Activity Report of Open Application Course vol.6
Building sustainable networks and cultivating next-generation female leaders in medical materials development research
Report by Yuki Shirosaki
Graduate School of Engineering, Kyushu Institute of Technology
From July 1 to 7, 2019, a total of fourteen people were invited for the second year of activities at the Kyushu Institute of Technology (Kyutech). The group consisted of three students and one teacher from the University Putra Malaysia (Malaysia), four students and one teacher from the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (Taiwan), and four students and one teacher from Thammasat University (Thailand).
Similar to the first year, in order to strengthen connections between students, the participating students (including Japanese students) were divided into four groups for conducting activities. Participants from last year's program reported the previous year's activities at each university and prepared for this year's activities.
Continuing from previous years, the main theme of this year's program was practical experiment exercises. Students worked on the following four themes.
- XRD analysis and SEM observation for the purpose of analyzing samples prepared last year and understanding the principles of both devices.
- Experiments using plasma jet as proposed by the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology.
- Manufacturing of fiber using chitosan.
- Manufacturing of spools used by junior high school students in the Hirameki☆Tokimeki Science Program.
During laboratory tours, the participating students visited the Department of Applied Chemistry and the Graduate School of Bioengineering at Kyutech. By interacting with Japanese faculty members and students, participating students deepened their understanding of various research topics and equipment.
At the 6th Young Researcher Seminar, Dr. Reiko Yamamoto of the National Institute for Materials Science, Mr. Masatomo Takahashi of NOF Corporation, and Professor Masaya Yamamoto of Tohoku University discussed topics including their research backgrounds, how they became interested in their current fields of research, and their current research themes. In addition to learning about the contents necessary for future development of medical materials, students also learned about the motivation behind research.
The participating students took a company tour of Shabondama Soap Co., Ltd., where they learned how to make environmentally-friendly soap and its approach as a company.
This year's program was blessed with good weather. Thanks to cooperation from the Umene Kimono Store, students had the opportunity to wear traditional Japanese kimono. They then participated in workshops on the tea ceremony and flower arrangement (flower arrangement was taught by Instructor Ueda in the Ikenobo Kagetsu style) at Ogura Gardens. Through flower arrangement, students refined their creativity while experiencing Japanese courtesy and manners.
As part of the Hirameki☆Tokimeki Science Program, participating students observed junior high school students actually using the spools that each group had produced during program activities.
At this year's program, students from each country acted with initiative at a level that exceeded last year's program. Next academic year will be the third and final year of the program. In addition to tying together past material in the final year, we plan to hold activities which will lead to new programs in the future.