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Month: July 2022

Learning Uzbekistan’s local customs

Posted on by ahmadibrahim

If you happened to be the most respected guest when visiting in Uzbekistan, expect to be seated the farthest from the door. Management and Science University (MSU) learns more of Uzbek local customs at the MSU International Cultural Festival.

Welcomed on campus recently was Uzbekistan Ambassador to Malaysia His Excellency Ravshan Usmanov, and an Uzbek dance group.

His Excellency encouraged the students gathered at MSU’s Performing Arts Theatre to study hard, master social skills, and learn other cultures.

You are the only one who can make this world a better place, with more knowledge and more friends. Uzbekistan welcomes MSU in this effort to strengthen ties between our nations. It gives me great pleasure to be joining in this showcase of intangible heritage acknowledged by UNESCO.”

Receiving the entourage in MSU main campus in Shah Alam was MSU President Professor Tan Sri Dato’ Wira Dr Mohd Shukri Ab Yajid.

“Malaysia and Uzbekistan share a lot of values and traditions, and strengths that can be combined for the benefit of our two countries and our two peoples. Our purpose at the University is always about building a better future for everyone, and I believe that education is the best change factor,” remarked Professor Tan Sri Dr Mohd Shukri.

The Republic of Uzbekistan is the world’s only doubly landlocked country other than Liechstenstein. Considered to be of the Caspian region though not immediately bordering the Caspian Sea, its relationship with Malaysia dates back to 1992 with the establishment of a Malaysian embassy in Tashkent. The cultural visit to MSU coincidentally celebrates 30 years of bilateral diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Promoting international diversity and intercultural competency, the weeklong exchange at MSU embraced learning by sharing. Bahasa Malaysia was learned along with Uzbek, traditional dances were performed, and national costumes worn as well as displayed.

Across education as well as industry, Management and Science University (MSU) has collaborations in Pharmaceutical and Health Care, Halal Certification, Personnel Training, and Poultry as well as Agriculture with Uzbekistan. MSU also collaborates with Navoi State Pedagogical Institute, Bukhara State University, Bukhara State Medical Institute, and Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages.

HKAPA appoints Dr Iñaki Sandoval as Dean of Music

Posted on by Communications Office

The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (the Academy) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Iñaki Sandoval as Dean of School of Music, with effect from August 1, 2022.

Dr. Iñaki Sandoval is an internationally renowned pianist, composer, and music producer with extensive arts administration experience. As Dean of Music of the Academy, Dr. Sandoval will lead the implementation of the overall vision and the academic development of the School of Music, working closely with faculty members to promote innovative enhancements in the delivery of performing arts education.

Academy Director, Professor Gillian Choa, warmly welcomes Dr. Sandoval to the Academy community, “Dr. Sandoval has over two decades of experience in higher education in music and is an internationally acclaimed musician himself. With his breadth of experience, expertise, and international connections, I am confident that he will be able to build upon existing strengths of the School and develop new initiatives that will further strengthen its overall growth and positioning, hence making a very positive and valuable contribution to the Academy. I very much look forward to working with Dr. Sandoval.”

Devoting himself to higher education in music for over 20 years, Dr. Sandoval has held senior management and teaching positions in different institutions around the world. Prior to joining the Academy, Dr. Sandoval has served as Principal cum Tenured Professor at the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy in Estonia. He is also the founding Dean of Graduate Studies and founding Director of the Jazz Department at the Liceu Conservatory in Spain.

As a former council member of the European Association of Conservatories, and board member of the International Association of Jazz Schools, Dr. Sandoval is well connected with conservatoires and performing arts educators.

 

Dr. Sandoval received professional music training both in the United States and Spain. He holds a PhD in Musicology and Art History from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, a Master of Music degree from the University of Nevada, and two Bachelor of Music degrees from the Berklee College of Music and the Liceu Conservatory, respectively.

Trebas Institute Toronto extends partnership with Number 9 Audio Group

Posted on by Global University Systems

Trebas Institute Toronto is pleased to announce that it has partnered with Number 9 Audio Group, a renowned recording studio in Toronto, providing students with the opportunity to hone their technical and creative skills using industry standard facilities.

