About the TalkDavid Mole, HKUSTs Associate Provost (Teaching and Learning) spoke about some histories that he has enjoyed, and his reflections on them. The thread of his discussion was a quote from Francis Bacons The Advancement of Learning on why people seek knowledge:"For men have entered into a desire of learning and knowledge, Sometimes upon a natural curiosity and inquisitive appetite;Sometimes to entertain their minds with variety and delight; Sometimes for ornament and reputation;And sometimes to enable them to victory of wit and contradiction;And most times for lucre and profession;And seldom sincerely to give a true account of their gift of reason to the benefit and use of men: As if there were sought in knowledge a couch whereupon to rest a searching and restless spirit;Or a terrace for a wandering and variable mind to walk up and down with a fair prospect; Or a tower of state, for a proud mind to raise itself upon; Or a fort or commanding ground, for strife and contention; Or a shop, for profit or sale; And not a rich storehouse for the glory of the Creator and the relief of mans estate."Admitting to the vice of often seeking "a couch" or a "terrace"; and trying to attain the virtue of a "rich storehouse" to the delight and enjoyment of the audience, he spoke about and read from a number of books, the library copies listed below.            Video of the talk: Reading history: some virtues and vices (D16.2 .M65 2013)Return to Dragon Mountain: Memories of a Late Ming Man / by Jonathan SpenceReformation: Europes House Divided / Diarmaid MacCullochAfter Tamerlane : the global history of empire since 1405 / by John DarwinThe corruption of angels : the great inquisition of 1245-1246 / Mark Gregory PeggThe Reformation / Diarmaid MacCullochWaterloo : Napoleons last gamble/ Andrew RobertsThe coming of the Third Reich / Richard J. EvansOther books recommended are:The Third Reich in power, 1933-1939 / Richard J. EvansThe Third Reich at war / Richard J. EvansA history of histories : epics, chronicles, romances and inquiries from Herodotus and Thucydides to the twentieth century / John Burrow  About the SpeakerDr. David Mole received his BA from Cambridge University before moving to Canada for Post-graduate study. There, he earned a Masters degree from the University of British Columbia and a PhD at the University of Toronto.After teaching at a number of universities in Canada and working as an economist for the Ontario government, he moved to Hong Kong in 1989.David joined HKUST in 2005, where his main role has been to support the development of undergraduate education, especially the implementation of the four-year degree. In addition to a keen interest in sport and physical fitness, David has a life-long addiction to the pleasures and rewards of reading.For enquiry, please contact Victoria Caplan at 2358-6756. 

About the Talk Dr. ZHU has been reading for many years about the history and culture of Jewish people. It is an interest that he developed while living in Canada and first meeting and getting to know Jewish people. He likes to ponder what he sees as similarities and differences between Jewish and Chinese cultures, especially in regard to family values, educational achievement, preserving traditions, and civic responsibility (repairing the world).Among the books he discussed were:The Jewish Century by Yuri SlezkineJewish literacy : the most important things to know about the Jewish religion, its people, and its history by Joseph TelushkinEmpires of the Word by Nicholas Ostler  About the SpeakerDr. Zhu Lijing brings an interesting mixture of education and career background to both his work and his reading. Born and reared in Mainland China, he studied International Relations at Beijing University (1978-80) before moving overseas in 1980 and studying American History at Carleton University and University of London. Finding a home-from-home in Canada, he settled in at the University of Western Ontario, where he received his B.A. and M.A., in addition to his PhD in Economics (1991). After teaching economics at University of Windsor, he returned to Asia, where he taught economics for several years at HKUST, the National University of Singapore, and at HKU.For the past 10 years, Dr. Zhu has worked in an administrative capacity at HKUST: first recruiting non-local UG students and then providing advice and support to both PG and UG students from the Mainland. Since 2005, Dr. Zhu has served as Chairman, Vice Chairman (Internal Affairs), and EXCO Member of the HKUST Staff Association; was a a Member of HKUST Court for six years (2005-2011) and as a member of the HKUST Council (2009-2012). He is currently an Associate Director for Student Life in the Student Affairs Office (SAO).Experiencing different cultures and sub-cultures in a variety of social, institutional, and professional contexts has sparked Dr. Zhus interest in reading about them on his own. He is fascinated by considering similarities and differences between different cultures, and wishes to share this joy with others.For enquiry, please contact Victoria Caplan at 2358-6756. 

