, and worldwide social change. Harvard 

Educational Review, 71(1), 1-51. 

Mortenson, G., & Relin, D. O. (2007). Three cups of tea: One man’s mission 

to promote peace... one school at a time. New York: Penguin Books. 

[http://www.threecupsoftea.com/] 

Pipher, M. B. (1994). Reviving Ophelia: Saving the selves of 

adolescent girls. New York: Putnam. [http://www.youtube.com/ 

watch?v=OrRtJY28ps8] 

UNICEF. (2006). The state of the world’s children 2007. Woman and 

children: The double dividend of gender equality. From http://www. 

unicef.org/sowc07/docs/sowc07.pdf 

The Women’s Foundation, Hong Kong. (2008). Closing the gender 

gap in Hong Kong: Conversations with the community (Executive 

summary). From http://www.thewomensfoundationhk.org/upload/ 

TWF_Conversations_Exec_Summary_Eng___Web.pdf 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: Group project and presentation 30 

Total: 141 



Book review and analysis 25 

Film review and analysis 25 

Quizzes 15 


Group fieldwork project and presentation 25 

Girl Power in a Man’s World 



1. Explain and apply key theories and concepts relating to 

how we define girlhood from both historical and contemporary 

perspectives. 

2. Demonstrate understanding of how a myriad of modern 

disciplines – such as anthropology, psychology, economics, 

sociology, medicine and politics – shape our perception 

and definition of girlhood. 

3. Apply a holistic comprehension of girlhood on a multiplicity 

of dimensions (e.g., social, economical, political) 

that embrace the human condition both locally and globally. 

4. Analyze the immediate and long-term social issues that 

emerge when societies limit how girl power is both explicitly 

and implicitly defined. 

5. Analyze the role that culture plays in normatizing girlhood, 

taking examples from both developed and developing 

societies. 

6. Critique how girl power is both assisted and hindered by 

patriarchal-oriented social norms, and critically understand 

the complex relationship between girl power and 

masculinity. 

7. Demonstrate a broad perspective of the issues defining 

girlhood and how these insights impact the daily lives of 

students – both male and female. 


Girl Power has emerged as the subject of much popular, policy and scholarly interest 

in the new millennium. This interest has been sparked by multiple, competing 

debates about girlhood for it is girls and young women whose lives have long been 

shaped by male-dominant societies and patriarchal structures and yet who have, 

with the rapid changes resulting from a globalizing political economy, experienced a 

surge of new opportunities and challenges. These range from choices in the domains 

of personal health, sexuality, education and occupational choice to changes in their 

roles in their interactions with family, peers, and colleagues. Boys and men have also 

had a significant role in “Girl Power”. Listen to http://www.worldvisionreport.org/ 

Stories/Week-of-February-27-2010/Factory-Girls, look at http://www.youtube.com/ 

watch?v=OrRtJY28ps8, and read http://www.threecupsoftea.com/ and http://www. 

guyland.net/ to gain an understanding of some of the issues which will be covered. The 

debates about girlhood and their implications for their male counterparts have largely 

been in the context of the social transformations and experiences of girls and young 

women in developed countries. But the majority of the world’s female adolescent (10 to 

24 years) population lives in the developed world. While gender discrimination occurs 

across the life cycle in most developing countries there are particular threats to adolescent 

development in these contexts. The relevance of girls’ empowerment – the emerging 

opportunities, the traditional demands, and the choices created and taken – clearly 

extends beyond the borders of developed countries. Indeed girls’ and women’s issues 

are core to Millennium Development Goals (MDG), the main development targets to 

improve the human condition. Against this background this course considers 

(i) notions about girlhood from its early biological emphasis to contemporary frameworks 

that are informed by anthropology, psychology, economics, sociology, and politics; 

and (ii) the cultural meaning and consequences of girl power in both developed 

and developing societies, paying particular attention to the ways in which the male 

dominant world has both assisted and hindered girls’ development. 


Professor N. Rao 

Division of Learning, Development 

and Diversity, Faculty of Education 

Tel: 2859 2521 

Email: nrao@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor N. Rao 

Division of Learning, Development 

and Diversity, Faculty of Education 

Tel: 2859 2521 

Email: nrao@hku.hk 




Tel: 3917 2059 



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CCHU9015 Sex and Intimacy in Modern Times / 



Rathus, S. A., Nevid, J. S., & Fichner-Rathus, L. (2008). Human 

sexuality in a world of diversity (7th ed.). Boston, MA: 

Pearson/A&B. 

The Yogyakarta Principles on the Application of International 

Human Rights Law in relation to Sexual Orientation 

and Gender Identity (2006). From http://www. 

yogyakartaprinciples.org 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Assessment: Reflective journal 18 

Assessment: Web presentation 18 

Assessment: Individual assignment 18 

Total: 138 



Reflective journal 33.3 

Web presentation 33.3 

Assignment 33.3 

Sexuality and Gender: 

Diversity and Society 

What is sexual and gender diversity? How does the experience of our own genderedness and 

sexuality define members of sexual and gender minorities as people, and shape our opinions 

about those people who do not share our experiences or who do not express their sexuality 

in the same ways as we do? In this course, which we believe has the potential to be lifechanging, 

we will look at these sorts of questions. And we will do so while learning about (and 

in many cases meeting and talking with) people whose gender or sexuality places them on 

the fringes of mainstream society (in some cases beyond it). People who are gay, lesbian, bisexual 

or asexual. Transgender people and individuals who cross dress, or play with bondage, 

domination, and sado-masochism, use pornography, and/or are involved in commercial sex 

activities. And other people whose own experiences, known by strange-sounding names such 

as acrotomophilia and apotemnophilia, have their own story to tell. In lectures and tutorials 

we will examine other questions, such as: To what extent are sexual and gender diversity biologically 

‘hard-wired’ rather than learned? What is ‘normal’ in human sexuality and gender? 

How, when thinking about sexual and gender diversity, do we distinguish normal from abnormal, 

different from deviant, and healthy from sick anyway? When responding (as individuals 

and as a society) to those whose sexuality and gender are different to our own, how do we 

balance individual rights (e.g. to sexual and gender expression) and responsibility to others 

(e.g. ‘to protect family values’)? What roles do society and culture play in forming our ideas 

about sexual and gender diversity? What roles do language, the arts and religion, the family, 

education, and the media play, not only in forming those ideas, but also in transmitting them? 

What effect has science and medicine had on the lives of individuals from sexual and gender 

minorities? How, in an increasingly interconnected world, are our ideas about sexual and 

gender diversity changing? We expect students will come out of the course with an informed, 

open-minded and critical understanding of the issues covered, and better able to join contemporary 

debates on sexual and gender diversity: debates that so often stir deep emotions 

and challenge fundamental beliefs. 



1. Critically evaluate concepts central to the study of 

sexual and gender diversity and appraise the role that 

society and culture play (a) in the construction of these 

concepts and the links and distinctions that are drawn 

between them, and (b) in framing actual development of 

individuals from sexual and gender minorities. 

2. Demonstrate understanding of historical changes (and 

cultural differences) in the ways in which sexual and 

gender diversity has been (and is) viewed. 

3. Critically appraise the ways that ideas about sexual 

and gender diversity are created and transmitted (and 

adherence to norms is regulated) within any culture 

or society, and reflect upon how these ideas (including 

norms) frame our responses (individual and collective) 

to sexual and gender diversity and to the behaviour of 

persons belonging to sexual and gender minority groups. 

4. Analyze critically the impact of increasing global interconnectedness 

in framing ideas about sexual and gender 

diversity, norms for sexual and gendered behaviour, and 

individual and collective responses to individuals from 

sexual and gender minorities. 

5. Reflect on ways in which, globally, and in regard to sexual 

and gender diversity, humanity can reconcile a heightened 

awareness of cultural differences with a respect for 

individual differences and preferences, uphold human 

rights, justice and equality, and improve the well-being 

of humankind. 

6. Reflect and debate on issues of human sexual and gender 

diversity in an informed and rational way, incorporating 

an awareness of others’ experiences and perspectives 

and a commitment to fundamental democratic values 

such as freedom of speech (including expression of 

ideas), human rights, justice and equality. 


Lecture Time // Section 1 -- First semester (Wed) 

Section 2 -- First semester (Sat) 


Professor G.A. Postiglione 

Division of Policy, Administration 

and Social Sciences Education, 

Faculty of Education 

Tel: 2859 2526 

Email: postiglione@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr S.J. Winter 




Tel: 2859 1901 

Email: sjwinter@hku.hk 

Dr T.S.K. Kong 



Tel: 3917 2055 

Email: travisk@hkucc.hku.hk 


Humanities 



Buchanan, A. (2011). Better than human: The promise and perils 

of enhancing ourselves (pp. 133-171). New York: Oxford 


Dworkin, R. (1993). Life’s dominion: An argument about 

abortion, euthanasia and individual freedom (pp. 179-217). 

New York: Knopf. 

Ertman, M. M., & Williams, J. C. (Eds.). (2005). Rethinking 

commodification: Cases and readings in law and culture (pp. 

243-270). New York: New York University Press. [Part II, C1] 

Glover, J. (1986). It makes no difference whether or not I do 

it. In P. Singer (Ed.), Applied ethics (pp. 125-144). Oxford: 

Oxford University Press. 

Kamisar, Y. (1978). Euthanasia legalisation: Some nonreligious 

objections. In T. L. Beauchamp & S. Perlin (Eds.), Ethical 

issues in death and dying (pp. 220-231). Englewood Cliffs, 

NJ: Prentice-Hall. 

Nussbaum, M. C. (1998). “Whether from reason or prejudice”: 

Taking money for bodily services. Journal of Legal Studies, 

27, 693-724. 

Primoratz, I. (1993). What’s wrong with prostitution? 

Philosophy, 68(264), 159-182. 

Regan, T. (2006). The case for animal rights. In J. E. White 

(Ed.), Contemporary moral problems (8th ed., pp. 379-395). 

Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth. 

Sandel, M. J. (2007). The case against perfection: Ethics in 

the age of genetic engineering. Cambridge, MA: Harvard 


Satz, D. (1995). Markets in women’s sexual labour. Ethics, 

106(1), 63-85. 

Shrage, L. (2007). Feminist perspectives on sex markets. In E. 

Zalta (Ed.), Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Stanford, 

CA: The Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. 

From http://stanford.library.usyd.edu.au/entries/feministsex-markets 

Singer, P. (2006). All animals are equal. In J. E. White (Ed.), 

Contemporary moral problems (8th ed., pp. 377-378). 

Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth. 

Timmons, M. (2002). Moral theory: An introduction. Lanham, 

MD: Rowman & Littlefield. [Chaps. 5-7, 9] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 


Assessment: Essay writing 30 


Total: 154 




Mid-term essay 40 



Moral Controversies in Contemporary 

Society 



1. Open-mindedly consider different viewpoints in moral 

controversies. 

2. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of different philosophical 

and popular arguments in the four topic areas 

of the course. 

3. Demonstrate understanding of the major moral philosophical 

approaches and techniques in moral reasoning. 

4. Formulate and critically assess personal positions/convictions. 

This course critically examines 

some moral controversies in 

contemporary society. It aims 

to help students develop their 

ability to think in intellectually 

sophisticated ways about difficult 

issues of personal and public 

morality. The course focuses 

on four controversial moral 

topics: animal use, assisted suicide, 

prostitution, and biomedical 

enhancement. These topics 

concern not only personal morality 

but also social or public 

morality. Students will be asked 

to discuss not only whether the 

above practices are moral or 

immoral, but also whether they 

should be prohibited, regulated, 

recognized, or supported by law. 

It is hoped that students will 

be better equipped to evaluate 

opposing arguments about the 

proper use of law in regulating 

personal conduct and social 

interaction. In the course of discussing 

these topics, students 

will be introduced to major 

moral approaches, such as consequentialism 

and deontology, 

as well as methods of critical 

thinking in moral reasoning. 


Professor J.C.W. Chan 

Department of Politics and Public 

Administration, 


Tel: 3917 8361 

Email: jcwchan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor J.C.W. Chan 


Administration, 


Tel: 3917 8361 

Email: jcwchan@hku.hk 


73

74 

Humanities 



Chan, C. W. (2004). Advocacy issues in dyslexia in Hong Kong. 

Brainchild, 5(3), 32-36. 

Oliver, M. (2009). Understanding disability: From theory to 

practice (2nd ed.). Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. 

[Chaps. 3, 10] 

Rehabilitation Programme Plan Review Working Group. 

(2007). Hong Kong rehabilitation programme plan. Hong 

Kong: The Government Printer. [Executive summary, Chap. 

2] From http://www.lwb.gov.hk/eng/advisory/rac/rpp_ 

report.htm 

Rusch, N., Angermeyer, M. C., & Corrigan, P. W. (2005). Mental 

illness stigma: Concepts, consequences, and initiatives to 

reduce stigma. European Psychiatry, 20(8), 529-539. 

Sherry, M. (2008). Disability and diversity: A sociological 

perspective. New York: Nova Science Publishers. [Chap. 1] 

Wong, P. K. S., & Wong, F. K. D. (2007). Disability. In J. C. B. 

Leung (Ed.), Envisioning social welfare: Our shared future 

(pp. 96-110). Hong Kong: Consultancy Team, Department 

of Social Work and Social Administration, The University 

of Hong Kong. 

Yip, K. (2003). Traditional Chinese religious beliefs and 

superstitions in delusions and hallucinations of Chinese 

schizophrenic patients. International Journal of Social 

Psychiatry, 49(2), 97-111. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Fieldwork / Visits (incl preparation) 8 




Total: 150 



Tutorial presentation and discussion 50 

Reflection notes 50 



1. Explain disability issues through a critical analysis of its 

definitions, moving away from the purely medical model 

to a human rights perspective and the social model of 

disabilities. 

2. Identify the social, political, biological and cultural determinants 

of social exclusion in disabilities. 

3. Demonstrate understanding of the experiences of persons 

with disabilities and reflect on the personal values 

and societal issues of social inclusion. 

4. Express an understanding of the family issues, educational 

concerns, and psychosocial aspects of the disability 

experience. 

5. Critically examine the basis of discrimination and necessary 

changes for social inclusion of human diversities. 

6. Critically examine the related social policies and service 

provisions and identify the changes necessary to build 

up a barrier-free society. 


Being Different: 

Understanding People with Disabilities 

This course focuses on disability as a social phenomenon and social construct. It engages 

students to look into the everyday life situations people with disabilities (PWDs) 

commonly encounter, particularly people with physical and intellectual disabilities as 

well as mental illnesses (PD, ID and MI). Issues that arise from these situations will 

be examined through the critical lens of sociology, politics, culture and social policies. 

Stereotypical images of PWDs, myths and erroneous assumptions about them, and the 

basis of discrimination against them are major aspects students will reflect upon. They 

will explore how these attitudes have been shaped by the media, cultural representations, 

knowledge from medical and social sciences and further obtain an empathetic 

understanding of PWDs through class activities and direct contact in NGOs or selfhelp 

organizations. 

By the end of the course, students should be able to appreciate the value of social inclusion 

and human diversities. They should have been equipped to critically identify 

necessary amendment to be made in related social policies and service provisions 

and to take individual and collective actions in their future positions for building an 

inclusive society. 


Dr B.M.F. Law 

Department of Social Work and 

Social Administration, 


Tel: 3917 2087 

Email: blaw@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr B.M.F. Law 


Social Adminstration, 


Tel: 3917 2087 



Humanities 



Best, S. (2005). Understanding social divisions. London; 

Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. 

Braham, P., & Janes, L. (2002). Social differences and divisions. 

Oxford: Blackwell. 

Haralambos, M., & Holborn, M. (2008). Sociology: Themes and 

perspectives. London: HarperCollins. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 



Assessment: In-class quiz and final test 


Total: 124 



In-class quiz 35 



Final test 40 



1. Apply personal experiences and observations to the discussion 

of social divisions. 

2. Explain how social divisions are socially constructed. 

3. Analyze social divisions from different perspectives. 

4. Examine social exclusion faced by disadvantaged social 

groups. 

5. Identify ways to narrow social divides in contemporary 

societies. 


Social Divisions in Contemporary 

Societies 

This course aims to enhance students’ awareness of social divisions and their implications 

for the distribution of resources and life chances in contemporary societies. 

It examines how social divisions are shaped; how they can be understood from 

different theoretical perspectives; and the ways they can be dealt with at personal, 

societal and policy level. Various social divisions (such as class, gender, age, health 

and sexuality) will be used as examples for illustration. Critical thinking, social 

analysis and reflection on personal experiences will be emphasized. Through video 

viewing, guest lectures and visits, students will have the opportunity to learn about 

the real life experiences of social groups who are in different positions in social 

divisions. Students with an interest in understanding social issues and a commitment 

to search for ways to improve the life of disadvantaged social groups would 

find this course particularly stimulating. 


Dr B.M.F. Law 




Tel: 3917 2087 


Teacher(s) 

Dr B.M.F. Law 




Tel: 3917 2087 



75

76 

Humanities 



Bun, K. H. (2006). Body, dress and cultural exclusion: 

Experiences of Pakistani women in “global” Hong Kong. 

Asian Ethnicity, 7(3), 285-302. 

Choi, S., & Ting, K. F. (2009). A gender perspective on 

families in Hong Kong. In F. Cheung & E. Holroyd (Eds), 

Mainstreaming gender in Hong Kong society (pp. 159-180). 

Hong Kong: Chinese University Press. 

Dittmar, H., Halliwel, E., & Ive, S. (2006). Does Barbie make 

girls want to be thin? The effect of experimental exposure 

to images of dolls on the body image of 5-8 year old girls. 

Developmental Psychology, 42(2), 283-292. 

Francis, B. (2006). The nature of gender. In C. Skelton (Ed.), 

Sage handbook of gender and education. Thousand Oaks, 

CA: Sage. 

Gibbs. J., Ellison, N., & Heino, R. (2006). Self-presentation in 

online personals: The role of anticipated future interaction, 

self-disclosure and perceived success in Internet dating. 

Communication Research, 33(2), 152-177. 

Goffman, E. (1959). “Introduction” from The presentation 

of self in everyday life. In C. Malacrida & J. Low (Eds.), 

Sociology of the body: A reader. (pp. 53-56). Oxford: Oxford 


Lee, S. (1999). Fat, fatigue and the feminine: The changing 

cultural experience of women in Hong Kong. Culture, 

Medicine and Psychiatry, 23, 51-73. 

Leong, S. (2006). Who’s the fairest of them all? Television 

ads for skin-whitening cosmetics in Hong Kong. Asian 

Ethnicity, 7(2), 167-181. 

Louie, K., & Edwards, L. (1994). Chinese masculinity. East 

Asian History, 8, 135-148. 

So, A. (2003). Cross border families in Hong Kong: The role of 

social class and politics. Critical Asian Studies, 35(4), 515- 

534. 

Wang, C. Y., & Goodridge, W. (2009). Chicken feathers and 

garlic skin: Diary of a Chinese garment factory girl on 

saipan. New York: Passion Profit Company. 

Study Load 


Lectures 26 

Tutorials 10 





Assessment: In-class quizzes (incl preparation) 12 

Total: 143 



Reflective journal 40 

Fieldwork assignment 20 


Tutorial workshop participation 20 

Body, Beauty and Fashion 



1. Describe, explain and differentiate the sociological, psychological, 

anthropological and biological theories and 

ideas related to body, beauty and fashion. 

2. Extrapolate key elements of various theories regarding 

beauty, body image, fashion and gender and apply to 

their everyday experiences. 

3. Assess and critique messages regarding beauty, body image 

and fashion and place these messages in both a local 

and global context. 

4. Demonstrate comprehensive understanding of the complex 

relationship between gender and beauty and how 

culture and history impact this relationship. 

5. Critically assess social messages regarding body, beauty 

and fashion and discuss the social responsibility of accepting, 

not judging beauty as they explore alternative 

concepts of beauty that question conventional definitions. 


This course takes students on an exploration 

of the links between body, beauty and 

fashion from a variety of perspectives ranging 

from sociology, social policy, economics, 

psychology and medicine. These various 

perspectives together offer students a way of 

seeing how individual level issues (like self 

esteem, stigma and identity) shape and are 

shaped by community level issues (mass media), 

societal level issues (gender) and global 

level issues (globalization and westernization). 

The course examines these issues in a 

variety of formats using guest lectures, mass 

media analysis, video clips, problem solving 

activities and discussion. The course also 

focuses on cultural representations and understandings 

of the human body and ideals 

of beauty. Although the emphasis is primarily 

on contemporary Hong Kong society, 

lectures will also include in-depth analyses 

of how beauty is culturally constructed and historically situated around the world. To 

this end, the course is gender inclusive and presents both the female and male perspectives 

on beauty and body image. In this context, how human bodies and standards 

of beauty are increasingly influenced by a global media, which promotes a progressively 

narrow concept of beauty, will be critically discussed. Aside from the media influence 

on an increasingly globalized interpretation of beauty standards, the course also 

explores how diet and fashion industries are gaining momentum in shaping beauty 

ideals. Lectures address other globally and socially constructed aspects of beauty and 

identity, such as: race, class, culture, ethnicity, sexual identity, age, and ability/disability. 





Tel: 3917 2059 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 2059 


Dr M.T. Dean 



Tel: 3917 4641 

Email: mtdean@hku.hk 


Humanities 



Ahmad, Y. (2006). The scope and definitions of heritage: From 

tangible to intangible. International Journal of Heritage 

Studies, 12(3), 292-300. 

Australia ICOMOS Incorporated. (2000). The Burra Charter: 

The Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural 

Significance, 1999. From http://australia.icomos.org/wpcontent/uploads/BURRA_CHARTER.pdf 

Hobsbawm, E. J., & Ranger, T. O. (1983). The invention of 

tradition. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University 

Press. 

Kuah, K. E. (1994). Bugis street in Singapore: Development, 

conservation and the reinvention of cultural landscape. In 

W. S. Logan & M. Askew (Eds.), Cultural identity and urban 

change in Southeast Asia: Interpretative essays (pp. 167- 

186). Geelong, Victoria: Deakin University Press. 

Kuah, K. E. (1998). State, conservation, and ethnicization of 

Little India in Singapore. Urban Anthropology and Studies 

of Cultural Systems and World Economic Development, 

27(1), 1-48. 

Schmitt, T. M. (2008). The UNESCO concept of safeguarding 

intangible cultural heritage: Its background and Marrakchi 

roots. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 14(2), 95- 

111. 

UNESCO. (1972). UNESCO Convention Concerning the 

Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. 

From http://whc.unesco.org/archive/convention-en.pdf 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Seminars / Tutorials 12 





Assessment: Group discussion 15 

Total: 130 



Field trip and individual portfolio 20 

Group project and presentation 30 

Blog writing / Tutorial discussion 20 

Test 20 

Pop quiz 10 



1. Describe, explain and connect the basic concepts and 

theories pertaining to cultural heritage using appropriate 

academic language. 

2. Critically examine the preservation and conservation of 

cultural heritage in Hong Kong and other Asian societies 

using relevant theoretical knowledge. 

3. Propose a policy framework for implementation of the 

preservation and conservation of cultural heritage in 

Hong Kong. 

4. Demonstrate an awareness of the need for the sustainability 

of cultural heritage in contemporary society. 

5. Explain the significance of cultural heritage in everyday 

life and society from historical and contemporary perspectives. 

6. Evaluate the relationship between intangible cultural 

heritages, and the tourist industry in the local and global 

environment. 

7. Demonstrate critical understanding of the academic and 

policy debates and framework of cultural heritage from 

various media portrayal (newspapers, films, internet, 

journals). 


Cultural Heritages in the Contemporary 

World 

Cultural heritage has been consistently in the news in recent years in Hong Kong, 

Mainland China and the rest of the world and this has created renewed interest and debates 

that surround the significance of heritage conservation and preservation where 

it is viewed as part of the creative cultural industries, as exemplified by the Kowloon 

Cultural Hub, as well as the tourist industry. Cultural heritages include the built environment, 

primarily historical buildings and sites as well as “intangible heritages” as 

defined by UNESCO which include the living cultures of the people such as religion, 

ethno-music, films and food. Both categories of heritages are now assuming great 

significance and communities and governments throughout the world are now looking 

at the need to preserve cultural heritages with a high level of urgency. This course 

addresses three key themes relating to cultural heritages in the contemporary world, 

namely, (i) Understanding our History and Culture, (ii) Conservation and Preservation 

of Cultural Heritages, and (iii) Cultural Heritage and the Tourism Industry. 


Dr K.E. Kuah-Pearce 



Tel: 3917 2060 

Email: kekuah@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr K.E. Kuah-Pearce 



Tel: 3917 2060 

Email: kekuah@hku.hk 


77

78 

Humanities 



The required reading each week is one chapter or book selection of 

approximately 10-25 pages long. Besides two readings which provide a 

conceptual framework for using anthropology and film to understand 

religion, the other readings all explore connections between scientific 

and religious approaches to reality. The readings are taken from the 

following volumes: 

Arbab, F. (2000). Promoting a discourse on science, religion and 

development. In S. Harper (Ed.), The lab, the temple, and the market: 

Reflections at the intersection of science, religion, and development. 

Ottawa: International Development Research Centre Press. 

Capra, F. (1976/1982). The Tao of physics: An exploration of the parallels 

between modern physics and Eastern mysticism. London: Flamingo. 

Dahl, A. L. (1996). The eco principle: Ecology and economics in symbiosis. 

Oxford: George Ronald; London: Zed Books. 

Lassiter, L. E. (2006). Invitation to anthropology. Lanham, MD: Altamira 

Press. 

Plate, S. B. (2008). Religion and film: Cinema and the re-creation of the 

world. London; New York: Wallflower. 

Teilhard de Chardin, P. (1959/1964). The future of man. New York: 

Harper & Row. 

Waldron, W. S. (2003). Common ground, common cause: Buddhism and 

science on the afflictions of identity. In B. A. Wallace (Ed.), Buddhism 

& science: Breaking new ground. New York: Columbia University 

Press. 

In-class discussion will focus on the concepts in these readings as 

well as quotations from religious texts including Zhuangzi, Laozi, the 

Great Learning, the Baghavad Gita, the Dhammapada, Proverbs and 

Ecclesiastes, the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, the Qur’an, the Hidden 

Words, etc. 

Required Film Viewing 

Extracts from the following feature films will be viewed and discussed 

in tutorial sessions: Avatar, Hero, Star Wars, Prince of Egypt, Samsara, 

Gandhi, and others. Some ethnographic documentary films will be 

shown as well. 

Field Trips 

Students shall join field trips to three of the following religious 

communities in Hong Kong: Baha’i, Buddhism, Daoism, Christian, 

Hinduism, Islam and Judaism, and take part in activities such 

as meditation, spirit-writing, ritual, study circle, interviews and 

discussions with believers. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Required readings 36 

Assessment: Weekly assignments 36 

Assessment: Field journal writing 10 

Total: 138 



Weekly assignments 65 

Attendance and participation in lecture 

group discussions and tutorials 20 

Field visit reflective journal 15 



1. Engage in self-reflective dialogue with others on issues 

of spiritual and social concern. 

2. Compare expressions of religion and spirituality emanating 

from different cultural and religious backgrounds. 

3. Apply scientific perspectives and concepts to analyze, 

interpret and evaluate spiritual concepts and their associated 

social and religious practices. 

4. Evaluate the appropriateness of different forms of spiritual 

and religious engagement for improving the human 

condition in the context of an emerging global society. 


Spirituality, Religion and Social 

Change 

The aim of this course is to engage you in a reflection 

on spirituality and religion, and on their relevance 

to contemporary social change. It will aim to 

do so in a manner which is personally meaningful, 

appropriate for critical analysis, and relevant to 

social action. Society is undergoing a resurgence of 

religious beliefs and practices. Many of us are personally 

committed to spiritual or religious beliefs, 

are engaged in what could be called a “spiritual 

search”, or at the very least have many questions 

of a spiritual nature. As faith in secular ideologies 

declines, there is a growing tendency to turn 

to religious traditions as conceptual and social 

resources for personal growth and social engagement. 

But is this appropriate or even right? In the 

past few decades the world has witnessed a dramatic 

resurgence of spiritual seeking and religious 

engagement in society, in ways that may be either 

constructive or destructive. Given the historical 

record, is it realistic to expect religion to provide 

answers to personal and social problems? 

Open to believers, agnostics, skeptics, atheists and seekers, this course will give you 

exposure to, and an opportunity to engage with, the spiritual heritage of humanity: 

you will discuss passages from the scriptures of the world’s major religious traditions, 

as well as spiritual themes contained in popular feature films. You will critically 

consider the contemporary social implications of religious teachings and spiritual 

principles when applied to questions of truth and knowledge, power and authority, 

conflict and cooperation, and sacrifice and service. You will reflect on whether these 

approaches to human spiritual life are part of the cause or part of the solution for 

global social problems. 


Dr D.A. Palmer 



Tel: 3917 2051 

Email: palmer19@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 2051 



Humanities 



CCHU9007 Sexuality and Gender: Diversity and Society / 



Bartky, S. L. (1999). Foucault, femininity, and the 

modernisation of patriarchal power. In J. A. Kourany, J. P. 

Sterba & R. Tong (Eds.), Feminist philosophies. Englewood 

Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. 

Ben-Ze’ev, A. (2004). Love online: Emotions of the Internet. 

Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. [Chap. 8] 

Carroll, J. L., & Wolpe, P. R. (1996). Sexuality and gender in 

society. New York: HarperCollins College Publishers. [Chap. 

1] 

Giddens, A. (1992). The transformation of intimacy: Sexuality, 

love, and eroticism in modern societies. Cambridge: Polity 

Press. [Chaps. 3, 4] 

Jamieson, L. (1998). Intimacy: Personal relationships in 

modern societies. Cambridge: Polity Press. [Introduction, 

Chap. 2] 

Kong, T. S. K. (2006). What it feels like for a whore: The body 

politics of women performing erotic labour in Hong Kong. 

Gender, Work and Organization, 13(5), 409-434. 

McNair, B. (2002). Striptease culture: Sex, media and the 

democratization of desire. London: Routledge. [Chaps. 4, 5] 

Plummer, K. (1995). Telling sexual stories: Power, change and 

social worlds. London: Routledge. [Part 1] 

Plummer, K. (2003). Intimate citizenship: Private decisions 

and public dialogues. Seattle: University of Washington 

Press. [Key reading] 

Rubin, G. (1984/1993). Thinking sex: Notes for a radical theory 

of the politics of sexuality. In H. Abelove, M. A. Barale & D. 

M. Halperin (Eds.), The lesbian and gay studies reader (pp. 

3-44). London: Routledge. 

More readings will be assigned for each lecture in the 

beginning of the term. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 146 



Participation in Problem-based Learning tutorial 30 

Individual essay 20 


Individual reflective exercises 10 



1. Identify key concepts in understanding intimacy using 

contemporary sociological and political theories of identity, 

gender and sexuality. 

2. Demonstrate critical understanding of the complexity of 

issues of intimacy in their everyday lives through examination 

of the interplay between the self and society, i.e. 

how social, economic, political and cultural forces shape 

our intimate choices and decisions; and between private 

and public, i.e. how our most private decisions are bound 

up with public institutions such as the state, the law, the 

media, and medicine. 

3. Express an appreciation of the distinctiveness and interrelatedness 

of their own and other intimate cultures and 

demonstrate a cultural sensitivity with people of diverse 

cultures. 

4. Behave as responsible global citizens who respect individual 

differences and preferences and uphold the core 

values of a democratic society: human rights, justice, 

equality and freedom of speech. 


Sex and Intimacy in Modern Times 

Great transformations have been taking place in the realm of intimacy – the rise of 

non-monogamous non-marital forms of intimacy, the increasing visibility of lesbian 

and gay existence, the well established commercial sex industry, the popularized public 

report of private stories, the huge development of the popularity of cosmetic surgery, 

and numerous possibilities for intimacy in the cyber world, just to name but a few. New 

forms of identity, intimacy and sexuality have emerged in the era of the post-modern/ 

globalized world, which blur the boundaries of what constitutes private matters and 

public issues and challenge the meanings of normal/abnormal citizen, natural/artificial 

body, real/virtual relationship, authentic/counterfeit intimacy, and so forth. Using 

contemporary sociological and political theories of identity, gender and sexuality, this 

course aims to track down the major transformation 

in the realm of sexual intimacy in modern times and 

to examine newly emerged ethical issues, moral dilemmas 

and social conflicts over sexual intimacy in 

four inter-related domains: (a) democracy, human 

sexual rights and citizenship – how these issues are 

important in talking about intimate relationships; 

(b) mass media and popular culture – how private 

matters become increasingly subject to public scrutiny; 

(c) economy and consumption – how intimacy 

is increasingly commodified and commercialized; 

and (d) science, medicine and computer technology 

– how medical and computer technologies foster 

new pleasures, bodies and practices and the problems 

that arise from this. At the end of the course, 

students are expected to be able to think critically 

about intimacy, to understand the complex interplay 

between self and society and to have learnt how 

to respect individual differences and preferences. 





Tel: 3917 2055 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 2055 



79

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Humanities 



Students are required to get hold of the following text by purchase, 

borrowing or internet download/photocopy: Joseph Conrad, 

Heart of Darkness. Suggested for purchase are the World’s 

Classics Series text (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003) or 

the Penguin Classics text (London: Penguin, 1995), which contain 

good introductions and notes. Some copies will be available for 

purchase from the University bookshop. For students who do not 

want to buy the text, the text can also be downloaded and printed 

at the following sites (among many others): 

• http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/219 

• http://gaslight.mtroyal.ca/darkmenu.htm 

The University Library contains a number of copies of the 

novella as well, which students may borrow. 

Students are also required to purchase the Course Reader 

(AV & Reserve Collection, 1st Floor, Main Library, cost 

about HK$90), containing the following compulsory reading 

materials: 

1. John Frederick Lewis, ‘Harem Life in Constantinople’, ‘A 

Cairo Bazaar’, ‘A View of the Street’, ‘The Commentator on 

the Koran’ (painting) 

2. E. J. Eitel, extract from Europe in China (history) 

3. R. M. Martin, extract from Report on the Island of Hong 

Kong (history) 

4. Rudyard Kipling, ‘If ’, ‘The White Man’s Burden’, ‘Mandalay’ 

(poetry) 

5. Joseph Chamberlain, ‘The True Conception of Empire’ 

(politics) 

6. Lady Elizabeth Butler, ‘Egypt 1885’, from From Sketch-Book 

and Diary (travel writing) 

7. Edward Said, extract from Orientalism (criticism) 

8. Robert Young, extract from Colonial Desire (criticism) 

9. Aimé Césaire, extract from Discourse on Colonialism 

(criticism) 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 


Independent preparation for assessments 50 

Assessment: In-class writing exercise 2 

Total: 120 



Tutorial writing or research exercises / 

Quizzes / Workshop reports 20 

Written assignment / Portfolio / Term paper 35 

Tutorial, workshop and class participation, 

and contributions to the discussion forum 

on Moodle 10 

In-class writing exercise 35 



1. Demonstrate knowledge of the key features of the historical 

project, trajectory and history of the British Empire. 

2. Describe and critically examine a variety of representations 

of Empire in text and image with appropriate critical 

frameworks. 

3. Explain, explore and appreciate the form and function of 

historical texts, the novel, poetry, travel writing, painting, 

sketch and cartoon. 

4. Practice close reading strategies, analysis, discussion 

and argument. 

5. Use critical approaches to various genres of text and image, 

including specifically genre and gender discourse, 

colonial discourse analysis and postcolonial theory. 