As part of this partnership, Number 9 Audio Group will provide recording resources, including space, equipment and recording engineers, for students in Trebas’ Audio Engineering program. Delivering a blend of theoretical learning and practical experience is an integral element within the Trebas curriculum and students will benefit considerably from the hands-on experience working with musicians, bands and sound engineers.

The partnership has also led to the launch of the ‘Number 9 Trebas Graduate Award’ which will be presented at Trebas’ graduation ceremony. The award recipient will receive a formal internship at the Number 9 studio or free studio time, among other benefits.

Number 9 Audio Group has been providing professional audio services since 1981 and is renowned for recording with high-profile clients including Rush, Amanda Marshall, K-os, Van Morrison and The Rolling Stones.

Commenting on the partnership, Mohamed Slimani, Vice-President of Operations at Trebas Institute, said: “We are delighted to be working with Number 9 Audio Group. Students are at the heart of all we do, and we strive to provide them with the highest quality of training and skills. I am excited for the benefits that this partnership will bring for our students and look forward to supporting them on their individual learning journeys and equipping them with valuable hands-on experience.”

George Rondina, Managing Director at Number 9 Audio Group, added: “Trebas Institute and Number 9 Sound Studios have become a great team that will instruct the many great recording engineers of the future”.

Established in 1979, Trebas Institute has campuses in both Montreal and Toronto. Trebas has had over 3,000 graduates from over 40 countries. The college is also one of the principal subsidiaries of Global University Systems (GUS), an international network of higher education institutions united by a passion for delivering accessible, industry-relevant credentials.

For more information, visit https://www.trebas.com/.

About Trebas Institute

Trebas Institute offers programs in music, film, business, technology and program management. Their goal is to provide education that gives students a competitive edge in their chosen industry, while constantly updating offerings to keep pace with the changing marketplace.

The campus boasts state-of-the-art equipment for sound and video production, and classes taught by expert instructors with industry experience. All of this prepares students to leave their mark in their chosen field.

Many of Trebas’ alumni have gone on to win major awards and work for leading industry names, like Virgin and Universal Music Group.

About Number 9 Audio Group

Number 9 Audio Group has been providing professional audio services since 1981. Our Toronto recording studio is renowned for music recording with high-profile clients and post-production. We also have complementary departments in pro audio rentals as well as CD duplication graphic design, video production and audio/video transfers.

We also offer what we believe are the area’s best recording courses. A quarter-century of industry experience has allowed us to hone our craft and develop versatile methods to professionally and adequately serve anyone who walks through our doors.

Our main recording studio is comprised of two large, isolated spaces. One is more useful as a ‘general purpose’ space and has three isolation booths inside, while the other was custom-built for our beautiful nine-foot grand piano. If all you need is a quick edit and you don’t require a full-scale recording studio, our production suite will fit the bill without running it up.

 

EdUHK carries out research on assessment-as-learning in China

Posted on by eduhk

Dr Lao Hongling, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Department of Curriculum and Instruction (C&I), The Education University of Hong Kong, has co-authored a book chapter entitled ‘Dancing with Chains: How Does Assessment-as-learning Fit in China?’

Assessment-as-learning aims to provide learning opportunities to students via assessment activities, advocating the development of their long-term learning capacity, such as self-regulation and metacognition. Although students are central to the practice, teachers still play a key role, especially in younger age-groups. Teachers are expected to design, teach, monitor, provide feedback, and modify these assessment activities, so that students can maximise their learning during assessment. This casts a heavy burden of expectation on teachers. However, they may not be ready to implement the new procedures, especially in a deep-rooted examination-oriented culture such as that of mainland China. Working from teachers’ perspectives, the chapter explores whether assessment-as-learning can be accommodated by such a culture.

At first glance, the disjuncture between assessment-as-learning and an examination-oriented assessment culture seems obvious. Firstly, assessment-as-learning aims to develop students’ long-term learning capacity, whereas examination-oriented culture prioritises students’ short-term test performance. Furthermore, driven by these different purposes, the assessment tasks themselves have different goals and formats. However, if assessment-as-learning is treated primarily as a learning strategy, rather than an assessment device, the question arises whether it would be a better fit in an examination-oriented culture. The long-term learning capacities developed via assessment-as-learning could be used to enhance short-term test performance. To maximise students’ learning opportunities, the chapter looks at whether it would be possible to integrate assessment-as-learning into all assessment designs, including both formative and summative scenarios.

