Year: 2021

On 16th January, Heritage Institute of Technology, Kolkata organized TEDx Talk on the campus which was addressed by Industry Stalwarts from various fields.

Heritage Institute of Technology was the first private engineering college in Kolkata to start off this initiative way back in 2019 and now the second edition happened today.

The event was addressed by Mr. Manvir Singh Anand, Food Business Expert, Ms. Khushi Khater, Karmaveer Chakra Awardee, Mr. Sabyasachi Mukhopadhyay, Data Scientist, Mr. Kaushik Sen, Actor & Thespian, Mr. Sayan Chakraborty, Founder & CEO of Where’s the Food, Shoukarya Ghoshal, Director, Illustrator & Journalist, Shams Aalam, International Gold Medalist & Para-swimmer and Dr. Biswajit Banerjee, General Physician & Diabetologist. The event was virtually live on the TEDx HITKolkata Facebook Page.

The entire event was coordinated by the students and also witnessed the presence of Shri Pradip Agarwal, CEO, Heritage Group of Institutions, Kolkata, Shri Arvind Srivastava, Joint Registrar, Heritage Institute of Technology, and other officials of the Institute.

Tejabatik Tie and Dye Creative Product Workshop was organized by the Faculty of Art & Design, Universiti Teknologi MARA, (UiTM), Malaysia and RIG/EK Alam Tamadun Seni Melayu (ADAT) UiTM Melaka Branch on 26 September 2020. The workshop conducted at UiTM Graphic Studio Melaka had the main aim to support the development of the batik industry in Melaka by leveraging on the expertise and consultation from UiTM Melaka Branch with the community.

This workshop introduced the creative art of Tie and Dye techniques or also known as Batik Pelangi, and was a collaboration between Pertubuhan Perkumpulan Perempuan (PPP), formerly known as The National Association of Women’s Institute of the Federation of Malaya Sri Meranti Branch, Masjid Tanah Melaka (WI). It was organized in conjunction with a special project known as TEJABATIK, one of the commercial brand names registered under UiTM Melaka Branch.

The advisor of this program is Dr Nadzri Mohd Sharif, Head of School, Faculty of Art and Design while the program was conducted by the Project Leader Dr. Liza Marziana Mohammad Noh and assisted by Project Assistant Dr. Zamrudin Abdullah.

A total of 11 facilitators were involved which include Art and Design Faculty staff and students. This workshop was attended by a total of 23 participants from the Women’s Association, Sri Meranti Branch, Masjid Tanah Melaka (WI).

Participants were initiated to participate in two activities; the first activity involved the process of exploring the binding technique for handkerchiefs and the coloring process using cotton poplin/cotton viscose. The second activity introduced participants to the process of making tie and dye t-shirts and also the process of color retention. The final completed designs were displayed in the workshop.

Objectives for this program were successfully reached when basic knowledge of the Tie and Dye Technique used in the Batik Industry were recognized and implemented practically.

Veronika Gavrilenko, a postgraduate student of TPU and Paris-Saclay University (Université Paris-Saclay) has successfully defended her PhD thesis on-resistance of insulation materials to electrical loads arising from the use of SiC-based new generation semiconductors. The thesis defense was arranged by Paris-Saclay University and held via video conferencing.

The PhD thesis “Characterization of Winding Insulation of Electrical Machines Fed by Voltage Waves with High dV/dt” is devoted to studying partial discharges and the related mechanisms of insulation aging and destruction when exposed to pulse voltage with nanosecond high-frequency impulse fronts inherent to modern semiconductor equipment.

To develop a methodology for measuring the resistance of electrical insulation materials, the researchers designed and assembled a high-frequency test machine. The research was conducted under the Agreement on International Joint Scientific Supervision between Tomsk Polytechnic University (Russia) and Paris-Saclay University (France). Professor Stéphane Lefebvre from Paris-Saclay University and Associate Professor of TPU School of Energy and Power Engineering Andrey Leonov led the research supervision.

