By Daniel P. Tapaoan, Jr. 

Four students of the Mariano State University (MMSU) won awards in the virtual five-minute Research Pitching Workshop and Presentation organized by the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in Bangkok Thailand.

Senior students Christian Realin (BS Electronics Engineering), Kendrick Cyrus Acidera (BS Mechanical Engineering), Manisha Jeanette Arellano (BS Information Technology), and Julianne Marie Albano (BS Tourism Management) emerged as lone winners in various contest categories. 

Realin presented his research pitch titled “Sign Language to Text to Speech App” under the engineering technology category; while Acidera’s entry was about the “Development of an Air Filtration Equipment Integrated with Indoor Air Quality Monitoring System” under the health environment category. 

Arellano’s research pitch is “PigGrow App: Development of a Mobile Application for Small-Scale Swine Growers” under the food technology and agriculture category; while Albano’s output is titled “Incorporating COVID-19 Sensor to Automatic People Counter and Surveillance System in Public Buildings, Business Establishments and Airports” under the management category. 

They bested the other 126 participants from 20 universities in 10 countries during the competition that was held on October 29-30. 

Before the presentations, the students underwent a one-day mentoring session in preparation for their research pitches. Then, they were grouped into categories according to their educational background. 

MMSU was invited by AIT in the two-day workshop and presentation. The University, through the External Linkages and Partnerships Directorate and the colleges’ planning and development coordinators, sent 32 student-participants in the competition. 

AIT’s Special Degree Programs organized the said competition to provide a platform to present students’ research ideas and inspire them toward innovations. It is in-line with AIT’s effort to strengthen its collaborative partnerships with other universities worldwide. (StratCom)