Women in STEM: International Symposium

In December of 2022, STEMcIUB organized an International Symposium titled “Women In STEM: Heroes Among Us”, celebrating women in STEM. National and international scientists, researchers, educators and entrepreneurs joined us in the pursuit of upholding the important contributions of women in science.

The three day long program started with a scientific talk session with the brilliant minds- Dr Zeba Islam Seraj (former professor of Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, and Director, Center for Bioinformatics Learning Advancement and Systematic Training/cBLAST), Dr Munima Haque (Director & Associate Professor of Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at BRAC University, Bangladesh), Alejandra Sierra, (Researcher at ICVV Logroño, Spain, and Former President of National Biotech Commission, Guatemala), and Yumna Majeed (Pakistani Space Educator). The role models talked about their work, their personal experiences and challenges faced and offered valuable advice to our audiences.

A panel discussion session featuring Dr. Amanda Strawhacker, Bushra E Anjum and Johanna Nystrom mediated by Salman Khan Promon and Tanfia Khan Disha was held, shedding further light on education and social development. Furthermore, the program included a problem oriented Idea Competition, with an incredible and diverse panel of judges, from entrepreneurs to professors. The winners were announced by a very special guest of honor, Dr. Shamima Karim Choudhury -a Bangladeshi physicist, academician, researcher, and women-in-science advocate.

On December 4, the online symposium, Women in STEM, arranged two distinct skill-based workshops, “3D Printing Basics” & “Sequencing and Genomic Data Analysis” for young students and STEM enthusiasts.

The first workshop “3D Printing Basics' ' was instructed by the CEO of Mechamind, Fahin Uddin Enam. The workshop illustrated the basics of 3D printing, software and tools and basics of 3D printers. It helped the participants get a better understanding of its functions and utilizations. The second workshop on Sequencing and Genomic data Analysis was conducted by Syed Muktadir Al SIyum, scientific officer of BCSIR. This workshop guided the students to learn sequencing data analysis, its application, and the usage of computational software.

More than hundreds of participants registered for both workshops and were benefited by the incredible demonstrations of the trainers. “Thanks to the STEM Community,IUB for organizing such amazing workshops on 3D Printing Basics and Genome Sequencing & Data Analysis. Undoubtedly it was a very informative session for us and I'm grateful for getting the chance to participate.”, expressed Rokaya Zannat, one of the participants. The workshops were successfully concluded with the accomplished vision of inspiring and involving the students in learning alongside academia.

As part of the Women In STEM: Heroes Among Us Online International Symposium, undergraduates and high school students were invited to participate in the Idea Competition that aimed to solve specific problem areas. Many students presented wonderful ideas based on the many themes of this competition, including “Skill based STEM education system for people with learning disabilities”, “Minimising water pollution caused by industrial waste and oil spill”, and more.

Amidst other wonderful and innovative ideas, the winning idea was ‘Probeen’ by Sabrina Monsur of Dhaka Medical College and Asif Billah of BUET, who proposed a solution to "Physically challenged and elderly friendly home automation". ‘Probeen’ app provides an economically more accessible alternative to resource intensive old care homes and aims to alleviate loneliness among the elderly community leading to improved well-being.

Aside from storing appropriate medical records, features also include notifying essential vitals for health monitoring and GPS mechanism for monitoring elderly individuals if needed. Personalised lifestyle suggestions can be made to regulate adverse health effects of ageing. A talking companion resembling a known relative for regular interaction can be generated. The app allows connection to social media groups promoting social engagement and there is an option to receive donations for medical assistance as well.

Judges were very pleased with the contest and the overwhelming enthusiasm of the participants.