WEEK #34: 22 – 28 August 2016
In this issue:
A. Events
(i) Invitation to Special Lecture on Thailand 4.0 by H.E. Dr. Suvit Maesincee, Deputy Minister of Commerce, Government of Thailand: 30 August 2016
His Excellency Dr. Suvit Maesincee, Deputy Minister of Commerce, Government of Thailand, who is also the initiator of Thailand 4.0, has accepted the Institute's invitation to visit AIT on 30 August, 2016 and to deliver a Special Lecture on the occasion.
The AIT Community are invited to attend the Special Lecture by H.E. Dr. Suvit, which will be followed by an exhibition of selected AIT showcase projects.
Program
3.00-3.30 p.m. Registration
3.30-4.30 p.m. Special Lecture on "Thailand 4.0" by H.E. Dr. Suvit Maesincee, Deputy Minister of Commerce, Government of Thailand, Main Auditorium, AIT Conference Center (AITCC)
4.30-5.00 p.m. Visit to AIT Exhibits - Selected Showcase Projects (in front of Main Auditorium)
For those who have already registered through https://docs.google.com/a/ait.asia/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe0C_3Q6qb0IvSHdCWfL6pRsO14mHWn8GcIhZc6FZ-z49tkKg/viewform?entry.1104671418&entry.642422265&entry.1640447617&entry.1584483044, , kindly do so once againใ
(ii) 6th AIT Distinguished Adjunct Faculty (DAF) Lecture Series by AIT Alumnus Prof. Sashi K. Kunnath, 22 August 2016
The 6th AIT Distinguished Adjunct Faculty (DAF) Seminar" will be delivered by Professor Sashi Kunnath on the topic "Progressive Collapse Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Frame Buildings following Sudden Column Loss" on 22 August 2016 from 10:30-12:00 hours on 22 August 2016 at the AIT Conference Center Auditorium.
Professor Sashi Kunnath is an AIT alumnus, currently serving as Professor in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of California at Davis (UCD). He previously served as Department Chair from 2009 – 2015. He received his undergraduate degree from Bangalore University, India, his Master’s Degree in Structural Engineering from the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), and his PhD at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York.
He has published over 200 technical papers and reports, chaired or co‐ chaired international conferences and delivered invited/keynote lectures in China, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Portugal, Slovenia and Thailand. He formerly served as the Editor‐in‐Chief of the ASCE Journal of Structural Engineering and also chaired the ASCE Technical Administrative Committee on Dynamic Effects and the Technical Committee on Seismic Effects. He has received numerous awards including: the 2012 Norman Medal from ASCE, the Richard Torrens Award in 2009, the Raymond Reese Research Prize from ASCE in 2008, and the American Concrete Institute (ACI) Structural Research Award in 2001. He is Fellow of the American Concrete Institute (2007), the American Society of Civil Engineers (2010) and the ASCE Structural Engineering Institute (2013).
Please kindly confirm your participation by registering through the following link or by emailing Ms. Chotiros (Nam) at chotirosm@ait.asia , Tel. 02-524 6319.
There will be also be a live broadcast of the talk.
Further details on the DAF initiative is available at the below link:
https://sites.google.com/a/ait.asia/ait-distinguished-adjunct-faculty/home
There will be a live broadcast of "AIT Distinguished Adjunct Faculty (DAF) Seminar Series" by Prof. Sashi K Kunnath. The link is provided below:
http://livebroadcast.ait.ac.th/daf2016/prof_sashi.html
(iii) Orientation for Undergraduate Program Students 2016: 22 Aug. 2016
On 22 August 2016, the Undergraduate Program is organizing an Orientation from 08:30 AM to 03:00 PM, for 162 incoming 3rd year students under the 2+2 program from the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM), Sri Lanka and MCC Training Institute (MCCi), Myanmar.
The program will be attended by Prof. Sivanappan Kumar (VPAA), Prof. Voratas Kachitvichyanukul (SET Dean), Mr. Raunak Thapa (SU President), and Dr. Matthew Dailey and Dr Peeyush Soni (SET and SERD UG Coordinators), among others.
