FameLab National Final 2021

Topic: Right under your nose!

Biography: Greg is an enthusiastic cancer biologist from USM Penang who has recently completed his master's under the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Scholarship. He is a strong believer of public awareness in any and every aspect, including cancer detection. Greg loves to dialogue, using his wittiness to engage on issues close to his heart.

Topic: Are we running out of dirt?

Biography: Daniel is a plant scientist at BoomGrow, an indoor farming company that is reimagining a better future for farming. He is passionate about food security and sustainability as well as the development of environmentally friendly agricultural practices.

Topic: Microwaves: Do they cause cancer?

Biography: Backed with an engineering degree and a Master's in Education, Hoo Sze Yen is a physics teacher in a private secondary school. She is currently completing her Doctor of Education. Her mission is to make learning physics easy and enjoyable! She also teaches dance, and is passionate about fitness; and often finds a way to mix physics in. In her free time, she enjoys reading and writing (although not necessarily about science).

Topic: Bone up with fibre

Biography: Kanimolli Arasu is a lecturer at International Medical University and currently pursuing her PhD. She has 19 years of experience as a dietitian. She loves modifying well-loved recipes to healthier versions. Her research interest includes paediatric nutrition and bone health.

Topic: Our beautiful planet

Biography: An ardent aerospace fan, passionate about anything and everything that is beyond the troposphere. Uma is currently engaged with Malindo Air as a revenue analyst. She is a Toastmaster who has found her latest obsession towards science communication through FameLab. She adores a variety of activities such as hiking, dancing and baking.

Topic: Getting a better ETA

Biography: Lutfi is a mathematics lecturer at Universiti Sains Malaysia. His current mission is to be able to communicate numbers effectively to the public. While his research revolves around the computation of curves and surfaces, his other passion is in the gamification of education. He enjoys musical theatre, travel and tea.

Topic: Better fertilizer, sustainable environment!

Biography: Gayathiri is passionate about the sustainability of the environment, and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Industrial Biotechnology at Universiti Sains Malaysia. She believes science communication is an easily accessible path to create awareness about the beauty of science ubiquitously. Prioritised long-term benefits for the environment can only be achieved through research.

Topic: Give your buildings a dose of probiotics!

Biography: Komalah is a graduate management trainee at KSK Land, with a First Class Quantity Surveying degree from Heriot-Watt University. She wants to create excitement about the construction industry, which is least understood by the public although buildings and infrastructure form integral parts of our lifestyle and basic needs. Adrenaline junkie is one way to describe her - she loves the outdoors and extreme activities. She also runs a small baking business wherein she fulfils orders with her mum. It is like therapy for them; however on most days, it's like her favourite show - Hell's Kitchen. 

Topic: Biodentistry: Helping the tooth fairy save teeth

Biography: Galvin works as a dental officer in Kuching, Sarawak, and is currently completing his part-time PhD in Dental Biomaterials. Galvin enjoys spending his time researching the realm of dental material science and engineering, and he hopes to find a solution for tooth decay one day.

Topic: Healthy ageing with nature-inspired medicines

Biography: Mak is a 29-year old medicinal chemist and trainee lecturer at International Medical University, Malaysia. She was trained in developing new medicines using artificial intelligence. She has numerous research publications and H-index of 8. She is a polymer clay figurine entrepreneur. She enjoys baking cookies and watching penguin documentaries.

Topic: I’m down with that!

Biography: Hadri has spent the last 10 years trying to figure out whether his forehead is growing forwards or his hairline is receding backwards. So recently, he shaved his head and stopped pursuing that problem altogether. Concurrently, he is also working on drug formulations for the treatment of glaucoma and Alzheimer’s disease at Monash University Malaysia.