Bimonthly - University of Moratuwa

INDEX
Bimonthly
UOM
UNIVERSITY OF MORATUWA-SRI LANKA
November - December 2013 Volume 02 - Issue 06 - ISSN 2279-2023
Page 02
Another Successful FARU International Research Symposium
Page 03
19th ERU Symposium
Page 04
CS&ES Achiever Awards 2013
Page 05
ITRU Research Symposium 2013
Page 06
Team from Mechanical Engineering wins Award of Excellence in International Contest
Page 07
Digital Taste Interface
Page 08
New President for Sri Lanka Chapter of Internet Society
Are You Ready? 2013– The Official Careers Fair
of University of Moratuwa
With the prime objective of bridging the gap between the corporate
sector and the undergraduates, the University of Moratuwa hosted its
official Careers Fair recently.
‘Are You Ready? 2013’, the official Careers Fair of the University of
Moratuwa was organized by the Career Guidance Unit of the University
of Moratuwa in collaboration with the Rotaract Club of the University of
Moratuwa, encompassing six sessions based on different perspectives
of professional development.
The first session, ‘CV Clinic’ which was held earlier in October, was
primarily based on the composition of a ‘killer CV’ so as to attract the
employer. Beginning from December 17 the sessions: ‘Engineers’
Forum’, a panel discussion among leading engineering professionals
in the country on current issues and future trends in engineering, ‘The
Criterion’, an educational seminar with the objective of developing the
professional skills of the soon-to-be graduates and ‘YOUTM’, a workshop
on personal branding and developing the professional network were
held back-to-back before the ‘Flagship Day’ of the program, so as to
prepare the undergraduates for their ‘big day’ in the future to come.
The ‘Flagship Day’ was the most attractive session of the ‘Are You
Ready?’ line up, where final year undergraduates were given the
opportunity to face real and mock interviews conducted by the foremost
companies in the country. Around 70 interview panels from more than
50 recognized companies took part in the event whilst more than 600
final year undergraduates faced the interviews. At the end of the day,
entrepreneurs from around the country got the opportunity to meet the
upcoming generation of skilled and talented youth and hunt down the
best out of the best for their companies, while the future professionals
were privileged to meet their future employers.
‘The Dining Etiquette and Grooming Workshop’ (DE & G), the grandeur
session of the program, was held at the Galadari Hotel, Colombo as
a hands-on workshop to improve professional social behaviour, dining
etiquette and personal grooming. With it concluded the official Careers
Fair of the University of Moratuwa 2013, providing a lifetime experience
for the future professionals to sharpen themselves along their careers.
New extension to administrative building in 2015
The foundation stone for the new administrative building was laid on
December 1. The project is being carried out at an estimated cost of Rs
282 million and is to be completed in June 2015.
The foundation stone ceremony was held at the site under the patronage
of the Chancellor, Vice Chancellor, Deputy Vice Chancellor and the
principal officers of the University.
Faculty of Architecture
Another Successful FARU International
Research Symposium
FARU 2013, the seventh annual research symposium of the Faculty
of Architecture Research Unit (FARU) of the University of Moratuwa
successfully showcased the best scholarship in the fields of Architecture,
Building Economics, Facilities Management, Landscape Design,
Fashion Design, Project Management, Urban Planning and Urban
Design on December 13 & 14.
Hambantota, the emerging gateway city of Asia, was the grand
venue of the two-day symposium. Filled with activities, events, tours,
presentations, and conversations about planning, building and designing
built environments for today and tomorrow, the symposium bestowed a
vast array of experiences to its local and international participants.
Highlighting the importance of imagining the future of built environments,
the 7th FARU 2013 symposium was held with the theme Envisaging
Built Environments: Planning, Designing and Building for Tomorrow that
opened up a platform to explore novel ideas, demonstrate new methods,
discuss new technologies and unveil new findings related to the future
affairs of built environments.