(iv) AIT Solutions Hackathon: Help us Build the Next Killer App: 23 Aug. 2016
AIT Solutions invites Structural and Construction Engineers (Students, Staffs, and Faculty Members) to participate in AIT Solutions Hackathon: "Help us build the next killer software/mobile app for Structural and Construction Engineers ".
Hackathon is a chance to work on the ideas you have been thinking about, to turn "Wow, wouldn't it be cool if..." into "Hey, I just built this cool thing." Software Engineers at AIT Solutions will unleash their coding and design talents to build prototypes of the top ideas. Sometimes the best way to find out if an idea is good is to try it out. We invite you to join in the spirit of hackathon by building that idea you've been thinking about and put together a working version to show to the industry. We want to do this because we feel that innovation is best demonstrated by bringing ideas to life, even if the first version may not be perfect.
AIT Solutions Hackathon is a half day event. The participants can register in teams or as individuals. All the participants will be given a short time to present their ideas and at the end of the event and the judges will evaluate all the ideas and award prizes to the top three.
The prizes of the event are:
First Prize: THB 10,000
Second Prize: THB 7,000
Third Prize: THB 5,000
The details of the event are:
Date: 23 August 2016
Time: 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Venue: AIT Conference Center
Please register here. The Registration deadline is 22 August 2016, 5:00 pm.
For more information, please contact:
Mr. Muhammad Amir Izhar: amir@ait.asia
Ms. Shreya Pradhan: shreya@ait.asia
(v) Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) Implementation Workshop: 23 – 24 August 2016
A two-day Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) Implementation Workshop will be organized on 23-24 August 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand.
CAP Workshops focus on emergency alerting, and people interested in emergency alerting are welcome to participate. This includes managers, technical staff, media, commercial organizations, governments, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). There is no workshop participation fees.
Hosts of the 2016 CAP Implementation Workshop are the Asian Institute of Technology and the Sahana Software Foundation.
More details: http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/2016/events/common-alerting-protocol-cap-implementation-workshop/#.V4hPe6LkKUk
(vi) Blood Donation: 6 Sept. 2016
The Thai Red Cross Society has been working with volunteer students and staff to collect units of blood from the AIT community. The bloodmobile visits AIT every three months, four times a year, to collect enough units to supply the constant demand for blood.
The next visit for blood donation is scheduled on Tuesday 6 September 2016, 9:00 - 11:30 a.m. at the parking lot in front of the AIT Conference Center.
Give blood! You'll experience a fulfilling sense of contribution. And the donation process takes only half an hour.
(vii) Presentation on Sumitomo Foundation, Japan Grant for Fiscal Year 2016: 9 Sept. 2016
The Office of External Relations (OEXR) is pleased to invite you to attend the presentation on Sumitomo Foundation, Japan Grant for Fiscal Year 2016, by Akinori Matsunaga, Program Officer, The Sumitomo Foundation, Japan on 9 September 2016, Friday from 9:00 to 10:30 hrs in the Board Room, Administration Building.
Please find below the announcement regarding the Sumitomo Foundation, Japan Grant for Fiscal Year 2016 for Japan Related Research Projects:
Purpose of the Program:
The program aims at enhancing mutual understanding between Asian countries and Japan through promoting research projects in the field of the social sciences or humanities that are related to Japan.
Eligible Projects for Application:
Any research project to be carried out by individual or a group in the field of the social sciences or humanities related to Japan.
Qualification of Applicant:
Researcher shall be of Asian (non-Japanese) nationality, living outside Japan. Awarded researcher must conduct the proposed research by himself or herself.
Fiscal 2016 Program:
Application period: September 1 ～ October 31, 2016
Grant period: One year (April 2017 through March 2018), but can be extended by another one year maximum if required.
Grant budget: Approximately 50 million Japanese Yen in total (Maximum 2 million Japanese Yen per Project).
Application:
The Application Form duly filled in and signed shall be submitted together with a letter of recommendation, free-form from a person with an academic background by registered airmail.
