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ASPIRE League 2014: E-Olympics among Five Asian Universities
About 150 undergraduate students from five leading science and technology (S&T) universities in Asia met at the KAIST campus to attend the E-Olympics on August 7-9, 2014.
The E-Olympics began as a student exchange conference held under the Asian Science and Technology Pioneering Institutes of Research and Education (ASPIRE) League, which offers a variety of events, such as workshops, sports matches, lab visits, special lectures, and art performances, to promote academic and research collaborations and cultural sharing between the students of the league member universities.
Founded in 2009, the ASPIRE League is a university consortium consisted of five top S&T universities in Asia: KAIST in Korea, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and Tsinghua University in China, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore, and Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) in Japan. The ASPIRE League aims to provide a knowledge and technology hub for innovation in Asia through the advancement of science and technology and the development of human resources.
Since its start, the ASPIRE League has been holding an annual conference with programs for research collaboration, student exchange, educational cooperation, and satellite laboratories among professors, senior managers, and students of the member universities. This year, however, the consortium decided to dedicate the conference to students by holding the E-Olympics.
Each university sent 30 students to KAIST for the participation of the E-Olympics. For three days, participating students engaged in discussions and presentations at academic workshops; held athletic games including a relay race, basketball, and a rowing race; and toured a few KAIST laboratories, among them: the E-mobility Research Center, the Bio-imaging and Cell Signaling Research Center, the Mechatronics Systems and Control Center, and the Center of Field Robotics for Innovation, Exploration and Defense.
The students also attended a music concert performed by a KAIST student club and a lecture entitled “Entrepreneurship through Global Networking” that emphasized the importance of personnel networking in transferring technological innovation into business opportunities.
Chang-Dong Yoo, the Dean of the International Office at KAIST, said, “The E-Olympics will offer students from top science and technology universities in Asia opportunities to interact with each other on a more personal level. I hope that through many of the E-Olympics programs, the students will learn about each other’s culture and academic strength and develop a sense of community to create a “New Asia” by working together.”
2014.08.11 View 12883 -
2014 NEREC Conference on Nuclear Nonproliferation: July 31-August 1, 2014, Seoul
The Nonproliferation Education and Research Center (NEREC) at KAIST hosted an international conference on nuclear nonproliferation on July 31-August 1, 2014 in Seoul. The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, the Korean Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, and the Korea Nuclear Policy Society (KNPS) sponsored the event.
Over one hundred experts and "thought leaders" in nuclear security and nonproliferation attended the conference and discussed issues related to the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons, the role of scientific community in mitigating nuclear threat and promoting the peaceful use of nuclear power, and nuclear disarmament policy.
Keynote speakers were: Steven E. Miller, Director of International Security Program at Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University; Scott D. Sagan, Senior Fellow of the Center for International Security and Cooperation, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University; Mark Fitzpatrick, Director of the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Programme, International Institute for Strategic Studies; Sang-Hyun Lee, Director of Security Strategy, Sejong Institute; and Man-Sung Yim, Professor of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, KAIST.
At the conference, Professor Yim, Director of KAIST NEREC said, “Korea has grown to become a key player in the development of commercial nuclear energy over the past decades. We hope that our conference encourages Korea to be more involved in the efforts of the international community to enhance the global nonproliferation regime.”
2014.08.05 View 13978 -
Discovery of New Therapeutic Targets for Alzheimer's Disease
A Korean research team headed by Professor Dae-Soo Kim of Biological Sciences at KAIST and Dr. Chang-Jun Lee from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) successfully identified that reactive astrocytes, commonly observed in brains affected by Alzheimer’s disease, produce abnormal amounts of inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) in reaction to the enzyme Monoamine oxidase B (Mao-B) and release GABA through the Bestrophin-1 channel to suppress the normal signal transmission of brain nerve cells.
By suppressing the GABA production or release from reactive astrocytes, the research team was able to restore the model mice's memory and learning impairment caused by Alzheimer’s disease. This discovery will allow the development of new drugs to treat Alzheimer’s and other related diseases.
The research result was published in the June 29, 2014 edition of Nature Medicine (Title: GABA from Reactive Astrocytes Impairs Memory in Mouse Models of Alzheimer’s Disease).
