Events - 2023

Microbes Invention Innovation & Ideation Challenge (MINIC) 2023  

Event:                  Microbes Invention Innovation and Ideation Challenge (MINIC) 2023

Location:             The Mines Shopping Mall, Centre Court

Date:                    18th November 2023 

 

The Department of Bioscience proud to have our RBS and DSC students from FOAS to participate and won in the Microbes Invention Innovation and Ideation Challenge (MINIC) 2023 organised by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) on 18th November 2023. MINIC SDG 2023 challenges participants to propose a solution to a real-life issue that aligns with the SDG 2, 3, 4, 13, 14 & 15 using microbes. The program presents a unique opportunity for students to develop their analytical thinking, problem-solving, sense making and collaboration skills, while also promoting innovation and creativity. The theme for MINIC 2023 is “Microbial Biotechnology for Sustainable Future”. The competition involves participants to identify real-life issues related to 21st Century Global Challenges by using microbes or microbial technology to propose solutions supported by published journals. Develop a mock-up on the proposed prototype and pitch solutions to judges from the industry, academia and government agencies. Work collaboratively and transdisciplinary. 

 

A total of two teams have taken part in this exciting competition. Both teams have won prizes in the Undergraduate category. The teams were supervised and supported by Assoc. Prof. Dr.Sheri Ann Tan Shu Wei, Dr. Low Ying Chiang, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tan Hui Yin. Ms. Chia Meow Lin and Ms. Selvi Chellappan. Details of team members and prizes won are as below:

 

Team 1                                                               Team 2

Team name: Purple Warriors                             Team name: PSB Tide

Prize won:                                                           Prize won: 

Gold Award  with RM500 & Second Prize of Bronze award of Undergraduate category Undergraduate category

              Team members:               Team members:

•  Leow Kai Zhe       Goh Chin Jie

•  Wu Wei Li                    Jillian Lai Wern Ern

•  Yap Wen Nie        Leong Kar Weng

 

Team 1, Purple Warriors presented their project idea entitle The Genetically Enhanced Assassin of Lung Tumor and Team 2 PSB Tide presented their project entitle Combating Non-Point Source Pollution with Immobilised Photosynthetic Bacteria. 

 

It was a great platform for the students to participate to get an exposure and able to share their creative and innovative proposed ideas to solve real-life issues related current global challenges.

 



Event Title: 9th Malaysia Weiqi Open Championship Date: 4th November – 5th November 2023

Time: 8 am to 6 pm

Venue: Sport Complex, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology

Event Objectives:

 

Report Summary

The 10th Malaysia Weiqi Open Championship is one of the yearly events that is organized by the Department of Sport Science and the Sport Science Society with the support from the Faculty of Applied Sciences This event attracted a total of 211 participants from both local and overseas such as China, Korea, Thailand and Japan for the 2-day event that exposed the Sport and Exercise Science students in organizing mind sports event and promote awareness in mind sports among students and staff at TAR UMT, as well as to promote the art of Chinese board games and culture. A total of 6 categories were competed in ranging from Low Kyu till Dan Group with a different age range in all groups. This event was also graced with a special opening event from the Lion Dance Team.


WATSON & TAR UMT Youth Empowerment & Sustainability (YES) Program 2023 Competition

 

Date: 5th Oct 2023

Venue: Arena Watson, Level 7, Watson Malaysia HQ, Exchange 106, TRX

 

Triumph of excellence among our FOAS students who display impressive talent, dedication, and teamwork, 3 teams of students from Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Bioscience with Chemistry (RBS), 6 students & Diploma in Science (DSC), 3 students and 4 students from Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Sport and Exercise Science emerged victorious as first (RM4000) & third (RM2000) prize winners in the “Go Empower” theme and second (RM2000) prize winner for the “Go Green” theme in the WATSON & TAR UMT Youth Empowerment & Sustainability (YES) Program 2023 Competition.  The competition sponsored by WATSON, known for its rigorous challenges and high standards, attracted a total of 22 groups of participants from various faculty of main and branch campuses. The winning team of “Go Empower” were sponsored RM20000 budget to execute their proposed project at TAR UMT and elsewhere. The students took part in the YES program competition required to produce a complete proposal, PowerPoint slides and video with their creative and innovative ideas with estimated timeframe and budget to execute the proposed project. Three (3) finalist for each pillar were selected to pitch their proposal to fellow judges from WATSON and Vice President Assoc. Prof. Dr. Chook Ka Joo at Arena Watson at Menara TRX. The success shown by three (3) FOAS teams can be attributed to their innovative approaches and effective problem-solving strategies. Their ability to think outside the box and adapt to unforeseen challenges set them apart from the competition. 

 

The WATSON & TARUMT YES Program competition is a great platform for TAR UMT youths to promote sustainability for the environment and community to raise awareness of importance in line with SDGs. Besides that, the youth can foster collaboration with various parties for more creative ideas that enhance the community. The YES program competition, indeed was a good exposure for our FOAS students as to show out their soft skills with creative thinking and applying what was learnt. It showcases the institution's commitment to nurturing and developing talented individuals. The triumph serves as an inspiration for future generations and reinforces the belief that with determination and collaboration, excellence can be achieved.



