50 Indonesian universities first to sign up for QS Stars rating
A good number of Indonesian universities show their pioneering spirit by being among the first to register for the new QS Stars rating system.
University rankings have their limitations since they often provide an oversimplified view of institutional strengths. As specialist strengths of a university are often overlooked, rankings are usually biased towards fully comprehensive institutions.
The QS Stars system is based on a rating method, which measures university performance against preset thresholds for a more thorough evaluation of each participating institution. It awards up to a maximum of five Stars.
Of the 50 Indonesian universities that have signed up, 17 have received an institutional report that details their results as measured by a comprehensive QS proprietary analysis. The rest will receive their reports by the middle of this year.
KFUPM, Stanford and Saudi Aramco to collaborate on research in petroleum engineering and geosciences
KFUPM, Stanford and Saudi Aramco to collaborate on research in petroleum engineering and geosciences Saudi Arabia: King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM), Stanford University and Saudi Aramco have entered into a trilateral strategic partnership in education and research in petroleum engineering and geosciences.
They will establish sustainable research and development programs in selected areas of the upstream oil and gas industry. Joint workshops were conducted to define the scope of work and these had identified key areas and outlined the best framework for collaboration.
"This new strategic partnership provides our faculty and students with yet another vehicle to share best practices in education and to engage in collaborative research that is closely aligned with the interests of Saudi Aramco and the kingdom," said KFUPM Rector Dr Khaled S. Al-Sultan.
The university-industry partnership will involve the exchange of faculty, graduate students and researchers through sabbaticals, workshops, lecture series, continuing professional education and short courses.
UPM student wins international architecture competition in building design
A former student of the Faculty of Design and Architecture at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Mohd Ramadan Shahabudin, has clinched an award in the Metal & Glass category (student) for the design of buildings at the SAIE Selection 10, an international competition open to young designers working on the theme of sustainability with innovative solutions, materials and technologies.
Out of 36 participants, he was the only Asian representative in this prestigious competition dominated by European countries, including host Italy, Denmark, Poland, Romania and Ireland.
Ramadan's design intrigued the jury because of its futuristic concept and application of green technology with design to ensure a quality working environment that helps to conserve energy and reduce greenhouse effects.
Although most architecture students are bound to scientific principles that might limit their creativity, Ramadan revealed that he initially designed with aesthetic values in mind before modifying his proposal according to scientific standards to show the design realistically.
Aalto and Nagoya University achieve world’s first in thin-film technology
Prof Yutaka Ohno from Nagoya University in Japan and Prof Esko I. Kauppinen from Aalto University of Finland and their research team have developed a fast and simple method of producing high-performance thin-film transistors on plastic substrate.
The inventors believe that the technology for producing semiconducting carbon nanotube plastic substrates will make it possible to manufacture flexible electronic products, such as electronic paper, at a low cost. They used the new technology to produce the world’s first sequential logic circuits based on carbon nanotubes. Light and flexible devices such as flexible mobile phones and e-paper require flexible electronic components that can be manufactured inexpensively and quickly on a plastic substrate.
The new method involves growing the nanotubes in atmospheric pressure gas and collecting them with a filter. The resulting thin film is then transferred from the filter onto plastic, which provides a very clean film of uniform quality in just a few seconds. This process is being developed as a technology for high-speed roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing.
The research was financed by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation (NEDO), Japan and Aalto University's Multidisciplinary Institute of Digitalisation and Energy (MIDE) research programme.
Former Taipei Medical University President becomes Taiwan's new Minister of Health
Dr Wen-ta Chiu, most recently President of Taipei Medical University (TMU), was appointed Taiwan's new Minister of Health in February.
Dr Chiu is a highly distinguished neurosurgeon, medical researcher, academic leader and public health advocate. He served as TMU President from 2008 to 2011. He is best known to the public for promoting legislation on motorcycle helmets, which prevented an estimated 30,000 deaths since its enactment in the 1990s.
As President of TMU, he led the successful growth of a world-class medical university and hospital, including doubling the size of the hospital to 3,000 beds. At the same time, he also served as Superintendent of Shuang Ho Hospital and as a professor in TMU's College of Medicine and College of Public Health and Nutrition. In addition, he was Superintendent of Wan Fang Hospital, Chief of Neurosurgery, Director of the Biomedical Informatics Center and Dean of the School of Public Health.
As the new Health Minister, Dr Chiu will focus on the second-generation health plan, which was passed as an amendment to the National Health Insurance Act by the legislature in January 2011.