For details, please read the article below:
Technology News, July 10, 2014
"Discovery of New Drug Targets for Memory Impairment in Alzheimer’s Disease"
http://technews.tmcnet.com/news/2014/07/10/7917811.htm
2014.07.16 View 9324 -
First Instance of Negative Effects from Terahertz-Range Electromagnetic Waves
Professor Philhan Kim
Electromagnetic waves (EM-wave) in the terahertz range were widely regarded as the “dream wavelength” due to its perceived neutrality. Its application was also wider than X-rays. However, KAIST scientists have discovered negative effects from terahertz EM-waves.
Professor Philhan Kim of KAIST’s Graduate School of Nanoscience and Technology and Dr. Young-wook Jeong of the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) observed inflammation of animal skin tissue when exposed to terahertz EM-waves.
The results were published in the online edition of Optics Express (May 19, 20104).
Terahertz waves range from 0.1 to 10 terahertz and have a longer wavelength than visible or infrared light. Commonly used to see through objects like the X-ray, it was believed that the low energy of terahertz waves did not inflict any harm on the human body.
Despite being applied for security checks, next-generation wireless communications, and medical imaging technology, little research has been conducted in proving its safety and impact. Conventional research failed to predict the exact impact of terahertz waves on organic tissues as only artificially cultured cells were used.
The research team at KAERI developed a high power terahertz EM-wave generator that can be used on live organisms. A high power generator was necessary in applications such as biosensors and required up to 10 times greater power than currently used telecommunications EM-wave. Simultaneously, a KAIST research team developed a high speed, high resolution video-laser microscope that can distinguish cells within the organism.
The experiment exposed 30 minutes of terahertz EM-wave on genetically modified mice and found six times the normal number of inflammation cells in the skin tissue after six hours. It was the first instance where negative side effects of terahertz EM-wave were observed.
Professor Kim commented that “the research has set a standard for how we can use the terahertz EM-wave safely” and that “we will use this research to analyze and understand the effects of other EM-waves on organisms.”
2014.06.20 View 9635 -
An Electron Cloud Distribution Observed by the Scanning Seebeck Microscope
All matters are made of small particles, namely atoms. An atom is composed of a heavy nucleus and cloud-like, extremely light electrons.
Korean researchers developed an electron microscopy technique that enables the accurate observation of an electron cloud distribution at room-temperature. The achievement is comparable to the invention of the quantum tunneling microscopy technique developed 33 years ago.
Professor Yong-Hyun Kim of the Graduate School of Nanoscience and Technology at KAIST and Dr. Ho-Gi Yeo of the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) developed the Scanning Seebeck Microscope (SSM). The SSM renders clear images of atoms, as well as an electron cloud distribution. This was achieved by creating a voltage difference via a temperature gradient.
The development was introduced in the online edition of Physical Review Letters (April 2014), a prestigious journal published by the American Institute of Physics.
The SSM is expected to be economically competitive as it gives high resolution images at an atomic scale even for graphene and semiconductors, both at room temperature. In addition, if the SSM is applied to thermoelectric material research, it will contribute to the development of high-efficiency thermoelectric materials.
Through numerous hypotheses and experiments, scientists now believe that there exists an electron cloud surrounding a nucleus. IBM's Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM) was the first to observe the electron cloud and has remained as the only technique to this day. The developers of IBM microscope, Dr. Gerd Binnig and Dr. Heinrich Rohrer, were awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physics.
There still remains a downside to the STM technique, however: it required high precision and extreme low temperature and vibration. The application of voltage also affects the electron cloud, resulting in a distorted image.
The KAIST research team adopted a different approach by using the Seebeck effect which refers to the voltage generation due to a temperature gradient between two materials.
The team placed an observation sample (graphene) at room temperature (37~57℃) and detected its voltage generation. This technique made it possible to observe an electron cloud at room temperature.
Furthermore, the research team investigated the theoretical quantum mechanics behind the electron cloud using the observation gained through the Seebeck effect and also obtained by simulation capability to analyze the experimental results.
The research was a joint research project between KAIST Professor Yong-Hyun Kim and KRISS researcher Dr. Ho-Gi Yeo. Eui-Seop Lee, a Ph.D. candidate of KAIST, and KRISS researcher Dr. Sang-Hui Cho also participated. The Ministry of Science, ICT, and Future Planning, the Global Frontier Initiative, and the Disruptive Convergent Technology Development Initiative funded the project in Korea.