The Application Form, the Application Guide and the Instruction Sheet for Fiscal 2016 can be downloaded from the below link:
http://www.sumitomo.or.jp/e/
Language for Application: English or Japanese
Selection:
The selection of applications will be made by the Foundation’s Selection Committee made up of certain persons of high academic standing. Based on such determination, the Foundation’s Board of Directors will approve the grant.
Those interested to know more about Sumitomo Foundation, Japan Grant and apply for this grant are invited to attend this presentation.
Kindly confirm your participation no later than Friday 2 September 2016, with a reply email to Ms. Sumana Shrestha, Senior Program Officer, Office of External Relations (OEXR) at sumana@ait.asia .
(viii) A Seminar on “Locational Intelligence with CARTO: Empower organizations to optimize operational performance, strategic investments and everyday decisions”: 13 Sept. 2016
A seminar on "Location Intelligence: Empower organisations to to optimise operational performance, strategic investments and everyday decisions” will be delivered by Fernando Carrasco on 13 September 2016 from 09:00-13:00 hours.
For more information, please contact Firman hadi at email: firmanhadi@ait.asia
More details: http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/2016/events/seminar-on-location-intelligence-empower-organisations-to-optimise-operational-performance-strategic-investments-and-everyday-decisions201d/#.V7Z5K6LkKUk
(ix) Training Course on "Accounting for Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals through REDD+ Activities": 27 Nov. – 4 Dec. 2016
Natural Resources Management Field of Study, School of Environment, Resources and Development (SERD) will organize a training course on "Accounting for Carbon Emission Reductions and Removals through REDD+ Activities" on 27 November – 4 December 2016 at the AIT conference center.
For more information, please see:
http://www.nrm.ait.asia/specialprograms/training/
Closing: 30 September 2016
B. Announcements
(i) Passing Away of former AIT Faculty – Prof. C. P. Gupta (From AIT President’s Email)
We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing away of former AIT Professor CP Gupta on 10 August 2016.
Professor Gupta served as an AIT faculty member from May 1985 – August 1996 (11 years 4 months). Over the course of his tenure at AIT Professor Gupta taught numerous postgraduate courses: theory of field machinery, design of agricultural equipment, manufacturing and testing of agricultural equipment, electrification in rural areas,Instrumentation and measurement techniques, systems engineering in agriculture, food process engineering, physical properties of materials, postharvest technology of rice. Professor Gupta supervised the thesis research of 26 master's and 3 doctoral students, and served as Principal Investigator of a number of sponsored projects, including one on "Farmer Driven Electrostatic Low Volume Sprayer" funded by USAID.
Professor Gupta had more than 30 years of experience in teaching, research, design, development, consultancy and management in agricultural machinery, energy in agriculture, post - harvest technology and food engineering in several countries. Among his many assignments included serving as an Expert for the AII India Council for Technical Education; Consultant to the World Bank, Agricultural Engineering and Agricultural Machine Industry Specialist, Center for Development of Agricultural Engineering, West Java, Indonesia (June 1997 – June 1998); Professor & Head of Agricultural Engineering North East Regional Institute of Science & Technology (November 1996 – April 1997); Professor of Postharvest Technology / Agricultural Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (January 1972 – May 1985); Agricultural Engineer, Expert on Weeders for Regional Network for Agricultural Machinery, ESCAP, UNDP (March 1980 – December 1981); Visiting Professor, Central Food Research Institute ,Budapest,Hungary (October 1978 – November 1978), Consultant, International Livestock Center for Africa ,Addis Ababa ,Ethiopia (May 1978 – June 1978) etc.
On behalf of all members of the AIT community, I would like to express our heartfelt condolences to members of Professor Gupta's family, and pray for strength and courage in this time of bereavement. It is also an opportune occasion for remembrance, and to express our heartfelt gratitude to Professor Gupta for his many years of distinguished service to AIT and the region.
Sincerely,
Professor Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai
President
Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)
(ii) Sudden passing away of Dr. Josef Traenkler, former German Seconded
Faculty (From AIT President’s Email)
We are deeply saddened by the news of the sudden passing away of Dr. Josef Traenkler, former AIT seconded faculty member from Germany.