The local and international participants accompanied by the scholars
in the multifarious fields of research met at the Peacock Beach Hotel,
Hambantota on December 13 at a welcome reception on a pleasant
evening. This was a cordial get-together which served to build a healthy
relationship among the participants. The welcome reception was
illuminated by speeches made by the Chief Guest Prof Rahula Attalage,
Deputy Vice Chancellor, University of Moratuwa, Symposium Chair Prof
PKS Mahanama, Dean, Faculty of Architecture, Special Guests Plnr
Indu Weerasoori, Former Deputy Director General, Urban Development
Authority and Prof Nihal Perera, Ball State University, USA.
The technical sessions were held on December 14 at the Magam
Ruhunupura International Convention Center, Hambantota. The sessions
were beneficial not only to the researchers who presented their work,
but also to the young students who were representing the Departments
of Architecture, Building Economics, Town & Country Planning and
Integrated Design. The keynote address was delivered by Professor
Emeritus of Architecture Fergus Nicol, Oxford Brooks University, UK. Prof
Nicol has made an extensive contribution pertaining to his innovative
thermal comfort standards for buildings. Further, he has rendered
yeoman service in the area of low energy architectural designs during
his tenure as Deputy Director, Low Energy Architecture Research Unit,
London Metropolitan University, UK.
Following the keynote speech, paper presentations were made
by research scholars and practitioners under several sub-themes
including Challenges of Today’s Built Environments, Construction and
Management, Materials, Technologies and Infrastructure, Planning and
Envisaging Future and Urban Conservation.
The two-day symposium ended with a gathering of participants and their
families at the Kalamatiya beach, Hambantota in the breezy moon light.
The MSc Landscape Design Comprehensive
Design examination
Dr John Byrom, Architect Ashly de Vos and Landscape Architect Hester
Basnayake were the External examiners at the final examinations
of the eleventh batch of the MSc Landscape Design conducted last
November.
Intellectual Encounters for MSc and Bachelor of
Landscape Architecture Students
The very first batch of Bachelor of Landscape Architecture students
had the unique opportunity to participate in a programme of innovative
learning conducted by Dr John Byrom, Fellow of the University of
Edinburgh and former Course Director - Landscape Studies of the
University of Edinburgh last November. A dynamic agenda was
designed to give students opportunity to develop skills and activities
that ranged from hands -on workshops, site studies and lecture series,
to enhance their understanding of the complex issues of Landscape
Architecture
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FACULTY OF ENGINEERING
19th ERU Symposium
The 19th Engineering Research Unit symposium was successfully held
on November 26 at the Civil Engineering Complex of the University of
Moratuwa. Chancellor of the University, Vidyajothi Prof KKYW Perera,
graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. Prof Perera’s presence was
particularly significant as he was the founder chairman of the Engineering
Research Unit. In his speech Prof Perera commended the progress that
the ERU had made from its inception.
Prof. SMA Nanayakkara, Head of the Department of Civil Engineering
welcomed the gathering on behalf of the Dean, and Prof Rahula Attalage
addressed the gathering representing the Vice Chancellor. Dr. Sanath
Jayawardana, Acting Director cum Editor of the ERU proposed the vote
of thanks to conclude the inauguration of the ERU symposium.
Highlights of the Symposium were three keynote addresses: “Growing
a Research Culture in Academia” by Prof Veranja Karunaratne, Science
Team Leader of the Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology (SLINTEC),
“Autonomous Robotic Localization and Control” by Prof George Mann,
Professor of the Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada, and
“WoW: Tapping the Webs of Wisdom, Crowd Sourcing Potential and
Emerging Business Trends “ by Prof Duminda Nishantha, Director, Digital
Technologies Innovation Center, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University,
Japan. All three keynote addresses were highly appreciated by the
participants who included managers of the Ceylon Electricity Board,
council members of IESL, staff members of other higher educational
institutes, researchers and team leaders of Research and Innovation
centres of the Industry, postgraduate students of the University, staff
members from the Faculties of Engineering and IT, and administrative
staff of the University.
Nineteen peer reviewed research papers were presented at the
symposium. A large number of national and international reviewers
helped in reviewing the papers. The IEEE student’s society assisted in
event coordination.
