Shanghai, 18 Jul (Xinhua) -- A reporter learned from Fudan University that Comrade Yang Fujia, a famous nuclear physicist, educator, former president of Fudan University, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, academician of the Academy of Sciences of Developing Countries, and senior librarian of the Central Research Institute of Culture and History, died of illness in Shanghai on July 17 at the age of 86.
"The pursuit of excellence" is the lifelong belief of Yang Fujia. He has always been deeply engaged in the frontier scientific research of physics, made outstanding contributions to the research of applied physics in the mainland, and achieved major achievements in atomic nuclear spectroscopy, nuclear decay analysis, ion beam research, etc., and created a domestic field of ion beam analysis and research. He attaches great importance to education and teaching, launches the plan of "famous professors taking basic courses", actively advocates a pluralistic evaluation system, encourages the coordinated development of various institutions of higher learning such as research universities, general universities, and vocational colleges, and promotes international exchanges in Chinese and foreign education.
The picture shows Yang Fujia, a famous nuclear physicist, educator, former president of Fudan University, and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Courtesy of Fudan University)
A scientist with a home country in mind
"A good school will give you a good atmosphere and let you unconsciously receive a good literacy education; And a good teacher can discover your strengths and lead you to a scientific path. ”
In September 1954, Yang Fujia was admitted to the Department of Physics of Fudan University with excellent results. When entering Fudan, Yang Fujia listened to the sincere teachings of Professors such as Wang Fushan and Zhou Tongqing, and also felt the tradition of the old Fudan - the lifelong teaching of famous teachers in basic classes. In his senior year, first-class professor Lu Hefu opened a colorful nuclear theory course and served as the tutor of Yang Fujia's graduation thesis, which enabled him to appreciate the brilliant "beauty of physics", and since then he has loved physics all his life and has been deeply involved in the field of nuclear physics.
In September 1963, Yang Fujia was selected to be a visiting scholar at the Bohr Institute in Denmark to conduct research on nuclear reaction energy spectroscopy. During the training period, Yang Fujia and more than 50 scholars from all over the world worked day and night to carry out scientific research, and made important research results in only one year, verifying the predictions of two Nobel Prize scholars of the institute about a state of nuclear movement.
In the world's first-class laboratory, but always with the motherland in mind the scientific research work. Yang Fujia envisioned his "steelmaking furnace", that is, to establish a laboratory with international standards in China, so that China could occupy a place in the world's modern scientific temple.
In February 1985, Yang Fujia (left) and colleagues study physics research work at Fudan University Xinhua News Agency reporter Wang Zijin photographed
In 1978, Yang Fujia was appointed head of the Department of Nuclear Science at Fudan University and promoted to associate professor. In Fudan, he established China's first-class laboratory, the "Accelerator-based Atomic and Nuclear Physics Laboratory", and trained the first batch of experimental nuclear physics doctoral students in China.
In June 1979, the Fourth International Conference on Ion Beam Analysis was held in Denmark, at which Yang Fujia spoke about the latest research of his colleagues. As soon as the report was concluded, representatives of a number of countries came forward to congratulate him. Davis, a well-known Canadian scientist, told Yang Fujia: "Four years ago, your counterparts in your country only expressed interest in this study. Unexpectedly, four years later, you have not only come up with research results, but also have a considerable level. ”
In 1980, Yang Fujia was promoted to professor, and in 1981, he became the first batch of doctoral supervisors at Fudan University.
Confidant of young teachers and students
Erudite and determined, asking questions and thinking closely.
In the Fudan school motto, Yang Fujia most appreciates the erudite "learning" and the "asking" of asking. "Learning, learning, is learning to ask questions, not learning to answer questions." Young people must ask questions if they want to progress, and without questions, there is no creation, and teachers must also encourage students to ask questions. ”
Yang Fujia is good at discovering the shining points of students, which he describes as "tinder". He told students that it is more important to identify strengths and strengths than to pay attention to scores one-sidedly, and to recognize what they are good at and what they are not good at doing. "Scores are representations. Everyone's characteristics are different, once you find your own tinder, characteristics, you can take off. ”
In February 1993, Yang Fujia was appointed as the fifth president of Fudan University in New China. He remembered the school's "eclectic demotion" in 1960, appointing the 24-year-old deputy director of the Department of Atomic Energy. Principal Yang Fujia decided: create more opportunities for young people! Soon after, Fudan began to emerge professors in their 20s, deans of second-level colleges in their 30s, and directors and deputy directors of the State Key Laboratory. The average age of Fudan University's teachers and cadres was the youngest in the country at that time, and the campus showed a vibrant appearance.
