Singapore Honors Top Scientific Talent

Eight research scientists and engineers in Singapore were honored this evening at the Republic’s 2013 President’s Science and Technology Awards.

AsianScientist (Sep. 25, 2013) – Singapore’s highest science honors were given out tonight at the President’s Science and Technology Awards, which took place at Gardens By The Bay, Singapore.

Outstanding individuals and teams were noted for their achievements and contributions to research and development in Singapore.

The President’s Science and Technology Medal was conferred by President Dr. Tony Tan Keng Yam on two scientists, Prof. Barry Halliwell and Prof. Freddy Boey. Prof. Halliwell is the Deputy President (Research and Technology) of the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Prof. Boey is the Deputy President and Provost of Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

Prof. Halliwell, who studies free radical chemistry, redox biology and antioxidants, is also in charge of recruiting scientific talent to NUS.

“I am honored and humbled to receive this award. The research excellence that has been achieved at NUS and in Singapore generally has only been possible through a team effort of many people, of which I am a small part,” said Prof. Halliwell.

Prof. Boey, who is both an academic and entrepreneur, has successfully commercialized his research, examples of which include a customizable hernia mesh that lowers the risk of inflammation and infection, and a biodegradable drug-eluting stent.

“I am especially delighted to receive such prestigious recognition from my own country. In the past 28 years that I’ve been at NTU, I’ve seen the climate for innovation and research evolve to a standing which is on par with the best in the world,” he said.

Two President’s Science Awards were presented to Prof. Yu Hao of NUS and Prof. Boris Luk’yanchuk of the Data Storage Institute, part of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR). Prof. Yu researches the molecular mechanisms underlying plant reproduction, while Prof. Luk’yanchuk studies laser thermochemistry, plasmonics, optics and photonics.

Team effort led to the President’s Technology Award being conferred on scientists from the A*STAR Institute for Infocomm Research. Led by Prof. Li Haizhou, the team developed a suite of speech and language technologies, such as the Abacus engine, which can break down language barriers for Asian languages.

The three winners of the Young Scientist Award were Asst. Prof. Robin Chi Yonggui from NTU, Asst. Prof. Qiu Cheng Wei from NUS, and Dr. Khor Chiea Chuen from A*STAR.

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Source: A*STAR.
Disclaimer: This article does not necessarily reflect the views of AsianScientist or its staff.

David Tan is a post-doctoral researcher at the A*STAR Institute of Medical Biology, Singapore. David received a PhD in stem cell biology from the University of Cambridge, UK.

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