University of Hong Kong

This course examines the role of translation in social media communication. It contemplates how wide-ranging multilingual digital contents are circulated on social media via translation, how genres, user experiences, visual styles, business models and technologies harnessed by digital enterprises and platforms are impacting on legacy media and traditional means of mediated communication, and where the diverse user-generated content continue to innovate and transform social media communication.

This intensive course is intended for foreign learners who have no prior knowledge of Cantonese. The course introduces students to present-day Cantonese, with an emphasis on learning correct pronunciation throughthe Jyutpingphonetic romanization transcriptionsystem and basic structure. It aims to develop fundamental oral communication skills through a variety of situational conversationsin a highly interactive classroom. Assessment: self introduction, group presentation, midterm written test, final written test, class participation and exercises, two reading recordings.

This course examines the evolving physical, cultural and political landscape of China. Emphasis is placed on (a) the natural environment and physical setting for development; (b) historical contexts and evolution of the landscape; (c) the political system and post-1949 development; and (d) the growth and spatial distribution of the Chinese population. 

This course examines commercial linkages and transformations across the Indian Ocean region over the last 500 years. It covers spices that brought European traders and conquerors to Asian shores; commodities like tea, opium and cotton that have shaped the modern world; and fossil fuels, among the most valuable and contentious commodities of the present age.

This course introduces the subject of artificial intelligence covering the basic principles and technologies of intelligent computer systems and the algorithms to achieve AI and how to develop some AI programs. Topics include: intelligent agents; search techniques for problem solving (uninformed, informed, local, adversarial); knowledge representation; logical inference; propositional logic; reasoning under uncertainty; statistical models and machine learning; probability; Bayes’ nets; and decision theory.