"The old principal put forward the concept of 'giving young people opportunities and caring for Fudan people', giving young teachers like me the opportunity to emerge at that time, Fudan opened a special channel for the development of young teachers, and at the same time gave the old generation of teachers care and protection." Jin Xiaofeng, a professor in the Department of Physics at Fudan University, recalled.
On November 26, 2005, the "Zhejiang Humanities Lecture Hall" was held in the lecture hall of Zhejiang Library, and Yang Fujia explained the differences between Chinese and foreign education in seven aspects. Photo: Pan Lianggan
Attaching equal importance to teaching, scientific research and service is the style advocated by Yang Fujia, and it is also his own practice. He launched the "Famous Professors Take Basic Courses" program, requiring professors to teach undergraduates, and his own classes were well received by students. After stepping down as president of Fudan, Yang Fujia, who was in his sixties at the time, still accepted the invitation and insisted on teaching a semester of atomic physics courses for 2,000 undergraduates.
In the view of Xu Lei, vice president of Fudan University, the changes made by Yang Fujia during his tenure as president were called "stone breaking heaven" at that time, and Fudan's undergraduate teaching and research also laid out the "first hand chess". In 1998, Fudan University participated in the "Zhengzheng Scholar" program set up by Li Zhengdao and began the undergraduate scientific research academic program, which is the first scientific research program in China with the model of "one tutor with one student" among undergraduates, the purpose of which is not to let undergraduate students enter the postgraduate study stage in advance, but to let students understand the way of thinking of scientific research and how to ask questions and solve problems in the whole process. Subsequently, fudan university developed projects such as "Wangdao" and "Xiyuan" for undergraduate students to participate on the basis of the "Scholars of The Politics of Politics" program, and then improved the "Fudan University Undergraduate Academic Research Funding Program" system.
As a scholar with a large number of academic exchanges with european and American counterparts, Yang Fujia has an outstanding international vision. He promoted the establishment of the Fudan Development Research Institute and served as the dean, and took the initiative to invite outstanding alumni to return to their alma mater to give lectures to young teachers and students, paying special attention to the development of young alumni. Jin Xiaofeng believes that this is a great encouragement to young people.
Today's Fudan is working hard towards the goal of becoming the forefront of world-class universities with Chinese characteristics, and "pursuing first-class" has been put on the agenda during Yang Fujia's tenure as president.
Pioneer of cooperative education
On 10 July 2021, Yang Fujia, who was already feeling unwell, insisted on hosting the graduation ceremony of the students at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China. As president and founder of the university, he attended almost every major ceremony.
Since 1996, Yang Fujia has served as an executive director of the Executive Council of World University Presidents and the President of the University of Nottingham, the first Chinese to hold an important position in a British university. In 2004, the University of Nottingham Ningbo China opened, and Yang Fujia, who was nearly 70 years old, served as the first president, and the preparation and establishment of China's first Sino-foreign cooperatively-run university was inseparable from Yang Fujia's conception and promotion.
On 17 February 2001, the University of Nottingham Chinese Students and Scholars Association held a welcoming ceremony to warmly welcome The famous Chinese scholar Yang Fujia to the University of Nottingham as President. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Hou Shaohua
"In terms of the educational concept of 'building a school based on students', I am completely in line with Mr. Yang." Xu Yafen, chairman of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, recalled that before the establishment of the school, China had just joined the World Trade Organization and was in urgent need of talents with an international vision, while Sino-foreign cooperation in running schools was still in a blank. Through the matchmaking of Yang Fujia, Colin Campbell, executive president of the University of Nottingham in Ningbo, was impressed by Yang Fujia's advanced concept and sincerity in developing education, and won the recognition of the British side.
"The student's mind is not a vessel of knowledge, but a fire to be ignited." At the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Yang Fujia personally read and responded to student letters, allowing students to take to the classroom podium to conduct group cooperation research and encourage independent thinking skills. Xu Yafen said that there was a slogan in the reception hall of the school that read, "First-class scholarship creates first-class talents," which was changed to "first-class academic achievements and first-class talents" at the suggestion of Yang Fujia. From "creating" to "achieving", it is precisely from the mode of mass training of graduates to the effort to provide students with a personalized growth stage, which is in line with the concept of "igniting the fire".
"Mr. Yang is an energetic and approachable scholar who is always very kind to administrators, teachers, school workers and students." Shen Weiqi, vice-chancellor of the University of Nottingham Ningbo China, said.
Source: Xinhua News Agency