CNYSC Alumni Homecoming 2018
BY NG DEWEY
There’s nothing like a place we can call home. For all CN Yang scholars, CresPion halls is a place which all scholars have called home at least once. On the 2nd of February, scholars from past batches were invited to come “home” once again, gathering at CresPion function hall for the CN Yang Scholars Homecoming event. The event, held annually, was organised by the 10th EC Outreach portfolio. It provided a platform for the newly minted freshmen to interact with senior batches to find out more about the programme, as well as allowing the seniors to catch up over some good food and drinks.
The atmosphere was really chill, especially since it was a Friday evening – a perfect way to end off the week and kickstart the weekend. Photos of the club and its past members lined the walls, alongside balloons which kept the mood light and jovial. On each table was a classic tin of Redondo wafers, every scholar’s favourite EWP snack, as well as a set of interesting questions in case anyone had left their icebreakers at home. There was even a photo booth set up for the scholars to take photos and bring back some keepsakes. All that was missing was some good background music, but it was nothing a little chitchat couldn’t solve.
The night started off with a scrumptious dinner, complete with desserts and drinks. The scholars happily mingled with one another as they tucked into the delightful food, having good laughs and reminiscing about times past. My favourite dessert was the fruit tarts, which I had at least 3 of (shhhhhh). Before we progressed further into the night, Dr Goh, the Head of Research for CNYSP delivered the opening address. This was followed by an update of the happenings of the past year by Kai Xin, the Vice President of the 10th EC.
Personally, I got to talk to Edwin, a really easy-going person who shared his many experiences as a former CN Yang scholar. I did not know it at the time, but he turned out to be the Head Progs for the Freshman Orientation Programme (FOP) for his second year, and he is also the current president of the NTU CNYSP alumni club, which was really cool. It’s rare to see 3 generations of FOP Head Progs within a one-meter radius of one another. That amount of brainpower.
Once everyone had their fill of food, Yi Heng, the emcee for the event, wrapped up the programme at the function hall and proceeded to usher the scholars into the various seminar rooms for the sharing sessions by the seniors. There were 4 sharing sessions, each geared towards different interests of the scholars. The speakers ranged from PhD students to a Senior Head of Higher Education Policy in MOE. They shared a great many things about the working world, from interviews to expectations, as well as bountiful bonuses that companies gave out.
Towards the end of the night, all the seniors gave a brief introduction of themselves so that the freshies could approach them should they be interested in any of the jobs/PhD research areas that the seniors were specialising in. This was especially helpful as it allowed us to approach the right people for advice. One of the seniors working in the aviation industry even confirmed our long-held suspicions that the prices of flight tickets were manipulated. That drew a pretty intense response from the audience, no doubt.
Overall, the event was an enjoyable one, food, company and all else. Kudos to the Outreach team for planning the event from start till end, and I will definitely be back again next year!
Gallery: CNYSC Alumni Homecoming 2018
Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC) Visit 2018
BY GOH YING TING
We were fortunate to be given the opportunity to visit the Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC) at A* STAR. As a computer science undergraduate, I was undeniably eager to learn more about the various research studies and innovations enabled by computational tools.
Our visit started off with a series of talks by the scientists and researchers at IHPC. Our first speaker, Dr Qin Zheng from the department of Computer Science, shared about data analytics and processing in the context of urban systems. One notable study he shared was the collection of data using the “SENSg” tracker as part of the National Science Experiment. Involving students from all levels, the sensor tracked the mobility patterns of students, shedding light on the modes of transportation students take to commute to and from school. The sensor was able to closely monitor the transportation patterns of the students, providing more precise data as compared to EZ link cards, which could only reveal the initial and final destinations of commuters. Dr Qin Zheng shared about how the scientists analysed the data and the interesting findings gleaned from the study, such as why the actual time students took to commute from one place to another was less than that estimated by tools such as Google Maps. It was actually because students knew how to take shortcuts, such as through a patch of grass, or under HDB blocks, thus reducing the time taken. I found the whole process of analysing and understanding the data collected very interesting as it contextualised the data and findings to our daily lives.
Our second and third speakers, Dr Ho Seng Beng and Dr Prasanta, were from the social and cognitive computing department. Their team had developed cognitive and psycholinguistic tools to analyse data on social media. One particular tool that stood out to me was Crystalace, a social analytical method developed by the team to detect sarcasm. Users can key in any text and the method would measure the sarcasm level of the phrase. I have always found sarcasm something that is hard to detect and explain even for humans, and so was pleasantly surprised to learn that the tool could detect sarcasm rather accurately. Indeed, this tool can help to filter out the sarcastic comments when analysing the vast amounts of data on social media, as sarcastic comments can distort general sentiments, overestimating a positive response when the sentiment is negative in reality. (You can try it out for yourself here: http://crystalace.socialanalyticsplus.net)
The second part of our visit comprised a tour of FusionWorld, an exhibition within A* STAR which showcases inventions and technologies from the research institutes there. Besides viewing the exhibits, we got to try out the Brain Computer Interface (BCI) and play a simple memory game. The BCI tracks the activity of the brain, in turn allowing the user to control devices. This technology can be used in the medical field, such as to help stroke patients rehabilitate. From ultra-thin light emitting films that are used to print advertisements on buses to an application that can track and monitor the safety of a child on school buses, these technologies highlight their relevance to improving our daily lives.
The visit was indeed an insightful one as it underscored the power of science and technology to improve our way of living and daily lives. Furthermore, it showcased computational tools as a means data analysis, providing vast opportunities for research and innovation.
SIMTech Visit 2017
BY CHENG WEI QUAN
When thinking about the manufacturing process, the first thing that comes to my mind are the automations in assembly lines of a factory, producing goods from raw materials. However, the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies, called Industry 4.0, is more than just machines and computers in a factory. The visit to the Manufacturing Control Tower (MCT) at SIMTech was insightful as we were able to understand the workings of a “smart factory” in Industry 4.0, which utilises a cyber-physical system to improve efficiency of manufacturing processes.
The MCT contains 4 main demonstrator areas, namely Timely Supply Chain and Logistics (TSCL), Predictive Enterprise, Worry-free Shopfloor, and Eco-Efficient Resource Management. Each of these areas focuses on the application of computing and Internet of Things (IoT) in order to solve existing problems in the manufacturing industry. For instance, the TSCL showcases the optimisation technologies in MCT, which allows customer orders to be automatically optimised and allocated to meet due dates and reduce fulfilment costs more effectively. With the SIMTech-developed Vehicle Routing Programme (VRP) optimisation engine, automated planning of driver assignments, real-time monitoring of operations and dispatching becomes a smooth and easy process. All the planner is required to do is simply adjust the routes based on any sudden changes or events and the drivers will be notified via the On-the-go Planning and Monitoring Solution application instantly, providing flexibility to meet customers’ requirements.
The aim of MCT is to reach out to manufacturing companies with these solutions to help them increase their overall operational efficiency and effectiveness, while also providing aspiring researchers with the opportunities to join them in their ventures to conduct R&D in the manufacturing environment. Those who are interested in manufacturing research should definitely visit the MCT website for more information regarding the current manufacturing technologies.