International

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The British Association for Islamic Studies (BRAIS) has announced its 2024 Annual Conference, scheduled to take place at Cloth Hall Court at University of Leeds, on Monday and Tuesday May 20–21, 2024.The association invites scholars worldwide to submit papers and participate in roundtable discussions featuring senior researchers and doctoral-level academics. The call also extends to scholars affiliated with traditional religious institutions.Conference Themes (non-exhaustive):<ul><li>Art, architecture, numerology, and epigraphy&nbsp;</li><li>Black Islam and African studies&nbsp;</li><li>Digital humanities in Islamic studies&nbsp;</li><li>Economics, marketing, and finance&nbsp;</li><li>Education&nbsp;</li><li>Environmental humanities&nbsp;</li><li>Gender studies&nbsp;</li><li>Hadith studies&nbsp;</li><li>History and historiography&nbsp;</li><li>History of Islamic thought and science&nbsp;</li><li>Interfaith relations and comparative studies&nbsp;</li><li>Islam and Muslims in the media&nbsp;</li><li>Law&nbsp;</li><li>Libraries and book culture&nbsp;</li><li>Literature and cultural studies, including postcolonial studies&nbsp;</li><li>Manuscript studies and codicology&nbsp;</li><li>Muslims in Asia&nbsp;</li><li>Muslims in Britain, Europe, North America, and other minority contexts&nbsp;</li><li>Philosophy, theology, and ethics&nbsp;</li><li>Qur’anic and tafsīr (exegesis) studies&nbsp;</li><li>Sociology, anthropology, and political science&nbsp;</li><li>Sufism and mysticism&nbsp;</li></ul>To submit a proposal, applicants must provide a 400-word abstract along with their personal and academic details via the <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/literatures-languages-cultures/alwaleed/outreach-and-projects/british-association-for-islamic-studies/brais-2024-paper">designated submission form</a> (submission deadline: December 14, 2023).For further information, please visit this <a href="https://www.brais.ac.uk/conferences/brais-2024/cfp?fbclid=IwAR1KCgGj7_NtsUQL4Q9vZxbd4H84xvuz1fHOBEYPBnvtX5_tryqN6s-iLio_aem_AYG3Rezly1z-mQQ9EYtxILHX8y4-eaZ3sBt7GXptpfGD7posOGNT5nDNEALyECTNzMY">link</a>.

The British Association for Islamic Studies (BRAIS) has announced its 2024 Annual Conference

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Call for Papers: British Islamic Studies Conference

Iran

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ai-technology

iran-science-and-technology-parks

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Iran's Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy has called for a transformation in the role of the country's science and technology parks as part of broader reforms to the governance of science and innovation. Speaking at the New Architecture of Science and Technology Governance event in Tehran, Hossein Afshin said science and technology must serve the country's production system and address national needs.Afshin stressed that this shift should begin within the education system, arguing that schools should promote innovation and targeted wealth creation as part of their long-term educational strategy. He described capability building as the "master key" to technological development, saying sustainable success depends on the ability to create value chains that translate innovation into economic growth.&nbsp;Focusing on artificial intelligence, Afshin said the country must invest in high-quality data, digital infrastructure, and skilled human capital. Without these foundations, he argued, AI technology will not contribute meaningfully to wealth creation or economic development. He also urged industries to adopt new technologies and innovation more actively, adding that the country's future strength will depend on building interconnected technology networks capable of supporting national development and governance.&nbsp;According to Afshin, technology should enable the country to transform future challenges into opportunities for innovation and economic growth.He said achieving this objective requires redefining the mission of science and technology parks so that the national innovation ecosystem moves beyond an event-driven approach. Afshin added that the development of third- and fourth-generation science and technology parks forms part of this new strategy.&nbsp;The vice president also called for reforms to the roles of elite support organizations and the National Science Foundation to better align them with the country's evolving science, technology, and innovation priorities.&nbsp;&nbsp;https://www.irib-news.ir/fa/news/5863785/تحول-در-ماموریت-پارک‌های-علم-و-فناوری

Iran's Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy called for a new mission for science and technology parks to strengthen innovation, AI

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Iran Calls for New Mission for Science and Technology Parks

