SLASSCOM National Ingenuity Awards

SLASSCOM hosted the SLASSCOM National Ingenuity Awards for the 7^th consecutive time on Wednesday, 19^th of June 2024 at Hotel Shangri – La, Grand ballroom.

Sineth Sankalpa Bandara, one of the third year undergraduate of the B.Sc.(Hons) Industrial Information Technology degree programme had been awarded as the Provincial Winner under the Best Innovative Product / Project – University category in this competition representing Uva Wellassa University. The particular project which had been awarded under the mentioned category, titled ‘HappyFace AI’ which was supervised by Mr. Thilina Gunarathne, lecturer in the Department of Computer Science and Informatics at the Faculty of Applied Sciences of Uva Wellassa University.

Deliciosa 2023 : UWU’s 11th Annual Food Festival Celebrates Culinary Creativity

The 11th Annual Food Festival, orchestrated by enterprising undergraduates specializing in Food Engineering and Bioprocess Technology within the Science and Technology degree program at Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, was a harmonious blend of academia and gastronomy. This captivating food festival, aptly named Deliciosa 2023, unfolded on the vibrant grounds of Uva Wellassa University. It was a celebration of culinary creativity, where science and taste collided in delightful harmony. The festival’s grandeur was further elevated by the presence of our esteemed chief guest, Professor Kolitha Bandara Wijesekara, the Vice Chancellor of our university. His visionary leadership and passion for education resonated with the spirit of Deliciosa 2023. Our esteemed chief guest, Professor Kolitha Bandara Wijesekara, the Vice Chancellor of our university, not only graced the festival with his presence but also ignited its inception. It was under his visionary leadership that the seeds of this gastronomic celebration were sown.

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Installation of the Muon Particle Detector and Signing a MOU between UWU and Georgia State University-USA

As part of the collaborative work between UWU and Georgia State University on “Modeling Terrestrial and Space Weather and Building Climate Research Awareness through a Global Deployment of Cosmic Ray Muon Detector Network” funded by the National Science Foundation (USA), a Georgia State University expert team led by Prof. Unil Perera, Prof. Xiaochun He, and Dr. Ashwin Ashok visited UWU on March 27th and 29th, 2023. The goal of this visit is to install the first muon particle detector installed outside of the United States and to sign an MOU with UWU.

Uva Wellassa University will serve as a hosting institute for the installation and maintenance of a Cosmic Ray Detector provided by Georgia State University. Furthermore, we are looking for collaborations such as involving postgraduate students in research partnerships to study climate change using cosmic ray telescopes, as well as creating opportunities for local undergraduate/graduate students to acquire climate science related knowledge through knowledge sharing programs.

A workshop on Geophysics and Geophysical Instruments

A workshop on Geophysics and Geophysical Instruments was held on November 3,4,5 2022 at the University premises.

Professional Geophysicists from the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB) conducted the workshop covering 1-D resistivity, 2-D/3-D resistivity, Ground Penetration Radar (GPR), VLF, Magnetometer and DGPS system. The program included an introduction to the above Geophysical Instruments, hands on experience in operating geophysical instruments and geophysical data acquisition, analysis and interpretation. The workshop concluded successfully having covered the practical aspects of the Geophysics theory course module offered in the 300 level.

Stay tuned for our upcoming workshops and events.

Online Workshop

We are delighted to announce that we have successfully conducted “Sharpen Your English” an online workshop, organized by the Department of Computer Science and Informatics, Faculty of Applied Sciences on March 09, 2023. The workshop was attended by the second-year students of the department, and it was a great success.

The main objective of the workshop was to increase participants' confidence in using English in various contexts, such as professional settings or social situations. The team of expert speakers and facilitators,Mr. C.J.P. Kulathilake and Ms. H.H.S.U. Samarakoon provided insightful discussions to help the attendees gain a deeper understanding of English.

We would like to thank our team of speakers and facilitators for their expertise and dedication. We would also like to extend our gratitude to all the participants who attended the workshop and contributed to its success.

Stay tuned for our upcoming workshops and events.

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EMD Labs Takes the Second Upper Prize in Innovation Nation Sri Lanka: A Proud Moment for Uva Wellasa University

EMD Labs, a student startup of Uva Wellasa University, has recently made a remarkable achievement in the prestigious Innovation Nation Sri Lanka under the guidance of Dr.Thushara Ekanayake and the support of IEEE Robotics & Automation Society – Uva Wellassa University. Representing the university with pride and honor, EMD Labs managed to secure the 2^nd Upper award, which is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the team

Innovation Nation Sri Lanka is a nationwide competition that brings together some of the brightest and most innovative minds across the country. This competition allows researchers, engineers, and students to showcase their startups and bring their ideas into reality. With stiff competition from leading universities and organizations, it is an incredible feat for EMD Labs to achieve this recognition level.