The British Empire in Text and Image 

This course looks at textual and pictorial representations of the British contact with 

her various colonies, in particular India, Africa, the Middle East and Hong Kong. The 

focus is on the nineteenth century and the period known as ‘the New Imperialism’, 

although earlier texts are considered. Students are thus invited to learn about, and 

reflect critically upon, a particular period in history – which is also their own – by approaching 

it through historical texts and the creative arts. 

The course is structured along the theme of the ‘reality’ versus ‘representations’ of the 

British Empire. Within the Common Core Curriculum, it invites students to tackle 

an unfamiliar set of questions, texts and thoughts, and approach these academically. 

Within the Humanities Area of Inquiry, the course will show students that the human 

experience and human representation of reality might be very different from ‘the 

truth’, and that knowledge and experience are always contextual. 


Dr J.C. Kuehn 

School of English, Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 1921 

Email: jkuehn@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr J.C. Kuehn 


Tel: 3917 1921 

Email: jkuehn@hku.hk 


Humanities 



Journal Papers 

Markstrom, C. A., & Iborra, A. (2003). Adolescent identity 

formation and rites of passage: The Navajo Kinaalda 

ceremony for girls. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 

13(4), 399-425. 

Nelson, L. J., Badger, S., & Wu, B. (2004). The influence of 

culture in emerging adulthood: Perspectives of Chinese 

college students. International Journal of Behavioral 

Development, 28(1), 26-36. 

Books 


Mendelson, E. (2007). The things that matter: What seven 

classic novels have to say about the stages of life. New York: 

Anchor Books. 

Sigelman, C. K., & Rider, E. A. (2012). Human development 

across the life span (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth 

Cengage Learning. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 


Other learning activities: 

e.g. life stage documentaries, movies and 

music, with class discussion 5 

Assessment: Poster presentation 


Assessment: Group presentation 


Assessment: Individual self-reflection portfolio 50 

Total: 146 





Individual portfolio 50 

Performance in small group discussion 

tutorials and TV documentary/movie/ 

arts class discussion 10 



1. Describe and explain the major stage theories of development 

and alternative approaches to development in 

psychology, biology, sociology and anthropology, including 

their underlying assumptions and key concepts. 

2. Analyze and discuss portrayal of human developmental 

stages in literature and the arts. 

3. Critically examine the validity of the stage approach to 

development. Analyze and evaluate evidence for and 

against it, by synthesizing psychological, biological, sociological 

and anthropological perspectives. 

4. Analyze and discuss the complexities and holistic nature 

of human development and the interconnectedness of 

culture, societal change and human biology. 

5. Demonstrate an ability to apply a broad perspective to 

achieve greater intercultural understanding of human 

development. 

6. Critically reflect on how one’s own development has 

been shaped by multiple forces, including cultural values, 

the Internet age, and globalization. 


Stages of Life: 

Scientific Fact or Social Fiction? 

Shakespeare observed that “one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being 

seven ages”. Many theories on different aspects of personhood, including personality, 

emotions, cognitions, and morality, also typically depict development as progressing 

through stages. However, are life stages really distinct categories or are they social 

constructions created by humans to serve particular social purposes? What scientific 

evidence do we have that supports the life stage demarcations? If they are social constructions, 

what purposes do these constructions serve? How does culture and modernization 

impact on the lived experience of these stages? This course critically examines 

these issues and enables students to reflect on what has shaped us as individuals. 

Topics include: 

1. major psychological and biological 

theories of stages of development 

and maturation, 

2. sociological and anthropological 

approaches to development, 

3. rites of passage, 

4. portrayals of development in the 

literature and the arts, 

5. role of culture and modernization 

in shaping the developmental experiences 

of individuals, and 

6. individual and social implications 

of different approaches to development. 


Dr A.M. Lee 

Department of Psychiatry, 


Tel: 2819 9564 

Email: amlee@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr A.M. Lee 



Tel: 2819 9564 

Email: amlee@hku.hk 

Dr C. Cheung 



Tel: 2819 9578 

Email: charlton@hku.hk 


81

82 

Humanities 




Addiss, S. (1989). The art of Zen: Paintings and calligraphy by 

Japanese monks, 1600-1925. New York: H. N. Abrams. 

Barnet, S. (2005). A short guide to writing about art. (8th ed.). 

Hong Kong: Pearson Longman. 

Berger, J. (1972). Ways of seeing. London: Penguin Books. 

Chipp, H. B., Selz, P. H., & Taylor, J. C. (1968). Vincent van 

Gogh (1853-1890) “Letters”. In Theories of modern art: A 

source book by artists and critics. Berkeley, CA: University 

of California Press. 

Lazzari, M. R., & Schlesier, D. (2005). Exploring art: A global, 

thematic approach. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth. 

Lin, Y. (1967). The Chinese theory of art: Translations from the 

masters of Chinese art (pp. 140-143). London: Heinemann. 

Liu, X., Kelley, J., & Asian Art Museum, Chong-Moon Lee 

Center for Asian Art and Culture. (2006). The Three Gorges 

Project: Paintings by Liu Xiaodong. San Francisco, CA: 

Asian Art Museum, Chong-Moon Lee Center for Asian Art 

and Culture. 

Macy, L. W. (Ed.). (1998- ). Grove’s dictionary of art online. 

Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

McCloud, S. (1994). Understanding comics: The invisible art. 

New York: Harper Perennial. 

Munroe, A., Yokohama Bijutsukan, Solomon R. Guggenheim 

Museum., & San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. (1994). 

Japanese art after 1945: Scream against the sky. New York: 

H. N. Abrams. 

Schaarschmidt-Richter, I., Städtische Kunstsammlungen 

Chemnitz, Schirn Kunsthalle Frankfurt, & Kokusai Kōryū 

Kikin. (2000). Japanese modern art: Painting from 1910 to 

1970. Zurich: Edition Stemmle. 

Wang, Y. (2000). Looking at Chinese painting. Tokyo: 

Nigensha. 

Wilkins, D. G., Schultz, B., & Linduff, K. M. (2005). Art past, art 

present. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 




Total: 168 




Tutorial discussions 25 

First paper 15 

Second paper 15 

Arts and Ideas: East and West 



1. Analyze the formal elements (that is the appearance) of 

selected examples of works of art, explain the historical 

meaning of these works of art, and articulate how these 

works of art make meaning within their cultural context. 

2. Demonstrate an awareness of underlying principles of 

artistic practices across cultures, that is explain how the 

concept of art is constructed within Europe and Asia. 

3. Explain the processes through which art makes meaning 

vis-à-vis tradition and innovation. 

4. Discuss the roles of artist-activists in different societies 

to challenge established conventions and explain how 

artist-activists engage with issues of ethics in art. 


This course is about ideas that are related to art, art history and visual culture across 

cultural boundaries of “the East” and “the West”. It is designed to explore ideas about 

art, such as how art functions in various societies and its meanings. It will examine 

artistic traditions, the functions of art and its institutions such as patronage, art 

market, and roles of the artist across cultures, and will challenge assumptions about 

separation of cultural realms into eastern and western areas. The course will explore 

key monuments and concepts that shaped artistic traditions, techniques, and media 

and continue to define today’s international visual environment. 

Art as a concept belongs to all cultures, and deploys similar strategies to create 

meaning. Through the application of linguistic theories, the course will look at strategies 

of art production and consider the meanings of certain works of art within specific 

cultural and historical situations. It aims to develop the skills of asking questions 

of a work of art and using historical knowledge along with some careful looking 

to answer these questions. Students will encounter works of art, not necessarily in 

chronological order, but connected together by common themes. 


Dr R.L. Hammers 

School of Humanities (Fine Arts), 


Tel: 3917 2612 

Email: rhammers@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr R.L. Hammers 

School of Humanities (Fine Arts), 


Tel: 3917 2612 

Email: rhammers@hkucc.hku.hk 


Humanities 



Excerpts from: 

Bauby, J. -D. (2007). The diving-bell and the butterfly. 

Hopkinton, MA: Vintage Books. 

Charon, R. (2006). Narrative medicine: Honoring the stories 

of illness. New York: Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 1, 3, 

7, 9] 

Damasio, A. R. (1994). Descartes’ error: Emotion, reason, and 

the human brain. New York: Putnam. 

Epsterin, P. R. (2005). Climate change and human health. 

New England Journal of Medicine, 353, 1433-1436. 

Foucault, M. (1989). The birth of the clinic: An archaeology of 

medical perception. London: Routledge. 

Illich, I. (1976). Medical nemesis: The expropriation of health. 

New York: Pantheon Books. 

Leder, D. (1990). The absent body. Chicago: University of 

Chicago Press. 

Pope, R. (2002). Illness and healing: Images of cancer. 

Hantsport, NS, Canada: Robert Pope Foundation. 

Sacks, O. W. (1990). The man who mistook his wife for a hat 

and other clinical tales. New York: Harper Perennial 

Library. 

Sacks, O. W. (1996). Awakenings. London: Duckworth. 

Schlosser, E. (2001). Fast food nation: The dark side of the all- 

American meal. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin. 

Schmidt, S. (1996). A piece of my mind – When you 

come into my room. Journal of the American Medical 

Association, 276(7), 512. 

Styron, W. (1989). Darkness visible: A memoir of madness. 

Vanity Fair, 52(12), 212-215, 278-286. 

White, E. B. (1999). The second tree from the corner. In 

J. Updike & K. Kenison (Eds.), The 500 best American 

short stories of the century (pp. 281-285). Boston, MA: 

Houghton Mifflin. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 




Assessment: Blog participation 12 

Total: 132 



Blog contribution 10 


Small group tutorial participation 15 

Small group project 30 


From Health to Well-being 



1. Explain health as a multi-dimensional and dynamic concept, 

which necessarily integrates individual, societal, 

biomedical, spiritual, cultural and historical influences, 

and how this relates to health issues encountered in everyday 

life. 

2. Assess the inter-relatedness of health perceptions and 

practices across cultures. 

3. Discuss personal responsibilities towards achieving 

health in a rational way and how this contributes to the 

individual, community and global good. 

4. Critically evaluate the meaning of health through the 

analysis of qualitative and quantitative health data, literary 

and artistic works and personal introspection. 


To examine health in its truest sense, one must explore beyond the limits of medicine 

to engage a much wider set of questions embracing social, cultural, political, economic, 

moral and spiritual aspects of human experience. The aim of this course is for students 

to gain greater insight into the multi-dimensional aspects of health and to develop 

a more holistic and humanistic appreciation of health in both a personal and societal 

context. The course will encourage students to look critically at various models 

of health, to understand the complexities of health-related behaviors and to appreciate 

the possible roles played by politico-social forces, cultural change and spiritual disorientation 

in shaping well-being. The humanistic aspects of health will be examined 

through an exploration of the winding journey from illness to healing, with illness often 

being the wake-up call for individuals to re-evaluate the way they approach life and 

thus inspire questions about self–awareness, self–actualization and spirituality. 


Dr J.Y. Chen 

Department of Family Medicine 

and Primary Care, 


Tel: 2855 0753 / 2518 5657 

Email: juliechen@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr J.Y. Chen 




Tel: 2855 0753 / 2518 5657 

Email: juliechen@hku.hk 

Dr W.Y. Chin 




Tel: 2553 4817 

Email: chinwy@hku.hk 


83

84 

Humanities 



Lectures 1-6: 

Blackburn, S. (2003). Being good: An introduction to ethics. New 

York: Oxford University Press. [Full book (150 pages) finished 

before Lecture 3] 

Fisher, A. (2004). The logic of real arguments (2nd ed.). New York: 

Cambridge University Press. [Chaps. 1, 2, 10] 

Howard, R. A., & Korver, C. D. (2008). Ethics for the real world: 

Creating a personal code to guide decisions in work and life. 

Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing. 

Pritchard, M. S. (2006). Professional integrity: Thinking ethically. 

Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas. 

Whitbeck, C. (1996). Ethics as design: Doing justice to moral 

problems. The Hastings Center Report, 26(3). 

Whitbeck, C. (1998). Ethics in engineering practice and research. 

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Chaps. 1-2, 4, 6-9] 

Lectures 7-12: 

The particular material is contingent upon student votes for 

select professions. However, attempts will be made to find reading 

materials that are quickly read and easily digested, such as: 

Badaracco, J. L., Jr. (2001). We don’t need another hero. Harvard 

Business Review, 79(8), 120. 

Other possibilities include: 

Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy, National 

Academies (U.S.). (2009). On being a scientist: A guide to 

responsible conduct in research (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: 

National Academies Press. 

Thompson, D. F. (1981). The private lives of public officials. In J. 

L. Fleishman, L. Liebman & M. H. Moore (Eds.), Public duties: 

The moral obligations of government officials (pp. 221-247). 

Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 

Each of these weeks will be supplemented by a fictive case written 

by the instructor that is approximately one A4 page in length. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Viewing recommended films 12 


Assessment: Portrait of my ethical self 10 

Assessment: Portrait of the ethical professional 10 

Total: 132 



Project / Performance project 

(a portrait of my ethical self ) 20 

Project (a portrait of the ethical professional) 30 

Presentation and case studies 20 

Multiple-choice tests 20 

Participation in lectures and tutorials 10 



1. Demonstrate a deeper level of knowledge of the role that 

ethical standards play in the definition of a “good” professional. 

2. Recognize and critique, from the perspective of the professional 

and the client-observer, the ethical standards 

expected of different professions. 

3. Interrogate thoughtfully the students’ own values and 

compare these with the values expected of their projected 

profession. 

4. Communicate effectively, in an ethically plural environment, 

thoughtful solutions to ethical problems presented 

in class and tutorials. 

5. Demonstrate a sense of “ethical studentship” that includes 

maintaining the highest standards of academic 

integrity. 


Being Good When No One is Watching: 

On Becoming an Ethical Professional 

What does it take to be an ethical professional? Most 

degree programmes at HKU prepare students for entry 

into a profession by teaching essential knowledge 

and skills. But, what are the “soft skills” necessary to 

be a good professional? The purpose of this course is 

to introduce students to professional ethics with the 

long-term objective of inculcating a sense of ethical 

professionalism in students as future professionals. 

Students engaged in this course will explore and 

employ the vocabulary, argumentative methods 

and case-based assessment techniques common to 

the study of professional ethics. The course uses a 

100% coursework assessment mode and students are 

strongly encouraged to use multi-disciplinary and 

multi-media formats to express their own arguments 

about the qualities that an ethical professional exhibits. 

Students completing this course successfully 

will gain a better sense of themselves as ethical students 

and as future ethical professionals. 


Dr S.R. Jordan 


Administration, Faculty of Social 

Sciences 

Tel: 3917 1088 

Email: sjordan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr S.R. Jordan 


Administration, Faculty of Social 

Sciences 

Tel: 3917 1088 

Email: sjordan@hku.hk 


Humanities 




Gilovich, T. (1993). How we know what isn’t so: The fallibility 

of human reason in everyday life. New York: Free Press. 

Goldacre, B. (2009). Bad science. London: Fourth Estate. 

Huff, D. (1993). How to lie with statistics. New York: Norton. 

Lau, J. Y. F. (2011). An introduction to critical thinking and 

creativity: Think more, think better. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. 

Russo, J. E., & Schoemaker, P. J. H. (1989). Decision traps: Ten 

barriers to brilliant decision-making and how to overcome 

them. New York: Doubleday. 

Schick, T., & Vaughn, L. (2008). How to think about weird 

things: Critical thinking for a new age (5th ed.). Boston: 

McGraw-Hill. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 



Assessment: Homework 

(short written assignments) 16 

Assessment: Journal 12 

Total: 124 




Homework 25 


Individual journals 25 



able to: 

1. Demonstrate understanding of and 

identify a variety of distinct styles of 

argumentation and be able to make an 

informed judgment about when a claim 

is supported by evidence. 

2. Support claims of their own with good 

reasons and explain why the reasons 

soundly or cogently justify the claims. 

3. Collaborate and coordinate with others, 

in tutorial meetings, and in a group 

project involving the use of problemsolving 

skills and other critical thinking 

techniques. 

4. Interpret and analyze statistical information, 

for example about health 

products, and apply this information to 

evaluate their effectiveness. 

5. Apply critical thinking skills in assessing 

contemporary debates over such things 

as evolution, global warming, and race 

and intelligence. 

Course will be offered four times 

Lecture Time // Section 1 & 2 -- First semester (Wed) 

Section 3 & 4 -- Second semester (Wed) 

Critical Thinking in Contemporary Society 

The aim of this course is to introduce students to the basic concepts and techniques 

of critical thinking as these apply to life in contemporary society. The course covers 

fundamental logical notions crucial to critical thinking, including the notions of argument, 

sound reasoning, and rationality. In addition, the course will cover social, legal, 

consumer, and health issues, along with issues in the public understanding of science, 

medicine, and the environment. Special emphasis will be placed on understanding the 

role of critical thinking in scientific investigation and how critical thinking applies in 

philosophical investigations of the nature of value. The course will train students in 

both theoretical knowledge and practical skills essential to a well-rounded liberal education, 

and to life as a thinking citizen in contemporary society. The course dovetails 

with several aspects of a traditional humanities education, in particular the ability to 

interpret, analyze, and evaluate information communicated by political leaders, popular 

literature, advertising, and the news media. 


Dr D. McCarthy 

School of Humanities (Philosophy), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: mccarthy@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Each section will be taught by one or two of the following 

teachers: 

First Semester 

Dr T.E. O’Leary 


Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: teoleary@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr D. McCarthy 


Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: mccarthy@hku.hk 

Second Semester 

Dr G.A. Cook 


Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: cookga@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr J. Wolff 


Tel: 3917 2796 


85

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Alloy, L. B., Riskind, J. H., & Manos, M. J. (2005). Abnormal 

psychology: Current perspectives. New York: McGraw- 

Hill. [Excerpt on behavioural, cognitive, and sociocultural 

perspectives, pp.75-104; The psychodynamic perspective, 

pp. 105-122] 

Fillingham, L. A. (1993). Madness and civilization. Foucault 

for beginners (pp. 26-58). New York: Writers and Readers 

Publishing. 

Foucault, M. (1972, 2006). Experiences of madness. The 

history of madness (pp. 108-115). Abingdon, UK: Routledge. 

[Excerpt] 

Lin, K. M. (1981). Traditional Chinese medical beliefs and 

their relevance for mental illness and psychiatry. In 

A. Kleinman & Y. Y. Lin (Eds.), Normal and abnormal 

behavior in Chinese culture (pp. 95-111). Hingham, MA: 

D. Reidel. 

Luchins, D. J. (2004). At issue: Will the term brain disease 

reduce stigma and promote parity for mental illnesses? 

Schizophrenia Bulletin, 30(4), 1043-1048. 

Rosenhan, D. L. (1973). On being sane in insane places, 

Science, 179 (4070), 250-258. 

Watters, E. (2010). The mega-marketing of depression in 

Japan. The globalization of the American psyche (pp. 87- 

213). New York: Free Press. [Excerpt] 

Yap, P. M. (2000). Mental diseases peculiar to certain 

cultures: A survey of comparative psychiatry. In R. 

Littlewood & S. Dein (Eds.), Cultural psychiatry & medical 

anthropology (pp. 179-196). New Brunswick, NJ: The 

Athlone Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 


Visit 3 

Video viewing 5 

Video presentations 3 


Assessment: Reflective report 6 

Assessment: Term paper 12 

Assessment: Video production 10 

Total: 130 




Reflection paper 20 

Video production 15 

Term paper 50 



1. Describe conceptions of mental health and mental illness. 

2. Critically appraise the contributions and limitations of 

the various conceptions of mental health and mental illness. 

3. Appreciate how certain mental health issues have been 

conceived and defined through a dynamic interplay of 

various biomedical, psychological, sociological and cultural 

perspectives. 

4. Develop cultural sensitivity towards intercultural differences 

in understanding and responding to issues in 

mental health and mental illness. 


Journey into Madness: Conceptions of 

Mental Health and Mental Illness 

Portrayed by mass media, there is an exaggerated link between mental illness 

and violence. Mental illness is often considered as an adversary that should 

be dealt with by medical professionals. Challenging this monopolized medical 

discourse on mental illness, this course aims to expand the students’ view to 

appreciate how mental illness has been psychologically influenced, socially 

constructed and policed, as well as culturally shaped. Coupling biochemistry’s 

knowledge of mental illness with self-reflections, students are expected 

to develop a critical and comprehensive understanding of mental illness and 

mental health. With the use of experiential exercises, case studies, and film 

viewing, students will be further encouraged to 

scrutinize mental health issues in their daily 

lives. As there is a growing number of individuals 

challenged by mental illnesses 

both locally and internationally, 

students will have high chance of 

encountering an individual with 

mental illnesses in their social 

circles, workplaces or even family 

in the future. The development 

of a comprehensive and 

critical view towards mental 

illnesses will definitely prepare 

them to face this future challenge. 


Dr A.Y.M. Chow 




Tel: 3917 5530 

Email: chowamy@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr A.Y.M. Chow 




Tel: 3917 5530 

Email: chowamy@hku.hk 

Dr P.W.C. Wong 




Tel: 3917 5029 

Email: paulw@hku.hk 


Humanities 



Beardsley, J. (1998). Earthworks and beyond: Contemporary 

art in the landscape (3rd ed.). New York: Abbeville Press. 

Goldsworthy, A. (1990). Andy Goldsworthy: A collaboration 

with nature. New York: H. N. Abrams. 

Grande, J. K. (2004). Art nature dialogues: Interviews with 

environmental artists. Albany, NY: State University of New 

York Press. 

Graziani, R. (2004). Robert Smithson and the American 

landscape. New York: Cambridge University Press. 

Lailach, M., & Grosenick, U. (2007). Land art. Köln; London: 

Taschen. 

Malpas, W. (2009). The art of Richard Long: Complete works. 

Kent, UK: Crescent Moon Publishing. 

Smithson, R., Tsai, E., Butler, C. H., Crow, T. E., Alberro, A., 

Roth, M., et al. (2004). Robert Smithson. Berkeley, CA: 

University of California Press. 

Tufnell, B. (2006). Land art. London; New York: Tate; 

Distributed in the U.S. by Harry N. Abrams. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: Land art design project 24 

Assessment: Land art public exhibition 

preparation, and exhibition catalogue writing 14 

Total: 144 



Site visit and case study reports 30 

Design project, public exhibition and 

exhibition catalogue writing 40 


In-class discussions / Debate participation 15 



1. Critique the imbalanced situation between the contemporary 

culture and the environment, and to challenge 

the contemporary attitude towards the treatment of the 

environment. 

2. Demonstrate awareness of the urgency to address the 

dis-connectedness between culture and nature as a 

global issue, and be able to analyze the potential consequences 

on a world-wide level if we do not take the sustainability 

issue collectively as a serious matter. 

3. Demonstrate understanding of the importance of a sustainable 

reciprocity between human culture and nature. 

4. Apply their learnt “art and design” experience (via the 

“Art and Design Workshop”) and the public engagement 

experience (via the Land Art Exhibition) as part of their 

future communication strategies. 

5. Re-define their own ways of sustainable living by evaluating 

how others have attempted to restore the balance 

between human culture and the environment. 


Shaping the Landscape: A Quest for 

Harmony between Nature and the City 

Through the history of our civilization, humankind has been working with the environment 

both as a means for survival and as expressions of culture. It has always been 

a two-way relationship in harmony. However, recently, such balance was tilted by our 

unsustainable way of living, and our current landscape reflects humankind’s abuse and 

mis-management towards the environment. 

This course aims at exploring how different groups of people respond to such imbalance, 

and what they do to restore a healthy reciprocal relationship between human 

beings and nature. Initially, topics like the Garden City Movement in the late 19th 

century, and the emergence of the protection movement of “Cultural Landscapes” initiated 

by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in 1992, will be discussed through 

lectures and seminars. Then, land art – an artistic expression of human culture and 

how we sculpt the land – will be explored as a more contemporary approach to advocate 

the balance between human and nature. Initiated by some leading artists in the 

creative art industry as an artistic response to such issue, land art helps to manifest 

the reciprocal relationship between human culture and the environment, and hence 

to re-align people’s attitude, perception, and interpretation, towards nature. Besides 

lectures and seminars, the topic of land art will also be explored in the form of “land 

art design workshop”, in which students can learn how to express their environmental 

opinions through the creative process of making their own land art. Field trips will also 

be organized for students to explore various local cases of how human civilization can 

integrate and achieve a more harmonious relationship with the natural landscape. 


Ms W.S. Mak 



Tel: 2241 5654 

Email: wsvmak@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Ms W.S. Mak 



Tel: 2241 5654 

Email: wsvmak@hku.hk 


87

88 

Humanities 



Chan, C. L. W., & Chow, A. Y. M. (2006). Death, dying and 

bereavement: A Hong Kong Chinese experience. Hong Kong: 

Hong Kong University Press. 

DeSpelder, L. A., & Strickland, A. L. (2009). The last dance: 

Encountering death and dying. Boston: McGraw Hill. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 

Workshop / Visits 3 


Weekly individual reflective log book 12 

Assessment: Creative group project report writing 30 

Assessment: Creative group project presentation 


Assessment: Take-home written examination 


Total: 168 



Individual reflective log book 20 

Group project and audio-visual presentation 25 

Group project written report 25 

Take-home written examination 30 



1. Describe and explain the fundamental knowledge, myths, 

attitudes, practices and ideological contradictions of 

death, dying and bereavement with a cultural sensitivity 

to the Chinese experience; and critically appraise the oppressive 

social norms, rituals, discourses and portrayals 

of death and dying in contemporary societies. 

2. Demonstrate an understanding of the emotional concerns, 

family issues and psychosocial aspects of death and dying 

on the individual level; and critically examine the inequality 

of access to care and services among vulnerable groups 

such as widows, minors, orphans, the poor and people 

with contentious diesase such as AIDS and other lifelimiting 

infections. 

3. Appraise the impact of death and loss on the societal level; 

and critically examine the future development of social 

policies, service provisions, education programs as well 

as the commercial industry on the management and commodification 

of death and dying. 

4. Reflect on the meaning of life though a heightened awareness 

of death and an enhanced spiritual orientation; 

and create a more profound understanding of the “self ” 

through an appraisal of personal beliefs, cultural ideologies 

and popular religions and philosophies on spirituality 

and immortality. 

5. Develop a compassion for individuals, communities and 

the larger world as well as a commitment to activism, 

equity and social justice during those most vulnerable 

moments in the human experience; and challenge the hypocrisy 

of pricing human life and commercializing death 

in the modern era. 


The Last Dance: 

Understanding Death and Dying 

“If you are not aware of death, you will not be mindful of your 

practice, but will just spend your life meaninglessly, not examining 

what sorts of attitudes and actions perpetuate suffering 

and which ones bring about happiness.” (Dalai Lama, 2002). 

“In confronting death however, life takes on new meanings. In 

accepting death, we experience the fullness of life. It is like being 

reborn.” (David Kuhl, 2002). 

The study of death and dying is concerned with questions that 

are rooted at the core of human experience. Individuals who 

set out to increase their knowledge of mortality are embarking 

on life’s most important exploration, a constructive journey 

of personal discovery and spiritual awakening. Whilst acknowledging 

the finite nature of existence allows individuals 

to reflect upon the meaning of life for a more profound understanding 

of personhood, mortality also plays a pivotal role in 

defining cultural beliefs, family values and social structures. 

This course provides an interdisciplinary overview of the 

major themes and theories on death and dying from a global 

viewpoint with a critical focus on the Chinese perspective. 

Through interactive lectures, experiential workshops and creative 

group projects, students will be offered an opportunity 

to examine the psycho-socio-spiritual, economic, ethical and 

political issues of mortality through a range of cultural lenses. 

Such exploration will facilitate insights, reflections and personal 

growth for enhancing students’ capacity in dealing with 

the inevitability of loss, death, dying and bereavement. 


Professor C.L.W. Chan 




Tel: 3917 0501 

Email: cecichan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor C.L.W. Chan 




Tel: 3917 0501 

Email: cecichan@hku.hk 

Dr P.P.Y. Leung 




Tel: 3917 1185 

Email: pamelalt@hku.hk 




Tel: 3917 2051 


Dr C.S.C Chan 



Tel: 3917 4341 

Email: cherisch@hku.hk 


Humanities 


Do we possess the right of ownership of our own creative 

work? How much is innovation worth? What is lost when 

members of society can freely exchange creative works 

produced by others, and what might be gained from such 

a circumstance? Where did the contemporary concept of 

‘intellectual property rights’ come from, and who are its 

defenders and opponents? Using copyright as an example, 

this course examines the issue of how new technologies 

have lent new intensity to the debate over creative works in 

the domains of science and art, and it asks how a legal concept 

such as copyright in its current form could or should 

be used to support and sustain a free, vibrant and creative 

society. Drawing on their own experiences, this course invites 

students to analyze various real-life scenarios with a 

view to assessing critically whether the current copyright 

system promotes or impedes creativity. In this process, students 

are exposed not only to the legal arguments but also 

the broader moral and ethical issues, as well as the more 

abstract questions relating to the public interest of society 

via-a-vis the private interest in one’s own creative labour. 


Selected articles from newspapers, books, magazines and 

websites, case studies and other materials designated as 

required reading for each lecture. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: In-class quizzes 4 

Total: 140 



Meeting participation 20 

Essay / Report writing 25 





1. Use copyright as an example to describe and explain the 

concept, historical origin and rationale of intellectual 

property rights, and their current impacts on the creation 

of works in arts and science. 

2. Identify and analyze legal and ethical issues relating to 

creative works in daily life, both within and outside the 

university. 

3. Describe and explain the impact of new technologies on 

creative work and on the ways people share ideas, views 

and information in modern society. 

4. Critically analyze and assess whether the current responses 

to issues of information sharing, for example 

legal interventions through copyright law, are beneficial 

or detrimental to society. 

5. Formulate and communicate their independent views as 

to what is required to support and sustain a free, vibrant 

and creative society. 


Creativity, Technology and Law 


Dr K.K.H. Pun 



Tel: 2859 2186 

Email: pun@cs.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr K.K.H. Pun 



Tel: 2859 2186 

Email: pun@cs.hku.hk 


89

90 

Humanities 



Donohue, J. (Ed.). (2004). The overlook martial arts reader, 

Vol. 2. New York: Overlook Press. [Part 1; Part 2.5; Parts 3.1, 

3.6, 3.8, 3.9, 3.11, 3.16] 

Kaldor, M. (2007). New & old wars. Stanford, CA: Stanford 


Waal, F. B. M. (2005). Our inner ape: A leading primatologist 

explains why we are who we are. New York: Penguin. [Chaps. 

2, 4] 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 120 




Presentations 40 

Oral participation 20 



1. Demonstrate awareness of the significance of war and 

combat in human history and society. 

2. Describe and explain the relationship between mind and 

body central to the path of the warrior and the spiritual 

roots of fighting in different cultures. 

3. Critically discuss the ethics of aggression and defense in 

different cultures and eras. 

4. Discuss the relationship between gender and violence. 


Cultures of War: Making Sense of the 

Human Fighting Instinct 

This course tackles the issue of fighting as a fundamental aspect of human nature as 

expressed through war, combat sports and random violence. In many cultures combat 

theories and techniques have evolved into organized systems of fighting such as warrior 

or military codes, combat systems or martial arts. Martial arts are the soul of the 

human fighting instinct; they can be used to justify violence, maintain social order, as 

well as foment underground dissent. Through a comparative, critical analysis of martial 

systems, students are led to reflect on the spiritual foundations, ethical codes, literary 

traditions and pervasive social functions that underlie fighting cultures. Some of 

the questions this course attempts to answer include: Why do humans fight? Why are 

males, rather than females, predominantly involved in violent acts? How do different 

social groups justify violence? How can the fighting instinct be controlled? Is today’s 

world a more or less peaceful place? If so, why? 


Dr U. Ansaldo 

School of Humanities (Linguistics), 


Tel: 3917 2872 

Email: ansaldo@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr U. Ansaldo 



Tel: 3917 2872 



Humanities 



Selected fairy tales from the Grimm Brothers and Charles 

Perrault. 

Atwood, M. (1988). “Bluebeard’s egg.” Bluebeard’s egg and other 

stories. London: Jonathan Cape. 

Carter, A. (1995). “The bloody chamber.” Burning your boats: 

Stories. London: Chatto & Windus. 

Desy, J. (1993). “The princess who stood on her own two 

feet.” The Oxford book of modern fairy tales. Oxford: Oxford 


Shakespeare, W. (1955). The merchant of Venice. London: 

Methuen. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 8 


Preparation for tutorial discussions 10 


Assessment: Journal writing 12 


Total: 137 





In-class exam 30 

Journal writing 25 



1. Appraise critical and aesthetic qualities of literary texts. 

2. Produce close critical analyses of literary texts. 

3. Demonstrate an awareness and understanding of the 

ideological nature of narrative endings. 

4. Analyze the ideological effects of particular kinds 

of endings. 

5. Recognize and address alternative points of view left out 

in certain endings. 


Happy Endings: How a Text Ends 

The tag “happily ever after” seems transparently obvious. We read it and make automatic 

assumptions about what a good and happy end is, often not realizing how deeply 

encoded in endings are ideas about how people, societies and cultures should relate to 

one another. This is the key issue this course will engage in – the questioning of familiar 

assumptions about the good ending in genres such as fairy tales and comedies and, 

in the process, the identification of dominant ideological threads embodied in the good 

ending. Following on from this is the other fundamental issue the course addresses – 

the possibilities of other kinds of endings representing alternative worldviews. As 

such, the course will also look 

at re-writings of endings as a 

means to represent marginal 

points of view. By introducing 

students to the ideological 

dimensions to the endings of 

texts, this course will encourage 

them to hone their analytical 

skills and bring a new 

awareness to representations 

of ideals with regards to human 

relationships and societies. 

The course will show how subtly 

literary and filmic texts may 

enforce specific world-views. 

As such, the political subtexts 

amidst the pleasures of the creative 

arts will be highlighted. 


Dr W.C.H. Gan 

School of English, 


Tel: 3917 5143 

Email: wchgan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr W.C.H. Gan 



Tel: 3917 5143 

Email: wchgan@hku.hk 

Professor E.Y.L. Ho 



Tel: 3917 2761 

Email: eylho@hku.hk 

Dr P.K. Richards 



Tel: 3917 5145 

Email: pkerr@hku.hk 


91

92 

Humanities 



Beard, A. (2007). Language play in English. In J. Maybin, N. 

Mercer, & A. Hewings (Eds.), Using English. Abingdon, 

Oxford: Routledge. 

Cook, G. (2000). Language play, language learning. Oxford: 

Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 1, 2, 3] 

Crystal, D. (1998). Language play. London: Penguin. 

Maybin, J., & Swann, J. (2007). Everyday creativity in 

language: Textuality, contextuality, and critique. Applied 

Linguistics, 28(4), 497-517. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 12 

Seminars 4 


Collecting examples of language play from local 

semiotic landscapes, and surfing the Internet 12 



Total: 145 




Individual portfolio of language play examples 40 

Essay 30 



1. Identify the linguistic, poetic, discourse, generic and 

contextual features of language play, and their use in 

multimodal and multilingual communication. 

2. Describe and explain the semantic meanings of instances 

of language play in specific linguistic and sociocultural 

contexts, and in interaction with other modes of 

representation such as image, sound and movements. 

3. Interpret the functions and uses (e.g. psychological, social, 

cultural, interpersonal, ideological and pragmatic) 

of language play. 

4. Explain and interpret the cross-cultural meanings and 

use of language play in multilingual settings where English 

is used alongside other language varieties. 

5. Apply knowledge and understanding of the subject matter 

to create own examples of language play and reflect 

on their meanings and use. 


