S-Dev – TechnoMoot 2010 at CIIT Abbottabad.

11-12 May 2010

 

 

S-Dev (Science for Development) 2010 event was jointly organized during TechnoMoot 2010, at COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT), Abbottabad, by four different departments i.e. Environmental Sciences, Chemistry, Pharmacy and Development Studies. Various events of S-Dev included seminars and lectures, display of posters projecting the major research achievements of various research groups, display of gems and exhibition of published research papers etc. The Department of Chemistry session was held under the name of “Modern trends in chemistry”. Three most eminent scholars from different universities of Pakistan were invited to share their research experience with the students of this area. Different professors, teachers and students from Hazara University and local colleges were also invited to attend the symposium.

The session host was Dr. Umar Farooq. Dr. Rehana Rashid, Chairperson, Department of Chemistry, introduced the Department of Chemistry and presented vision 2020 to the audience. This was followed by another presentation from Professor Dr. Farzana Mehmood, an eminent scholar from Bahauddin Zakaria University. She delivered a talk on the topic entitled “Gas Hydrates, “The Burning Ice”. She told the audience that the gas hydrates were reported for the first time by Sir H. Davey in 1810. She highlighted  versatile physical, chemical, thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of the  most common gas hydrates such as O₂, N₂, CO₂, CH₄, H₂S, Ar, Kr, Xe, Ferons(CFC) and  oxides of N& S and the new approaches and benefits in industry especially generation of hydrates for NASA’s Fuel Cells requirement in the space shuttle program. The modern theme of chemistry was appreciated and became the burning discussion topic among the young researchers and students.

Second presentation was on “Radiation Technology and Modern Life” by Prof. Dr. Shamshad Ahmad, NUST, Islamabad. He introduced the Radiation technology, its significance and special characteristics over the traditional chemical methods of reactions and modification of material. It was highlighted that radiation processing is now a vigorously expanding area because of its particular merits such as its lower cost, easy to use and environmental friendly.  He also elaborated mechanism of radiation processes and various modern applications such as radiation sterilization of disposable biological and medical supplies, radiation-cured coatings, radiation degradation, radiation induced grafting and cross linking of polymers that are used to obtain enhanced characteristics, radiation treatment of gemstone, pearls to improve value and appearance for jewellery. Moreover the role of irradiated cables for anti-lock brake system and excellent memory of irradiated polymers was also discussed.

The final presentation was given by Prof. Dr. Hamid Latif, University of the Punjab, Lahore. His presentation was on the synthesis of “Biologically active compounds based on Benzylidine derivatives”. He described the ongoing research work of his group and highlighted the success which was obtained in this field.

The shields and souvenirs were presented to the speakers and guests. The session was concluded by the vote of thanks from Dr. Abdur Rahman khan, Professor, Department of Chemistry.

Symposium by the Department of Pharmacy was organized on May 11, 2010. Two eminent experts, Prof. Dr. Zafar Iqbal from the Department of Pharmacy, University of Peshawar and Mr. Javed Muhammad from Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar were the invited speakers, to deliver talks on the topic entitled “Role of Pharmacist and Challenges in Pakistan”.

Guest speakers were introduced by Dr. Taous Khan. Both the speakers highlighted various factors which hurdle the full utilization of potentials and services of pharmacists in Pakistan. They stated that in contrast to the developed world, the services of pharmacists in Pakistan are not utilized to their potentials and their role as health care professionals has not been given due importance either by the community or other health professionals. The lack of recognition of role of pharmacist in Pakistan is due to several factors including shortage of pharmacists, more focus towards management than towards customers’ services and limited interaction of pharmacists with the public. The health care system of any country is unable to resolve most medicine-related issues effectively without pharmacists.

The faculty members and senior students from the Pharmacy Departments of various Universities and Institutes including Hazara University, Women Institute of Learning and Pakistan Institute of Professional Studies were invited to attend the symposium. The CIIT students and all the guests showed great interest in the symposium. They were of the view that the talks delivered by the guest speakers were very informative.

Prof. Dr. Izhar Hussain, Chairman, Department of Pharmacy extended vote of thanks to the guest speakers and all participants and elaborated the achievements of the pharmacy department and its faculty members. He informed the audience that presently Pharmacy Department is equipped with fully established 6 undergraduate teaching laboratories and 8 of its faculty members hold Ph. D. degrees, mostly from technologically advanced countries. Pharmacy faculty has published 136 research papers in Impact Factored Journals having total Impact Factor of 202 and 546 citations.

Session of Environmental Sciences Department commenced with a special lecture delivered by Dr. Ahmed Hassan, Director, Ministry of Environment, Islamabad. He delivered a talk on “Role of Ministry of Environment in Handling Water Crisis in Pakistan”. He highlighted various causes of water crisis and also shared various means to combat the current situation. The aim of this talk was to generate and raise awareness among students, faculty and business community about the current critical situation and how 3R`s i.e., Reduce, Reuse and Recycle strategy can minimize the after affects of current water crisis. The attendees found it valuable and very informative.

The second lecture was delivered by Mr. Ishtiaq Kiyani, Production Manager, KIMS, Hattar Industrial Estates, Hattar. Topic of his talk was “University-Industrial Collaboration for the Training of University Students”. It was arranged, realizing the fact that very few students know about the subject and the current market demands. His comprehensive talk contained the information about the role of University-Industrial linkages in training and grooming of students. Attendees were informed about the CIIT and KIMS Collaboration, in which Mr. Zulfiqar A. Bhatti treated waste water generated/ released by KIMS industry in UASB reactor using waste Hydrogen Peroxide, H₂O₂, with removal efficiency of 90%. Mr. Ishtiaq Kiyani, not only informed them about the strengths of such collaborations but also motivated them to apply for the available various internship programs for their training and grooming.

A large number of students not only from CIIT but also from local colleges and universities attended the seminars and visited stalls. They inquired about the on-going research projects and lab facilities at COMSATS.

A major feature of interest for students and participants of TechnoMoot 2010 was free check up of blood pressure, blood group and body mass index (BMI). This free facility was provided by the Department of Pharmacy and nearly 200 students, faculty members and participants benefited from this activity.