To answer these questions, the nature of assessment-as-learning is discussed, highlighting its position as a learning strategy instead of a competing assessment procedure. Then it briefly reviews the assessment culture in China and examines the perceived conflicts between assessment-as-learning and the examination-oriented culture, and attempts to seek alternative perspectives that might potentially alleviate such tension.

Finally, a case study provides a snapshot of the current status of assessment-as-learning in China from the teacher’s perspective. It shows how the examination-oriented culture still casts a long shadow over the conceptions and practices of assessment, by limiting their scope and format. It also studies how recent reforms provide new opportunities for the development and implementation of assessment-as-learning as universal learning strategy, integrated into all classroom assessments, as well as being used to improve short-term academic performance.

Co-authored with Dr Yan Zi, Associate Professor at C&I, the chapter features in the book Assessment as Learning: Maximising Opportunities for Student Learning and Achievement (Z. Yan & L. Yang [Eds], Routledge 2021).

To learn more about the publication, please click here.

Scientists discover mechanism behind suppression of fearful memories

Posted on by Tokyo University of Science

Fearful events negatively impact the brain.

For instance, war veterans often go through post-traumatic stress disorder months after the cessation of the triggering event. Now, in a study led by Tokyo University of Science researchers, the precise mechanism of suppression of such fearful memories has been uncovered. Using a mouse model, the researchers identified the associated biochemical pathways, thus paving the way for the development and clinical evaluation of therapeutic compounds such as KNT-127.

Tragic events like wars, famines, earthquakes, and accidents create fearful memories in our brain. These memories continue to haunt us even after the actual event has passed. Luckily, researchers from Tokyo University of Science (TUS) have recently been able to understand the hidden biochemical mechanisms involved in the selective suppression of fearful memories, which is called fear extinction.

The researchers, who had previously demonstrated fear extinction in mice using the chemically synthesized compound “KNT-127,” have now identified the underlying mechanism of this compound’s action. Their findings have been published recently in Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience.

Prof. Akiyoshi Saitoh, lead author of the study, and Professor at TUS, muses, “Drugs that treat fear-related diseases like anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder must be able to help extinguish fear. We previously reported that KNT-127, a selective agonist of the d-opioid receptor or DOP, facilitates contextual fear extinction in mice. However, its site of action in the brain and the underlying molecular mechanism remained elusive. We therefore investigated brain regions and cellular signaling pathways that we assumed would mediate the action of KNT-127 on fear extinction.”

“We investigated the molecular mechanism of KNT-127-mediated suppression of fearful memories. We administered KNT-127 to specific brain regions and identified the brain regions involved in promoting fear extinction via delta receptor activation,” elaborates Dr. Daisuke Yamada, co-author of the study, and Assistant Professor at TUS.

Using a mouse model, the research team performed fear conditioning test on laboratory mice. During fear conditioning, mice learn to associate a particular neutral conditioned stimulus with an aversive unconditioned stimulus (e.g., a mild electrical shock to the foot) and show a conditioned fear response (e.g., freezing).

After the initial fear conditioning, the mice were re-exposed to the conditioning chamber for six minutes as part of the extinction training. Meanwhile, the fear-suppressing therapeutic “KNT-127” was microinjected into various regions of the brain, 30 minutes prior to re-exposure. The treated brain regions included the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala (BLA), the hippocampus (HPC), and the prelimbic (PL) or infralimbic subregions (IL) of the medial prefrontal cortex. The following day, the treated mice were re-exposed to the chamber for six minutes for memory testing.

The fear-suppressing “KNT-127” that infused into the BLA and IL, but not HPC or PL, significantly reduced the freezing response during re-exposure. Such an effect was not observed in mice that did not receive the KNT-127 treatment, thus confirming the fear-suppressing potential of this novel compound.

Chemical compounds known to inhibit the actions of key intracellular signaling pathways like PI3K/Akt and MEK/ERK pathways reversed the therapeutic effect, thereby suggesting the key roles of these two pathways in influencing KNT-127-mediated fear extinction.