Language Play as Social 

Communication in Multilingual 

Settings 

This course critically examines how people across different linguistic and cultural settings 

achieve mental pleasure through artful and skilful manipulation of language. By 

engaging students in critically examining language play as a form of socio-culturally 

and ideologically shaped language practice in multilingual and multicultural settings 

including Hong Kong and Asia where English often exists as a global language alongside 

other local languages, this course precisely addresses Theme III “Language, Communication 

and Society” of the Humanities Area of Inquiry (AoI). The course will focus 

on four key issues: 

1. the formal aspects of language play that include the linguistic properties, poetic 

features, discourse features, and multimodal elements; 

2. the generic and contextual manifestations of language play such as language play 

in literary works, mass media, popular cultural artifacts, and interpersonal conversations; 

3. the semantic and ideational meanings of language play; and 

4. the psychological, social, interpersonal, ideological and pragmatic functions of 

language play as a form of communication. Teaching and learning activities include 

interactive lectures, student presentations and tutorials, workshops with 

guest speaker input, outside class reading, and experiential learning through the 

Faculty online Learning Management System. 


Dr J.C.M. Luk 

Division of English Language Education, 


Tel: 2241 5392 

Email: lukcmj@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr J.C.M. Luk 



Tel: 2241 5392 

Email: lukcmj@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr A.M.Y. Lin 



Tel: 2859 2784 

Email: angellin@hku.hk 

Ms M.M. Lo 



Tel: 2857 8608 

Email: mmlo@hkucc.hku.hk 


Humanities 

Course Code // CCHU9033 Lecture Time // Second semester (Wed) 


Anderson, L., Slovic, S., & O’ Grady, J. P. (1999). Literature and 

the environment: A reader on nature and culture. New York: 

Longman. 

Payne, D. G., & Newman, R. S. (Eds.). (2005). The Palgrave 

environmental reader. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

Slovic, S., & Dixon, T. (Eds.). (1993). Being in the world: An 

environmental reader for writers. New York: Macmillan. 

Study Load 


Lectures (incl in-class exercises) 18 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: Tutorial participation 10 

Total: 140 



Short critical essay 35 

Environmental report 30 

Tutorial presentation, participation, 

and response 35 

Literature and the Environment 

This course explores how literature informs the ways we understand, imagine and relate 

to the environment. Students will study literary texts, past to present, analyzing 

how literary writings and representations reflect and construct our concept of place 

and space, shaping our attitudes and values towards the environment. The course 

has both historical and contemporary strands. The former examines ways in which 

the environment has been represented in and shaped by literature from the Classical 

to the Modern era. The textual basis for this will be literary extracts from a range 

of traditions and genres. The latter examines how spatial constructs are employed in 

conceptualizing and responding to the environment in a broader sense. Students will, 

for instance, be asked to reflect on local environmental issues and consider these in 

the context of contemporary theories such as globalization and eco-criticism. The 

course has three focus areas: ‘forms of environments’, ‘environmental thought’ and ‘the 

relation between environments and their communities’. Within these, topics such as 

space and place, science and nature, modernity and progress, and utopia and dystopia 

will be considered. 



1. Demonstrate an awareness of the function of literary 

representation as both shaped by concrete situations 

and shaping responses to such situations. 

2. Analyze and compare different conventions and strategies 

in the representation of place in literature and 

explain their significance in relation to environmental 

attitudes and values. 

3. Distinguish between different concepts and representations 

of the environment and point out their historical 

relationships to material and imaginary uses of places. 

4. Identify key issues in eco-criticism and trace their histories 

across different cultural traditions. 

5. Recognize distinct imaginary and institutional environments 

constituted by literature and engage in arguments 

about their relevance to society. 


Dr P. Smethurst 



Tel: 3917 2766 

Email: paulsmet@hkusua.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr P. Smethurst 



Tel: 3917 2766 

Email: paulsmet@hkusua.hku.hk 

Dr Q.S. Tong 



Tel: 3917 1923 

Email: qstong@hkusua.hku.hk 

Dr O. Heim 



Tel: 3917 2770 

Email: oheim@hku.hk 


93

94 

Humanities 



Abbas, M. A. (1997). Hong Kong: Culture and the politics of 

disappearance. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 

AlSayyad, N. (2006). Cinematic urbanism: A history of the 

modern from reel to real. New York; London: Routledge. 

Augé, M. (1995). Non-places: Introduction to an anthropology 

of supermodernity. London: Verso. 

Baudrillard, J. (1994). The precession of Simulacra. Simulacra 

and simulation (S. F. Glaser, Trans.) (pp.1-42). Ann Arbor: 

University of Michigan Press. 

Bellamy, E. (1996). Looking backward. New York: Dover 

Publications. 

Benjamin, W. (1986). Paris, capital of the nineteenth century. 

In P. Demetz (Ed.), Reflections: Essays, aphorisms, 

autobiographical writings. New York: Schoken. 

Berman, M. (1982). All that is solid melts into air: The 

experience of modernity. New York: Simon and Schuster. 

[pp. 15-36] 

Borden, I. (2000). Material sounds: Jacques Tati and modern 

architecture. In B. Fear (Ed.), Architecture + film II (pp.26- 

31). West Sussex, UK; New York: Wiley-Academy. 

Callenbach, E. (1977). Ecotopia. Toronto; New York: Bantam 

Books. 

Campanella, T. J. (2008). The country and the city. The 

concrete dragon: China’s urban revolution and what it 

means for the world (pp. 172-187). New York: Princeton 

Architectural Press. 

Certeau, M. de. (1984). The practice of everyday life. Berkeley, 

CA: University of California Press, pp. 90-110. 

Clark, D. B. (1997). The cinematic city. London: Routledge. 

Debord, G. (1994). The society of the spectacle. New York: Zone 

Books. 

Eisenstein, S. M., & Bois, Y.-A. (1989, December). Montage and 

architecture. Assemblage, 10, 110-131. 

Frisby, D. (2001). Cityscapes of modernity: Critical 

explorations. Cambridge: Polity Press. 

Harraway, D. J. (1991). The Cyborg Manifesto. Simians, 

cyborgs and women: The reinvention of nature (pp. 149-181). 

New York: Routledge. 

Howard, E. (1974). Garden cities of to-morrow. London: Faber 

and Faber. 

Jacobs, J. (1993). The death and life of great American cities. 

New York: Modern Library. 

Koolhaas, R. (1994). Delirious New York: A retroactive 

manifesto for Manhattan. New York: Monacelli Press. 

Koolhaas, R. (1995). The generic city. S, M, L, XL (pp. 1238- 

1269). New York: Monacelli Press. 

Kracauer, S. (1995). The mass ornament. In T. Y. Levin (Ed. & 

Trans.), The mass ornament (pp. 75-88). Cambridge, MA: 

Harvard University Press. 

Kracauer, S. (1995). The cult of distraction. In T. Y. Levin (Ed. 

& Trans.), The mass ornament (pp. 323-330). Cambridge, 

MA: Harvard University Press. 

Law, L. (2010). Defying disappearance: Cosmopolitan public 

spaces in Hong Kong. In A. M. Orum & Z. P. Neal (Eds.). 

Common ground? Readings and reflections on public space 

(pp. 129-142). New York: Routledge. 

McLuhan, M., & Fiore, Q. (1967). The medium is the massage. 

New York: Touchstone. 

Sassen, S. (1991). The global city: New York, London, Tokyo. 

Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 

Simmel, G. (1950). The metropolis and mental life (1903). In K. 

H. Wolff (Ed. & Trans.), The sociology of Georg Simmel (pp. 

409-424). New York: Free Press. 


Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials (incl preparation) 10 

Workshops (incl preparation) 8 


Film screening and discussion 4 


Assessment: Workshop report / 

Analytical mapping (incl preparation) 12 

Assessment: Presentation poster (incl preparation) 8 

Assessment: Project research proposal / 

Report (preparation) and project research 

proposal interim consultation 

(group consultation with Course Co-ordinator) 36 

Total: 145 




Quizzes 10 

Workshop 10 

Workshop reports 20 

Presentation poster 10 

Research presentation and proposal 40 


Metropolitan Visions: 

Modernity, Architecture and the City 

The modern metropolis – as an abstract idea and as an actual place – is not only the 

site of the most radical experiments of modernism but is itself an active subject in the 

imagination and actions of the avant-gardes. Beginning with an examination of the 

historical and theoretical formation of the modern metropolis as a twentieth century 

phenomenon, this inter-disciplinary comparative study examines how the intersection 

of architectural design, planning, technology, media and politics transformed the 

landscape of the city. Looking backwards from the global networked cities of the twenty-first 

century to the fin-de-siècle cities of the nineteenth century that underwent 

the first onslaught of major metropolitan development such as Berlin, London, Paris, 

Vienna, New York, colonial New Delhi and concessionary Shanghai, the metropolis 

will be studied through various disciplinary lens including art, architecture, planning, 

sociology, history, literature and critical theory, with a focus on film. This course offers 

a cross-cultural perspective on the development and deployment of architectural and 

urban visions and how they align social relations, how they produce and reproduce the 

image of the city, their effect on the everyday work of building the cities and how they 

impact everyday life. The course will investigate the architecture, spaces, islands, cities 

and worlds – built or un-built – envisioned by individuals or groups as responses to 

the bombardment of the metropolitan experience. 


1. Demonstrate a broad knowledge of ideas behind visions that drive the making of cities, in order to 

understand cities across inter-disciplinary boundaries and appreciate and read the city through its 

diverse representations. 

2. Describe and interpret the implications of the cultural, architectural and urban theories behind the 

making of different cities and distinguish the different intentions and contexts that brought about different 

visions and revolutionary thought. 

3. Employ relevant information from case studies to critically examine the limitations of the theories 

and formulate their own analytical thinking. 

4. Critically discuss lessons drawn from the historical precedents to engage with global issues and adapt 

to local contexts, by articulating their intuitions and observations of the city through well-considered 

and impactful representations. 

5. Construct a synthesized critique of their current urban environment, and to further appreciate the 

processes at work in a city, and re-formulate it from comparative and cross-cultural perspectives. 


Ms E.M.F. Seng 



Tel: 2546 5717 

Email: eseng@arch.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Ms E.M.F. Seng 



Tel: 2546 5717 

Email: eseng@arch.hku.hk 


Humanities 



Bataille, G. (1985). The Obelisk. Visions of excess: Selected writings, 1927- 

1939 (pp. 213-222). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota 

Press. 

Required Certeau, M. de. Reading 

(1984). The practice of everyday life. Berkeley, CA: 

University of California Press. [pp. xi-xxiv, 90-130] 

xx Debord, G. (1994). The society of the spectacle. New York: Zone Books. 

[Chaps. I, II, VII] 

Evans, R. (1971). Bentham’s Panopticon: An incident in the social history 

of architecture. Architectural Association Quarterly, 3, 335-39. 

Foucault, M. (1965). Madness and civilization: A history of insanity in the 

age of reason. New York: Vintage Books, Random House. [pp. 3-64, 

241-289] 

Foucault, M. (1977). Discipline and punish: The birth of the prison. New 

York: Vintage Books. 

Foucault, M. (1984). Space, knowledge, and power. In P. Rabinow (Ed.), 

Foucault reader (pp. 239-256). New York: Pantheon. 

Foucault, M. (1986). Of other space, Diacritics, 16(1), 22-27. [Also 

reprinted in J. Ockman & E. Eigen (Eds.)(1993), Architecture culture, 

1943-1968: A documentary anthology. New York: Rizzoli.] 

Giedion, S. (1984, Spring). The need for a new monumentality. Harvard 

Architecture Review: Monumentality and the City, 4, 52-61. 

Giedion, S., Léger, F., & Sert, J. L. (1984, Spring). Nine points on 

monumentality. Harvard Architecture Review: Monumentality and 

the City, 4, 62-63. 

Huyssen, A. (1986). Mass culture as woman: Modernism’s other. After 

the great divide: Modernism, mass culture, postmodernism (pp. 44- 

62). Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. 

Huyssen, A. (1995). Monuments and holocaust memory in a media age. 

Twilight memories: Marking time in a culture of amnesia (pp. 249- 

260, Notes 277). New York; London: Routledge. 

Jacobs, J. (1961). The death and life of great American cities. New York: 

Vintage Books. [pp. 1-238] 

Lefebvre, H. (1990). Everyday life in the modern world. New Brunswick, 

NJ: Transaction Books. [pp. 1-109, 194-206] 

Lefebvre, H. (1991). The production of space. Oxford: Blackwell. [pp. 31- 

46, 360-363] 

Sennett, R. (1976). The fall of public man. New York: Vintage Books. [pp. 

1-63]. 

Venturi, R., Scott, B. D., & Izenour, S. (1977). Learning from Las Vegas: 

The forgotten symbolism of architectural form. Cambridge, MA: MIT 

Press. [Part I, pp. 3-83] 

Vidler, A. (1977, March). Architecture, management and mores. Lotus, 14. 

Vidler, A. (1987). Confinement and cure: Reforming the hospital, 1770- 

1789. The Writing of the Wall (pp. 51-72). Princeton, NJ: Princeton 

Architectural Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 150 



Impromptu quizzes 25 

Tutorials 15 

Field visits and visual presentation of field projects 30 

Final project presentation and research report 30 

Politics of Space 



1. Explain the key concepts in the social/spatial theories 

covered; identify each theory’s specific context, strength 

and limitation; categorize and compare different theoretical 

concepts with given common criteria. 

2. Use personal experience/examples to support, and personal 

counter-experience/examples to criticize the key 

theoretical concepts covered. 

3. Apply the learned theories to analyze how political power 

is produced and embedded in our living environment. 

4. Propose various forms and possibilities of Spatial Practices 

that can be accomplished by the local people to 

improve their community toward a more just one. 


This course explores the relationship between space, power and politics in the urban 

environment from the Age of Enlightenment to the present time. Contrary to the conventional 

approach that sees space and architecture as merely passive reflections of 

dominant political and economic forces, this course views them as active participants 

in the structuring of our daily lives and interaction with each other. It will investigate 

how political power is actually produced and embedded in our urban physical environment. 

The course will be organized into three parts. The first part will offer a general 

theoretical introduction about the relationship between space and power, the concept 

of space as a social product and the politics of people’s daily lives. The second part will 

deal with specific aspects of the space-power relationship in the actual urban environment, 

such as institutions, public/private dichotomies, urban monuments, mass 

culture and the city of everyday life. The third part will include a series of case studies 

devoted to current debates about urban development with regard to issues concerning 

the politics of space in cities such as New York City, Beijing and Hong Kong. 


Mr T. Zhu 



Tel: 2859 2148 

Email: taozhu@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Mr T. Zhu 



Tel: 2859 2148 

Email: taozhu@hku.hk 


95

96 

Humanities 

Course Code // CCHU9036 Lecture Time // Second semester (Wed) 


Austen, J. (2007). Pride and prejudice. London: Penguin 

Popular Classics. 

Fielding, H. (2001). Bridget Jones’s diary. New York: Picador. 

Shelley, M. (2007). Frankenstein, or the modern Prometheus. 

London: Penguin Popular Classics. 

Tan, A. (1991). The Joy Luck Club. Vintage Books USA. 

(Extracts from these novels will be used in lectures and tutorials) 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Literary journal 20 



Total: 144 



Literary journal 

Group presentation on one of the 4 themes 

30 

during tutorials 30 

Essay 40 

Reflecting on Human Experience 

through Literature 

This course draws on the commonality of human experiences by exposing students 

to a range of novels and texts. These texts then act as a springboard 

for students to share experiences, make connections, form opinions, and 

develop linguistic and cultural awareness. Students will be exposed to 

different literary texts (print and non-print) organized under four universal 

themes: love and romance, family and culture, the emotions of 

conflict, and man’s relationship with the world. Coherence across 

these themes is achieved by one over-arching theme of ‘relationships’ 

starting with love and tension in personal and family relationships. 

From the family, the focus shifts to a wider context 

and examines conflict between nations (war poems, protest 

songs) before focusing on man’s responsibility to himself 

and fellow man in the wider global context (technology, 

the environment etc.). Topics chosen for the lectures 

and tutorials will enable students to understand human 

relationships and the social fabric of human 

communities, to engage in critical, interpretive 

and analytical exploration of human qualities 

and experiences, and appreciate the ways in 

which humans express their experiences 

through literature and arts. The course 

will include lectures, in-class discussions, 

visiting speakers, tutorials, as 

well as exposure to novels, films, 

visual texts, songs, poems, and 

short stories. 



1. Demonstrate and articulate appreciation and critical 

understanding of the complex relationship between literary 

texts and human experience. 

2. Apply and use relevant information from the course 

themes to make personal responses to texts through 

writing and discussion tasks on the course. 

3. Demonstrate critical thinking and literacy skills when 

analyzing text and film interpretations of novels. 

4. Describe and explain how literary texts and film texts 

reflect, shape and influence historical perspectives and 

cultural norms. 

5. Display an appreciation of the contribution of literary 

texts to our everyday world in the ways they reflect on 

our own behaviour, experience and human development. 


Dr G.J. Harfitt 



Tel: 2241 5729 

Email: gharfitt@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr G.J. Harfitt 



Tel: 2241 5729 

Email: gharfitt@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr F. Hyland 



Tel: 2859 2783 

Email: fhyland@hku.hk 

Ms T. Kempston 



Tel: 2241 5425 

Email: kempston@hku.hk 


Humanities 




Becker, J. O. (2007). Deep listeners: Music, emotion, and 

trancing. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. 

Gritten, A., & King, E. (Eds.). (2006). Music and gesture. 

Aldershot, UK: Ashgate. 

Hanna, J. L. (1988). Dance, sex and gender: Signs of identity, 

dominance, defiance, and desire. Chicago: University of 


Koestenbaum, W. (1993). The queen’s throat: Opera, 

homosexuality, and the mystery of desire. New York: 

Poseidon Press. 

Lehmann, A. C., Sloboda, J. A., & Woody, R. H. (2007). 

Psychology for musicians: Understanding and acquiring the 

skills. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

Levitin, D. J. (2006). This is your brain on music: The science of 

a human obsession. New York: Dutton. [Chap. 1] 

Mithen, S. J. (2006). The singing Neanderthals: The origins of 

music, language, mind and body. London: Phoenix. 

Sacks, O. (2007). Musicophilia: Tales of music and the brain. 

New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 

Straus, J. N. (2011). Extraordinary measures: Disability in 

music. New York: Oxford University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 11 





Assessment: Field report 6 

Total: 120 




Field report 25 


Class/tutorial participation 10 


Music and the Human Body 



1. Demonstrate a deep awareness of music and its roots in 

the body through the appraisal of various functions of 

the body in perceiving and making music. 

2. Critically revisit the traditional separation of the mind 

and the body in the light of embodied nature of musical 

thinking. 

3. Illustrate an understanding of the intertwined nature 

of the relationship between biology and culture through 

the paradigmatic example of music. 

4. Utilize a broad conceptual and perceptual toolkit for the 

appreciation of music as a creative art. 

5. Integrate knowledge gained from multidisciplinary perspectives 

and apply such knowledge to the experience of 

music in everyday life. 


The course will illustrate the full extent of the role of the body in music making and listening. 

Our initial goal is to revisit the ear’s astonishing synthetic and analytical powers in the context 

of a holistic view of music as the (literal) embodiment of sound. To this end, we will use the human 

body as a map for the topics covered in the semester. More than a mere gimmick, the idea 

of the body-as-map will help the students grasp the rationale that guides our choice of topics 

while at the same providing a clearly defined conceptual anchor for their tutorials, readings, 

and assignments. The repertory will mingle the familiar with the less familiar. Many of our 

case studies will be drawn from the vocal and instrumental repertories of the Western Classical 

Tradition, Opera, and Musical Multimedia. There will also be significant forays into early 

musical practices as well as dance, religious, and popular music of other traditions. 

Whether performed, danced or listened to, music is an appealing starting point for challenging 

the old, rigid separations between nature and culture on the one hand, and body and mind 

on the other. Music and the Human Body aims to make good on this premise by examining the 

fluid and extraordinarily productive relationship between physiology, psychology, and culture 

as exemplified by a wide range of types of musical behaviour. 


Dr G. Biancorosso 



Tel: 3917 5209 

Email: rogopag@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr G. Biancorosso 



Tel: 3917 5209 

Email: rogopag@hku.hk 

Dr Y. Kim 



Tel: 3917 8220 

Email: younkim@hku.hk 


97

98 

Humanities 



CCHU9007 Sexuality and Gender: Diversity and Society / 

CCHU9015 Sex and Intimacy in Modern Times 


Donnan, H., & Magowan, F. (2010). The anthropology of sex. 

New York: Berg. 

Foucault, M. (1990). The history of sexuality. New York: 

Vintage Books. 

Phillips, K., & Reay, B. (2002). Sexualities in history: A reader. 


Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Studying movies, audiofiles etc 8 


Assessment: Reflective journal 18 

Assessment: NOTE: Participation slips 

will be completed in lecture, and will therefore 

not imply additional workload hours 0 

Total: 140 



Questions for reflection 25 


Contribution in tutorials 25 

Small group web presentation 25 

Sexuality and Culture 



1. Describe and explain the ways in which human sexuality 

(the ways we think and talk about it, as well as the way 

we experience and express it) contributes to our sense of 

self, and intersects with other facets of self. 

2. Describe, compare and contrast the ways in which 

broader culture has in different times and places shaped 

sexual discourse, experience and expression (and related 

facets of self ), as well as in turn being shaped by changing 

discourses, and ways of experiencing and expressing 

sexuality. 

3. Identify the facets of broad contemporary culture which 

reflect and/or shape our modern discourse, experience 

and expression of, sexuality, and which may (for better 

or worse) reflect and shape our sexualities in the shortto-mid 

term future. 

4. Evaluate the extent to which there is a homogenization 

of human sexuality in our modern world, and analyze the 

effects of any such homogenization. 


This course looks at relationships between sexuality and culture, bringing in speakers 

from the Faculties of Education, Arts, Humanities and Law, and drawing upon a range 

of writers and thinkers on sexuality, upon real events and their coverage in the media, 

and upon creative works from the world of fine art, literature, music and film. First of 

all we examine sexuality (that range of experiences and expressions of ourselves as sexual 

beings) as an aspect of our humanity. We look at the part that sexuality plays in the 

human condition, paying attention to the ways in which sexuality can intersect with 

other aspects of what we believe it is to be human. We then look at the ways in which, 

historically, different cultures have reflected and shaped not only the ways people have 

thought and talked sexuality, but also how they have experienced and expressed sexuality. 

We look, for example, at how sexuality has been described and portrayed in the 

creative and performing arts. We examine how, in our own increasingly complex, technological 

and globalized world, culture both reflects and shapes contemporary ideas, 

experiences and expressions of sexuality. We ask how the study of the relationships between 

sexuality and culture at other times and in other places can inform our contemporary 

thinking about sexuality. 


Professor G.A. Postiglione 




Tel: 2859 2526 

Email: postiglione@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr S.J. Winter 




Tel: 2859 1901 

Email: sjwinter@hku.hk 

Dr M.M.H. Wan 

Department of Law, Faculty of Law 

Tel: 3917 2911 

Email: mwan@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr W.C.W. Wong 




Tel: 2518 5650 

Email: wongwcw@hku.hk 


Humanities 




Everett, D. (2012). Language: The cultural tool. New York: 

Pantheon. 

Pinker, S. (1994). The language instinct. New York: W. 

Morrow and Co. 

Samson, G. (2005). The ‘language instinct’ debate. London: 

Continuum. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 




Total: 134 


Assessment Tasks 

Tutorial participation and assignments/ 

Weighting 

discussions 20 

Brief review of literature 20 

Poster, group presentation and/or debate 30 

Written assignment 30 



1. Appreciate the nature vs. nurture debate in language, 

and demonstrate awareness of the presence of the nature 

vs. nurture debate in other disciplines. 

2. Identify the basic issues regarding human beings’ ability 

to acquire knowledge of language. 

3. Compare and contrast the various behaviorist, nativist 

and social interactionist views on human beings’ ability 

to acquire knowledge of language. 

4. Use relevant information to critically evaluate the arguments 

that support or challenge the various hypotheses. 

5. Support their own views regarding the different theories 

of language acquisition by drawing relevant linguistic, 

cognitive, and philosophical evidence. 


Human Language: Nature or Nurture? 

Language is an indispensable part of human experience, 

and yet, the ability to construct linguistic structures 

to make oneself understood and to interpret 

correctly the structures that others have produced is, 

almost always, taken for granted. The understanding 

of this course description is, in fact, made possible 

by a number of highly complex linguistic/cognitive 

processes in our mind. A fundamental question that 

arises, then, is how we human beings come to have this 

ability to possess and apply knowledge of language. 

How is it possible to obtain knowledge of language? Is 

language unique and specific to human beings? What 

are the stages of language acquisition? There are a 

number of different hypotheses regarding how human 

beings obtain knowledge of natural language. On the 

‘nature’ side, researchers argue that human beings are 

born with the ability to acquire and process language. 

Proponents on the ‘nurture’ side, however, think that 

our ability to use language is learnt, much like how our 

other cognitive and intellectual abilities are learnt. In 

this course, students will be taken through a critical 

survey of these hypotheses, and consider what the various 

views tell us about the nature of the human mind. 

This course is of relevance and interest to anyone who 

uses language. 


Dr A.B. Bodomo 



Tel: 3917 8285 

Email: abbodomo@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 8285 


Dr O.S.C. Lam 



Tel: 3917 2758 

Email: osclam@hku.hk 


99

Global Issues 

Course Code // CCGL9002 


CCGL9026 Think Global, Act Local: 

You, Hong Kong, and the World 

Required Reading / Films 

Bryman, A. (2004). The disneyization of society. London; 

Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishers. 

Community Cultural Concern (2009, Oct 9). Preserving 

Edinburgh Place as a monument. Hong Kong: Heritage Watch. 

Engelhardt, R. (2002). The management of world heritage cities: 

Evolving concepts, new strategies. Review of Culture, 17-25. 

Giroux, H. A. (1999). The mouse that roared: Disney and the end 

of innocence. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. [pp. 63-81, 

83-121] 

Harvey, D. (2000). From managerialism to entrepreneurialism: 

The transformation in urban governance in late capitalism. 

In M. Miles, I. Borden & T. Hall (Eds.), The city cultures reader 

(pp. 50-59). London; New York: Routledge. 

Harvey, D. (2005). A brief history of neoliberalism. Oxford; 

New York: Oxford University Press. [Selected chapter and 

excerpts] 

Mommaas, H. (2004). Cultural clusters and the post-industrial 

city: Towards the remapping of urban cultural policy. Urban 

Studies, 41(3), 507-532. 

Picker, M. (Director). (2001). Mickey Mouse monopoly. [Film] 

Ritzer, G. (2004). The McDonaldization of society. Thousand 

Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press. [Chap. 1] 

Spurlock, M. (Director). (2004). Super size me. [Film] 

Szeto, M. M. & Chen, Y. C. (2011). Mainlandization and 

neoliberalism with post-colonial and Chinese characteristics: 

Challenges for the Hong Kong film industry. In J. Kapur & 

K. Wagner (Eds.), Neoliberalism and global cinema: Capital, 

culture, and Marxist critique. New York: Routledge. 

Williams, R. (1985). Keywords: A vocabulary of culture and 

society (Rev. ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. 

[Selected keywords] 

Williams, R. (2000). Culture is ordinary. In G. Bradford et 

al. (Eds.), The politics of culture: Policy perspectives for 

individuals, institutions, and communities. New York: New 

Press: Distributed by W. W. Norton. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 


Cultural tour 6 



Assessment: Mid-term test (incl preparation) 12 

Total: 150 



Test 25 

Term essay 50 

Cultural tour and workshop 10 

Tutorial participation, discussion, presentations 15 



1. Demonstrate awareness and understanding of 

the relation of Hong Kong culture to issues of 

globalization and culture. 

2. Interpret local and cross-cultural texts and case 

studies on globalization and culture. 

3. Demonstrate awareness and understanding of 

the interconnectedness of the cultural and economic 

aspects of globalization. 

4. Examine and critique issues of globalization 

from a range of different theoretical perspectives. 

5. Critically question and reflect on mainstream 

values and assumptions about globalization, 

particularly in the local context of Hong Kong. 

6. Apply critical theories to respond creatively to 

issues of globalization that are observable in local 

communities or comparable foreign cases. 




Hong Kong Culture in the Context of 

Globalization 

Globalization has become the keyword to signify the profound changes common to 

contemporary human experience. This course provides an interdisciplinary and critical 

analysis of the impact of globalization on Hong Kong culture. We start by asking: 

What is culture? What are the important global cultural trends that Hong Kong also 

participate in and contribute to? What aspects of globalization are relevant to the 

study of Hong Kong culture? How can postcolonial Hong Kong culture offer new ways 

to understand the relation between the colonial past and the present global world order? 

How can we understand the global-local cultural dynamics that drives Hong Kong 

into the future? What will we learn about Hong Kong culture if we adopt new critical 

and self-reflective perspectives? The course introduces key concepts and theories of 

globalization by focusing on cultural analyses and critical cultural responses to globalization. 

Particular emphasis is placed on the creative media, transnational cultural 

industries and global cultural phenomena relevant to everyday Hong Kong experience. 

This includes the analysis of Hong Kong’s participation in global cultural trends like 

the creation of cultural districts, the changing emphasis on cultural industries, the 

conditions of cultural production and consumption, the proliferation of urban redevelopment 

framed in terms of cultural heritage preservation and tourism, as well as 

the transformations in our everyday experience due to global cultural trends like the 

Disneyization and McDonaldization of society, new technologies of video and internet 

gaming and other new media phenomena. 


Dr M.M. Szeto 

School of Humanities (Comparative Literature), 


Tel: 3917 2868 

Email: mmszeto@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr M.M. Szeto 



Tel: 3917 2868 

Email: mmszeto@hku.hk 

Dr G. Marchetti 



Tel: 3917 8900 

Email: marchett@hku.hk 

http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccgl9002 

101

102 

Global Issues 




Bashford, A., & Hooker, C. (2001). Contagion: Historical and 

cultural studies. London: Routledge. 

Crosby, A. W. (2003). The Columbian exchange: Biological 

and cultural consequences of 1492 (30th anniversary ed.). 

Westport, CT: Praeger. [Chaps. 1, 6] 

Crossley, P. K. (2008). What is global history? Cambridge, 

UK; Malden, MA: Polity. 

Farmer, P. (1999). Infections and inequalities: The modern 

plagues. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Garrett, L. (1995). The coming plague: Newly emerging 

diseases in a world out of balance. New York: Penguin. 

Hays, J. N. (1998). The burdens of disease: Epidemics and 

human response in western history. New Brunswick, NJ: 

Rutgers University Press. 

Le Roy Ladurie, E. (1981). A concept: The unification of the 

globe by disease. The mind and method of the historian 

(pp. 28-83). (S. Reynolds & B. Reynolds, Trans.). Brighton, 

Sussex: Harvester Press. 

Mazlish, B., & Iriye, A. (2005). The global history reader. New 

York: Routledge. 

McNeill, W. H. (1976). Plagues and peoples (1st ed.). Oxford: 

Blackwell. 

Price-Smith, A. T. (2009). Contagion and chaos: Disease, 

ecology, and national security in the era of globalization. 

Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. 

Rosenberg, C. E. (1992). Explaining epidemics and other 

studies in the history of medicine. Cambridge; New York: 

Cambridge University Press. 

Wald, P. (2008). Contagious: Cultures, carriers, and the 

outbreak narrative. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 





Total: 120 



Continual assessment and task-focused 

activities 35 

Online portfolio 15 

Course project 50 



1. Analyze how epidemics have shaped the modern 

world. 

2. Demonstrate an awareness of globalization’s 

role in facilitating the spread of disease. 

3. Reflect upon and critically consider the value of 

historical knowledge in meeting current global 

health challenges. 

4. Use a historically-informed approach to critically 

examine contemporary ideas about contagion. 


Contagions: Global Histories of Disease 

How have epidemics shaped the modern world? In what ways has globalization contributed 

to the spread of disease? And how can historical awareness help us meet the 

challenges of the present and reconsider the relationship between the local and the 

global? This course addresses these critical issues from a number of perspectives, 

mapping the intertwined histories of globalization and infection from fifteenth-century 

European conquests of the ‘New World’ to the present. The course explores the economic, 

political and social processes that have contributed to the rise of global epidemics, 

including: early modern transoceanic exchanges, the slave trade to the Western 

hemisphere, global conflicts and epidemics, imperial responses to contagion, the rise 

of global health agencies after WWII, and emergent twenty-first-century animal-tohuman 

infections such as SARS and avian flu in Asia, Europe, the Americas and Africa. 

Within this broad scope, the course engages with a number of fundamental questions: 

How and under what conditions did the ‘unification of the world by disease’ come 

about? What challenges to global security does this infectious interconnectedness 

pose? What potential might globalization offer in helping to contain epidemics? How, 

and with what consequences, has the past shaped the way we think about contagious 

outbreaks today? 





Tel: 3917 7048 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 7048 


http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccgl9003

Global Issues 



CCGL9006 Asian Regional Governance 

in an Age of Globalization 


Cardoso, F. H., Gaviria, C., & Zedillo, E. (2009, February 23). The 

war on drugs is a failure. The Wall Street Journal. 

Giddens, A. (2003). Runaway world: How globalization is reshaping 

our lives. New York: Routledge. 

Habermas, J. (1998). Beyond the nation-state? Peace Review, 10(2), 

235-239. 

Held, D. (1997). Globalization and cosmopolitan democracy. Peace 

Review, 9(3), 309-314. 

Helleiner, E. (2005). The evolution of the international monetary 

and financial system. In J. Ravenhill (Ed.), Global political 

economy (pp. 152-175). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

Hitchcock, W. I. (2003). The struggle for Europe: The turbulent 

history of a divided continent, 1945-2002. London: Profile. 

Keohane, R. O., & Nye, J. S. (2001). Power and interdependence (3rd 

ed.). New York: Longman. 

Naím, M. (2003). The five wars of globalization. Foreign Policy, 134, 

28-37. 

Nicholson, M. (2002). International relations. A concise 

introduction (2nd ed.). Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. 

O’Neill, S. (2011, June 17). How Mexico can win the drug war, 

Colombia’s way. Council on Foreign Relations. From http://www. 

cfr.org/mexico/mexico-can-win-drug-war-colombias-way/ 

p25298 [Originally published on Bloomberg.com] 

Rawlins, A. (2011, December 13). Mexico’s drug war. Council on 

Foreign Relations. From http://www.cfr.org/mexico/mexicosdrug-war/p13689 

Wolf, M. (2004). Why globalization works. New Haven: Yale 


Primary source documents (UN Charter, ICC Statute, NATO 

Treaty, etc.). 

Newspaper articles because up-to-date examples will be used in the 

lectures and tutorials. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Assessment: Essay / Proposal writing 30 

Assessment: Small-group presentation 


Assessment: In-class assignment 1 

Assessment: Weekly reading assignments 15 

Total: 127 



Short reading assignments 25 

Research proposal and outline for the essay 10 

Essay 35 

Small-group tutorial presentation 10 

In-class assignment 20 



1. Compare, explain, and differentiate the basic concepts, 

terminology, modes, and mechanisms of governance 

at the global level. 

2. Apply conceptual and theoretical frameworks to 

explore the factors, conditions, and processes which 

impact on the way governance is administered. 

3. Evaluate and critically reflect on how democratic 

forms of governance are challenged by globalization. 