Staff Exchange Program TARUMT-Yamagata University (YU) 2023

“Professor Dr. PHANG Sook-Wai, a Visiting Scholar from TAR UMT to YU”

 

It is a fruitful year of 2023 for both TAR UMT and Yamagata University (YU), Japan having the “Staff Exchange Program between TAR UMT & YU, Japan” through the signing of MOA to explore possible collaborations between YU and TAR UMT. This event is initiated by the visit of the Associate Professor Dr. Minakawa from 19th September 2023 to 27th September 2023 to TAR UMT, main campus at Kuala Lumpur, following by the visit of Professor Dr. Phang Sook Wai from TAR UMT to attend the staff exchange program at YU located at Yonezawa City, Yamagata Prefecture from 12th December 2023 to 21th December 2023.Prof. Dr. Phang arrived at YU (Yonezawa City) at late noon because YU is located 343 km away from Tokyo city. She met the person-in-charge of YU including AP Dr Minakawa, AP Dr Nishina as well as Ms Kempf from the International Exchange Center, YU for the YU Guest House check in and the university introductory briefing. The invigorate staff exchange program was kicked started by a YU, Faculty of Engineering, campus tour that lead by AP Dr. Nishina from Building ONE to Building ELEVEN with Department of Applied Chemistry, Chemical Engineering & Biochemical Engineering, Department of Informatics & Electronics, Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering, Department of Advanced Engineering, Department of Organics Materials Science and etc. On 14th December 2023, the welcoming lunch for Prof Phang was invited by Prof. Dr. Kuroda Mitsutoshi (Dean of Faculty of Engineering, YU) with the presence of Prof. Dr. Konno Hiroyuki (Deputy Dean), AP Dr. Nishina, AP Dr. Minakawa and etc. While enjoying the traditional Japanese bento, Prof. Phang presented the introductory video of TAR UMT to all audience and at the same time initiated a good friendship between both universities. The fruitful day was ended by “the Malaysia Cultural Talk” as well as “Introductory of TAR UMT presentation” by Prof Phang to all Japanese students and foreign students who are continuing their study in YU. All students as well as lecturers were enjoying Bakuteh (Malaysian Traditional Food) that cooked by Prof Phang while listening to the talk.   


The event on 15th December 2024 started with a Research Laboratory Tour at YU (Faculty of Engineering) including research laboratories of Prof. Dr. Gong Jin who is working on crosslinked polymer and crystalline gel; AP Dr, Minakawa who is working on structural organic chemistry & Physical organic chemistry; Prof Dr Konno Hiroki (Deputy Dean) who is working on bioorganic chemistry & Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Prof. Dr. Yano Shigekazu who is working on Applied Microbiology as well as Prof. Dr. Kawai Takahiro who is working on Inorganic Chemistry (Photocatalyst area). Prof Phang also presented her research talk about conducting polymer to all YU students and lecturers. A deeper communication regarding the research was initiated by all YU researchers with Prof. Phang.


An outstation tour from Faculty of Engineering (Yonezawa Campus) to Faculty of Agriculture (Tsuruoka Campus) was leaded by Prof. Dr Konno (Deputy Dean) on 18th December 2023. Both campus is far from each other with distance of 147 km. The purpose of the tour was to attend the YU-COE (Center of Excellence) research seminar that was presented by invited speaker including Prof Phang (TAR UMT), Prof Dr. Hafizur Rahman (Independent University, Bangladesh), Prof Dr. Makabe Koki (Faculty of Engineering, YU), Prof Dr. Narumi Atsushi (Faculty of Engineering, YU) and etc to all students from Faculty of Agriculture. The person in charge of this YU-COE research seminar was Prof Dr. Shiono Yoshihito (Faculty of Agriculture) as well as Prof. Dr. Konno (Faculty of Engineering). 


After one night staying at Tsuruoka City, we reached Yonezawa City safely on 19th December 2023 late afternoon. We were meeting some administration staff from YU (Faculty of Engineering) to settle some documentation matter regarding the outstation tour. On the 9th day of the staff exchange program, a polymer lecture was given by Prof Dr Phang to the undergraduate and post graduate students from YU. The day was ended by “The Malay and Mandarin Language Learning Class” by Prof Dr Phang to all Japanese students as well as all foreign students from YU at International Exchange Center. Malaysia is an incredibly diverse country, containing many different ethnicities, languages and religions. People from each ethnicity have generally retained their ancestors' cultural customs. As a result, Malaysian society accommodates a rich variety of lifestyles, beliefs and values. All Japanese students as well as all foreign students from YU were enjoying playing some Malaysia’s Traditional Games such as Congkak, Batu Seremban and Lato-lato ball that brought by Prof. Phang to YU 


After finished all research activities at day 10th of the staff exchange program, Prof Phang was having a small farewell meeting at YU Guest House with students and lecturers from YU. Prof Phang and TAR UMT wish to show high appreciation to all students and staff from YU that leaded by AP. Dr. Minakawa, AP Prof, Dr Nishina, Prof. Kuroda and Prof. Dr. Konno for the welcoming lunch, beneficial research laboratory tour as well as their warm hospitality during Prof Phang’s staff exchange program at YU to ensure the successful of this event.

We successfully achieved the objective of this staff exchange program in which to provide a comprehensive overview and research finding on science especially chemistry to undergraduate and postgraduate students for YU and TAR UMT. We hope to improve good friendship between TAR UMT and YU through this kind of beneficial staff exchange program in the near future. It is really a profitable event that would beneficial both students and staff from both TARUMT and YU, Japan.


