DOHA, Qatar, October 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

Season 7's Engineering Stage Kicks Off

Twelve of the Arab world's most promising and remarkable young innovators beat thousands of rival applicants to be selected as candidates on the seventh season of Stars of Science, Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development 's (QF) "edutainment reality" TV program on MBC4.

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This selection concludes the casting phase and marks the onset of the highly competitive engineering stage of the program, in which candidates work tirelessly with mentors to turn their concepts into prototypes; further advancing QF's mission of unlocking human potential in the next generation of aspiring young science and technology innovators.

Chosen candidates have roots in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Tunisa, reflecting the diversity that has characterized Stars of Science since its inception.  Their distinct inventions feature smart technology that can solve problems in fields as varied as medical diagnostics, mobility for the physically challenged, sports, renewable energy and nutrition.

On the first three episodes of Stars of Science, thousands of applicants from across the Middle East and North Africa were screened in a multi-country casting tour by a panel of highly experienced jurors. In the latest Majlis episode, jury members selected twelve of the seventeen shortlisted applicants to become candidates, advancing them to the next phase of the competition, held at Qatar Science & Technology Park, a member of Qatar Foundation.

As candidates enter the critical engineering stage, which spans three episodes, they compete against each other in three separate groups labeled; blue, red and purple. To promote both teamwork and friendly rivalry, each group develops their inventions in the same laboratory.  There, they benefit from the advice and support of mentors, who are professionals in many fields, including engineering, design, executive coaching and psychology.  

The innovators' efforts - showcased in one episode per group of four candidates - will be evaluated by an expert jury.  Two candidates per group will advance to the next stage of the program.

The blue group contains the KSA's Hassan Albalawi, who will develop his idea for an "EEG Cap Analyzer."  He will join Egypt's Hazem Khaled ("Sign Language EMG Sleeve"), Palestine's Nadim Rifai ("Rewarding Behavior Treadmill"), and Tunisia's Naouel Ayari ("Smart Refrigerator").

The red group will feature Lebanon's Adib Al Ghossein ("Ergonomic Activity Desk Lamp"), Syria's Yaman Abou Jieb ("Solar Washing Machine"), Jordan's Maymoona Ayesh ("Date Pits Filter in Desalination"), and Algeria's Mourad Mohamed Benosman ("ECG Wearable Stress Analyzer").

The purple group will see the KSA's Abdullah Aldossary work on a prototype of his "Airport Smart Chair," along with Tunisia's Fawzy Othman ("Robotic Goalie Trainer"), Egypt's Omar Hamid ("Prayer Chair"), and Palestine's Hussam Al Hinnawi ("Automatic Stair Climber Machine").

"With each season, the quality, scope and variety of the inventions presented continue to increase," said Mr. Youssif Abdulrahman, longtime juror and General Manager of Qatar Shell Research and Technology Centre (QSRTC). "While this trend speaks to the great skill of Arab innovators in shaping the future of science and technology, it turns evaluation into an especially challenging task. The journey these young people are embarking on will be greatly inspiring for many, driving interest in science and technology innovation in the region," he continued.

Khalid Al Jumaily, who has taken viewers through the many captivating moments of previous seasons, is returning to host this seventh edition of Stars of Science, as candidates work toward realizing their visions. Viewers can track their progress through daily episodes starting on Saturday, October 10^th at 4 PM KSA / 1 PM GMT on MBC4. The first engineering elimination episode will be aired on Friday, October 16^th at 7PM KSA/ 4 PM GMT on MBC4. This seventh season will culminate in a live final, where both the jury and viewers will decide which candidates will share the prize money of $600,000.