4. Appraise the limitations of strictly national forms 

of governance and the need for cooperation among 

diverse stakeholders on a global level. 


Governance and Democracy in the Age 

of Globalization 

How can global problems and issues be solved when there is no global government? 

This issue-driven course explores how the world is likely to be governed in the 21st 

century. 

We will examine some of the most important issues and challenges facing the world 

today: conflicts and global security; the development of the global economy; and the 

impacts of organized crime, migration, economic crises, and diseases on social stability 

and the wellbeing of societies. The course elucidates how these challenges are 

being addresed by a growing variety of actors, some of which are beyond the control 

of nation-states. 

The aim is to raise your awareness of the risks globalization poses to state-based governance 

in general and democracy in particular. The course illustrates the connection 

between global developments (which often impact on individual societies but 

can no longer be controlled by them) and the need to bring about effective decisionmaking 

arrangements. But how accountable, transparent, and open are these new 

governance mechanisms? We will analyze the interplay of state-based and international 

institutions, regimes, and agreements, as well as the emerging impact of private 

and non-state actors. The aim is to critically reflect on the evolution of global 

governance and the potential erosion of democracy. 


Dr C.R. Vogt 

School of Modern Languages and Cultures 

(European Studies), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 8046 

Email: crvogt@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr C.R. Vogt 


(European Studies), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 8046 

Email: crvogt@hku.hk 


103

104 

Global Issues 



CCGL9025 The Political Economy of Growth 

and Poverty in the World 


Brautigam, D. (2009). The dragon’s gift: The real story of 

China in Africa. Oxford; New York: Oxford University 

Press. 

Collier, P. (2007). The bottom billion: Why the poorest 

countries are failing and what can be done about it. 


Collins, D. (2009). Portfolios of the poor: How the world’s poor 

live on. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 

Easterly, W. (2006). The white man’s burden: Why the West’s 

efforts to aid the rest have done so much ill and so little 

good. New York: Penguin Press. 

Postiglione, G. A. (2009). Dislocated education: The case of 

Tibet. Comparative Education Review, 3(4), 483-512. 

Postiglione, G. A., Jiao, B., & Goldstein, M. (2011). Education 

in the Tibetan autonomous region: Policies and practices 

in rural and nomadic communities. In J. Ryan (Ed.), 

Education reform in China. London: Routledge. 

Sachs, J. (2005). The end of poverty: Economic possibilities 

for our time. New York: Penguin Press. 

Sen, A. (2001). Development as freedom. Oxford; New York: 


UNESCO. (2011). EFA Global Monitoring Reports. Paris: 

UNECO. From http://www.unesco.org/new/en/ 

education/themes/leading-the-international-agenda/ 

efareport/reports/ [Executive summaries] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Out of class experiences 8 


Assessment: Portfolio 32 

Total: 120 



Case study preparation 20 

Challenge Project portfolio 80 



1. Critically analyze the concepts of poverty and 

development and how they are used in various 

contexts. 

2. Examine the strategies used by individuals and 

organizations, including nations, multilateral 

agencies, foundations, corporations, and individuals, 

to reduce poverty and promote sustainable 

development. 

3. Develop an actionable plan to help reduce poverty 

and/or promote sustainable development. 


Poverty, Development, and the Next 

Generation: Challenges for a Global 

World 

This course examines the ways in which poverty and development affect the lives of 

people around the world, with a special focus on the lives of young people. What are 

the challenges faced by young people living in poverty? What actions can individuals 

and organizations take to help young people better meet these challenges? We examine 

these questions in the context of current debates over international development as 

well as case studies of organizations involved in the fight against poverty. 


Dr C.R. Lykins 

Division of Policy, Administration and 

Social Sciences Education, 


Tel: 2241 5428 

Email: lykins@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr C.R. Lykins 

Division of Policy, Administration and 

Social Sciences Education, 


Tel: 2241 5428 

Email: lykins@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



CCGL9004 Governance and Democracy 

in the Age of Globalization 


Acharya, A. (2010). Democracy or death? Will democratization bring 

greater regional instability to East Asia? The Pacific Review, 

23(3), 335-358. 

Baldwin, R. E. (2006, March). Managing the noodle bowl: The 

fragility of East Asian regionalism. CEPR Discussion Papers. 

Beeson, M. (2005). Rethinking regionalism: Europe and East Asia in 

comparative historical perspective. Journal of European Public 

Policy, 12(6) 969-985. 

Bergsten, C. F. (2007, March). China and economic integration in 

East Asia: Implications for the United States. Policy Briefs in 

International Economics. Peterson Institute for International 

Economics. 

Caballero-Anthony, M. (2007, June). Nontraditional security and 

multilateralism in Asia: Reshaping the contours of regional 

security architecture? Policy Analysis Brief. The Stanley 

Foundation. 

Cossa, R. A. (2008). Security dynamics in East Asia. In D. Shambaugh 

& M. Yahuda (Eds.), International relations of Asia (pp. 317- 338). 

Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. 

Curley, M., & Thomas, N. (2004). Human security and public health 

in Southeast Asia: The SARS outbreak. Australian Journal of 

International Affairs, 58(1), 17-32. 

Kang, D. C. (2010). Hierarchy and legitimacy in international 

systems: The tribute system in early modern East Asia. Security 

Studies, 19(4), 591-622. 

Park, J. (1997). APEC and ASEAN: The future of Asian 

environmental regionalism. Environmental Politics, 6(3), 162-167. 

Park, J. J. (2011). The US-led alliances in the Asia-Pacific: Hedge 

against potential threats or an undesirable multilateral security 

order? The Pacific Review, 24(2), 137-158. 

Park, J. S. (2005, Autumn). Inside multilateralism: The Six-party 

talks. The Washington Quarterly, 28(4), 75-91. 

Sohn, I. (2005). Asian financial cooperation: The problem of 

legitimacy in global financial governance. Global Governance, 

11(4), 487-504. 

Terada, T. (2006, May). Forming an East Asian Community: A site 

for Japan−China power struggles. Japanese Studies, 26(1), 5-17. 

Tuli, V. (2006, August). Regional cooperation for Asian energy 

security. RIS Discussion Papers, No. 112. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Assessment: East Asian Summit negotiation 

simulation 20 

Total: 151 



Class participation and weekly 

discussion questions 15 


Simulation (incl group paper and presentation) 30 




1. Demonstrate understanding of the nature, challenges, 

responses and consequences of East 

Asia’s globalization. 

2. Compare and contrast regional institutions 

across Europe, Latin America, Asia and the 

Middle East in the context of globalization. 

3. Critique global and regional governance from 

multiple perspectives. 

4. Demonstrate communication skills and leadership 

for the improvement of the human condition. 


Asian Regional Governance in an Age of 

Globalization 

This course examines the Challenges of Global Governance theme of the Global Issues 

AoI. Understanding of globalization challenges in the East Asian context and East 

Asia’s institutional responses offers a useful strategy to explore this issue. Taking a 

historical approach and using key theoretical perspectives, students will learn how the 

East Asian region has been coping with an unprecedented level of interdependence 

and how Asian regional governance has evolved into its current forms. The course also 

explores the dynamics of regional institutional governance from a comparative perspective 

and the relationship between regional governance and global governance in 

the process of globalization. 


Dr I.J. Sohn 

Department of Politics and Public Administration, 


Tel: 3917 4372 

Email: isohn@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr I.J. Sohn 



Tel: 3917 4372 



105

106 

Global Issues 



Beck, U., & Beck-Gernsheim, E. (2009). Global generations and 

the trap of methodological nationalism for a cosmopolitan 

turn in the sociology of youth and generation. European 

Sociological Review, 25(1), 25-36. 

Collin, P., & Burns, J. (2009). The experience of youth in the 

digital age. In A. Furlong (Ed.), Handbook of youth and young 

adulthood: New perspectives and agendas (pp. 283-290). 

London: Routledge. 

Falk, R. (1994). The making of global citizenship. In B. 

Steenbergen (Ed.), The condition of citizenship (pp. 127- 

140). London: Sage. 

Juris, J. S., & Pleyers, G. H. (2009). Alter-activism: Emerging 

cultures of participation among young global justice 

activists. Journal of Youth Studies, 12(1), 57-75. 

Kaufman, N. H., Rizzini, I., Wilson, K., & Bush, M. (2002). 

The impact of global economic, political, and social 

transformations on the lives of children: A framework for 

analysis. In N. H. Kaufman & I. Rizzini (Eds.), Globalization 

and children: Exploring potentials for enhancing 

opportunities in the lives of children and youth (pp. 3-18). 

New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers. 

Mills, M., Blossfeld, H. P., & Klijzing, E. (2005). Becoming an 

adult in uncertain times: A 14-country comparison of the 

losers of globalization. In H. P. Blossfeld (Ed.), Globalization, 

uncertainty and youth in society (pp. 423-441). Oxford: 

Routledge. 

Nilan, P., & Feixa, C. (2006). Introduction: Youth hybridity 

and plural worlds. In P. Nilan & C. Feixa (Eds.), Global 

youth? Hybrid identities, plural worlds (pp. 1-13). London: 

Routledge. 

Turner, B. S., & Khondker, H. H. (2010). Globalization: East and 

West. London: Sage. [Chap. 2] 

Tyyska, V. (2005). Conceptualizing and theorizing youth: 

Global perspectives. In H. Helve & G. Holm (Eds.), 

Contemporary youth research: Local expressions and global 

connections (pp. 3-14). Aldershot, UK: Ashgate. 

Weenink, D. (2008). Cosmopolitanism as a form of capital: 

Parents preparing their children for a globalizing world. 

Sociology, 42(6), 1089-1106. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 



Participation in discussion forums (Moodle) 8 



Total: 146 




Group report 30 


Participation in tutorials and discussion 

forum (Moodle) 20 

Youth in a Global World 



1. Demonstrate awareness, as ‘young people’ 

themselves, of the interconnectedness of the 

world. 

2. Critically assess how globalization influences 

different aspects of young people’s daily lives. 

3. Analyze the proactive and positive role youth 

can play in the changing world. 

4. Propose how young people as global citizens 

can and should respond to transformations 

brought about by globalization. 


This course facilitates students as ‘young people’ to be more aware of the interconnectedness 

of the world and to critically assess how globalization influences different 

aspects of young people’s daily lives. It also analyzes the proactive and positive role 

youth can play in the changing world, and provides students with an opportunity to 

propose how young people as global citizens can and should respond to transformations 

brought about by globalization. Various social issues or specific areas of youth 

global trends such as consumerism, transnationalism, cosmopolitanism and digitalism 

that confront young people in their everyday life will be examined in a systematic manner. 

By doing so, students will critically evaluate what global citizenship should entail 

in order to reduce inequality and promote care for human rights as well as human dignity 

in today’s global community. 


Dr E.W.H. Chui 

Department of Social Work and Social 

Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences 

Tel: 3917 2074 

Email: ericchui@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr E.W.H. Chui 

Deparment of Social Work and Social 


Tel: 3917 2074 

Email: ericchui@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



Boyd, D. (2008). Why youth (heart) social network sites: The role of 

networked publics in teenage social life. In D. Buckingham (Ed.), 

Youth, identity, and digital media (pp. 119-142). Cambridge, MA: 

The MIT Press. [Also available from http://www.danah.org/papers/ 

WhyYouthHeart.pdf ] 

Gottschalk, S. (2010). The presentation of avatars in Second Life: Self and 

interaction in social virtual spaces. Symbolic Interaction, 33(4), 501- 

525. 

Lewis, J., & West, A. (2009). “Friending”: London-based undergraduates’ 

experience of Facebook. New Media & Society, 11(7), 1209-1229. 

Qiang, X. (2011). The battle for the Chinese Internet. Journal of 

Democracy, 22(2), 47-61. 

Selwyn, N. (2004). Reconsidering political and popular understandings of 

the digital divide. New Media & Society, 6(3), 341-362. 

Wood, N., & Ward, S. (2010). Stigma, secrets, and the human condition: 

Seeking to remedy alienation in PostSecret’s digitally mediated 

environment. Symbolic Interaction, 33(4), 578-602. 

Yar, M. (2006). Political hacking. Cybercrime and Society (pp.45-62). 

London: Sage. 

Required Websites 

Anonymous and the global correction (Aljazeera, 2011, February 16) 

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/ 

opinion/2011/02/201121321487750509.html 

China tries to stamp out “Jasmine Revolution” (A. Chang, The Washington 

Times, 2011, February 20) 

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/feb/20/china-tries-stampout-jasmine-revolution/?page=all 

Cyberspace when you’re dead (R. Walker, The New York Times, 2011, 

January 5) 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/magazine/09Immortality-t.html?_r=1 

Difference is the norm on these dating sites (K. Barrow, The New York 

Times, 2010, December 27) 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/28/health/28dating.html?_r=1 

Facebook rescue highlights “ongoing struggle” (ABC News, 2009, 

September 8) 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-09-08/facebook-rescue-highlightsongoing-struggle/1421180 

A girl’s nude photo, and altered lives (J. Hoffman, The New York Times, 

2011, March 26) 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/us/27sexting. 

html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=homepage&src=me 

The Great Firewall of China (G. R. Barme & S. Ye, Wired, 1997, June) 

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/5.06/china.html 

Hacking for free speech: A new breed of “hacktivists” takes on Internet 

censorship (C. Sprigman, FindLaw, 2003, June 24) 

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/commentary/20030624_sprigman.html 

How Second Life affects real life (K. Dell, Time, 2008, May 12) 

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1739601,00.html 

Jihad vs. McWorld (B. R. Barber, The Atlantic, 1992, March) 

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1992/03/jihad-vsmcworld/3882/ 

Tell-all generation learns to keep things offline (L. M. Holson, The New York 

Times, 2010, May 8) 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/09/fashion/09privacy.html?emc=eta1 

Trapped girls update Facebook instead of calling cops (ABC News, 2009, 

September 9) 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-09-07/trapped-girls-call-for-help-onfacebook/1420352 

Who’s online – Trend data (Pew Internet & American Life Project) 

http://pewinternet.org/Trend-Data/Whos-Online.aspx 

WikiLeaks and hacktivist culture (P. Ludlow, The Nation, 2010, October 4) 

http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/7669895/771113000/name/Wikileaks.pdf 

World wakes up to digital divide (J. Wakefield, BBC News, 2010, March 19) 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8568681.stm 

The world is flat (T. L. Friedman, 2005, May 16) [Video] 

http://mitworld.mit.edu/video/266/ 

Study Load 


Cybersocieties: Understanding 

Technology as Global Change 

As evidenced by a wide range of fundamental 

social, cultural, political and economic 

transformations, the world today is becoming 

increasingly globalized. Within this environment, 

it is essential that we examine how 

Information and Communication Technology 

(ICT) is directing and redefining what it 

means to live in a “global society”. The melding 

of technology and globalization has become 

the touchstone of the new millennium and it is 

impossible to discuss the impact and significance 

of one without the other. In short, these 

dual revolutions are shaping each other and, 

through combined forces, directing the way we 

live, learn, work and socialize. 

This interdisciplinary course examines how 

ICT allows for high-speed global access – making 

it possible to instantly connect to anyone 

and anywhere – and how this immediate access 

has created a nexus of social, cultural, economic 

and political implications for everyone. 

The course offers students an opportunity to 

critically evaluate not only how globalization 

and ICT have revolutionized the way we live, 

but also how this new environment uniquely 

situates them to, in turn, direct many of these 

changes. Within this context, the course will 

ask: What kind of global society are we heading 

toward? Who should participate in deciding 

the future? How will the “big” decisions be 

made and by whom? The course also requires 

students to reflect critically on their own uses 

of technology and how today’s Net Generation 

is confronted with global technologies that 

are, at once, both constraining and empowering. 

As such, students will be inspired to not 

only broaden their interest and understanding 

of globalization, but develop a position as 

informed global citizens and articulate the impact 

of technology on all human endeavors. 


Dr M.C. Adorjan 



Tel: 3917 8532 

Email: madorjan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr M.C. Adorjan 



Tel: 3917 8532 

Email: madorjan@hku.hk 

Dr A.C.H. Yu 



Tel: 2857 8482 

Email: alfred.yu@hku.hk 


On completing the course, students 

will be able to: 

1. Differentiate and integrate the key 

theories, concepts and issues relating 

to globalization and ICT. 

2. Apply key concepts and theories framing 

the interface of globalization and 

ICT to their everyday experiences. 

3. Demonstrate a keen understanding of 

the interconnectedness of the world 

by critically evaluating films, websites, 

video clips, Internet media, and 

other sources. 

4. Explore and apply a multi-cultural 

perspective of global citizenship and 

the duties and responsibilities associated 

with global membership. 

5. Express a critical understanding of 

the digital divide debate and understand 

how both the “haves” and “have 

nots” of technology are simultaneously 

benefited and limited by ICT. 


Lectures 26 

Tutorials 10 




Assessment: In-class test 


Total: 134 



Group YouTube project/presentation 40 

Second Life experiential portfolio 30 


Tutorial critical reflections and discussion 10 


107

108 

Global Issues 



Chan, C. S. (2009). Creating a market in the presence of 

cultural resistance: The case of life insurance in China. 

Theory and Society, 38(3), 278-302. 

Diawara, M. (1998). Toward a regional imaginary in Africa. 

In F. Jameson & M. Miyoshi (Eds.), The cultures of 

globalization (pp. 103-124). Durham, NC: Duke University 

Press. 

Klein, N. (2000). No logo: Taking aim at the brand bullies. New 

York: Picador. [Chap. 6] 

Mittelman, J. H. (2004). Whither globalization? The vortex of 

knowledge and ideology. London; New York: Routledge. [pp. 

89-98] 

Pun, N. (2005). The social body, the art of discipline and 

resistance. Made in China: Women factory workers 

in a global workplace (pp. 77-108). Durham, NC: Duke 

University Press; Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 

Ritzer, G. (2006). An introduction to McDonaldization. In 

G. Ritzer (Ed.), McDonaldization: The reader (2nd ed., pp. 

4-24). Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press. 

So, A. Y. (1990). Social change and development: 

Modernization, dependency, and world-systems theories. 

Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications. [pp. 17-23, 33-37, 91- 

93, 104-109, 169-171, 180-199] 

Steger, M. B. (2009). Globalization: A very short introduction. 

Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. [pp. 1-16, 71- 

80] 

Trent, B. (1998). Media in a capitalist culture. In F. Jameson 

& M. Miyoshi (Eds.), The cultures of globalization (pp. 230- 

246). Durham, NC: Duke University Press. 

Watson, J. L. (1997/2006). Golden arches east: McDonald’s in 

East Asia. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. [pp. 

1-38] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 11 


Preparing questions for discussion 12 




Total: 151 



Participation in classroom activities 20 

Memo writings 30 


Quizzes 20 



1. Appraise different cultures outside their own 

world. 

2. Analytically engage in the current debates over 

culture and globalization within and outside 

the academic circle. 

3. Evaluate the pros and cons of the current globalizing 

forces and attempt to think of better 

alternatives for the problematic arenas. 


Local Cultures and Global Markets 

“Culture and globalization” has drawn increasing attention from journalists and scholars 

of different disciplines. Today, even economists are interested in “culture” and its 

impacts on economic practices. This course on one hand discusses and analyzes how 

culture matters in the global diffusion of the market economy, and how the globalizing 

modern capitalist practices affect local cultures, and on the other hand examines 

whether economic globalization homogenizes or diversifies cultures at the local and 

global scales, and evaluates if the processes increase or reduce human freedom and 

choice. This course will explore these issues through a perusal of different topics, such 

as work and labor in multi-national corporations, the McDonaldization of social and 

cultural sphere of life, local consumption habits and patterns, and the global discourse 

of media and fashion. 


Dr C.S.C. Chan 



Tel: 3917 4341 


Teacher(s) 

Dr C.S.C. Chan 

Deparment of Sociology, 


Tel: 3917 4341 



Global Issues 


This course introduces students to an analysis of how global capitalism 

has brought various sports games into a global sports culture 

since the mid 19th century and from the 1980s onwards has turned 

such a global sports culture into a new kind of global business. Global 

capitalism is the driving force of the growth and spread of a global 

sports culture. Yet, it has also restructured the nature of our sports 

culture. Increasingly, our sports games have been turned into ‘theatres 

of dreams’, being spectacles of global consumption. The latter 

are further intertwined with nationalist projects of identity building. 

The main objectives are to help students examine contemporary 

sports culture critically and from different perspectives, understand 

the impacts of global capitalism on contemporary social life, and relate 

them to their personal experiences through an analysis of lively 

examples of spectator sports such as soccer and basketball. 


Giulianotti, R. (1999). Football: A sociology of the global 

game. Cambridge: Polity Press. 

King, A. (2002). The end of the terraces: The transformation 

of English football in the 1990s (Rev. ed.). London; New 

York: Leicester University Press. 

LaFeber, W. (2002). Michael Jordan and the new global 

capitalism (Expanded ed.). New York: W. W. Norton. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 

Fieldwork / Visits (incl field visit and 

writing up observation notes) 6 

Reading / Self-study (incl preparations 

for lectures and tutorials) 60 

Assessment: Report writing (incl research 

and data collection) 30 


Assessment: Quiz 1 

Total: 145 




Group presentation and tutorial participation 40 


Quiz 5 



1. Identify and analyze the impacts of globalization 

on social life (sports culture being an example) 

in the contemporary world. 

2. Relate global changes to their daily experience. 

3. Apply the basic concepts and theoretical perspectives 

to an analysis of the impacts of globalization 

in our social life. 

4. Connect the basic concepts and theoretical perspectives 

to an analysis of a selected topic on 

sports culture under global capitalism in their 

group project report. 

5. Cooperate in groups to produce a presentation 

and demonstrate appropriate presentation 

skills. 


Sports Culture under Global Capitalism 


Professor T.L. Lui 



Tel: 3917 8531 

Email: tloklui@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor T.L. Lui 



Tel: 3917 8531 

Email: tloklui@hku.hk 


109

110 

Global Issues 




Altschull, J. H. (1995). Agents of power: The media and public policy 

(2nd ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman Pub. USA. 

Bennett, W. L. (2011). News: The politics of illusion (9th ed.) New York: 

Pearson/Longman. 

Browne, M. N., & Keeley, S. M. (2009). Asking the right questions: A 

guide to critical thinking (9th ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson 


Chan, J. M., Lee, C. C., Pan, Z., & So, C. Y. K. (2002). Global media 

spectacle: News war over Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Hong Kong 


Herman, E. S., & Chomsky, N. (2002). Manufacturing consent: The 

political economy of the mass media. New York: Pantheon Books. 

Lippmann, W. (1922). Public opinion. New York: Free Press. 

Nazer, H. M. (1999). Power of a third kind: The Western attempt to 

colonize the global village. Westport, CT; London: Praeger. 

Postman, N. (2005). Amusing ourselves to death: Public discourse in the 

age of show business. New York: Penguin Books. 

Rampton, S., & Stauber, J. C. (2003). Weapons of mass deception: The 

uses of propaganda in Bush’s war on Iraq. New York: Jeremy P. 

Tarcher/Penguin. 

Schiffrin, A., & Kircher-Allen, E. (2012). From Cairo to Wall Street: 

Voices from the Global Spring. New York: New Press. 

Seib, P. (Ed.). (2012). Al Jazeera English: Global news in a changing 

world (1st ed.). New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

UNESCO. (1978, November 28). Declaration on Fundamental 

Principles concerning the Contribution of the Mass Media 

to Strengthening Peace and International Understanding, to 

the Promotion of Human Rights and to Countering Racialism, 

Apartheid and Incitement to War (Document 20C/20 21). From 

http://www.unesco.org 

Selected essays by George Orwell 

Selected journal articles: 

Mundy, A. (1992, September/October). Is the press any match for 

powerhouse PR? Columbia Journalism Review, 31, 27-34. 

Ravi, N. (2005). Looking beyond flawed journalism: How national 

interests, patriotism, and cultural values shaped the coverage of 

the Iraq War. Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, 

10(1), 45-62. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 


Group discussions 15 

News and documentary viewing 15 

Debates (incl preparation) 20 



Total: 140 



Final research project 30 

Quizzes and short writing assignments 20 


Language analysis 15 

Group debates / Presentations 15 

Class participation 5 



1. Demonstrate understanding of the process of 

framing international and local issues in light 

of contending political, cultural and economic 

paradigms. 

2. Demonstrate understanding of the role of dominant 

cultural values in the creation of narrative frames. 

3. Demonstrate an awareness of the power and use 

of emotive language to influence readers’ perception 

of events. 

4. Identify and demonstrate understanding of the 

mechanisms by which governments, intelligence 

agencies, political parties, churches and businesses 

influence the framing of news. 

5. Demonstrate understanding of the influence of 

business pressure on news operations in marketdriven/influenced 

media systems. 

6. Examine and assess the impact of “new media” 

on the global power dynamics of information 

flow and control. 

7. Demonstrate an awareness of the emergence of 

“new voices” in the global media. 


Media in the Age of Globalization 

In this course, students will assess the ability of globalized news media to shape perceptions 

of global and local reality. They will examine the extent to which the growing 

access to information from every corner of the globe fosters reporting that accurately 

reflects global and local realities. They will also consider the extent to which an increasingly 

globalized and fragmented media system impacts on power balances in 

information gathering and dissemination and distorts our views of both our own and 

global environments. Does media globalization simply amount to the triumph of capitalist 

consumerism and the media values and institutions associated with the western 

model of economic and social development? Is there a developing “culture war” between 

“Eastern” and “Western” institutions and values? Is a multipolar cultural world 

a possibility in the context of news gathering and reporting? 


Professor Y.Y. Chan 



Tel: 2219 4000 

Email: yychan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 2219 4000 


Mr J. Young 



Tel: 2219 4092 

Email: shexiang@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



Brown, L. R. (2000). Challenges of the new century. State of 

the world 2000: A Worldwatch Institute report. New York: 

W. W. Norton and Company, Inc. [pp. 3-21] 

Dryzek, J. S. (2005). The politics of the earth: Environmental 

discourses. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

Entman, R. M. (1993). Framing: Toward clarification of a 

fractured paradigm. Journal of Communication, 43(4), 

51-58. 

McCombs, M. E., & Shaw, D. E. (1994 [1972]). The agendasetting 

function of the press. In D. A. Graber (Ed.), Media 

power in politics (pp. 63-72). Washington, DC: CQ Press. 

Note: Additional readings, including contemporary news 

articles, may be added to the required reading list during the 

semester. Documentary and fictional films (eight films in 

total) will be selected based on a class vote in the first week 

of the semester. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 

Reading / Self-study: 

Course textbook reading 30 

Additional and optional course readings 15 

Final exam preparation 3 

Journal writing and critical reviews of films 16 

Film viewing 12 

Group presentation preparation and research 10 

Debate preparation 5 


Total: 127 




Journal writing: Critical reviews of films 30 

Group debates 20 





1. Identify the stakeholders and their basic strategies 

in environmental politics and communication. 

2. Explore media news programs, framing and agenda 

setting, especially in the environmental area. 

3. Critically analyze media events, fiction films and 

documentaries related to environmental issues. 

4. Describe and explain environmental NGOs’ media 

and communication strategies. 

5. Demonstrate understanding of the concepts, 

practices and dilemmas of environmental journalists. 

6. Demonstrate an awareness of sustainable practices 

in corporate and consumer behavior. 

7. Demonstrate understanding of and sensitivity to 

the core values and ethical stances regarding social, 

economic and environmental sustainability. 

8. Demonstrate understanding of the complex relationship 

of sustainability, information society, 

and social media. 


Media, Politics and the Environment 

In the 21st century, environmental problems (including global warming, widespread 

pollution, the shortage of fresh water, the mass extinction of animal and plant species, 

and genetic modification) move ever higher on the agenda of national and international 

politics. At the same time, we all gather information about these issues from the media 

(the Internet and social media, television, the press, radio), documentary films and 

movies. Utilizing a communication perspective, this course focuses on how the media 

present environmental issues and conflicts. 

First we explore different versions of environmentalism and related social movements. 

Then we focus on environmental communication: the concepts of media framing, 

agenda setting, campaigns, newsworthiness, news construction, and media events. We 

also discuss movies and documentaries with environmental themes, and the social impact 

they may have. Special attention is paid to communication strategies of environmental 

NGOs (e.g., Greenpeace), and environmental journalism. Finally, we address issues 

related to sustainability, consumption and the media. The course also features the 

screening of American, British and Chinese films with environmental themes. Class 

topics include: environmental problems and the power of the media; concepts of mass 

media; concepts in political ecology; environmental discourses; media and the environment; 

communication 

strategies of environmental 

NGOs; green politics and 

green political parties. We 

end the course by considering 

the question: is information 

society sustainable? 


Dr M. Sukosd 



Tel: 2241 5071 

Email: sukosd@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr M. Sukosd 



Tel: 2241 5071 

Email: sukosd@hku.hk 


111

112 

Global Issues 



Asante, M. K. (2007). The history of Africa: The quest for eternal 

harmony. New York; London: Routledge. 

Bodomo, A. B. (2010). The African trading community in 

Guangzhou: An emerging bridge for Africa-China relations. 

China Quarterly, 203(1), 693-707. 

Bodomo, A. B. (2012). Africans in China: A sociocultural study 

and its implications for Africa-China relations. New York: 

Cambria Press. 

Canvin, M. (2007). Language and education issues in policy 

and practice in Mali, West Africa. In N. Rassool, M. Canvin, 

K. Heugh & S. Mansoor (Eds.), Global issues in language, 

education, and development: Perspectives from postcolonial 

countries (pp. 157-186). Clevedon, UK; Tonawanda, NY: 

Multilingual Matters. 

Chepyator-Thomson, J. R. (2005). African women and 

globalization: Dawn of the 21st century. Trenton, NJ: Africa 

World Press. 

Collier, P. (1998). Globalization: Implications for Africa. In 

Z. Iqbal & M. S. Khan (Eds.), Trade reform and regional 

integration in Africa. Washington, DC: IMF Institute, 

International Monetary Fund. 

Cooper, F. (2001). What is the concept of globalization good 

for? An African historian’s perspective. African Affairs: The 

Journal of the Royal African Society, 100, 189-213. 

Liu, H. (2008). China-Africa relations through the prism of 

culture: The dynamics of China’s cultural diplomacy with 

Africa. Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, 37(3), 9-43. 

Murphy, D. (2007). Where does world music come from? 

Globalization, Afropop and the question of cultural identity. 

In I. D. Biddle & V. Knights (Eds.), Music, national identity 

and the politics of location: Between the global and the local (pp. 

39-61). Aldershot, UK; Burlington, VT: Ashgate. 

Rogerson, C. M. (1997). Globalization or informalization? 

African urban economies in the 1990s. In C. Rakodi (Ed.), 

The urban challenge in Africa: Growth and management of its 

large cities (pp. 337-370). Tokyo; New York: United Nations 


Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: Presentation 


Assessment: Debate 6 

Total: 138 



Class quizzes 20 

End of term essay 35 

Contribution in tutorials, online exercises 

and debates 30 

Fieldwork report 15 



1. Identify and describe the major global issues 

confronting Africa today. 

2. Critically assess both the positive and negative 

consequences of globalization for selected African 

societies and cultures. 

3. Compare the impact of globalization on African 

economic, political and socio-cultural developments 

with the consequences of globalization 

on their own society and culture. 

4. Identify and analyze the economic, political 

and socio-cultural implications of China’s investment 

in Africa. 


Globalization: African Experiences 

Globalization, in the broadest sense, is not new. When modern humans first walked out 

of Africa around 100,000 years ago they began the long road toward the globalized world 

of today. The African slave trade, which resulted in the greatest forced migration in history, 

profoundly shaped not only the development of African societies over the centuries 

but also the new economies and polities of the New World. The ensuing periods of 

European colonialism and imperialism brought Africa into yet closer interaction with a 

newer globalizing world. And the more recent involvement of emerging powers, particularly 

China, in Africa has extended its interaction within newer economic, political and 

cultural orbits of influence. Globalization, therefore, has always affected Africa, and its 

consequences provide us with a unique case study for understanding the complex processes, 

interactions, and relationships that characterize the contemporary world. 

This course examines the economic, social, political, environmental, and cultural dimensions 

of globalization from African perspectives. Major global issues such as democratic 

governance, inequalities of development, poverty eradication, conflict and war, disease 

control, climate change, financial crises, natural resource exploitation, and diasporization, 

cultural change, and appropriation will be illustrated and analyzed from the perspective 

of Africa’s experience of globalization. This approach, in turn, will throw light 

on the intricate, and often difficult, relations between global and local forces that typify 

the world today. 



School of Humanities (Linguistics/African 

Studies), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 8285 


Teacher(s) 


School of Humanities (Linguistics/African 

Studies), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 8285 



Global Issues 



Brock, G. (2009). Global justice: A cosmopolitan account. 

Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 5, 8] 

Jones, C. (1999). Global justice: Defending cosmopolitanism. 

Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 5-7] 

Singer, P. (2002). One world: The ethics of globalization. New 

Haven, CT; London: Yale University Press. [Chaps. 1-5] 

The United Nations General Assembly. (1948). Universal 

Declaration of Human Rights. From http://www.un.org/ 

en/documents/udhr/index.shtml 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 



Total: 149 



Term essay 70 


Thinking about Global Ethics 



1. Describe and explain some of the main global 

problems and some of the main theories about 

global justice intended to tackle these problems. 

2. Relate and apply these theories to specific 

cases and issues and to different phases in the 

development of the international order. 

3. Demonstrate an awareness of how normative 

debates can be connected with, affected by and 

impact upon political agendas. 

4. Identify certain advantages and limitations of 

the respective theories. 

5. Form an informed opinion and support it by 

argument. 


This course provides, against the background of some of the most significant global 

problems and concerns, an introduction into some of the main moral issues in international 

affairs, such as ethical universalism vs. particularism and cultural relativism; 

the (real or perceived) tension between nationalism or patriotism on the one hand and 

cosmopolitanism on the other; global distributive justice; moral issues in the context 

of pollution and climate change; individual responsibility in a global context; and the 

(real or perceived) tension between human rights and international (criminal) law on 

the one hand and national sovereignty/self-determination on the other. At the end of 

the course, students should have an overview of some of the most important debates 

about global ethics and be able to make use of some of the most advanced philosophical 

theories in assessing the issues involved. 


Dr U.B. Steinhoff 



Tel: 3917 1927 

Email: ustnhoff@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr U.B. Steinhoff 



Tel: 3917 1927 

Email: ustnhoff@hku.hk 


113

114 

Global Issues 



Allerfeldt, K. (2010). “And we got here first”: Albert Johnson, 

national origins and self-interest in the immigration 

debate of the 1920s. Journal of Contemporary History, 

45(1), 7-26. 

Castles, S., & Miller, M. J. (2009). International migration 

before 1945. The age of migration: International 

population movements in the modern world (4th ed., pp. 

79-95). Basingstoke, UK; New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

Davis, M. (2001). Late Victorian holocausts: El Niño famines 

and the making of the third world (pp. 1-59). London; New 

York: Verso. [Preface, A note on definitions & Chap. 1] 

Hsia, H. C. (2004). Internationalization of capital and 

the trade in Asian women: The case of foreign brides 

in Taiwan. In D. D. Aguilar & A. E. Lacsamana (Eds.), 

Women and globalization (pp. 181-229). Amherst, NY: 

Humanity Books. 

Martin, P. L. (1999). Guest worker policies: An international 

survey. In A. Bernstein & M. Weiner (Eds.), Migration 

and refugee policies: An overview (pp. 45-83). London; 

New York: Pinter. 

