HKU Faculty of Dentistry Bulletin: November 2016

Faculty News

Faculty No.1 Ranking Celebratory Cocktail Reception, October 2016

A big Thank you!

HKU Faculty of Dentistry celebrated World Top 1 Ranking by the 2016 QS Ranking of Universities by Subject on 31 October with a cocktail reception. Thank you to all who joined us for our reception. The event was a great success and we were delighted to welcome such a great number of guests - including the Honourable Leung Chun-ying, Dr Ko Wing-man, Mr Carlson Tong, Prof Arthur Li, Prof Peter Mathieson, and many more!

To view our photo gallery, please visit: <http://gallery.facdent.hku.hk/31-Oct-2016-Faculty-No.1-Ranking-Celebratory-Cocktail-Reception/>

Teaching and Learning

The World's very first Massive Open On-line Course (MOOC) on Implant Dentistry.

The HKU Faculty of Dentistry is pleased to launch of the World's very first Massive Open On-line Course (MOOC) on Implant Dentistry.

Research

Fossilized teeth lead to the discovery of a new prehistoric shark

Megalolamna paradoxodon is the name given to a newly discovered prehistoric shark, based on 20-million-year-old fossilized teeth recovered from three different continents. This discovery is reported¹ in a forthcoming issue of Historical Biology by an international research team, which includes Dr. Otto LT Lam, and has received widespread global coverage by mainstream news media, including Scientific American, National Geographic, CBS News, Fox News, MailOnline, Phys.org, Popular Mechanics, Seeker/Discovery Digital Networks, and The Huffington Post.

The species name 'paradoxodon' literally means paradoxical teeth, and refers to the fact that the shark emerges suddenly in the fossil record with a 45 million-year-gap from when it split from Otodus, its closest known relative. The genus name 'Megalolamna' makes reference to the superficial resemblance of the fossil teeth to super-sized teeth of the porbeagle and salmon sharks that inhabit the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans today. Approximately the size of a modern-day great white shark, Megalolamna paradoxodon was also determined to be a close cousin of the extinct iconic 'megatoothed' shark, Otodus megalodon.

¹ A new elusive otodontid shark (Lamniformes: Otodontidae) from the lower Miocene, and comments on the taxonomy of otodontid genera, including the "megatoothed" clade. Kenshu Shimada, Richard E. Chandler, Otto Lok Tao Lam, Takeshi Tanaka, and David J. Ward. Historical Biology 2016 (in press).

BDS Corner

The Music Night of Dental Festival 2016

Organized by the Executive Committee from Dental Society, HKUSU, the cheerful Music Night held in early October was a great success. The evening event attracted a large audience. About 80 energetic BDS students from all years participated in the joyful music gathering to enjoy sensational vocal acts and dance performances made by their fellow classmates. Our beloved alumni, Dr Hon Ki and Dr Dave Chan, made their remarkable return to the campus. The duet they performed, which won a round of applause from their supporters, was the highlight of the event. By providing a platform for talents students, the organizer expects that the energy and excitement of the night will generate fresh ways of enjoying campus life.

Call for participants

Continuing Dental Education (CDE) Seminar in November, 2016

Topic: Cheesy teeth: What a dentist should know about enamel hypomineralization?

Speaker: Dr Manikandan Ekambaram, Clinical Assistant Professor in Paediatric Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, HKU

Date: 17 November, 2016

Time: 6:30-8:00pm

Venue: Lecture Theatre 1, The Prince Philip Dental Hospital

Check out the complete 2016-17 CDE Seminars Schedule: http://facdent.hku.hk/docs/2016/CDE_Leaflet_Registration201617.pdf

The Faculty offers regular lectures and courses for continuing dental education and continuing professional development. To learn more about CDE courses, please visit: http://facdent.hku.hk/cde