Category Archives: Education

Award for Cusat researcher

Education, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

Jayesh P., a post-doctoral fellow at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat), has won the prestigious Innovative Young Biotechnologist Award of the year 2015 instituted by the Department of Biotechnology to prevent brain drain of highly talented and motivated young scientists in biotechnology.

According to an official release issued by the varsity, Dr. Jayesh was selected for the award in recognition of the potential of his research in the area of “crustacean cell reprogramming” under the guidance of Prof. I.S. Bright Singh and its continuation to find application to study neurogenesis and neurodegenerative diseases.

The award consists of Rs.50 lakh research grant, monthly fellowship, gold medal, certificate and a citation.

The outcome of this project will help in understanding molecular mechanism in neurodegenerative diseases in humans, especially Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s using daphnia as a model animal.

Dr. Jayesh is a recipient of Brain Korea 21 Plus post-doctoral scientist award of Government of South Korea. – Special Correspondent

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by Special Correspondent / Kochi – June 01st, 2016

Fashion design students display their skills

Arts,Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Education

Design skills:Students of the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Kannur, holding an exhibition as part of the Graduation Show 2016 at Mangattuparambain Kannur on Thursday.– PHOTO: S.K. MOHAN
Design skills:Students of the National Institute of Fashion Technology, Kannur, holding an exhibition as part of the Graduation Show 2016 at Mangattuparambain Kannur on Thursday.– PHOTO: S.K. MOHAN

The campus of the National Institute of Fashion Technology-Kannur (NIFT-Kannur) has turned into a venue for the display of a large collection of thematic creative textile design products its students have done as part of their graduation project.

The exhibition showcases all the graduation projects and design collections of students of Master’s of Design, Fashion Management and Bachelor’s of Textile Design, Fashion Technology and Knitwear Design. The project works of 87 students of the institute are being showcased at the two-day exhibition that began on Thursday.

Among the items being displayed include apparel and home furnishing works and application of academic inputs for industry. Also displayed were some handicrafts products designed by the students.

Fashion trends

“The works being displayed feature the fashion design skills of our students and their application of latest technologies in the field,” said NIFT-Kannur Joint Director G. Ramesh Babu.

The collections are based on trend forecasts in the fashion world, he added.

A.G. Rao, Professor Emeritus, Industrial Design Centre, IIT-Mumbai, inaugurated the graduation ceremony.

The inauguration was followed by graduation award presentation and design collection fashion show by Knitwear graduating students of the institute.

source: http:// www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Kerala / by Special Correspondent / Kannur – May 28th, 2016

12-year-old California student ready to start university

Education, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Nri's / Pio's, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion

A 12-year-old Sacramento student who already has three community college degrees and has been accepted to two University of California campuses says he plans on studying biomedical engineering and becoming a doctor and medical researcher by the time he turns 18.

Tanishq Abraham has been accepted to UC Davis and received a regents scholarship to UC Santa Cruz, but he has yet to decide which university he’ll attend, reported Sacramento television station CBS yesterday.

“I think I’ll be 18 when I get my MD,” he said.

Tanishq started community college at age 7 and last year he received associate’s degrees from American River College, a community college in Sacramento, in general science; math and physical science; and foreign language studies.

Professors at the college didn’t initially want him in their classes because of his age. But finally a professor agreed to let him attend if his mother, a doctor of veterinary medicine, also took the class. “There were times when I had to explain general relativity and special relativity to my mom,” he said.

Biology professor Marlene Martinez said he was never afraid to ask lot of questions. “In lecture he would always pop up with ‘so, does that mean …’ or ‘what about this?’ ” Martinez said.

Tanishq, who joined the IQ society Mensa at a tender age of 4 has always picked up knowledge quickly, his father, Bijou Abraham, told NBC News.

“We tested him and discovered that he was pretty smart,” he said. “We were surprised when we started giving him advanced stuff and he was picking it up really fast.”

Tanishq says child geniuses are often seen as odd. “When you think of a genius, you think of a mad scientist kind of thing,” he said.