Government approves funding for a Facilitation
Center for Advanced Electronic Design at UOM
The government has approved funding for a proposal submitted by
Department of Electronic & Telecommunication Engineering through the
Ministry of Higher Education to setup a “Facilitation Center for Advanced
Electronic Design” at the University of Moratuwa commencing January
2014.
Inauguration ceremony of Intake 9 of MEng/PG
Diploma in Manufacturing Systems Engineering
The inauguration ceremony of Intake 9 of the MEng/PG Diploma in
Manufacturing Systems Engineering was held at the MECH HUB on
December 14. The chief guest was Dr TA Piyasiri, Vice Chancellor,
University of Vocational Technology. Dr MARV Fernando, Senior
Consultant of the Department of Mechanical Engineering delivered the
key note speech. Dr Palitha Dassanayake, Head of the Department
deliver the welcome address while Dr Ruwan Gopura, Course
Coordinator, proposed the vote of thanks.
ERE Sports Festival 2013
The annual sports festival organised by the Earth Resources
Engineering Students Society commenced on December 17 at the
University premises. The events took place from December 17 to 20
and on January 3 & 4 2014. The event terminated with a grand closing
ceremony and a prize giving.
Guest Lecture at ERE
Mr Chirantha Weerawardena, a leading mining engineering product
of the Earth Resources Engineering Department (then Mining and
Minerals Engineering Department), and currently Technical Manager at
FMG Cloudbreak Mine Operations, Western Australia, delivered a guest
lecture during his visit to the Department on December 04. Present
undergraduate students and a number of practising engineers from the
industry were present at this event. These guest lectures have become
a routine channel of sharing mining engineering knowledge between Sri
Lanka and Australia.
Prof Sisil Kumarawadu to serve in the IPC of
IEEE ISSNIP’14, Singapore
Prof Sisil Kumarawadu has been invited to serve in the International
Program Committee of the 2014 IEEE 9th International Conference on
Intelligent Sensors, Sensor Networks and Information Processing, to
be held on April 21 to 24, 2014, Singapore. The 9th conference in the
series is jointly organized by the Institute of Infocomm Research and the
Australian Research Council’s Research Network on ISSNIP and is cosponsored by IEEE Sensors Council.
Workshop for Attitude Building- Work Related
Attitudes
The Department of Textile & Clothing Technology organised a one day
workshop for final year students on Attitude Building. It was facilitated
by Mr Samantha Karandagoda,a Professional Trainer in the field and a
graduate of the Department, and held in December 2013.
The session was wound around the principles of work place ethics
and attitudes. Seven concepts including clarity, confidence, courtesy,
communication, commitment, confidentiality and challenges were
discussed in detail that would help the students to change their attitudes
towards work and the corporate world.
Modernizing the Curriculum –Department of
Electronic & Telecommunication Engineering
The second workshop on modernizing the curriculum facilitated by
renowned educationalist Prof Suki Ekaratne was held at the Conference
Room of the Department of Electronic & Telecommunication Engineering
on December 21.
P03
Outbound Training Program
Workshop for CV Writing and Interview Skills
A two day outbound training program for the final year students of the
Department of Textile & Clothing Technology, University of Moratuwa,
was conducted by Wild Drift in December at Belihul Oya. Students
were formed into teams and given challenging tasks where they had
to plan their activities, organize resources, manage time and lead the
team in order to achieve the goals. The main focus of the adventurous
activities was to develop leadership, team working and self confidence
to overcome fear and conquer challenges of the corporate world into
which they are just about to step. While acquiring the soft skills, students
did not forget to enjoy the unique experience of the cool breeze of
Belihul Oya, the deep waters of the Samanala Wewa and the camping
night. At the end of the program was a debriefing in which the learning
of the program was shared amongst the team.