The Dissertation Advisory Committee included Russian and French scientists and experts: Professor of Artois University (Université d’Artois) Daniel Roger, Professor of Paul Sabatier University (Université Paul Sabatier) Gilbert Teyssedre, Professor of Industrial Machinery Design Department at Novosibirsk State Technical University Oleg Nos and Head of the Department of Television and Control at Tomsk State University of Control Systems and Radioelectronics Talgat Gazizov. The Chair of the Dissertation Advisory Committee was Professor of CentraleSupélec Emmanuel Odic.

“A doctoral degree is a launching pad for an academic career and obtaining such a diploma means recognition in an international academic community.

Writing a doctoral thesis under international co-supervision helps acquire experience of working in scientific and research laboratories and teaching both in Russia and abroad, ability to arrange teamwork and present your research work through conferences and scientific publications. Writing a doctoral thesis is a constant development and self-improvement, critical thinking, and searching for outside-the-box solutions. What is more, the role of research supervisors and colleagues is very important for successful implementation of the first extensive research project,” Veronika Gavrilenko says.

Veronika Gavrilenko plans to continue her scientific and educational work, as well as to develop further cooperation between TPU and leading French universities.

On November 24, 2020, Law students participating in a legal coursework project as part of the Legal Profession course in the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University (TU) hosted a panel discussion, “Thammasat + Braille Block = The Beginning of Equality” on the occasion of Thailand’s Day of People with Disabilities, gathering a large audience.

At the panel discussion, the president of the Thailand Association of the Blind said, “We need to bring the Braille Blocks back, and we should take care of the existing ones too as it could bring more harm than good if left unattended. A TU landscape architecture professor added that students with disabilities in universities with universal design tend to have better academic performance.”

Prof. Wiriya Namsiripongpun, a professor at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat University said, “Even though Thailand has many laws related to the well-being of people with disabilities when it comes to the actual practice, we fell short. Many places don’t think about the universal design at all. To illustrate, Braille Blocks on footpaths are impractical, if not make things worse, since they have never been tested for their efficiency and safety.”

“The United Nations (UN) has set an Inclusive Society or Society for All guidelines, aiming to make society accessible for everyone. The heart of the guidelines is “access,” how we can make sure everyone has access to everything conveniently. To create a society for all, people with disabilities is one of the most important group to keep in mind, because when people with disabilities have access to something, it can imply that there is everyone also has access,” Prof Wiriya continued.

“In many countries, various products have adopted the “for all” policy as one of their selling points, such as iPhone, a phone with accessibility function, or hotels with universal design. Therefore, I strongly support Thammasat’s Braille Block policy to make our university a university for all, which could become our strong suit,” said Prof. Wiriya .

Mr. Kittipong Suthi, Director of Thailand Association of the Blind for Research and Development said, “Despite the fact that Braille Block is a guaranteed way that increases the safety for people with visual impairments, people in Thailand are still unaware of its importance. There are merchants on the footpath blocking the Braille Block. Footpaths are also in poor condition, making it hard to find differences between the Braille Block and the beaten part of the footpaths.”

“If we really work on installing Braille Blocks, making sure they are practical, the quality of people with visual impairments will be significantly improved. However, the situation is really bad. We once had to advise against using the Braille Block since the way they are installed are causing more harm than good to the people who depend on them,” said Mr. Kittipong Suthi.

Assoc. Prof. Chumkhet Sawaengcharoen, Assistant to the Rector for Student Affairs and a professor in the Landscape Department, Faculty of Architecture revealed that Thammasat University will start by installing Braille Blocks at the Rangsit campus to test the “Guiding Block” system, while the Tha Prachan campus will use the “Warning Block” system.

The university also established the design center for studying Universal Design, to carry out related research and process the students’ concerns and complaints, making sure Thammasat is a university for all.

Besides, the quality of life has a strong influence on academic performance. In Thailand, there are three million people with disabilities, but only 1.2 million people got to be in primary school education, only 160,000 proceeds to secondary and high school, and a small fraction of 21,000 people got a chance to complete a degree in higher education. These numbers proved that education for people with disabilities is still not on par, which robbed many great opportunities for them and the country.

“One of the reasons that make education for people with disabilities in this bad condition is the environment that lacks universal design such as footpaths, ramps, or elevators. In the past, Thammasat had once evaluated every building, determine whether it can be used by everyone or not. In the past, every building fails, making the university decided to allocate a budget to renovate and improve the building. If the environment is good for people with visual impairments, their academic performances will be significantly improved,” said Assoc. Prof. Chumkhet Sawaengcharoen.

