Dubai schoolgirl Krisha Vaidhya won a competition for design professionals after designing a chair inspired by the UAE's Mars Mission. All photos by Chris Whiteoak / The National
Dubai schoolgirl Krisha Vaidhya won a competition for design professionals after designing a chair inspired by the UAE's Mars Mission. All photos by Chris Whiteoak / The National
Krisha, 8, at her home in Jumeirah Village Circle on April 22.
Krisha, 8, at her home in Jumeirah Village Circle on April 22.
She participated in the iForDesign competition, organised by the Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation.
She participated in the iForDesign competition, organised by the Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation.
Krisha says the chair is designed to be used both inside and outside of the house, and features legs that double as a levitation device. It has boosters to keep it afloat while manoeuvring the harsh volcanic surface of Mars.
Krisha says the chair is designed to be used both inside and outside of the house, and features legs that double as a levitation device. It has boosters to keep it afloat while manoeuvring the harsh volcanic surface of Mars.
Krisha’s mother, Navita Hakim, obtained special permission from the organisers as she was too young to participate in the contest.
Krisha’s mother, Navita Hakim, obtained special permission from the organisers as she was too young to participate in the contest.

Education

Dubai schoolgirl honoured at design competition for prototype of chair fit for use on Mars

Krisha Vaidhya, 8, designed an armchair after being inspired by the UAE's Hope Probe

Gillian Duncan
Gillian Duncan

June 02, 2021

  • English
  • Arabic

A Dubai schoolgirl won a design competition for adults with her prototype of an armchair that is fit to be used on Mars.

Krisha Vaidhya, 8, participated in the iForDesign competition, organised by the Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation.

The competition was open to students, entrepreneurs and the wider community to redesign the humble chair. More than 250 people took part in the contest last year and the results were announced on November 8.

It also has a temperature controlled seat and bullet and ash proof glass, which helps during volcanic eruptions

Krisha’s mother, Navita Hakim, obtained special permission from the organisers as she was too young to participate in the contest.

The pupil opted to enter the "future" category with her design for a chair to be used on Mars once the country colonises the planet.

Krisha, who studies at Dubai International Academy in Emirates Hills, created the prototype using recycled materials and made a short video to explain its many features, earning herself an honourable mention from the judges.

There were two prizes for the category she entered. A designer won the first prize and Krisha was honoured for her "idea and purpose" behind the design for her chair.

She won Dh3,000 and a small 3D-printed version of her chair. She hopes to have a large 3D version printed one day too.

Krisha said the chair, which is designed to be used both inside and outside of the house, features legs that double as a levitation device, with boosters to keep it afloat while manoeuvring the harsh volcanic surface of Mars.

"It was inspired by the recent launch of the Hope probe from the UAE," said Krisha, who is from India.

The prototype of the chair is made of recycled materials. Chris Whiteoak / The National
The prototype of the chair is made of recycled materials. Chris Whiteoak / The National

“It also has a temperature-controlled seat and bullet and ash-proof glass, which helps during volcanic eruptions, as there are many on Mars," she said.

Ms Hakim said her daughter was an avid reader.

She named the prototype Krisha's Kursi, a reference to chair in both Hindi and Arabic.

Krisha said she was surprised, but delighted, to earn a mention from the judges of the competition.

Ms Hakim said she initially dissuaded her daughter from entering the contest.

"I was on Instagram one day and she kept peeping into my phone. She was trying to see what I was doing," she said.

When Krisha saw the competition posters, she started pestering her mom to let her enter the competition.

“I said sorry, you are not a design professional or a design student,” Ms Hakim said.

“But she kept pleading. So that night I messaged them to see if they would allow Krisha, who was seven then, if she could participate. They came back and said why not? If she has ideas, she can definitely go ahead and participate.”

Ms Hakim said her daughter had always been creative.

"This is a perfect example of how technology and screen time can actually be used for good by children."

