East meets West at UMBC lab

East meets West at UMBC lab

Chinese scientist does research

The small，Oriental man never expected so much attention.But ever since he set foot in America this past January，he has been the object of much curiosity.

First of all he's a 40-year-old graduate student at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

And then，of course.Yu-sheng Chu，whose name translated means“the first”and“to come out，”is the first person from the People's Republic of China to attend UMBC.According to his sponsor，Dr.Shain-Dow Kung，associate professor of biological sciences at the university，Chu is also“one of the top scientists in China.”

“Mr.Chu is a very intelligent man，”says Kung，“I am very proud to have him here.”

Chu，whose modesty allows him to greet such compliments with only“no，no，”is pursuing his Ph.D.while working with Dr.Kung on experiments involving the tobacco plant.

Dr.Kung and Chu are experimenting with the tobacco plant because so much more is known about it than other plants.But they hope their findings will be applicable to green plants in general.

“We are trying to increase plant productivity，”explains Chu，“Most of the energy produced，directly or indirectly，comes from green plants.”

One of the implications of this research applies to world food production.

According to the World Almanac of 1980，between 1970 and 1978，there was a 2.5 percent increase in world food production，while there was an 18 percent increase in world population.These statistics paint a dim picture of future conditions.

Large amounts of energy，such as oil，are put，in ever-increasing proportions，into food production，processing，and distribution，while the amount of fertile land available remains the same.Because fossil fuels are limited，their use to expand food production is also limited.One method of combatting the problem is to increase the productivity of the plant itself.

Kung and Chu initially realized their common goal when Kung visited Chu's hometown of Shanghai in 1978.Kung was a guest lecturer at Shanghai's Institute of Plant Physiology，where Chu had been working since 1962.

“I met with Dr.Kung after his lecture，”says Chu，“We discovered that our ideas and opinions were very similar.”

It was this sort of scientific‘love at first sight’which brought Chu to the U.S.to study and work under Dr.Kung.

But Chu doesn't mind the work.That's why he's here.He can be found in the lab seven days a week，where he conducts experiments using modern American equipment.

One thing that he still is not too familiar with，however，is the English language.But，with the help of his colleague，Dr.Kung，and an English writing course，Chu is learning.(https://www.daowen.com)

But，when he is not in the lab，or practicing English，Chu may be found in front of a television.

“I don't like it too much though，”admits Chu，“There is too much advertisement.”

While that is a common complaint heard even from Americans，television programming in China includes no commercials.But the avid American TV watcher would hardly be satisfied by the limited viewing schedule in Shanghai.

Television programs operate for two hours in the morning，two hours in the afternoon，and hours in the evening.Kids can't turn on Captain Kangaroo or Sesame Street in the morning.But they can get instruction in English，Math，and Physics.

Television is not the only difference Chu's noticed.

“It is warmer inside houses here，”says Chu.In China the houses have no central heating and depend upon fireplaces or summertime for heat.

On his first trip to the super market，Chu was amazed.

“There is so much food everywhere.”exclaims Chu，“In China，it is much different.”

Chu praises the U.S.for its part in helping foreign students to come to study in America which，in turn，helps develop technology in the countries to which they return.

“I know very many famous acientiats who studied in America，”says Chu，“The United States has made the most contribution to scientific development in the world.

“Foreign students have their own culture，custom，and tradition，but they always have that common feeling and common concern about their future.”

Chu's immediate concern is his own future.While the three years ahead of him seem long when he considers the wife and seven-year-old son he left in Shanghai，he admits that he doesn't feel as if there is time to do everything he wants.

And that includes further investigation of two of his moat recent and fascinating discoveries—Security square Mall and UMBC basketball games.

In some ways，however，America has given him a greater appreciation of home.

“When I come to America.”says a grinning Chu，“I realize how good Chinese cooking is.”[1]

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[1]Judy Lee Morrison.此报道刊登在1980年3月26日“巴尔的摩太阳报”上。