Mr. Suphanat Leephaisomboon, a student with visual impairment at the Faculty of Law, Thammasat said that he wanted every university to renovate their building to create a better learning environment such as an elevator ride with Braille letter, Braille Block, Classroom that has wheel-chair access path, designing and working on the university’s dormitory, and providing a voice recording that can be used.

Traveling as a people with disabilities is difficult. Some people have to stay in a dormitory that is close to the campus, where the rent is high. Therefore, I want to suggest that the university, both public and private universities, should take this matter seriously such as rent subsidy and discount as well as transportation pricing.” These are things that will definitely help improve the quality of life of people with disabilities.

A collaborative lecture between the Faculty of Architecture, Planning and Surveying (FSPU), Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), and Northumbria University, UK was held on the 9th December 2020.

The lecture, initiated by the Centre of Studies for Quantity Surveying, FSPU, has specially brought the speaker, Dr. Nurul Zahirah Mokhtar Azizi from Northumbria University, UK to talk about “Embodied Carbon and Carbon Tax”. Participants were amongst students and staff, had joined the 2-hour webinar session via Microsoft Teams online platform.

“The carbon emission reduction in the construction industry is still reporting on a very voluntary basis. I hope that one day it will become more popular and more widespread. In terms of embodied carbon, the carbon database is not yet matured. It is still developing, it does have a lot of flaws, but hopefully, we will get to a point where a carbon database is robust and sufficient with cost data, with lots of information in there, based on substantial historical data which will be reliable, “said Dr. Nurul Zahirah.

“Whenever you introduce something new, it is not going to be popular, to be liked by the industry people. It is going to create different reactions and it takes time to bring that awareness. What I can say is, people do generally have awareness around sustainability, it is just something within the people that is not forced. But in Malaysia, it has to be forced, as the industry has not yet reached that level of awareness. We are not yet there where sustainability concept is completely embraced, so it has to be enforced by policies and regulations, ” she added more.

The collaborative lecture was one of the initiatives for the FSPU’s “Sustainable Construction” elective course to fulfill its syllabus topics. Previously, two local speakers were also invited to give lectures on the related topics of the course.

The first lecture was given by the Faculty’s expert itself, Professor Dr. Fadzil Hassan to share insights on “Environmental Management System”, and the second lecture was done by the Sustainability Manager of Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) of Malaysia, Mr. Khairul Nizam Anuar Bashah, talking about “Sustainability Rating Tools”.

The collaborative lecture series was aimed to create awareness and increase understanding about the “Sustainable Construction” concept not only amongst the UiTM’s students but also the University’s academicians and researchers. It is hoped that more webinar sharing sessions will be conducted on such topics to give exposure within the higher learning education institutions to improve sustainability practices of the built environment in the Malaysian Construction Industry.

Natalia Tambieva, a graduate of St Petersburg University, theologian, and Islamic scholar, speaks about what Islamic feminism is, how decolonial feminist theories develop, and her PhD dissertation on ‘Islamic feminism in the context of the modern history of Russia.’

On asked about how she decided to choose this research topic, Natalia says, “My research interest is intrinsically linked with my everyday practices of being a Muslim woman and part of the Muslim community of St Petersburg, and liaising with women’s Muslim organizations in other regions of Russia. I wanted to apply the scientific method to study the status of women in Islam and various approaches in addressing this issue. Studying sources on the topic, I discovered that there is such a school of thought – Islamic feminism.”

She continues to elaborate on what Islamic feminism is and where the concept originates from. “Islamic feminism – as a term and a school of thought – emerged in the 1980s in the US academe. The representatives of this school of thought are Islamic scholars, Muslim women who emigrated to the United States from various countries of the Muslim world, received secular education, and earned academic degrees,” she explains.

“However, the ideas and concepts of Islamic feminism can be found in the works of Islamic modernists – Muhammad Abduh, Qasim Amin, and Tahar Haddad – as early as the end of the 19^th century. Later, these ideas were supported by the 20^th and 21st-century scholars, such as Fazlur Rahman, Adis Duderija and others,” Natalia adds.

