Introduction of Professor Paul Ching-Wu CHU

Perseverance . . . a quality that takes us far. When combined with vision, insight and hard work, it becomes the mark of a great scientist, and of a great human being.

This unique combination of qualities is embodied in the person of Professor Paul Ching-Wu CHU. They have taken him further than any other scientist in the world of superconductivity today. And it is these qualities of his, indeed just some of the many he possesses, which will propel the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology into its next decade and beyond.

Perseverance has been much in evidence in Professor Chu's pursuit of superconductivity, from his early days of PhD research under the famous scientist Bernd T Matthias at the University of California in San Diego. It steered him through a career as an eminent physicist, to his breakthrough discovery in 1987 of stable superconductivity above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen—a discovery that has been called one of the most significant advances in modern physics. This epoch-making achievement prompted the state of Texas to establish the Texas Center for Superconductivity at the University of Houston under Professor Chu's directorship, in recognition of the huge potential of his research breakthrough.

To find the root of this tenacity, though, we need to go back further in Professor Chu's life. As a child growing up in Taiwan, he loved anything electric or magnetic, and could put together radios and small motors from scraps and parts that he had found. In school he pursued science, and even when a teacher encouraged him to study painting instead, he never wavered. From undergraduate work at the prestigious Cheng-Kung University, he went on to complete one year of service in the Taiwan Air Force.

The United States was the next stop on Professor Chu's quest for discovery. He obtained his Master's degree in science at Fordham University in New York, but it was California and the exciting research going on in superconductivity that drew him to the University of California at San Diego and PhD studies.

His work in superconductivity and other areas drove him not just to excel at research, but also to instill a love of science and a persevering attitude in his students, as he went on to develop a distinguished academic career at Cleveland State University and the University of Houston after two years at Bell Labs, New Jersey, as a Member of the Technical Staff.

Perseverance, vision and hard work apply not only to scientific discovery, however. As founding Director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity, Professor Chu built the institution from an organization of just seven to what it is today: one of the world's leading centers for high temperature superconductivity, with over 260 faculty, staff and students. All this in the face of cyclical budget cuts, media downplay, and even lack of optimism from fellow scientists.

Professor Chu's career has taken him to the topmost echelons in the world of science. He has consulted and worked as a visiting staff member in some of the most prestigious research centers in the world, including Bell Labs, Dupont, Los Alamos National Laboratory, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and Argonne National Laboratory. He has won some of the highest awards in science, just a few of which are: the World Congress on SuperConductivity's Award for Excellence, the National Medal of Science of the US, the Bernd Matthias Prize, and the John Fritz Medal, which he shares with such great names as Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison and Erico Fermi.

He was selected the Best Researcher in the US by US News and World Report in 1990, and was invited in 2000 to contribute a sample of his work to the White House National Millennium Time Capsule at the National Archives, commemorating the most important scientific achievements of the 20th century.

Professor Chu is a member of the US National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Third World Academy of Sciences, Academia Sinica, and is also a foreign member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, among others. His research activities extend beyond superconductivity to magnetics and dielectrics. He serves on the editorial boards of several scientific journals, and has published over 460 papers.

Added to these impressive achievements, another of Professor Chu's enduring qualities shines clearly — care for the outcome. His staff, students and colleagues over the years remember his interest and care for even the smallest details of their work. That attitude has earned him loyalty and gratitude, and nurtured younger generations of dedicated scientists who are also concerned members of society. Indeed, students at HKUST are already discovering this — when they find him sitting down to dine with them in the canteens on campus.

Our students are also finding out that Professor Chu wants them to be "all-rounders". He himself is lover of classical Chinese poetry, and knows that only total development makes great human beings, great leaders.

We are proud to have this persevering scientist, caring academic administrator and teacher, and all-round leader at the helm of HKUST today.

Mr Pro-Chancellor, I have the honor to present to you the new President of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Professor Paul Ching-Wu Chu. I am confident that Professor Chu will, from the strong foundation laid down by his predecessor, lead HKUST to even greater heights and to make even greater contributions to Hong Kong, China and the entire world.