2018 has been a year of challenges, achievements and celebrations at Beihang University. Here is a roundup of the year’s top 10 selected events by network voting and expert evaluation.
No.1 Learning and materializing the spirits of the 19th CPC National Congress and the National Education Conference
In 2018, to study and materialize the spirits of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the 19th CPC National Congress as well as the National Education Conference, Beihang held various learning activities like theoretical study group, spirit conveying by university leaders, cadre training, as well as different kinds of study meetings, seminars and symposiums for all students, faculty and staff. In total, the university-level publicity group and the postgraduate publicity group have delivered more than 500 lectures throughout the year. On November 29th, Beihang Party Committee Secretary Cao Shumin conveyed the spirit of National Education Conference for over 3,100 faculty and staff at the Teachers Conference.
The Teachers Conference on November 29th
No. 2 Celebrating series of the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up and the 66th anniversary of the founding of Beihang University
2018 is a special year, marking the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up and the 66th anniversary of the founding of Beihang University. On October 27th, more than 2,000 alumni returned to Beihang to celebrate its 66th birthday and the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up at Beihang Chenxing Concert Hall. The 2018 Alumni Symposium was also held to boost in-depth cooperation with many enterprises such as Aviation Industry Corporation of China, Ltd., China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation Ltd. and Aero Engine Corporation of China. On December 9th, a symphonic suite Starry Sky was staged at the Chenxing Concert Hall to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the debut flights of Beijing 1, Beijing 2 and Beijing 5, as well as to eulogize Beihang University’s contribution to China’s aerospace industry over the past six decades.
Group photo of alumni when celebrating Beihang’s 66th birthday and the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up on October 27th
No.3 Nab seven national prizes in science and technology
At the 2017 National Science and Technology Awards Conference held on January 8th, 2018, Beihang University received seven prizes of China’s three highest honors in science and technology, including one first prize and one second prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award, one second prize of the State Natural Science Award , and four second prizes of the State Technical Invention Award. Beihang is contributing to China’s social progress with its cutting-edge scientific and technological achievements, and carrying out innovative scientific research by orienting itself toward the national economic development. Beihang has received 12 first prizes of national science and technology awards since 2004.
Beihang was honored with seven national prizes in science and technology
No. 4 Beihang Moral Education and Talent Cultivation Awards 2018
In September 2018, Beihang University held the 2nd Beihang Moral Education and Talent Cultivation Awards ceremony. Prof. Wen Chuanyuan, a founder of the School of Automation Science and Electrical Engineering and the discipline of Control Science, a pioneer in the field of drone in China and the general designer and director of Beijing 5, was honored with the Beihang Accomplishment Award for Moral Education and Talent Cultivation. Ma Dianfu, Wang Qi, Wang Huaming, Wang Huiwen and Fan Shangchun won the Beihang Excellence Award for Moral Education and Talent Cultivation, and the Beihang Distinction Award for Moral Education and Talent Cultivation went to 10 teachers including Wang Hongwei, Liu Jinghua, Li Yanhong, Li Jingwen, Yang Chao, Zhang Lijun, Lin Yan, Meng Qingchun, Gao Ning and Gao Zongsheng.
Prof. Wen received the Beihang Accomplishment Award for Moral Education and Talent Cultivation from Secretary Cao Shumin and President Xu Huibin
No. 5 Talent cultivation in Beihang School: Zero change of or appeal against majors for the first batch of students
As the first year of reform and innovation in talent cultivation, Beihang School has made a great stride in running the school in 2018. Under the new talent-cultivation mode, the students are admitted to the university based on their aptitude in general disciplines, and nurtured with general education in a broad range of subjects. Resources are being distributed across the university to integrate and coordinate the development of different schools. The one year’s effort was fully revealed by the data: 0 student wanted to change or make appeals against their majors; 86.3 percent of students gained admission to the majors of their first choice and 95.4 percent to the majors of their first three choices. These gratifying achievements owe to the scientific design and implementation of the student-based reform that stimulates students’ internal motivation and promotes their comprehensive development.
The scene at the “Consulting Fair”
No. 6 Discipline development and planning for the two campuses
To realize the integration of subject clusters and promote the sustainable development of the university, Beihang issued the discipline layout planning (2018-2022) of Shahe Campus and Xueyuanlu Campus. Shahe Campus will strive to build subject clusters in aerospace science and material manufacturing, strengthen the construction of science subjects group, and develop new emerging frontier disciplines; Xueyuanlu Campus will make efforts to establish the subject cluster of information technology, develop the medical-engineering cross disciplines, strengthen the subject group in management and humanities, and further improve the quality of international schools. According to the layout, the relocation of some schools such as School of Transportation Science and Engineering was successfully initiated. According to ShanghaiRanking's Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2018, Beihang ranks 1st in Aerospace Engineering in the world.
Main Building of Shahe Campus
No. 7 Volunteers in Lunar Palace 1 completed experiment and set a record of 370 days
Lunar Palace 1 opened its hatch again at Beihang University on May 15, 2018. Lunar Palace 365 Experiment, the longest 365+5 days’stay in a self-contained cabin, has achieved a complete success, setting a new world record for the longest bioregenerative life support system experiment with the highest degree of closure. The experiment realizes the long-term stable circulation of the human-animal-plant-microorganism ecosystem with high closure degree and biological diversity, while maintaining the physical and mental health of human beings. The ceremony was reported by more than 50 media at home and abroad.
Volunteers went out of Lunar Palace 1 with vegetables they planted in the lab
No. 8 Memorandum of Cooperation between Beihang and ENAC
On January 9th, 2018, witnessed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron, a memorandum of cooperation was signed by Xu Huibin, President of Beihang University, and Olivier Chansou, Director of Ecole Nationale de l'Aviation Civile (ENAC), at the Great Hall of the People. According to the memorandum, Beihang and ENAC will make full use of their advantages to jointly build a top international aviation university that adopts new mechanisms, cultivating more international high-level talents to the civil aviation industry.
President Xu Huibin signed Memorandum of Cooperation with Director Olivier Chansou
No. 9 Targeted poverty alleviation efforts in Zhongyang County of Lyuliang
On August 8th, 2018, Beihang’s endeavour to help Zhongyang County of Lyuliang alleviate poverty reaped sweet fruits under the joint efforts of the local Party Committee and governmentand Beihang University. With high ideological and political consciousness, the Party Committee of Beihang University has made solid efforts to promote targeted poverty alleviation. The number of poverty-stricken villages in Zhongyang County was reduced from 37 (at the end of 2015) to 2, registered poor households from 7,969 (including 20,918 people) to 354 (including 714 people), and poverty incidence from 20.5% to 0.7%. In the State Council's special evaluation and inspection on the counties out of poverty, Zhongyang County ranked 1st, with a score of 95.95, among the first three state-level poverty-stricken counties which were lifted out of poverty in Shanxi Province.
Feng Weicheng, Major Secretary of Beihang in Yangpo Village of Zhongyang County, and villagers
No. 10 Two Beihang students donated bone marrow stem cells
He Cai, an undergraduate from the School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, and Huang Wenhuan, an undergraduate from the ShenYuan Honors College, donated bone marrow stem cells on May 25th and October 12th, 2018 respectively. Their behaviors are exactly the epitome of Beihangers who are brave to assume social responsibility. Since 2008, Beihang has started carrying out the mobilization work of hematopoietic stem cell donation, and the collection was officially started in 2010. Up to now, 220 people of Beihang have become donors of China Marrow Donor Program.
Bone marrow stem cells donated by Beihang students
Reviewed by Tan Hualin
Translated by Lyu Xingyun