The Department of Textile & Clothing Technology organised a one day
workshop in November for final year students on CV writing and interview
skills. It was facilitated by Mr Dharshana Rathnayake, a Professional
Trainer in the field. This one day workshop was designed to show
students how to construct a winning CV and how to prepare effectively
for interviews - how to respond to difficult questions, how to match skills
to the opportunity, how to positively use voice and body language and
how to confidently present theselves and their experience
Workshop for Mentors
An evening session was organised by the Department of Textile and
Clothing Technology for mentors from the alumni on 4th December
2013. The session was conducted by Dr Nalin Jayasuriya, Chairman of
McQuire Rens & Jones (Pvt) Ltd, and selected mentors from the alumni
and staff of the Department were invited. This was conducted in order
to enhance the quality of the mentoring program to be conducted by
the Department. The session unveiled important aspects of effective
mentoring, developing and managing the mentoring relationship,
guiding and counselling.
P04
CS&ES Achiever Awards 2013
The department of Computer Science & Engineering introduced a new
dimension to Sri Lanka’s ICT culture by organising the first ever awards
ceremony to recognise and appreciate the contribution of CSE alumni
towards the development and growth of the ICT industry of the country.
Achiever Awards 2013 was held on November 7 at the Park Street Mews.
These awards were initiated with the primary intention of highlighting
the contribution of its alumni to national development in diverse areas
such as technology, enterprise and innovation. It is expected that such
recognition wil energise the professionals in the community to strive
towards achieving goals that would take Sri Lanka to be a leader in
Information Technology. The awards ceremony was organised along with
the Annual General Meeting of the Computer Science and Engineering
Society. The event was attended by over 200 participants including
leading industry professionals, academics, undergraduates and young
engineers.
FACULTY OF INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
ICT Education in Sri Lanka at CHOGM Exibition
An exhibition on Trade, Industry, Culture and Tourism was held in
parallel with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting
(CHOGM) and the Commonwealth Business Forum at the “Jana Kala
Kendraya”, Battaramulla, from November 13 to 17 with participation
of key government institutions, private sector agencies and trade
& industry chambers targeting potential international buyers and
business delegations to visit the exhibition in order to establish longterm business and investment connectivity. Students from the Faculty
of Information Technology in collaboration with School of Computing,
University of Colombo participated in the exhibition sharing the stall
under the theme of “ICT education in Sri Lanka”. The Dean of the Faculty
with staff members of the faculty also participated in the event. This
created a great opportunity to make the public aware of the programes
conducted by the Faculty while representing the whole University.
ITRU Research Symposium 2013
The Information Technology Research Unit (ITRU) organized its annual
research symposium on December 5 under the theme ‘Innovations for
the Next Generation of IT’. The event was
graced by the participation of local and
foreign academics, and distinguished invitees
from the industry. The keynote address was
delivered by Prof Ian Witten of the University
of Waikato. The paper titled ‘Lexical
Enrichment and Sense Disambiguation of
Ontology Concepts’ by PHSR Premarathna,
KHH Indrajee, P Mahawithana, LYSG de Silva
and DC Wimalasuriya of the Department of
Computer Science and Engineering won the
award for the best paper at the symposium.
International Technical Meeting on e-Learning
and Technical Communication, 2013
The Faculty of Information Technology has taken the initiative to promote
and enhance research culture by organizing an International Technical
Meeting on e-Learning and Technical Communication, 2013. This
was organized jointly with the University of Aizu, Japan. The technical
sessions were held on December 5 at the
Faculty premises with the participation of
many distinguished persons, both local
and international. Among them were Prof
Debopriyo Roy of the University of Aizu,
Japan and Prof Ian Witten of the University
of Waikato, New Zealand. Prof Roy delivered
a very interesting keynote address on
Usability.
The technical sessions were followed by a
one day workshop titled ‘Data Mining with
WEKA’ facilitated by Prof Ian Witten, on
December 6 with over 80 participants.
INDUSTRY COLLABORATION
Petroleum Engineering Software Workshop
Industrial collaboration between the Department of Earth Resources
Engineering and the Petroleum Resources Development Secretariat
(PRDS) continue to blossom with a workshop held at the Kingsbury Hotel
Colombo on November 28. An introduction to the modern Petroleum
Engineering Software was the theme of the event which was organised
by the PRDS in collaboration with Schlumberger India. Initiatives taken
to establish the Sri Lankan branch of the Society of Petroleum Engineers
can be considered as a major outcome of this gathering.
