South East University13 september 2012, Nanjing It’s 6:30 in the morning, an alarm clock is ringing. My bed doesn’t feel as comfortable as it did a few hours ago. I get out quickly to get some breakfast at a street corner. As usual the planning is tight for this day. The program starts with a visit to Southeast University (SEU). At half past eight, the bus from SEU arrives. During the ride, Prof. Wang informs us about the specs of his university. In whole China, it is well known for its research in RF IC design. While we drive through Nanjing, he tells us that this city was once the capital of China, and that its railway station is the biggest in whole Asia. The bus drives into the new campus. The campus has just been finished and the moving is almost ready. The old campus did not have enough room anymore, so they created a ten times bigger one. The area is indeed huge and the first thing that I noticed is that everything is grey and all buildings look alike. The smog enhances the gloomy impression. Our campus in Twente looks a lot better with the green grass, the white Carré and the red Nanolab. We walk through a building where some bachelor students are doing experiments. Professor Wang jokes that the students are making 'Lián Xì'(connections). A half hour later we leave the new campus and we drive to Wireless Valley, an area of 1km2 where companies and the university work together in wireless communication research. A large 'experience center' has been created, full with posters, prototypes and a gigantic model of the campus. Unfortunately all posters contained only Chinese characters and on the pictures there were only Chinese. This raised the question inside of me, whether the research here already achieved the international level. The tour continues through the rest of the buildings of Wireless Valley. The door of one of the connecting bridges is locked by an electronic lock and thus a guard is called. The guard enters the code in open view. A wave of hilarity flows through the group, but professional as we are we suppress our emotions. This is not the first time that I notice that the security in China is not that thorough. After the next bus trip we finally arrive at the old campus, where the chair of professor Wang is still located. We walk along the lab where we are told that it is the most advanced of its kind of all the universities in China. Then we get a presentation about the research done in the group. The most interesting is the research done in the area of myoelectric neurostimulation. With this they can connect two nerve systems. In the end they aim to cure paralyzed limbs, but they also want to make a connection between two bodies. Time for lunch. Together with prof. Wang and dr. Wang we enjoy a lovely meal in the student restaurant. With our stomachs full we take a bus to our next destination: Linggu Park. A gigantic forest on top of a big mountain. Nanjing has grown around the hill. Among other things, we visit the crypt of dr. Sun and the Linggu Temple: a pagoda with a height of 60 meter. After a long walk, we take the bus back to the hostel to have a quick shower and find a restaurant. Every day it is a pleasure to taste the Chinese cuisine. Right now I’m sitting in the hostel garden and the temperature is very pleasant. When I’ll wake up tomorrow, it will be already one week ago that we left Enschede. Tempus Fugit, time to write down my impressions…. Hugo Westerveld |