Briefs | Lei Ka-Meng appointed visiting scholar at Harvard

Born and raised in Macau, Lei Ka-Meng, a lecturer under the ‘Macau Fellow’ program at the University of Macau, will be a visiting scholar at Harvard University for a two-year term from mid-2017. During his stay, Dr. Lei will explore a parallel nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) platform that combines advanced microfluidic, magnetic-sensing and integrated circuits technologies, in an effort to substantially reduce the cost and time of NMR experiments. In 2017, Lei will receive the Predoctoral Achievement Award from the IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society, which is awarded to an elite group of outstanding graduate students in the field of solid-state circuits.

Hong Kong changes visa entry policy for Indians

Hong Kong has amended the visa entry requirements for Indian nationals whereby, from January 23, they will not be eligible for visa-free entry to the HKSAR. Instead, a “pre-arrival registration” process has been established, and Indian nationals intending to visit Hong Kong can access the service online.

“Indian nationals must apply for and successfully complete pre-arrival registration online before they can visit or transit the HKSAR visa-free,” Hong Kong’s immigration department announced on its website. “Pre-arrival registration is not required for Indian nationals in direct transit by air and not leaving the airport transit area.” The pre-arrival registration is valid for six months but successful applicants will be able to visit Hong Kong multiple times.

AFA to host 9^th anniversary exhibition

Art For All (AFA) society will present a special exhibition tonight at the Macau Art Garden in celebration of its 9th anniversary. Starting at 6:30 p.m., “AFA 9^th Anniversary Members Exhibition” will showcase a total of 24 artworks by 20 members of the society, including oil paintings, watercolors, line drawings, sculptures, acrylics, videos and installation works. Over the last nine years, AFA membership has grown significantly from its original five founders to encompass a great many art lovers around and within the territory according to a statement from the organizer. Instead of choosing a specific theme for the exhibition, AFA asked artists to decide the theme of their artwork for themselves in the name of creative diversity. The exhibition will be open to the public until January 22, 2017.

Alexis Tam denies responsibility in heritage issue

The Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam, told the media that they should direct their queries on a high rise building in the Calçada da Guia to the relevant departments, according to a report by All About Macau.  The building is located in the vicinity of the Guia Lighthouse, which is protected as cultural heritage. Recently, the New Macau Association members were in Paris to debate the issue with UNESCO representatives, as the Times reported. When questioned by the media, Tam said that matters of urban planning are not his responsibility. The secretary reaffirmed that the work which is the responsibility of his department has already been appropriately recognized by UN’s cultural division.

Macau single-plated cars enter Hengqin

Macau’s single-plated cars were officially allowed to enter Hengqin on the city’s hand-over anniversary, last Tuesday. The authorities received dozens of applications for the new vehicle scheme and the first nine vehicles permitted to enter Hengqin made the journey on Tuesday. Speaking in Hengqin during the scheme’s launch ceremony, the Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak, expressed his belief that more than 240,000 of Macau’s single-plated cars will enter Hengqin in the near future which will help to ease Macau’s traffic congestion. The scheme – in which qualified Macau-registered motor vehicles can enter Hengqin – will be implemented in several phases to ensure its efficiency, said Wong.