Nyíri, P., & Saveliev, I. R. (2002). Globalizing Chinese 

migration: Trends in Europe and Asia. Aldershot, UK: 

Ashgate. [2 selected chapters] 

Parnwell, M. (1993). Forms of population movements in the 

Third World. Population movements and the Third World 

(pp. 29-70). London: Routledge. 

Pecoud, A. (2009). The UN convention on migrant workers’ 

rights and international migration management. Global 

Society, 23(3), 333-350. 

Teschke, B. (2002). Theorizing the Westphalian system 

of states: International relations from absolutism to 

capitalism. European Journal of International Relations, 

8(1), 5-48. 

Vink, M. (2003). “The world’s oldest trade”: Dutch slavery 

and slave trade in the Indian Ocean in the seventeenth 

century. Journal of World History, 14(2), 131-177. 

Wells, S. (2002). The journey of man: A genetic odyssey. 


Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Group projects, collective research, 

presentations 20 


Assessment: In-class tests (incl preparation) 12 

Total: 160 




Group projects 30 


Globalization and Migration 



1. Demonstrate understanding of human and social 

developments in the movement of people across 

time, and articulate differences with its current 

forms in globalization. 

2. Demonstrate understanding of how seemingly 

far-off phenomena such as wars, famines, the dispossession 

of people or corruption in governance 

can have an effect on urban centers and urban 

lives. 

3. Identify types of human flows, and objectify their 

causes, motivations, nature, issues and debates in 

discourses of globalized human flows. 

4. Demonstrate understanding of the role of development 

and trade in producing surplus labor 

and dispossessed populations who migrate, and 

engage with the moral and political discourses 

shaping people flows across borders. 

5. Participate as active members of a diverse global 

community through exposure to issues of development 

and links that they will be encouraged to 

explore in their assignments. 

6. Engage in intensive group activities with their 

classmates in seeking solutions to existing problems 

in human flows. 


This course will introduce students to historical and contemporary perspectives of 

globalization and migration. There will be twelve lectures comprising three themes. In 

the first theme, Past and Present: Globalization and Migration as Historical Phenomena, 

human flows will be introduced in their historical contexts, including the impact of 

developments such as capitalism, colonialism and the emergence of nation states. The 

second theme, Migration: Forms, Causes and Social Issues, introduces the typologies 

of migratory flows and the barriers to these movements. The third theme, Global Governance 

and Civil Society, provides a framework for understanding migration from the 

individual level to the national level, and of relations between states. Students will be 

introduced to inter-governmental bodies and the agreements/conventions that regulate 

human flows, and the civil society movements for migrant populations. 


Dr A.S.C. Sim 



Tel: 3917 2058 

Email: asim@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr A.S.C. Sim 



Tel: 3917 2058 

Email: asim@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



CCGL9017 Food: Technology, Trade and Culture 


Several newspaper, popular science, business school case 

studies, website references, and other teaching resources 

will be prepared using up-to-date sources for each class 

session. Extensive use will be made of FAOSTAT, an 

agricultural production database from the United Nations. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 

Seminars 6.5 




Assessment: In-class test 1.5 

Total: 156 



Quizzes / Participation 10 

Proposal / Outline for essay 5 



Feeding the World 



1. Describe and explain the Green Revolution and 

its relationship to future improvements in agriculture 

through biotechnology. 

2. Demonstrate an understanding of the critical 

issues facing China’s struggle to feed itself. 

3. Discuss critically the fundamental relationships 

among energy supply, energy cost, and 

food production. 

4. Use newly developed skills to critically read, 

analyze and interpret media reports on food 

supply related topic. 

5. Demonstrate investigative skills by preparing 

an in-depth group investigation (resulting in 

a 30 minute presentation) using library databases 

and FAOStat production data. 

Lecture Time // First semester (Sat) 

Continuing human population increases, competition for water supplies, and concern 

about energy prices have led to profound pessimism about long-term food supplies. 

Already a billion people go hungry every day. This course offers an in-depth look at key 

issues in global food sufficiency, food production, food distribution, prospects and constraints. 

You will develop an integrated technical, economic and political understanding 

of the global food supply crisis. You will be equipped to understand and appreciate 

media reports related to this issue in your lives as informed and influential citizens. 

Topics covered will include: global food production and population trends; the special 

problem of China the world’s biggest producer and consumer of food; the Green Revolution; 

alternative agricultures; meat production; agriculture as an energy-intensive 

business; water and agriculture; and biofuels. 


Dr H. Corke 



Tel: 2299 0313 

Email: harold@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr H. Corke 



Tel: 2299 0313 





Tel: 2859 2160 

Email: phillips@hku.hk 


115

116 

Global Issues 



CCGL9016 Feeding the World 


Pomeranz, K., & Topik, S. (2006). The world that trade 

created: Society, culture, and the world economy, 1400 to 

the present (2nd ed.). Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 

Seminars 6 


Research and development of project 20 




Total: 152 





Short critical reports 10 

Project development 10 

Project outcome and presentation 30 




1. Describe and explain the origin, production, 

and processing of a range of key food materials 

and food products. 

2. Outline the history of global trade in selected 

food commodities and products, showing an 

understanding of how this impacted economic 

development and cultural change. 

3. Apply formal methodologies from sensory science 

to evaluating the organoleptic properties 

of food products. 

4. Appreciate the massive changes in the dietary 

culture of a “global city” such as Hong Kong 

over the past 30 years. 

5. Demonstrate the ability to investigate a topic 

within the subject matter of the course, and apply 

new methodologies and paradigms to summarize 

and present the results. 


Food: Technology, Trade and Culture 

Why do we eat what we eat? Where does the food come from? What makes for “desirability” 

or sensory quality in food? How and why did global trade develop around the 

production and shipping of food? What are the historical roots of the modern-day globalized 

food industry? This course will offer an in-depth look at key issues in the economic 

history of global trade in food, in processing foods for optimum quality, and the 

development of markets for new products. Examples will be drawn from commodities 

– such as salt, sugar or spices; major beverages – such as wine or coffee; and newly globalized 

products – such as pizza or chocolate. The major themes of the course are: 

• The historical development of food commodity trading 

• The globalization of food preferences 

• The definition, development and spread 

of “new” products 

• The understanding of some basic underlying 

technology/science in the production 

and processing of major foods. 


Dr H. Corke 



Tel: 2299 0313 


Teacher(s) 

Dr H. Corke 



Tel: 2299 0313 





Tel: 2859 2160 

Email: phillips@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



Berle, A. A., Jr. (1932). For whom corporate managers are 

trustees: A note. Harvard Law Review, 45(8), 1365-1372. 

Bowen, H. R. (1953). Social responsibilities of the 

businessman. New York: Harper & Row. [Selections] 

Coase, R. (1960). The problem of social cost. The Journal of 

Law and Economics, 3, 1-44. 

Dodd, E. M., Jr. (1932). For whom are corporate managers 

trustees? Harvard Law Review, 45(7), 1145-1163. 

Drucker, P. F. (1999). Management challenges for the 21st 

century. New York: HarperBusiness. 

Friedman, M. (1970, September 13). The social 

responsibility of business is to increase its profits. The 

New York Times Magazine. 

Hardin, G. (1968). The tragedy of the commons. Science, 

162(3859), 1243-1248. 

Hardin, G. (1998). Extensions of ‘The tragedy of the 

commons’. Science, 280(5364), 682-683. 

Hiltzik, M. (2009, December 31). Peter Drucker’s 

revolutionary teachings decades old but still fresh. Los 

Angeles Times. 

Olson, M. (1971). The logic of collective action: Public goods 

and the theory of groups. Cambridge, MA: Harvard 

University Press. [Selections] 

Ostrom, E., Burger, J., Field, C. B., Norgaard, R. B., & 

Policansky, D. (1999). Sustainability − Revisiting the 

commons: Local lessons, global challenges. Science, 

284(5412), 278-282. 

Pigouvian Tax. In Wikipedia. From http://en.wikipedia.org/ 

wiki/Pigovian_tax 

Sheldon, O. (1923). The philosophy of management. London: 

Pitman. [Selections] 

Stigler, G. (1971). The theory of economic regulation. Bell 

Journal of Economics and Management Science, 3, 3-18. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Group work (preparation for debates) 24 

Debate and case/data analysis essays 30 


Total: 152 



Debate and case/analysis essays 50 

Class test 50 



1. Demonstrate a heuristic understanding of economic 

concepts relevant to analyzing CSR issues. 

2. Understand, analyze and critically interpret 

cases and examples of issues in corporate social 

responsibility using the relevant economic 

concepts. 

3. Reflect upon the interactions between economic 

and political dimensions of corporate social 

responsibility issues and their moral dilemmas. 


and reflect upon the relationship between issues 

of corporate social responsibility affecting 

businesses and its broader relationship with 

the nature of society and duties of citizenship. 


Corporate Social Responsibility 

In this course, the idea that corporations have social responsibility beyond maximizing 

shareholder value is examined from two competing perspectives. The market failure 

conception sees corporate behavior as voluntary responses to market failures that 

are not adequately corrected by state action alone and is therefore complementary to 

the market. Students study the central arguments of Peter Drucker on why businesses 

should embrace responsibility for the impact of their activities on their communities, 

environment, consumers, employees, and all other members of the public sphere. The 

government failure conception of corporate social responsibility sees it as a reaction 

to an interventionist state captured by interest groups. Milton Friedman and George 

Stigler made the case that in a free society the primary, if not sole, social responsibility 

of corporations is to maximize profits. Social action is seen as advocacy for special interests 

that have conflicting loyalties to local, national and global constituencies. Their 

actions are viewed as misguided and worst as advancing special interests that are socially 

harmful to the broader social interest. Through the study of examples, the course 

examines the adequacy of these two conceptions in explaining the behavior of corporations. 

Students examine well known issues like, global warming, pollution, contagious 

diseases, public security, consumer product safety, employee satisfaction, and the extinction 

of animal species. 


Professor R.Y.C. Wong 

School of Economics and Finance, 

Faculty of Business and Economics 

Tel: 2859 1122 

Email: rycwong@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 2859 1122 



117

118 

Global Issues 



Bhagwati, J. (2004). In defense of globalization. Auckland: 


Stiglitz, J. E. (2003). Globalization and its discontents. New 

York: W. W. Norton. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 

Reading / Self-study / Preparation for tutorials 50 

Assessment: Group report writing 18 



Total: 122 




Tutorials 20 



Economic Globalization: 

Issues and Challenges 



1. Discuss the economic, social, institutional, 

technological and other underlying forces that 

drive globalization. 

2. Apply basic economic concepts to understand 

the economic benefits and costs of globalization. 

3. Analyze the pros and cons of economic globalization 

on different stakeholders from multiple 

perspectives, such as economic, social, and political 

economy. 

4. Evaluate the impact of economic globalization 

on the conflict between nations, social classes, 

and how international organizations mitigate 

or aggravate such conflicts. 

5. Demonstrate a sense of global citizenship and 

social responsibility. 


Globalization is a buzzword that means different things to different people. This 

course is about the economic dimensions of globalization. It refers to the integration 

of national economies into the world economy through trade, investment, finance, 

technological transfer and labor movement. Globalization has created not only winners 

and losers but also new economic issues for humankind. The costs and benefits of 

globalization to individuals, firms, and governments are intertwined and complex. The 

aim of this course is to provide a clear, coherent and holistic roadmap for students to 

understand the economic issues and challenges of globalization and how the latter affect 

the interests of various stakeholders in the world economy. 


Dr Y.F. Luk 



Tel: 2859 1050 

Email: yfluk@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr Y.F. Luk 



Tel: 2859 1050 



Global Issues 



Ghosh, A. (2010, March 25). Climate, trade and global 

governance in the midst of an economic crisis. Briefing 

at a public hearing on global governance, European 

Parliament, Brussels. 

Hardin, G. (1968). The tragedy of the commons. Science, 

162(3859), 1243-1248. 

Hardin, G. (1998). Extensions of “The tragedy of the 

commons”. Science, 280(5364), 682-683. 

Najam, A., & Halle, M. (2010, May). Global environmental 

governance: The challenge of accountability. Sustainable 

Development Insights. The Frederick S. Pardee Center for 

the Study of the Longer-range Future, Boston University. 

Sax, J. (1971). Defending the environment: A strategy for 

citizen action. New York: A. Knopf. [Selections] 

Siebert, H. (2008). Economics of the environment: Theory 

and policy. Berlin; New York: Springer. [Selections] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 




Total: 120 



Term paper 50 

Participation in tutorials/group discussions 20 

Produce and present a PowerPoint 30 



1. Describe and explain the institutional framework 

of economic globalization and how it affects 

the environment. 

2. Critically evaluate previous and current international 

efforts to address environment issues 

at a global level in the light of the concepts introduced 

in the course. 

3. Contribute actively to solving global environmental 

issues. 


Environment, Globalization, and the Law 

Globalization is a process under which economies, societies, and cultures are integrated 

through a worldwide network. Environmental protections together with other 

shared objectives in the face of globalization pose fundamental challenges to humankind 

in the 21st century and need to be addressed. In this course, students will develop 

an understanding of environmental issues arising from economic globalization and 

how they are addressed by global governance and international conventions. Course 

topics include: (i) Theoretical framework from a layperson’s perspective – externality, 

the tragedy of the commons, Coase Theorem and public good; (ii) Pollution, deforestation, 

hazardous substances, and climate change; (iii) Globalization: economic, political, 

and legal dimensions; (iv) Global governance: international conventions and treaties 

on environment; (v) Trade and environment: WTO Agreement and environmental protection; 

(vi) Regulating the environment: law and policy, tax, and economic incentives. 


Professor B.F.C. Hsu 

Department of Real Estate and Construction, 


Tel: 2859 8064 

Email: bhsu@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor B.F.C. Hsu 



Tel: 2859 8064 

Email: bhsu@hku.hk 


119

120 

Global Issues 



Hall, C. M. (1994). Tourism and politics: Policy, power, and 

place. Chichester, UK: Wiley. 

Ioannides, D., & Debbage, K. G. (Eds.). (1998). The economic 

geography of the tourist industry: A supply-side analysis. 

London: Routledge. 

Meethan, K. (2001). Tourism in global society: Place, 

culture, consumption. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave. 

Sharpley, R., & Telfer, D. J. (Eds.). (2002). Tourism and 

development: Concepts and issues. Clevendon, UK: 

Channel View Publications. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Seminars 6 





Total: 120 





Issue papers 30 


Globalization and Tourism 



1. Describe and explain theories of globalization, 

and apply them to an understanding of the social, 

economic and political organization of the 

international tourism system. 

2. Comprehend and evaluate the changing relationships 

between states, civil society and 

markets, and their influence on the relations of 

power and inequality in international tourism. 

3. Use relevant information about globalization to 

evaluate the influence of international tourism 

on economic development, employment, migration 

and notions of citizenship in global society. 

4. Identify and devise effective strategies to regulate 

processes of tourism development that are 

compatible with notions of social justice and 

fair trade, particularly in poorer regions and 

states. 

5. Apply intellectual skills with particular emphasis 

on the analysis, synthesis and evaluation 

of ideas, concepts and theories relevant to the 

study of globalization and tourism. 


The issue of whether globalization is beneficial remains controversial, particularly 

because globalization policies are often examined without consideration of their 

interactions with key sectors of economy, notably tourism. Tourism is arguably the 

world’s largest industry and has been considered as an economic development option 

by many developing countries. However, it 

is questionable whether income generated 

through tourism can bring marginalized 

communities increased economic independence 

and life standards. This course 

aims to use tourism as a lens to explore key 

issues of globalization and economic development 

and how tourism, a global phenomenon, 

influences local people’s lives. Course 

objectives are to 1) introduce the concepts 

relevant to tourism and globalization; 2) apply 

theoretical frameworks to the analysis 

of contemporary issues of the globalization 

of tourism, and the complex relationships 

that link local, regional, national and international 

processes and patterns of tourism 

development; 3) explore the dynamic relationship 

between the forces of globalization, 

transnational tourism corporations, and the 

state and civil society in the context of tourism; 

and 4) assess critically the economic, 

political and social ramifications of the 

systemic sources of power and inequality 

which are reflected in and sustained by international 

tourism, for all actors involved 

in the international tourism system. 


Dr T.C.H. Tao 



Tel: 3917 2841 

Email: c2tao@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr T.C.H. Tao 



Tel: 3917 2841 

Email: c2tao@hku.hk 

Dr Y.P. Li 



Tel: 3917 2837 

Email: liyiping@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



Excerpts from: 

Castells, M. (2007). Mobile communication and society: A 

global perspective: A project of the Annenberg Research 

Network on international communication. Cambridge, 

MA: MIT Press. 

Diebert, R. (Ed.). (2008). Access denied: The practice and 

policy of global Internet filtering. Cambridge, MA: MIT 

Press. 

Lessig, L. (2009). Code 2.0. New York: Basic Books. 

Nakamura, L. (2008). Digitizing race: Visual cultures of the 

Internet. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota 

Press. 

Palfrey, J., & Gasser, U. (2008). Born digital: Understanding 

the first generation of digital natives. New York: Basic 

Books. 

Solove, D. (2008). The future of reputation: Gossip, rumor 

and privacy on the Internet. New Haven, CT: Yale 


Thussu, D. K. (2007). News as entertainment: The rise of 

global infotainment. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. 

Zittrain, J. (2009). The future of the Internet and how to stop 

it. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Group debates 12 




Total: 120 




Research project and written paper 30 



Group debates and presentations 15 

Quizzes 10 


Internet, Media and Society 



1. Describe and explain the history and global 

development of the Internet with its myriad 

impacts on the daily personal lives of individuals 

around the world. 

2. Identify and analyze the prevailing practices 

of institutional and individual Internet users, 

including those who have created changes or 

controversies in society. 

3. Understand and appraise fundamental ethical 

and legal principles, including areas such as 

freedom of speech, privacy, defamation, copyright 

and obscenity, and how they affect Internet 

users. 

4. Analyze how key local and transnational regulatory 

developments, including in Greater China, 

are changing the nature and use of the Internet 

worldwide. 

5. Apply knowledge to increase users’ online 

literacy and thus enhance comprehension and 

effective use of the Internet. 


This course will explore the history and global impact of the Internet, how it is reshaping 

individual and mass communications worldwide and how these globalizing 

changes affect the personal, social, cultural and economic aspects of the daily lives of 

its users. Course elements will also provide an overview of how Internet users are affected 

by growing efforts internationally to control the Internet in the wake of moral 

controversies such as cyberbullying, hate speech and sex photo scandals, as well as the 

objectives and strategies of key stakeholders in those efforts. A critical examination 

of the duties and responsibilities of users as global citizens within ethical and legal 

frameworks will enhance students’ abilities to assert their rights, to respect those of 

others and to build on their capacity to promote quality dialogue and critical reflection 

of important topics. 





Tel: 2219 4000 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 2219 4000 


Mr M. Kajimoto 



Tel: 2219 4005 

Email: kajimoto@hku.hk 


121

122 

Global Issues 



Evans, N. (2010). Dying words: Endangered languages 

and what they have to tell us. Chichester, UK: Wiley- 

Blackwell. 

Kymlicka, W., & He, B. (Eds.). (2005). Multiculturalism in 

Asia. Oxford: Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 2, 3, 5, 13] 

Nettle, D., & Romaine, S. (2000). Vanishing voices: The 

extinction of the world’s languages. New York: Oxford 


Simpson, A. (Ed.). (2007). Language and national identity in 

Asia. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 

6, 7, 8, 17] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 



Independent research and fact-finding tasks 15 



Total: 129 




Fieldwork diary 40 

Oral participation 20 



1. Demonstrate an awareness of linguistic diversity 

in human history. 

2. Critically examine the discourse of linguistic 

endangerment and revitalization and its foundations. 

3. Identify and explain the challenges that modernity 

poses to diversity. 

4. Demonstrate critical evaluation of the politics 

of diversity in multilingual societies, in particular 

educational policies. 

5. Describe and discuss the relationship between 

language and identity at the individual and societal 

level. 


The Life and Death of Languages: 

Diversity, Identity and Globalization 

This course critically examines the issue of endangered languages, with particular focus 

on the role of globalization, ethnic identity and language policies in the life and death 

of languages. Since ancient times, population movements, war and trade have affected 

the ways in which different languages have fared. Western colonization of many parts 

of the world brought about drastic changes in the ecology of languages, in particular a 

dramatic decrease in diversity. The distribution of languages in the world today reveals 

that 78% of humans today express themselves in one of 85 large languages, while the 

remaining groups of humans speak over 5,000 different minor languages. Why is there 

such an imbalance? The fact that a few global languages represent modern and powerful 

nations while thousands of small languages usually represent indigenous and marginalized 

groups leads to a discourse of endangerment in which a threatened language 

requires ‘saving’ or revitalization efforts. Others argue that the demands of modernity 

and globalization challenge this view. Who is right? In this course students are led to 

a deeper examination of the political, cultural and educational forces that shape the 

destiny of languages, so as to be able to more insightfully discuss the tension between 

preservation and modernization of human cultural heritage in modern society. 


Dr U. Ansaldo 



Tel: 3917 2872 


Teacher(s) 

Dr U. Ansaldo 



Tel: 3917 2872 



Global Issues 



CCGL9005 Poverty, Development, and the Next Generation: 

Challenges for a Global World 


Bhagwati, J. N. (2004). In defense of globalization. New York: 

Oxford University Press. [Note: There is a new paperback 

edition ‘with a new afterword’.] 

Lal, D. (2000). The poverty of ‘development economics’. 


Rodrik, D. (2007). One economics, many recipes: 

Globalization, institutions, and economic growth. 


Secondi, G. (Ed.). (2008). The development economics reader. 

London; New York: Routledge. [Selections] 

Stiglitz, J. E. (2002). Globalization and its discontents. New 

York: W. W. Norton. 

Study Load 


Lectures 28 

Tutorials 8 


Group work (preparation for debates) 24 

Assessment: Debate and case/data analysis essays 30 


Total: 152 



Debate and case/data analysis essays 50 





key economic concepts and ideas through applying 

them to quantitative data on growth and 

poverty across the world and over time. 


and reflect upon interacting economic and political 

dimensions of growth and poverty. 


and reflect upon the outcomes for growth and 

poverty comparing socialist versus capitalist 

economies and open versus closed economies 

through the study of cases and examples in 

history. 


and reflect upon the relationship between issues 

of growth and poverty and its broader relationship 

with human development. 

Lecture Time // Frist semester (Sat) 

The Political Economy of Growth and 

Poverty in the World 

Globalization has been criticized for failing to bring prosperity for all and blamed for 

the poverty that has continued to exist, if not worsened. This course examines the empirical 

evidence for these claims. It develops and applies economic concepts to understand 

how growth and poverty as development outcomes are affected by the economic 

and political processes within and among nations. The role of trade, migration, capital 

flows, and technology are studied as global market processes that affect growth and 

poverty. The behavior of the state in promoting development, regulating economic activities, 

and as an agent for corporate and special interest groups is examined critically 

for its affects on growth and poverty. 

The course helps students to: 

(1) gain an understanding of why some nations succeed to grow and others remain poor; 

(2) learn why prosperity within and across nations is not equally shared; 

(3) understand the interplay of the state and the market in affecting growth and 

poverty; and 

(4) attain a critical appreciation of why different individuals and groups support or 

oppose globalization. 

Students are introduced to examples 

of how political processes in 

one nation can impact development 

outcomes in another nation. 

They study how political processes 

interacting with economic processes 

at local, national, and global 

levels can lead to great variations 

in development outcomes. 





Tel: 2859 1122 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 2859 1122 



123

124 

Global Issues 



CCGL9002 Hong Kong Culture in the Context of Globalization 


Castells, M. (1996). The rise of the network society. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers. 

Chang, L. T. (2008). Factory girls: From village to city in a changing China. New York: Spiegel & Grau. 

Civic Party. (2009). An action agenda for Hong Kong’s green new deal. Hong Kong: Civic Party. 

Committee on Climate Change, Great Britain. (2008). Building a low-carbon economy: The UK’s 

contribution to tackling climate change. London: TSO. 

Dodman, D. (2009). Blaming cities for climate change? An analysis of urban greenhouse gas emissions 

inventories. Environment and Urbanization, 21(1), 185-201. 

Ferguson, N. (2008). The ascent of money: A financial history of the world. New York: Penguin Press. 

Gereffi, G., Humphrey, J., & Sturgeon, T. (2005). The governance of global value chains. Review of 

International Political Economy, 12(1), 78-104. 

Marar, P., Iyer, B. S., & Brahme, U. (2009). HSBC brings a business model of banking to the doorsteps 

of the poor. Global Business and Organizational Excellence, 28, 15-26. 

Ramirez, H., & Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2009). Mexican immigrant gardeners: Entrepreneurs or 

exploited workers? Social Problems, 56(1), 70-88. 

Sachs, W. (2004). Environment and human rights. Development, 47(1), 42-49. 

Seghezzo, L. (2009). The five dimensions of sustainability. Environmental Politics, 18(4), 539-556. 

Stiglitz, J. E. (2003). Dealing with debt: How to reform the global financial system. Harvard 

International Review, 25. 

Wang, T., & Watson, J. (2007). Who owns China’s carbon emissions? (Tyndall Centre Briefing Note 

No. 23). Sussex, UK: Tyndall Centre. 

Study Load 


Think Global, Act Local: 

You, Hong Kong, and the World 

The catchphrase, “Think global, act local,” has 

become widespread in the last two decades, 

as global connections have vastly expanded 

while the local context is increasingly recognized 

to be crucial in efforts to improve 

the world. Given the increasing complexity 

and interconnectedness of the contemporary 

world, it is important for each of us to understand 

how we are linked to the multitude 

of people and places in it, and what impacts 

our actions have on them. This course covers 

six topics – trade, consumption, 

labor, the carbon 

economy, finance, and sustainable 

development – in 

the context of Hong Kong 

and the world. In each topic 

we first connect examples 

from lives in Hong Kong to 

the rest of the world. Then, 

we will use related academic 

theories to understand 

how changes in our lives in 

Hong Kong can change the 

world. Students who have 

taken the course should be 

able to answer both ‘big’ 

questions related to the 

global economy as well as 

seemingly ‘simple’ questions 

about everyday life, 

about the consequences of 

actions like recycling, buying 

organic food or wearing 

acid-washed jeans. 


Professor B.S. Tang 

Department of Urban Planning and Design, 


Tel: 2859 2721 

Email: bsbstang@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor B.S. Tang 



Tel: 2859 2721 

Email: bsbstang@hku.hk 



able to: 

1. Explain the way global trade and the 

global financial system works and 

describe the impact economic globalization 

has had on labor migration, consumption, 

carbon economy and sustainable 

development. 

2. Reflect on and discuss the ways you and 

Hong Kong impact and are impacted by 

the global economy and environment. 

3. Identify actions that could be taken to 

remedy negative impacts you might 

have on the world. 

4. Distinguish and weigh trade-offs of different 

courses of action to ameliorate 

negative impacts or enhance positive 

impacts. 

5. Choose some small (or large) actions to 

take to contribute to sustainable development. 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Assessment: Worksheet 4 

Assessment: Audit of possessions 4 

Assessment: Written reflections 9 

Total: 138 





Presentations 25 

Worksheet 10 

Written reflections 5 

Written analysis and reflections 10 



Global Issues 



Albanese, J. S. (2011). Transnational crime and the 

21st century: Criminal enterprise, corruption, and 

opportunity. Oxford University Press, USA. 

Andreas, P., & Nadelmann, E. (2006). Policing the globe: 

Criminalization and crime control in international 

relations. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. 

Friman, R. (Ed.). (2009). Crime and the global political 

economy. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers. 

Glenny, M. (2008). McMafia: A journey through the global 

criminal underworld. VintageBooks USA. 

Naaim, M. (2005). Illicit: How smugglers, traffickers and 

copycats are hijacking the global economy. New York: 

Doubleday. 

Ruggerio, R. (Ed.). (2008). Transnational crime: Globalizing 

and adapting. New York: Nova Science Publishers. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Documentary video viewing 12 



Assessment: In-class assessment (unseen paper) 2 

Total: 135 





In-class assessment 30 

Research essays 35 



1. Demonstrate an understanding of the literature 

on the illicit global economy and its linkages to 

transnational crime in the global era. 

2. Appraise the constraints, dilemmas and quandaries 

facing nation-states and international institutions 

in their dealings with the illicit activities 

in the globalized age and reflect upon the challenges 

posed for global democratic governance. 

3. Critically question and reflect upon existing 

ethical judgments about illicit activities and 

their actual functionality in host societies. 

4. Comprehend the tensions between state actions 

and criminal entrepreneurship and the ambiguous 

moral areas of state-sanctioned illegal covert 

activities. 

5. Identify the implications of global criminal 

activities and how they relate to the Hong Kong 

society and in turn how local criminal activities 

have worldwide repercussions. 


Criminal Organizations, Clandestine 

Globalization and the Illicit World 

Political Economy 

Globalization has provided expansionist opportunities for less-than-honest entrepreneurs, 

criminal organizations and outlawed radical groups worldwide. Illicit and 

illegal flows of goods, services, information, money and even people cross national 

borders each day. These flows represent the shadowy side of globalization and signify a 

real if understudied dimension of the global economy – that of the illicit world political 

economy. This course introduces students to this facet of globalization that pertains 

to organized crime, radical terrorist cells and covert groups. The course first provides 

the students with a conceptual and theoretical introduction. It then goes on to present 

an empirical survey of various activities within the illicit world political economy in 

relation to globalization. By inviting students to consider selected case studies on the 

trafficking and trade of illicit goods such as weaponry, drugs, credit card numbers and 

human organs, as well as illicit services such as money laundering and counterfeiting, 

students are encouraged to reflect on how these activities are intricately linked to their 

local lives, and the opportunities and challenges these issues present for global governance 

and economic development of the societies they live in. 


Dr V.E.L. Teo 


(Japanese Studies), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 5925 

Email: victorteo@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr V.E.L. Teo 



Tel: 3917 5925 



125

126 

Global Issues 



The following cases and reading materials will be assigned. 

The list will be updated as deemed appropriate. 

Chakravorti, B. (2010). Letting no serious crisis go to 

waste: Innovation and entrepreneurship after the Great 

Recession. Harvard Business Multimedia CDROM. 

Mathis, J., Tuzzolino, F., & Ramaswamy, V. (2011). Global 

financial crises and the future of securitization. Harvard 

Business School Case. 

Moss, D., & Bolton, C. (2011). Fighting a dangerous financial 

fire: The federal response to the crisis of 2007-2009. 

Harvard Business School Case. 

Narayanan, V. G., Ferri, F., & Brem, L. (2010). The Credit 

Crisis of 2008: An overview. Harvard Business School 

Case. 

Pill, H., Di Tella, R., & Schlefer, J. (2008). Financial Crisis in 

Asia: 1997-1998. Harvard Business School Case. 

Roscini, D., Schlefer, J., & Dimitriou, K. (2011). The Greek 

Crisis: Tragedy or opportunity. Harvard Business School 

Case. 

Rotembery, J. J. (2008). Subprime meltdown: American 

housing and global financial turmoil. Harvard Business 

School Case. 

Segel, A. I., & Creo, B. (2010). Understanding the Credit 

Crisis of 2007-2008. Harvard Business School 

Background Note. 

Steil, B. (2009, March). Lessons of the Financial Crisis 

(Council Special Report No. 45). Center for Geoeconomic 

Studies, Council on Foreign Relations. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Video viewing 10 

Assessment: Individual report on group project 10 

Assessment: Group presentation of group project 20 

Assessment: Case summaries and homework 20 

Assessment: Take-home test 4 

Total: 150 



Class participation and tutorial discussions 10 

Homework and case summaries 20 


Individual report on group project 20 

Take-home test 30 



1. Describe the socio-economic background and 

the possible causes for the financial crisis and 

explain how the crisis through the different 

financial and economic channels can reinforce 

itself and affect other economies in the world. 

2. Formulate critical questions and reflections 

regarding issues of economic development 

against an understanding that very often our 

efforts to respond to one problem might lay the 

foundations for the next. 

3. Critically evaluate the effectiveness of the 

various government policies for the rescue of 

the faltering economy and assess how these 

policies in one country can impact others in the 

global economy. 

4. Demonstrate understanding that the elimination 

of crises, if possible at all, is very costly and 

hence why crises will almost certainly recur. 

5. Assess how the current crisis will form and 

shape the future path of growth and development 

for the global economy. 


Understanding the Financial Crisis 

As a subprime mortgage crisis that started in America in 2008, the crisis speedily mutated 

into a “systemic risk” threatening the financial system of every advanced and 

emerging economy. The financial contagion quickly exacerbated the impact of the crisis 

by transmitting the financial shocks through the interlinked financial markets to 

the whole global economy. 

Sooner than expected, millions of people in America, Europe and even China lost their 

jobs and fell into poverty. Almost overnight the entire investment banking industry 

worldwide was wiped out. The crisis that started out in America has turned into the 

worst global economic crisis since the Great Depression. 

Understanding the Financial Crisis aims to bring to students an exploratory account of 

the crisis and an understanding of the conceptual underpinnings of the issues that lie 

at the heart of it. The course will focus on how the current financial crisis began, how 

it developed, how the different countries dealt with it with their own politico-economic 

means and measures, what are the effects on people, and what is its implication for 

the global economy, and its broader ramifications for our society. 


Dr K.S. Tse 



Tel: 2857 8636 

Email: ktse@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr K.S. Tse 



Tel: 2857 8636 

Email: ktse@hku.hk 


Global Issues 




Hisrich, R. (2010). International entrepreneurship: Starting, 

developing, and managing a global venture. Los Angeles: 

Sage Publications. 

Landes, D., Mokyr, J., & Baumol, W. (Eds.). (2010). The 

invention of enterprise: Entrepreneurship from ancient 

Mesopotamia to modern times. Princeton: Princeton 


Salkowitz, R. (2010). Young world rising: How youth 

technology and entrepreneurship are changing the world 

from the bottom up. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. 

Westhead, P., Wright, M., & McElwee, G. (Eds.). (2011). 

Entrepreneurship: Perspectives and cases. London: FT 


Isenberg, D. (2007, June 5). Bert Twaalfhoven: The 

successes and failures of a global entrepreneur. Harvard 

Business Review. [Case study] 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 12 

Fieldwork / Visits / Guest speaker 5 





Assessment: Class discussion 10 


Total: 122 



Class contribution 30 

Case summaries and reports 30 

Project 20 




able to: 

1. Assess the global market and evaluate 

business and social opportunities from 

a novel point of view concurrent with 

the technological trends. 

2. Develop the awareness and understanding 

for the relevant social factors 

in different cultural environments. 

3. Evaluate the effectiveness of the social 

media tools in reaching different 

market segments and promoting social 

equality and justice. 


Entrepreneurship: 

Global and Social Development 

This course introduces entrepreneurship from historical, global, and social perspectives. 

It aims to provide a basic understanding of entrepreneurship and to guide students 

to embrace the fundamental changes occurring in both the business communities 

and society. Students will learn about the history of entrepreneurship in ancient 

civilizations, which will help students develop an objective and balanced view on entrepreneurship. 

Furthermore, the course brings in the modern elements by examining 

the evolution of entrepreneurship with the proliferation of information technology 

and economic globalization. This is important for motivating students to deepen their 

understanding about entrepreneurship and its connection with global phenomena. 

Lastly, students will be guided to think about entrepreneurship in the context of social 

enterprise. It is particularly relevant to acknowledge ways to leverage successful business 

models to address social and environmental concerns. The course links historical 

and societal interests with business strategies, which have critical implications far beyond 

profitability. 