Staff Exchange Program TARUMT-Yamagata University 2023

“Associate Professor Dr. Minakawa, a Visiting Scholar From Yamagata University”

It is our great pleasure to organize the Staff Exchange Program between TAR UMT and Yamagata University, Japan in 2023. This event is initiated by the visit of Associate Professor Dr. Minakawa from 19th September 2023 to 27th September 2023 to TAR UMT, the main campus at Kuala Lumpur. The main goal of this program is to explore any possible collaboration between Yamagata University and TAR UMT. The objective of this staff exchange program is to provide a comprehensive overview and research finding on science especially chemistry to undergraduate and postgraduate students for Yamagata University and TAR UMT.

An inspiring staff exchange program was started by a small welcoming picnic party that serving various local Malay and Indian foods together with the laboratory officers and Dr. Phang Sook Wai from FOAS at the garden near Red Brick Café on 19th September 2023 at 12.30pm. AP. Dr. Minakawa was giving Guest Lectures related to “Organic Chemistry” and “QA & QC in Laboratory at Japan” to our undergraduate students from Food Chemistry Program, Year 1 students and Analytical Chemistry program, Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3 students on 20th September 2023 and 25th September 2023. The Guests Lectures can engage students as well as lecturers in discussion and interactive sessions to enhance their understanding about science especially in chemistry and encourage critical thinking in chemistry as well as in research pursuits.

The eye-opening events including Simple Japanese Learning Class and Cultural Exchange Talk were presented by AP. Dr. Minakawa on Day 2, Day 3, Day 7 and Day 8 of the program at FOAS, TAR UMT. These activities were opened for all undergraduate and postgraduate students as well as academic and administrative staff of TAR UMT. These activities can provide a better pathway for the cultural exchange between Malaysia and Japan. It can be an incredibly enriching and transformative experience that could beneficial both the students and staff from TAR UMT. Learning a new language can sharpen the memory and improve cognitive thinking of a human. It not only helps with improving communication skills but also can make a good impression on others, pegging the learner as smart and fascinating.

An interesting education tour to Royal Selangor Visitor Centre, Setapak was led by Dr. Phang Sook Wai and AP. Dr. Liew Chiam Wen from FOAS on 22th September 2023. AP. Dr. Minakawa felt so inspired by the Pewter Factory tour. AP. Dr. Minakawa learnt about the animal-shaped tin currency especially the crocodile tin money that was used during the old Malaya time. We had funs through the hands-on educational exhibits that convey the real-world wonders and the uses of pewter. We are managed to watch the live pewtersmiths in action in this Pewter Factory.

After the Pewter Factory visit in the morning, a research talk entitled “Catalytic Reaction for Organic Synthesis” was presented by Dr. Minakawa to all students and staff from FOAS, TAR UMT at 2pm at D210A. She discussed about the significant chemical structure of heterocyclic compounds due to their biological activities and fluorescence properties. Her laboratory is developing new catalytic synthesis methods for heterocyclic compounds. She introduced the catalytic syntheses of O-containing heterocycles (chromans) and N,S-containing heterocycles (benzothiazoles) to all students and chemistry lecturers from FOAS. After the research talk, there was a short communication between all chemistry lecturers with AP. Dr. Minakawa. She also gave a brief introduction about Yamagata University to all chemistry lecturers. It is really a golden platform for AP. Dr. Minakawa and all chemistry lecturers from various research filed to share their research experience as well as research culture during this staff exchange program. Last but not least, the Associate Dean of Department of Physical Science, FOAS, Dr Chen Sheau Huey presented TAR UMT card holder, mooncakes and Malaysia white coffee to Dr. Minakawa as a token of appreciation.

On the Day 8 of the program, FOAS staff brought AP. Dr. Minakawa to visit one of the Malaysian national heritage site, Batu Caves. Batu Caves is a limestone outcrop located just north of Kuala Lumpur, Gombak. Batu Caves has three main caves featuring temples and Hindu shrines. Its main attraction is the large statue of the Hindu God at the entrance, besides a steep 272 climb up its steps to finally view the stunning skyline of the city centre. Dr. Minakawa enjoyed the unique and beautiful sightseeing while she was climbing the 272 steps to reach the top of the temple. AP. Dr. Minakawa was attracted by the rainbow of colours from the Hindu temple mixed with the backdrop of the limestone cave. It really provides a spectacular site to be seen.

FOAS teams wish to show high appreciation to all students and staff from TAR UMT that assisted us to bring AP. Dr. Minakawa for lunch, dinner and to some tourism places like KLCC and Melaka by showing our warm hospitality to our special guest, AP. Dr. Minakawa from Yamagata University, Japan. We hope to maintain good friendship with Yamagata University, Japan especially AP. Dr. Minakawa through this kind of beneficial staff exchange program in the near future. It is really a fruitful event that would beneficial both students and staff from both TARUMT and Yamagata University, Japan.

Technical Talk by TARUC Alumni Dr. Ng Wern Hann

Date:  26th September 2023 

Time and venue:  2.00 – 3.30 pm, H306 

Title: Investigating the Role of Novel Host Factors; MXRA8 and FHL1 in Alphavirus Diseases 

The Department of Bioscience was happy to have successfully held a talk by our alumnus, Dr Ng Wern Hann and it was attended by about 25 students comprising different cohorts of both RBS3 and RBS2.  Wern Hann had continued to pursue Master in Biotherapeutics at the University College Dublin, Ireland. Following that, he stepped onto the path of virology at Griffith University, Queensland, Australia and started his association with the arthropod-transmitted RNA viruses, the alphavirus.  The talk centred around his PhD research on the alphavirus receptor and a transcription factor gene.  

