Cork academics pick up prestigious Lero awards
An MTU PhD researcher has set a record of being the first PhD researcher from the technological university to receive the prestigious Lero Director Prize.
Muhammad Muneeb Saad was recognized for his outstanding research achievements in generative adversarial networks (GANs).
Dr Sarah Robinson from UCC won the Education and Public Engagement Award for her innovative use of forum theatre to engage the public on critical topics such as algorithmic justice and the societal impacts of social media algorithms.
The awards, presented in December, recognized nine top academics and researchers from leading Irish universities and institutes of technology. This marks the second Lero award presented to MTU researchers on the night, with Professor Joseph Walsh being recognised for his contributions to intelligent mechatronics, robotics and bio-instrumentation.
Muhammad's award winning research investigates and addresses the challenges associated with utilizing generative adversarial networks (GANs) within the domain of biomedical imaging. Muhammad's evaluation and development of metrics to assess synthetic image diversity and quality to enable quantitative analysis has resulted in novel GANs with improved training schemes and advanced architectures, enhancing our understanding of GAN applications in biomedical imaging.
The Lero Director's Prizes are presented annually to exceptional Lero members from the Lero 12 partner universities and institutes of technology, recognizing their outstanding work and achievements throughout the year. This year's honorees hailed from the University of Galway, University of Limerick, UCC, MTU, and Maynooth University. Lero Director, Lionel Briand, congratulated the winners and emphasized the importance of their contributions to the field of software research. “The Lero Director's Prizes highlight the dedication and excellence of our members in advancing software engineering, information systems, and human-computer interaction across various cutting-edge areas.”
Commenting on his achievement, Muhammad Muneeb Saad, said: “I am truly honoured to receive this award. It is a prestigious recognition of my research contributions during the PhD. I thank the Lero Director, Professor Lionel Briand, and the selection committee for recognizing my work. This award is an appreciation of my PhD work and a motivation to continue pursuing my research passions. I am committed to making a positive impact in the field and contributing to the betterment of the society.”
For more on the Lero’s Director’s Prize and to see the full list of recipients, visit lero.ie.