But he pointed out he’s just an ordinary kid who likes learning and microscopes but also playing video games. “I just think learning is fun,” Tanishq said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> International / PTI / Sacramento – May 23rd, 2016

Boost Your Spidey Instincts

Education, Science & Technology

MarianEnggKERALA26apr2016

Thiruvananthapuram :

Remember those good old days when we used to yell out loud ‘I am Spiderman’, mimicking his each and every move, reciting his famous dialogues, yet disappointingly not making it to the gravity-defying Spidey climb! Seems like the students of Marian Engineering College, Thiruvananthapuram, have an answer to our woes!

As a part of their final year project (B Tech Mechanical Engineering), Dheeraj Sudesh M, R Aditya, Selva Manoj R and Sooraj K built a ‘vacuum assisted climber’ under the guidance of Ajith C Menon, assistant professor in the department. “Top twenty videos of the ‘You have been warned’ series kindled the idea in us,” said Selva Manoj, one of the team members.

This project which works against gravity enables one to climb any wall – be it glass, brick or concrete, claim the students. It works on the principle of suction created by the vacuum motors with the help of impellers placed within them. The user can scale his way up by means of a pressure release mechanism with the assistance of two suction pads attached to the backpack and foot stirrups. The machine can climb efficiently up to an height of 30 metres, the students said. However, due to safety considerations they had to limit their testing to ten metres in the college premises.

The machine, which cost around Rs 25,000, works on direct AC current and on a voltage of 220 Volts. It has an extension cord of four metres attached to the backpack to connect it to power supply. The product finds application in military, construction and rescue operations, Sooraj K, the team leader, said. The students said they would like to work further on the product to make it noise-free. This project, which is graded as one of the best one under the Marian Innovation Technology along with two other projects, received a financial aid of Rs 5,000.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / by Express News Service / April 26th, 2016

Students devise ways to conserve energy

Education, Green Initiatives & Environment, Science & Technology

ConserveEnergyKERALA22apr2016

Innovative ideas developed by students for energy conservation were on display at the Kerala State Student Energy Congress 2016.

Thirty-seven teams from various districts participated in the event organised as part of the ‘Smart Energy Programme’ of the Energy Management Centre (EMC) on the centre’s premises. Hundred-odd upper primary and high school students from all over the State attended the one-day congress held as part of the EMC’s energy conservation programme.

Aparna V.S. and Kavitha K.M., students of Holy Angels School, Thiruvananthapuram, came up with an idea of converting mechanical energy into electrical energy at a low cost.

They turned a bicycle into an exercise bike which can pump water and generate electricity. Arathy Ramesh and Sreekutty Udayakumar from the Aluva educational district bagged the first prize in high school section. Ayisha and Alsa Bin Shahul Hameed from Kozhikode got the first prize in upper primary section.

S. Somanath, Director, Liquid Propulsion System Centre, gave away the prizes at a function presided over by K.M. Dharesan Unnithan, Director of EMC.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / A Correspondent / Thiruvananthapuram – April 21st, 2016

Arithmetic Olympiad on April 17

Arts,Culture & Entertainment, Education, World Opinion

Over 1,000 young minds from across the country will compete in the finals of the fourth National Mental Arithmetic Olympiad to be held at Girideepam Convention Centre, Nalanchira, at 10 a.m. on April 17.

Being organised by CMA, a leading institute in mental arithmetic education, the competition will be judged by arithmetic prodigy Tai Chiang Ching.

10 students

The 10 selected students will represent India in the International Mental Arithmetic Olympiad to be held in Singapore next year.

Former chairman, ISRO, G. Madhavan Nair will distribute the prizes to the winners, according to the organisers.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / A Correspondent / Thiruvananthapuram – April 09th, 2016

Now, a school to help chess prodigies make the right move

Arts,Culture & Entertainment, Education, Sports

Thiruvananthapuram:

“Chess is everything; art, science and sport.” So said Russian grandmaster Anatoly Karpov once, and the Capablanca Chess School, the new centre in the city offering professional training in the game of chess, will base its tutoring upon this theory.

