Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts honors computer science graduates

125 men and women received a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science. Among them were graduates in Information & Cyber Security for the first time: 54 people completed the Bachelor's degree program launched in 2018. The HSLU responded to the high demand for specialists in the field of IT security by offering the program. The training enables junior staff to develop and operate secure IT infrastructures. Twelve graduates also received a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree in Digital Ideation with a focus on computer science. Digital Ideation is a joint program offered by the Departments of Computer Science and Design & Art. In addition, 59 people graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems. Seven students received a Master's degree in Computer Science. The graduation ceremony took place on Friday, July 15, 2022, at the Theater Casino Zug. Eleven prizes for outstanding degrees, academic achievements and final theses were also awarded during the ceremony.

Excellent degrees and practice-related final theses

In the Information & Cyber Security course, Karin Blum from Altbüron LU received the CHF 1,000 prize for the best degree. A prize also endowed with 1,000 Swiss francs went to Joshua Drexel from Grub AR for an outstanding bachelor's thesis as well as for above-average performance throughout his studies. Drexel investigated the differential privacy method in his thesis "Differential Privacy - Data Protection by Technical Means". This cryptographic data protection approach is very efficient, but mathematically extremely demanding. It is therefore not widely used in industry. Drexel presented the topic in such a way that even people with little IT knowledge can understand it. They can then test their newly acquired knowledge in an exercise developed by Drexel. The exercise tool is to be used, among other things, in the HSLU's IT curriculum.

In the computer science program, Benjamin Fassbind from Zug received the regional Siemens Excellence Award 2022, worth 4,000 Swiss francs, for his bachelor thesis "Early Diagnostics of Keratoconus based on Cornea Data of an Anterior Segment OCT". Fassbind programmed an AI-based web application that automatically scans medical eye scans for signs of keratoconus, helping ophthalmologists diagnose the disease early. Keratoconus is a progressive thinning of the cornea. The earlier it is diagnosed, the easier it is to treat. Benjamin Fassbind's award automatically qualifies him for the national Siemens Excellence Award, which will be presented in spring 2023. The prize of 1,000 Swiss francs for the best Bachelor's degree in computer science was awarded to Tobias Heller from Weggis LU, and the prize for an outstanding Bachelor's thesis and for above-average performance throughout his computer science studies was awarded to Emanuel Buholzer from Lucerne for his final thesis "Stop motion with motion control photography". In it, Buholzer created a control program for a robot arm. Thanks to this digital control system, animation students at the HSLU's Department of Design & Art will in future be able to program camera movements for their stop-motion films easily and safely. The camera movements can also be simulated in advance in a 3D environment. The prize, sponsored by IBM, is worth 1,000 Swiss francs and includes a visit to IBM's research center in Rüschlikon.

Award-worthy work on discounting and hit displays

The prizes for the Bachelor of Business Informatics go to Lars Vognstrup from Rupperswil AG for an outstanding degree and to Marco Zehnder from Schongau LU. Zehnder developed an AI-powered dashboard for Siemens AG. With this tool, pricing managers in the company can better analyze and plan discount allocations in the "business-to-business" product business. These prizes are also endowed with 1,000 Swiss francs each.

The Zeix Award in the Digital Ideation course, worth 1,000 Swiss francs, went to Silja Bossert from Rothrist AG for her thesis "SchützenZeiger". In 300-meter rifle shooting, hit results are still printed on paper rolls or stand sheets. Shooters therefore often have an insufficient overview of their hit results. With the help of the mobile app "SchützenZeiger", they can read in their hits with their smartphone, evaluate individual statistics and share them with other users in a further step. The prize of 1,000 Swiss francs for the best bachelor's thesis and for above-average performance throughout her studies was awarded to Chiara Kühne from Winkel ZH for "Zäme - the Swiss breast cancer community": Kühne designed a community app for mobile devices. It helps breast cancer sufferers find women in the same situation, exchange experiences with them and receive emotional support.

Prizes for computer science graduates of the master's program

Graduates of the master's program in computer science also received awards. The prize of 1,500 Swiss francs for an outstanding master's thesis was shared by Mathis Fux from Glis VS and Pascal Wullschleger from Stansstad NW. Mathis Fux developed an app for pulse wristbands in his thesis "Detection of fatigue using IoT/wearables" on behalf of the Swiss Accident Insurance SUVA. The app's algorithm can determine the wearer's fatigue and stress level based on heart rate. In this way, the program is intended to warn people if, for example, they are driving too tired or are about to perform heavy physical work. Pascal Wullschleger, on the other hand, created a data analysis model for predicting medical diagnoses in his thesis "Recommender System Methods applied to Diagnosis Prediction on Electronic Health Records". The model is based on previous diagnoses of a patient. The model is intended to help insurance companies make better risk assessments. Wullschleger used a novel neural network for his work, which was commissioned by reinsurer Swiss Re.

Source and further information: www.hslu.ch