This comes as shock to all of us since Dr. Traenkler only very recently visited me on the 5th of August about 10 days ago, and it is difficult to imagine that he has left us so unexpectedly.
Dr. Traenkler was on a new assignment with the GIZ (formerly known as GTZ) in Thailand, and I was informed that he just passed away in his apartment in Thailand over the weekend of 13th to 14th August.
Dr. Josef Traenkler was seconded to teach at WEM and EEM in the late 1990s until 2003. He has just returned to Thailand as part of his new assignment as Senior Advisor to GIZ on RAC NAMA (Refrigerator and Air Conditioning - Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Action) Project funded by GIZ. By supporting climate friendly and energy efficient cooling technologies, the RAC NAMA Project was also supporting Thailand in reaching its energy saving as well as its climate mitigation targets.
During his visit to AIT about 10 days ago, Dr. Traenkler fondly recalled his time at AIT, and had plans to involve and collaborate with AIT faculty in the project which he was engaged in. In addition, Dr. Traenkler expressed his kind compliments as he found AIT campus in much better shape than he has expected after the flood. He has also offered to teach some special courses to our students once he resettles in Thailand.
On behalf of all members of the AIT community, I would like to express our heartfelt condolences to the family and relatives of Dr. Traenkler, in this very difficult time. With the passing away of Dr. Traenkler, AIT has lost a true friend and an AITian at heart. We would also like take this opportunity to pay tribute to Dr. Traenkler, for his valuable contributions made to AIT, and through AIT to the region.
Sincerely,
Professor Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai
President
Asian Institute of Technology (AIT)
(iii) Confirmed Notes AMT 21 July 2016
Please be informed that the confirmed notes of the 21 July 2016 meeting of the AIT Management Team are now Intranet-published at: http://www.ait.ac.th/management/aitmt-notes/confirmed-notes-mt-meeting-21-july-2016.pdf
(iv) Timeline for August 2016
The monthly timeline for August 2016 is now online, and it can be viewed at this link:
http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/timeline/2016/ait-timeline-august-2016/
All previous timelines for this year (2016) are archived here:
http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/timeline/2016
Timeline is a visual platform that is updated daily. Office of Media and Communications (OMCO) creates a fresh timeline every month, and this platform supplements the daily updates that it shares on social media.
If anyone has an AIT event that you wish to be featured here, please send a good quality photograph and a caption to OMCO (omco@ait.asia), and OMCO will try its best to accommodate your submission.
(v) EURAXESS ASEAN Flashnotes - Latest Funding and Career Opportunities for AIT Researchers
The Office of External Relations (OEXR) has announced a number of attractive opportunities for researchers which are presented in the latest EURAXESS ASEAN flash notes.
Topics:
1) United Kingdom - Newton Fund Institutional Links Programme. Thailand and Vietnam Eligible
2) EMBO Short-Term Fellowships Open to Researchers in ASEAN. 3 month Research Visits to Labs in Europe and Elsewhere. Rolling Deadline.
3) Germany - Humboldt Incoming Fellowships for researchers at different stages in their careers. ASEAN Researchers Eligible. Rolling Deadline.
