Prof. WONG Siu-lun, Alan (Associate Professor, School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Hong Kong)

CRISPR has revolutionised our ability to rewrite life's blueprint, yet natural CRISPR tools still face limitations in precision and efficiency. This lecture traces the evolution of CRISPR tools—from the early gene scissors to refined base editors—and shows how scientists have tackled key bottlenecks along the way. The spotlight then turns to artificial intelligence, which is transforming CRISPR tool design: predicting editing outcomes, optimising guide RNAs and editing systems. We will explore how the emerging "AI designs, CRISPR executes" paradigm is accelerating applications in precision medicine and gene therapy, ushering in a new era of rewriting life's blueprint.

Language: Cantonese

Prof. CHOW Cheuk-lun (Associate Professor, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, City University of Hong Kong; Member of the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences)

This talk begins with the basic science of fire, helping students understand how fires develop and why they can become dangerous. It then looks at examples from the past to show how real events have changed our understanding of building safety and driven the development of fire engineering. Today, buildings are increasingly adopting greener, more energy-efficient and renewable technologies. While these innovations offer important environmental benefits, they can also introduce fire-safety challenges that were less common in traditional buildings. Moving from the lessons from past fires and finally to emerging risks in sustainable design, the talk asks a forward-looking question: as buildings become greener and more complex, how can we make sure they remain safe?

Language: Cantonese

Prof. TSO Chi-Yan, Edwin (Chair Professor of Energy and Sustainability, Associate Dean (Internationalization and Outreach), School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong)

With rapid economic development, air-conditioning energy use has become a growing global concern — especially in hot, humid subtropical regions such as Hong Kong, where cooling demand is high. Developing green building technologies to boost air-conditioning energy efficiency is therefore critical for tackling climate change and the global energy crisis. This talk introduces an innovative cooling technology that uses the universe as a natural heat sink to cool buildings, offering fresh ideas for building energy conservation. The technology reflects nearly all incoming solar radiation and emits mid-infrared thermal radiation into cold outer space to achieve an "electricity-free passive cooling" effect. By substantially cutting air-conditioning cooling loads, it delivers significant energy savings and carbon emission reductions. Beyond lowering energy demand and mitigating climate change, this innovation brings transformative concepts to green building practice, advances sustainable development and supports progress towards global carbon neutrality.

Language: Cantonese

Prof. Li Hua-bai (Professor, Department of Physics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong)

Globally, the Universe is expanding. Yet locally, the opposite process occurs: matter accumulates to form celestial objects including stars and black holes. Humans are products of this process, and the mechanism of star formation remains one of the most important topics in modern astrophysics. Scientists now consider star birth to be governed by a delicate interplay between gravity, turbulence and magnetic fields. Gravity pulls gas inwards to trigger collapse; turbulence stirs interstellar matter, while magnetic fields may support or direct the movement of material. Based on fundamental physics concepts, this lecture explains how modern astronomers investigate this captivating topic of star formation and guides audiences to explore these "collapsing corners" of the Universe.

Language: Putonghua supplemented with English