The recipients of the Asia Centre scholarship were revealed

The recipients of the Asia Centre scholarship for 2022-2023 academic year were revealed. This year, the successful candidates are Susanna Homuha, Kristjan-Jaak Tammsaar, Verner Sääsk and Marta Kohal. 

The aim of the scholarship is to support students of the University of Tartu whose research focuses interdisciplinaryly on Asian and/or Middle Eastern regions or areas dealing with them. Graduates whose master's thesis (also a doctoral or field thesis in the field of medical sciences) includes scientific work that helps to develop knowledge and research of Asia and/or the Middle East in Estonian society can apply for the scholarship. This includes building and networking relationships such as joint mentoring and cooperation with Asian research institutions. 

• Susanna Homuha (Faculty of Arts and Humanities) 

The thesis “Illegal Hidden Cameras in South Korea: The Impact of Molka on Young University Educated Women and Gender Relations” focuses on the issue of illegal secret camera filming in the Republic of Korea (later South Korea or Korea). The illegal filming crimes have been prominent in Korea in recent years as secret cameras are being placed into public spaces where privacy is exposed. Cameras are placed in locations such as public bathrooms, dressing rooms, motels etc. The issue has manifested itself in a multitude of ways. Along with the practice of placing secret cameras Into Hidden places, a practice of taking upskirt photos on the metro or on an escalator has been commonly associated with the secret camera crimes alongside hydden camera filming. The Hidden material is then posted onto the internet, for various probable reactions which will be discussioned in detail later in later sections of the thesis. While it is clear that the victims of secret filming crimes are the most prevalent group affected by the issue, this thesis indicates, that nonvictim women also suffer as a result of this problem. The aim of this thesis is to demonstrate the correlation between the phenomena of illegal secret camera filming or photographing, and the effects it has been women's Behavior and gender relations: how women navigate their bodies in public space and how this issue effects women's day-to-day lives and relationships with men in the Korean society. 

Supervisor: Terje Toomistu (University of Tartu) 

• Verner Sääsk (Faculty of Science and Technology) 

The thesis “Design of Highly Luminescent Anionic Manganese(II) Complexes for Application in Organic Light-Emitting Diodes” reports on the successful preparation of eight novel luminescent manganese(II) complexes, for which melting and degradation onset temperatures, X-ray diffraction patterns, luminescence spectra, emission lifetimes, and quantum yields were measured. Based on the results, [BnMIm]2[MnBr4] (BnMIm = 1-benzyl-3-methylimidazolium ion) was chosen for the preparation of organic light-emitting diodes, due to its remarkable quantum yield (Ф = 0.59) and high crystallinity. Next, to demonstrate applicability of complexes with [BnMIm]+ cation as emitter materials, thin luminescent films were prepared out of them. Finally, optical band gap of [BnMIm]2[MnBr4] was estimated from its absorption spectrum. 

Supervisors: Ho-Hsiu Chou (National Tsing Hua University) and Kaija Põhako-Esko (University of Tartu) 

• Kristjan-Jaak Tammsaar (Faculty of Social Sciences) 

Kristjan-Jaak Tammsaar's thesis investigates image creation techniques and rhetoric strategies of political leaders in the context of South Asia.

Supervisor: David Ilmar Lepasaar Beecher (University of Tartu) 

• Marta Kohal (Faculty of Medicine) 

Marta Kohal received the scholarship to conduct surgical internship in Japan.  

Congratulations to all the successful candidates!