Picture 1: Schematic Diagram of the Scanning Seebeck Microscope (SSM)
Picture 2: Electron cloud distribution observed by SSM at room temperature
Picture 3: Professor Yong-Hyun Kim
2014.04.04 View 14554 -
Tae-Wan Kim, a doctoral candidate, receives the best paper award from ECTC
The 2014 Electronic Components and Technology Conference (ECTC) will take place on May 27-30 in Florida, USA. Tae-Wan Kim, a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Materials Science Engineering (MSE), KAIST, will receive the Intel Best Student Paper Award at the conference.ECTC is the premier international conference that brings together the best researchers and engineers in packaging, components and microelectronic systems science, technology and education in an environment of cooperation and technical exchange. The conference is sponsored by the Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology (CPMT) Society of IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering).The paper describes research on novel nanofiber anisotropic conductive films for ultra fine pitch electronic package application, which was written under the guidance of Professor Kyung-Wook Paik of the MSE Department. In the past ten years, two of his students have received the best paper award from ECTC.
2014.03.14 View 11555 -
Festival Featuring Asia's Best Science Students to be Held
The first Electronic Olympics, which will host students from five top Asian research-centered universities, will be held in August at KAIST. Students will take part in competitive events and explore cultural diversity. Student representatives of HKUST, NTU, TITECH, Tsinghua University, and KAIST gathered on February 20 to begin planning the tentatively named “ASPIRE E-Olympics.”
The key words of this Olympics are "Harmony" and "Competition." The events will be composed of an AI programming contest, SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope) picture contest, and the other technology-based contests. Cultural events, where each university’s students can interact, will also be prepared.
ASPIRE (Asian Science and Technology Pioneering Institutes of Research and Education) events have been held from 2009. Previously, the ASPIRE forum has been an exchange event for groups of vice presidents and graduate school students from the five schools to exchange achievements in education and research. This year, it has been extended to undergraduates.
Yoseop Kim, KAIST’s student body vice president, said that he wants to make a MOU with some of Asia’s best research-centered universities and develop it into something similar to the Davos Forum. His intention is to support the E-Olympics in the hope that ASPIRE will become a top university consortium.
From left, HKUST, KAIST, NTU, TITECH, Tsinghua University Logos
Student representative group photo of Top Asian Research-Centered Universities
Electronic Olympics for students from five top Asian science and engineering universities to be held in August
2014.02.27 View 8598 -
Professor Yong-Tak Im of Mechanical Engineering Appointed as President of Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials
Yong-Tak Im, Professor of the Department of
Mechanical Engineering at KAIST, was sworn in on February 25, 2014 as
the 16th president of the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials
(KIMM), a leading government-funded research institution in Korea. KIMM was
established in 1976 to contribute to the development of
Korea through the invention of source technology and technology transfer in
mechanical engineering.
President Im graduated from Seoul National
University, obtaining degrees of Bachelor of Science and Master’s in mechanical
engineering. He later studied at the University of California in Berkeley and
received a doctoral degree in mechanical engineering.
After working as an assistant professor of
the Industrial and Systems Engineering at the Ohio State University,
President Im joined KAIST as a professor of mechanical engineering in 1989.
President Im took many important posts at
KAIST, including Dean of Planning Office, Dean of External Affairs and Public
Relations Office, and Associate Vice President of Special Projects and
Institutional Relations, making a great addition to the university’s endeavors for
globalization.
Among the awards President Im received was the
William Johnson Award in 2007 presented by the Advances in Materials and
Processing Technologies, the Research Achievement Award in 2010 by the Global
Congress on Manufacturing and Management, and the Presidential Award in 2012 by
the Republic of Korea. He was also elected as the vice president of the Korean
Society of Mechanical Engineers, the largest association of professionals in
the mechanical engineering field in Korea.
President Im is currently a professor at
POSCO, an internationally known Korean steel company, and a member of the
Korean Academy of Science and Technology and the National Academy of
Engineering of Korea, respectively.
President Im will serve KIMM for three
years until February 24, 2017.