For more information please visit:

Website - http://www.starsofscience.com 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/StarsOfScienceTV 

Twitter - https://twitter.com/starsofscience 

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/StarsOfScienceTV 

Instagram - https://instagram.com/starsofsciencetv/

Stars of Science 

Stars of Science, an "edutainment reality" TV format initiated by Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development (QF), is the region's leading innovation program.  Stars of Science fosters and advances the Arab world's aspiring science and technology entrepreneurs. In this seventh season, 12 candidates are challenged to prove their resourcefulness during critical stages of the innovation cycle while collaborating with industry leading mentors.  An expert panel of jurors assesses and eliminates candidates and their innovative products in Engineering and Design episodes until only four remain.  These four finalists vie for a share of a $600,000 prize, determined by a jury deliberation and voting from the public.

Stars of Science airs from Friday, September 18^th, to Friday, November 20^th, 2015 on MBC4. 

Qatar Foundation - Unlocking Human Potential 

Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development (QF) is a private, non-profit organization that is supporting Qatar on its journey from a carbon economy to knowledge economy by unlocking human potential, for the benefit of not only Qatar, but the world.  Founded in 1995 by His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Father Emir, QF is chaired by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. 

QF's work encompasses education, research and community development.  World-class universities are brought to Qatar to help create an education sector in which young people can develop the attitudes and skills required for a knowledge economy. At the same time, QF builds Qatar's innovation and technology capacity by developing and commercializing solutions through key sciences.  The Foundation also works to foster a progressive society while enhancing cultural life, protecting Qatar's heritage and addressing immediate social needs in the community.

For a complete list of QF's initiatives and projects, visit http://www.qf.org.qa

About MBC Group 

MBC Group (Middle East Broadcasting Center) is the largest and leading private media company in the Middle East & North Africa region. For the past 23 years, MBC Group was able to enrich people's lives through information, interaction and entertainment. In 2002, nearly a decade after the launch of MBC1 in London, back in 1991, and as the 1st private free-to-air Arab satellite TV channel, MBC Group moved its headquarters to Dubai Media City, United Arab Emirates, where it remains.

Today, MBC Group includes 20 TV channels: MBC1 (general family entertainment); MBC2 and MBC MAX (24-hour western movies); MBC3 (children's edutainment with a mix of both local productions and western acquisitions); MBC4 (entertainment for young families with a female-focus); MBC Action (an indigenous adrenaline-packed channel targeting young males with local and homegrown productions); MBC Variety (Western films and general entertainment with uninterrupted broadcasting); Al Arabiya News Channel (the 24-hour Arabic language news channel); Al Hadath (an extension of Al Arabiya News Channel with a specific focus on real events in the Arab world and beyond); Wanasah (24-hour Arabic music channel); MBC DRAMA (24/7 Arabic drama); MBC MASR (general family entertainment geared towards the Egyptian family); MBC MASR 2 (providing the Egyptian audience with superior quality entertainment, in addition to live coverage of some of the Egyptian league's football matches);  MBC + Drama (a joint paid-for channel between MBC and OSN); MBC Bollywood (delivering the freshest in Bollywood content geared towards the region via an Arabized interface); and most recently four sports channels, MBC PRO SPORTS (geared towards the "Saudi Football Premier League" fans in the Kingdom); and MBC USA (the channel is present on "Dish Network" in the US, and targets Arab audiences aboard; the channel is dedicated to offer and broadcast a wide range of content from the prominent MBC channels including movies, series and global formats).

In July 2011, seven channels within MBC Group began to broadcast in HD across the MENA Region: MBC1 HD, MBC2 HD, MBC4 HD, MBC Action HD, MBC Drama HD, MBC Max HD and Al Arabiya HD. In 2013, MBC3 HD joined the collection of HD channels followed by MBC Variety HD in 2014.

MBC Group also includes two FM radio stations: MBC FM (Gulf music) and Panorama FM (contemporary Arabic hit music); as well as O3 Productions, a premium content drama production company. Furthermore, MBC Group includes online platforms: http://www.mbc.net, http://www.alarabiya.net, http://www.shahid.net (the first free VOD and catch-up portal in the Arab world) and http://www.actionha.net, and http://www.mbcprosports.net among others.

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SOURCE Stars of Science