Images sent by Hope Probe 

The first image of Mars as taken by the UAE's Hope probe, which arrived at the planet on February 9.
The first image of Mars as taken by the UAE's Hope probe, which arrived at the planet on February 9.
This image taken by the Hope probe's ultraviolet spectrometer (one of its three scientific instruments) shows sunlight reflecting off the extended cloud of atomic hydrogen gas that surrounds the planet Mars. The sunlight is visible only as a dark disk hidden inside the fog of gas. The Emirates Mars Mission team said that no other mission have made such kind of recordings before.
This image taken by the Hope probe's ultraviolet spectrometer (one of its three scientific instruments) shows sunlight reflecting off the extended cloud of atomic hydrogen gas that surrounds the planet Mars. The sunlight is visible only as a dark disk hidden inside the fog of gas. The Emirates Mars Mission team said that no other mission have made such kind of recordings before.
The UAE's Hope probe captured a high-resolution photo of Mars.
The UAE's Hope probe captured a high-resolution photo of Mars.
The Hope probe has shared new images from its journey in the orbit of Mars.
The Hope probe has shared new images from its journey in the orbit of Mars.
This image was taken by the infrared spectrometer, another instrument on the Hope probe, from an altitude of about 15,000 kilometres. The image shows the surface temperature (left), centred on the Tharsis region of Mars. Dawn can be seen towards the right side. The low surface temperatures observed are due to the dusty nature of the Martian surface. An elevated nighttime atmospheric temperature at 25 km altitude (right) is also observed over the Tharsis region.
This image was taken by the infrared spectrometer, another instrument on the Hope probe, from an altitude of about 15,000 kilometres. The image shows the surface temperature (left), centred on the Tharsis region of Mars. Dawn can be seen towards the right side. The low surface temperatures observed are due to the dusty nature of the Martian surface. An elevated nighttime atmospheric temperature at 25 km altitude (right) is also observed over the Tharsis region.
These images were captured by the eXploration imager, a high-resolution camera on the Hope probe. The red channel clearly shows the dark and light features of the Martian surface, while the water ice clouds stand out in the ultraviolet channel.
These images were captured by the eXploration imager, a high-resolution camera on the Hope probe. The red channel clearly shows the dark and light features of the Martian surface, while the water ice clouds stand out in the ultraviolet channel.
Hope probe sent back an image of the Cerberus Fossae, an area on the planet known for 'Marsquakes'.
Hope probe sent back an image of the Cerberus Fossae, an area on the planet known for 'Marsquakes'.
Surface and atmospheric temperature readings collected by the UAE's Hope probe.
Surface and atmospheric temperature readings collected by the UAE's Hope probe.
Discrete aurora on Mars captured by UAE's Hope probe
Discrete aurora on Mars captured by UAE's Hope probe
Discrete aurora on Mars captured by UAE's Hope probe
Discrete aurora on Mars captured by UAE's Hope probe

The Transfiguration

Director: Michael O’Shea

Starring: Eric Ruffin, Chloe Levine

Three stars

%E2%80%98White%20Elephant%E2%80%99
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jesse%20V%20Johnson%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Michael%20Rooker%2C%20Bruce%20Willis%2C%20John%20Malkovich%2C%20Olga%20Kurylenko%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO

FA Cup final

Chelsea 1
Hazard (22' pen)

Manchester United 0

Man of the match: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)

On Women's Day

Various Artists 
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
​​​​​​​

Mina Cup winners

Under 12 – Minerva Academy

Under 14 – Unam Pumas

Under 16 – Fursan Hispania

Under 18 – Madenat

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULT

Al Hilal 4 Persepolis 0
Khribin (31', 54', 89'), Al Shahrani 40'
Red card: Otayf (Al Hilal, 49')

WORLD RECORD FEES FOR GOALKEEPERS

1) Kepa Arrizabalaga, Athletic Bilbao to Chelsea (£72m)

2) Alisson, Roma to Liverpool (£67m)

3) Ederson, Benfica to Manchester City (£35m)

4) Gianluigi Buffon, Parma to Juventus (£33m)

5) Angelo Peruzzi, Inter Milan to Lazio (£15.7m

BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES

SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities

Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails

Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies

Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments

Best Foreign Language Film nominees

Capernaum (Lebanon)

Cold War (Poland)

Never Look Away (Germany)

Roma (Mexico)

Shoplifters (Japan)

MATCH INFO

Manchester City 3
Danilo (16'), Bernardo Silva (34'), Fernandinho (72')

Brighton & Hove Albion 1
Ulloa (20')

The Florida Project

Director: Sean Baker

Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe

Four stars

World Cricket League Division 2

In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.

UAE fixtures

Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final

What are the influencer academy modules?
  1. Mastery of audio-visual content creation. 
  2. Cinematography, shots and movement.
  3. All aspects of post-production.
  4. Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
  5. Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
  6. Tourism industry knowledge.
  7. Professional ethics.
Indoor Cricket World Cup

Venue Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23

UAE squad Saqib Nazir (captain), Aaqib Malik, Fahad Al Hashmi, Isuru Umesh, Nadir Hussain, Sachin Talwar, Nashwan Nasir, Prashath Kumara, Ramveer Rai, Sameer Nayyak, Umar Shah, Vikrant Shetty

'My Son'

Director: Christian Carion

Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis

Rating: 2/5

More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Winners

Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)

Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)

Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona / Spain)

Best Young Women’s Player
Vicky López (Barcelona / Spain)

Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)

Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)

Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)

Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)

The biog

Name: Sari Al Zubaidi

Occupation: co-founder of Cafe di Rosati

Age: 42

Marital status: single

Favourite drink: drip coffee V60

Favourite destination: Bali, Indonesia 

Favourite book: 100 Years of Solitude 

Zakat definitions

Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.

Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.

Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.

Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.

About Housecall

Date started: July 2020

Founders: Omar and Humaid Alzaabi

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: HealthTech

# of staff: 10

Funding to date: Self-funded

UAEEducation