The first author of the study, Ayako Kawaminami, who is currently pursuing research at TUS, says, “The selective DOP antagonist that we used for pretreatment antagonized the effect of KNT-127 administered into the BLA and IL. Further, local administration of MEK/ERK inhibitor into the BLA and of PI3K/Akt inhibitor into the IL abolished the effect of KNT-127. These findings strongly indicated that the effect of KNT-127 is mediated by MEK/ERK signaling in the BLA, by PI3K/Akt signaling in the IL, and by DOPs in both brain regions. We have managed to show that DOPs play a role in fear extinction via distinct signaling pathways in the BLA and IL.”

PTSD and phobias are thought to be caused by the inappropriate or inadequate control of fear memories. Currently, serotonin reuptake inhibitors and benzodiazepines are prescribed during therapy. However, many patients do not derive significant therapeutic benefits from these drugs. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the development of new therapeutic agents that have a different mechanism of action from existing drugs.

Dr. Hiroshi Nagase, a Professor at University of Tsukuba and a coauthor of the study, concludes, “We have succeeded in creating KNT-127 by successfully separating convulsion- and catalepsy-inducing actions, which has so far been extremely difficult. Our findings will provide useful and important information for the development of evidence-based therapeutics with a new mechanism of action, that is targeting DOP.”

Fighting fear with the right therapeutic is the need of the hour, as anxiety and stress increase globally, and the findings of this study could help us achieve this objective. We have our fingers crossed.

***

Reference

Title of original paper: Selective δ-Opioid Receptor Agonist, KNT-127, Facilitates Contextual Fear Extinction via Infralimbic Cortex and Amygdala in Mice

Journal: Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2022.808232

About The Tokyo University of Science

Tokyo University of Science (TUS) is a well-known and respected university, and the largest science-specialized private research university in Japan, with four campuses in central Tokyo and its suburbs and in Hokkaido. Established in 1881, the university has continually contributed to Japan’s development in science through inculcating the love for science in researchers, technicians, and educators.

With a mission of “Creating science and technology for the harmonious development of nature, human beings, and society”, TUS has undertaken a wide range of research from basic to applied science. TUS has embraced a multidisciplinary approach to research and undertaken intensive study in some of today’s most vital fields. TUS is a meritocracy where the best in science is recognized and nurtured. It is the only private university in Japan that has produced a Nobel Prize winner and the only private university in Asia to produce Nobel Prize winners within the natural sciences field.

Website: https://www.tus.ac.jp/en/mediarelations/

About Professor Akiyoshi Saitoh from Tokyo University of Science

Dr. Akiyoshi Saitoh is serving as a Professor in the Department of Pharmacy, at the Tokyo University of Science, Japan. His research work primarily focuses on the role of the amygdala in the rodent fear extinction memory as well as on the development of novel opioid delta receptor agonists for combating depression and anxiety. Prof. Saitoh has published over 100 refereed papers so far. He also has a patent to his credit.

From the classroom to the field

Posted on by Niamh Ollerton

The sports world is changing dramatically. Niamh Ollerton takes a closer look at how hands-on learning, digital transformation, and media consumption are just some of the ways the industry is getting a shake-up, and how universities are preparing graduates for this new landscape.

Sport is an important element in the lives of many people from all walks of life across the globe. An afternoon watching your favourite football team. An evening watching basketball teams shoot their shot. Admiring figure skaters from the bleachers as they attempt gravity-defying routines. The sports industry has something for almost everyone.

Sport has the power to move people, entertain, and in some instances give people a purpose to get through each week. But it’s not just the players and athletes involved in putting on these performances; there are sports stars behind the scenes helping them shine too. Coaches, scouts, managers; every team needs someone with the skills and expertise fighting in their corner, helping them improve and reach the next level.

To really make it as a coach or manager today, students and graduates alike will need a Sport Management and Coaching degree on their resume.

“Diversity allows for interesting debates and we also learn from one another.”

The business of sport

Sports Management degrees combine educational and practical elements of business leadership skills with passionate knowledge of the sports world.

The business-oriented degree focuses on how an individual can lead an organisation in the sports industry, with students undertaking classes in finance, marketing, public relations, leadership skills, and communications.

To hone necessary expertise, Sports Management students will also study laws and ethics specifically related to the sports industry and finesse important skills such as negotiating a sponsorship contract or managing a sports facility. The opportunities that come along with the degree are also growing. PwC figures predict the sports market will grow at a compound annual rate of 3.2 percent in North America alone, rising from $71.1 billion in 2018 to $83.1 billion in 2023 through a mixture of established and emerging areas.

