Introduction
The Summer Tehqiq Research Program (STRP) at Habib University, jointly administered by the Office of Research and the Graduate School Curation Program (GSCP), serves as a catalyst for fostering a vibrant undergraduate research culture. This flagship program aims to provide faculty and fellows with modest research funding and mentoring honorariums, enabling the implementation of small-scale research ideas. Simultaneously, STRP offers students an intensive curated research experience, guiding them in the development of their research projects over four semesters.
PROGRAM STRUCTURE
STRP is structured into two segments: STRP 1, focusing on faculty-led guided research, and STRP 2, supporting students in pursuing independent research. For STRP 1, faculty and fellows submit proposals for ten-week research projects, taking on the roles of Principal Investigators (PIs) and active mentors. Students apply based on thematic areas of interest and are matched with a PI for mentorship. For STRP 2, undergraduate researchers draft their own research proposal and seek a support of a faculty mentor to supervise their independent research.
STRP Experiences
The STRP is designed to enhance the research capabilities of student researchers while fostering a learning environment. To ensure the timely progress of research projects, faculty and fellows actively collaborate with the GSCP (Graduate School Curation Program) and the Office of Research (OoR). This partnership provides structured learning experiences and continuous guidance to students throughout their research journey.
Dedicated Hours for Students
STRP students are required to complete 30 hours of project-related tasks, including engagements with the GSCP and OoR.
Mentorship Sessions
- Faculty members play a crucial role in guiding students throughout the 10-week STRP program. As Principal Investigators in STRP 1 and Research Supervisors in STRP 2, they meet with their assigned students at least once a week to provide consistent mentorship and support. These meetings are designed to ensure that students are meeting key research milestones, managing their timelines effectively, and staying on track with their project goals. It helps us in clarifying key research concepts and methods to the students.
Research Supervision
- In addition to mentorship, faculty/fellows as principal investigators also supervise students’ in supporting PI’s research work. This regular supervision helps students maintain momentum and make steady progress throughout the 10-week STRP program.
Engagement by OoR/GSCP
- Huddles for Research Progress
Bi-weekly huddles are organized by the GSCP and OoR, where students discuss their project progress and address any challenges with the Huddle Lead.
- STRP Weekly Sessions
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Every Friday throughout the 10-week STRP program, students will participate in interdisciplinary learning sessions that feature guest lectures from renowned researchers and academicians. These sessions offer valuable opportunities to explore diverse research topics, methodologies, and ethical considerations across various fields, helping to broaden students’ academic perspectives.
Expected Deliverables
STRP 1
- Reflection: A detailed reflection on the key learning, challenges and insights by undergraduate researchers.
- Research Poster showcasing research findings, created with feedback from faculty and fellows.
- Support faculty in their Dissemination-Ready Product: This could include publishable findings, an article, an initial prototype, design, artifact, and/or art piece.
STRP 2
- Research Report: A report focused on the research process, challenges and findings.
- Research Poster showcasing research findings, created with feedback from faculty and fellows.
- Support faculty in their Dissemination-Ready Product: This could include publishable findings, an article, an initial prototype, design, artifact, and/or art piece.
Research Showcase
The program concludes with a Research Showcase, where students present their projects. Abstracts of these projects will be published in the annual STRP Abstract Book on HIRA, providing a platform to highlight the innovative research conducted during the program. This showcase offers students an opportunity to share their findings with a wider academic community and gain recognition for their work.
FACULTY RESEARCH PROPOSALS – APPLICATION LINK
Faculty can submit research proposals for the Summer Tehqiq Research Program 2024 through the following link: Application Link.
In 2023, STRP featured 34 students collaborating on 20 faculty-led research projects over a 10-week period from June 5th to August 15th. Details of the projects selected for STRP 2023 emphasize faculty roles, highlighting the collaborative nature of the program.
