On September 1st, the 2021 opening ceremony for freshmen kicked off at the East Auditorium of the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC). University leaders, deans from schools, and all freshmen joined the ceremony together. FU Yao, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of USTC, presided over the ceremony.
The opening ceremony officially started at 9 a.m., when students swept the blue school flag slowly above their squad. The hall resounded with cheers and applause then. Afterwards, the audience stood up and sang the national anthem of the People’s Republic of China.
The blue school flag is slowly sweeping past the freshmen’s squad
In the warm applause, BAO Xinhe, President of USTC, delivered an important speech, sending his heartfelt expectations to all new students.
“I hope you will take responsibility and maintain the patriotic spirit of USTC and serve our country. This year coincides with the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. The future belongs to you and hope is placed upon you. Since its founding, USTC has been sharing the same fate with China and USTCers have always been ready to serve our motherland.”
“When entering USTC, you all received the book ‘A Hundred Famous Scientists' Application for Party Membership’, in which the older generation of scientists’ dedication and devotion to our country is moving and admirable. LU Yuanjiu, the first deputy director of the Department of Automation and the recipient of the ‘July 1st’ Medal, studied abroad in the flames of war and became the first doctor of inertial navigation in the world. Despite obstacles, he decided to return after the founding of New China, and made outstanding contributions to the ‘Two Bombs and One Star’ and other major aerospace projects.”
BAO Xinhe, President of USTC, is giving a speech
“I hope that you work hard and strengthen your professional skills. CAO Yuan, an alumnus of the School of the Gifted Young, earned his reputation for discovering graphene superconductivity and opening up a new field of condensed matter physics research. He is the youngest Chinese scholar to publish a paper as the first author during the 149 years since the founding of the journal Nature, and was awarded the 2021 Young Physicist Award recently, which is the highest prize in condensed matter physics.”
“I hope that you will embrace the new era and be open and inclusive. USTC has always adhered to its original mission of ‘serving the country through science and education.’ In recent years, USTCers have made major breakthroughs in many fields including basic mathematics, quantum science and technology, condensed matter physics, astronomy, chemistry and materials, earth science, artificial intelligence, life science, and medicine.”
“General Secretary XI Jinping has put forward ardent expectations for the youth to become the new man of the new era who can carry the responsibility of national rejuvenation”, said Bao Xinhe, “I hope you strive to be the pioneer of China’s great scientific cause and ‘always let the national flag fly over the peak of science’.”
On behalf of the faculty, Prof. LU Chaoyang warmly welcomed the 2021 freshmen. “Diligence and commitment are the characteristics of USTCers while serving the country through science and education is the mission of USTCers”, he said. Not long ago, his team successfully developed the optical quantum computing prototype “JiuZhang”, which made China become the second country to achieve quantum computing superiority and established China’s leading position in international quantum computing research. He hoped that USTCers can think critically in the face of external voices and be brave enough to embrace the challenges ahead.
On behalf of the alumni, ZHAO Yu started his speech by throwing out the question “Why do you learn?” His suggestions to the students: to explore a wide range of unknown fields; to read as many books as possible; to communicate with parents and express love; to open your heart and make a few true friends.
On behalf of current students, ZHOU Bi, a second-year graduate student from the School of Physics, said that USTC is an ideal land for scientific research and the life in USTC is pure. He hoped that the new students would make full use of their four years in college to improve themselves.
On behalf of freshmen, LIU Lizhuo, an undergraduate of the School of Engineering Science, said that USTC was founded for the cause of “Two Bombs and One Star” and USTCers should have the “greatness of the country” in mind.
The opening ceremony successfully ended along with the melody of the school song “The Eternal East Wind”.
(Written by DUAN Qingrong, edited by LI Xiaoxi, USTC News Center)