Throughout history, alphaviruses have been a longstanding challenge to humanity, dating back to the 18th century. A central mystery in alphavirus biology has been the elusive identification of the receptors these viruses employ to infect cells.  In his PhD work, Wern Hann used different molecular techniques to elucidate the role of FHL1 plays and its potential as a vaccine candidate in alphavirus diseases, and characterize the MXRA8 receptor in Ross River virus disease pathogenesis.  Using the model of MXRA8 knockout (MXRA8-/-) mice generated on a C57BL/6J background, several key mechanisms of MXRA8 that may contribute to the disease progression.  In the talk, students were exposed to the use of mass cytometry as a powerful tool of immunophenotyping as well as some aspects of animal studies.  


In addition to sharing his findings, Wern Hann also talked about his experience as research student and offered a glimpse of his life studying and working abroad.  Though the topic may be unfamiliar to the students, they responded well and asked some questions.  It is evident that students were interested to learn more and were inspired by the success and hard work of their senior. 

It is a very meaningful event and the Department will host more to expose students to the various research areas in biological sciences in order to widen their perception and to motivate them to be involved in research work.   

Field Trip Report Location: Perdana Botanical Garden, Kuala Lumpur 

Date: 9th September 2023  

Participants : 60+ students from DFN and RBS groups 3 staff (Ms. Selvi Chellappan, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sheri-Ann Tan Shu Wei                                                            and Dr. Low Ying Chiang) 

 Summary:

This trip was warmly welcomed and participated by 60+ students and 3 lecturers from Faculty of Applied Sciences. This visit to Perdana Botanical Garden was conducted as part of the learning activities for students from Food Science and Bioscience Programmes involving both Diploma and Bachelor’s Degree students. This trip has also provided opportunities for students to experience nature which could be related to their subjects taken in this semester. The subjects involved include Cells and Their Organisation, Biodiversity and Ecology and Physiology and Behaviour of Plants. Students and staff gathered and departed from TAR UMT at 8 a.m. A thirty minutes bus ride was what we needed to reach the public park. Students were gathered and alerted about the gathering point after the visit. 


The park was lively and filled with many active civilians and ongoing activities. Students were allowed to explore the park with the purpose of performing pre-assigned tasks by respective lecturers (Figure 2). This has included observation of various types of flora and fauna in the park. Students were reminded not to collect or pick any plants from the park as an effort to preserve the diversity and ecology of the park. We have spent about 2 hours at the park and started our journey back to campus at 11.30am. All of us reached TAR UMT campus safely around 12.15pm and this marked the end of field visit.  


During the visit, we came across many florae and fauna with a mix of commonly seen and the rarely observed species. We believe and hope this will help to expand students’ knowledge and exposures. Images of flora and fauna taken during the trip have been contributed by a few students and some of the examples can be found in the appendix. 


Water lily (left) and Bird's-nest fern (right)  found at the park.

Educational Field Trip & Community Services at Turtle Conservation & Information Centre, Malacca

Date : 2 Sept 2023 (Saturday)

Time: 8.00am – 7.00 pm

Venue : Turtle Conservation & Information Centre, Melaka

An educational field visit to the Turtle Conservation and Information Centre in Melaka was organized by the Department of Bioscience (DBSC) and the Chemistry & Biology Society on September 2, 2023. The educational trip was part of the learning opportunity given to raise awareness among students about the conservation and ocean pollution issues in Malaysia in line with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Goal 15 – Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainable manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. With this field trip, students were exposed to the importance of different turtle species in biodiversity in Malaysia, and the threat faced by them due to pollution. Apart from that, a sense of volunteerism and giving back to the community by being involved in beach cleaning activity and turtle hatchery sites at Conservation Centre experiences was advocated via this field trip

A total of 72 students from various programme (RBS, RAN & DSC) accompanied by Programme Leader, Ms. Selvi Chellappan, Ms. Chia Meow Lin, Dr.Yue Chen Son & Dr. Choong Shiau Huai joined the field trip. The activity began with cleaning the beach along Pantai Padang Kemunting next to the Turtle Conservation and Information Centre. The students spent 2 hours enthusiastically collecting rubbish and plastics that were thrown by the public along the beach and turtle hatchery sites. This lifelong learning experience allowed students to appreciate the environment and get involved with other aspects of community services in future which goes beyond education. An introduction and briefing was given by the centre officer in charge, Mr. Hanis, to the different species of turtles, found in Malaysia, the threats that these turtles face, and what can be done to help save them. Through this activity, the students also learned about emerging conservation issues in Malaysia, how relevant legislation protecting these species, and exposure to different aspects of turtle conservation activities that were implemented. The students were fortunate to have the chance to witness and participate in the turtle hatchery site. On behalf of TAR UMT, Ms. Selvi was given the opportunity to release about 300 tiny baby turtle hatchlings back to the sea in the late evening. It was truly amazing to watch the baby turtles paddling their way to the sea to start a new journey. The field trip was a valuable experience that showed students how important it is to care for the environment and living organisms, and promote sustainability.

Group photo after cleaning the beach along Pantai Padang Kemunting, Melaka by students & staffs

Group photo of the students and lecturers at Pantai Padang Kemunting near Turtle Conservation & Information Centre, Melaka

Group photo of students, lecturer and En. Hanis at the Turtle Conservation & Information Centre, Melaka

Students who managed to clear fishing nets buried along the beach

Community service by students to cleaning the beach next to the turtle hatchery sites and conservation centre.