Quantifying Pakistan's Justice System
Muhaqqiqeen: Esha Amin, Filza Fawad
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Sahaab Badar Sheikh
Description: This project aims to explore case-level judicial data from a district-level court in Pakistan for the year 2013. Metrics such as case duration, bench formation, and judge characteristics will be studied for comparison with legal systems in other countries. The analysis will help determine the impact of various measurable factors on case outcomes.
Analyzing Non-Government Interventions for Activating Karachi’s Public Space Realm – Policy Learning for Improved Urban Livability
Muhaqqiqeen: Sahar Makhani, Syeda Soha Zaka
Faculty Supervisor: Farhan Anwar
Description: This research project addresses Karachi’s decline in public space viability by documenting and analyzing successful non-governmental initiatives. Findings will be synthesized into a Placemaking-based framework to guide policymakers in enhancing urban liveability.
New School Head Policy in Sindh: Public School Mapping
Muhaqqiqeen: Mayam Raza, Alaina Asim
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Muhammad Aatir Khan
Description: This project aims to create an interactive and visual representation of public schools in Sindh. ArcGIS will be used to map school locations and link them with data from SEMIS and HRMIS, providing a comprehensive view of the policy implementation.
Spatial Inequality in Education Outcomes in Schools
Muhaqqiqeen: Dua Mohstasim, Asiya Azad
Faculty Supervisor: Zaineb Makati
Description: The project aims to detect spatial inequality in the education outcomes in Sindh at the primary, lower secondary, and higher secondary levels. The study will use data from the Sindh Education Management Information System and Matriculation results of Sindh Boards, employing various spatial analysis tools for insights into educational disparities.
Towards a Decolonial Home through Material Culture and Generational Memories
Muhaqqiqeen: Anousha Irshad, Daniyal Ahmed
Faculty Supervisor: Mehwish Abid
Description: This visual art project explores the concept of a decolonial, post-colonial home by analyzing family archives and generational memories of families associated with the British Raj. Through drawing, photography, and oral histories, it documents colonial-era objects in homes in Lahore and Rawalpindi, challenging traditional archives and building a digital living archive.
An “Archives Hub” for Pakistan? Theorizing and Developing a Public-Facing, Independently Maintained Directory of Archives and Historical Resources in Pakistan
Muhaqqiqeen: Soheba Shoaib, Soha Sajjad
Faculty Supervisor: Abdullah Mirza
Description: The project aims to create an online directory hosted by Habib University, cataloguing public and private historical collections in Pakistan. Initially focusing on Sindh and Punjab, it will expand nationwide. Inspired by the Archives Hub in the UK, the team will refine the template to address regional concerns and gather metadata on historical resources.
The Impact of Special Support Program on Struggling Students' Performance in Calculus 1
Muhaqqiqeen: Maleeha Hussain, Zaid Bin Khalid
Faculty Supervisor: Aatyka Fatima
Description: This project focuses on assessing the impact of a Special Support Program on the performance of students struggling in Calculus 1. Targeted interventions and a supportive learning environment will be implemented to improve outcomes for students with weak math backgrounds.
Water Quality, Environment and Psychosocial Analysis of Shrines within Karachi
Muhaqqiqeen: Rahina Shiraz Lalani, Anosha Mustafa Nangraj
Faculty Supervisor: Dr.Humaira Qureshi
Description: This study in Karachi aims to investigate the potential spread of waterborne diseases at shrines, where practices like consuming “holy water” may pose health risks. Researchers will visit 20 shrines, survey caretakers, observe environmental factors, and collect water samples for analysis.
Nomophobia and Social Media Addiction Among Adolescents
Muhaqqiqeen: Sumaiyya Ali, Munaza Fatima, Sayed Mustafa Hussain
Faculty Supervisor: Dr.Humaira Jamshed
Description: This research project explores the impact of social media addiction and nomophobia on students’ well-being, academic performance, and behaviour. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, it involves surveys, interviews, and validated questionnaires to gather data from students at Habib University and other institutions.