EMD Labs is a research and development company with a focus on delivering innovative solutions in the mechanical, electronics, and software domains. With their innovative projects, cutting-edge technologies, and creative solutions, they have been at the forefront of electro-mechanical and software services. Their 2^nd Upper award at Innovation Nation Sri Lanka is a testament to the passion, dedication, and hard work of the EMD Labs team.

The Uva Wellasa University community is proud of this achievement and congratulates the EMD Labs team on their well-deserved recognition. This success has brought pride to the university and will serve as an inspiration to other students and researchers to strive for excellence in their own fields. With their continued efforts, Uva Wellasa University is poised to be at the forefront of innovation, research, and startups in Sri Lanka.

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Workshop on “Broadening the research skills”

A workshop was organized on November 22, 2022 for 4^th year students of the Faculty of Applied Sciences to enhance their research skills and ability with the theme of “Broadening the research skills”. It was a one-day workshop with four sessions and around 200 students were participated to the workshop.

At the beginning of the workshop, a motivative talk on “importance of engage in research” was delivered by Prof. H.M.J.C. Pitawala. The second session and third session were conducted by Dr. J.T. Cooray under the topic of “Introduction to Mendeley-Reference Manager Tool” and by Dr. A.A.G.D. Amarasooriya under the topic of “Research Ethics” respectively. Final session of “Research Design” was conducted as two parallel sessions to SCT & MRT group and CST & IIT group separately. Resource persons for SCT and MRT group were Dr. R.U.W.M.C.B. Rambukwella and Dr. R.M.S.I. Rathnayake while the resource person for CST and IIT group was Dr. K.P.P.S. Pathirana.

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MOU between Uva Wellassa University (UWU) and John Keells Information Technology (Pvt) Ltd (JKIT)

Uva Wellassa University (UWU) and John Keells Information Technology (Pvt) Ltd (JKIT) were able to be partners having benefits to each party specifically for the industrial training program for the undergraduates of Department of Computer Science and Informatics, Faculty of Applied Sciences. Accordingly, a memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on 11th November 2022, at Uva Wellassa University premises.

The signee representing UWU was Prof.Jayantha Lal Rathnasekara, Vice Chancellor, and the signee representing JKIT was Mr.Thisara Perera, Head of the Human Resources. The historic moment was witnessed by Prof. Jagath Pitawala, Dean,Faculty of Applied Sciences, Ms. Harshani Wichramarathne, Head, Department Computer Science and Informatics. The same was witnessed by Mr. Aflal Ameera and Mr.Nihanga Liyanage representing JKIT.

EngHack 2022

Department Computer Science and Informatics concluded its final 48-hour hackathon program,“EngHack 2022”, on September 08, 2022 amidst a large gathering spearheaded by Chief Guest, Dean of Faculty of Applied Sciences, academic staff and industry experts.

“EngHack 2022” was intended to develop mobile and web applications to improve the English language skills of undergraduates with a particular regard to competencies such as Reading, Listening, Writing, Speaking, and Grammar. The “EngHack” hackathon series is one of deliverables of collaborative effort with AHEAD Project, which falls under the objective of “Improving the English Language skills among Undergraduates”. This event is one its kind to showcase the English learning creativity of students especially in team settings.

The event was attended by number of teams consisted of 2^nd, 3^rd level and 4^th year undergraduates. The ‘Team Rolex’ Won 1^st place and teams ‘Coding Stars, ‘Blue Eagles’, ‘500 Internal Server Error’, and ‘SynTax’ won 2^nd place, 3^rd place, 4^th place, and 5^th place, respectively. The winners were selected subjected to an extensive evaluation panel comprised academic staff, namely Mr. H. M. S. N. Ariyadasa, Mr. N. E. C. Jayasekara and industry experts Mr. P.G.N.S.S. Pilapitiya (Technical Lead Mitra Innovation) and Mr. W.M.P.S. Weerasooriya, Software Architect (Application Technology, Sysco Labs). Moreover, a number of resource persons from several industries and academic staff joined the event in a consultive capacity.

Sri Lankan Journal of Applied Sciences (SLJoAS) Launching Ceremony