Dr Y. Zheng 

School of Business, 


Tel: 2859 1026 

Email: yzheng@business.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor A.F. Farhoomand 

School of Business, Faculty of Business and Economics 

Tel: 2859 7069 

Email: ali@business.hku.hk 

Dr M. Lin 


Tel: 2219 4220 

Email: linm@hku.hk 

Professor S.S.K. Lam 


Tel: 2859 1008 

Email: simonlam@business.hku.hk 

Dr Y. Zheng 


Tel: 2859 1026 

Email: yzheng@business.hku.hk 


127

128 

Global Issues 



Botero, J., Nelson, R., & Pratt, C. (2011). Indices and 

indicators of justice, governance and the rule of law: An 

overview. Hague Journal on the Rule of Law, 3(2), 153- 

169. 

Chibundu, M. (1999). Globalizing the rule of law: Some 

thoughts at and on the periphery. Indiana Journal of 

Global Legal Studies, 7(1), 79-116. 

Grimm, D. (2011). Levels of the rules of law on the possibility 

of exporting a Western achievement. European-Asian 

Journal of Law and Governance, 1(1), 5-11. 

Heydebrand, W. (2001). From globalization of law to law 

under globalization. In D. Nelken & J. Feest (Eds.), 

Adapting legal cultures. Oxford: Hart Pub. 

Samford, C. (2005). Reconceiving the rule of law for a 

globalizing world. In S. Zifcak (Ed.), Globalization and the 

rule of law. London: Routledge. 

Tamanaha, B. (2004). On the rule of law: History, politics, 

theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Chaps. 

3, 4, 5] 

Walker, G. de Q. (1988). The rule of law: Foundation of 

constitutional democracy. Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne 


World Justice Forum (2010). The WJP Rule of Law Index 

(Version 3.0). From http://www.worldjusticeproject. 

org/sites/default/files/Rule%20of%20Law%202010_1_ 

page_text.pdf 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 



Assessment: Electronic portfolio 45 

Assessment: Worksheets 12 

Assessment: Research paper 30 

Total: 157 



Worksheets 50 

Portfolio 20 

Research paper 30 



1. Demonstrate understanding of the basic concepts 

of law, the Rule of Law and globalization. 

2. Describe the evolution of the principle of the 

Rule of Law in western societies and explain the 

impact of globalization in influencing the developmental 

path of the Rule of Law in non-western 

societies. 

3. Illustrate the different levels of the Rule of Law 

and the institutions needed to achieve the goals 

of each of the levels and the cultural conditions 

for each of the levels. 

4. Compare and analyze different methods used in 

ascertaining the level of the Rule of Law attained 

by a political community. 

5. Review the multi-dimensional relationships between 

law and globalization. 


Rule of Law in a Globalizing World 

The footprint of the Rule of Law, as an ideology of law, can be found throughout the 

world in almost all domestic jurisdictions as well as international governance bodies. 

The Rule of Law can be expressed as different levels depending on the ultimate goals 

in introducing the Rule of Law in a society. With a different goal, the demands on the 

legal institutions to implement the Rule of Law are also different. 

Understanding the Rule of Law as different levels also provides a framework to understand 

how the Rule of Law is being globalized. For non-western societies aiming to 

develop the Rule of Law, owing to their different historical, political, economic, social 

and cultural contexts, the specific level of the Rule of Law 

that they aim to sustain or achieve and the form and 

manner of the legal institutions operating to implement 

the Rule of Law may be different from western 

societies. The development of the Rule of 

Law in these societies also does not necessarily 

follow the same sequence as in the West. 

This course aims to explore the developmental 

processes of the Rule of Law in 

different societies under globalization. 


Mr B.Y.T. Tai 


Tel: 3917 2937 

Email: yttai@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Mr B.Y.T. Tai 


Tel: 3917 2937 



Global Issues 



Reading materials, i.e. articles, review papers, white papertype 

reports will be provided on a weekly basis. Current 

issue related course reading materials may change and will 

be provided accordingly. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 121 



Essay 25 

Group multimedia presentation 25 

Group debate 20 




1. Describe and explain the technological development 

of nuclear, chemical and biological 

WMD and their application in conflicts. 

2. Identify and evaluate the relationship between 

WMD producers and proliferators and how globalization 

has impacted these relationships. 

3. Evaluate key components of recent nuclear test 

ban treatises and describe what type of technology 

is used for compliance monitoring. 

4. Discuss how proliferation networks of nuclear, 

chemical and biological WMD differ and how 

non-state actors seek to acquire WMD. 

5. Identify and analyze potential worst-case 

WMD attack scenarios and develop appropriate 

response strategies. 


Weapons of Mass Destruction: 

Science, Proliferation and Terrorism 

Weapons of mass destruction (WMD), i.e. nuclear, chemical and biological, comprise 

the most destructive and lethal weapons ever developed by humankind. Given that 

these weapons pose a severe threat to the survivability of humanity, increasing our 

understanding of their development, deterrent potential, reduction and more recently, 

the threat posed by proliferation networks as well as terrorist groups is of utmost importance. 

This course will start with the historical development of WMD and will be 

followed by a discussion of the underlying physical principles involved in WMD technology 

as well as biological and medical effects of nuclear weapons and other weapons 

of mass destructions. We will then draw students’ attention to the political and philosophical 

aspects of weapons of mass destruction, 

the current spread of WMD technology 

and non-proliferation treaties that aim to 

regulate and reduce WMD proliferation. We 

will also take a close look at the evolution of 

WMD proliferation networks, the emergence 

of nuclear terrorism and the consequences of 

terror-networks acquiring WMD materials. 

Finally, we will end this course with an important 

question: can the world move towards 

the complete disarmament of all WMD and 

would such a goal be desirable? 


Dr K.H. Lemke 



Tel: 2241 5474 

Email: kono@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr K.H. Lemke 



Tel: 2241 5474 

Email: kono@hku.hk 

Dr Y. Chiu 



Tel: 3917 1926 

Email: yvchiu@hku.hk 


129

130 

Global Issues 



Bacon-Shone, J., & Bolton, K. (2008). Bilingualism and 

multilingualism in the HKSAR: Language surveys and 

Hong Kong’s changing linguistic profile. In K. Bolton & 

H. Yang (Eds.), Language in society in Hong Kong (pp. 25- 

51). Hong Kong: Open University of Hong Kong Press. 

Bolton, K. (2002). The sociolinguistics of Hong Kong and 

the space for Hong Kong English. In K. Bolton (Ed.), Hong 

Kong English: Autonomy and creativity (pp. 29-56). Hong 

Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 

Crystal, D. (2003). English as a global language. Cambridge, 

UK: Cambridge University Press. [Chaps. 1, 5] 

Jenkins, J. (2009). World Englishes: A resource book for 

students (2nd ed.). London; New York: Routledge. [Units 

A1, A3, A4, B3, B6, B8, C7 and C8] 

Li, D. C. S. (2002). Cantonese-English code-switching 

research in Hong Kong: A survey of recent research. 

In K. Bolton (Ed.), Hong Kong English: Autonomy 

and creativity (pp. 79-100). Hong Kong: Hong Kong 


Li, D. C. S. (2009). Towards “biliteracy and trilingualism” in 

Hong Kong (SAR): Problems, dilemma and stakeholders’ 

views. In L. Lim & E. Low (Eds.), Multilingual, globalizing 

Asia: Implications for policy and education (AILA Review 

22) (pp. 72-84). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing. 

Lim, L. (2009). Beyond fear and loathing in SG: The real 

mother tongues and language policies in multilingual 

Singapore. In L. Lim & E. Low (Eds.), Multilingual, 

globalizing Asia: Implications for policy and education 

(AILA Review 22) (pp. 52-71). Amsterdam: John 

Benjamins Publishing. 

Tsui, A. B. M. (2004). Medium of instruction in Hong Kong: 

One country, two systems, whose language? In J. W. 

Tollefson & A. B. M. Tsui (Eds.), Medium of instruction 

policies: Which agenda? Whose agenda? (pp. 97-106). 

Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 


Fieldwork and data analysis 20 


Assessment: Website/blog (report writing) 20 

Assessment: Learning reflection 2 

Assessment: In-class quizzes 2 

Total: 134 



Website/blog presenting fieldwork 

In-class presentation and question/ 

40 

answer/discussion session 20 



Reflection writing 10 



1. Recognize and discuss the important sociolinguistic 

issues involved in the appropriation of a 

global language such as English in contemporary 

local multilingual Asian contexts. 

2. Creatively apply sociolinguistic knowledge to 

language issues observed and identified, and 

define and illustrate the roles and values that 

English and other local languages have, in the local, 

everyday context of Hong Kong, and compare 

and contrast these to other Asian situations like 

Singapore, India, China. 

3. Explain and analyze sociolinguistic phenomena 

and issues both to academic peers as well as to 

the wider non-linguistic, non-academic community, 

in an intelligent, interesting and accessible 

mode and manner. 

4. Appraise and respond to the views and presentations 

of others as found in published texts as well 

as in class. 

5. Identify and evaluate the sociolinguistic issues 

and challenges in the local context that are important 

for sustainability with a view to making 

intelligent, significant and responsible contributions 

to the community. 


English as a Global Language in 

Asian Contexts 

What fundamental issues – social, cultural, political, ideological – confront all communities 

when a global language is transplanted to a new locale, specifically a multilingual, 

Asian context? Focusing on the global language par excellence, English, with particular 

attention to the situation of Hong Kong, but also drawing on settings elsewhere 

in the region, such as Singapore and India, where English is even more established 

and localized, and mainland China, where the presence of English is burgeoning, this 

course has three main thrusts: 

1. the social and linguistic consequences for the positioning of English when it encounters 

other languages, such as Cantonese, including the spread of multilingualism, 

the emergence of code switching/mixing practices, the evolution of New 

Englishes, and the occurrence of language shift; 

2. the challenges that these pose for the concepts of language norms and standards 

and the notion of the native speaker of English, and the implications that this has 

for issues of identity and the ownership of language; and 

3. the dilemmas faced in the management 

of such New Englishes 

and multilingual practices in 

language policy and education, 

the challenges encountered in 

the liberation of such codes in 

popular culture, including ecommunication 

and pop music, 

as well as the commodification 

and commercialization of global 

languages. 


Dr L.L.S. Lim 


Tel: 3917 2871 

Email: lisalim@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr L.L.S. Lim 


Tel: 3917 2871 

Email: lisalim@hku.hk 

Dr A.M. Pablé 


Tel: 3917 2750 

Email: apable@hku.hk 

Dr K.H.Y. Chen 


Tel: 3917 4474 

Email: khychen@hku.hk 

Dr D. Noël 


Tel: 3917 1922 

Email: dnoel@hku.hk 


Global Issues 



DiStefano, L., Lee, H. Y., & Cummer, K. (2011). Heritage: A 

driver of development – Hong Kong style urban conservation. 

Presented at the 17th ICOMOS General Assembly and 

Scientific Symposium, November 27-December 2, 2011, 

Paris. 

Lee, H. Y., & DiStefano, L. (2002). The story of changing village 

life in the New Territories. Hong Kong: Oxford University 

Press. 

Loh, L. (2007). Conveying the spirit of place. In R. A. 

Engelhardt & M. H. Unakul (Eds.), Asia conserved: Lessons 

learned from the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards 

for Cultural Heritage Conservation (2000-2004) (pp. 9-12). 

Bangkok: UNESCO. 

Lung, D., DiStefano, L., Lee, H. Y., & Wong, D. T. Y. (2007). 

Interpreting the significance of heritage sites. In R. A. 

Engelhardt & M. H. Unakul (Eds.), Asia conserved: Lessons 

learned from the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for 

Cultural Heritage Conservation (2000-2004) (pp. 21-27). 

Bangkok: UNESCO. 

UNESCO. (1972). UNESCO World Heritage Convention Text. 

From http://whc.unesco.org/en/conventiontext 

UNESCO. (2002). World heritage in young hands. Italy: 

UNESCO. [The World Heritage Convention, pp. 40, 42-44, 

46, 48, 50-53, 57, 59; World Heritage and the Environment, 

pp. 126-129, 132-135, 140-141] 

UNESCO. (2011). The Operational Guidelines for the 

Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. From 

http://whc.unesco.org/en/guidelines 

UNESCO-ICCROM. (2006). Introducing young people to the 

protection of heritage sites and historic cities (pp. 7-10) (2nd 

ed.). Amman: UNESCO-ICCROM. [Unit 1: Concepts in 

cultural heritage] 

UNESCO and Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT), Macao. 

(2007). Cultural Heritage Specialist Guide Training and 

Certification Programme for UNESCO World Heritage Sites 

(4th ed.). Macao: IFT and UNESCO. [Unit 1: The Cultural 

Heritage Specialist Guide, p. 3; Unit 2: Understanding 

UNESCO World Heritage Sites, pp. 3-14; Unit 3: Protecting 

and Managing Cultural Heritage, pp. 8-9] 

Widodo, J. (2007). Contributing to the community’s cultural 

continuum. In R. A. Engelhardt & M. H. Unakul (Eds.), Asia 

conserved: Lessons learned from the UNESCO Asia-Pacific 

Heritage Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation (2000- 

2004) (pp. 46-50). Bangkok: UNESCO. 

Note: A core reader detailing required weekly readings and two 

glossaries will be uploaded and made accessible to students 

on Moodle at the start of the semester. Weekly readings will be 

specific to the lecture topic that week and will include one or 

more short articles and selected short readings from a variety 

of sources. Student will be required to read these materials in 

preparation for the tutorials. 

World Heritage and Us 

World Heritage sites belong to all the people 

of the world, irrespective of the territory 

where the sites or the people are located. Yet, 

you may ask, how can a World Heritage site 

in Europe “belong” equally to people in Asia? 

How does World Heritage relate to us? 

This course will introduce students to the 

United Nations Educational, Scientific and 

Cultural Organization (UNESCO)’s World 

Heritage List, which identifies, protects 

and preserves cultural and natural heritage 

around the world considered to be of 

outstanding value to humanity. The course 

will provide a conceptual framework of how 

heritage sites should be understood in the 

contemporary context of the world we live 

in. Students will develop a broad perspective 

and a critical understanding about what 

constitutes a World Heritage site, why and 

how these sites should be identified and related 

issues spanning across a wide range of 

academic disciplines: environment and life 

sciences, history, anthropology, archaeology, 

architecture and urban planning. 

There has been a sharp rise in interest to 

identify, learn and better understand Hong 

Kong’s natural and cultural heritage. By recognizing 

the need to identify and conserve 

our heritage, we can pass on what we have to 

future generations, and more importantly, 

encourage sustainable development in Hong 

Kong for the future. By understanding what 

constitutes World Heritage, students will be 

able to have a holistic understanding of natural 

and cultural heritage in Hong Kong and 

develop an informed awareness of the challenges 

associated with heritage conservation 

in our city. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 10 



Assessment: Group report presentation 


Assessment: Weekly blog and 

written reports 30 

Total: 150 



Tutorial, lecture and field trip 

participation 30 

Weekly blog and field trip reports 40 

Final project presentation 20 

In-class impromptu quizzes 10 



Professor D.P.Y. Lung 



Tel: 2859 2147 

Email: dpylung@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 2859 2147 


Dr L. DiStefano 



Tel: 2859 1101 

Email: ldistefa@hku.hk 

Dr H.Y. Lee 



Tel: 2859 7952 

Email: hoyin@hku.hk 



1. Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and 

appreciation that the world’s cultural and 

natural heritage belongs to all of us and demonstrates 

an understanding and awareness 

that we have a duty to help safeguard it for 

future generations. 

2. Distinguish and explain the framework 

behind the identification, protection and 

preservation of World Heritage Sites, the inscription 

process, criteria used to justify the 

inclusion on the World Heritage List, and the 

vital process of World Heritage Conservation. 

3. Identify and articulate key World Heritage 

issues and introduce students to different 

lines of intellectual inquiry across a range of 

academic subjects. 

4. Apply fundamental skills in the identification 

and interpretation of natural and cultural 

heritage, both tangible and intangible, and 

be able to critically examine and evaluate the 

values of architectural and cultural theories. 

5. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding 

of World Heritage Sites as a testimony 

to peace, human rights, democracy, and the 

importance of racial non-discrimination, 

tolerance, and respect for all people and their 

cultures. 

6. Demonstrate critical thinking and reflective 

learning by examining World Heritage issues 

in the context of Hong Kong’s natural and 

cultural heritage conservation and its related 

challenges. 


131

132 

China: Culture, State & Society 

Course Code // CCCH9001 


Boyd, A. C. H. (1962). Chinese architecture and town 

planning: 1500 B.C.-A.D. 1911. Chicago: University of 


Chinese Academy of Architecture. (1986). Classical Chinese 

architecture (2nd ed.). Hong Kong: Joint Publishing Co. 

Han, P. T. (1992). The story of Chinese landscape design: 

External forms and internal visions. Taipei: Youth 

Cultural Enterprise Co. 

Keswick, M. (1986). The Chinese garden: History, art & 

architecture (2nd rev. ed.). London: Academy Editions. 

Knapp, R. G. (1989). China’s vernacular architecture: House 

form and culture. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. 

Knapp, R. G. (1999). China’s living houses: Folk beliefs, 

symbols, and household ornamentation. Honolulu: 

University of Hawaii Press. 

Liang, S., & Fairbank, W. (1984). A pictorial history of 

Chinese architecture: A study of the development of 

its structural system and the evolution of its types. 


Luo, Q., & He, P. (Eds.). (1999). Gu cheng jin xi: Zhongguo 

min jian sheng huo fang shi [Living heritage: Vernacular 

environment in China]. Xianggang: Yong ming tang. 

Wu, N. I. (1963). Chinese and Indian architecture: The city of 

man, the mountain of god, and the realm of the immortals. 

New York: George Brasiller. 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 160 



Quizzes 20 

Tutorial, lecture and field trip participation 30 

Project presentation 20 

Final essay 30 



1. Demonstrate understanding of how physical 

patterns displayed in Chinese architecture 

and landscape were related to thoughts, values, 

technology as well as ways of life in Chinese 

culture. 

2. Explore ways of critical analysis on the relationship 

between Chinese built forms and 

landscape, as well as their ideas and socialeconomical 

contexts behind. 

3. Demonstrate understanding of how Chinese architecture 

and landscape are transformed over 

time, influenced by changes of thoughts, values, 

technology, and society in large. 

4. Apply the knowledge on the ways in which 

traditional buildings and landscape respond to 

and shape cultural values and physical forms in 

the modern world. 


Chinese House and Garden: Architecture, 

Landscape, and Material Culture 

By looking into the physical significance of Chinese architecture, cities and landscapes, 

this course introduces theories and principles of Chinese houses and gardens. 

Through the study of Chinese houses and their settings in a city, it brings out 

the daily life and social fabric for a Chinese man under Confucian influence. Through 

the study of Chinese gardens and the literati ideas behind the making of garden, landscape 

and painting, it introduces the artistic profile for a Chinese intellectual under 

the influence of Daoism. The course investigates how geography, society and economy, 

as well as aesthetic and ideology, shape the traditional physical environment in 

China. It deals with explorations of form and space, technology and material, as well 

as the ways in which these architectural attributes affect life patterns and values in 

a traditional society. The course particularly addresses how the culture profile was 

manifested in the architecture and urban spaces during the late Ming – an era of 

unique aesthetic orientation cultivated from a distinct stage of social and economic 

development in Chinese history. 


Mr W.J. Wang 



Tel: 2548 1274 

Email: wjwang@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Mr W.J. Wang 



Tel: 2548 1274 

Email: wjwang@hku.hk 




Tel: 2859 2147 


http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccch9001




Ma, L. J. C., & Wu, F. (2005). Restructuring the Chinese city: 

Changing society, economy and space. London; New York: 

Routledge. 

Wu, F., Xu, J., & Yeh, A. G. O. (2007). Urban development in 

post-reform China: State, market, and space. London; 


Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 150 





Reflective journals 10 

Semi-open book examination 40 


On completing the course, students will be able 

to: 

1. Demonstrate understanding of the evolution 

and modernization of Chinese cities in 

the past three decades. 

2. Identify important issues and challenges 

facing contemporary Chinese cities. 

3. Identify possible solutions to address these 

problems and challenges and investigate 

their implications for the sustainability of 

Chinese cities. 

4. Identify key problems of a Chinese city 

based on its urban development history and 

current conditions. 


Chinese Cities in the 21st Century 

This course provides students 

with an understanding of the 

evolution and driving forces of 

urban development in major 

Chinese cities in the last three 

decades; helps them to develop 

an appreciation of the rapidly 

changing urban landscapes in 

Chinese cities; and exposes 

them to the key issues and 

challenges facing these cities 

in the 21st century. The topics 

covered include urban economic 

development, housing, 

transport, urban sustainability 

and planning. 


Professor A.G.O. Yeh 



Tel: 2859 2721 

Email: hdxugoy@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor A.G.O. Yeh 



Tel: 2859 2721 

Email: hdxugoy@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr F. Zhang 



Tel: 2857 8598 

Email: fzhang78@hku.hk 

Dr R.C.K. Chan 



Tel: 2859 2277 

Email: hrxucck@hkucc.hku.hk 

Professor R.L.H. Chiu 



Tel: 2859 2727 

Email: rlhchiu@hkucc.hku.hk 

http://commoncore.hku.hk/ccch9002 

133

134 




Bell, D. (2006). Beyond liberal democracy: Political thinking 

for an East Asian context. Princeton, NJ: Princeton 


Creel, H. G. (1956). Chinese thought: From Confucius to Mao 

Tse-tung. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. [Chap. 3] 

Donnelly, J. (2006). Human rights. In J. S. Dryzek, B. Honig 

& A. Philips (Eds.), Oxford handbook of political theory. 

(pp. 601-620). New York: Oxford University Press. 

Kant, I. (1970). Kant’s political writings (H. B. Nisbet, 

Trans.) (pp. 54-60). Cambridge: Cambridge University 

Press. 

Li, C. (1997). Confucian value and democratic value. Journal 

of Value Inquiry, 31(2), 183-193. 

Pye, L. W. (1991). China: An introduction (4th ed.). New 

York: HarperCollins. [Chap. 3] 

Spence, J. D. (1999). The search for modern China (2nd ed.). 

New York: Norton. [Chap. 10] 

Zhou, C. (1960). The May Fourth Movement: Intellectual 

revolution in modern China. Cambridge, MA: Harvard 

University Press. [Chaps. 13, 14] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 


Class discussion and debates (incl preparation) 20 


Assessment: Quizzes (incl revision) 20 

Total: 160 



Class discussion / Online discussion 10 

Tutorial participation / Debate 30 

Quizzes 20 

Essay 40 



1. Describe major events and figures of the Selfstrengthening 

Movement and the Hundred 

Days’ Reform of 1898. 

2. Review the leading ideas of the May Fourth 

Movement and appraise their significance. 

3. Compare and discuss the major claims made by 

anti-traditionalism and conservatism on Chinese 

tradition. 

4. Identify respectively the Confucian and the 

modern understanding of person, and evaluate 

their compatibility. 

5. Analyze the central ideas of human rights and 

democracy, and evaluate their compatibility 

with Confucianism. 


Modernity and Traditional Chinese 

Thought 

This course introduces students to the intellectual 

history of modern China. It also inquires 

into the compatibility of modernity 

and traditional Chinese thought, in particular 

Confucianism. The course addresses two fundamental 

issues. On the one hand is the issue 

of China’s responses to the modern world. 

The course traces the changes and development 

of China’s intellectual world since the 

second half of the nineteenth century to the 

twentieth century. The survey does not aim to 

be comprehensive but picks out certain major 

trends of thought such as iconoclasm and conservatism. 

On the other hand is the issue of 

the compatibility of modernity and traditional 

Chinese thought. Students will examine the 

“essence of Chinese culture” and its relevance 

to the modern world. Particular attention will 

be paid to the relation between Confucianism 

and certain key ideas of modernity such as human 

rights, democracy and liberalism. 


Dr S.F. Tang 

School of Chinese, Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 4293 

Email: tangsf@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr S.F. Tang 


Tel: 3917 4293 

Email: tangsf@hku.hk 





Arnold, L. (2005). Folk goddess or Madonna: Early 

missionary encounters with the image of Guanyin. 

In X. Wu (Ed.), Encounters and dialogues: Changing 

perspectives on Chinese-Western exchanges from the 

sixteenth to eighteenth centuries (pp. 227-238). Nettetal: 

Styler Verlag. 

Cohen, P. A. (1974). Between tradition and modernity: 

Wang Tao and reform in late Ch’ing China (pp. 209-235). 

Cambridge, MA: Harvard Unviersity Press. 

Fairbank, J. K. (Ed.). (1968). The Chinese world order: 

Traditional China’s foreign relations (pp. 1-13, 257-275). 

Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 

Frodsham, J. D. (1974). The first Chinese embassy to the 

West: The journals of Kuo Sung-t’ao, Liu Hsi-hung and 

Chang Te-yi (pp. 97-109, 134-149). Oxford: Clarendon 

Press. 

Gernet, J. (1985). China and the Christian impact: A 

conflict of cultures (pp. 105-140). Cambridge: Cambridge 


Meng, H. (2000). The Chinese genesis of the term “Foreign 

Devil”. In H. Meng & S. Hirakawa (Eds.), Images of 

Westerners in Chinese and Japanese literature (pp. 17- 

37). Amsterdam: Rodopi. 

Michael, F. H. (1971). The Taiping rebellion: History 

and documents (pp. 715-721). Seattle: University of 

Washington Press. 

Mish, J. L. (1964). Creating an image of Europe for China: 

Aleni’s Hsi-fang ta-wen. Monumenta Serica: Journal of 

Oriental Studies, 23, 30-63. 

Smith, R. J. (1996). Chinese maps: Images of “All Under 

Heaven” (pp. 7-41). Hong Kong: Oxford University Press. 

Ye, X. (2003). The Dianshizhai pictorial: Shanghai urban 

life, 1884-1898 (pp. 117-131). Ann Arbor, MI: Center for 

Chinese Studies, The University of Michigan. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 



Assessment: Discussion, debate, presentation 


Assessment: Mini-quizzes 4 

Total: 132 



Class discussions 10 


Mini-quizzes 10 

Term paper 50 



1. Demonstrate solid knowledge of key components 

of the traditional Sino-centric world order 

and its continuous impacts on late imperial 

Chinese society. 

2. Critically evaluate varied types of textual and 

visual sources, and develop the ability to summarize 

differences and similarities among 

ideas/images presented in these sources. 

3. Reflect on important historical and social factors 

that conditioned Chinese perception, representation, 

and imagination of the West. 

4. Apply theories and research methods learned 

in class to a wider range of academic discussions 

and writings. 

5. Demonstrate understanding of the diversity 

and dynamism of Chinese culture from past to 

present, and challenge normative assumptions 

on Chinese ethnic/cultural identity. 


Ideas and Images of the West in Late 

Imperial China 

During the late imperial period (17th-19th centuries), China was involved in substantive 

exchanges with the West in politics, religion, sciences, and arts. They made great 

impacts on China’s later development towards a modern nation. How did the Chinese 

people at this period perceive or conceptualize the West in textual and visual representations? 

What factors may have contributed to the creation of diversified ideas and 

images of the West, such as “red-haired barbarians”, “Holy Mother”, “scholars from the 

West”, and “heavenly brothers”? Why do some old ideas and images still affect the Chinese 

minds today, as can be seen in the name 

“foreign devils” (yang guizi in mandarin, or 

gwai lou in Cantonese)? In this course, we will 

find answers to these questions by looking at a 

set of exemplar cases. Both textual and visual 

sources will be used to investigate the formation 

and transformation of an idea or image 

of the West, followed by a critical reflection 

on its historical and cultural meanings. A few 

relevant theories in history, literature, and 

cultural studies will be introduced to foster 

students’ research skills. Along with class discussions 

and group presentations, students 

will learn to re-examine the changing Chinese 

identities mirrored by the Western others in 

history, and express their own views on some 

contested issues, for example, the definition 

of Chinese-ness and the compatibility between 

Chinese and Western cultures. 


Dr G. Song 


Tel: 3917 7921 

Email: songg@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr G. Song 


Tel: 3917 7921 

Email: songg@hku.hk 


135

136 




Fairbank, J. K., & Goldman, M. (2006). China: A new history 

(2nd enl. ed.). Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard 



New York: Norton. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 140 




Essay 30 

Tutorial presentation 30 




1. Describe and explain the history of modernization 

of China within the East Asia context and 

challenge any pre-conceived assumptions held 

about the modernization of China and Asia 

from previous historical studies. 

2. Demonstrate understanding that the history 

of a region and country (in this case China) can 

be subjected to a variety of sharply contrasting 

views and interpretations. 

3. Apply the knowledge gained from the course to 

analyze and understand contemporary China 

and East Asian affairs. 

4. Demonstrate a nuanced comparative understanding 

of China’s political, economic and 

cultural changes and use it to draw and study 

trends developing in the region. 

5. Analyze the differences and similarities between 

China and her neighbours, notably Japan 

and Korea in their approaches towards modernity 

and development. 


China’s Modernization in the East Asian 

Context 

This course enables students 

to understand and 

appreciate China’s quest 

for modernity since the 

19th century, contextualized 

against the development 

of her neighbours 

in East Asia. Beyond 

examining the various 

forces that prompted the 

modernization process in 

East Asia, students will 

scrutinize the dynamics 

and processes involved. 

For example: Is the arrival 

of the West in Asia 

the dominant force which 

transformed East Asia, 

and specifically China 

from the predominantly 

agricultural, Sino-centric 

civilization of the 1800s 

to the modern nation-state we see today? Is modernization just about economic development 

and the construction of a state structure or should it encompass broader 

advances in ideology and the embracement of universal values and norms like the 

protection of Human Rights? How should one view the Cultural Revolution or the 

Tiananmen Massacre in China’s modernization process? What are the continuities and 

discontinuities in the modernization process of China, as it evolves from Qing China to 

Republican China to the People’s Republic? The course will also examine the impact 

of modernization on contemporary China thematically and comparatively by scrutinizing 

modern day political and social institutions such as state-society relations, the 

family, marriage, education and social mobility etc. By the end of the course, students 

would be able to apply the knowledge gained to analyze and understand contemporary 

China and East Asian affairs better. 


Dr V.E.L. Teo 



Tel: 3917 5925 


Teacher(s) 

Dr V.E.L. Teo 



Tel: 3917 5925 






Chow, G. C. (2012). China as a leader of the world economy. 

Hackensack, NJ: World Scientific. 

Lin, J. Y. (2012). Demystifying the Chinese economy. 

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 

Reading / Self-study and preparation for tutorials 50 

Assessment: Written assignments / Report writing 25 



Total 129 




Tutorials 20 



Written assignments 20 

China in the Global Economy 

This course examines the rise of China 

as an economic power in the context 

of the global economy. The impacts of 

China’s economic development on a 

number of national and global issues 

are explored. These include trade relations, 

direct and indirect investment, 

international currencies, global payments 

imbalance, technology transfer, 

resource scarcity, environmental degradation, 

population and geo-political 

relationships. The course also compares 

China’s experience with those of 

other economies so that students can 

understand China from a comparative 

point of view. 



1. Describe the development of the Chinese economy 

since economic reform. 

2. Demonstrate understanding of the Chinese 

economy in a historical and comparative context. 

3. Analyze the impacts of China’s economic development 

on the global economy. 

4. Identify the social and economic problems that 

China faces in its quest for modernization. 





Dr Y.F. Luk 



Tel: 2859 1050 


Teacher(s) 

Dr Y.F. Luk 



Tel: 2859 1050 


Dr C.Y.P. Wong 



Tel: 2859 1037 

Email: ypclemw@hku.hk 


137

138 




Chiu, S. W. K., Hung, H. F., & Lai, O. K. (1999). Environmental 

movements in Hong Kong. In Y. S. Lee & A. Y. So (Eds.), 

Asia’s environmental movements: Comparative perspectives 

(pp. 55-89). Armonk, NY; London: M. E. Sharpe. 

Corlett, R. T. (2004). Sustainable and biodiversity conservation 

in Hong Kong. In T. Mottershead (Ed.), Sustainable 

development in Hong Kong (pp. 421-444). Hong Kong: Hong 

Kong University Press. 

Dudgeon, D., Corlett, R., & Friends of the Country Parks. (2004). 

The ecology and biodiversity of Hong Kong (1st ed.). Hong 

Kong: Friends of the Country Parks: Joint Publishing (HK). 

Hills, P., & Welford, R. (2006). Ecological modernisation and 

corporate environmental governance in Hong Kong. In 

R. Welford, P. Hills & W. Young (Eds.), Partnerships for 

sustainable development: Perspectives from the Asia-Pacific 

Region (pp. 209-252). Hong Kong: Centre of Urban Planning 

and Environmental Management, The University of Hong 

Kong. 

Lai, O. K. (2000). Greening of Hong Kong? Forms of 

manifestation of environmental movements. In S. W. K. 

Chiu & T. L. Lui (Eds.), The dynamics of social movement 

in Hong Kong (pp. 259-296). Hong Kong: Hong Kong 


Lee, Y. S. F. (2002). Tackling cross-border environmental 

problems in Hong Kong: Initial responses and institutional 

constraints. The China Quarterly, 172, 986-1009. 

Lee, Y. S. F. (2003). Environmental consciousness in Hong 

Kong. Tonan Ajia Kenkyū [Southeast Asian Studies], 41(1), 

15-35. 

Morton, B. (1996). Protecting Hong Kong’s marine biodiversity: 

Present proposals, future challenges. Environmental 

Conservation, 23(1), 55-65. 

Ng, C. M., & Lee, Y. S. F. (2007). Environmental safeguards 

and breakthroughs. In Y. M. Yeung (Ed.), The first decade: 

The Hong Kong SAR in retrospective and introspective 

perspectives (pp. 321-350). Hong Kong: Chinese University 

Press. 

Stern, R. E. (2003). Hong Kong haze: Air pollution as a social 

class issue. Asian Survey, 43(5), 780-800. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 140 



Essay 70 

Field trip report 20 


Hong Kong’s Environment: 

Issues and Policies 



1. Describe and explain the causes, contours and 

consequences of major environmental issues in 


2. Compare and contrast the similarities and differences 

of the environmental challenges faced 

by Hong Kong and its neighboring jurisdictions 

in Southern China. 

3. Examine critically the strengths and limitations 

of the policies formulated to address environmental 

problems in Hong Kong and its neighboring 

jurisdictions in Southern China. 

4. Demonstrate an awareness of the complex relations 

between the socio-economic-political 

processes and environmental change in a highdensity 

urban setting. 


This course will provide students with a regional and comparative perspective to 

examine the complex inter-relationships between the socio-economic-political processes 

and the deteriorating environmental and ecological conditions of Hong Kong. 

This perspective will help students develop an in-depth understanding of the larger 

issues impinging on the city’s ecological future. It will also enable them to think critically 

of the material causes and consequences of the changing nature of environmental 

challenges associated with sustained economic and urban growth, both in Hong Kong 

and in its neighboring jurisdictions in Southern China. The course is organized around 

three major themes to help achieve its overall objectives: the sustainability dimensions 

of Hong Kong as a compact city; the links between economic restructuring and changing 

environmental challenges; and the constraints to, and opportunities for, crossboundary 

environmental cooperation. 