Students helping to clear and clean at turtle hatchery sites

Hawksbill Turtle (Penyu Karah) being conserved at Turtle Conservation and Information Centre, Melaka



Participation in 13th MIFT National Food Science and Technology Competition 

5-6 August 2023


The 13th MIFT National Food Science and Technology Competition is a biennial event organized by Malaysia Institute of Food Technologist (MIFT) to offer a platform for both undergraduate and postgraduate students in the field of food science and technology to explore new perspectives in food science and technology area, develop research culture, and improve critical and creative thinking skills. Besides, this event is also a great platform to develop professional network among students, researchers, and industry players.  

The event was graciously hosted by the Monash University and took place on its campus in Bandar Sunway from August 5th to 6th, 2023. The event had attracted enthusiastic participation from students and lecturers specializing in food science and technology, representing a total of sixteen esteemed local public and private higher learning institutions. Among the notable institutions present were Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), Taylor’s University, UCSI University, UTAR, and others. The competition featured five distinct categories held concurrently over the two-day event, namely (1) Undergraduate Food Bowl Quiz, (2) Undergraduate Innovative Food Product Development, (3) Undergraduate Oratory Competition, (4) Postgraduate Poster Competition, and (5) Postgraduate Oral Presentation. The Department of Bioscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences showed full support for this event by sending students to participate in all categories. There were two teams of undergraduates competing in the Food Bowl Quiz, one team competing in the Innovative Food Product Development category, two students participating in the Oratory competition, two master’s degree students participating in Postgraduate Poster competition and one master’s degree student presenting in the Postgraduate Oral presentation. The preparation and guidance provided to all students by all dedicated food science lecturers were instrumental in their readiness for the competition.

Participation in this national competition not only provided a great platform to the students to showcase their professional skills but also provided them with valuable insights into the prospects and career opportunities in the field of food science and technology. Indeed, the participation in the 13th MIFT National Food Science and Technology Competition aligns perfectly with the SDG 4 Quality Education. This event provides a valuable and supportive environment that promotes professional growth among the young talents in the field of food science and technology.    

Study Tour to Malaysian International Food and Beverage Trade Fair 2023

12-14 July 2023

The study tour was organized by the Food Science program, Department of Bioscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences, as part of the off-campus learning activities for the following courses: BAFS1353 Food Analysis, BAFS1333 Food Microbiology I, BAFS2324 Food Chemistry II, BAFS3323 Food Product Development, and BAFS3313 Food Quality Assurance and Food Safety. The Malaysian International Food and Beverage Trade Fair 2023 (MIFB) served as the host of one of Malaysia's largest food and beverage exhibitions, organized by Constellar Malaysia. This exhibition acted as a pivotal business gathering platform, uniting global food and beverage producers, importers, exporters, buyers, media partners, supporting partners, and government agencies to foster fruitful food and beverage trade collaborations.

Taking place at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) from 12 - 14th July 2023, the study tour occurred on the 14th of July (Friday) and received the participation of 85 Bachelor of Science (Hons.) in Food Science students and five lecturers (AP Dr Tang Pei Ling, Dr Ng Siou Pei, Dr Lim Lee Chang, Dr Chong Cheong Yew, and Dr Kek Siok Peng). During this half-day tour, the attendees were introduced to an array of new food and beverage products from local and international exhibitors from China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, and Thailand. The diverse product range showcased during the exhibition included snacks and confectionery, various beverages, meat and seafood products, dried fruits and vegetables, among others.

This insightful tour provided students with valuable knowledge about the cutting-edge developments in the food and beverage industries, granting them the opportunity to directly interact with professionals from various domains. The initiative was in alignment with SDG 4 Quality Education, as it enabled students to observe real-world food business operations and trade processes.


BWF CSR Project - Shuttle Time Teacher Course

24th June 2023

Time:1.00pm to 6.00pm

Venue: Basketball Court 1, East Campus

Speaker: 1- Tan Jinn Hwa

2- Mac Lim Ann Liang

3- Goh Yea Ching

4- Reneasha Nair A/P Shanker (TARUMT)

5-Madeline Yap Man Ling

6- Ryan Jiam G-Hao (TARUMT)

7- Tracy Tan Li Jing (BWF)

8- Leong Kye Yeet (TARUMT)

9- Rachel Wee (BWF)

10. Oliver Lee (BWF)

The Department of Sport Science co-organized a coaching clinic with the help of BWF on 24th June 2023 in conjunction with World Badminton Day. Eight coaches including those who completed the Shuttle Time Teacher Course conducted the coaching clinic at our Basketball Court 1, TARUMT. We had three participants who were TARUC’s Bachelor of Science in Sport and Exercise Science students who took part in this coaching clinic. This coaching clinic was aimed to promote physical activity among children which also aligns with the BWF’s strategic objective “To give every child a chance to play for life”. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) as the world governing body for the sport of badminton. Working closely with its five Continental Confederations for badminton and 198 Member Associations, the BWF promotes, presents, develops, and regulates the sport worldwide.

The objectives of this coaching clinic were to: 1. Ensure that the project is sustainable working together with local workforce.

2. Build relationships between local organisations and institutions to support the project.

3. Prepare participants to be ready for the coaching clinics associated with this CSR project.

This coaching clinic involved approximately 30 participants from local children’s homes and schools. The coaches created four activity stations, giving every child the opportunity to experience different lessons, from grips to balancing exercises to hitting the shuttlecock. This project is also aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals proposed by the United Nations. By participating in this course, we are able to promote Goal 3 (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages), Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all) and Goal 5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls). By conducting this clinic, participants are going to promote healthy living among the participants from local children homes and schools. Besides that, they are able to provide quality coaching to ensure that the participants are able to play badminton with the right technique and intensity. Lastly, by conducting this coaching clinic, girls and boys of all ages and background are able to participate and ensuring that they get an equal chance to be active and participate in sports.