Understanding the Impact of Industrial Policies on Water Distribution in Karachi
Muhaqqiqeen: Hammad bin Zahoor
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Shah Jamal Alam
Description: The project aims to understand how government industrial development policies impact the water tanker-based supply and demand in Karachi. It explores the balance between domestic and industrial water consumers using agent-based modelling to simulate policy scenarios and identify impacts on water accessibility and affordability for domestic consumers.
A Dataset of Pakistan's Judicial System
Muhaqqiqeen: Syed Rija Hasan Abidi
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Qasim Pasta
Description: This study focuses on the exploration of Big Scholarly Data within Pakistan’s judicial system. The research involves reviewing literature on modelling, managing, and querying scholarly data using graph database solutions. The project proposes a property graph data model and validates it by transforming existing data on migration studies into a graph database.
Developing a Course on Competitive Programming
Muhaqqiqeen: Areesha Amir, Ali Muhammad Asad, Iqra Ahmed
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Waqar Saleem
Description: This collaborative project aims to develop a comprehensive course on competitive programming. The research involves exploring best practices, methodologies, and resources for teaching competitive programming. The team surveyed literature, courses at other universities, and online platforms, with the goal of catering to the growing community of interested DSSE students.
A Theoretically Motivated Redesign of the Nature of Computation Course (CS 212)
Muhaqqiqeen: Hammad Sajid, Zain Ahmed Usmani
Faculty Supervisor: Abdullah Zafar
Description: This research focuses on the redesign of the Nature of Computation course (CS 212). The study involves a cross-disciplinary approach, examining the historical formation of a canon in Theoretical Computer Science. The goal is to apply educational design methodologies, opening points of intervention and critical engagement for the course’s redesign.
Development of a Teaching Lab for the Introduction to Reinforcement Learning Course
Muhaqqiqeen: Hammad Abdul Razzaq, Laiba Jamil
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. M. Shahid Shaikh
Description:This collaborative effort aims to develop a teaching lab for the Introduction to Reinforcement Learning course. The project focuses on providing students with a practical understanding of reinforcement learning algorithms. The lab, including a software platform, is essential for enhancing students’ learning experience.
Kinematic Calibration of Phantom X Pincher Robot Arm
Muhaqqiqeen: Zaryan Ahmed Siddiqui, Asad Muhammad, Syeda Manahil Wasti
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Basit Memon
Description: The research project centres around the kinematic calibration of the Phantom X Pincher Arm. Activities include a literature review, experimental setup development, and a comparison of different calibration methods to identify the most suitable approach. The goal is to incorporate these findings into the ‘Introduction to Robotics’ course in Spring 2024.
Design and Implementation of a Localization App for Sub-Meter Accuracy using SUPARCO’s PAK-REHBER Precise Positioning Service
Muhaqqiqeen: Syed Muhammad Muslim Hussain, Syed Asghar Abbas Zaidi, Muhammad Jazzel Mehmood
FacultySupervisor: Dr. Farhan Khan
Description: This project successfully designs and implements an Android app for precise localization using SUPARCO’s PAK-REHBER Precise Positioning Service. The app aims to achieve sub-meter accuracy by combining GNSS measurements and RTK corrections, benefiting various applications.
Improved Camouflaged Object Detection using Synthetic Data and Generative Adversarial Networks
Muhaqqiqeen: Samiya Ali Zaidi, Afsah Hyder, Syed Muhammad Hussain
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Muhammad Farhan
Description: Contributing to the improvement of Camouflaged Object Detection, this project focuses on utilizing synthetic data and Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs). The research aims to enhance the capabilities of object detection methods in computer vision.
Revolutionizing Power Electronics with Gallium Nitride (GaN) Devices
Muhaqqiqeen: Syed Jahania Shah, Ali Asghar Kerai
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Ishtiyaq Makda
Description:This ambitious research project explores the potential revolution in power electronics through Gallium Nitride (GaN) devices. Activities include designing and simulating GaN-based power electronics circuits, such as DC-DC converters and inverters, to showcase the advantages of GaN devices over traditional silicon-based counterparts.