Launch of MBA-IT Research Compendium
The Department of Computer Science & Engineering (CSE) launched
the first edition of the “MBA-IT Research Compendium” that collects
together a summary of outstanding research contributions from the MBA
in IT program on Tuesday December 17 at the Lakshman Kadirgamar
Institute in Colombo. As noted by the Chief Guest at the book launch,
Hon Dr Harsha De Silva, MP, this industry focused and practitioner
oriented collection of research findings in the domain of human resource
management for the knowledge economy is a must read for policymakers
as well as executives. A joint publication of the Department of CSE and
Kent Ridge, a leading HRM Consultancy in Sri Lanka, the compendium
was edited by Mr Janaka Kumarasinghe, a past president of the Institute
of Personnel Management.
The event was graced by Dr Sunil Jayantha Nawaratne, the Secretary
to the Ministry of Higher Education as the Guest of Honour who spoke
at length on the knowledge centric economic development strategies
of countries such as Singapore and Japan that were constrained by
the availability of limited natural resources. The event was attended
by members of the IT industry, postgraduate students as well as other
leading personalities of the professional community with interests in
human resource development.
TRAVEL ABROAD
Dean Engineering visits Jain University
Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Prof Anuruddha Puswewala was
part of a Sri Lankan university delegation which visited Jain University
Bangalore. The visit was organised by the University Grants Commission.
During the visit the delegation visited the various campuses of Jain
University and listened to presentations made on the activities of the
various centres there. They also looked at the various facilities available
in the university. Prof Puswewala attended discussions with academic
counterparts in various engineering fields and also identified possible
areas for future collaboration between Moratuwa and Jain.
Prof Sisil Kumarawadu delivers an Invited Talk
at NUiCONE 2013, Ahmedabad
Prof Sisil Kumarawadu delivered an invited talk on Recent Advances in
Visual Servo Control at the Nirma University International Conference on
Engineering held on November 28 to 30 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.
NUiCONE is the annual flagship event of the Institute of Technology of the
Nirma University. Mr Bhavnesh Thakkar (Head E&I, Linde Engineering,
India), Prof Virendrakumar Bhavsar (University of New Brunswick,
Fredericton, Canada), and Dr Suryakanth Gupta (Institute of Plasma
Research, India) also delivered invited talks at NUiCONE 2013.
Prof Asoka Karunananda visits Stanford
University
Prof Asoka Karunananda, Professor in the Department of Computational
Mathematics of the Faculty of Information Technology visited the
Clinically Applied Affective Neuroscience laboratory of Stanford
University in December. The objective of the visit (December 8 – 29) was
to form a research collaboration with Dr Philippe Goldin at the Clinically
Applied Affective Neuroscience laboratory of Stanford University. Dr
Philippe Goldin is a renowned researcher in mindfulness meditation
for a wide spectrum of disciplines. Prof Karunananda established the
initial contact with Dr Philippe Goldin by sharing his research interest
in mindfulness meditation for Artificial Cognitive Systems. The visit was
very fruitful and enabled sharing experiences and research thoughts
in a very interactive manner. Among other activities, visits to Stanford
University and Google were arranged by Dr Philippe Goldin. The visit
resulted in initiating research collaboration with Dr Philippe Goldin to
introduce mindfulness meditation-based research for the first time in the
Sri Lankan university system by targeting the areas of Cognitive Science,
Education, Psychology, and Leadership training. In this endeavour, Dr.
Philippe will be collaborating with the University of Moratuwa and the
General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Sri Lanka.
