IEEE CASS Egypt Outreach Events 2024
The recent IEEE CASS Egypt outreach events (2nd to 4th December 2024), coordinated by Professor Ahmed Madian, IEEE CASS Distinguished Lecturer, IEEE CASS Egypt Chapter Chair, and present IEEE Egypt Section Chair, were a great success. These events not only showcased the vibrancy of the IEEE community in Egypt but also highlighted the active engagement of students, young professionals, faculty, and industry members. Professor Myung Hoon Sunwoo, IEEE CASS President has taken the opportunity to share the celebration of our IEEE CASS 75th anniversary events.
Key Events
1. IEEE R8 CS SYP Days on 2nd December 2024
The IEEE R8 Computer Society Student and Young Professional (SYP) Day was an inspiring event at the Knowledge Hub University that brought together students and young professionals from across the region. The day featured technical presentations, networking sessions, and a series of discussions aimed at fostering collaboration between academia and industry. The energy and enthusiasm from the participants were overwhelming, reflecting the growing interest in technology and innovation within the region. We have the opportunity to interact with IEEE CS Egypt members and promote IEEE CASS to them.
2. IEEE CAS German-Egypt Days on 3rd December 2024
The IEEE CAS German-Egypt Days is a unique cross-cultural exchange between Professors and Students from both Egypt and Germany at German University in Cairo (GUC). It is a 5-day events (1st to 5th December 2024), where the event featured keynote talks, technical sessions, and panel discussions, offering valuable insights into the global state of the field while emphasizing the importance of international collaboration. A student job fair on 2nd December provides students to have opportunities to explore their career in both countries.
3. IEEE CAS Egypt Workshop
The IEEE CAS Egypt Workshop was a full day program at El Sewedy University of Technology (SUT), where SUT is a newly established University, and our aims is to promote IEEE CASS to the undergraduate students with the development of IEEE CASS, Egypt CAS, and a series of technical talks related to biomedical AIs.
One of the most striking aspects of these events was the surprising level of activity and engagement within the local IEEE community. From students to industry professionals, the dedication to advancing technology was palpable. The events demonstrated not only a high level of technical expertise but also an eagerness to collaborate and innovate—factors that will be crucial in advancing the global IEEE mission.
These outreach efforts exemplify the strength of IEEE in fostering both professional development and technical excellence, and the Egypt Section continues to serve as a model of how local chapters can drive impactful global change.
Reported by
Yongfu Li, Ahmed Madian and Myung
Hoon Sunwoo
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IEEE CASS Industry Forum on Integrated Circuits & Systems for Emerging Technologies 2024
The IEEE AP/MTT/EMC/CAS Joint Chapter Islamabad was established in late 2017 at the Research Institute for Microwave and Millimeter-Wave Studies (RIMMS), National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad. It was the Pakistan’s first ever joint chapter that deals with RF, microwave and circuits & systems activities. On 24th September 2024, the chapter has organized a one-day seminar titled “2024 IEEE CASS Industry Forum on Integrated Circuits & Systems for Emerging Technologies” with the financial support of IEEE CAS society”. The objectives of the event were as follows:
a) Semiconductor industrial exposure
b) On-chip measurements at microwave and millimetre wave frequencies
c) Examining memory utilization in IC design
d) RISC-V and ARM based SOC design trends along with the physical design optimizations.
e) Introduction to hardware industry and how to plan a long term career path
The event was held in person, with an audience of 70 participants. It featured prominent national speakers, including Engr. Ahmed Shafqat, Senior Application Engineer at Rohde & Schwarz; Dr. Bilal Zafar, CEO of 10x Engineers; Dr. Muhammad Imran, Assistant Professor at SEECS-NUST; Dr. Nosherwan Shoaib, Co-chair of the IEEE AP/MTT/EMC/CAS Joint Chapter Islamabad at RIMMS-NUST; and Mr. Jafar Safdar, CEO of Aql Tech Solutions.
The event commenced with a welcome address by Dr. Hammad M. Cheema, Chair of the IEEE AP/MTT/EMC/CAS Joint Chapter Islamabad, who greeted the industrial speakers and audience. He provided an overview of the chapter's activities and concluded his remarks by introducing the four industrial talks scheduled for the session, offering a glimpse into the captivating topics and distinguished speakers set to present throughout the day.
The first keynote speaker, Engr. Ahmed Shafqat from Rohde & Schwarz MEA, delivered a talk on "The Challenges in Making On-Chip Measurements at Microwave and Millimetre Wave Frequencies." He elaborated on the machines and technologies used to test and capture these waves, such as VNAs, oscilloscopes, and spectrum analyzers, and discussed the techniques employed to capture frequencies exceeding 110 GHz. He emphasized the growing need for more advanced and complex equipment as technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Engr. Shafqat also shared his personal journey of joining Rohde & Schwarz and pursuing a related career, inspiring students to explore opportunities in engineering.
The second speaker, Dr. Bilal Zafar, CEO of 10x Engineering, focused his talk on career planning for the next generation, particularly how to enter the semiconductor industry and develop a 40-year career path instead of just focusing on short-term goals. He introduced the concept of the 10,000-hour rule, emphasizing the importance of mastering a specific domain rather than striving for perfection in every field. Dr. Bilal also shared insights into how he founded his company, the challenges he faced, and how he overcame them.
The third speaker, Dr. Muhammad Imran from ChipXPRT, Colorado, delivered a talk on in-memory computing. He discussed various technologies available for memory implementation, such as registers, SRAM, DRAM, and resistive memories. Dr. Imran also addressed the limitations of domain-specific architectures and the Von Neumann architecture. In conclusion, he explained how resistive memories can offer an effective solution in terms of bandwidth, power, and performance, as well as addressing key bottlenecks associated with the Von Neumann architecture.
Dr. Nosherwan Shoaib gave a detailed presentation on activities of IEEE AP/MTT/EMC/CAS Joint Chapter Islamabad. In particular, he presented the benefits of joining the IEEE CAS society and associated opportunities for the students. Dr. Shoaib also shared details about the events organized by the society in recent years. Additionally, he outlined the vision, mission, and core values of the CAS society.
The final speaker of the day, Mr. Jafar Safdar, CEO of AQLTech Solutions, gave an insightful talk on RISC-V and ARM-based processors, focusing on their role in developing task-specific SoCs. He also discussed the company’s collaboration with Akeana. Mr. Jafar provided an in-depth look at AQLTech’s work, covering everything from design and verification to providing IPs that enable consumers to build advanced integrated circuits. He highlighted key decisions that, if made early in the IC design phase, can prevent difficult challenges later on. Mr. Jafar also shared insights on optimizing the placement and routing of design blocks within an IC to improve overall efficiency. Furthermore, he discussed the importance of balancing critical factors such as power, performance, and area (PPA) when designing ICs. He emphasized the need to consider thermal management, latency, and cost-efficiency ratios from the outset of the design process.
Dr. Hammad M. Cheema concluded the seminar by expressing gratitude to the distinguished speakers. He emphasized that increasing the number of Pakistani hardware engineers in the semiconductor industry would strengthen integrity and respect among international peers. Dr. Cheema also discussed various upcoming projects, both nationally and internationally, highlighting their significance for the future of the field.
Last but not the least, it is important to mention that this seminar would not have been possible without the gracious financial support of the IEEE CAS society.
Reported by
Hammad M. Cheema and Nosherwan Shoaib
IEEE MTT/AP/EMC/CAS Joint Chapter
Islamabad
Email: project.director@ncdc.nust.edu.pk;
nosherwan.shoaib@seecs.edu.pk