“The term ‘Islamic feminism’ was advocated by a researcher from Georgetown University, Margot Badran. By and large, Islamic feminism is a response to the ideas of liberal feminism, which is defined by its focus on achieving gender equality through the rejection of religious and ethnic identity. Islamic feminism is one of the decolonial feminist theories,” she explains.

On Islamic feminism shaping overseas, Natalia says, “In addition to theological work, Islamic feminists overseas are engaged in scholarly and research activities in areas related to theology. ”

She goes on to cite that, “Muslim women in Denmark opened the women’s Mariam mosque in Copenhagen, which has only female imams. It may appear as an ordinary women’s Islamic center, but this is more than that. It is a female-led mosque, where Friday prayers are led by a female imam, who also conducts weddings, as well as divorces. This could have never happened in a traditional mosque.”

“Another example is from Berlin, where the Ibn RushdGoethe Mosque was inaugurated in 2017. It is the only self-described liberal mosque in Germany. In this gender-equal mosque, women and men pray together and women are not obligated to wear a headscarf. The mosque is open to Sunni, Shia and other Muslims and it accepts LGBT worshippers. Its founder, Seyran Ateş, advocates for voluntary circumcision upon reaching adulthood and makes efforts to address the problem of early marriage. These are the most striking examples,” she adds.

Natalia has received both religious and secular education which she says has helped her in her work. “The bachelor’s degree program at Moscow Islamic Institute was designed in such a way that, while religious disciplines were most prominent in the curriculum, we also studied secular subjects, such as the history of Russia and philosophy. This gave me a good foundation for continuing my education at St Petersburg University,” says Natalia.

“While studying for a master’s degree, I had to switch from theological discourse to secular. However, the postgraduate program ‘The History and Culture of Islam’ allowed me to combine theological and historical methods.”

“The topic of my research is ‘Islamic feminism in the context of the modern history of Russia.’ I explore Islamic feminism in the Muslim community in Russia. As a St Petersburg University master’s student and then postgraduate student, I was able to study the history of the issue in detail and conduct ethnographic research. My thesis also contains a practical part, represented by a series of in-depth interviews with women’s rights activists from the Muslim community of St Petersburg. Also, to defend a dissertation in theology, I will need to focus on the theological component of the research,” she adds.

“The very concept of ‘Islamic feminism’ is inextricably linked with the idea of renovation in Islam and neo-modernist Islamic thought. As I already mentioned, the researchers of Islamic feminism are part of both theological and secular discourses. Professor Mukhetdinov is my research supervisor, and he also published a few articles on Islamic feminism. In fact, on his advice, I found many interesting works,” Natalia says.

On being asked if she envisions being the first female theologian to earn a doctorate, she says, “I do not like to get ahead of myself, but if everything goes well, I do hope to defend my PhD thesis in theology at St Petersburg University. The successful defense of the first dissertation in Islamic theology gives me confidence. I may say that this sphere is very important to me. I can see there are real prospects for the future.”

Micro Industry Hub (MIH) initiative was announced to be a strategic and sustainable Industry collaborative platform for human capital & local product development, publication, graduate employability and commercialization that benefits both Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) and industrial practitioners. The strengths of both parties will be reflected in this initiative to produce high quality and new technology inventions.

Two Industrial companies involved in MIH initiative with UiTM are Amtel Cellular Sdn Bhd (AMCSB) and ACM EV Sdn. Bhd.

UiTM will provide laboratory space, basic infra, and utilities to the industry within UiTM campus nationwide. In return, the industry will provide opex for the laboratory operation and a special monthly allowance for the appointed members.

The first company, AMCSB is a subsidiary of Amtel Holdings Berhad, a public listed company with core business in GPS and Telecommunications.

UiTM and AMCSB will collaborate in research and development projects (R&D) for telematics, electronics, telecommunication and vehicle-related products. Henceforth, an Industrial Research Lab, namely Vehicle Intelligence and Telematics Lab (VITAL) is established to serve this purpose. This lab is led by Ir. Ts. Dr. Fadhlan hafizhelmi Kamaru Zaman, CEng., senior lecturer from Faculty of Electrical Engineering, UiTM. Other members are Ir. Dr. Ng Kok Mun, Ts. Dr. Lucyantie Mazalan and Assistant Engineer Mr. Ahmad Rais Johari.