Prof Sanath Jayasena visits USA
Associate Professor Sanath Jayasena of the Department of Computer
Science visited USA from November 7 to 22 for various research
engagements. This included the review of ongoing collaborative
research work with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
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STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS
Team from Mechanical Engineering wins Award
of Excellence in International Contest
The Association for the Promotion of Electric Vehicles (APEV) in Japan
conducted a competition titled “EV Super Micro Mobility Design
Contest” to encourage the promotion of Super Micro Mobility vehicles
(SMM), as well as to offer the opportunity to experience the excitement
of manufacturing to students who will lead the next generation. The
contest was to design an electric SMM having a rated power output of
8kW within certain boundary conditions. The design approach was one
of the key features in this contest. Team MORA from the Department of
Mechanical Engineering, University of Moratuwa, introduced a concept
based on a well-known insect “Ladybird”. The Ladybird has always
captured the imagination of children worldwide. Its cute round shape
and striking colours are identifiable anywhere, and considered as a
symbol of good luck in many cultures.
There were 41 teams from seven different countries including Japan,
UK, USA and France who participated in this contest. In the first round,
vehicle concept, practicality and a 2D sketch of the vehicle were mainly
evaluated. 27 teams were selected for the final round. In the final round,
3D realization of the designs including “Natural Sketching” using CATIA
software were evaluated. At the end of the final round five teams were
selected as award winning teams including Team MORA and four
Japanese teams. Each team received an Excellency prize for each
section in which they performed well. Team MORA received “CATIA
Award for Excellence” for creativity in natural sketching using CATIA
software. Other award winning teams were KID (Kyushu University), PDL
(Chiba University), Voltage (Tokyo Metropolitan University) and TgMg
(Tennoji Gakkan high school).
The awards ceremony was held at the conference room of the 43rd
Tokyo Motor Show “SMART MOBILITY CITY” in Big Sight, Tokyo. Team
MORA received a certificate of excellence including a special prize of
Computer Aided Engineering Design software (CATIA V6 2014 release)
which is worth more than Rs 3.5 million. After receiving the price, Team
MORA made a presentation to introduce the concept to the audience.
They also had the opportunity to view the 43rd TOKYO MOTOR SHOW
which is one of the largest motor shows all around the world.
Members of Team MORA were Lihil Subasinghe (09 Batch), Rashiga
Walallawita (09 Batch), Vimukthi Randeny (10 Batch) and Damith
Madusanka (10 Batch). They were supervised by Dr Ruwan Gopura,
Senior Lecturer and Mr Sasiranga De Silva, Lecturer, of the Department
of Mechanical Engineering.
Faculty of Engineering undergraduates win
“Imminent Marketer 2013”
A team representing the Faculty of Engineering emerged as Runners-up
of the CFA Sri Lanka Investment Research Challenge (CFA SLRC) 2013
organized by the CFA Institute of Sri Lanka for the seventh consecutive
year. Eleven local universities took part in the competition. The CFA
SLRC is the local level of the Global CFA Institute Research challenge.
Aruna Pathirage (Textile), RN Thenuwara (Electronics), MSN Mustapha
(Civil), S Warnakulasuriya (Mechanical) and Nadee Senevirathne
(Electronics) teamed up for this competition. The team was advised
by lecturer Ms Gayithri Kuruppu of the Department of Management of
Technology.
Sri Lanka Robotics Challenge 2013
The 2nd annual Sri Lanka Robotics Challenge organized by the E-Club
of the University of Moratuwa was held on December 12 and 13. Sri
Lanka Robotics Challenge 2013 - University Category was held on
December 13. For the first time in the history the winners were awarded
a large cash prize worth Rs 350,000.
The University Category Final Results of Sri Lanka Robotics Challenge
2013 are as follows:
1st Place: - Team ID 1017 - University of Moratuwa. The team comprised
Kushan Wijesinghe, Harith Thisura, Thilina Illangasinghe, Rajitha
Hathurusinghe and Indunil Wanigasooriya.
2nd Place: - Team ID 1024 - University of Moratuwa. The team comprised
Dimuthu Upeksha, Maduranga Siriwardena, Chamila Wijayarathna,
Supun Tharanga and Ishanga Rukshan.
3rd Place:-Team ID 1007- Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology.
The team comprised Dinushka Wijesooriya, Vithakshana Pathirathna,
Channa Pinnawalage, Chathushka Hendalage and Prasanga Alawatta.
