According to Prof Pan Jianxin, Dean of UIC's Division of Science and Technology (DST) and Chair Professor of Statistics and Data Science, integrating subjects can spark new ideas, which is crucial for cultivating interdisciplinary and innovative talents.
With this notion, led by Prof Pan, DST is heading to establish a high-quality, interdisciplinary scientific research platform.
Prof Pan Jianxin
Prof Pan is a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society, an Elected Member of the International Statistical Institute and a Turing Fellow of the Alan Turing Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.
Prof Pan joined UIC in September 2021. In the same year, his project Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Interdisciplinary Research and Application for Data Science was approved, a milestone in DST's development.
The Laboratory integrates Data Science (DS) with other advantageous disciplines, such as Applied Mathematics (AM), Statistics (STAT), and Computer Science and Technology (CST), cohering to the development needs of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA).
The key Laboratory mainly focuses on multi-modal data processing in high-dimensional heterogeneous datasets and the big data application in healthcare, and also contributes to the applications of financial risk management and smart city.
Prof Pan Jianxin delivers a guest lecture during his visit to UIC in 2018
Talent acquisition is the first priority for DST, says Prof Pan, who believes scientific research is a motivating and inseparable element of liberal arts education.
He adds that DST is planning to offer new master's programmes in business statistics, data analysis and artificial intelligence, food security and control, and sustainable energy and management, in addition to more research postgraduate programmes.
Prof Pan Jianxin (first from right) with the 2020-2021 Dean’s Award winners.
Although occupied by busy administration work, Prof Pan does not give up teaching. One of his courses is Regression Analysis, conducted with Associate Professor of Statistics (STAT) Dr Ma Chuoxin. He also supervises students' final year projects.
He organises the Staff-Student Sharing Corner on Overseas Experiences Series with other DST staff, where students and teachers can share ideas on studying abroad or career planning.
Prof Pan Jianxin in class
After receiving a Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics from Yunnan University and a Master's degree in Statistics from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Professor Pan pursued a PhD in Statistics at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) under the supervision of internationally-renowned statistician Prof Fang Kai-Tai. He then graduated as one of HKBU’s first PhDs. Having taught at the University of Manchester for over 20 years, Prof Pan has gained outstanding teaching and research outcomes.
Since joining UIC, Prof Pan has published four SCI papers and served as an Associate Editor-in-Chief of four international SCI journals. He also takes the role of reviewer in foundations in the UK and Hong Kong, China.
Despite a packed working schedule, Prof Pan has maintained an optimal work-life balance by playing tennis and swimming in his spare time. The exuberant environment at UIC gives him more to look forward to in the future.
From MPRO
Reporter: Du Jiewen
Photographer: Peng Zigui
Editors: Deen He, Covee Wang, Cecilia Yu