The Cognitive Selection of Mental Representations
Muhaqqiqeen: Asadullah Chaudhry, Muhammad Azeem Haider
Faculty Supervisor: Haseeb Shaikh
Description:Investigating the cognitive selection of mental representations, this research aims to understand how multiple representations of information manifest in cognitive processing. The project involves an experiment with subjects describing objects and ideas in different context settings.
Impact Analysis of Electric Vehicle Charging on a Distribution Grid
Muhaqqiqeen: Daniyal, Bismaa Behlim
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Ahmed Usman
Description: This impactful project conducts a detailed impact analysis of Electric Vehicle Charging on a Distribution Grid. Activities involve modelling, simulating a distribution grid, exploring strategies for mitigating EV charging effects, and performing performance analysis using MATLAB, Open DSS, and Microsoft Excel software.
STRP 2022 – Research Projects
In 2022, STRP featured 31 students collaborating on 12 faculty-led research projects over a 10-week period from June 6th to August 12th. Details of the projects selected for STRP 2022 emphasize faculty roles, highlighting the collaborative nature of the program.
Topics in Computer Graphics
Muhaqqiqeen: Muhammad Meesum Ali Qazalbash and Muneeb Shafique
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Waqar Saleem
Description: This project was a combination of two sub-projects: physically based rendering and implementing the graphics pipeline. Physically Based Rendering is a class of techniques that aim for photorealistic rendering. The aim was to achieve a competent level of familiarity with Physically Based Rendering to implement some of the learned methods and gain proficiency in related tools. The Muhaqqiq could generate his image by writing a part description file that gave a realistic image when rendered.
Graphical Pipeline is often implemented as hardware on GPUs. The students explored creating the pipeline in software to understand it better. The research successfully emulated the graphical pipeline in software before it only existed in the hardware on GPUs. The study would later expand on teaching students to construct their pipeline, stage by stage.
Deep learning-based activity recognition for tracking and monitoring elderly people
Muhaqqiqeen: Areeb Adnan Khan, Syed Muhammad Mustafa, Haania Siddiqui
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Muhammad Farhan
Description: The existing sensors-based tracking and monitoring devices for elderly people are neither intelligent nor viable due to memory and cognition-related issues of the elderly people. The students produced an intelligent solution based on computer vision that utilized deep neural networks for recognizing elderly people’s activities from videos captured by an RGB-depth camera. The model performed well in three activities: walking, sitting, and lying, helping elderly people significantly.
Development of a dc-dc converter-based DC-nano grid platform
Muhaqqiq: Muhammad Suleiman Qureshi
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Ahmad Usman
Description: Student explored shifting from the traditional AC power grids to DC-nano grids that allow independent electricity operation of small population clusters, removing the extra burden on the centralized grid and allowing electricity penetration into remote areas. The research aimed to explore the applications of dc-dc converters in realizing dc nano-grids from Pakistan’s perspective and develop a scaled-down prototype of ~500Watts using the dc-dc converter technology.
Design and analysis of low-power sensor nodes for KWP
Muhaqqiqeen: Nimra Sohail and Maham Tabassum
Faculty Supervisor: Mr. Junaid Memon
Faculty Supervisor: This project shed light on the significant water challenge in Karachi: the elevated level of non-revenue water (NRW) in the system due to the lack of domestic water metering, which prevents Karachi’s water utility (KWSB) from being financially viable. The research seeks to explore the cost and energy-efficient water-metering infrastructure. Students worked towards developing a power-efficient innovative flow meter that can accurately measure and remotely transmit flow information to a cloud-based central server. Students aim to improve current demand estimates and projections, ensuring improved water resource planning.
Investigating transformers for the Urdu language
Muhaqqiqeen: Shafaq Fatima Mughal, Anosha Fatima Fazli, and Asad Tariq
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Abdul Samad and Dr. Mobeen Movania
Description: Students investigated the performance and efficiency of transformers in Urdu and Roman Urdu languages for the task of sentiment analysis. After researching different datasets, the conclusion was made that the XLM Roberta Transformer is efficient in multi-class sentiment analysis tasks.