2014.02.25 View 10816 -
Former Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. KunMo Chung, Awarded KAIST Honorary Doctorate
KAIST will confer an honorary doctorate on former minister of Science and Technology, Dr. KunMo Chung, at the 2014 KAIST graduation ceremony on Friday, February, 21.Dr. Chung presented the Survey Report for the Establishment of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science (KAIS) to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in 1969. This proposal for nurturing the advanced science technology elite and boost Korean industrial development became the foundation for KAIS, which is now known as KAIST.After passing the KAIS Foundation Law in 1970, Dr. Chung designed the faculty room, secured faculty members, and acquired a $6 million education loan from the USAID. Dr. Chung devoted himself to research and teaching. His first appointment was the position of assistant professor at the University of South Florida, followed by research professor positions at the Princeton Nuclear Fusion Research Center and MIT Nuclear Engineering, and an associate professor position in the Department of Electrophysics at the Polytechnic Institute of New York.When KAIS was founded on Feb. 16, 1971, 31-year-old Dr. KunMo Chung became the provost and a professor in the Electronic and Electrical Science Department where he made outstanding contributions to the development of science and technology in Korea.
2014.02.21 View 10381 -
KAIST-Saudi Nuclear Workforce Training
Nuclear Engineering Intensive Course Program Held in Saudi Arabia from January 5th to 23rd
KUSTAR (The Khalifa University of Science and Technology Studies)-KAIST Institute of Education began its Nuclear Engineering Intensive Course Program on 5th January with researchers from K.A.CARE (King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy) of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
This program, which was lasted until 23rd January, provided education to students on the basic technologies in the field of nuclear power.
The course involves a wide range of lectures, such as basic nuclear physics, applications using radiation, nuclear reactor design and safety, as well as nuclear power engineering.
In order to utilize the nuclear power and renewable energy, K.A.CARE was established in April 2010. The institution is also involved in the construction of nuclear infrastructure, including the site investigations, the establishment of regulatory bodies and state-owned nuclear companies, along with the newly launched workforce-training program.
The Director of the KUSTAR-KAIST Education Research Institute, Professor Soong-Heung Jang said, “This program is the beginning of long-term cooperation with Saudi Arabia. Our experience can be the basis for the construction of an extensive training program that involves many areas of nuclear engineering field.”
KAIST has been working in close cooperation with various institutions around the world, which also includes the establishment of KUSTAR-KAIST Institute of Education and Research in July 2010. KAIST is also actively cooperating with UAE Khalifa University in Middle East, sharing faculty, holding joint research programs and exchanging students.
2014.02.03 View 10903 -
Hyun-Sik Kim, KAIST doctoral student, receives Predoctoral Achievement Award from IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society
Hyun-Sik Kim, a Ph.D. student from the Department of Electrical Engineering, is scheduled to receive the “Predoctoral Achievement Award” from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Solid-State Circuit Society (SSCS) at its 2014 annual conference to be held on February 9-13 in San Francisco, USA. Kim, the first Korean student receiving the award, will also be given a 1,000 USD honorarium.
Established in 1983, the Predoctoral Achievement Award has been given to a small number of promising graduate students, which is made on the basis of academic record and potential, quality of publications, and a graduate study program well matched to the charter of SSCS. Among the previous recipients were Professor Bernhard Boser of the University of California in Berkeley and Professor Michael Flynn of Michigan University.
Kim published 15 research papers in international journals and conferences, applied for 35 domestic and international patents, and received the best paper award in human technology from Samsun Electronics for three consecutive years.
Professor Kyu-Hyung Cho of Electrical Engineering is Kim's principal advisor.
2014.01.27 View 10860 -
Professor Kwy-Ro Lee Appointed Distinguished Member of IEEE
Professor Kwy-Ro Lee from the Department of Electrical Engineering at KAIST was selected as a distinguished member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) where his contribution to research development of the technological management of semiconductors was recognized.
Professor Lee earned his BS from Seoul National University and MS & Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota. He has been working as a professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering since 1986. He has also served as the president of the LG Electronics Research Center in 2005 and the president of the Nanoscience and Technology Center at KAIST in 2010.
IEEE is the largest professional association for the advancement of technology in electrical, electronics, computing and communication with 400,000 members in 160 countries. Only 0.1 percent of members with over ten years of service can be selected as distinguished members based on their research devotion for society.
2014.01.02 View 8256