Among its outlook predictions for 2022, PwC identified betting, streaming and rights negotiations, mergers and acquisitions, the resurgence of live audiences, smart venues, NFTs and digital assets, sports documentaries and reality TV, sponsorship data, fan-created content, and mixed reality.

A changing sector

Emlyon Business School’s MSc in Sports Industry Management is designed to provide students with global perspectives of the sports industry.

“Although we name it Sports Industry Management, the MSc SIM could be looked at first as a Master’s in Marketing and Innovation where sports are our field of study,” says Antoine Haincourt, Head of MSc in Sports Industry Management.

“We see sport as a starting point, not a finish line. Why? Because sport is a fantastic playground, multifaceted, culturally coded, but more interestingly a sector facing major transformation challenges. This is what we are here to help students gain the core competencies needed to effectively lead change in just 18 months.”

Emlyon’s programme started in 2012, and essentially looked at sport through the lens of the sporting goods market. Haincourt believes the boundaries from the past have become blurry, and today, sport meets with lifestyle, technology, entertainment, and health.

Other examples of change in the sector may not seem as obvious, such as digital transformation, media consumption, and global political instability and its impact of mega events. “We should look at some other factors, probably less visible,” Haincourt says.

“Sport is historically driven by males for males. What we see today is a major shift towards feminisation.

“Some may essentially see the rise of female teams in the major sports and leagues. However, just to name one example, one should also take into consideration that the greatest shift and growth driver is the rise of heartbeat sports among females, outside of most institutional organisations. Another shift is how organisations embrace CSR, and sustainability issues.”

Changing the sector

In addition to teaching concrete and theoretical knowledge, Sports Managements programmes put cohorts in the shoes of sports professionals by allowing students to work hand-in-hand with renowned brands.

“From startups to international sports companies, we had the chance to learn and put into context and action the different notions learned,” says Zoé Gerdil, a MSc in Sports Industry Management student at Emlyon Business School.

“The programme also has a long list of professors and speakers which are either current or former sports professionals.

“By sharing not only their knowledge but also their personal experiences, the cohort benefits from getting a deeper understanding of the requirements and demands of the sports industry,” Zoé says.

Emlyon’s diverse range of classes and experiences which, in Zoé’s case, offer the professional learnings needed for the career she wants to build in the sports, and more specifically, in the outdoor industry.

Zoé believes these programmes are essential to build strong and competent professionals and allow diversity in an industry as specific as sports.

“Programmes such as Emlyon’s MSc SIM offer opportunities for young professionals and leverage for an international career,” she says.

“These programmes don’t only focus on the surface of the industry, they also teach what the future challenges will be and how the industry will adapt to the issues of tomorrow turning us into true leaders and innovators.”

Emlyon’s cohort is generally half international and half French, 60 percent male, 40 percent female on average. Students also come from different backgrounds, countries and previous study, something Zoé thinks is very important.

“Diversity allows for interesting debates and we also learn from one another. As a woman entering the sports industry and one of the six girls on the programme, I’m looking forward to seeing more women apply to such programmes!”

This article was abridged from 2022 QS World University Rankings by Subject. Download the full edition.

Kazakhstan would meet EU standards thanks to a KazNARU research project

Posted on by Muhammad Sheraz

Kazakh wines would meet Euro standards thanks to the implementation of the research results of a Kazakh National Agrarian Research University (KazNARU) research project.

Scientists of KazNARU’s Research Institute ‘Agronomy and Ecology’ have successfully adapted a European model of cultivation for technical grape varieties in relation to soil and climatic conditions in the south and South-East of Kazakhstan.

The technology uses a new combined method of forming technical varieties of grapes, based on rationing the number of eyes and shoots, by pruning, debris with subsequent minting of shoots.

The new method ensures the yield of technical grape varieties from 200 to 300 centners from 1 hectare, which meets the requirements of GOST for the wine varieties. Using this method Kazakhstan can now produce Euro-standard wines.

