The undergraduate admission notice from Fudan University has made a new appearance, with the first use of Fudan's advanced technology as a carrier for the revival of Kaihua paper in the field of science and technology
"This is not just a simple admission letter, it embodies the ancient papermaking process and advanced technology of Fudan University, and embodies the spirit of 'being knowledgeable and determined, and approaching questions and thinking closely'. Recently, the 2023 undergraduate admission letter of Fudan University has made a new appearance, and President Jin Li has introduced it.".
What is the mystery behind this new notice that embodies the integration of science, humanities, and art? Let's experience the interesting "soul" of Fudan people together.
Not only a notice, but also an artwork
What is the spirit of university? How to live up to your college career? Opening the blue cover, the right side of the notice reads: "All of you are college students. However, when it comes to a university, it is not the size of the school building, the age of the students, or the salary of the teachers. It is a matter of high morality and deep knowledge. If you study at this school, you must respect morality, focus on your studies, and not let down the three words' college students'."
The above proverbs are inspired by Ma Xiangbo, the founder and first president of Fudan University. The new notice sets a spiritual roadmap for Fudan freshmen who are about to embark on an unknown journey by interpreting the spirit and academic style of the university from the old president.
"It is not only a notice, but also a work of art," said Pan Weijie, Director of the Undergraduate Admissions Office at Fudan University. The overall design of the new notice adopts a classical style, and the elegant small Kai script in the main text is handwritten by Gao Xiang, a professor at the School of Public Health at Fudan University and the lecturer of the core course of Fudan General Education, "Chinese Calligraphy Art". The two characters "Jinli" in the main text are engraved by Xu Gufu, a special expert of Fudan University and a famous bird and insect seal carver. The Fudan real-life printmaking on the inner page is created by Ni Jianming, a special expert of Fudan University and a famous printmaker
During the design and production process of the notice, Professor Zhang Lifen from the School of Journalism at Fudan University provided a lot of inspiration and suggestions. In his view, all the careful design was "Fudan University, a century old university, saying to every new student, 'We care about you very much.'"
A thin notice with profound technological support
It is worth mentioning that for the first time, the new admission notice uses the Kaihua paper of Fudan Technology's revival as the carrier.
Kaihua paper was born in Kaihua County, Zhejiang Province. It is delicate, pure white, thin and tough, and is known as the "pearl on the crown" of traditional Chinese handmade paper. The papermaking process of Kaihua paper originated in the Ming Dynasty and flourished in the Qing Dynasty. Many precious books from the early Qing Dynasty were written and printed on Kaihua paper. After the mid Qing Dynasty, due to frequent wars, the paper trough collapsed and craftsmen went into exile. In addition, the core raw material of silk flowers gradually dried up, and the craftsmanship was lost.
Ancient books carry the two great inventions of papermaking and printing, and are witnesses of Chinese civilization. However, for a long time, the world and even relevant departments in China have used Japan and paper as paper for the restoration of cultural relics. "We hope to develop a traditional paper that truly represents China, which can be used to restore and protect China's paper-based cultural relics," said Yang Guanghui, Executive Vice Dean of the Chinese Ancient Books Protection and Research Institute at Fudan University.
What kind of traditional paper can represent China? The long lost Kaihua paper has entered the field of vision of the research team of the Chinese Academy of Ancient Books Protection.
Since 2016, under the leadership of Yang Yuliang, president of the Academy and academician of the CAS Member, the Academy has set up the "Kaihua Paper Research Academician Workstation". As the chief scientist in the domestic polymer field, Academician Yang Yuliang personally solved the scientific and technological problems in both theoretical and practical papermaking, and explained various scientific problems in handmade papermaking to Huang Hongjian, the inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of Kaihua paper; Researchers Yang Guanghui, Sui Jun, and Long Xiangyang from the research institute, Professor Chen Gang from the Department of Cultural Relics and Museology, Professor Zhong Yang, Zhong Jiang, and Zhang Wenju from the School of Life Sciences, and Professor Tang Yi from the Department of Chemistry have all participated in solving the scientific and humanistic problems of Kaihua paper. Wei Li, a part-time researcher at the research institute, and book collectors Liu Yang and Weng Lianxi have provided precious ancient books of Kaihua paper for scientific testing and research reference.
Yang Yuliang's manuscript explaining scientific issues to Huang Hongjian, the inheritor of Kaihua Paper Intangible Cultural Heritage
At the end of 2017, through joint exploration of multiple disciplines such as polymer materials, chemistry, biology, classical literature, and cultural heritage, the research team of Fudan University successfully revived the long lost Kaihua paper process. The newly revived Kaihua paper is light, thin, flexible, and as white as jade. Its physical and chemical indicators have approached the level of ancient paper, and the paper's storage life can reach over a thousand years. It is not only suitable for ancient book restoration, calligraphy and painting creation, but also for printing.
In the process of reconstruction, the scientific research team not only solved the bottleneck problem of ultra-thin paper manufacturing technology, but also made breakthrough progress in the genetic rapid propagation cultivation of raw materials such as silk flowers.
"In the future, we will make every effort to promote Kaihua paper to become a representative of traditional Chinese paper in the fields of calligraphy and painting creation, ancient book restoration, woodblock printing, etc. It must withstand world tests and reach the forefront of the world. This is also the original intention of Academician Yang Yuliang leading the team to rebuild Kaihua paper," said Yang Guanghui.
Now, more than 3000 notices have been printed, and once the admission results are announced, the names and professional information of the new students will be handwritten by students from the Fudan University Calligraphy and Painting Association. Alumni Zhu Yizhun, Vice President of Macau University of Science and Technology and Academician of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, made a special donation to support the production of the new notice. Previously, he taught at the School of Pharmacy of Fudan University for nearly ten years and formed a deep bond with Fudan University.
