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师说 | 跨文化视角下的电影叙事——传播学讲师Imran Khan的艺术探索与教育使命
Recently, Dr. Imran Khan from Wenzhou-Kean University served as a jury member at the 16th edition of the ART&TUR International Tourism Film Festival held in Portugal. This marked his fifth year as a member of the judging panel at the festival, which aims to promote the exchange and promotion of tourism, culture, and sustainable development through films while providing a profound understanding of diverse regions and cultures worldwide.Imran Khan, with his extensive film experience and academic background, brought a unique perspective to the festival. As an outstanding filmmaker, he has consistently been recognized at the international film festival ART&TUR, winning the first prize in 2014. “International film festivals are not just visual feasts; they are also a fusion of stories and emotions, weaving a beautiful symphony of resonance and plot,” said Dr. Khan. He believes that excellent films must be built on a good story, as it is the key element that gives life and soul to the creation.ART&TUR: 2023 International Tourism Film FestivalKhan has produced a documentary series entitled “A Day in Life,” comprising over 25 documentaries. His documentaries cover stories of shepherds, fishermen, and other traditional occupations. Each documentary narrates the story of a custodian of ancient culture. Through projects like “Gladiator,” where they documented Portugal’s sole traditional bullfighting costume designer, Khan aims to preserve and protect disappearing ancient cultures.As a director and filmmaker, he is dedicated to using film as a medium to tell cultural stories from around the world. Reflecting on his initial motivation for making documentaries, he expresses his enjoyment in interacting with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, understanding their traditional clothing and cuisine, and experiencing their customs and history. He believes that in modern society, many have forgotten their roots, and it is essential to take action to save disappearing ancient cultures. Documentary filmmaking, for Khan, is a step toward this mission.When asked about what brought him to Wenzhou, Khan mentions his enduring interest in Chinese culture. He desires to explore the cultural underpinnings that support China’s development as the world’s second-largest economy. He immersed himself in Wenzhou’s culture, experiencing the cultural stories echoing between green waters and mountains. Worth mentioning, he was particularly drawn to the ancient artistry of Pingyang puppetry, appreciating its historical and cultural significance. Khan plans to create a documentary about Pingyang puppetry, not only as a tribute to Chinese culture but also as an effort to showcase the story of this traditional art form to the world.As a foreign expert living and working in China, Khan understands the importance of understanding and integrating into Chinese culture, especially at a time when China plays a significant role in the global economy. He proposes the idea of hosting a film festival on the WKU campus to showcase China’s diverse cultural stories with the joint efforts of students. For those students aspiring to enter the film industry, Dr. Khan’s advice is to continue learning and maintain curiosity, as a good story and a profound understanding of culture are the keys to success.Writer: FU Yuxi, ZHU QiyuProofreader: XIANG Wenwei
2024年01月26日
28次踏足温州,这位美国建筑师为了这个目标而来!
David Mohney, the dean of the Michael Graves College of Architecture and Design at Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) visited Wenzhou for the 28th time recently. This time, he came with the aim to facilitate the accreditation of WKU's architecture program (M.Arch) by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) of the United States, which when obtained, will grant graduates of WKU's architecture program (M.Arch) seamless transition to take the Architect Registration Examination, the licensure examination accepted in United States and Canada for architecture professionals.David Mohney is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects, holds a M.Arch from Princeton University School of Architecture and attended Harvard University to study Fine Arts, where he received his A.B.. He was previously the dean for University of Kentucky College of Design. He has taught at the Institute for Architecture and Urban Studies in New York City, the Graduate School of Design at Harvard, and the Southern California Institute of Architecture in Los Angeles. Ten years ago, he was appointed to be the dean of Michael Graves College at Kean University and took a role in the establishment of the Architecture Program at Wenzhou-Kean University six years ago.“Our programs for design and architecture at Wenzhou-Kean University emphasize originality and creativity. I think that’s one of the things that makes Wenzhou-Kean University different from other traditional Chinese universities,” said Dean Mohney. The Masters of Architecture program at WKU abides by the standard and course offering requirements of NAAB. Students grasp the history of architecture, and knowledge of constructional technologies while getting experience in the craft of artistic expression. Through studio and project-oriented training, architecture students combine practicable work and classroom learning to gain a capability in the training of the skill. During the trip, Dean Mohney has been busy preparing for the NAAB accreditation. Kean USA alongside WKU received candidacy status in the procedures for accreditation in 2022, and WKU is expected to gain initial accreditation by 2024. Students enrolled in WKU’s Master of Architecture degree program can take the Architectural Registration Examination upon graduation, and become certified architects in the United States, which marks a significant step forward in the College’s history.School of Public Architecture at Wenzhou-Kean University started to offer the Master of Architecture degree program in the Fall of 2021 and B.A. Architectural Studies program has been awarded with provincial “First-Class” status. Many of the graduates further their studies at the AA School of Architecture in England, UCLA Architecture and Urban Design, and other prestigious institutions of architecture. Writer: Wenwei XIANG, Yifei DING
2023年12月08日
与真菌“交朋友”,17年来他始终坚持这件事