Medicinal effects of almonds – perception vs. science
Muhaqqiqeen: Syed Shujauddin, Rimmal Hussain Jaffery, and Hamza Abdullah
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Humaira Jamshed
Description: This research explored natural alternatives like almonds, widely recognized as a nutritionally rich food with a wide array of health benefits to treat dyslipidemia and hypertension in place of chemically produced medicines. Recently, the focus of medical care has shifted towards taking preventive measures; nonetheless, global nut consumption is not up to the recommended levels. This research tried to uncover the perceptions and misconceptions of Pakistani people regarding nut consumption. This research also conducted a thorough article review from 1944 to 2022 to analyze the cost-benefit of almonds compared to prescribed drugs in treating chronic cardiometabolic disorders.
Teaching Introductory Economics: The A-level challenge
Muhaqqiqeen: Sabrina Haider and Zoha binte Asif
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Mohammad Moeini-Feizabadi
Description: This research explored the impact of K-12 education background on university-level education in terms of economics grades to see if achieving good grades in college-level economics translates to receiving equally good grades in university-level economics courses. The project focused on all major academic backgrounds in Karachi, Pakistan, like A-level, AKUEB, BIEK, FBISE, and IB.
Gender sensitive messaging – creating a space for gender empowerment
Muhaqqiqeen: Saniyah Salman and Rahim
Faculty Supervisor: Mr. Farhan Anwar
Description: This project focused on creating a discourse centered around ‘Gender Sensitive Messaging’ targeted at school children using ‘pilot’ communication tools and models. This would aid in their secondary socialization about gender in a positive manner that will have a lifelong effect. Moreover, the pilot storybook is one of the long-term interventions that can impact how women and their roles are viewed in society.
Khanqahi madrassahs: Sufi reformation in the 19-20th century
Muhaqqiqeen: Bisma Barkat Ali and Samana Butul
Faculty Supervisor: Mr. Muzammil Patel
Description: This research investigated the context and milieu of the 19th-century Sufi reformation within the context of the larger South Asian Islamic reformation. In particular, the Qadiri Order focuses on Khuwaja Abdur Rehman Chohrvi and his teachings as a Sufi teacher, combined with the establishment of his Madrassah to examine the reformation that resulted in the formation of a network of Khanqahi Madrassahs and then recognize the degree to which the reformation was internally driven or influenced externally.
Women’s inclusion in the financial sector
Muhaqqiqeen: Hafsa Amir and Syeda Dua Zehra Zaidi
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Mohammad Moeini-Feizabadi
Description: This research aimed to investigate the cultural, institutional, and economic reasons for the under-representation of women in the financial sector. By employing primary and secondary research methods, students intended to understand the root causes of women’s exclusion from the banking sector.
Quantifying determinants of ability and willingness to pay for water services in Karachi
Muhaqqiqeen: Aimen Imtiaz, Rida Rehan Chughtai, and Ajab Shabbir Hussain
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Hassaan Khan and Dr. Sahaab Bader
Description: Karachi suffers indescribable water poverty, and there appears to be no distinction between the upper- and lower-income neighborhoods regarding a declining water landscape. The response of the Karachi Water & Sewerage Board towards this paucity of water is simple; a lack of recovery from the population. The study focused on gauging the population’s willingness to pay for water resources by considering various socio-economic factors, including locality, household expenditure, income, the number of household members, education, etc.
Youth health – Research, Education and Public Outreach
Muhaqqiqeen: Rida Khan, Insha Mushtaq Hashmani, Bushraa Yousuf, and Laiba Zehra
Faculty Supervisor: Dr. Humaira Jamshed
Description: This study is designed to inspect students’ general health, physical activity, sleep quality, anxiety, loneliness, and self-esteem. It explored youth’s eating behaviors, food, and nutrition literacy. Online surveys were administered across students of different universities in Karachi. Data on health indicators such as BMI, blood pressure, heart rate, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels were also measured. It concluded that early recognition of problems, identifying poor life choices, and asking for professional help could significantly prevent illnesses faced by the youth.