AUS researcher examines use of novel material for sustainable reinforced concrete in the UAE

Posted on by American University of Sharjah

Urbanization, population growth and environmental factors have necessitated the design and implementation of sustainable and efficient infrastructure solutions around the world. As researchers have been looking into alternative materials for sustainable infrastructures, Dr. Farid Abed, Professor in Civil Engineering at American University of Sharjah (AUS), has been leading research teams to examine the usage and durability of innovative and sustainable reinforcement and repair construction materials in the UAE.

With more than 10 years of experience in sustainable reinforced concrete structures and structural mechanics of polymers and composites, Dr. Abed is researching the use of Fiber-Reinforced Polymers (FRPs) and Fiber-Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM) composites in concrete structures. FRPs and FRCM are environmentally friendly, nontoxic and magnetic insulators of low density and high strength- to-weight ratio. These characteristics make them easy to handle and cost effective. Commonly used types include Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (CFRP), Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) and Basalt Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (BFRP).

“Products such as GFRP, BFRP and many others are relatively new and are yet to be researched thoroughly in the UAE. Many of these products require testing on full-scale structural elements, which means detailed research is needed to accurately predict the performance of concrete structures using these new products. My research on reinforcing concrete structures aims to identify the areas that require further study while working with governmental agencies and private companies to develop and implement tests that will ensure the successful use of these new products and reduction of maintenance costs,” said Dr. Abed.

He added: “Reinforcement of concrete structures with innovative and sustainable materials, including the use of advanced composites, is of increasing interest to the industry and governments. Research in the field is important because it will inform the development of the existing construction codes and standards.”

Dr. Abed has outlined his findings in two studies that are pertinent to developments in construction in the UAE: “Structural Performance and Durability of Carbon-, Glass- and Basalt-Fiber Reinforced Polymer Reinforcing Bars under the GCC Harsh Environment” and “Innovative Retrofitting Technique of Corrosion-Damaged and Seismically-Deficient Reinforced Concrete Structures using FRCM composites.”

In his research, Dr. Abed collaborated with scholars from the US, Canada, France, Malaysia and the UAE. These included Dr. Ahmed El Refai from Laval University in Canada, Dr. Tamer El Maaddawy from UAE University, Dr. George Voyiadjis from Louisiana State University in the US and Dr. Mohammad Abdul Mannan from Sarawak University in Malaysia. His research also involved collaborations with the industry.

Looking ahead, Dr. Abed aims to investigate fire performance of reinforced concrete that consists of FRP and FRCM composites. He will be conducting his research in collaboration with Laval University in Canada and carry out the testing phase at the Thomas Bell-Wright fire facility in the UAE.

“This is a new research area where I will focus on studying the thermal and structural response of FRCM versus FRP systems in a fire, which is an area that has not been investigated sufficiently,” said Dr. Abed.

Dr. Abed believes in involving his students in research work to enable them to develop independent critical thinking along with oral and written communication skills. Graduate and undergraduate students have been heavily involved in Dr. Abed’s research and have co-authored many of his publications.

“Undergraduate students played an important role in experimentation and practical areas, while graduate students have been involved in the design and implementation of experiments as well as writing manuscripts. I have also supervised jointly and individually more than 30 graduate students, some of whom are currently pursuing their PhD studies in the US and Canada,” he said.

Dr. Abed has published more than 80 articles and more than 50 book chapters and conference proceedings. His work was published in prestigious top peer-reviewed journals such as the ASCE Journal of Composites for Construction, ASCE Journal of Engineering Mechanics, ACI Structural Journal, Composite Structures and Construction and Building Materials.

“AUS is very supportive of my research and very generous in funding my projects. My work has received several AUS faculty research grants including the funding of graduate students. I have also received external research grants from Bee’h and the Sharjah Research Academy,” said Dr. Abed.

AUS is ranked number one in the UAE and among the top ​150 universities globally for civil and structural engineering, according to QS World University Subject Rankings (202​2​). According to the same ranking, College of Engineering graduates are also the top choice for employers in the UAE. The Department of Civil Engineering is recognized throughout the region for the exceptional education it offers through its undergraduate and graduate programs.

For more information about what the civil engineering program offers, visit www.aus.edu/cen/department-of-civil-engineering.

HKAPA Presents: Academy Cello Festival 2022

Posted on by Communications Office

The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts is proud to present the first Cello Festival this summer from Jul 30 to Aug 6, 2022.