About the TalkThe Lahu are a small ethnic minority in China. About 470,000 of them live in the mountains in Yunnan, near Burma, Laos, and northern Thailand. This group is mostly Buddhist, and have a long history of resistance to the Chinese Han majority. The Lahu now face the collapse of their traditional social system, suffering from the highest suicide rate in the world, large scale trafficking of Lahu women, alcoholism, and poverty.Dr. Ma did long-term anthropological research among the Lahu for years. In this talk, he will give an overview of the Lahus traditional way of life, the difficulties they face, and how the Lahus situation provides an example of how the Chinese government approaches relatively small ethnic minorities in China. The Lahu minority in Southwest China Streaming Video of talkThe book, The Lahu minority in Southwest China: a response to ethnic marginalization on the frontier, is available in the Library.  About the SpeakerProfessor Ma developed his interest in cultural anthropology growing up in Yunnan, Southwest China. In 1997, he received his M.A. degree in ethnology at Yunnan Nationalities University, and completed his MPhil (2002) and PhD (2007) here at HKUST. His research interests include: ethnicity, kinship, the anthropology of borderlands, and ethnic minorities in China and highland Southeast Asia.As an Assistant Professor in the Division of Humanities, this spring he is teaching HUMA 2621, "Culture and Environment" which explores the relationship between "culture" and the "environment" and how cultural mechanisms impact resource management, population and health practices in different cultural settings.For enquiry, please contact Victoria Caplan at 2358-6756. 

About the TalkWhat do you think London represents? Or, what do you think represents London? «英倫話語», published earlier this year, paints a picture of the city unlike an ordinary guidebook. The author, Miss Bonnie Chen, put together memories of her life as a student when she pursued a master degree at the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2009-10. She brings an unusual perspective to appreciating Londons rich culture and history, which she will share at the BookTalk. She will also provide some tips on how to explore London beyond the typical popular tourist spots. About the SpeakerMiss Chen is an experienced journalist who covers local politics and business news for both Chinese and English media. She is currently the Business News Editor of The Standard.For enquiry, please contact Kevin Ho at 2358-6761. 

About the TalkMany people dream of investing well and growing their wealth through investments, providing for their future or building a retirement nest egg. Todays investor is faced with a myriad of investment opportunities and strategies. However, investing is tricky; knowledge, discipline and experience are needed if one wants to make sound investments. In this talk, Professor Cheng will not only dissect his eight winning strategies for building wealth, but he will also address many of the common mistakes that individual investors make over time.人人都望投資有道，利用不同的金融工具致富，以保障未來生活。投資需要知識、自律和經驗。如今市場上投資渠道和工具繁多， 令人眼花撩亂。為此我們請來鄭教授分享8種簡單易行的投資策略和分析一般投資者常犯上的錯誤，為你我指點迷津。鄭教授的《鱷口下的賺錢術》(書號: HG4551 .Z48 2012) 已入館藏，可隨時借閱。 About the SpeakerBefore joining HKUST as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Finance at HKUST in 2007, Professor Philip Cheng was the Chief Investment Officer at MetLife Taiwan, a wholly owned subsidiary of MetLife Inc., New York, the largest life insurance company in the U.S., with US$500 billion in assets under management.During his 11 years as the chief investment officer, he was managing a multi-asset diversified portfolio of US$1.6 billion. He provided the leadership in setting up of investment policies and strategies to enhance portfolio yield; implementation of asset allocation strategies to increase return on equity; the oversight and the implementation of risk management tools to achieve optimal return on capital.Prior to his position in MetLife, Prof. Cheng was with JP Morgan Chase U.S. for 21 years in international banking and investment. He was Vice-President in areas of corporate lending, investment banking and real estate lending activities in New York and major Asian cities.鄭教授於2007年獲聘為香港科技大學財務系副教授，此前曾任大都會台灣公司的投資總監。大都會是全美國最大的人壽保險公司，管理約5,000億美元資產。在任職大都會台灣投資總監的11年裡，鄭教授曾管理一項總值達16億美元的多元化及多類型資產投資組合。他領導制定投資政策和戰略，以提高組合收益；執行資產配置策略，以增加股本回報率；實施監督及風險管理工具，以達到最佳的資本回報。在加盟大都會前，鄭教授曾任紐約摩根大通國際 銀行副總裁，在美國和亞洲主要城市擔任企業及房地產貸款和相關投資業務，累積經驗達21年之久。 For enquiry, please contact Kevin Ho at 2358-6761.