4) Switzerland: ETH Zurich Postdoctoral Fellowships. Researchers in ASEAN Eligible. Deadlines 1 Sept, 2016; 1 March 2017
5) MSCA Individual Fellowships. One of Europe's Most Prestigious Fellowship Programmes. Deadline 14 September, 2016
6) United Kingdom - Newton Research Collaboration Programme. Malaysia and Vietnam Eligible. Deadline 14 September, 2016
7) British Academy Newton Advanced Fellowships in Social Sciences and Humanities. Malaysian Researchers Eligible. Deadline 14 September, 2016
8) Royal Society Newton Advanced Fellowships for Malaysian Researchers. Deadline 14 September, 2016
9) Newton Research Collaboration Programme. Malaysia and Vietnam Eligible. Deadline 14 September, 2016
10) Newton Mobility Grants for Vietnamese Researchers. Deadline 14 September, 201
11) TWAS-BIOTEC Postdoctoral Fellowship Programmes in Thailand and Malaysia. Deadline 15 September, 2016
12) Germany: International Research Fellowships at the International Research Center "Work and Human Lifecycle in Global History" at Humboldt University. Deadline 15 September, 2016
13) Newton Fund Institutional Grants. Thailand and Vietnam Eligible. Deadline 19 September, 2016
14) Newton Fund Researcher Links: Workshops Programme for Researchers in Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Deadline 19 September, 2016
15) Newton Fund Researcher Links: Travel Grants Programme for Researchers in Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, and Vietnam. Deadline 19 September, 2016
16) Advice on applying to funding schemes by Dr Claire McNulty, Director Science and Research, British Council
17) United Kingdom - Newton Fund Research Workshop Grants. Thailand and Malaysia Eligible. Deadline 19 September, 2016
18) Spain: InterTalentum Research Fellowships. Call Now Open. ASEAN Researchers Eligible. Deadline 30 September, 2016
19) European Research Council Starting Grants. Call Now Open. Researchers from ASEAN Eligible. Deadline 18 October, 2016
20) Italy – Jean Monnet Fellowships. ASEAN Researchers Eligible. Deadline 25 October, 2016
21) List of European Institutions Interested in Hosting Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
22) United Kingdom: Training Fellowships in Public Health and Tropical Medicine. ASEAN Researchers Eligible. Deadline 28 November, 2016
Check out:
Sign up to EURAXESS Links ASEAN here:
http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/links/singapore/index_en.html
For more details, please contact Director of Office of External Relations (OEXR) at email: shawnpk@ait.asia
(vi) Suggest a tagline and win 10,000 THB !
Can you craft a slogan that best describes AIT?
If yes, then the best slogan can fetch you 10,000 THB.
You can submit upto three (3) taglines, and the last date for submission is 31 August 2016.
For details, visit this link:
http://www.ait.ac.th/news-and-events/ait-tagline-1#.V6Rh-M5OK00
C. Campus Updates
(i) Safety & Security Measures in the Campus
Recently the Office of Facilities and Asset Management (OFAM) was reported of several theft cases in the campus. Most of the reported areas are in the places that doors were not locked or windows were not properly closed. Those theft cases reported are listed in the followings:
• On 30th July 2016 at Buddhist Prayer room - Baht 10,000 was stolen from the donation box
• On 15th August 2016 at Buddhist prayer room - one carpet sheet was stolen
• On 17th August 2016 at Muslim prayer room - Baht 7,000 was stolen from the donation box
• On 17th August 2016 at Korea house – a keyboard (piano), drums, microphones & mega phone were stolen
• On 18th August 2016 at Korea house – a 50" television was stolen
On 19 August, at around 5.30 a.m. the thief came back again. He went into Hindu prayer room and tried to enter China Center too. However, by the remarkable observation of OFAM Facility Officer - Khun Sophon and with the help of Security Guard/ Policeman, the guy was caught and sent to Police Station. The lost properties were recovered from his apartment. It was found that the thief is an outsider who claimed that he came to see his friend who is a student of AIT.
With the above incidents, OFAM will enforce strict security measures to strengthen the security/safety in the campus. In this regard, the following measures are applied:
- All AIT members and families are requested to register their cars with AIT sticker as soon as possible, if you do not have one.
- OFAM will enforce exchange of cards at Gate-1 to all the visitors or drivers whose cars have no sticker.
- During night time, OFAM will strictly check all the vehicles entering and leaving the campus.
- After working hours, please ensure that all the doors and windows are locked before leaving the room.
- OFAM requests all AIT community to be more vigilant and please inform security, if anything is found suspicious.