The second company, ACM EV Sdn. Bhd. is a private limited company and has been operational for eleven years in Malaysia. Currently, the business is focused on Electro Mobility specifically for Electric Vehicle (EV).

Under MIH initiative, UiTM and ACEV Technologies Sdn Bhd agree to collaborate in R&D projects which related to EV chassis design, vehicle control, battery thermal management, telematics, data analytics and digital application platform.

A lab namely Innovative Electro Mobility (ITEM) has been established in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, UiTM Shah Alam, Selangor. The lab is led by Ts. Dr Noorfadzli Abdul Razak with the assistance of the research fellows, Ts. Dr. Fazlina Ahmat Ruslan, Ts. Dr. Mohd Azri Abdul Aziz, Associate Prof. Ts. Dr. Mahanijah Md Kamal and Associate Prof. Ts. Ir. Dr. Hjh. Juliana Johari.

From the cooperation between the two parties, it is expected to produce high quality and new technology products for local and international usage. UiTM hopes to welcome more industrial practitioners to be future partners through this initiative.

Prof. Agus Zainal Arifin, a professor from the Department of Informatics, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), recently received an award from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan. The award was given by the Consul General of Japan in Surabaya, Mr. Masaki Tani for his services to promote mutual understanding between Japan and Indonesia.

Prof. Agus studied at the Department of Informatics Engineering at Hiroshima University in 2003-2007. He received a Japanese government scholarship, Monbukagakusho (Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology). During his study, he actively introduced Indonesian culture and art to Japanese communities. He also founded the Japanese Nahdlatul Ulama Student Family (KMNU). He received the Hiroshima University Excellent Student Award in 2006.

After finishing his doctoral study in Japan, Agus returned to Indonesia and has made active efforts to facilitate and maintain good friendships and activities between the two countries.

In the future, Prof. Agus is eager to strengthen and to explore new cooperation between the two countries through ITS. He hopes that cooperation between the two countries can be widened and be more intensive. Last but not least, he also expects that more students and lecturers in Indonesia are motivated to study abroad.

Super Brain Yoga (SBY) has been shown to improve short-term memory and human health condition. This is based on the results of a study by two lecturers from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Shah Alam, Selangor, Ts Dr. Hjh Ros Shilawani Sheikh Abdul Kadir and Associate Prof. Zunairah Haji Murat, and a master’s degree student, Faizul Hafizzi Ahmad. The article was published on the center page of METRO AHAD on 25 October 2020.

Ros Shilawani, who is also the project leader, said this technique was the first to be introduced in Malaysia and was named Super Brain Yoga Health Enhancement and Rejuvenating Oneself (SBY HERO). The assessment was conducted before and after performing the SBY HERO to see changes in physical health and short-term memory level. Electromagnetic radiation, also known as an aura, is the electrical energy emitted from the human body or living things, can be used to measure changes in physical health. Digit Span Test (DST) is a test used to assess the improvement of short-term memory.  other advantages of SBY HERO is to balance the left and right brain hemispheres to improve memory and health towards a happier lifestyle.

The target of this study is also to change the stigma of society that considers super brain yoga as a form of punishment to a YOGA technique and elevate its status in a more positive direction. The long-term planning is to propose to the Ministry of Education Malaysia to implement SBY HERO as a co-curricular activity in schools.

This project has won Gold Award in the virtual Innovation competition at the faculty level, Silver Award in IIDEX UiTM 2020, and Gold Award in 3rd International Innovation, Invention & Design Competition ICON 2020. The initial investigation of this research (concerning brainwaves and other exercises) had been published in the SCOPUS journal and presented at International Conference on Electronic Devices, Systems and Applications ICEDSA 2020 in March 2020.

Their recent publications include ‘Electromagnetic radiation of human body before and after intense exercise’ and ‘Electromagnetic radiation (EMR) of the human body before and after jogging’ in the Indonesian Journal of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Further publications can be viewed via ORCID ID 0000-0002-3125-1529.