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Iran should become one of the world's top 10 artificial intelligence powers, Secretary of the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution Hojjat Al Islam Wal Muslimeen Abdolhossein Khosropanah said during a ceremony commemorating the martyrs of the University of Applied Science and Technology.Addressing the gathering, Khosropanah emphasized the importance of science-based governance and distinguished between scientific expertise and strategic governance of emerging technologies. He stressed the need to develop and implement national strategic documents for artificial intelligence and quantum technologies.&nbsp;He said effective governance requires understanding how advanced technologies can serve national development, security, and economic progress, rather than mastering every technical detail of the underlying science. Khosropanah noted that Iran has already prepared strategic roadmaps for artificial intelligence and quantum technologies through the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution. According to him, these initiatives reflect a long-term vision for positioning the country at the forefront of emerging technologies. "Our responsibility is to implement these strategic documents so that Iran becomes one of the world's top 10 countries in artificial intelligence," he said. The official argued that national leaders should possess strategic oversight of scientific and technological trends, enabling them to guide policy decisions and identify technologies with significant national impact.&nbsp;He also highlighted the importance of supporting scientific advancement through investment in research, innovation, and higher education, describing scientific capability as an essential pillar of national resilience and development. Khosropanah called on students and academics to continue contributing to scientific progress, saying that innovation and knowledge creation are vital to strengthening the country's technological capabilities. He further emphasized the need to improve the livelihoods and professional standing of scientists and researchers, urging all branches of government to provide greater support for the country's scientific community.&nbsp;According to Khosropanah, sustained investment in science, advanced technologies, and innovation will be essential if Iran is to achieve its long-term objective of becoming one of the world's leading artificial intelligence nations.&nbsp;

Iran aims to become one of the world's top 10 artificial intelligence powers, with strategic AI and quantum technology roadmaps 

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Iran Aims to Become One of the World's Top 10 AI Super Powers

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Thirty of the country's leading artificial intelligence startup teams have advanced to the product development stage at the Novatech innovation event showcasing innovations across healthcare, fintech, agriculture, tourism, and security. according to the event's secretary. Speaking at the closing ceremony, Ali Lotfi, Secretary of the Novatech Event, announced that 30 outstanding teams from across Iran successfully developed their AI-driven ideas into minimum viable products (MVPs). The participating startups focused on a wide range of sectors, including healthcare, agriculture, tourism, financial technology (fintech), security, and other technology fields.&nbsp;Lotfi said the nationwide startup event began in the winter of 2025 and attracted more than 1,200 participants seeking to develop innovative AI-based business ideas. The first stage of the competition included technical assessments and skills evaluations. Participants with sufficient expertise in product management, software engineering, and artificial intelligence advanced to the next phase. Organizers then facilitated team formation by connecting qualified participants into groups of three or four members, while some entrants participated as pre-existing teams.&nbsp;Nearly 200 business proposals were submitted and evaluated during the selection process. Teams were assessed based on multiple technical and commercial criteria, with those demonstrating strong business potential advancing to the product development stage. In total, 40 teams entered the product development program, where they received technical and business training designed to help transform their ideas into commercially viable products.&nbsp;By the conclusion of the event, approximately 30 teams had successfully completed the program and developed MVPs. Several startups unveiled their products during the event, some already have active users, and others have secured agreements with investors. A technology exhibition held alongside the closing ceremony provided participating teams with an opportunity to showcase their products, connect with investors, and explore financing opportunities to support future growth. Six of the top-performing teams were selected to present their products during the closing ceremony.&nbsp;The event awarded a total of 350 million tomans in cash prizes. The first-place team will receive 200 million tomans, the second-place team 100 million tomans, and the third-place team 50 million tomans.&nbsp;Lotfi also announced that around 20 additional teams are expected to receive support through investment opportunities and financial assistance. Organizers hope the event will facilitate approximately 10 billion tomans in investment for participating startups.&nbsp;The competition attracted teams from cities across Iran, including Shiraz, Isfahan, Mashhad, Tehran, and Kerman. Participants represented universities nationwide, while some teams included students who had not yet entered university.&nbsp;Lotfi concluded by highlighting the participation of exceptionally young innovators, including a team of teenage Olympiad students who demonstrated impressive expertise in artificial intelligence and related technologies, earning a place among the event's top-performing teams.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Thirty of Iran's top AI startup teams reached the MVP stage at the Novatech event after competing among more than 1,200 participants

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30 Leading AI Startup Teams Reach MVP Stage at Novatech Innovation Event

