The CMS Research Sharing Seminar 2019 was co-organised by UTAR Centre for Mathematical Sciences (CMS) and Department of Mathematical and Actuarial Sciences on 29 November 2019 at Kampar Campus.

Present at the seminar were Faculty of Engineering and Green Technology (FEGT) Deputy Dean for R&D and Postgraduate Programmes Dr Lo Po Kim, CMS Chairperson Ts Dr Teoh Lay Eng, Department of Mathematical and Actuarial Sciences Head Dr Wong Voon Hee and Organising Chairperson Dr Lem Kong Hoong.

The aim of the seminar was to provide a platform for the researchers to share their research ideas and findings. It also provided the researchers with opportunities to exchange research ideas and expand research collaborations among researchers, including fostering partnerships from various departments and faculties.

“Mathematics has been a part of our lives and at some point, it makes lives better. However, sometimes, Mathematics can be difficult when people do not understand it. The applications of Mathematics are unheeded nowadays; from the simplest daily usage like the timer to artificial intelligence and modern predictions of the transportation system. Today, we are very fortunate to be able to learn much more about Mathematics from the presenters today,” said Dr Lo in her welcome speech.

Some of the interesting researches presented included “A Study on the Customer Preference and Selection of Online Food Delivery Providers with AHP-TOPSIS Approach”. Researcher Liew Kah Fai explained that the research aimed to propose a conceptual framework for the selection of online food delivery providers. It also aimed to identify the most influential decision criteria in the selection of online food delivery providers in Kuala Lumpur (KL), as well as to determine the preference of online food delivery providers in KL. The result of the study showed that price is ranked as the most influential criterion in the selection of online food delivery providers followed by delivery time, variety of food, customer service and information quality. From the research, it was noted that Food Panda has become the top choice among the millennials in the selection of online food delivery providers followed by Running Man Delivery, Ubereats, and Deliver Eat. The significance of the research was to identify the most preferred online food delivery provider and also the most influential criteria in the selection of online food delivery providers among the millennials with the proposed conceptual framework based on AHP-TOPSIS model.

Another interesting research presented, under the field of Pure Mathematics was “Chaotic Based Image Encryption Schemes”, by researcher Wong Kuan Wai. The research aimed to study how the existing design rules of chaotic based image encryption schemes affect its security and to analyse the security of existing chaotic based image encryption schemes. Wong explained that from the cryptographic perspective, a scheme is claimed to be vulnerable if its time complexity is less than 2[K], where [K] denotes the length of the secret key K in bits. She further elucidated on the known plaintext attack performed on the Biswas et al. [1] scheme and found that there was a reduction of security by around 2^182.72 encryptions as compared to the keyspace of 2⁴⁴⁸ claimed by Biswas et al.

Under the field of Operations Research, researcher Khairul Rizuan bin Suliman presented his research titled “Technical Efficiency of Dry Bulk Ports in Malaysia with Non-parametric Analysis”. His research explained that the conceptual framework of efficiency was developed using DEA model and the input being part of the resources, while the output of cargo throughout is identified. He also explained that the DEA application model was developed to evaluate the efficiency score to address the problem of inefficiency. Meanwhile, researcher Ivan Yeo Heng Giap presented his research titled “Inventory Models Incorporating Sustainability”. He explained, “In practice, reuse of items is not easy to implement. Factors such as quality of the repaired items, quality of the used item, and the difficulty in obtaining used items can be considered in future investigations. When incorporating sustainability, besides reuse, it is worth considering the environmental impact of the operations themselves. For instance, while running multiple setups might be economical, but this might have a more adverse impact on the environment then lesser setups. As such, a green cost can be included in the model as well.”

Researcher Teoh Yit Seng, under the field of Statistical Quality Control, presented his research titled “Optimal Statistical Design of the Side Sensitive Modified Group Runs (SSMGR) Chart when Process Parameters are estimated”. His research showed that the ANON performance of the Case-U SSMOR X is significantly poorer than its Case-K counterpart unless the minimum number of IC Phase I sample m’ is large enough. For future research, Teoh mentioned that adaptive SSMOR X charts can be used by varying the sampling interval and/or sample size of the standard SSMGR X charts under both the Case-K and Case-U situations.

Click here to view the full list of presenters.

As of 28 November 2019, CMS has published 50 publications inclusive of journals and conference proceedings; received eight research grants; conducted two external workshops and two seminars; organised over 15 talks, and six postgraduate students have graduated.