After completing his doctorate studies at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel in 1972, Professor Dan Shechtman became an NRC (National Research Council, US) fellow at the Aerospace Research Laboratories of Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, where he performed research for three years. In 1975, Professor Shechtman joined the Department of Materials Engineering at the Technion where he is currently a Distinguished Professor. During 1981-2004 he was several times on sabbatical at the Johns Hopkins University in a joint program with the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (formerly known as the National Bureau of Standards). During this period he discovered by TEM (Transmission Electro Microscope) the Icosahedral Phase which opened the new science of quasiperiodic crystals and performed research on other subjects. As of 2004 he is also a Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, Iowa State University and at the Ames Laboratory. His current research efforts center on developing strong and ductile magnesium alloys for a variety of applications. Professor Shechtman is a member of several academies, including the US National Academy of Engineering and the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities. He is an Honorary Member of professional societies around the globe and was awarded many prizes including the Wolf Prize in Physics, the Gregori Aminoff Prize of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the EMRS (European Materials Research Society) award and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2011.

Professor Tony F Chan assumed the presidency of HKUST on 1 September 2009.

Professor Chan’s scientific background is in Mathematics, Computer Science and Engineering. He received his PhD in Computer Science from Stanford University. He taught at Yale University before joining UCLA as Professor of Mathematics in 1986. He was appointed Chair of the Department of Mathematics in 1997 and served as Dean of Physical Science from 2001 to 2006. From 2006 to 2009, Professor Chan was Assistant Director of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate at the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).

Professor Chan is an elected member of the US National Academy of Engineering (NAE), a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) and an elected fellow of both the Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Professor Chan was one of the world’s most cited mathematicians.

Professor Chan is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia, President’s Advisory Council of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Scientific Advisory Board of the University of Vienna, and the United States Committee of 100. Professor Chan is also a member of the Steering Committee of the Innovation and Technology Commission of the Hong Kong Government and the Steering Committee of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation. He was a member of the Selection Committee for the Shaw Prize in Mathematical Sciences in 2012 and 2013.

UC RUSAL (www.rusal.com) is the world’s largest producer of aluminium, in 2014 accounting for approximately 7% of global production of aluminium and 7% of alumina. UC RUSAL employs about 61,000 people in 13 countries, across 5 continents. UC RUSAL markets and sells its products primarily in the European, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, South East Asian and North American markets. UC RUSAL’s ordinary shares are listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (Stock code: 486), global depositary shares representing.

UC RUSAL’s ordinary shares are listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (Stock code: 486). Global depositary shares representing UC RUSAL’s ordinary shares are listed on the professional board of Euronext Paris (UC RUSAL/RUAL). UC RUSAL’s ordinary shares and Russian depositary receipts are listed on the Moscow Exchange (RUAL and RUALR accordingly).

UC RUSAL’s current capacity could produce 4.5 million tonnes of aluminium, and 15.3 million tonnes of alumina. RUSAL is comprised of 14 aluminium smelters, 11 alumina refineries, 8 bauxite mines, and 4 foil mills. The Company also has three aluminium powder metallurgy plants and produces cryolite, aluminium fluoride and cathodes. RUSAL has its own R&D and engineering capabilities and owns the RA-300, RA-400 and RA-500 technologies.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), situated in Hong Kong, China, is a top-ranked university in Asia. Established in 1991, HKUST has five schools - Science, Engineering, Business and Management, Humanities and Social Science, as well as the Fok Ying Tung Graduate School in Nansha, Mainland China. The University has eleven research institutes, among them the HKUST Jockey Club Institute for Advanced Study, set up to foster cross-discipline collaboration among the top scientists and scholars in the world. Currently, there are about 8,981 undergraduate students and 4,475 postgraduate students. As a research university, HKUST focuses on five areas of frontier research, namely nano science and technology; biological sciences and biotechnology; electronics, wireless and information technology; environment and sustainable development as well as management education and research.

As a major initiative of HKUST's 2005-2020 Strategic Plan, the HKUST Jockey Club Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge to meet the great challenges of the 21st century. IAS aims to bring together the most brilliant minds to drive cutting-edge discovery and scholarship. Its goal is to be a premier intellectual center and a platform for innovation and scientific development in Hong Kong and the Greater China region. IAS has 3 Professors, 38 Visiting Professors, 16 Senior Fellows, 8 Senior Visiting Fellows, 8 Visiting Fellows, 2 Affiliate Members, 2 Fellows and 8 Junior Fellows from diverse disciplines who champion collaborative, inter-disciplinary, inter-institutional projects in high-impact areas. Since its establishment in 2006, it has sponsored close to 550 lectures, seminars, conferences and workshops. Guest speakers include Nobel Laureates, members of National Academies, world renowned academics and researchers, senior government officials and business leaders.

"The Power of Focus: Turning Opportunity into Success"
Guest Speaker: Oleg Deripaska
CEO of UC RUSAL
Date: 21 September 2010
Details

"Equilibrium in the Labour Market with Search Frictions"
Guest Speaker: Christopher Pissarides
Norman Sosnow Chair in Economics of London School of Economics and Political Science; 2010 Nobel Laureate in Economic Sciences
Date: 21 March 2011
Details

"The Changing Dynamics of the World"
Guest Speaker: Jim O'Neill
Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management
Date: 14 October 2011
Details

"Making a Difference, a Stitch at a Time"
Guest Speaker: Marjorie Yang
Chairman of Esquel Group
Date: 3 May 2012
Details

"8.5 Billion Global Consumers by 2030: Opportunity or Looming disaster?"
Guest Speaker: Barry Cheung
Independent Non-Executive Director, UC RUSAL; Chairman, Hong Kong Mercantile Exchange
Date: 2 Nov 2012
Details

"Answering Gauguin's Questions with the Large Hadron Collider: What are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going?"
Guest Speaker: John Ellis
Clerk Maxwell Professor of Theoretical Physics, King's College London; Physicist, European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)
Date: 12 April 2013
Details

"Entrepreneurship: Turning “I Wish” into “I Will”’ "
Guest Speaker: Allan Zeman
Chairman of Ocean Park Corporation and Chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Group
Date: 22 Nov 2013
Details

"The Growth of China’s Manufacturers – Talking about Legend”（中國製造業的成長－以聯想為例）
Guest Speaker: Chuanzhi Liu
Chairman of Legend Holdings Corporation and Founder and Honorary Chairman of Lenovo
Date: 27 Mar 2014
Details

"A Global Perspective: the Future of China and Hong Kong in Next Decade"
Guest Speaker: Ronnie C Chan
Chairman of Hang Lung Properties
Date: 13 Nov 2014
Details