“Though there are several coaching centres across the country for chess, ours is the first-of-its-kind which attempts to promote chess at grassroots level. Incorporating yoga, meditation and counselling into the professional training programme, we aim at overall cognitive and psychological development of every student,” says Vijin Babu, one of the three founders of the chess school. Mayor V K Prasanth inaugurated the school on Wednesday.

Though the founders expect a major chunk of their students to be children, adults are also welcome. The two-hour classes will be split into an hour for teaching chess skills followed by an hour of game to put the newly acquired skills to practice.

“Chess is like mathematics. If you learn the right tricks in an interesting way, you can master it. Every great chess player has in some way received professional training which has helped him approach the game scientifically. We, here, will help the students in understanding the notations, theory and the language of the game,” Babu, who is also a district level champion and national player, said. As a part of the curriculum, the school will conduct regular tournaments where students will face players from across the state, he added.

Two-time state champion Sreekumar P will be the principal, and the school will have three permanent faculty members and several guest lecturers. “I have an experience of over 20 years in teaching chess. Studies have revealed that a well-trained chess player will have better memory retention and cognitive ability,” he said. Chess players are eligible for grace-marks at school and PSC examinations, which makes it an even more worthwhile game to pursue, he added.

There will be regular weekday and weekend batches at the school, which is situated Kochulloor.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Thiruvananthapuram / TNN / April 01dt, 2016

Three-day Science Congress Begins

Education, Science & Technology

Kochi :

Aathree-day ‘Children’s Science Congress- 2016’ (Balasasthra Vijnanotsavam – 2016) to identify the best talented students in the field of science and to mould the next young generation of scientists began here on Tuesday.

J Letha, Vice Chancellor of Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) inaugurated the event in which 150 students from 14 districts are participating.

The programme, organised by the International School of Photonics and Center for Science in Society, Cusat, is being held under the International Year of Light and Light-Based Technologies (IYL 2015), which aims to raise global awareness on the social, economic and developmental role of light and optical technologies.

Many eminent scholars from Cusat campus will be training and guiding the students participating in the Science Congress. Various exhibits on lights and technologies is also on display at the congress.

The main attraction of the fair is the live 3D simulator which displays 3D images in 360 degrees which can be seen by naked eyes. The 3-day camp will also include various entertainment programme for students. The students will also be able to experience the experiments which will be conducted during the program. The exhibition will be a great experience for the young master minds in science.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kochi / by Express News Service / April 06th, 2016

The feel of books to fill up hearts

Arts,Culture & Entertainment, Education

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The Kerala State Institute of Children’s Literature organised ‘Pusthakaniravu 2016’ to mark the granting of classical status to Malayalam language.

Magic Academy chairperson Gopinath Muthukad inaugurated ‘Pusthakaniravu’ at a function held at the Public Service Commission (PSC) office on Wednesday.

In govt. offices

The Institute Director Paul Manalil presided over the function.

The event is being organised in government offices and other institutions to inculcate love for the mother tongue and reading habit in children through their parents.

Competitions

As part of the event, competitions involving the children of the employees, book exhibition, and cultural events were held.

The sale and exhibition of books will be on at the examination hall at the PSC office on Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Discount

Those who purchase one copy each of all the books in stock will be given 50 per cent discount.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / by Staff Reporter / Thiruvananthapuram – April 07th, 2016

Seven-year-old student creates ‘cleaner’ robot

Amazing Feats, Education, Science & Technology

Kochi:

A Class II student of a city school has created a cleaner robot, a robotic hand and a walking stick for the blind. It was recently exhibited along with works by engineering and science graduates at TECH FOSS 2K16.

Saarang Sumesh (7) from Choice School showcased the work in the tech fest organized by the department of computer science and engineering at TocH Institute of Science and Technology (TIST) and Computer Society of India in association with the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Development Centre of the institute.

“Saarang left us surprised even with his presentation skills. He not only displayed the uses of the robot but also explained how he made it. He has made the robots using Lego Robotic Kit,” said TIST principal D Vincent H Wilson.

There were 25 projects on display from engineering and polytechnic students. There was also a hands-on workshop on Android and Arduino for the participants. Other events included a hardware project competition and an ‘App Idea’ contest.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Kochi / TNN / February 15th, 2016