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A preliminary ground investigation was undertaken in 1999 as part of the site investigation for Hong Kong's Route 8. Additional information was also available from other ground investigations undertaken for recent reclamation works. While this information provided an overview of the ground conditions for initial scheming it was inadequate for detailed design of Stonecutters Bridge. A detailed ground investigation was therefore procured in 2001, which was undertaken in three separate phases over a period of two years and described in this paper. Structures with long periods require design response spectra. For long period structures design response spectra are required. For Stonecutters Bridge, these were developed for various return periods using a probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA). The effects of the local soil profile were also explicitly considered. This paper summarises the PSHA and how the effects of the local soil profile were taken into account. The methods used to determine the dynamic response of the bridge and the effects of non-synchronous motion of the foundations are also explained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For Stonecutters Bridge, Hong Kong, the foundation support is most efficiently provided by bored piles utilising end bearing and friction in the hard rock stratum, which is typically between 45 m and 67 m below ground level on the east side and between 48 m and 75 m below ground level on the west side. Local areas of deeper weathering are observed beneath the west tower and the adjacent back-span pier. The foundations for each pier and tower comprise a thick reinforced concrete cap supported on a grid of large-diameter, bored piles. The bored piles are socketted in rock and typically enlarged at the base up to 1·5 times the pile shaft diameter to provide resistance through both shaft friction and end bearing with no contribution from the overlying superficial deposits. The design used an iterative process to achieve compatibility between the bridge superstructure and substructure. Additional considerations for seismic loads and ship impact were also taken into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was conducted to determine the prevalence of and potential risk factors for feline hyperthyroidism in Hong Kong. Serum total thyroxine (T4) was measured in 305 cats aged 10 years and older that presented at various veterinary clinics in Hong Kong. The prevalence of hyperthyroidism (T4 >50nmol/l) within this population was 3.93% and there was no significant difference in prevalence between healthy (3.16%) and sick (4.37%) cats. Older cats (>15 years) were more likely to be affected and domestic shorthair cats were less likely to be diagnosed with hyperthyroidism than the other breeds combined. No specific association between the development of feline hyperthyroidism and food type was observed. The prevalence of feline hyperthyroidism in Hong Kong was less than that reported for most other parts of the world, despite the presence of previously identified risk factors. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Aims: To determine and compare the distribution of the FcgammaRIIIa 176 F/V polymorphism across three ethnically distinct populations (Chinese, Asian Indians and Malays) in Singapore., Methods: The FcgammaRIIIa 176 F/V polymorphism was genotyped by direct sequencing from genomic DNA samples obtained from normal healthy Chinese, Asian Indians and Malays (n = 192 from each population)., Results: The allelic frequencies of the high binding affinity FcgammaRIIIa 176 V allele for Chinese, Asian Indians and Malays were 35%, 33% and 46%, respectively (F allele frequencies were 65%, 67% and 54%, respectively). Genotype distributions were found to conform to the Hardy-Weinberg law (P > 0.05) in each group. chi(2) comparisons revealed significant differences in the genotype distributions of the FcgammaRIIIa 176 V/F polymorphism of Malays from the other two populations (Chinese and Asian Indians). However, no significant difference in the genotype distributions of the FcgammaRIIIa 176 V/F polymorphism was observed between Chinese and Asian Indian populations., Conclusions: The genotype distributions of the FcgammaRIIIa 176 V/F polymorphism in healthy Malays are significantly different from both Chinese and Indians. These observations provide the fundamentals on which future disease associations may be built and also present important implications for the design of therapeutic regimens amongst various ethnic groups.