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Iran's Noor Computer Research Center for Islamic Sciences has introduced NoorDoc, a digital platform designed to integrate Islamic and humanities theses into a unified research database, with artificial intelligence tools to support academic research and protect scholarly integrity.&nbsp;Speaking at a press conference in Qom, Seyed Mostafa Tabatabaei, Head of the Digital Libraries Scientific Group at the Noor Center, said the platform is intended to simplify research while preserving the authenticity of academic work. He announced that theses from Iran's Islamic seminaries will soon be added to the system.&nbsp;Tabatabaei said the center's primary mission is to provide researchers in Islamic and humanities studies with easy access to digital resources and intelligent research tools. Beyond digitizing content, the center is focusing on restructuring information and applying AI technologies to improve data analysis and streamline academic research.<h3>Building a Comprehensive Digital Research Collection</h3>According to Tabatabaei, the Noor Center has gradually developed a complete digital ecosystem for Islamic and humanities resources. The initiative began with the digitization of books, followed by academic journals, conference papers, and other scholarly articles. Recognizing academic theses as a missing component of this research infrastructure, the center launched NoorDoc to complete the digital collection.The platform joins the center's existing services:<ul><li>NoorLib for books</li><li>NoorMags for journals and scholarly articles</li><li>NoorDoc for theses and dissertations</li></ul>Users can browse thesis catalogs, perform full-text searches, download documents, or read them online. The platform is designed with a similar interface and functionality to the NoorLib and NoorMags services.<h3>AI Tools to Support Research Integrity</h3>Tabatabaei said AI-powered features already available—or currently under development—for NoorLib and NoorMags will also be incorporated into NoorDoc. He highlighted the Samim Noor project, an intelligent plagiarism detection system designed to evaluate submitted articles, books, and theses. The system analyzes documents against the center's growing database to identify copied material and measure the originality of academic work.According to Tabatabaei, expanding the thesis collection significantly improves the accuracy of the plagiarism detection engine by providing broader coverage of scholarly resources.<h3>Growing University Partnerships</h3>The University of Tehran was the first institution to collaborate with the Noor Center by providing its complete thesis archive. The university continues to submit newly approved theses after a designated release period.Tabatabaei said the platform currently includes 120,585 theses from the University of Tehran, with agreements being expanded to additional universities. He added that theses from Iran's seminary management centers and specialized religious institutions will also be incorporated in the near future.<h3>International Expansion</h3>Unlike many comparable databases, the Noor Center focuses specifically on Islamic and humanities scholarship without limiting its collection by language or geography.As part of this strategy, the center has acquired a substantial collection of theses from Al-Azhar University in Egypt, one of the world's leading institutions for Islamic studies. These works are being added to the platform progressively, while additional partnerships with other universities are also planned.Tabatabaei noted that although many universities currently charge fees for access to their thesis repositories, NoorDoc aims to centralize scholarly resources, making it easier for researchers to locate, access, and download academic work through a single platform.He added that beyond their research value, the collection also provides students with useful references for thesis writing, research methodology, and dissertation preparation, helping improve the overall quality of academic research.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Iran's Noor Center has expanded its AI-powered NoorDoc platform by integrating Islamic and humanities theses, providing researchers with intelligent search, ...

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Noor Center Expands AI-Powered Platform for Islamic and Humanities Research

international-conference

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&nbsp;will take place from 21 to 23 August 2026 in Oxford, United Kingdom. The conference brings together scholars, researchers, and professionals from different fields of the social sciences to discuss current social issues, emerging research trends, and practical solutions to contemporary challenges.According to the organizers, the event is designed as an interactive academic platform that encourages dialogue, collaboration, and constructive feedback. The conference will feature paper presentations, expert-led panels, workshops, and networking opportunities for participants from around the world.&nbsp;<h3>&nbsp;Organizer</h3>The conference is organized by RSCONF and hosted through its official website:Official website:&nbsp;https://www.rsconf.org/RSCONF presents the event as part of its broader effort to promote international academic exchange in the social sciences, with a particular emphasis on practical research and global collaboration.&nbsp;<h3>&nbsp;Conference Topics</h3>The conference welcomes submissions across a wide range of social science themes, including:- Sociology of knowledge &nbsp; - Pragmatism &nbsp; - Experimental psychology &nbsp; - Feminism &nbsp; - Sociolinguistics &nbsp; - Social studies education &nbsp; - Language and linguistics &nbsp; - Humanities education &nbsp; - Other related social science topics &nbsp;The organizers state that both theoretical and applied research are welcome, making the conference relevant to scholars working on social behavior, societal structures, education, and cultural studies.<h3>&nbsp;Important Details</h3>- Conference dates: 21–23 August 2026 &nbsp; - Location: Oxford, United Kingdom &nbsp; - Abstract submission deadline: 31 July 2026 &nbsp; - Registration deadline: 11 August 2026 &nbsp; - Presentation formats: In-person and virtual participation options are available &nbsp; - Additional feature: A free guided tour of Oxford is included for attendees &nbsp;The conference also highlights publishing opportunities, including inclusion of abstracts in an ISBN book, full papers in proceedings with ISSN and DOI, and recommendations to Scopus-indexed journals.&nbsp;<h3>Why It Matters</h3>Although the conference is centered on social sciences rather than Islamic jurisprudence directly, its themes may still be of interest to researchers working in contemporary fiqh, social theory, ethics, education, language, and cultural studies. Conferences of this type often provide useful insights into broader intellectual trends that intersect with legal and religious scholarship.

The 4th Global Conference on Research in Social Sciences (RSCONF 2026)