Summer comes every year, yet a recent international camp organized by the University of Science and Technology of China made this one truly exceptional for a select group of students from around the world.

The Future Physicist International Summer Camp organized by USTC, one of China's top universities, concluded on July 14 after two weeks of various activities.

It attracted nearly 40 students from America, Europe and Asia.

Vito Cientanni, a student from Imperial College London, first learned about USTC from an obscure academic book in the library of his college. When he saw information on the summer camp online this year, he filed the application without hesitation. But he didn't really believe he would get the chance.

"When I was informed that they allowed me in, I felt kind of surprised but very glad to have the opportunity, because I knew this would be a very cool experience," said Cientanni, who is studying for his master's degree in London.

Like most of the other fellows in the camp, the young man had never been to China nor attended such an international summer camp before. The trip gave him more than he expected.

"The trip aims to promote the academic and cultural exchanges between Chinese and international students, offering an opportunity to learn about the latest advances in physics in China and to see the culture in person," said Chen Chusheng, vice-president of USTC who is in charge of undergraduate education and international exchange affairs.

Majoring in different fields in physics, students were classified into several groups and asked to finish an academic presentation on the last day.

USTC asked 11 of its top physicists to give lectures on up-to-date trends in their respective fields.

As a top-notch Chinese university specially focused on science and technology education and research, USTC enjoys many of the country's most advanced scientific facilities, such as the Hefei National Laboratory for Microscale Sciences and the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory, both based at USTC. The whole country has no more than 10 such national laboratories, which represent the country's highest level in certain scientific fields.

After the lectures, students were invited to do some hands-on research under the guidance of professors at the two national labs and other smaller ones.

The summer camp also aims to help the members find potential research partners for their future studies and research, according to USTC's School of Physical Sciences, which has cultivated numerous internationally renowned physicists since its establishment in 1958.

Collaborating with his partners, Cientanni said he enjoyed lab experiments very much. The team delivered a presentation on plasma.

Bethan Murray from the University of Oxford said that "in addition to the academic activities, Chinese culture leaves me most impressive memories".

"I like all the cultural things such as the Chinese food and language," she said.

The university, based in Hefei, capital of East China's Anhui province, is just four hours away from Beijing and two and a half hours from Shanghai by high-speed train. It is also near many well-known scenic spots including the Anhui-based Yellow Mountain, a world heritage site and a global geopark recognized by the UNESCO.

As part of the summer camp, students attended presentations on Chinese calligraphy, food, tea, ceramics and porcelain, folk songs, operas and traditional holidays.

On the resume of Alexander Droster from the University of Chicago, he wrote that trying new restaurants with friends is one of his hobbies, so the trip to China satisfied him because he enjoyed a lot of local food.

After two weeks, Droster could speak some frequently used Chinese sentences.

The annual summer camp was started in 2013. Participating students' expenses including roundtrip flights, accommodation and visits to tourism spots are covered by the university.

zhulixin@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 07/25/2014 page23)

http://europe.chinadaily.com.cn/epaper/2014-07/25/content_17919688.htm