Ayubowan! Fadil here :D Welcome to the IQ Labs Podcast! You can find all the Science Talks and some of Research Advice episodes here. All the videos of these episodes can be found on the IQ Labs YouTube Channel. My Channel playlist makes things more organized.
Umesh Moramudali is a Sri Lankan economist and a researcher, currently reading for his PhD in Develpment Policy and Managment at the Global Development Institute (GDI), University of Manchester. His research mostly focuses on Chinese loans, public finance, public debt, middle income transition and the political economy of middle class. He has done extensive research work on Chinese lending to Sri Lanka, and myth of Chinese debt trap. His research was published in International Affairs Journal, Asian Perspective Journal, Asian Journal of Political Science, Roultage, and China- Africa Research Initiative (CARI) at the John Hopkins University. Previously, he was attached to the Department of Economics at the University of Colombo where he was a lecturer. He holds a BA (Honours) in Economics from the University of Colombo and an MSc in Economics from the University of Warwick, where he was awarded a Chevening scholarship.Umesh received a studentship from Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) of North West Social Science Doctoral Training Partnership (NWSSDTP) in 2025.
24 Jan 2026
අපි හිතන්න දන්නේ නෑ. AI නිසා නිකන්ම කෙලවෙනවා We forgot how to think - Dr. Chameera De Silva
Many thanks to Dr. Chameera De Silva for accepting my invitation to join the Science Talks podcast. He is a Doctoral Scholar in Artificial Intelligence from Australia and a Consultant in AI – Atos. He is passionate about popularizing AI and trying new teaching and testing strategies on his students. The present day testing methods in our education system does not prepare our students for success. We have lost the art of thinking and instead we only limit ourselves to calculations and memorization – tasks which are easy for computers to take on. What can we do to improve our thinking?
Mental health, suicidal thoughts, depression can occur to anyone. How can we build mental resilience to the point where we see our problems in a positive lens? Muslims across the world and in Sri Lanka have one of the lowest suicide rates (N. Thalagaha et al). What makes their worldview different from others? How do they process things when adversity strikes? In this podcast I invited Sheikh Nasik Farook to talk on this. In this episode we will dive into the Islamic worldview, practical teachings for anyone to do that enhances mental resilience.
Nasik Farook holds a BA in Arabic Literature and Arabic Language from the Islamic University of Madina, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He recently completed his MA in Pali and Buddhist studies from the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. Many thanks to Jayashan Bandara for hosting the discussion and preparing questions.
Nasik Farook is an experienced Islamic educator and language teacher since 2015, with expertise in teaching Islam and Qur'an to new converts, and instructing Arabic and Sinhala languages. He is skilled in Quran translation and creating educational content to promote cultural understanding. He is committed to supporting diverse learners and fostering cross-cultural communication. Nasik’s YouTube channel can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/@nasikfarookofficial
Reference:
SUICIDE TRENDS IN SRI LANKA 1880- 2006; SOCIAL, DEMOGRAPHIC AND GEOGRAPHICAL VARIATIONS
N Thalagala
Time-stamps
00:00 About podcast
01:13 About Sheikh Nasik Farook
06:51 Learn from each other
07:38 No clergy in Islam
09:13 About Jayashan
12:25 The Islamic world view
23:16 Life is test
25:21 Try your best – but Allah decides the result
29:05 Exam stress
35:32 There is good in failure
36:58 Death of a child
39:19 Life after death
40:22 Muslims have lowest Suicide rates
41:18 We all have the same problems
42:01 Raising children
43:17 Divorce
44:04 All matters are good
45:24 Everyone has problems
45:51 Problem: We are living for others
48:35 Intention behind actions
51:18 Charities are done Anonymous
52:14 Don’t seek praise from others
55:00 Ego is the enemy
56:31 Not sleeping on time
1:00:38 Waking up early
1:01:43 Start from a young age
1:05:25 Friday afternoon prayers
1:06:24 Identity plays a role in habits
1:08:55 Mindfulness – look at nature
1:13:54 daily prayers & fasting
1:17:25 Step by step
1:18:13 Small changes – make a big difference
1:20:46 Thank the people
1:22:51 Values come first
1:25:52 Be the first to greet others
1:27:17 How to be consistent
1:32:47 Addictions – drugs and pornography
1:41:01 Natural feelings are abused
1:44:38 Buddhist meditation techniques
1:48:03 Rat race and children
1:51:59 With hardship comes ease
1:54:05 We need to be better parents
1:56:19 Be content with what you have
1:59:56 Compare yourself others who have less
2:03:49 Prophet’s advice to a person who wanted to commit adultery
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