Wandering in the forest, you may notice fungi of all shapes and colors. Besides the thought that fungi (mushrooms) are poisonous, did you know they can also be used in drug discovery and cancer treatment?Dr. Heriberto Vélëz (Eddy) from the College of Science, Mathematics and Technology is dedicated to conducting research on the pathology of fungi and finding breakthroughs in producing anticancer compounds from fungi. Fluent in English, Spanish, Swedish, Portuguese, and Italian, Dr. Vélëz loves to travel and explore fungi in forests worldwide. He is also keen on learning new languages and interacting with students all over the world.This time, we invite Dr. Vélëz to share his discoveries in phytopathology and biotechnology, uncovering the story of his research with fungi.The years spent with fungiThis is Dr. Vélëz’s 17th year working with fungi. He first got interested in fungi during his junior year at North Carolina State University, (when he was doing his Bachelor’s thesis) working with auxin-induced genes in loblolly pine. It was this experiment that led him to think about the symbiotic relationship between fungi and plants. From then on, he shifted his research direction to the study of pathogenic fungi. Dr. Vélëz believes that “Fungi will be a very important part of biotechnology.” At the biotechnological level, fungi have been used to make antibiotics and medical drugs such as penicillin and lovastatin. To explore a wider range of applications, he turned his attention to one of the toughest challenges in medicine today – cancer treatment.Taxol, an anti-cancer compoundWhile collaborating with researchers from Kathmandu University (Nepal), he and his team have worked with fungi that can produce paclitaxel, an anti-cancer compound called Taxol, which was isolated from Taxus Wallichiana. This compound can be used during chemotherapy for cancers such as breast and lung cancer. Currently, trees that produce paclitaxel are facing a severe challenge of over-harvesting. Therefore, Dr. Vélëz hopes to find a breakthrough from fungi, which is one of the projects he wants to work on at WKU.representative articleIn addition, noting that fungi that live in cold environments produce ice-binding proteins (IBPs) to protect them from freezing, and IBPs are widely used in Chinese markets, Dr. Vélëz is looking forward to initiating research in this area at WKU. Such research can help develop antifreeze proteins in the food industry, cryosurgery in the medical field, antifreeze technology in agriculture, and other areas.Pick up where he left off“What attracted me most in Wenzhou were the rolling hills and forests, where various fungi hide, enabling me to get back into my research on fungi.” Before coming to WKU, Dr. Vélëz worked as a Research Scientist, conducting fungal research at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Due to the interruption of funding and stalled research progress, he began to set his sights on WKU. “Compared with Sweden and most European countries, China is investing heavily in research and development, and WKU also provides many incentives and financial support for researchers.” After traveling all the way to China, he decided to teach Biology at WKU while completing his previous fungal research.observed fungi during his walks through the forest in UppsalaEvery winter in Sweden, Dr. Vélëz went to the forest before sunset at half past two, observing and collecting fungal samples, which he brought back to the lab for further study. In China, he found that in Wenzhou, where the climate is relatively hot and humid, many fungal species could not survive in Sweden’s dry and cold climate. He said: “The forest of Bijia Mountain surrounding the WKU campus is like a giant petri dish for fungi, where I can discover fungi species not commonly found in Sweden, thus carrying out in-depth research on them!”Find your passion and stick to it“Find what you are passionate about and stick to it until it is well done, even if there are challenges.” For Dr. Vélëz, the process of isolating fungi into pure cultures is definitely a challenge. Since the forest is not a sterile environment, culturing fungal cells collected from the forest requires several times of multiplying and separating. One may also face a challenge where the faster-growing fungal colonies in the petri dish override the slower-growing ones, making it impossible to observe the latter.However, what others may see as dull and repetitive experiments, he always resolves with interest. “I love challenges and working with fungi!” He said so. It was this relentless enthusiasm and persistence that inspired him with the idea of integrating microfluidics into basidiomycete fungal research. From this inspiration, he associated the idea with the possibility of purifying and treating fungi with microfluidics.fungi used for researchCurrently, microfluidics has been published inScientific Reportsbut is rarely applied in fungal research. This technology can be used to speed up the purification of fungi by screening 1,000 “petri dishes” or rather 1,000 “microdroplets” in a few seconds. Dr. Vélëz realized that several universities in China are also working on microfluidics and nanofluidics. He hopes to cooperate with these universities next summer, and follow up on the previous research.When it comes to the forthcoming research, Dr. Vélëz introduced, “I’ve identified the genes that are encoding the enzymes for methyl-terfestatin production. But there are two enzymes. There are two different pathways that this could go. If I delete one of the genes for one of the enzymes, would that change the pathway? So, it’s really difficult to do any kind of genetic work.” In the future, he hopes to continue his research at WKU. He plans to get Chinese approval to enter and exit plants and transport the needed fungi from Sweden to China, continuing the unfinished research.Trying out new research directions with students“I am amazed by students’ thirst for knowledge. That’s why I came to WKU”. Prior to coming to WKU, Dr. Vélëz taught courses in biological sciences at Tomsk State University in Russia, and it was this experience that solidified his desire to become a teacher. He exclaims, “When I was making media to grow fungi or to transfer fungal cultures, the students actively wanted to try to participate in the process, even if it wasn’t a requirement of the course.” Dr. Vélëz enjoys exploring new research topics and he suggested to Lin (a WKU psychology student minoring in Biology), to look into some of the compounds produced by fungi that are being medically tested as antidepressants. “Some of these compounds are showing promising results,” he told Lin. “Perhaps Lin will find new ideas for the direction of his own research interests in the intersection of fungi and psychotherapy”.Dr. Vélëz at WKUThese days, Dr. Vélëz is co-supervising three students in their research paper on plants and insects, discussing innovative research directions with them. When it comes to his own research, he believes that his research interests will provide ample opportunities for the students to practice and develop their problem-solving skills, independence, and creativity. He welcomes more students from WKU to actively participate in research projects, joining him in exploring emerging areas of biology.Dr. Vélëz is also adapting his life in Wenzhou. To better communicate with the people around him, he is making efforts to learn Chinese. “Language represents the first step of acceptance. I want to better integrate into the culture of Wenzhou and China,” he said with a smile. Aiming to help students discover their own research interests while collaborating on new projects, Dr. Vélëz hopes to have closer interactions with WKU students during his future teaching.Writer: Zili LINProofreader: Dr. Heriberto Vélëz, Wenwei XIANG
2023年10月20日