All the above winners have qualified to compete at the Techfest
International Robotics Challenge (IRC) 2014 organized by IIT, Bombay,
India.
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GRADUATE ACHIEVEMENTS
Game Changer through Innovation Award
ACIS Innovations, The first Sri Lankan wearable electronic fashion brand
has been named the winner of the ‘Game Changer through Innovation’
award at the Sri Lanka Fashion and Apparel Awards 2013 held during the
recent Sri Lanka Design Festival. The award was received for the latest
collection of ACIS Innovations which was created as a collaborative
project with the University of Moratuwa and MAS Active Linea Intimo.
ACIS Innovations brand was developed by Chathura Sudharshan of the
Department of Textile & Clothing Technology for his graduation research
in the Fashion Design & Product Development degree program.
The collection consists of several innovative wearable electronic
concepts, such as motion tracking technology, wireless sound
transmitting garment, mechanical energy harvester and a fabric inbuilt
lighting system
The ‘Game Changer through Innovation’ category at the Sri Lanka
Fashion and Apparel Awards recognises that innovation is the best
way to win in a world of unprecedented change, increasing global
competitiveness and commoditisation. The award is for ideas that have
shaped corporate life, helped leaders conceive previously unimagined
strategic options and made ideas become a reality.
The eminent panel of judges included senior figures from the British
Council, the Royal College of Art and The London School of Fashion.
Digital Taste Interface
Ever seen a succulent-looking chocolate cake or a mouthwatering dish
on TV and wished you could taste it at once? Several interactive systems
can be found in literature for simulating taste sensations, especially in
the area of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). However, these solutions
mostly use an array of edible chemicals to produce different taste
sensations. Using chemicals in an interactive system is unrealistic since
a set of chemicals is difficult to store and manipulate. Furthermore, the
chemical stimulation of taste is analogous in nature, making it impractical
to use this approach for digital interactions. Therefore, it is evident that
a new non-chemical approach is required to achieve digital control over
the sensation of taste.
A team of researchers of the National University of Singapore, led
by Nimesha Ranasinghe, a graduate of the Faculty of Information
Technology, have come up with a digital method for simulating the
sensation of taste. This is done by actuating the human tongue through
electrical and thermal stimulation methods. The digital taste interface,
a control system, is developed to simulate the taste sensations digitally
on the tongue. The Digital Taste Interface consists of two main modules,
the control module (to formulate different electrical and thermal stimuli)
and the tongue interface (which has two silver electrodes to wear on the
human tongue).
The effects of most persuading factors such as magnitude of current,
frequency, and the change of temperature have been accounted for
stimulating the tongue noninvasively. The experimental results suggested
that sourness and saltiness are the main sensations that could be evoked
while there are evidences of sweet and bitter sensations too.
The inventor suggests that a broad spectrum of medical applications
may be found for this device, such as enabling diabetics to experience
“forbidden” tastes without affecting their blood sugar, or cancer patients
who need to improve their sense of taste during chemotherapy.
SPORTS NEWS
Silver Medal in Taekwondo
Ms HMA Dilrukshi, a second year student reading for the BSc (Hons)
in Information Technology
and Management won the
silver medal in the women’s fly
weight category at the National
Taekwondo Tournament for
2013, organized by the Sri
Lanka Taekwondo Federation
which ended on November 30.
This is the highest achievement
ever at national level in the
history of Taekwondo by an
athlete from the University of
Moratuwa. In addition this is the
highest achievement in fighting
events as until now athletes
from UOM had only managed
to win Poomsae events.
UoM Students shine at the National Fencing
Championships
The second National Fencing Championships was held on November 21
and 22 at Sariputhra Vidyalaya, Ahangama. This event was organized by
the National Association of Fencing Sri Lanka, the registered governing
body of the sport of Fencing in Sri Lanka. More than 100 athletes from
eight fencing clubs all over the country took part in this event, which
was held according to International Fencing Standards.
Ishara Dharmasena (Textile and Clothing Technology) participated in
the Epee men’s individual and mixed team events, while Tiran Sellahewa
(Mechanical Engineering) participated in Foil men’s individual event.