D. Visitors
• A group of 17 students from Kinki University, Japan / 26 Aug. 2016 / to visit laboratories in the School of Environment, Resources and Development
E. Faculty and Staff Travel
Ms. Nidthakant Suklap and Ms. Nalinee Kongkerd / Chonburi / 15 – 16 July 2016*
Dr. Nophea Sasaki / Phnom Penh, Cambodia / 9 August 2016*
Dr. Indrajit Pal / Palna, India / 11 – 12 August 2016*
Dr. Lal Samarakoon / Colombo, Sri Lanka / 16 – 24 August 2016
Mr. Sufian Etea / Songhkla and Narathiwat, Thailand / 16 – 28 August 2016
Mr. Piyapong Katpiyarat / Uttaradit, Thailand / 17 – 19 August 2016*
Mr. Mitesh Vishwas Sawant / Uttaradit, Thailand / 17 – 19 August 2016*
Ms. Charina May Lepiten / New Delhi, India / 17 – 20 August 2016*
Mr. Voravate Chonlasin / Narathiwat, Thailand / 18 – 20 August 2016*
Dr. Sangam Shrestha / Kathmandu, Nepal / 19 – 23 August 2016
Dr. Vishnu P. Pandey / Kathmandu, Nepal / 19 – 23 August 2016
Nunthapat Weshsuwannarugs / Florianopolis, Brazil / 19 – 30 August 2016
Dr. B.H.W. Hadikusumo / Vietnam / 20 – 22 August 2016
Dr. Nalin K. B. S. A. Mudiyanselage / Colombo, Sri Lanka / 20 – 29 August 2016
Ms. Warindhorn Wachirasiri / Phnom Penh, Cambodia / 21 – 23 August 2016
Ms. Narumon Wangnai / Phnom Penh, Cambodia / 21 – 26 August 2016
Mr. Voravate Chonlasin / Phnom Penh, Cambodia / 21 – 26 August 2016
Prof. Nitin Kumar Tripathi / Lucknow, India / 21 – 27 August 2016
Mr. Mitesh Vishwas Sawant / Surin and Sisaket , Thailand / 21 – 28 August 2016
Mr. Piyapong Katpiyarat / Surin and Sisaket, Thailand / 21 – 28 August 2016
Dr. A. Yakupitiyage and Mr. Manoj Tukaram Kamble / Colombo and Negombo, Sri Lanka / 22 – 29 August 2016
Dr. Apichon Witayangkurn / Surat Thani, Thailand / 27 – 30 August 2016
Mr. Kiran Kumar Kilaparthi /Surat Thani, Thailand / 27 – 30 August 2016
Ms. Kunnaree Kritiyutanont / Surat Thani, Thailand / 27 – 30 August 2016
Dr. Shabhakar Dhakal / Stockhom, Sweden / 28 August – 1 September 2016
Dr. Supat Wangwongwata / Busan, Republic of Korea / 29 August – 2 September 2016
*(Staff or faculty member travelled and returned to AIT prior to documentation received for publication)
F. Classifieds (Jobs)
Position: Senior Programme Specialist, Climate Change Cluster (Regional Resource Centre for Asia and the Pacific)
Ref. No. 39/16
Deadline: 30 August 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/396
Position: Senior Programme Specialist, Climate Change Cluster (Regional Resource Centre for Asia and the Pacific)
Ref. No. 39/16
Deadline: 30 August 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/396
Position: Head, Human Resources Office (Human Resources Office)
Ref. No. 7/16
Deadline: 31 August 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/363
Laboratory Supervisor (School of Engineering and Technology)
Ref. No. 31/16
Deadline: 31 August 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/395
Position: Structural Engineer (AIT Solutions)
Ref. No. 6/16
Deadline: 31 August 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/362
Position: Assistant / Associate Professor (School of Environment, Resources & Development)
Ref. No. 01/16
Deadline: 30 September 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/380
Faculty Position (Assistant/Associate Professor) (School of Environment, Resources & Development)
Ref. No. Fac 2/16
Deadline: 31 October 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/397
Faculty Position (Assistant/Associate Professor) in Food Engineering and Bioprocess Technology (School of Environment, Resources and Development)
Ref. No. Fac 3/16
Deadline: 31 October 2016
http://www.hro.ait.ac.th/job/show/398