When you buy things online, you would probably look at the comments of other buyers on the products. These comments, positive or negative, tend to affect your decision on whether to add the products to your cart.
“Online customers’ reviews and comments play an important role in online transaction,” said Year Four Statistics student Zheng Jinghang. “However, people are often confused by bewildering comments which are a mixture of meaningful and pointless words.”
At the Fourth Undergraduate Science and Technology Poster Presentation on 13 April, Zheng presented his final year project “Analysis of Online Customer Comments on Midea Calorifiers”. “Aiming at the information extraction of text mining, my project focused on item segmenting, document filtering and emotional analysis of the comments on calorifiers of Midea, a Chinese electrical appliance manufacturer, on the e-commerce website jd.com,” he added.

Best Poster Award winner Zheng Jinghang and his “segmented” poster
“I collected over 40,000 comments, segmented them, and deleted meaningless components and words of the sentences. I then classified and grouped the comments that had been analysed in four areas: individual requirements, appreciations and complaints, differentiation strategy, and reasons of choosing Midea.”
Zheng concluded: “Comment classification works well in learning the features of products and services. Understanding the feedback of customers can also help Midea improve itself.”
His research was one of the 49 projects on display that were prepared by the students of all the six programmes of the Division of Science and Technology (DST).
Another student, Cai Siying, from the Food Science and Technology Programme investigated the degree of heavy metal contamination in rice by detecting the contents of lead, cadmium and chromium in 47 samples collected from markets of Zhuhai and Zhongshan cities. She also assessed the health risk from rice consumption by local residents.
Cai Siying and her poster
Eric Shim from the Computer Science and Technology Programme developed a mobile application with a local medical institution for low-cost ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorders) treatment. His study suggested a mobile puzzle game which incorporated photos of the likes of ASD patients’ caregivers to help accustom the users to eye contact with others.

Eric Shim showing the app he developed
Environmental Science student Zhong Shiyao compared bird biodiversity in freshwater ponds, Fengshui Woods and Lychee Orchard at Huitong Village, Zhuhai, where UIC’s new campus will be located. This research recommended some ways of protecting the ecosystem at Huitong Village in its future development.

Zhong Shiyao presents her research project
UIC Vice President Prof Zee Sze Yong affirmed that the Poster Presentation inspired students to interact with the audience from academia and industries, exposing them to a research environment.

Vice President Prof Zee Sze Yong
At his welcome remarks, DST Dean Prof Stephen Chung encouraged the audience to ask the students challenging questions and give them critical comments and suggestions as this was an important learning experience for them.

Prof Stephen Chung presents the Student Choice Poster Award to Wan Wenjing
In addition to the internal judges, the judging panel invited external guests from diverse areas including government agencies, large corporations and universities, to provide their reviews. The judging panel decided the essential technical awards: the Best Poster Award (in division level), the Outstanding Poster Awards (in programme level) and the Best Student-Advisor Awards.

Prof Stephen Chung with the external judges
List of the awards and awardees:
The Best Poster Award (in division level)
• Analysis of Online Customer Comments on Midea Calorifiers, by Zheng Jinghang (STAT), advised by Dr He Ping
The Outstanding Poster Awards (in programme level)
• Some Results on Magic Square of Order Four and Five, by Ma Xiaoyang (STAT), advised by Prof Fang Kai-tai and Dr Deng Yuhui
• Analysis of Online Customer Comments on Midea Calorifiers, by Zheng Jinghang (STAT), advised by Dr He Ping
• Meta-motivational States as Mediators between Parenting Styles and Humor Styles, by Hua Ningxuan (APSY), advised by Dr Kuo Yi-Lung
• Smart Music Sheet APP, by Li Shuxin and Ma Zhenzhen (CST), advised by Dr Su Weifeng
• Determination of the Residuals of Antibiotics in Environmental Waters by Solid-phase Extraction Coupled with Liquid Chromatography–tandem Mass Spectrometry, by Han Mengyao (ENVS), advised by Prof Ruan Huada
• A Numerical Solution for Optimal Portfolio Selection with Fixed Transaction Cost and Hyperbolic Absolute Risk Aversion Class, by Pan Kaiyang (FM), advised by Dr Chow Chak On
• Phenolic Acids and Flavonoids in Commercial Honey from Different Floral Sources Determined by High Performance Liquid Chromatography, by Zhang Yaocong (FST), advised by Prof Xu Baojun
The Student Choice Poster Award
• Development of an Orange Juice Beverage Formulated with Oat beta-Glucan and Whey Protein Isolate, by Wan Wenjing (FST), advised by Prof Xu Baojun
Reporter: Deen He
Photographers: Vivi Xie, Li Yiting
(from MPRO, with special thanks to the ELC)