Suneth Dharmaparakrama (Transport and Logistics Management)
participated in the Sabre men’s individual event. All three students
represented the MDS Fencing Club.
Ishara Dharmasena won the gold medal in the mixed weapon event
(playing in the epee weapon category) with a score line of 30:28 in the
finals.
Mora Cricket Sixes
The Dell Abans Mora Sixes, a six-a-side Cricket Tournament as held at
the University grounds in November. The opening ceremony was held
on November 22.
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APPOINTMENTS
Dr (Mrs) Subha Fernando promoted to the
Post of Senior Lecturer (Grade II) - Department
of Computational Mathematics, Faculty of
Information Technology
Dr (Mrs) Subha Fernando has been promoted
to the Post of Senior Lecturer (Grade II) in the
Department of Computational Mathematics of
the Faculty of Information Technology. She joined
the Department as a lecturer (probationary) on
August 7, 2006. She obtained her BSc Special
degree in Statistics and Computer Science
with First Class Honours in March 2004 from
the University of Kelaniya. She completed her
MEng degree in August 2010 from Nagoaka
University of Technology, Japan and obtained her Doctor of Engineering
from the same university in August 2013. Her research interests are
Artificial Neural Networks, Multi-Agent-Systems, Genetic Algorithms and
Intelligent Informatics.
LIBRARY NEWS
Book fair
A book fair organized by University of Moratuwa Library Assistant
Association was held on December 12 and 13 at the library premises.
Books and stationery were sold at attractive discounts. It was a very
successful project and helpful to university staff and students.
STAFF ACHIEVEMENTS
New President for Sri Lanka Chapter of Internet
Society
Prof Gihan Dias of the Department of Computer Science & Engineering
has been elected as the President of the Internet Society, Sri Lanka
Chapter for the year 2014 at the AGM held on Dec 30 2013.
The Internet Society’s mission is to promote the open development,
evolution, and use of the Internet for the benefit of all people throughout
the world. The Sri Lanka Chapter represents the over 500 members of the
Internet Society in this country and Prof Dias plans to guide the Chapter
through 2014 to realize some of its important mission objectives.
Ms Ruwandika Senanayake promoted as
Senior Lecturer Grade II - Department of
Integrated Design
Ms Ruwandika Senanayake was promoted as
Senior Lecturer Grade II in the Department of
Integrated Design, Faculty of Architecture with
effect from September 26 2013 .
She has recently completed her MA(by
reaserch) from the Royal Melbourne Institute
of Technology (RMIT) University, Melbourne,
Australia. Her research on “Fashion design for
the emrging creative economy of Sri Lanka” was
supervised by Proffesor Jennifer Craik of RMIT
University.
Ms Inoka Samarasekara promoted as
Senior Lecturer Grade II - Department of
Integrated Design
CLUBS & SOCIETIES
SCF Christmas Program 2013
Ms Ruwandika Senanayake was promoted as
Senior Lecturer Grade II in the Department of
Integrated Design, Faculty of Architecture with
effect from August 1 2013 .
She has recently completed her MPhil from the
University of Moratuwa. Her research on “The
Application of Design-Innovation for increasing
Gem set Jewellery Exports in Sri Lanka” was
supervised by Proffesor Nimal De Silva and
Proffesor PGR Dharmaratne.
The Student Christian Fellowship of the University of Moratuwa
organized a Christmas programme open to all staff and undergraduates
on December 19 at the Textile Department Auditorium. The programme
consisted of a talk and a video focusing on the theme “Life, Meaning
and Christmas”
The talk was given by Dr Shehan Perera of the Department of Computer
Science & Engineering and focused on the role of Jesus Christ in the
search for meaning to life. Several sections of the History Channel
Documentary “The Bible Series” portraying the life and times of Jesus
Christ were shown and discussed at the gathering.
Around 20-30 undergraduates and members were present at the event
and enjoyed refreshments and a time of fellowship at the end of the
event.
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ISSN 2279-2023