Industrial Trip to Hartalega NGC Sdn. Bhd.

17 May 2023 

Time : 8.00am – 5.00 pm

Venue : Kawasan Perindustrian Tanjung, Sepang, Selangor.


Faculty of Applied Sciences (FOAS) and Faculty of Engineering & Technology (FOET) organized the industrial plant tour to visit Hartalega production plant. The industrial trip was part of the learning opportunity given by Hartalega to students to explore and engage with real workstations, plants, machines, systems during the plant tour. Apart from the plant tour, the students were given exposure on professional Resume/CV writing skills, career prospect with Young Professional Programme for fresh graduates and Hartalega’s Internship programme that provides practical skills training that can give a head-start in the career.

A total of 17 students from two programme (RAN3 & RBS3) with Programme Leader, Assoc. Prof Dr. Liew Chiam Wen and Ms. Selvi Chellappan joined the study trip. Students were given briefing by the Human Resource team on the topic entitle ‘Kickstart your career with Hartalega’ and followed by Production team introducing and explaining on the gloves manufacturing process and materials used in gloves production. A plant tour was arranged at workstations for the students and lecturers to understand the whole process involved in production section. The industrial trip was indeed an eye-opener and exposure to the students of the career opportunity.

Research Talk: Life on the Edge: The Extreme Biology of the African trypanosome 

17 May 2023

Speaker: Dr Ooi Cher-Pheng 

Time: 10 – 11 am 

Venue: DK8 


The Department of Bioscience is much honored to have Dr. Ooi Cher-Pheng, one of TARC Alumni to share his research on this interesting single-celled protozoan mammalian parasite, Trypanosoma brucei, which causes disease in humans and livestock. The talk was attended by Associate Dean Dr Ong YY, Bioscience lecturers Dr Low Ying Chiang, Ms Chia Meow Lin and students of DSC and RBS. Dr Ooi first gave a brief introduction of the complex life cycle of the parasite and highlighted the extreme mechanisms employed by the parasite to maximise its infectivity. Trypanosoma evades the host innate and adaptive immune systems through the prodigiously expressing a single type of protein – the variant surface glycogen. The main focus of Dr Ooi and his co-researchers’ work centered around the molecular biology of the VGS to elucidate more on its role T. brucei pathogenicity mainly by tools including mutational studies, RNA interference technology and expression studies. Dr Ooi presented results on their work to elucidate the mechanisms of antigenic variations and expression of VSG such as the role of VSG 3′UTR 16‐mer sequences for the generation of functional levels of VSG expression, the integrity of the VSG coat in cell division cycle, the secretory pathway of VSG and the regulation of VSG mRNA levels. It was really a very exciting research talk that illustrates how molecular techniques are utilized to investigate gene function and solving biological problems. Most importantly the talk illuminates how experiments are designed to answer basic questions of an organism’s biology. Bioscience students would gain some insights on how a good foundation in basic biology gained in the B. Sc programme can be used to discover many interesting aspects of living organisms. 


FOAS Postgraduate Talk by Guest Speaker

19 April 2023

Time : 10.00am – 12.00pm (2 hrs)

Venue : DK 8, TAR UMT

Speaker : Prof. Dr. Tan Chin Ping

The postgraduate talk was organized by postgraduate programme leader (Life science and Food Science) from Department of Bioscience, FOAS on 19 April 2023 to motivate and inspire students to explore research as well as enroll in postgraduate studies. The topic, “My Career Path as A Scientist,” was delivered by distinguished guest speaker Prof Dr Tan Chin Ping. In his presentation, he shared his research experiences for the past 20 years, educational background, career path and lessons learnt. He also advised aspiring scientists and offered future directions in the food science and technology field. The career development of a scientist involves the combination of education, research, professional development, networking, specific skills and knowledge related to the food industry. The postgraduate talk was attended by a total of 19 undergraduate students, 2 postgraduate students and 7 lecturers. The talk was truly enlightening, and participants have gained a lot of valuable information from the guest speaker’s presentation. Participant feedback was that the postgraduate talk was informative and indeed a good opportunity to learn from Prof Tan. 


Technical staff explained the making process of gelato using gelato machine

Industry Visit – F & B Equipment Sdn. Bhd.

15 April 2023

The industry visit was organized by the Food Science programme, Department of Bioscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences as part of the out-campus learning activity for courses AAFS3324 Food Technology and BAFS1344 Unit Operations in Food Processing. F&B Equipment Sdn. Bhd. is a food machinery factory located in Setiawalk, Puchong. Besides supplying various food processing equipment, the company also provides services in developing food safety and quality management system for food manufacturers and central kitchens. The software ‘Resource Management System’ and ‘Asset Management System’ are two IT products of the company for tracking and tracing foods in the whole food supply chain. 

This visit was held on 15 April 2023 (Saturday) and participated by 27 Diploma in Food Science (Year 2 Semester 2) students, 8 Bachelor of Science (Hons.) in Food Science (Year 1 Semester 3) students and 2 lecturers. In this half-day visit, technical staffs of the company showed demonstration of different machines used in cook-chill, baking, beverage and confectionery preparation and packaging to the students. Besides, the students were also given opportunity to operate the Combi oven (fast cooking equipment) for lunch preparation.  

This visit was in line with SDG 4 Quality Education by exposing the students to the real-life food processing operations.


