Hong Kong

This course examines an introduction to Buddhist ritual practice in Chinese Buddhism from the perspectives of their psychological, religious and spiritual significance. It begins by exploring several theories and research methods of ritual adopted in anthropology and religious studies and proceeds to studies of the doctrinal, mythic and other dimensions of Buddhist practice, examining the structural patterns of various rituals, surveying the different categories of ceremonies, and analyzing the most important types of rituals, including the recitation of sutras (scriptures) and mantras, funeral ritual, ritual of liberation of living animals, and the ritual of saving all sentient beings from water and land (shuilu fahui) are examined in some detail. The focus of concerns will be the effort of ritual experiences on individual enlightenment, effect of ritual, and the expression of participants’ understanding of Buddhist teaching. 

This course examines Chinese leadership. Topics to be covered include the Chinese leadership structure, the characteristics of the party-state, the dynamics between individuals and institutions, the channels of elite recruitment, the educational and occupational characteristics of Chinese officials, the relationship between various elite groups (political, economic, and military), and factional politics. 

This course examines the relationship between Buddhism and gender in a broad variety of historical and Buddhist thematic contexts. To accomplish this, we will immerse ourselves in Buddhist texts and teachings, analyze material and visual culture, and delve into the lived experiences of Buddhist practitioners spanning from Early Buddhism to the present day, across a range of Buddhist traditions, cultures, and geographical settings. In so doing, we will explore topics including the role and status of women, the construction of Buddhist masculinities and femininities, the gendering of religious roles, institutions and practices, and activism towards gender equality in Buddhist communities. 

This course aims to develop a basic level of spatial planning literacy among urban studies students. It's divided into three modules: contemporary issues in spatial planning, the history and evolution of spatial planning and spatial planning as a process; and contemporary issues in spatial planning. Through various case studies, the course sensitizes students to various pertinent spatial planning issues in the specific institutional and legal context of Hong Kong.

This course examines AI concepts, including how to interact with AI systems, and critically evaluate their impact. It covers the ethical, social, and technological dimensions of AI. 

This course studies animal immune systems and the application of a variety of immunological methods to research and diagnosing diseases. Topics include: immunological functions in vertebrates and analogous activities in invertebrates; structures and biological properties of immunoglobulins and T-cell receptors; divergence of antibody genes; emergence and characteristics of lymphoid tissues; major histocompatibility complex; complement pathways; immunity against bacteria, viruses, and parasites; AIDS: vaccinations, hypersensitivity, and autoimmunity; and immunological tests and immunochemical techniques using non-mammalian and mammalian antibodies and their application to various biological problems. 

This course examines language and politeness (and by extension also language and impoliteness). The first part of the course will provide a critical overview of major approaches to linguistic (im)politeness, including early classic politeness and impoliteness theories and more recent developments in the field and look at how (im)politeness is defined, theorized and analyzed differently by different approaches. The second part of the course will turn to topics in relation to linguistic (im)politeness such as (im)politeness and culture as well as (im)politeness in (social) media communication. Examples will be drawn from a wide range of sources such as everyday conversations, political communication and online communication.

This course examines the issues of industrialization, globalization and neoliberalism as well as a broad range of topics, including those related to labor, industrial organization, management, the theory of the firm, gender, and economic reforms in Japanese society. It introduces the complex development of Japanese capitalism from the early 19th century to the present and examines ongoing transformations within Japanese capitalism. It asks the questions: What are the characteristics of Japanese capitalism? In what ways do capitalist economies differ from one another in their social organization, institutional embeddedness, gendered relations, and modes of governance? What are the challenges of such differences for management and economic performance in a competitive global economy? How have Japanese corporations responded to the processes of globalization and neo-liberalization?

This course aims to explore a set of important issues about the theory and practice of democracy. The first part of the course will examine the challenge of meritocracy and various justifications of democracy, including those offered by Mill, Rousseau, Schumpeter, and others. The second part will address some of the most pressing problems facing liberal democracies today: how to improve the quality of public deliberation in the age of social media? How to overcome the challenges posed by populism? How to maintain the efficacy of democratic institutions in a global capitalist economy?

This course examines the political thought of tumultuous times in ancient China covering the late Spring and Autumns (770-476 BC) and Warring State (476-221 BC) periods. It focuses on the following questions: what is, for ancient thinkers, the common good for All Under Heaven? How can the ruler deliver good governance? What is the standard of political legitimacy? What role do scholars play in political order? What is the relationship between domestic and international order? How do all of these bear on the understanding of human nature?