Dr F.Y.S. Lee 



Tel: 3917 2840 

Email: leey@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr F.Y.S. Lee 



Tel: 3917 2840 

Email: leey@hku.hk 

Dr C.N. Ng 



Tel: 3917 7025 

Email: cnng@hkucc.hku.hk 





Bianco, L. (1971). Origins of the Chinese revolution, 1915- 

1949. Stanford: Stanford University Press. [Selected 

chapters] 

Blecher, M. (2010). China against the tides: Restructuring 

through revolution, radicalism, and reform. New York: 

The Continuum International Publishing. [Selected 

chapters] 

Fairbank, J. K. (1986). The great Chinese revolution, 1800- 

1985 (1st ed.). New York: Harper & Row. [Selected 

chapters] 

Perry, E. J. (2002). Challenging the mandate of Heaven: 

Social protest and state power in China. Armonk, NY: M. E. 

Sharpe. [Selected chapters] 

Perry, E. J., & Selden, M. (2000). Chinese society: Change, 

conflict, and resistance. London; New York: Routledge. 

[Selected chapters] 

Schoppa, R. K. (2006). Revolution and its past: Identities and 

change in modern Chinese history. Upper Saddle River, 

NJ: Pearson Education. [Selected chapters] 

Shirk, S. (2007). China: Fragile superpower. Oxford: Oxford 

University Press. [Selected chapters] 


New York: Norton. 

Tarrow, S. G. (1998). Power in movement: Social movements 

and contentious politics (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge 

University Press. [Selected chapters] 

Wakeman, F. (1975). The fall of imperial China. New York: 

The Free Press. [Selected chapters] Course Learning Outcomes 

Study Load 


Lectures 22 

Tutorials 10 


Movie session 3 




Total: 122 




Short paper 30 




1. Use basic theoretical tools to critically analyze 

the causes, processes and outcomes of social 

resistances and social movements. 

2. Describe and critically explain the links between 

various social movements and China’s 

quest for modernity. 

3. Describe and critically explain the changing 

patterns of state-society relationship during 

China’s modernization process, from 1840 until 

today. 

4. Critically analyze and comment on contemporary 

political events in Hong Kong and 

Mainland China from both a comparative and a 

historical perspective. 


Protests, Rebellions and Revolutions in 

Modern China: From 1840 until Today 

How has China’s grand transformation 

to a modern nation-state shaped the 

country’s state-society relationship 

today? By focusing on the tensions and 

conflicts between the Chinese state 

and the country’s evolving civil society, 

this course surveys the major protests, 

rebellions and revolutions in China in 

the past 150 years. From a comparative 

perspective, the course particularly examines 

the economic, social, political 

and organizational resources that have 

facilitated various Chinese resistance 

movements during the country’s long 

and tedious journey to modernity. It 

also explores how China’s revolutionary 

past has significantly influenced the social 

movements of mainland China and 

Hong Kong in the 21st century. Weekly 

topics include but are not limited to: 

the Chinese revolutionary tradition; 

the concept of “the mandate of heaven”; 

Chinese secret societies and the Triad; 

underground religions and cults past 

and present; the Chinese communist 

movement; the legacies of the Cultural 

Revolution; social movements in the 

1980s; the rising nationalism in Mainland 

China since the 1990s; and various 

new forms of social resistance under 

the ongoing market transition. 


Dr X.J. Yan 



Tel: 3917 4880 

Email: xyan@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr X.J. Yan 



Tel: 3917 4880 

Email: xyan@hku.hk 


139

140 




Bergsten, C. F., et al. (2008). China’s rise: Challenges and 

opportunities. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic 

and International Studies, Peterson Institute for 

International Economics. [Chap. 5] 

Cai, Y. (2010). Collective resistance in China: Why popular 

protests succeed or fail. Stanford, CA: Stanford University 

Press. [Chap. 2] 

Dickson, B. J. (2011). Updating the China Model. The 

Washington Quarterly, 34(4), 39-58. 

Fewsmith, J. (2010). China today, China tomorrow: Domestic 

politics, economy, and society. Lanham, MD: Rowman & 

Littlefield Publishers [Chaps. 3, 4, 9] 

Joseph, W. A. (2010). Politics in China: An introduction. 

Oxford: Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 6, 7] 

Naughton, B. (2007). The Chinese economy: Transitions and 

growth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Chap. 9] 

Zhao, S. The China Model: Can it replace the Western model 

of modernization? Journal of Contemporary China, 

19(65), 419-436. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Documentary film shows 2 



Total: 155 





Short paper assignments 60 



1. Describe and explain the key arguments of major 

theoretical perspectives on the governance 

of transitional and emerging economies, and 

critically assess their relative strengths and 

weaknesses in interpreting China’s developmental 

experience. 

2. Identify the causes, scale and characteristics of 

the key governance challenges facing contemporary 

China, and understand the difficulties 

that China faces in tackling them. 

3. Analyze why the Chinese government has 

adopted a particular set of policy measures in 

coping with such challenges, examine the political 

considerations and consequences of these 

policy choices, and critically evaluate their effectiveness 

and impacts. 

4. Compare and contrast the developmental trajectories 

and governance challenges in China 

and other emerging economies. 

5. Demonstrate the ability to collect information, 

analyze data and arguments, and write up findings 

and arguments. 


Understanding China’s Governance: 

Challenges and Prospects 

In order to understand the prospect of China’s quest for modernity, this course examines 

the key governance challenges that have emerged during its transition from a 

socialist system to an increasingly marketized economy and diversified society. The 

course has three parts. Part I introduces contending analytical perspectives on the 

governance of transitional political systems, such as the gradualist reform model, the 

developmental state model and the predatory state model. Part II first analyzes the 

causes, scale and dynamics of several governance challenges facing contemporary China, 

namely legitimacy challenges, regulatory challenges, distributive challenges and 

external challenges, and then examines the policies of the Chinese government in tackling 

these critical issues and applies the different analytical perspectives in evaluating 

their efforts. Part III concludes the course by comparing the developmental trajectories 

and experiences in China with those in other developing countries. 


Dr P.T.Y. Cheung 



Tel: 3917 8362 

Email: tsyicheu@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr P.T.Y. Cheung 



Tel: 3917 8362 

Email: tsyicheu@hku.hk 






Johnston, A. I., & Ross, R. S. (2006). New directions in the 

study of China’s foreign policy. Stanford, CA: Stanford 


Lampton, D. M. (2001). The making of Chinese foreign and 

security policy in the era of reform, 1978-2000. Stanford, 

CA: Stanford University Press. 

Shambaugh, D. L. (2005). Power shift: China and Asia’s new 

dynamics. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 





Total: 151 





Project report 30 




1. Demonstrate understanding of China’s perspectives, 

priorities and strategies in pursuing its 

multi-faceted relations with the Asian region 

and how China has utilized its growing economic 

and military resources in its Asian policy. 

2. Compare and contrast China’s rise with the 

power transition of other great powers in 

the past. 

3. Analyze the relations between China and the key 

players and how China has dealt with several 

critical issues. 

4. Evaluate the impact of China’s rise on its search 

for great power status and the future of the Asian 

region. 

5. Demonstrate leadership and advocacy for 

achieving peace and prosperity in Asia. 


China’s Rise and Asia’s Future 

This course examines the rise of China in the 21st century. In order to understand how 

China’s rise will shape the future of the Asian order and how its role in Asia affects its 

search for great power status, the course will: (i) examine China’s rise from a comparative 

perspective by reviewing the rise and fall of the great powers of the past and the 

subsequent impact on international conflict and cooperation; (ii) explain China’s perspective 

and strategies in conducting its multi-faceted relations with the Asian region 

and how China has utilized its growing economic and military resources in its Asian 

policy; (iii) analyze the perspectives and strategies of the major powers in Asia (such as 

the US, Japan and other Asian nations) toward an emerging China; and (iv) investigate 

whether the relations between China and the major nations in Asia have contributed 

to the prosperity, peace and stability in the region. 


Dr I.J. Sohn 



Tel: 3917 4372 


Teacher(s) 

Professor P.M. Evans 



Tel: 3917 2393 

Email: pmevans@hku.hk 


141

142 




Jacques, M. (2009). When China rules the world: The end of 

the western world and the birth of a new global order. New 

York: Penguin Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Preparation of tutorials 24 



Total: 128 



Tutorial discussion and debate 50 



China and World Order 



1. Explain and analyze how world order is constructed 

in the international society and how 

the rise and fall of great powers in history have 

shaped world order. 

2. Examine the nature and course of China’s rising 

and how the rise of China can be measured 

in tangible and intangible variables, in hard 

power and soft power. 

3. Engage in the debate about different perspectives 

on the rise of China and its implications 

for world order, both from inside and outside of 

China. 

4. Analyze how China views its rise in the world, 

how China should come to terms with its own 

rise, and how the “outside world” and China’s 

domestic reforms are mutually transformative. 

5. Think critically on China-related issues. 


World order is shaped by the rise and fall of great powers in history. The rise of China 

in the 21st century will be one of such historic events reshaping world order. Measured 

in its comprehensive national capabilities, military power, and growing influence on 

a global scale, China is increasingly becoming a global power whose influence is felt 

in all corners of the world. However, the rise of China and its implications for future 

world order is often viewed with apprehension by the “outside world”. The aim of this 

course is to introduce new perspectives about China’s rise and its impacts on world order. 

The current debate over the rise of China has focused too much on how the world 

should perceive China’s rise and its possible implications for world order, and too little 

on how China is struggling to come to terms with its own rise. Indeed, the Chinese society, 

the state, core values and goals of foreign relations have undergone fundamental 

changes in the last three decades. The rise of China and the changing world order are 

mutually transformative. 


Dr R.W. Hu 



Tel: 3917 2398 

Email: rwxhu@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr R.W. Hu 



Tel: 3917 2398 

Email: rwxhu@hku.hk 





Foucault, M. (1995). The body of the condemned. Discipline and punish: 

The birth of the prison (A. Sheridan, Trans.) (pp. 3-31). New York: 

Vintage Books. 

Giddens, A. (2009). Sexuality and gender. Sociology (pp. 600-623). 

Cambridge: Polity Press 

Glosser, S. (2003). Saving self and nation: The New Culture Movement’s 

family-reform discourse. Chinese visions of family and state, 1915- 

1953 (pp. 27-52). Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Glosser, S. (2003). Love for revolution: Xiao Jiating in the People’s 

Republic. Chinese visions of family and state, 1915-1953 (pp. 174-196). 

Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Ho, P. S. Y. (2006). The (charmed) circle game: Reflections on sexual 

hierarchy through multiple sexual relationships. Sexualities, 9(5), 

547-64. 

Ho, P. S. Y. (2011). Recognition struggle: One woman’s politics of 

iconogenesis. Asian Journal of Women’s Studies, 17(1), 7-27. 

Kershaw, A. M., & DeGolyer, D. (Eds.). (2006). The status of women 

and girls in Hong Kong 2006: Executive summary. Hong Kong: The 

Women’s Foundation. 

Kong, T. S. K. (2011). Conclusion. Chinese male homosexualities: Memba, 

tongzhi and golden boy (pp. 194-207). London: Routledge. 

Liu, J. (2007). Growing up in the Mao era. Gender and work in urban 

China (pp. 25-39). London: Routledge. 

Liu, J. (2007). Living in the danwei: The intersection between work and 

family life. Gender and work in urban China (pp. 65-76). London: 

Routledge. 

Jeffreys, E. (Ed.). (2006). Sex and sexuality in China. London: Routledge. 

Johnson, K. A. (1983). Women, the family, and peasant revolution in 

China (pp. 8-35). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. [Chaps. 1, 2] 

Mao, Z. (1967). Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung (2nd ed.). 

Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. 

McHoul, A., & Grace, W. (1995). A disciplined society. A Foucault primer 

(pp. 66-76). London: UCL Press. 

Pan, S. (2006). Transformations in the primary life cycle: The origins 

and nature of China’s sexual revolution. In E. Jeffreys (Ed.), Sex and 

sexuality in China (pp. 21-42). London: Routledge. 

Rubin, G. (1993). Thinking sex: Notes for a radical theory of the politics 

of sexuality. In H. Abelove, M. A. Barale & D. M. Halperin (Eds.), The 

lesbian and gay studies reader (pp. 3-44). New York: Routledge. 

Sigley, G. (2006). Sex, politics and the policing of virtue in the People’s 

Republic of China. In E. Jeffreys (Ed.), Sex and sexuality in China (pp. 

43-61). London: Routledge. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 9 



Digital story telling workshops 3 



Assessment: Productions of audio-visual 

art work 60 

Total: 170 



Individual written assignments 30 

Group project proposal 20 



Participation in workshops 5 

Project presentations and public screening 5 



1. Describe and explain key concepts for understanding 

the diversity and plurality of Chinese 

culture. 

2. Apply key concepts to analyze the dynamics of 

dating, mate selection and marriage, and how 

individual views, choices and behavior are 

shaped by complex interconnected political, 

economic and social forces in different regions 

in China. 

3. Identify the broad changes and the transformation 

in China and the world in order to understand 

how these come to influence the most 

intimate aspects of one’s life. 

4. Engage in critical reflections on one’s life 

choice in relation to social norms of specific 

gender, class and race categories. 

5. Demonstrate cultural sensitivity and interpersonal 

skills in group projects. 

6. Use the communication skills and techniques 

acquired to conduct and present their own case 

studies to an audience in different art forms. 


Love, Marriage and Sex in Modern China 

This course enables students 

to understand how 

love, sex and marriage 

constitute a useful lens for 

understanding Chinese culture, 

thoughts, values and 

ways of life so as to provide 

a glimpse into the complex 

interconnections between 

political, cultural, economic 

and interpersonal 

realms of experience. The 

course begins from issues 

that are personally relevant 

to young people – mate 

choice, love, marriage, sex 

and family – with a view to 

helping them think about 

the historical and cultural 

roots of values concerning love, sexuality, marriage, and family life in China. Through 

case studies of love and marriage in Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta, we hope to 

enable students to understand the diverse characteristics of “Chinese” ways of life, and 

how Chinese people may currently experience love, sex, marriage and cross different 

types of borders and boundaries to look for intimacies. Documentary films will be used 

to give a vivid sense of the different strategies modern Chinese men and women use 

to fulfill material, affective and sexual desires as a response to social changes. Possible 

topics include: the three bonds and five relationships in Confucian humanism; the 

class-based consciousness and the movement-based passions of Mao-era socialism; 

the impact of Post-Mao reforms on family life; urban families in the eighties and the 

one child policy; family strategies and economic transformation in rural China; postsocialist 

China and quality-based desire; “supergirls”, sex icons and Shanghai Babies in 

China; xiaojies and sex workers in the Pearl River Delta; early love affairs and temporary 

love in urban cities; and queer China and brave new families. 


Dr P.S.Y. Ho 


Adminstration, Faculty of Social Sciences 

Tel: 3917 2091 

Email: psyho@hkucc.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr P.S.Y. Ho 


Adminstration, Faculty of Social Sciences 

Tel: 3917 2091 

Email: psyho@hkucc.hku.hk 

Dr M.S.Y. Lee 



Tel: 3917 8948 

Email: leesym@hkucc.hku.hk 


143

144 




Chan, C. K., Ngok, K. L., & Phillips, D. (2008). Social policy 

and well-being. In C. K. Chan, K. L. Ngok & D. Phillips 

(Eds.), Social policy in China: Development and wellbeing 

(pp. 15-26). Bristol, UK: Policy Press, University of 

Bristol. 

Fogel, R. (2010). Why China is likely to achieve its growth 

objectives. In G. G. Liu, S. Zhang & Z. Zhang (Eds.), 

Investing in human capital for economic development 

in China (pp. 3-18). Singapore; Hackensack, NJ: World 

Scientific. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Assessment: Interview report (incl interview) 50 


Assessment: Quiz (incl preparation) 30 

Total: 166 



Interview report 25 

Discussion and verbal presentation in tutorials 25 

Open book quiz 50 



1. Define the concept of social development and 

explain the surrounding controversies. 

2. Summarize the nature and magnitude of the 

social challenges facing current China. 

3. Examine the role of the government in addressing 

social problems in the context of globalization 

and modernization. 

4. Analyze the Chinese government’s social policy 

responses within the historical and globalized 

features. 

5. Illustrate viable reform directions for China’s 

social development. 


Social Development Challenges in China 

Starting in late 1970s, the Open Door Policy ushered in an era of privatization, decentralization, 

modernization, and the dismantling of the Mao era’s iron rice bowl. The reforms 

have had a profound impact on Chinese society, creating rising quality of life and 

incomes, but also rising inequalities. 

Is inequality a must to motivate social development? Who are the emerging urban 

poor, and how can China achieve poverty reduction? Is it unrealistic to provide a universal 

pension in China? Why it is expensive and difficult to obtain quality health care? 

How can housing policy help to achieve social integration? This course focuses on the 

nature and magnitude of key social development challenges in China, and how Chinese 

policy-makers have dealt with them so far. Key questions explored will include differing 

definitions of social development, the limits of market power in providing social 

goods, and the challenges of policy implementation in the Chinese institutional context 

in a globalizing world. 

We will rely extensively on audio-visual 

news clips, documentaries, statistics, 

case studies, interviews, and discussion 

of current events to develop a 

better feel for the subject. 


Dr V.W.Q. Lou 



Tel: 3917 4835 

Email: wlou@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr V.W.Q. Lou 



Tel: 3917 4835 

Email: wlou@hku.hk 





Weeks, J. R. (2012). Population: An introduction to 

concepts and issues (11th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth 

Publishing. [Chaps. 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 (pp. 366-377), 10, 12] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 





Assessment: In-class peer-reviewed assessment 5 

Total: 144 



In-class participation and discussions 20 

Group research project 30 




1. Identify and explain the theories, models and 

facts about population processes. 

2. Clarify basic demographic concepts and measures 

and apply them to the contexts of Hong 

Kong and China and international settings. 

3. Trace and differentiate major sources of demographic 

data and assess their limitations. 

4. Analyze the contributions of fertility, mortality, 

and migration to population change and characterize 

the political and social forces in the process 

of modernization at the local and global levels. 

5. Examine the social and economic implications 

of population dynamics in a multidisciplinary 

context with reference to Hong Kong and China. 

6. Identify and describe the key facts about population 

policies and schemes in Hong Kong and 

China and evaluate the impacts of the forces on 

modernization. 

7. Identify and analyze population issues in relation 

to social services and public policies. 

8. Specify the implications and challenges of 

Hong Kong’s ageing population. 


Population, Society and Sustainable 

Development in Hong Kong 

Very much like that of economic and social development, the population of Hong Kong 

has dramatically restructured due to the influx of Chinese immigrants in the fifties and 

the wave of the population born locally in the sixties and seventies, then later the quota 

system of migration control of mainlanders, rapid declining fertility and increasing 

life expectancy. Today, several demographic concerns persist such as extremely low 

fertility, gender imbalance, cross-border marriage, shrinking workforce, and ageing 

population. Demographic characteristics and processes are much influenced by social 

and political developments in Mainland China and economic growth and population 

in-and-out flow of Hong Kong. This course introduces various population theories, 

concepts and facts to enable students to develop a critical understanding of the interrelatedness 

of the demographic, social, cultural, economic and political issues between 

Hong Kong and Mainland China and its sustainable development. 


Professor P.S.F. Yip 



Tel: 3917 5017 

Email: sfpyip@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 5017 



145

146 



Informed by current studies of world cities, this course introduces students 

to a basic understanding of Hong Kong as a global city. It will also enable 

them to locate themselves in a globalizing environment that is closely 

connected to national development in China and to the changing global 

and regional dynamics. Emphasis is placed on understanding Hong Kong 

as embedded in the broader regional milieu. Students are expected to reflect 

upon the key question concerning how Hong Kong, as an Asian global 

city, would face the challenges in the context of rapid changes in the world 

economy and the emergence of China as a powerful economy. The course is 

composed of two parts. The first part is a survey of the key features of Hong 

Kong as a global city and the second focuses on the challenges and prospect 

of future development. 


Chiu, S. W. K., & Lui, T. L. (2009). Hong Kong: Becoming a 

Chinese global city. London; New York: Routledge. 

Leung, K. P. B. (2003). Hong Kong: Legacies and prospects of 

development. Aldershot, UK: Burlington Ashgate. 

Ngo, T. W. (1999). Hong Kong’s history: State and society 

under colonial rule. London; New York: Routledge. 

Study Load 


Lectures 20 

Tutorials 10 

Seminars 4 





Total: 152 



Photo essay 40 

Group presentation and tutorial participation 30 

Field trip reports 30 



1. Identify the key features of Hong Kong as an 

Asian world city. 

2. Reflect critically upon the challenges and prospect 

of Hong Kong in maintaining its position 

as an Asian world city. 

3. Relate what has been learnt in class to daily experience. 

4. Connect the knowledge acquired in class to 

an analysis of Hong Kong as an Asian city in a 

group project report. 

5. Apply presentation skills and cooperate in 

group work. 


Hong Kong: 

Becoming a Chinese Global City 


Dr D. Tang 



Tel: 3917 5685 

Email: denitang@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr D. Tang 



Tel: 3917 5685 

Email: denitang@hku.hk 





Cheung, A. S. Y. (2007). Public opinion supervision: A case 

study of media freedom in China. Columbia Journal of 

Asian Law, 20(2), 357-384. 

Ma, E. K. W. (2000). Rethinking media studies: The case of 

China. In M. J. Park & J. Curran (Eds.), De-Westernizing 

media studies (pp. 21-34). London; New York: Routledge. 

MacKinnon, R. (2008). Flatter world and thicker walls? 

Blogs, censorship and civic discourse in China. Public 

Choice, 134(1), 31-46. 

Nakamura, H. (1964). Part II: China. In P. P. Wiener (Ed.), 

Ways of thinking of Eastern peoples: India, China, Tibet, 

Japan (English ed., pp. 175-294). Honolulu: East-West 

Center Press. 

Pan, P. P. (2008). Out of Mao’s shadow: The struggle for the 

soul of a new China (1st Simon & Schuster hardcover ed.). 

New York: Simon & Schuster. 

Wang, J. (2001). Culture as leisure and culture as capital. 

Positions: East Asia Cultures Critique, 9(1), 69-104. 

Wasserstrom, J. N. (2000). Big bad China and the good 

Chinese: An American fairy tale. In T. B. Weston & L. M. 

Jensen (Eds.), China beyond the headlines (pp. 13-35). 

Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. 

Xiao, H. (2006). Narrating a happy China through a crying 

game: A case study of post-Mao reality shows. China 

Media Research, 2(3), 56-67. 

Zha, J. (1995). After an icon. China pop: How soap operas, 

tabloids, and bestsellers are transforming a culture (pp. 

3-24). New York: New Press. 

Zhao, Y. (1998). Media, market, and democracy in China: 

Between the party line and the bottom line. Urbana, IL: 

University of Illinois Press. 

Zheng, Y., & Wu, G. (2005). Information technology, public 

space, and collective action in China. Comparative 

Political Studies, 38(5), 507-536. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 





Assessment: Test (incl preparation) 20 

Total: 154 



Mid-term essay 30 





1. Identify and discuss major factors that transformed 

China’s media from a vehicle of mass 

propaganda to mass communication. 

2. Investigate the emerging diverse media and 

popular culture forms and analyze its impact 

on media, state and social relations. 

3. Analyze the rise of new media and its contribution 

to the development of China’s nascent civil 

society. 

4. Critically analyze the on-going debate concerning 

media autonomy and Party control using 

various media studies and sociology theories 

covered. 

5. Examine the limitations of unfettered media 

commercialization and continued Party ideological 

domination. 


People, Propaganda and Profit: 

Understanding Media in China 

Mainland Chinese are increasingly 

able to access media stories that 

expose government corruption and 

examine the social costs of the nation’s 

market-based economic reforms 

in China’s quest for modernization. 

Some see this development 

as a sign of China’s growing media 

freedom, while others view it as a 

sophisticated government tool for 

legitimizing and maintaining Communist 

Party power. Despite these 

contradictory views, what cannot 

be ignored is that the proliferation of the Chinese media is transforming it from a vehicle 

of mass propaganda into a vehicle for mass communication. The diversification 

of the media, from the rise of celebrity blogs and pop idol talent shows, to citizen journalists 

publishing independent investigative reports, is changing the chief function of 

media from merely serving as party mouthpiece to that of gathering and disseminating 

information and a working tool for self expression. This media development is creating 

new public channels that monitor and expose Party malfeasance, social ills, and reflect 

the views of the general public. 

This course engages students in a cross-disciplinary investigation on the social implications 

of this changing media environment on China’s nascent public sphere. By 

analyzing Chinese media content including news stories, films, street tabloids, TV 

entertainment shows, and new media technologies, the course examines the dynamic 

interplay of evolving social, political, economic, and media forces and the prospects for 

the transformation of mass culture and civil society in China. The course will survey 

the historical roots of media and mass propaganda in the Mao Era, analyzing its political, 

social and cultural role. This will be followed by an in-depth look at how market 

liberalization policies reshaped China’s media landscape within the context of continued 

government control. Specific examples will be used to illustrate the media’s new 

found role as a mass communication vehicle and the challenges and prospects of this 

shift on media, state and social relations. 


Dr L.Y. Tang 



Tel: 3917 8533 

Email: ltang@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr L.Y. Tang 



Tel: 3917 8533 

Email: ltang@hku.hk 

Dr L.F. Cho 



Tel: 3917 4641 

Email: lifcho@hku.hk 


147

148 




Fang, L. (2010). China’s Buddhist culture. Singapore: 

Cengage Learning Asia. 

Guang, X. (2008). Early Buddhist and Confucian concepts of 

filial piety: A comparative study. Universal Gate Buddhist 

Journal, 45, 169-210. 

Guang, X. (2011). Avalokiteśvara in China. The Indian 

International Journal of Buddhist Studies, 11, 1-22. 

Hu, S. (1953). Ch’an (Zen) Buddhism in China: Its history 

and method. Philosophy East and West, 3(1), 3-24. 

Mair, V. H. (1994). Buddhism and the rise of the written 

vernacular in East Asia: The making of national 

languages. The Journal of Asian Studies, 53(3), 707-751. 

Overmyer, D. L., & Adler, J. (2005). Chinese religion: An 

overview. In L. Jones (Ed.), Encyclopedia of religion (2nd 

ed., Vol. 3, pp. 1580-1613). Detroit: Macmillan Reference 

USA. 

Teiser, S. F. (1988). The ghost festival in medieval China. 


Tregear, M. (1980). Chinese art. London: Thames and 

Hudson. 

Wright, A. F. (1957). Buddhism and Chinese culture: Phases 

of interaction. The Journal of Asian Studies, 17(1), 17-42. 

Yü, C. F. (2001). Kuan-yin: The Chinese transformation of 

Avalokiteśvara. New York: Columbia University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 


Preparation for oral report 10 



Total: 156 



Lecture and tutorial 

participation and presentation 20 


Written report 25 




1. Demonstrate understanding of the role Buddhist 

culture plays in the various forms of 

Chinese life such as thought, value, visual art, 

architecture, literature, language, and folk beliefs. 

2. Describe and explain Buddhist influence on 

Chinese culture in general. 

3. Use relevant information to critically examine 

how significant Buddhist culture is in Chinese 

people’s daily life such as Guanyin belief and 

ancestor worship. 

4. Demonstrate an awareness of the characteristics 

and diversities of China’s culture and heritage 

and her Buddhist impact. 

5. Apply the knowledge and understanding gained 

to study the deeper implications of Buddhist 

thought for modern society together with other 

philosophical and religious systems. 


Buddhism and Chinese Culture 

This course is designed to help students to understand Chinese culture and its Buddhist 

influence and impact. For over two thousand years, Buddhism has interacted 

with all levels of Chinese culture such as literature, philosophy, mores and behavioral 

norms, arts and architecture, and religions of all classes. As a result, Buddhism has become 

one of the three pillars of traditional Chinese culture and its influence is seen in 

many aspects and at all levels of Chinese culture. The aim of the course is to enhance 

students’ intellectual understanding of Chinese culture and Chinese people’s way of 

life and belief through historical analysis, and theoretical enquiries into the key aspects 

of China’s long interaction and exchange with Buddhism. Attention will be paid 

to the open attitude of both Buddhism and Confucianism as a basis for integration and 

mutual assimilation. Lectures are organized in such a way as to first introduce students 

to the philosophical traditions and their thoughts, with follow-up discussions 

on specific topics. Topics include: Buddhist impact on Chinese culture; intellectual 

exchange between Buddhism and Chinese culture; Buddhist and Chinese attitude to 

life: A comparative study; Buddhist and Chinese ethics of filial piety; Buddhism and 

Chinese visual art; Chan and Chinese culture; Buddhist influence on Chinese language; 

Buddhist influence on Chinese literature; Buddhist influence on religions and popular 

beliefs; Guanyin belief in Chinese life; Ullambana (ghost) Festival and Chinese ancestor 

worship. 


Ven. Dr X. Guang 

Centre of Buddhist Studies, 


Tel: 3917 5040 

Email: guangxin@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Ven. Dr X. Guang 

Centre of Buddhist Studies, 


Tel: 3917 5040 

Email: guangxin@hku.hk 





Institute of the History of Natural Sciences, Chinese 

Academy of Sciences. (1983). Ancient China’s technology 

and science. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 16 

Tutorials 4 

Seminars 4 





Total: 152 




Essays 40 


Field trip / Discussion / Hands-on work 10 

Book analysis 20 

Science and Technology: 

Lessons from China 



1. Give an account of the extent of scientific 

achievements in ancient China and explain the 

social-environmental background governing 

the development of science and technology in 

ancient China. 

2. Deliver an in-depth account on why western 

style science did not flourish in China. 

3. Give a critical comparison of the approach and 

inquiry methods used by scholars in ancient 

China and in modern scientific studies. 


In spite of the vast and superior knowledge possessed by the ancient Chinese relative 

to the rest of the world, China did not develop into a dominant technoculture. This 

course will explore some of the lesser known inventions and scientific development in 

ancient China and factors that caused China to fall behind the West in technological 

development. The contents of the course include perception of the material world in 

ancient China, early Chinese views of the universe, earth and Nature, changes in the 

perception of these entities over time, scientific inventions and theories of ancient 

China, and the linkage between science, art and literature in China. Guest speakers 

will give insights on specific areas of technological advancement in ancient China. 


Professor L.S. Chan 



Tel: 2859 8002 

Email: chanls@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor L.S. Chan 



Tel: 2859 8002 

Email: chanls@hku.hk 


149

150 




Beckwith, C. I. (1991). The impact of the horse and silk trade 

on the economies of T’ang China and the Uighur Empire: 

On the importance of international commerce in the 

Early Middle Ages. Journal of the Economic and Social 

History of the Orient, 34(3), 183-198. (Moodle link) 

Chung, W. K. (1996). The organization of Chinese business 

in Hong Kong during the 1940s. In Chinese Business 

Conference & University of Hong Kong (Eds.), The rise 

of business corporations in China from Ming to present. 

Hong Kong: Centre of Asian Studies, University of Hong 

Kong. 

Cochran, S. (2000). Encountering Chinese networks: 

Western, Japanese, and Chinese corporations in China, 

1880-1937. Los Angeles, CA: University of California 

Press. [Chap. 6] 

Liu, K. W. (1988, February). Chinese merchant guilds: An 

historical inquiry. Pacific History Review, 57(1), 1-23. 

[Moodle link] 

Naughton, B. (2007). The Chinese economy: Transitions and 

growth. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Chaps. 3, 4, 9, 10, 12, 

13, 15, 17] 

Powell, W. W., & DiMaggio, P. J. (1991). The New 

institutionalism in organizational analysis. Chicago: 

University of Chicago Press. [Chap. 15] 

Rae, I., & Witzel, M. (2004). Singular and different: 

Business in China, past, present, and future. Houndmills, 

Basingstoke, UK; New York: Palgrave Macmillan. [Chap. 

5] 

Wang, K., Zhang, X., & Goodfellow, R. (2005). China business 

culture: Strategies for success [Reprinted ed.]. London: 

Thorogood. [Chap. 2] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 

Fieldwork/ Visits 8 



Assessment: Group projects 24 

Total: 158 



In-class presentations and participation 10 

Group project 1 30 

Group project 2 30 

Essay 30 



1. Demonstrate understanding of New Institutional 

Theory and explain how institutions 

interact with business activities in a society. 

2. Identify the social and political factors that affect 

the performance and decisions of Chinese 

businesses in historical periods before and 

after 1949. 

3. Demonstrate understanding of how businesses 

are organized and relations are managed to 

achieve business goals in a social context. 

4. Work with others to identify critical “success 

formula” in business operations. 

5. Analyze, in collaboration with fellow students, 

the opportunities and challenges facing Chinese 

businesses in the global economy. 


Chinese Business and Society: 

Past and Present 

This course is designed to develop a basic understanding of Chinese business in its 

societal context. Taking New Institutional Theory as an intellectual framework, the 

course discusses how social and political institutions interact with business activities 

in Chinese society from a historical perspective. The course first introduces New Institutional 

Theory. It then reviews the business models of the major Business Groups 

in traditional China and the Chinese State-owned and non-State-owned Enterprises 

under the Communist regime. Under the institutional framework, the discussion focuses 

on analyzing what are the essential features of the political and social contexts 

for Chinese businesses; how these contextual features have shaped the operation and 

competitiveness of Chinese businesses on the one hand, and, have been modified with 

the development of business activities on the other hand. The major themes include: 

government business relations, distinctive business culture and relationships among 

themselves and with other social institutions in China, and more recently, the effects 

of globalization. The discussion is divided into two parts: Chinese business and society 

in the Dynastic Eras and the Republic of China before 1949 and, their dissolution, 

transformation, and re-creation afterwards. 


Dr G.Y.Y. Wong 



Tel: 2859 1016 

Email: gilwong@business.hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr G.Y.Y. Wong 



Tel: 2859 1016 

Email: gilwong@business.hku.hk 

Dr D. Guo 



Tel: 2859 1012 

Email: diguo@hku.hk 





All required readings will be available on the course’s 

WebCT as below: 

Adams, B. N. (2004). Families and family study in 

international perspective. Journal of Marriage and 

Family, 66(5), 1076-1088. 

Attané, I. (2002). China’s family planning policy: An 

overview of its past and future. Studies in Family 

Planning, 33(1), 103-113. 

Coale, A. J. (1989). Marriage and childbearing in China since 

1940. Social Forces, 67(4), 833-850. 

Coontz, S. (2004). The world historical transformation of 

marriage. Journal of Marriage and Family, 66(4), 974- 

979. 

Greenhalgh, S. (2003). Science, modernity, and the making 

of China’s one child policy. Population and Development 

Review, 29(2), 163-196. 

Li, N. (1985). How does China deal with divorce? Beijing 

Review, 5, 18-21. 

Poston, D. L., & Gu, B. (1987). Socioeconomic development, 

family planning, and fertility in China. Demography, 

24(4), 531-551. 

Tuljapurkar, S., Li, N., & Feldman, M. W. (1995). High sex 

ratios in China’s future. Science, 267(5199), 874-876. 

Wang, F. (2005). Can China afford to continue its one-child 

policy? Asia-Pacific Issues, 77, 1-12. 

Zuo, J. (2009). Rethinking family patriarchy and women’s 

positions in presocialist China. Journal of Marriage and 

Family, 71(3), 542-557. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 8 

Seminars 4 





Assessment: In-class peer reviewed assessment 5 

Total: 146 




In-class participation and group debates 20 

Group research project 30 


Family and Development in 

Modern China 



1. Identify and explain the theories, models and facts 

about family changes and its interconnectedness of 

modernization from multidisciplinary perspectives. 

2. Underline and clarify basic family theories and concepts 

and apply the analysis to the contexts of China 

and international settings. 

3. Trace and differentiate major sources of family demographic 

data and their limitations. 

