In the effort to equip students with skills and knowledge in physical science, biological science, and information technology to bring advancement and improvements to human lives, Kampar Campus Centre for Foundation Studies organised Science Connect 2022 from 25 to 27 August 2002 via Microsoft Teams and at UTAR Kampar Campus.

Science Connect 2022 was comprised of a series of activities, conducted to foster appreciation of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and to promote UTAR programmes. The activities also aimed to educate participants on the applications and advancement of STEM in improving daily lives.

The opening ceremony was officiated by Vice President for Internationalisation and Academic Development Ir Prof Dr Goi Bok Min, who said, “While it is incumbent upon us to nurture STEM talents through our science, engineering, and IT faculties in our capacity as a progressive university, I believe our role in STEM promotion also extends beyond the campus walls. Founded ‘By the people, for the people’, UTAR always has the community’s interests at its heart. Therefore, the advocacy for STEM learning targeted at the different segments of society, especially to schoolchildren, has always been one of UTAR’s primary focal points for many years as reflected by our involvement in the annual Kuala Lumpur and Engineering Science Fair since 2014, the Asian Science Camp in 2017 and many others. In embracing the coming Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), STEM fields are becoming more important, and there is no better platform to prepare the future generation than through education.

He continued, “With that, I am glad that the Science Connect 2022 is a well thought and planned event, which caters to visitors of different age groups. I am glad to see us, an institution of higher learning, joining hands with the community in sowing the seeds of love for STEM amongst the students as well as the public. In fact, this is an example of how everyone, upon realising the importance and need for introducing STEM education, comes together with the same purpose.”

Organising Chairperson Chan Jer Jing said, “Artificial intelligence, AI, enables robots to do unprecedented tasks, thus reducing human errors and increasing productivity to a whole new level. Nanotechnologies, the Internet of Things, and big data have allowed us to gain deeper insights from seemingly inscrutable data and create endless opportunities for industries and businesses to improve. Agriculturists are applying advanced mathematical models and machine learning to increase crop yields by using resources efficiently. Fintech is making banking and financial services more streamlined and accessible. We can now open a bank account over the Internet, without physically visiting a bank. We can link the account to our smartphone and use it to monitor our transactions. These are just a few examples of the emerging trend in the convergence of STEM, social sciences and businesses. Therefore, with the webinars, workshops and competitions that are organised to cultivate understanding and appreciation for the intersection of STEM, social sciences and business, I hope this event will serve as a good platform for participants to gain more insights, opening up their scope of view.”

Three talks, namely “Discovering the Interesting Applications of Nanotechnology”, “Precision Agriculture: Data is the New Soil”, and “10 Things You May Want to Know about Fintech” were delivered by experienced speakers from the industry and academia, namely Faculty of Engineering and Green Technology (FEGT) academic Ir Ts Dr Toh Pey Yi; Director of Treegrow Orchids Sdn Bhd and Treegrow Plantations Sdn Bhd and Founder and CEO of Tanahmu Aplikasi Sdn Bhd Wong Seng Yee; and Faculty of Business and Finance academic and Host to 8TV’s Money Matters, BFM Caijin podcast, an op-ed columnist to Nanyang Siang Pao Prof Dr Wong Chin Yoong, respectively. Their talks enlightened participants on the applications of STEM in the areas of nanotechnology, financial technology and precision agriculture.

Meanwhile, the workshops were focused on Mathematics, Information Technology (IT), and Social Science. At the Mathematics workshop, participants learnt to draw a basic graph using a digital tool, namely Geogebra, while the IT workshop taught participants to write solid HTML, create content, and publish a website. The social science workshop benefitted participants on ways to set their own mindset, the differences between fixed and growth mindsets, and techniques to develop a growth mindset.

Participants also had the opportunity to showcase their skills and knowledge at the four competitions organised. The “3-min Speech Competition” aimed to promote science through public speaking; the “Science Meme Competition” aimed to promote science through graphical content, whereby participants showcased their graphical content related to various science areas; the “Science Poster Competition” created posters to explain the science behind COVID-19; and the “Infographic Competition” saw participants presenting their graphical information.

The winners of the respective competitions are listed in the tables below.

Science Connect 2022 ended with a closing ceremony and a prize-giving ceremony. Director of Centre for Foundation Studies Kampar Ts Tan Lee Siew delivered her closing remark, and said, “This is the 4th mega science event conducted by UTAR CFS (Kampar) since 2018 and it is held in conjunction with UTAR’s 20th Anniversary. This year, we aim not only to promote interest in Science and Technology among the younger generation, but also to cultivate understanding and appreciation of the multidisciplinary intersection of STEM, social sciences and business. As we know, technological innovations are emerging at an unprecedented speed. It does not affect only those industries that are related to pure or applied science, but its effect has now covered practically all industries. We have heard of people using big data to make decisions on investment. We have seen the emerging trend of new media, digital marketing, and social movements in this digital age. As such, those who innovate rapidly and have the flexibility to adapt to this new trend will prosper. So, dear students, be prepared to embrace the changes ahead and continue to evolve with the help of technological advances. For this Science Connect 2022, I am glad to learn that we received solid support from schools, Pre-U institutions and UTAR staff and students.”

Loh En Xi from Kolej Matrikulasi Perak, enthused, “The Science Meme Competition was interesting and I had fun because I was able to use my knowledge gained in the classroom to apply it in creating the meme. For instance, I obtained the idea for my mathematics meme from the topic of complex numbers which I have learnt recently. While for the chemistry meme, my thought came from the common activity we do in our daily lives, that is, creating a password, and I linked it to the concept of strong acid and weak acid. I did enjoy the whole process as I discovered and learned new things from it. All in all, I hope that more activities like this meme competition can be organised in order to promote the learning of science.”

Raymond Tan Zhi Yong from UTAR commented, “First of all, I’d like to thank to UTAR for giving us this opportunity to participate in this infographic competition. This was my first infographic design contest. I thought it would be nice to learn something new, but I didn’t expect to win the first prize. I would also like to thank my Data Analytic lecturer, Ms Kavitha for her excellent teaching and for encouraging us to participate in this competition.”

Lai Young Chi from UTAR said, “When I realised that there was such competition in UTAR, I was more than happy to participate because I am always passionate about public speaking. I wrote the script based on my personal experience and yes, my audience can somehow resonate with me. I had been rehearsing whenever and wherever it was. Being the champion was beyond my expectations because there were competitive contestants. They had put me on hot bricks, to be honest. A very big gratitude to the judges, as well as the organisers for giving me the opportunity to take part and to achieve Champion in the event. Hope to take part again!”