Qatar forum to select winners from 353 abstracts

The abstracts cover a wide range of topics, from water desalination processes to the impact of autism on families in Qatar.Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development said that it received 353 research abstracts, competing for exposure at the second Annual Research Forum.The abstracts cover a wide range of topics, from water desalination processes to the impact of autism on families in Qatar, the foundation said in an email to Gulf News.According to officials, 67 of the abstracts submitted were from students."The response to our call for abstracts this year shows that we are slowly but surely achieving exactly what this forum is about - a more thriving research culture," Dr Dirar Khoury, Qatar Foundation's Director of Institutional Research and Chair of the Abstract Review Committee, said."We received a significant increase in submissions in every category - including abstracts in the environment research category, which is a separate track this year reflecting the growing need for environmental research."Abstracts were submitted in the fields of biomedicine, computing, energy, environment, arts, humanities, Islamic studies and social sciences – the main tracks for this year's forum.The abstracts are currently under review by the abstract review committee made up of well-established and experienced reviewers in their fields and transparency in the review process is a focus this year, the foundation said.In screening the abstracts for presentation at the forum, the review committee will base its selection on the quality of the research, its originality and merit, and its relevance to Qatar. Priority will be given to research performed in Qatar, conducted in collaboration with an organization in Qatar, or carried out with the support of a Qatari institution."We were pleased to see such high quality abstracts submitted by students. At this year's forum, meritorious student abstracts will be selected for either oral or poster presentation to an expert review panel of international scholars, giving more opportunity for the students to interact with top scientists and researchers," Khoury said. "At Qatar Foundation, we look for ways to inspire young people to be a part of the research and science culture, and through events like the Annual Research Forum we recognize and celebrate their research efforts."This year's submission and review processes was facilitated through the QScience.com platform, an open peer-reviewed online publishing platform launched at the 2010 Annual Research Forum by Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation Journals, a member of Qatar Foundation."A very important objective of Qatar Foundation is to initiate and conduct primary research in Qatar - to find home grown solutions for Qatar and the region," Khoury said. "We recognize the pressing need to move away from adapting outside research conducted in environments that are not similar to Qatar's own in order to ensure practical application and sustainability."The Second Annual Research Forum to be held between November 20-22 at the Qatar National Convention Centre is dedicated to globalization of research by promoting a scientific culture regionally and globally.