4. Analyze the contributions of family, marriage, childbearing 

and its impact from migration and urbanization 

and characterize the political and social forces in the 

process of modernization at the local and global levels. 

5. Examine the social and economic implications of 

family dynamics in a multidisciplinary context with 

reference to the situations of Modern China. 

6. Identify and describe the key facts about family planning 

scheme and one-child policy in China and evaluate 

the impacts of the forces on the modernization. 

7. Locate and appraise family issues to social services 

and public policies. 

8. Specify social implications and prescribe the challenges 

of family dissolution and baby death. 


Over a decade, family composition has substantially changed in parallel with socioeconomic 

development in China. Traditional values of a family had been evolving from 

Confucian basis to greater individual autonomy. From the late Mao era, China introduced 

the one-child policy to limit the population growth in 1978 as a prerequisite for 

economic development and for the success of the Four Modernizations program. The 

one-child policy runs contrary to traditional family norms, thereby disrupting family 

structures and affecting not only women but all family members. The transformation 

of family norms and values not only deeply affects marriage, family formation, 

childbearing behaviors as well as obligations to old age support, but also aggregately 

restructures the population composition. This course aims at introducing the various 

family theories, concepts, facts and general demographic techniques to understand the 

inter-relatedness of the demographic, social, cultural, economic and political issues 

with family transitions in Modern China. 





Tel: 3917 5017 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 3917 5017 



151

152 





Angle, S. C. (2009). Sagehood: The contemporary significance of neo-Confucian philosophy. Oxford; 

New York: Oxford University Press. 

Brière, O. (1979). Fifty years of Chinese philosophy, 1898-1950. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. 

Chang, C. (1962). The development of Neo-Confucian thought (Vol. 2). New York: Bookman Associates. 

Cheng, Z., & Bunnin, N. (2002). Contemporary Chinese philosophy. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers. 

Chow, T. (1960). The May Fourth Movement: Intellectual revolution in modern China. Cambridge, MA: 


Fox, A. (1996). Reflex and reflectivity: Wuwei in the Zhuangzi. Asian Philosophy, 6(1), 59-72. 

Fraser, C. (2011). The philosophy of the Mozi: The first consequentialists. New York: Columbia 


Fraser, C. (Forthcoming). Chinese philosophy: An introduction. New York: Columbia University Press. 

Fraser, C. (Forthcoming). Wandering the way. Happiness East and West. 

Hansen, C. (1992). A Daoist theory of Chinese thought: A philosophical interpretation. New York: 


Ivanhoe, P. J. (2000). Confucian moral self cultivation (2nd ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing 

Company. 

Kwok, D. W. Y. (1971). Scientism in Chinese thought, 1900-1950. New York: Biblo and Tannen. 

Lai, K. (2008). An introduction to Chinese philosophy. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge 


Makeham, J. (2010). Dao companion to neo-Confucian philosophy. Dordrecht; New York: Springer. 

Robins, D. (2007). Xunzi. In E.N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy (Spring 2011 ed.). 

From http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2011/entries/xunzi/ 

Tiwald, J. (2009). Dai Zhen. In J. Fieser & B. Dowden (Eds.), Internet encyclopedia of philosophy. From 

http://www.iep.utm.edu/dai-zhen/ 

Van Norden, B. W. (2007). Virtue ethics and consequentialism in early Chinese philosophy. New York; 

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

Wong, D. (2008). Chinese ethics. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy (Spring 

2011 ed.). From http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2011/entries/ethics-chinese/ 

Translations 

Chan, W. (1963). A source book in Chinese philosophy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 

Confucius, & Lau, D. C. (1979). The analects (Lun yü). Harmondsworth, UK; New York: Penguin Books. 

De Bary, W. T., Bloom, I., Chan, W., Adler, J., & Lufrano, R. (1999). Sources of Chinese tradition (2nd ed., 

Vol. 1). New York: Columbia University Press. 

Gardner, D. K., & Zhu, X. (1990). Learning to be a sage: Selections from the conversations of Master Chu, 

arranged topically. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Ivanhoe, P. J., Huineng, Lu, J., & Wang, Y. (2009). Readings from the Lu-Wang school of Neo- 

Confucianism. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Company. 

Ivanhoe, P. J., & Van Norden, B. W. (2005). Readings in classical Chinese philosophy (2nd ed.). 

Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Company. 

Laozi, & Lau, D. C. (1963). Tao te ching. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books. 

Mencius, & Lau, D. C. (1970). Mencius. Harmondsworth, UK: Penguin Books. 

Watson, B., Mo, D., Xunzi, & Han, F. (1967). Basic writings of Mo Tzu, Hsün Tzu, and Han Fei Tzu. New 

York: Columbia University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 26 

Tutorials 10 



Assessment: Brief written assignments 10 


Total: 120 




Brief writing assignments 25 

Individual student journal 25 

Final paper 25 



1. Describe the range of conceptions and practices of the dao in the 

Chinese tradition and explain their significance with respect to human 

life. 

2. Critically examine the views discussed and identify their strengths 

and weaknesses. 

3. Demonstrate interpretive, analytical, and argumentative skills in 

oral presentation and writing by discussing these issues and views 

in written assignments, class discussion, and tutorial presentations. 

4. Demonstrate appreciation of the intellectual frameworks and 

concerns of traditional Chinese philosophy, particularly as these 

pertain to the values and ways of life that ground ethical and political 

culture, along with appreciation of the potential for constructive 

engagement with them. 

5. Demonstrate personal reflection on and practical experimentation 

with traditional conceptions and practices of the dao, thus showing 

appreciation for their potentially transformative effect on life 

and society. 




Following the Dao: 

Ways of Life in Chinese Thought 

This course guides students in exploring the thought, values, 

and ways of life presented by the major philosophical schools of 

traditional China and exploring the respects in which traditional 

philosophy may remain relevant to contemporary life. The 

unifying theme of the course is the concept of the dao, or “way”, 

understood as a pattern of attitudes and activities that reflects 

a normative order, grounded in nature, which must be lived out 

in practice. The course will discuss and critically evaluate how 

important figures throughout the Chinese intellectual tradition 

understood the dao and the practical approaches by which they 

sought to align human attitudes and activity with it, presenting 

these as concrete ways of life for students to examine and critique. 

The course will discuss figures such as Confucius, Mozi, 

Mengzi, Zhuangzi, Zhu Xi, and Dai Zhen and compare and contrast 

approaches to practicing the dao that focus on effort, spontaneity, 

purification, and reform. 


Dr C.J. Fraser 

School of Humanities 

(Philosophy), 


Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: fraser@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr D.P. Robins 


(Philosophy), 


Tel: 3917 2796 





Readings will include brief selections from original sources and secondary sources. Original 

sources may include the Book of Documents, the Analects, Mengzi, Xunzi, Daodejing, Zhuangzi, 

Mozi, Lun Heng, sayings of Chan Buddhist masters, Zhu Xi, Wang Yangming, Hu Shih, and Mao 

Zedong. Secondary sources may include Hansen, Daoist; Chang, Development; Briere, Fifty; Kwok, 

Scientism; Chow, May Fourth; Tang (two essays); and Cheng and Bunnin, Contemporary. 

References 

Brière, O. (1979). Fifty years of Chinese philosophy, 1898-1950. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. 

Chang, C. (1962). The development of Neo-Confucian thought (Vol. 2). New York: Bookman 

Associates. 

Cheng, Z., & Bunnin, N. (2002). Contemporary Chinese philosophy. Malden, MA: Blackwell 

Publishers. 

Hansen, C. (1992). A Daoist theory of Chinese thought: A philosophical interpretation. New York: 


Ivanhoe, P. J. (2000). Confucian moral self cultivation (2nd ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Hackett 

Publishing Company. 

Kwok, D. W. Y. (1971). Scientism in Chinese thought, 1900-1950. New York: Biblo and Tannen. 

Lai, K. (2008). An introduction to Chinese philosophy. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge 


Makeham, J. (2010). Dao companion to Neo-Confucian philosophy. Dordrecht; New York: Springer. 

Tang, C. (1956). Chang Tsai’s theory of mind and its metaphysical basis. Philosophy East and West, 6, 

113-136. 

Tang, C. (1970). The development of the concept of moral mind from Wang Yang-ming to Wang 

Chi. In W. T. De Bary (Ed.), Self and society in Ming thought (pp. 93-120). New York: Columbia 


Zhou, C. (1960). The May Fourth movement: Intellectual revolution in modern China. Cambridge: 


Translations 

Chan, W. (1963). A source book in Chinese philosophy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 

Confucius, & Lau, D. C. (1979). The analects (Lun yü). Harmondsworth; New York: Penguin Books. 

De Bary, W. T., Bloom, I., Chan, W., Adler, J., & Lufrano, R. J. (1999). Sources of Chinese tradition (2nd 

ed. Vols. 1 and 2). New York: Columbia University Press. 

Gardner, D. K., & Zhu, X. (1990). Learning to be a sage: Selections from the conversations of Master 

Chu, arranged topically. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Huineng, Lu, J., Wang, Y., & Ivanhoe, P. J. (2009). Readings from the Lu-Wang School of Neo- 

Confucianism. Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Company. 

Ivanhoe, P. J., & Van Norden, B. W. (2005). Readings in classical Chinese philosophy (2nd ed.). 

Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Company. 

Laozi, & Lau, D. C. (1963). Tao te ching. Baltimore: Penguin Books. 

Mencius, & Lau, D. C. (1970). Mencius. Harmondsworth: Penguin. 

Watson, B., Mo, D., Xunzi, & Han, F. (1967). Basic writings of Mo Tzu, Hsün Tzu, and Han Fei Tzu. 

New York: Columbia University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 26 

Tutorials 10 



Assessment: Brief written assignments 12 

Total: 120 




Brief writing assignments 50 


Humanity and Nature in 




1. Describe various conceptions of the relation between humanity 

and nature presented in the ancient, medieval, and modern eras 

and explain their significance with respect to ethics and politics. 

2. Critically examine these conceptions and identify their 

strengths and weaknesses. 

3. Demonstrate interpretive, analytical, and argumentative skills 

in oral presentation and writing by discussing and critiquing 

these conceptions in written assignments and tutorial discussions. 

4. Demonstrate appreciation of the intellectual framework and 

concerns of traditional Chinese philosophy, particularly as these 

bear on the relation of humanity to nature. 

5. Demonstrate personal critical reflection on the relation between 

humanity and nature while considering the significance of traditional 

understandings of nature in the context of a contemporary 

ethical, political, or environmental issue. 




This course explores the ways prominent Chinese philosophers 

throughout history have understood and approached the relation 

between the human, social realm and the realm of nature. The dominant 

tendency in traditional Chinese ethical, religious, and political 

thought has been to ground ethical and political ideals in a normative 

conception of humanity’s relation to nature, as epitomized by 

the slogan, “nature and humanity join as one”. The course explores 

the conceptions of humanity, nature, and the relation between them 

that underlie the many competing versions of this ideal of naturalistic 

humanism. Students will be led to chart their own view of 

our relation to nature, grounded in culturally authentic concepts 

and patterns of thinking, with the aim of enhancing their appreciation 

of Chinese ethical and philosophical culture, on the one hand, 

and modern scientific and philosophical naturalism, on the other. 

Schools of thought covered will include Confucianism, Daoism, Mohism, 

Buddhism, Song Dynasty “Dao-Study”, and contemporary Chinese 

pragmatism. 


Dr C.J. Fraser 


(Philosophy), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: fraser@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor C. Hansen 


(Philosophy), Faculty of Arts 

Tel: 3917 2796 

Email: chansen@hku.hk 


153

154 




Sung, Y. W. (1991). The China-Hong Kong connection: The 

key to China’s open-door policy. Cambridge: Cambridge 


Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 

Reading / Self-study / Preparation for tutorials 50 

Assessment: Report writing 18 



Total: 122 






Tutorials 20 



1. Describe the economic interactions between 

Hong Kong and China since the early twentieth 

century. 

2. Identify the economic functions that Hong 

Kong serves for China and the underlying 

unique advantages of Hong Kong. 

3. Apply basic economic concepts to understand 

the advantages of Hong Kong and predict their 

future trends. 

4. Evaluate the challenges and opportunities that 

Hong Kong faces in response to the changing 

socio-economic environment in the regional 

and global economies. 

5. Demonstrate an awareness of Hong Kong’s 

past, present and future. 


Hong Kong and China’s Economic 

Development 

Hong Kong has been playing a pivotal role in China’s economic reform since the inauguration 

of her open door policy in 1978. In recent years, however, the rapid development 

of coastal cities and gradual opening of China to the world following her accession 

to the WTO have called into question the future roles of Hong Kong in China’s 

economic development. This course provides an overview of the economic linkages 

between Hong Kong and China from the twentieth century to the present. It traces the 

changing roles that Hong Kong has assumed during different phases in China’s economic 

development and explores the roles that Hong Kong can continue to serve China 

in the future. 


Dr Y.F. Luk 



Tel: 2859 1050 


Teacher(s) 

Dr Y.F. Luk 



Tel: 2859 1050 



156 




Balme, S., & Dowdle, M. W. (2009). Introduction: Exploring for 

constitutionalism in 21st century China. In S. Balme & M. 

W. Dowdle (Eds.), Building constitutionalism in China. New 

York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

Brunner, G. (1977). The functions of Communist Constitutions: 

An analysis of recent constitutional developments. Review of 

Socialist Review, 3, 121-153. 

Cai, D. (2005). The development of constitutionalism in the 

transition of Chinese society. Columbia Journal of Asian Law, 

19, 1-29. 

Chen, A. (2011). An introduction to the legal system of the People’s 

Republic of China. Hong Kong: LexisNexis, Butterworths. 

[Chaps. 4 & 5] 

Davis, M. C. (1995). Chinese perspectives on human rights. In 

M. C. Davis (Ed.), Human rights and Chinese values: Legal, 

philosophical, and political perspectives. Oxford University 

Press. 

Gilley, B. (2008). Legitimacy and institutional change: The case 

of China. Comparative Political Studies, 41, 259-284. 

Inglehart, R., & Welzel, C. (2005). Modernization, cultural 

change, and democracy: The human development sequence. 

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Part 1] 

Jiang, J. (2002). The National People’s Congress of China. Beijing: 

Foreign Languages Press. [Chaps. 1-5] 

King, A. (2002). The emergence of alternative modernity in East 

Asia. In D. Sachsenmaier & S. Eisenstadt (Eds.), Reflections 

on multiple modernities: European, Chinese and other 

interpretations. Leiden; Boston: Brill. 

Lin, F. (2000). Constitutional law in China. Hong Kong: Sweet & 

Maxwell Asia. [Chap. 1] 

Nwabueze, B. O. (1973). Constitutionalism in the emergent states. 

London: C. Hurst. [Chap. 1] 

Peerenboom, R. (2012). Social foundations of China’s living 

constitution. In T. Ginsburg (Ed.), Comparative constitutional 

design. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

Xiao-Planes, X. (2009). Of constitutions and constitutionalism: 

Trying to build a new political order in China, 1908-1949. In 

S. Balme & M. W. Dowdle (Eds.), Building constitutionalism in 

China. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 


Assessment: Class presentation 


Assessment: Essay 25 

Total: 129 



Class presentation 30 

Essay 70 

Modernization and 

Constitutionalism in China 



1. Explain the central ideas of constitutionalism 

and the connections between constitutionalism 

and individual rights, justice and democracy. 

2. Compare how Chinese intellectuals responded 

to the crisis China faced when encountering 

western power since the 19th century and their 

views on the application of constitutionalism 

to China. 

3. Critically review the constitutional development 

during Imperial China, Republican China 

and Communist China on how far constitutionalism 

was achieved. 

4. Identify and analyze the factors that may determine 

the development of constitutionalism 

in modern China and review the prospect of 

constitutionalism in modern China. 

5. Critically determine the relevance of culture in 

the constitutional development of a society. 


Constitutionalism is not merely having a constitution but includes a series of values 

which were developed from Western historical experiences. The theoretical and institutional 

developments in constitutionalism are deeply embedded in the cultural 

context of a specific society. This course examines some of the most important constitutional 

scholars and events in modern China and helps students understand how the 

adoption of constitutionalism had actually been seen as an effective way to achieve the 

wealth and power of state in the process of China’s modernization. Students will be encouraged 

to reflect on the reasons for China not achieving a truly democratic and constitutional 

government after so many years of constitutional struggle. Students will be 

given opportunities to explore how constitutional values are going to be incorporated 

into Chinese legal culture in the future. 


Mr B.Y.T. Tai 


Tel: 3917 2937 


Teacher(s) 

Mr B.Y.T. Tai 


Tel: 3917 2937 






Books 

Beder, S., & Earth Foundation Australia. (1996). The nature 

of sustainable development. Newham, Victoria: Scribe 

Publications. 

Irving, R. T. A., Morton, B., & World Wide Fund for Nature Hong 

Kong. (1988). A geography of the Mai Po Marshes. Hong Kong: 

Hong Kong University Press. 

Lai, L. W. C. (1998). Zoning and property rights: A Hong Kong case 

study. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 

Rollo, D. (1991). The guns and gunners of Hong Kong. Hong Kong: 

The Gunners’ Roll of Hong Kong. 

Practice papers 

Davies, S. N. G., Lai, L. W. C., & Tan, Y. K. (2009). World War 

II small gun casements, pillboxes, and open machine gun 

positions on Hong Kong Island in photos. Journal of the Royal 

Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch, 49, 57-91. 

Lai, L. W. C., Davies, S. N. G., & Tan, Y. K. (2008). To action on the 

Gin Drinker’s Line. British Archaeology, 101 (July/August), 

32-35. 

Lai, L. W. C., & Ho, D. C. W. (2003). Facilities management and 

planning for heritage sites: Lessons learnt from a pilot study 

on dis-used military sites. Facilities, 21(3/4), 80-88. 

Lai, L. W. C., Ho, D. C. W., & Leung, H. F. (2003). Survey of the 

Devil’s Peak Redoubt and Gough Battery. Journal of the Hong 

Kong Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 42, 101-137. 

Lai, L. W. C., Ho, D. C. W., & Lung, D. P. Y. (2000). Disused 

military structures on Devil’s Peak: A post-colonial planning 

and building analysis on pre-war British coastal defence 

structures in Hong Kong. Ekistics, 67(400/401/402) 

(January/February-March/April-May/June). 

Lai, L. W. C., Ho, D. C. W., & Ping, Y. (2007). Survey of the 

Pottinger Battery. Journal of the Hong Kong Branch of the 

Royal Asiatic Society, 47, 91-114. 

Theoretical papers 

Henderson, J. C. (2008). Conserving Hong Kong heritage: The 

case of Queen’s Pier. International Journal of Heritage 

Studies, 14(6), 540-544. 

Lai, L. W. C., & Lorne, F. T. (2006). Planning by negotiation for 

sustainable development: A tale of two habitats. Economic 

Affairs, 26(1), 54-58. 

Lu, T. L. D. (2009). Heritage management in post-colonial Hong 

Kong. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 15(23), 258- 

272. 

Study Load 


Lectures 10 

Tutorials 8 



Assessment: Coursework 10 


Total: 120 



Participation in tutorials and project 

presentation sessions 20 

Grading of group projects based on field trips 60 




1. Describe and explain the observable phenomena 

of built heritage degradation and conservation 

in terms of different forms of property 

rights and their resource use implications and 

the significance of property rights for enabling/ 

inhibiting innovations by investment. 

2. Describe and explain the notion of built heritage 

and the common methods of classification 

and conservation; competing conservation 

approaches and provide an overview of built 

heritage endeavours by government, NGO and 

private bodies. 

3. Critically examine the role of institutional and 

technical innovations in helping to foster sustainable 

development by conserving and using 

built heritage. 

4. Apply the approach to sustainable development 

through innovations to appreciate, evaluate 

and formulate policy and project proposals for 

built heritage conservation and use, using real 

world comparable examples as sources of ideas. 


Property Rights, Built Heritage and 

Sustainable Development in Hong Kong 

The goal of this course is to stimulate students’ interest in built heritage conservation 

and utilization, along with a view to motivate and empower them to partake in 

community action for heritage conservation as responsible citizens. Through organized 

local field studies and lectures, the course examines how heritage conservation, 

as an emerging policy issue in Hong Kong and China, can be understood in terms of 

basic concepts of property rights and sustainable development. It introduces simple 

theoretical concepts of property rights and sustainability to students through observing 

examples of heritage conservation in Hong Kong from a media perspective and 

from personal experience as informed by an awareness of relevant policy initiatives 

and social actions. Students will have opportunities to review selected case studies 

and participate in organized field trips to selected Hong Kong military heritage sites. 

The knowledge base of professional skills and concepts is in the fields of architecture, 

building development, and development control. Attention will be particularly drawn 

to examples of local real life attempts to transform areas suffering from environmental 

degradation into positive and attractive environmental uses. 


Professor L.W.C. Lai 



Tel: 2859 7988 

Email: wclai@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor L.W.C. Lai 



Tel: 2859 7988 

Email: wclai@hku.hk 

Dr D.C.W. Ho 



Tel: 2859 2413 

Email: danielho@hku.hk 


157

158 




Xu, G. (2008). Olympic dreams: China and sports, 1895- 

2008. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 

Various articles from newspapers and journals. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 10 


Film viewing 15 

Internet search 15 



Total: 156 



Tutorials (discussion, presentation, debate) 30 


Film viewing and internet search 30 

Sports and Chinese Society 



1. Apply critical and creative thinking skills to the analysis 

and interpretation of primary documents and 

secondary materials related to sports and Chinese 

society covered in this course. 

2. Apply research and historiographical skills (including 

developing hypotheses, conducting original research, 

and placing research findings within existing scholarly 

contexts) to the analysis and interpretation of 

primary historical texts and secondary materials on 

issues related to sports and Chinese society covered 

in this course. 


upon how sports played an important role in 

defining and affecting Chinese society and politics 

and gender issues and how sports has changed its 

people, the nation, and the world in fundamental and 

sometimes profound ways. 


upon how Chinese attitudes toward traditional 

and modern sports are affected by national politics 

and elite members, and how by studying sports students 

are better equipped to address questions “what 

is China” and “who are the Chinese”. 


upon how China’s rise as a sports power coincides 

with its rise as an economic and political power and affects 

the country’s relations with the rest of the world. 


This course deals with sports and their impact on Chinese society with special focus 

on the role of sports in China’s search for national identity and internationalization. It 

will provide students with an in-depth understanding of Chinese society, popular culture, 

and politics. Students will learn how the Chinese have interacted with different 

peoples from the rest of the world in international games such as the Olympics and the 

Football World Cup. The course will help students to examine how different peoples, 

nations, and governments have responded to sports, how the Chinese turned sports 

into vehicles for both nationalism and internationalism, how Chinese governments in 

different stages and periods have linked sports to their political legitimacy, and how 

sports serve as tools for nation building, expressions of national identity and national 

honor or personal freedom in China. By examining the role of sports in Chinese society, 

students will gain valuable contextual understanding to better explain culture and 

politics and better understand China, its society, and its positions in the world. 


Professor G.Q. Xu 



Tel: 3917 2876 

Email: xuguoqi@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Professor G.Q. Xu 



Tel: 3917 2876 

Email: xuguoqi@hku.hk 





Chan, R. C. K. (2010). Economic integration in the Pearl River 

Delta Region: A study of the Closer Economic Partnership 

Arrangement. In J. Y. S. Cheng (Ed.), Guangdong: Challenges 

in development and crisis management (pp. 159-192). Hong 

Kong: Contemporary China Research Project, City University 

of Hong Kong. 

Chan, R. C. K., & Lin, G. C. S. (2008). Hong Kong: Ten years after 

the Handover. China Review, 8(1). 

Mottershead, T. (Ed.). (2004). Sustainable development in Hong 

Kong. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. 

Ng, M. K. (2002). Sustainable urban development issues in 

Chinese transitional cities: Hong Kong and Shenzhen. 

International Planning Studies, 7(1), 7-36. 

Ng, M. K. (2006). World-city formation under an executive-led 

government: The politics of harbour reclamation in Hong 

Kong. Town Planning Review, 77(3), 311-337. 

Ng, M. K. (2008). From government to governance? Politics 

of planning in the first decade of the Hong Kong Special 

Administrative Region. Planning Theory and Practice, 9(2), 

165-185. 

Ng, M. K., & Chan, A. (2005). A citizen’s guide to sustainable 

planning in Hong Kong: Concepts and processes. Hong Kong: 

Community Participation Unit, Department of Architecture, 

Chinese University of Hong Kong and CUPEM, University of 


Page, E. (2006). Climate change, justice and future generations. 

Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar. 

Romer, P. M. (2010). What parts of globalization matter for 

catch-up growth? American Economic Review, 100(2), 94–98. 

United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. 

(1993). Agenda 21: Programme of action for sustainable 

development: Rio Declaration on Environment and 

Development: Statement of Forest Principles. The final text of 

agreements negotiated by governments at the United Nations 

Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), 3-14 

June 1992, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. New York: Department of 

Public Information, United Nations. 

World Commission on Environment and Development. (1987). 

Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 



Video 4 



Assessment: Reflective practice 10 

Total: 150 



Quiz 20 

Essays 20 


Reflective practice 20 



1. Describe and explain urban sustainability challenges 

at the global level and examine responses 

in Hong Kong. 

2. Explore and use various sources of information 

and assess Hong Kong’s performance in terms 

of tackling various global issues. 

3. Apply knowledge generated in the cases of Hong 

Kong to understand and examine sustainable 

urban development issues in Chinese cities. 

4. Demonstrate a reflective response to global 

sustainability challenges in the context of Hong 

Kong and an awareness of the implications of 

such responses on the challenges China is facing 

in her ongoing quest for modernization. 


Sustainable Urban Development and 

Hong Kong 

The course explores how Hong Kong responds and reacts to various issues relating to 

sustainable urban living. As a global city with unique cultural, historical, economic 

and political setups, sustainability is a pressing concern and holds the key for the longterm 

urban development of Hong Kong. The emphasis of the course is on understanding 

sustainable urban development in the context of a high-density, market-oriented 

Asian world city. Urban sustainability is more than an environmental concept. Ethical 

utilization of resources, geographical equity and living within the carrying capacity of 

Mother Nature are important components underlying the principle. Sustainable urban 

living is concerned with both inter- and intra-generational equity; touching upon 

such social, economic and political issues as satisfying basic needs, accommodating 

multi-cultural and diversified aspirations, ensuring public engagement as well as nurturing 

public participation and partnership in the development process. The course 

offers a regional and comparative perspective to the understanding of the challenges 

that Hong Kong faces in maintaining her role as a world city. 





Tel: 2859 2277 


Teacher(s) 




Tel: 2859 2277 



159

160 




Fletcher, P. (1997). World musics in context: A comprehensive 

survey of the world’s major musical cultures. New York: 

Oxford University Press. [Chaps. 7, 8, 10] 

Hobsbawm, E. J., & Ranger, T. O. (1983). The invention 

of tradition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

[Chap. 1] 

Wood, F. (2002). The Silk Road: Two thousand years in the 

heart of Asia. Berkeley, CA: University of California 

Press. [Chaps. 1, 3, 5] 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Assessment: Mid-term test (incl preparation) 20 

Assessment: Reading journal 12 

Total: 151 



Research paper 40 

Reading journal 10 




Musicking the Silk Road 



1. Outline the historical and geographical setting 

of the Silk Road. 

2. Identify and appreciate the musical features of 

a broad range of Silk Road music traditions. 

3. Describe musical exchanges between China 

and other Eurasian musical cultures. 

4. Describe and critically examine the historical 

and cultural importance of the Silk Road towards 

the construction of China’s Nationhood. 

5. Appraise and evaluate musical and cultural 

relevance of contemporary East-meets-West 

performances. 


From roughly 100 B.C.E. to 1350 C.E., the Silk Road bred and facilitated dynamic cultural 

exchanges, many of which were manifested in various musical traditions that 

flourished along the ancient conduit. This course examines some of these musical traditions 

and treats each of them as a cultural process, focusing on the spread and development 

of these orally-transmitted art forms, thereby highlighting the complexity of 

Chinese culture by way of its interaction with other cultures on the Silk Road. 

In this course, the Silk Road is understood as an ever-changing series of peoples, 

places, and musical traditions. Through examining a broad range of these pre-modern 

Eurasian musical cultures, the course helps students move beyond their preconceived 

understanding of music, open their minds and ears to musics of the past, and interpret 

interconnections between past and present. 

By exploring the globalized music scene of the Silk Road as a product and reflection 

of culture, the course nurtures critical intellectual enquiry and self-reflection across 

a wide range of socio-cultural issues, so as to enable students to be aware of the wider 

world, to respect and value diversity, and to understand how the world works culturally, 

socially, and politically. 


Dr Y.Z. Yang 



Tel: 3917 5738 

Email: yuanzhen@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr Y.Z. Yang 



Tel: 3917 5738 

Email: yuanzhen@hku.hk 

Dr H.Y. Chan 



Tel: 3917 5210 

Email: tlychan@hku.hk 





Day, K. A. (2005). China’s environment and the challenge of 

sustainable development. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe. 

Ho, K., & Xi, Y. (Eds.). (2009). The challenges of water 

resources and water environment in China. Xianggang: 

Xianggang huan jing ke xue chu ban she. 

Lin, T., & Swanson, T. (Eds.). (2010). Economic growth and 

environmental regulation: The People’s Republic of China’s 

path to a brighter future. London; New York: Routledge. 

Ministry of Environmental Protection of PRC. (2009). 

Report on the State of the Environment in China. From 

http://english.mep.gov.cn/standards_reports/soe/ 

soe2009/201104/t20110411_208979.htm 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 






Assessment: Homework 20 

Total: 146 





Homework 20 





1. Demonstrate an awareness of the serious pollution 

situation in mainland China and highlight 

the multi-faceted nature of the challenge for 

sustainable development. 

2. Understand the causes of pollution and obstacles 

to environmental protection, including an 

examination of the social, political and institutional 

dimensions. 

3. Use relevant information about environmental 

impacts of various pollutants to discuss environmental 

pollution in a given case. 

4. Apply scientific (both engineering and social 

science) knowledge and understanding to 

propose control strategies for difference pollutions. 


Environmental Pollution in China 

Mainland China has created an economic miracle during the past 30 years. However, 

the environmental pollution in mainland China is getting more severe and long-term 

sustainable development is facing a great challenge. This course will offer an in-depth 

look at key issues in environment pollution of mainland China, including historical 

Chinese attitudes toward nature, environmental protection thoughts in traditional 

Chinese philosophy, current popular attitudes toward nature and environment, water 

shortage and pollution, air pollution, ecosystem deterioration, drinking water safety, 

land and soil contamination, and mainland China environmental diplomacy. Students 

will develop a strong integrated scientific, technical, cultural, economic, and political 

understanding of the environment pollutions of and challenges to a developing mainland 

China after learning topics offered in this course. The main topics include 1) environmental 

challenges to developing China; 2) public attitudes to environment; 3) water 

pollution; 4) air pollution; 5) land/soil pollution and food contamination; 6) global pollutants; 

7) legislation and policy; 8) technologies and strategies for pollution control 

and reduction; 9) sustainable development. 


Dr T. Zhang 



Tel: 2857 8551 

Email: zhangt@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr T. Zhang 



Tel: 2857 8551 

Email: zhangt@hku.hk 


161

162 




Birrell, A. M. (1999). Chinese mythology: An introduction. 

Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press. 

Shahar, M., & Weller, R. P. (1996). Unruly gods: Divinity and 

society in China. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. 

Yuan, K. (1995). Dragons and dynasties: An introduction to 

Chinese mythology (K. Echlin & Z. Nie, Trans.). London: 

Puffin. 

Study Load 


Lectures 24 

Tutorials 12 




Total: 150 





Written report 50 

Chinese Mythology 



1. Identify and assess critically the inherent cultural 

implications of Chinese myths. 

2. Critically analyze the historical and social significance 

of Chinese myths. 

3. Express through the means of oral presentations 

and essay writing their own opinions on 

the humanistic value of Chinese myths. 


The purpose of this course is to examine China’s rich repository of myths from a sociohistorical 

perspective and to consider their cultural significance in both an ancient 

and contemporary context. By introducing students to a select list of Chinese myths, 

both well-known and lesser-known ones, and inviting them to compare China’s mythological 

tradition to that of other ancient civilizations such as Greece, Scandinavia and 

Native America, a macroscopic examination of the relation between myths and qualities 

that are conceived of as traditionally Chinese will be conducted. Along the way, 

students will be encouraged to examine various Chinese myths from different perspectives 

(i.e. cultural, anthropological and psychological), and contemplate on their roles 

within the development of Chinese cultural identity. 

In the end, this course hopes to encourage students to consider the role of myths in 

both ancient times and today’s modernizing society and the way the changing interpretation 

of specific mythological motifs can be analyzed as reflective of changes in cultural 

values. 


Dr I.M.C. Yue 


Tel: 3917 4355 

Email: isaacyue@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr I.M.C. Yue 


Tel: 3917 4355 

Email: isaacyue@hku.hk 


164 




Ebrey, P. E. (1996). The Cambridge illustrated history of 

China. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

Horn, J. (1969). Away with all pests: An English surgeon in 

People’s China: 1954-1969. New York: Monthly Review 

Press. 

Scheid, V. (2002). Chinese medicine in contemporary China: 

Plurality and synthesis. Durham, NC: Duke University 

Press. 

Unschuld, P. U. (1985). Medicine in China: A history of ideas. 

Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. 

Wong, K. C., & Wu, L. (1932). History of Chinese medicine: 

Being a chronicle of medical happenings in China from 

ancient times to the present period. Tianjin: Tianjin Press. 

Study Load 


Lectures 26 

Tutorials 10 





Assessment: End of term take-home test 


Total: 140 




Tutorial presentation and participation 30 



End of term take-home test 20 



1. Effectively communicate the cultural and medical 

exchanges between China and the West. 

2. Demonstrate an understanding of how medical 

practice is embedded in cultural values. 

3. Demonstrate the capacity to analyze how medical 

institutions are transformed by political 

contexts and the consequential influence on 

the perception of the body and health. 

4. Apply the basic concepts and theoretical perspectives 

to analyze how global knowledge is 

practiced differently in different local contexts. 

5. Cooperate in groups to conduct field trips and 

to produce a presentation and demonstrate appropriate 

presentation skills. 


Curing the Chinese: 

Medicine and Society in Modern China 

Being healthy is a fundamental human desire. But different cultures have different 

understanding of the body and employ a wide variety of methods for curing ill-health. 

Consequently, the history of medicine provides an important avenue for deepening our 

understanding of global diversity and cross-cultural interactions. Since the 19th century, 

both Western medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine have played important 

roles in curing the Chinese. This course focuses on the social, cultural and political 

contexts underpinning the transmission of Western medicine and the transformations 

of Traditional Chinese Medicine from the early 19th century to the present. 

The course draws upon materials and experiences that prompt interdisciplinary inquiry 

such as: fiction, videos, posters, photos, as well as field trips. Beneath the overarching 

theme of cross-cultural interactions in the realm of medicine and health, the 

core problems explored in the course are: 

1. Challenging the idea that China was an isolated empire and reluctant to interact 

with the outside world. 

2. Exploring the idea that scientific knowledge domains like medicine are objective 

and value-free. 

3. Examining the capacity of human societies to adopt new ideas and assimilate 

them to fit local conditions. 


Dr X.L. Tian 



Tel: 3917 5695 

Email: xltian@hku.hk 

Teacher(s) 

Dr X.L. Tian 



Tel: 3917 5695 

Email: xltian@hku.hk

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