Visiting Artist series: 4 December Dr Sumet Jumsai

As a continuation of the programme of Visiting Artists, on 4 December, the students and staff at Asian university were delighted to welcome two special, and very different, artists.

In the morning Dr. Sumet Jumsai, one of Thailand’s most famous architects, talked about his work, his philosophies, and many other subjects. He is best known here for the Nation Building and the Robot Building, both in Bangkok. But he has also been responsible for many other post-modern designs for buildings in Thailand and elsewhere.

Dr. Sumet offered the analogy of an architect as a conductor of an orchestra. The conductor needs to know what each member can do, and then he needs to bring everyone together, at the right time, and doing the right thing. It’s like project management.

Dean Michael thanks Dr. Sumet

Having ranged through Plato, Abraham, the five Buddhist precepts, the Ten Commandments and many other topics, he explained that he believes that teachers should make their students love their subjects, which will encourage students to want to learn more throughout their lives.

He also spoke about ways to deal with rising sea levels (and sinking land) in Bangkok. People have the choice to fight nature, like the Dutch have done very successfully, by building a barrier across the Gulf of Thailand. However there are major maintenance issues associated with this idea. The other choice is to go with nature, and establish floating villages and house and villages. Dr. Sumet showed pictures of old Bangkok, when many people lived in boats on the waterways; maybe they knew something?

Khun Panit (University vice president) with Dr Sumet

He is also painter, social worker, conservationist and author. His best known book, NAGA, Oxford Univ. Press 1988, deals with the origin of civilization in the Asia-Pacific region.

National Science Museum visits

Asian University President, Dr Viphandh Roengpithya welcomed all guests to the university, and invited the Deputy Mayor of Pattaya, Khun Wuttisak Rermkijakarn, to open the three day event.
Khun Manop Isaree, Director of the National Science Museum of Thailand, also spoke to the assembled guests, and the youngsters from many local schools went into the sports centre to enjoy the science fun, with their teachers and staff from the NSM. About 2,500 youngsters are visiting each day, and Asian University is pleased to welcome them all to the campus.

See also the story on Pattaya Daily News website
http://www.pattayadailynews.com/shownews.php?IDNEWS=0000011225

http://www.thainewsland.com/c15856-education

http://www.pattayamail.com/853/kids.shtml

http://news.pattaya.com/news/new_popup.asp?newid=10574

2009 Mini Marathon winners

Winning female students with Dean Michael

Winning male students

Ninja, male student winner, again

Wednesday 18 November was the 11th Annual Mini Marathon. Twice round the campus, in the afternoon sun. The mini marathon is open to everyone at Asian University, students, and all staff members.

As last year, the female and male student winners were Sima (4th year BBA) and Ninja (4th year BEng). The female staff winners were members of the housekeeping staff, and the first three male staff home were representatives from the three faculties!

Winners and times were as follows:

Female student

Sima, Year 4 Business, 20.07 minutes

Punch, Year 1 Business, 31.15 minutes

Noon, Year 4 Engineering, 34.03 minutes

Male student

Ninja, Year 4 Engineering, 15.13 minutes

Koh, Year 1 Business, 16.34 minutes

Nutty, Year 2 Multimedia, 21.04 minutes

Female staff

Prapai, Housekeeping, 28.48 minutes

Areerat, Housekeeping, 29.00 minutes

Suree, Housekeeping, 29.33 minutes

Male staff

David Tan, Business, 19.10 minutes

James Moran, Engineering, 20.07 minutes

Mark Starrs, Liberal Arts, 21.35 minutes

The relay teams ran before the main race, and these were the results.

Relay teams

Rungtip, Kanjana, Pratchaya, Phopsit, College students / staff 6.33 minutes

Paritsada, Sirapat, Ladapha, Sereechon, Liberal Arts, Engineering, Sports, Engineering, 6.39 minutes

Paiwan, Yuttharvai, Kunthikarn, Piya, Housekeeper, Engineering, Business, Multimedia, 6.45 minutes

Well done to everyone!!

Liberal Arts Dean, Michael presented the medals to the deserving winners.

Sporting Success with the US Navy

On Tuesday 27 October, Asian University was happy to host teams from a visiting US Navy submarine: USS City of Corpus Christi. Games of basketball and football (that's soccer to our American friends) were played.

Scores were
Football / Soccer: Asian University: 9 The U.S Navy: 1
Basketball: Asian University: 32 The U.S Navy: 16.

We get a mention here:
http://www.navy.mil/view_single.asp?id=77831

More details about the submarine are here:
http://navysite.de/ssn/ssn705.htm

New post graduate programmes from the Faculty of Engineering

Creating motivation and spirit to prevent the widespread of drugs

At Auditorium 1 at the College at Asian University on the 27 October 2009, Colonel Doctor Sumol Nakchalerm gave a lecture to an audience of College students from grades 10 to 12

Mr. Sirivetch Rodsavas, Grade 10 Science, wrote the following, after attending the lecture.

“I learned about the value of life from the lecture. In my opinion everyone should understand it. If we all understand the value of life, Thailand will be a better place. Some people worship money. They can die for money. They break laws just to reach their monetary goals.

Drugs dealing is understood to yield easy money. Children fall victims of drugs because they don’t understand the true harms of it. Children are eager to try new things and follow their friends. Taking drugs leads on to other societal problems. It’s the basis of child terrorism. Drugs are given to children to wipe out their fears in which they can commit terrorism; sometimes suicide terror. Drugs are also the base of human trafficking, victims of drugs need money to buy more. Children are not capable of employment with sufficient pay to buy drugs. If we all understand the value of life, it will be the key factor that will solve these problems and bring happiness to us all.”

The College students share time and happiness with a group of underprivileged children

From Ajarn Apple and Om

Some volunteer students from the College from grades 10, 11 and 12, Ajarn Sasibussaba Papol and some of the College teachers went to Jing Jai children’s center, Pattaya Klang, Chonburi on Saturday, 12th September 2009.

The children, who are in the center, are poor and have no houses or parents to take care of them. Therefore, our College students gave them lunch, some sweet meal, and some small gifts to the children. Additionally, the volunteers showed dances and songs to entertain the children to make them happy. All the volunteers enjoyed their time, as they made an effort to do good, and they were really happy to spend time at Jing Jai.

Of course it also made them appreciate how lucky they all are.

Engineering students visit Industrial wastewater treatment plant

On Thursday, 22 October, a group of engineering students and lecturers from Asian University joined a visit organised by the British and German Chambers of Commerce. Everyone met at the offices of Hemaraj Land and Development Plc in the Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate (Rayong) where there was a presentation about Hemaraj, its Industrial Estates, customers, and Green Management.

Hemaraj was founded in 1998 and has 13,000 acres in six industrial estates in the Eastern Seaboard. With the current emphasis on environmental issues, Hemaraj publish all their environmental monitoring results on their website. Then there was a short talk about the Constructed Wetlands on the estate, which had initially been used for tertiary treatment of effluent, but is now used for secondary treatment as well. There are two Constructed Wetlands, vertical flow ponds, in series.

The group then visited the constructed wetlands to have a look for themselves.

Everyone drove to The Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate (Chonburi) to the offices of Waste Management Siam (WMS). General Manager John Hamilton showed us a video about WMS and then gave a short talk before we visited the landfill and the waste water treatment plant.

The photos show some of the students and staff from Asian University on the visit.

http://www.pattayamail.com/846/kids.shtml