FAScinate 28 February 2023

Previously called ASM Fellows’ Lecture Series, the rebranding of this intellectual series follows ASM’s 25^th Anniversary. FAScinate features a renewed format, transitioning from a formal lecture style into a more casual engagement that is hoped to garner more public interest in science.

“Open Minds, Spark Ideas” is the tagline of FAScinate. This series hopes to inspire the public to open their minds to the width and breadth of science and technology, brought on by the captivating presentations by ASM Expert Network.

Professor Dr Wickneswari Ratnam was Managing Director of Nomatech Sdn Bhd and Honorary Professor at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. This ASM Fellow is a leading expert in plant genetics and biotechnology for agricultural applications, with a special focus on food security and sustainable ecosystems.

One of her pioneering collaborative research works on rice genomics and breeding resulted in the development of advanced backcrosses between Oryza sativa and O. rufipogon, tracked by molecular markers for the first time in Malaysia.

Professor Dr Wickneswari talked about successfully transferring wild alleles from O. rufipogon into O. sativa and the development of a breed of rice that is high-yield, disease resistant, low GI, and high in zinc.

Professor Dr Ahmad Zaharin Aris is an ASM Fellow and Professor of Hydrochemistry at Universiti Putra Malaysia. His award-winning research focuses on hydrochemistry, environmental chemistry, and environmental forensics, particularly on the identification, fate, remediation and health relevance of metals and emerging pollutants in the environment.

Now, Professor Dr Ahmad Zaharin leads multidisciplinary research work as well as environmental translational research activities by partnering with policy makers to translate research output through public engagement. He actively participates as advisor, chair, and member for various local and international government agencies and private committees.

Professor Zaharin educated viewers on the invisible visible: contaminants of emerging concern in water.

Professor Ir Ts Dr Ahmad Athif Mohd Faudzi is a researcher and engineer with expertise in the fields of robotics, mechatronics, and system integration.

He is a Professional Engineer with a practicing certificate, a Chartered Engineer, and a member of several professional organisations, including the Malaysia IEEE Robotics and Automation Society.

His research interests include actuators, as well as field robotics and bio-inspired robotics. He is currently leading the Precision Biodiversity project under ASM in collaboration with UPM, FRIM, and other stakeholders.

Professor Ahmad Athif is in attendance to bring viewers on a journey to explore the potential applications of Robotics, IoT, and Artificial Intelligence technologies in the context of precision biodiversity.

Dr Abe Woo Sau Pin contributes his knowledge and expertise as a Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Marine and Coastal Studies, Universiti Sains Malaysia.

His interests include systematics, taxonomy, and diversity study of marine invertebrates, focusing on the group Echinoderms. Since 2009, he has been actively uncovering the marine biodiversity and systematics of sea cucumbers across the region, in collaboration with many scientists from Japan, Thailand, Australia, and Vietnam.

He is also involved in the study and development of sustainable, smart, and precision aquaculture of gamat, to bring our natural heritage back to Langkawi. At the same time, he is passionate in creating awareness and education of marine sciences to the society through various educational programmes done in CEMACS with the concept of experiential learning for marine sciences.

Dr Abe’s presentation dove deep into uncovering Malaysia’s marine biodiversity.