Educational Talk: Sport Science Webinar

12 April 2023

Presenter: Assistant Professor Dr Parunchaya Jamkrajang, Mahidol University 

Theme: Application of Sports Biomechanics on Thailand Athletes.

Time given: 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm (Malaysian Time) 

Venue: Google Meet

Sport science is an interdisciplinary field that applies scientific principles to understand how the human body responds to physical activity, exercise, and sport. The Sport Science webinar will explore the key areas of sport science and how they can be applied to improve athletic performance and overall health. Various speakers from local or international will be invited to present their work or their experience dealing with athletes in their country. Topic will range from exercise physiology, physical activity, biomechanics, coaching, nutrition, psychology and many more.

The objective is to provide our sport science students with a comprehensive understanding of the scientific principles that underpin athletic performance and physical activity through sharing by speakers from various expertise and research background. The webinar could also foster a community of learning and collaboration among students, speaker and academic staff from DSSC.

The webinar series was attended by a total of 60 students attended the talk physically at C105b as well as online via Google Meet. Dr Parunchaya shared a brief introduction on Mahidol University, its facilities and of herself. She also projected a video to demonstrate the application of sports biomechanics on Thailand athletes based on the various projects that she was involved in with the Sport Authority of Thailand.

Dr Parunchaya shared on the usage of 2D and 3D motion capture analysis to look at swimming performance and technique. She also highlighted the different methods of taping up the sensors on the athlete to ensure sufficient information would be collected for analysis. She has also highlighted the other project that she carried out regarding the ground reaction force on directional landing of athletes to identify methods to minimize injuries and predict the potential injury that could occur based on the data.

She also introduced to the students, the various methods that biomechanics are linked with other fields within sports science from biomechanics to rehabilitation and sports injury as well as sport performance and performance analysis.

BWF CSR Project: Shuttle Time Teacher Course

25 March 2023

Time:1.00pm to 6.00pm

Venue: Sports Complex, East Campus 

Speaker: Tan Jinn Hwa, Mac Lim Ann Liang, Suvashini Sivapathasundram (BWF), Goh Yea Ching, Reneasha Nair A/P Shanker (TARUMT), Madeline Yap Man Ling, Ryan Jiam G-Hao (TARUMT), Tracy Tan Li Jing (BWF), Erica Khoo Pei Shan (BWF), Rachel Wee (BWF), Ahmad Hafidz (BWF), Mohd Haszbee, Oliver Lee (BWF)

The Department of Sport Science co-organized a coaching clinic with the help of BWF on 25th March 2023 in conjunction with White Card Day. Thirteen coaches including those who completed the Shuttle Time Teacher Course earlier in the month conducted the coaching clinic at our Sports Complex, TARUMT. We had two participants who were TARUC’s Bachelor of Science in Sport and Exercise Science students who took part in this coaching clinic. This coaching clinic was aimed to promote physical activity among children which also aligns with the BWF’s strategic objective “To give every child a chance to play for life”. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) as the world governing body for the sport of badminton. Working closely with its five Continental Confederations for badminton and 198 Member Associations, the BWF promotes, presents, develops, and regulates the sport worldwide.

The objectives of this coaching clinic were to:

1. Ensure that the project is sustainable working together with local workforce.

2. Build relationships between local organisations and institutions to support the project.

3. Prepare participants to be ready for the coaching clinics associated with this CSR project.

This coaching clinic involved approximately 40 participants from local children’s homes and schools. The coaches created five activity stations, giving every child the opportunity to experience different lessons, from grips to balancing exercises to hitting the shuttlecock. The activity was led by Tan Jinn Hwa, who has been part of the CSR workforce since the beginning of the project in 2019.

This project is also aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals proposed by the United Nations. By participating in this course, we are able to promote Goal 3 (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages), Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all) and Goal 5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls). By conducting this clinic, participants are going to promote healthy living among the participants from local children homes and schools. Besides that, they are able to provide quality coaching to ensure that the participants are able to play badminton with the right technique and intensity. Lastly, by conducting this coaching clinic, girls and boys of all ages and background are able to participate and ensuring that they get an equal chance to be active and participate in sports.

BWF CSR Project: Shuttle Time Teacher Course

4 March 2023

Time: 9.00am to 5.00pm

Venue: C106i, C105G East Campus

Speaker: Sharon Springer (BWF Head of Educational Programmes), Erica Khoo (BWF Development Manager), Adrian Gomez (BWF Shuttle Time Trainer)

The Department of Sport Science co-organized a course with the help of BWF on 4th March 2023. Nine participants from different backgrounds - local teachers, caregivers, administrators, coaches & volunteers - attended the course. We had three participants who were TARUC’s Bachelor of Science in Sport and Exercise Science students. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) is recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) as the world governing body for the sport of badminton. Working closely with its five Continental Confederations for badminton and 198 Member Associations, the BWF promotes, presents, develops, and regulates the sport worldwide.

The objectives of this talk were to:

1. Ensure that the project is sustainable working together with local workforce.

2. Build relationships between local organisations and institutions to support the project.

3. Prepare participants to be ready for the coaching clinics associated with this CSR project.

Participants gathered in C106i for some course briefing and also introduce them to the concepts behind the shuttle time course. Participants covered the theoretical components of the Shuttle Time programme, covered badminton techniques, tactics and physical elements of the sport. After that, participants moved to our Indoor Track (C105G) and practiced the delivery of badminton lessons and coaching points taught in the earlier session.

