The 10th international symposium on 'advanced materials' started here on Monday with a firm resolve from the world's scientific community to foster closer ties for the progress and development of humanity.
The four-day moot, being attended by 33 foreign scientists and researchers from more than 20 countries, besides some 200 local participants, is being organised by KRL. Inaugurating the symposium, Chairman Senate Mohammadmian Soomro called for a close networking and sharing of knowledge between the scientists and researchers.
He stressed the need that more focus should laid on research work to make the country at par with technological advanced countries. He added with the commitment and devotion Pakistan's scientific community is striving for achieving a bright future reflecting elements of a glorious past.
He said advancement in materials offers great opportunities. He said the revolution in information technology has greatly facilitated the production of objects made from complex materials. The close integration of design and production functions has made it economically possible to produce objects that were difficult to conceive on Sunday, the Chairman Senate said.
Chairman, symposium address, Karim Ahmad highlighted the fact that advanced materials have played a vital role in the technological supremacy of nations and they still continue to be the decisive edge among the developed and the developing world. He said today's needs and opportunities for research in the development of new materials call for contributions from, and close interactions between, universities, industry, and the R&D organisations.
Karim Ahmad said advances in new, high performance materials depend today on development in materials processing, which allow for structural control at atomic scales.
He said Nanotechnology is the engineering at the molecular or atomic level, adding, the changes brought by Nanotechnology have greatly affected the development and market of the advanced materials. Their past belonged to defence and space programme and their future growth mainly depends upon the development of civil infrastructure, transportation, information and communication sector, he added.
Symposium Secretary, Dr Mohammad Farooque said that the biennial symposium had now been established as a recognised forum on the international scientific arena.
It has kept on attracting participants in increasing numbers during the last 18 years, speaks for the maturity and popularity of this activity, said the Symposium Secretary. The symposium will continue tilll September 07 and will focus on vital topics of Advance Materials such as Processing, production and Developments, Surface Engineering, Phase Transformation and Characterisation, Reliability and life Assessment, nanotechnology and Advances in magnetic materials.