Nov
8
2023
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) for marketing and in commercial enterprises like hotels and restaurants has become the focus of Catherine Prentice’s current research. She plans to further explore how AI can improve the consumer experience and foster consumer loyalty to a brand or an organisation as well as how it can improve employee efficiency. …read more
Nov
9
2022
A much-awarded bio-materials scientist and a leader in the field of bio-medical technology, Cuie Wen began her academic career at the institution then called the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, but she long ago shifted her gaze from aeroplanes to the human body. Now a professor of bio-materials engineering at RMIT, she says that as …read more
Jul
28
2022
The complicated dance of Taiwan diplomacy is becoming increasingly fraught, with a mooted August visit to the beleaguered territory by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi creating any number of potholes to trip up unwary politicians and unsettle the delicate balance of US-China relations. US President Joe Biden is expected to discuss these Taiwan tensions with …read more
Jul
16
2022
Alexis Clarke’s strawberry-blonde hair is pulled back from her face, and she’s wearing no-nonsense black leggings, black running shoes and an olive-green puffer jacket on this chilly day in Thirroul, a northern suburb of the NSW coastal city of Wollongong. Glowing slightly, she looks as though she’s just arrived from the gym (and in fact …read more
Sep
13
2021
A diamond ring can signal joy, love, commitment and, maybe these days, environmental awareness. The global demand for ethically-sourced and environmentally-sound jewellery is steadily growing and big names, from the world-famous Tiffany brand to the massive Asia-based Chow Tai Fook group, have developed deep sustainable jewellery policies.
Aug
21
2021
A production stage manager at a theme park, Helen Wu is in her 40s and she is both childless and a committed environmentalist. Since her wedding last year, her friends and colleagues have repeatedly asked her when she will have a baby, but her answer doesn’t change. “No,” she says. “As I grow older, more …read more
Aug
3
2021
Lung Lung Thun is one of the rare breed of women watch collectors. She researches the history of individual watches. She discusses watches, she understands watches and she buys watches – often larger men’s watches with complicated mechanical movements. She recently bought her first vintage Patek Philippe – the 3970 – a wildly expensive perpetual …read more
Jun
28
2021
Transforming fluffy white silkworm cocoons nurtured on Chinese mulberry trees into high-fashion silk shirts, blouses, jackets and other garments is a long, multi-stage process of harvesting, washing, spinning, weaving, dying and sewing. One privately owned Hong Kong company will soon own and manage every stage of this silk journey.
May
26
2021
Since China launched the world’s first quantum-enabled satellite, Micius, in 2016, the nation has sought to position itself as a leader in quantum research, a field that aims to harness the peculiar and particular properties of matter at the atomic level. The satellite, operated by a team led by Jian-Wei Pan, professor of physics at …read more
May
26
2021
A standout scientist in the global race to boost the performance of solar cells, Qi Jiang is keen to see perovskite solar cells — the fastest-improving solar technology to date — meet their potential.