This project is also aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals proposed by the United Nations. By participating in this course, we are able to promote Goal 3 (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages) and Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all). By completing this course, participants are going to promote healthy living and conducting coaching clinics with the help of BWF within the underprivileged community. Besides that, the education and knowledge gained from this course will help them to self-improve and help with their delivery of future practices.

Research Talk: Coordination Chemistry, Ligand Design, Metal Clusters and Relevance to Homogeneous Catalysis and Nanomaterials

 3 March 2023

Professor Dr. Pierre Braunstein is the Emeritus CNRS Research Director at the University of Strasbourg, France, where he remained for his whole career, except for one year at University College London and another year at the TU Munich (with Prof. E. O. Fischer, Nobel Laureate). He is also affiliated with various universities in China including Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Zhejiang University, Soochow University and Yangzhou University. His broad research interests lie in the inorganic and organometallic chemistry of the transition and main group elements, where he has co-authored over 630 scientific publications and review articles. Focused on fundamental research, his work has also led to diverse applications, ranging from homogeneous catalysis, to cluster-derived nanoparticles for heterogeneous catalysis and nanoscience. He has given over 500 Plenary, Keynote, and Invited talks at international conferences and diverse institutions. His achievements have been recognized by numerous awards and honors from France, China, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, The Netherlands and the United Kingdom. He is a member of the French Academy of Sciences and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and, since 2015, is Head of the Division of Chemical Sciences in the European Academy of Sciences.

Prof. Dr. Pierre Braunstein conducted a research talk on 3rd March 2023 from 11am to 12pm at D210B, FOAS, TAR UMT to the staff members and students from FOAS. His research talk entitles “Coordination Chemistry, Ligand Design, Metal Clusters and Relevance to Homogeneous Catalysis and Nanomaterials”. As established by Alfred Werner, who is the Nobel laureate winner in 1913, the interactions between ligands and metals represent the basis of coordination chemistry. The design of functional ligands allows the emergence of new molecular properties, in particular hybrid ligands which are characterized by the combination of chemically different donor groups. But more than one metal center can be involved in the interactions with ligands and the development of homo- and heteropolymetallic metal clusters has opened new perspectives, in terms of metal-metal bonding, catalysis and nanoscience. Prof. Dr. Pierre Braunstein illustrated a few examples on how a better understanding of coordination and organometallic chemistry can lead to novel or significantly improved drugs, homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts (Green Chemistry) and nanomaterials.

The event was chaired by Prof. Dr. Phang Sook Wai. Associate Dean, Dr Chen Sheau Huey was presented a souvenir to Prof. Dr. Pierre Braunstein after the research talk. Few chemistry lecturers including Assoc Prof. Dr Tan Ming Yueh, Dr Tan Siew San, Dr Sin Sau Leng, Assoc. Prof. Dr Liew Chiam Wen and Prof. Dr Phang Sook Wai were attending the research talk and having a short research discussion with Prof. Dr. Pierre Braunstein. The laboratory tour at D312 and D313 was led by Assoc Prof. Dr Tan Ming Yueh and Dr Tan Siew San. We brought Prof. Dr. Pierre Braunstein to have lunch at Canton Kitchen and had a short visit to the Royal Selangor Pewter Visitor Center. All staff members and students gained much knowledge about “Coordination Chemistry” after this research talk.

Entrepreneurship Talk: "Career Prospect of Scientist- Entrepreneur"

24 February 2023

Entrepreneurship Talk was an event organized by the Department of Bioscience, Faculty of Applied Sciences in collaboration with Trend Global, a digital marketing company. The company CEO, Ms. Sany Low is a TAR UMT’s alumnus from Bachelor of Science (Chemistry & Biology). It is the norm that scientist and entrepreneur are seen as separate career paths. Majority of students with science background are weak in entrepreneurship. Most students are unable to link science to entrepreneurship. In fact, a good and successful entrepreneur requires scientific knowledge to start up a new business. Meanwhile, a successful scientist should be able to translate the scientific knowledge into commercial applications to solve the problems of the people. Therefore, this short talk was organized to inspire the science-background students with the success journey of an entrepreneur with science background and provide an insight into the role of science in business world. Besides, this event was organized in conjunction with the SDG 4 (Quality Education) by incorporating the entrepreneurial knowledge in the science-background students to facilitate lifelong learning.  

The event with topic ‘Career Prospect of Scientist- Entrepreneur’ was held on 24 February 2023, at 3 p.m. in DK 1. A total of 125 students from RFN, DFN, RBS and RAN were attended this event. This one and half hour talk was delivered by the company CEO, Ms. Sany. Besides sharing of the success journey from a medical device sales personnel to self-employed, Ms. Sany also introduced Digital Entrepreneurship Program offered by the company, in collaboration with TAR UMT. At the end of this talk, the participants with science background gained insight into career opportunities of science students in the entrepreneurial and business world. 

Event Title: 9th Malaysia Weiqi Open Championship Date: 4th – 5th    November 2023

Time: 8 am to 6 pm

Venue: Sport Complex, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology


 Event Objectives:

 

Report Summary

The 10th Malaysia Weiqi Open Championship is one of the yearly events that is organized by the Department of Sport Science and the Sport Science Society with the support from the Faculty of Applied Sciences This event attracted a total of 211 participants from both local and overseas such as China, Korea, Thailand and Japan for the 2-day event that exposed the Sport and Exercise Science students in organizing mind sports event and promote awareness in mind sports among students and staff at TAR UMT, as well as to promote the art of Chinese board games and culture. A total of 6 categories were competed in ranging from Low Kyu till Dan Group with a different age range in all groups. This event was also graced with a special opening event from the Lion Dance Team.