Qatar University’s Young Scientists Centre (QUYSC) won 14 awards, including three gold medals, three silver medals and eight special prizes, in the 9th International Invention Innovation Competition (iCan 2024), organised by the Toronto International Society of Innovation and Advanced Skills (TISIAS) in Canada.

QUYSC participated with six research projects in the event which featured 756 projects from 50 countries.

The iCan competition highlights inventors and researchers with creative abilities, serving as a platform for showcasing innovative ideas.

It also provides an international stage for knowledge exchange, presenting innovative projects, and sharing scientific research outcomes.

Among the winners were Abdulrahman Khalid al-Sumaiti and Abdulrahman Nasser al-Madfa from Omar Bin Al-Khattab Secondary School for Boys.

Under the supervision of Dr Hemalata from QUYSC, they won a gold medal and two special prizes for their project, ‘Designing a Multifunctional Composite Membrane for Wastewater Treatment’.

Ibrahim Khalid al-Emadi, Faisal Jassim al-Emadi, and Mohammed Mishaal al-Khozaei from Hassan Bin Thabit Secondary School for Boys, under the supervision of Dr Mohammed Abu Diya from QU’s College of Arts and Sciences, secured a gold medal and a special prize for their project, ‘Evaluation of Rhizobacteria Isolated from Limonium Root Zones to Enhance Arugula Growth’.

A team of students from Qatar Leadership Academy (QLA) — Abdullah al-Yafei, Safar Rashid al-Hajri, and Faisal Abdullah al-Hammadi — won a silver medal and a special prize under the supervision of Dr Zaid al-Mayaah from QU’s College of Pharmacy for their project, ‘Exploring a Novel Therapeutic Approach for Treating Myocarditis’.

Another group from QLA - Talal al-Marri, Yara al-Marri, Mohammed al-Saeed, and Zaina al-Saeed — won a silver medal and two special prizes under the supervision of Dr Amith Khandakar from QU’s College of Engineering for their project, ‘Designing Spherical Solar Panels to Capture More Energy’.

Students from Amr Bin Al-Aas School — Sultan Sultan Saud al-Thani, Ahmed Abdulaziz al-Thani, Mohammed Imad al-Bardeen, and Omar Abdulaziz Murjan — won a silver medal and a special prize for their project, ‘A Smart Device for Monitoring and Detecting Muscle Spasms During Exercise to Improve Athlete Performance’.

QUYSC won a gold medal and a special prize for a project titled ‘An Educational Approach for Primary School Students to Solve Environmental Challenges and Achieve Sustainable Development Goals’.

Prof Aiman Erbad, vice-president for Research and Graduate Studies at QU, expressed his pride in the students’ accomplishments and their impressive international achievements in innovation and scientific research. He highlighted how these successes align with QU’s strategy to excel in research that directly contributes to national development and advances knowledge and innovation.

Dr Saeed al-Meer, director of QUYSC, emphasised the centre’s mission to enhance students’ research skills and intellectual creativity.

He noted that the centre encourages students to develop their potential and ambitions by engaging them in scientific initiatives and competitions. This approach aims to prepare an innovative generation capable of addressing contemporary challenges and achieving excellence and leadership for Qatar.
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