A series of concerts by former and current students and faculty members of the Strings Department of the School of Music will be brought to the audience, featuring new cello repertoires while refreshing already well-loved pieces. The event aims to promote excellence in individual and ensemble playing. The Academy Cello Festival hopes to motivate cellists to unleash their full potential and reach new heights artistically through exploring different cello pieces.

Programme details of the Festival :
https://www.hkapa.edu/music/event/series/2022

MSU bags special award, eight medals at ITEX 2022

Posted on by ahmadibrahim

Chemicals abound in daily living raise the risk of harmful exposure to humans; for the average person every morning before she or he even leaves the house, with as much as a hundred of them or more across the range of personal care products.

At the 33rd International Invention, Innovation & Technology Exhibition (ITEX 2022) Malaysia, researchers from Management and Science University (MSU) made a difference.

Bagging Best Invention for Women 2022 as well as a gold medal for MSU under ITEX’s Beauty, Fitness, Sports category and MSU’s key research area of Halal Studies, ‘Halah Lipstick’ is a project by MSU’s School of Pharmacy (SPH).

Led by Saeid Mezail Mawaz, with team members Dr Jiyauddin Khan and Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) student Nurul Aqilah Azreen Redzal, the project aims to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 3 for Good Health and Wellbeing; 9 for Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure; and 12 for Responsible Consumption and Production.

All natural in its ingredients as well as processes, the food-grade halal product prepared only by melting and moulding has palm oil as its base, beetroot and tomato giving it colour, strawberry for fragrance as well as flavour, and lemon oil preserving the formulation.

With over a hundred billion dollars in revenue having been generated by the beauty industry worldwide in 2022, and the global lipstick market size expected to reach 12.5 billion dollars by 2026, ‘Halah Lipstick’ is rising to the challenge of reducing the use of synthetic materials in meeting beauty and personal care needs through the world halal market.

Three more gold medals to MSU from ITEX 2022 came in through MSU’s Information Technology Innovation Centre (ITIC), Eye Care Centre (iCARE), and Faculty of Health and Life Sciences (FHLS).

‘Smart Poultry Farm Monitoring System’ by ITIC is a collaboration with MSU’s Faculty of Information Sciences and Engineering (FISE). Winning under ITEX’s Agriculture category and MSU’s Big Data key research area, the project is led by MSU Senior Vice-President for Research, Innovation, Technology and System Professor Dato’ Dr Md Gapar Md Johar, with FISE team members Ts Dr Asif Iqbal Hajamydeen, Associate Professor Dr Mohammed Hazim Alkawaz, and Dr Lilysuriazna Raya, Master in Computer Science (by Research) students Naila Zakia Malika and Fatria Jumara Adha at MSU’s School of Graduate Studies (SGS), and Dato’ Nasharuddin Shukor of MSU’s AgroBusiness Sdn Bhd.

‘MSU Assessment Chart for Children with Special Needs’ by iCARE, which had received a gold medal from the Malaysia Technology Expo through the Social Innovations and Entrepreneur Management sub-category of MTE 2022, received the ITEX 2022 gold medal in the Child Care, Special Care category and under MSU’s Blindness Prevention key research area. The project is led by Associate Professor Dr Mohd Zaki Awg Isa, with Master in Health Science student Fairuz Mohd Nordin and Master in Science (by Research) Biomedicine student Mohamad Khamal Haqqim, both at SGS.

‘The Effects of Nevgro® Forte in Treating Depression in Rat Models Induced by Chronic Mild Stress: A Behavioural and Histological Study’ by FHLS received the ITEX 2022 gold medal through the ITEX Medical, Health category, under MSU’s Applied Health Sciences key research area. The project is led by Muhammad Danial Ramli, with FHLS team members Dr Mahathir Mohd Uzid, Associate Professor Dr Norshafarina Shari@Kamarudin, and Anita Zara Weinheimer; as well as Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Hons) student Juwita Junit, industry partner Ganofarm R&D Sdn Bhd researchers Dr Syntyche Seow Ling Sing and Cheng Poh Guat, and Hussin Muhammad of Institute for Medical Research (IMR).

MSU also clinched three silver medals from ITEX 2022 respectively from FISE, FHLS and the School of Education and Social Sciences (SESS) along a bronze medal through FISE