Shi Yigong, president of Westlake University -- the non-profit, private research institution based in Hangzhou -- had some important points to make when he gave an online open class for middle school students in the city in East China's Zhejiang province on April 19, before they all went to school the following day.

Shi is a structural biologist and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is also a member of the Biophysical Society of China.

During the class, Shi distilled his thinking gained over three decades of scientific research to give the students a single piece of advice: think independently and respect science.

Shi said that independent thinking is of lifelong value; respecting oneself and other people is what the society asks, and respecting science is especially significant in such a special time.

He also said that scientific findings and research were fundamental forces shaping and deciding the present and future of society. He encouraged students to study science.

Shi Yigong gives an online open class for middle school students in Hangzhou, on April 19. [Photo/WeChat account of the Biophysical Society of China]