Science News Corner of the Hong Kong Science Museum is an information centre for exhibiting science research projects of local universities, new discoveries and the latest technology. It helps to keep the public informed of the latest science news.

This 50-sq.metre Corner, situating in the permanent exhibition hall on the second floor of the Museum, features three distinct zones of interest, namely, SciTech Focus, Science Window and Science Web.

SciTech Focus focuses on science research projects that are currently being conducted in local universities and are related to frontier science and latest technology. New discoveries and inventions with scientific and social significance will be on the top of the list.

Science Window elaborates the exhibition contents through science documentaries and video programmes of relevant subjects.

Science Web enables visitors to have a further understanding on the topics through surfing recommended websites with in-depth information.

Current Topic - Bio-hydrogen Production from Wastewater (23.9.2009 - 24.2.2010)

Many energy experts predict that hydrogen will replace fossil fuel as the main source of energy supply in the near future. Hydrogen is an ideal fuel producing only water upon combustion. Professor Herbert H.P. Fang, Chair of Environmental Engineering of the Department of Civil Engineering at The University of Hong Kong, demonstrates in this project that the organic pollutants in wastewater may be converted into hydrogen by bacteria in wastewater in continuous reactors by a two-step process. Fermentative bacteria using hydrogenases to convert organics into hydrogen producing volatile fatty acids as by-products, which are further converted into hydrogen by a group of phototrophic bacteria.

In this exhibition, The University of Hong Kong will introduce the anaerobic wastewater treatment process for producing an ideal fuel - hydrogen, and share with the public their research achievements on this innovative environmental technology.

Your Choice

The contents of the Science News Corner are changed regularly. The public's preference will determine the topics. You are invited to vote on your favourite project(s) for the next exhibition topic of the Science News Corner.

Previous Topic

Science of Human Locomotion (May 09 - Sept 09)
(Information provided by Department of Rehabilitation Sciences of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University)

Unlocking the Mysteries of the Brain (Dec 08 - May 09)
(Information provided by Department of Biochemistry, The University of Science and Technology)

Artificial Intelligence and Railway Engineering Works Scheduling (June 08 - Dec 08)
(Information provided by the Department of Computer Science of City University of Hong Kong)

Palmprint Identification system (Jan 08 - Jun 08)
(Information provided by the Biometric Research Centre of The Polytechnic University of Hong Kong)

Cochlear implants - offering a hearing world for the hearing-impaired (Aug 07 - Jan 08)
(Information provided by Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery of The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Discoveries on Reproduction, Development and Growth: >From Gamete to Adult (Apr 07 - Aug 07)
(Information provided by Centre for Reproduction, Development and Growth of the University of Hong Kong)

Grapefruit Forms Bone? (Sept 06 – Mar 07)
(Information provided by the Faculty of Dentistry of The University of Hong Kong)

DNA Technologies for Chinese Herbs Authentication (Apr 2006 – Sept 2006)
(Information provided by the Institute of Chinese Medicine of The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Health Benefits of Tea (Dec 2005 – Apr 2006)
(Information provided by the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong)

Ozone Application (Jul 2005 – Dec 2005)
(Information provided by the Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University)

Virtual Aquarium (Dec 2004 - Jun 2005)
(Information provided by the Department of Automation and Computer-Aided Engineering of The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Climate and Sea-level Changes in Hong Kong During the Past 500,000 Years (Jul 2004 - Dec 2004)
(Information provided by the Department of Earth Sciences of The University of Hong Kong)

Photocatalytic Technology for Air and Water Purification (Mar 2004 - Jul 2004)
(Information provided by the Department of Chemistry of The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Extremes of the Universe (Nov 2003 - Feb 2004)
(Information provided by the Department of Physics of The University of Hong Kong)

Fruit Fly - Drosophila (Jun - Oct 2003)
(Information provided by the Department of Biochemistry of The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Automatic Face Image and Sketch Recognition (Jan - May 2003)
(Information provided by the Department of Information Engineering of The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Plant and Fungal Biotechnology (Oct - Dec 2002)
(Information provided by The UGC AoE Plant and Fungal Biotechnology Centre of the Department of Biology of The Chinese University of Hong Kong )

Nanotechnology (June - Sept 2002)
(Information provided by the Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST) of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology)