2012 April

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

BEACON

at Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

April 2012 / Jumada Al-Awal 1433 Volume 2, Issue No. 8

the

www.kaust.edu.sa

DESIGNER MATERIAL FOR CARBON CAPTURE

WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS Having a paper accepted for publication in a top journal demonstrates the significance of the work; having a paper featured on the cover of a journal pushes that significance to a higher level. A cover is, as they say, the icing on the cake.

Ryan Luebke and Mohammed Eddaoudi had their cake iced in February when their paper (see illustration to right) was featured on the cover of ChemComm, a

The unique rht-MOF platform, ideal for pinpointing the functionalization and CO2 adsorption relationship

high-impact journal published by the Royal Society. Their cover

Few of us remain unaware of the increasing pressure that anthropogenic gases

was created by KAUST’s own sci-

are contributing to the greenhouse gas effect in the context of global warming;

unique solid-state material for the specific

entific illustrator, Olga Zausalina

not only are there international efforts to reduce their production but scientists

purpose of investigating methods of enhancing

Kasimov, who works in the Office

are looking closely at how to prevent the polluting effects of combustion pro-

CO2 capture. MOF chemistry allowed for functionali-

of Academic Writing Services

cesses such as vehicle emissions and flue gases. Researchers are challenged to

zation of the material through the use of nitrogen containing organic ligands

(AWS) led by Dr. Virginia Unkefer,

capture carbon dioxide (CO2) before it is released into the atmosphere, a process

(e.g. amine and triazine groups). As expected, the capacity and affinity for

and produces scientific illustrations

that is currently energy-intensive and consequently expensive.

CO2 increased by 50% as compared to the MOF without the amine functional-

and graphics for faculty members

A group of young researchers in Professor Mohamed Eddaoudi’s Functional Materials Design, Discovery, and Development (FMD3) Lab, including a student

at the University.

ity. The ongoing work of the group is already showing promise for even more efficient materials for CO2 capture.

To design Luebke and Eddaoudi’s

from KAUST’s founding class, have designed a unique material, an amine func-

These KAUST scientists, comprising PhD student Ryan Luebke (first author)

cover, Kasimov explained, she

tionalized Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) with potential for use as a sorbent

together with colleagues Drs. Amy Cairns and Youssef Belmabkhout, have a

first met with Eddaoudi and his

for enhanced post-combustion CO2 capture. Their work recently featured on the

particular expertise in the synthesis and characterization of MOFs, an emerg-

team. “Ryan, Professor Eddaoudi,

cover of the Royal Society of Chemistry journal, Chemical Communications.

ing class of solid-state materials which they see as offering great potential to

and other members of his group

http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2012/cc/c1cc15962c

answer some of the challenges around CO2 capture.

explained the rht-MOF framework

In order to address persisting societal challenges, scientists have to improve

“MOFs are an exciting interdisciplinary field of research. I have had the

to me as we brainstormed differ-

the properties of existing materials, which is often difficult with solid state

opportunity to work with organic and inorganic chemistry as well as being

ent ideas and made sketches. As we

materials. Thus it is more practical to construct materials with a building

exposed to analytical techniques such as X-Ray diffraction, gas sorption, and

placed groups of molecular draw-

block approach, which allows the design and synthesis of materials with

NMR spectroscopy,” explains Luebke.

ings on a diagonal to show that the

desired and targeted properties. This approach was used to construct this

The state of the art facilities available to scientists in the Functional

process moved from the upper-left

Materials Lab provide all the necessary instrumentation for complete synthe-

to the bottom-right, someone rec-

sis and characterization which begins with the making of the organic ligands

ognized the shape of the KAUST

followed by synthesis of the metal organic framework, crystallographic struc-

Beacon in the sketch. This pleased

ture determination of the crystalline MOF as well as characterization using

Professor Eddaoudi and he decided

gas sorption experiments to quantify the material's porosity and CO2 uptake.

Prof. Eddaoudi’s group of over fifteen scientists is international and their

that we should use the Beacon as a

work transdisciplinary, encompassing research in CO2 reuse, which inevita-

central design element.”

As a scientific illustrator, Kasimov

bly follows its capture. “MOFs offer great potential to address many lasting

is a member of a long-stand-

societal challenges pertaining to energy and environmental sustainability,”

ing and time-honored profession.

Science and illustration have long Continued on p. 2

INSIDE:

From left: Dr. Amy Cairns, Dr. Youssef Belmabkhout, and Ryan Luebke in the Functional Materials Design, Discovery, and Development (FMD3) Lab.

News & Research 2-3

Saudi Initiatives 4–5

comments Prof. Eddouadi. “With this new emerging class of materials, the limit is your imagination.” 

Research 6–7

Community 8

2

News

April 2012

The Beacon

We are sometimes asked what we are contributing to the Kingdom. The stock response is often that

KAUST in the years to come, and the Saudi economy thereafter. When you read about this wonderful

research takes time and diversifying the economy of a country isn’t done in a year or two. But pages 4

program, whether it’s KAUST's Saudi Research Science Institute’s young high school students who have

and 5 of this month’s Beacon illustrate what’s possible when you bring KAUST’s innovative spirit together

taken the top nine spots in the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity, or the amazing Saudi Gifted

with a dynamic team and its strong leader, in collaboration with the relevant partners in the Kingdom

Students we mentor in their undergraduate years and beyond – you can be certain that these initiatives

and overseas. Dr. Najah Ashry, as Vice President, leads Saudi Initiatives, which is comprised of an eclectic

will deliver solid value to the Kingdom faster than we ever dreamed possible.

yet very strategic blend of programs to jump-start a flow of extraordinarily qualified young Saudis to join

- THE BEACON Editorial

Write to us at thebeacon@kaust.edu.sa The Beacon, Issue 8, April 2012. Published by The Communications Department, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia. Contact Salah Sindi +966 (2) 808-3221, email salah.sindi@kaust.edu.sa, or Caroline Kingdon +966 (2) 808-2074, email Caroline.Kingdon@kaust.edu.sa © King Abdullah University, of Science and Technology. Printed on partially recycled paper.

Worth a Thousand Words | Continued from p. 1 Olga Kasimov

Contents” illustrations or graphical abstracts

In brief

K AUST TITANIUM DAY

have become common and are often even

As part of the KAUST Industry Collaboration Program (KICP) Seminar Series,

required with a paper submission. Described by

the University hosted a Titanium Day in early March. Attended by KAUST staff,

the journal Cell as a “single-panel image that is

students, faculty as well as University guests and delegates from industry part-

designed to give readers an immediate under-

ners, the day focused on the use of titanium in various industrial and scientific

standing of the take-home message of a paper,”

applications including coatings, polymers, materials, and catalysis.

a graphical abstract is intended “to encourage browsing, promote interdisciplinary scholarship, and help

• The ninth most-abundant material in the earth’s crust.

research interests.”

• First discovered in 18th century Britain by mineralogist

“Graphical abstracts are something Olga can help with,” said Dr. Virginia Unkefer, Manager of AWS. “We ask scientists to do a lot of things they have not been trained to do,” Unkefer

Leonardo Da Vinci's drawings of the musculature of the human shoulder and arm (c. 1515) demonstrate the scientific illustrator's keen eye for detail.

Titanium at a glance

readers quickly identify which papers are most relevant to their

William Gregor.

• Rocks found on the moon from the Apollo 17 contained traces of the metal.

noted. “They train to do research in their fields, but to be suc-

• The name comes from the Titans in Greek Mythology.

cessful, they have to know how to write and even to write well

• The chemical element is found within the human body.

and they have to know how to draw and even to draw well.

• The metal is as strong as steel, but 45 per cent lighter.

Writing and illustration are areas where we can offer help to

• It is widely used in desalination plants, paints, and the

faculty members.”

energy and automotive industries.

AWS is a recent initiative of Professor Jean Frechet, Vice President for Research. “Our goal is to offer support to faculty

Guest speakers included Henk Pool, Director at the DOW Middle East and Africa

been partners, as far back as the time of the cave dwellers, who

members in the presentation and publication of their research,”

Research and Development Center at KAUST, Dr. David Hugg, Senior Materials

observed nature and rendered what they saw in cave paintings,

he said. “We want to make sure that publication decisions are

Specialist at Rolls Royce, Dr. Akhlaq Momam, Chief Scientist at SABIC, and Dr.

which give modern viewers accurate ideas of now extinct species.

based on the merit of the work and not on the quality of the

Rob Mcintyre, R&D Business Director at Cristal.

More recent examples of scientific illustrators include the House of

writer’s grammar or presentation skills.” Frechet added, “I am

Dr. Aram Amassian, Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering,

Wisdom’s Al Jazri, who supplied his own illustrations of the mechan-

particularly pleased that we have Olga on board to help with

discussed the various uses for titanium as a coating in cutting tools, solar inks,

ical devices he described in his Book of Knowledge of Ingenious

illustrations and graphics. Scientists can be terrible artists and

and currency and Dr. Valerie Caps, Associate Research Scientist at the KAUST

Mechanical Devices (1260), Leonardo da Vinci’s three-dimensional

having a trained artist on campus is very helpful.”

Catalysis Center, focused on the applications of the metal in catalysis.

drawings of human anatomy (c. 1515), and Galileo Galilei’s illustrations of the moon (1610) as seen through his telescope.

As an “author’s editor,” Dr. Unkefer works with faculty mem-

Dr. Fadi Trabzuni, Director of Business Development at Cristal, commented that

bers on the text of their papers to polish them for submission.

working with KAUST had “enriched” and “inspired” his company, explaining that,

“The image clarifies what the words cannot, which is why sci-

“Editing is part of the writing process,” she said. “It is always

“The educational tools that KAUST has brought to the region have inspired us to

ence has always included illustration,” noted Kasimov. “It also

good to have an ‘outsider’ read a paper. Someone fresh to an

enrich our research activities.” 

engages the reader in the first place.” And as beautiful as the

idea or a paper can see things that the writer might overlook after

finished product can be, it is the precision of the drawing that

having worked with the text for a long time. A non-specialist like

becomes an essential part of the communication of the research.

me might ask just the right question to inspire the writer to make

With the advent of journal publication on the World Wide

an idea clearer.”

ARTISTS OF KAUST EXHIBIT TO OPEN ON APRIL 23 The Artists of KAUST 2012 opening reception will take place in the University Library on Monday, April 23 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.

Web, graphics and scientific illustration seem to have become

Dr. Xin Gao, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, recently

Thirty-eight artists from the KAUST community participated in last year's exhi-

even more important, perhaps because images are extremely

started to use the editing service offered by AWS. He explained that

bition, contributing a total of 132 works of art. “This year, we are seeing a mix

efficient in their ability to convey and transfer ideas across a

he “found it extremely helpful and necessary to boost the quality of

of new artists and those who exhibited in the past,” says Rick Johnson, Manager

medium characterized by too much information. Scientific illus-

my publications. This is the best editorial work I have ever had and

of Refrence & Research Services at the KAUST Library. ”The exhibit draws on the

trations not only communicate complex ideas, they emphasize

I plan to use the service for every paper from my group.”

creativity of individuals from many different cultures, each bringing their own

key details and create visual stopping points.

In science journals now published on the web, “Table of

ACADEMIC WRITING SERVICES AT KAUST

For more information, visit the AWS website, http://editing. kaust.edu.sa. 

unique perspective and skills.”

The exhibit will run in the library until May 4. 

of her training in composition is the process approach rather than

funding model, she came to

focusing on the product of writing. In the writing process, she says,

KAUST in 2009 and is now help-

the editor plays a key role.

ing faculty and senior research

After teaching early English literature and writing in Virginia, Dr.

scientists here to tell the stories

“Every science paper should tell a story,” Dr. Virginia Unkefer

Unkefer joined her husband, Douglas Sego, Professor of Management

of their work through scientific

explains to the Beacon, “I love science … the story of research and

of Organizations, at the newly opened Hong Kong University of

papers and at conferences.

how that story is told.”

Science and Technology (HKUST) in 1994. As jobs for medievalists

“I actually believe in the con-

It may seem surprising that someone with a passion for medieval

were few and far between in Hong Kong, she was forced to cast a

tribution that research can make

poetry is facilitating the writing of academic papers at KAUST in all

wider net in her search for an academic position. She was persuaded

to our future and feel privileged

science disciplines. Certainly that was not what Dr. Unkefer envis-

to join the Office of Contract and Grant Administration at HKUST

to be able to make a small contribution to the production of knowl-

aged when she spent several years studying the 650 year-old single

where she stayed for over 14 years, working on faculty members’

edge,” Dr. Unkefer explains as she describes her position here. She

poem, Piers Plowman, of Englishman William Langland, a contem-

grant proposals and journal articles.

works alongside KAUST authors, editing their papers, written by

porary of Chaucer, for her doctorate at Michigan State University.

Dr. Virginia Unkefer

Coinciding with the People’s Republic of China’s global integra-

both native English speakers and by others for whom it is their sec-

But every graduate student or young faculty in humanities “cuts

tion, HKUST was hugely successful both in the number of grants

ond or third language alike. “All writers need editors,” Dr. Unkefer

their teeth on the teaching of composition and composition theory”

awarded and their dollar amount. And Dr. Unkefer has confidence

explains, “and very good writers need very good editors.” As she

and she has successfully transferred the robust skills learned as a

that, as a startup institution with aspirations not dissimilar to those

tells the Beacon of the “sparseness and lyricism of mathematics that

medievalist at James Madison University in Virginia to the art of

of HKUST, “KAUST is poised to change the research landscape in the

evoke poetry,” it is clear that in Dr. Unkefer our scientists have access

helping scientists with their writing. Unkefer explains the foundation

Kingdom.” Intrigued by the vision of the University and its unique

to an editor of excellence. 

Research

www.kaust.edu.sa

COMPOSITE COLLABORATION CHARGES AHEAD

face in the final device structure.

The smoothness and continuity of the surface and the absence of apparent grain boundaries are uncommon for highly polycrystalline and anisotropic small molecules in pure form, suggesting that the polymer binder planarizes the semiconductor crystals.

The materials scientists at KAUST addressed the challenging questions about the phase separation, crystallinity, and morphol-

you swipe it is governed by the rate at which electrical charges

ogy of the organic semiconductor blend by using a combination

move through the various display components. Scientists from

of synchrotron-based X-ray scattering at the D1 beam line of the

Imperial College London (ICL) have collaborated with colleagues

Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), cross-sectional

at KAUST to produce organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) that

energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EF-TEM), and

consistently achieve record-breaking carrier mobility through

atomic force microscopy in topographic and phase modes.

careful solution-processing of a blend of two organic semicon-

“This work is particularly exciting as it shows that by bringing

ductors. The OTFTs and their processing methods will be very

to bear complementary powerful characterization techniques on

useful for a host of future electronic applications.

these complex organic blends, one can learn a lot about how they

Dr. Thomas Anthopoulos, Department of Physics, ICL, together

work,’’ said Professor Alberto Salleo of Stanford University, an

with colleagues Professor Iain McCulloch, and Dr. Martin

expert on advanced structural characterization of polymer semi-

Heeney, Department of Chemistry, ICL, teamed with Professor

conductors and not a member of the research team. “A mobility of

Aram Amassian’s group at KAUST to develop and characterize

5 cm2/Vs is already a spectacular number. The methods described

a composite material that enhances the charge transport and

in this manuscript, however, chart the way for researchers to

enables the fabrication of improved organic transistors. They

obtain even higher mobilities,” said Prof. Salleo.

lished in Advanced Materials.

3

semiconductor blend forms the semiconductor-dielectric inter-

The speed with which your smart phone reacts to your touch as

described their novel semiconductor blend in a joint paper pub-

April 2012

Dongkyu Cha, Kui Zhao, Rachid Sougrat, Ruipeng Li and Aram Amassian

The team is continuing its collaboration aiming to design even better materials and processes by understanding how the

In this collective work, material scientists at KAUST together

material design and solution processing conditions lead to these

with chemists and device physicists from ICL combined the

extraordinary film properties. “The in-situ diagnostics methods

advantageous properties of both polymer and small molecules

developed by the KAUST group will reveal the intricacies of the

in one composite material, which offers higher performance

solution-processing and phase separation of the blend,” com-

than do small-molecule and polymer semiconductors alone,

mented co-author Dr. Martin Heeney. “We look forward to using

while enhancing device-to-device reproducibility and stability.

this insight to improve these devices even further.”

The improved performance is attributed in part to the crystal-

“In principle, this simple blend approach could be applied to

line texture of the small-molecule component of the blend, and

a range of existing small molecules and polymers, and could

to the flatness and smoothness achieved at the top surface of the

lead to the development of organic transistors with performing

polycrystalline film. The latter is crucial in top-gate, bottom-

characteristics well beyond the current state-of-the-art,’’ added

contact configuration devices, whereby the top surface of the

Dr. Anthopoulos. 

LANDMARK COMBUSTION SIMULATION

Polarized optical micrograph of the polymer-molecule semiconducting blend"; Source: Thomas Anthopoulos

System (Shaheen). The landmark simulation that resulted from this collaboration allowed validation of a number of long standing theories in turbulence.

Shaheen is a core facility, available to all KAUST researchers through a peer-review process on par with best practices in high-performance-computing centers around the world. The simulation campaign produced 100 terabytes of data and utilized 10M cpu-hrs on up to 65,536 cores of Shaheen.

Dr. Bisetti’s team is now working on processing the enormous volume of data produced in these simulations. The data has moved the team closer to being able to simulate combustion with higher accuracy, understanding the basic physical processes that govern and control energy conversion in an engine. These guiding principles will help in optimizing fuel efficiency further.

Visualization of the turbulence structures in a mixing layer, highlighting the transition from orderly laminar to chaotic turbulent flow

Recent presentations at a number of international conferences have provoked interest and the database has been made available to combustion and fluid mechanics communities for analysis.

As part of its scientific mission, KAUST is working to enhance

releases the chemical energy in the molecular bonds and gen-

The Clean Combustion Center is now working with KAUST’s

alternative sources of energy. As reserves of fossil fuels dimin-

erates heat that is then converted into other forms of energy

Visualization Laboratory to produce compelling images and

ish worldwide, the need for increased combustion efficiency is

via turbines, pistons, etc. The chaotic mixing of air and fuel is

videos of the massive dataset. The challenge is great, given

a priority at the Clean Combustion Research Center (CCRC). A

exceptionally complex and a decisive factor for improving the

that a single data file is 100 GB in size and contains 3 billion

pervasive and expensive energy infrastructure is in place and

combustion efficiency and reduction of pollutant emissions.

grid points.

many energy conversion devices rely on hydrocarbon fuels;

By using advanced computational tools to investigate indi-

“This is hard, painstaking research,” explained Dr. Bisetti,

much effort is spent in seeking new reserves, but cutting con-

vidual physical processes, the researchers envision that the

“with innumerable small steps to tread along the path to suc-

sumption by increasing efficiency remains vital.

resulting knowledge will help in improving energy efficiency.

cess.” His energy and enthusiasm to continue the journey

Capitalizing on the culture of interdisciplinary research and

The requirement of the European Union and states such as

was evident and he and his team are tackling this challenge

the core facilities available at KAUST, Fabrizio Bisetti, Assistant

California to reach ever more stringent energy efficiency tar-

with vigor. 

Professor in Mechanical Engineering, and research scientist Dr.

gets and simultaneously reduce emissions has added impetus to

Antonio Attili recently published a paper in Physics of Fluids

research in combustion science.

(http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.3696302) reporting their recent

The task that Dr. Bisetti’s team faced was to create a sim-

success in a fluid mechanics Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS)

ulation that aided the understanding of the intricate physics

of turbulent mixing. A better understanding of fuel and air mix-

of turbulent combustion, thus augmenting the accepted set

ing in technical devices will facilitate progress in combustion

of model equations routinely used in the design of combus-

science. The database generated at KAUST is the largest and

tion devices, e.g. large-eddy simulation (LES). Using software

most comprehensive of its kind worldwide.

originally developed at Stanford University, the group at

Combustion processes are key to electrical power generation,

CCRC worked in close collaboration with research scientists at

transportation, and many industrial processes where fuel is

KAUST's Supercomputing Laboratory to prepare computational

mixed with air and ignited. The subsequent combustion process

tools for massively parallel simulations on the Blue Gene/P

From left: Dr. Antonio Attili and Prof. Fabrizio Bisetti from the Reactive Flow Modeling Laboratory, and Dr. Rooh Khurram from the KAUST Supercomputing Lab.

4

Saudi Initiatives

April 2012

HARNESSING TALENT FOR THE KINGDOM

The Beacon Saudi Research Science Institute (SRSI) The SRSI is a summer mentorship program that enables gifted high school students from throughout Saudi Arabia to conduct university-level research under the mentorship of KAUST professors. For six weeks during the summer, SRSI students visit KAUST to participate in a rigorous program of lectures, research mentorship, and intensive academic writing practice, with an emphasis on advanced theory and research in the STEM (sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. The program is a key step in the broader goal of nurturing talented young scholars to become future scientists, researchers, and leaders in the Kingdom.

“We envision the program to have a significant impact

Participants and organizers of the 2011 KAUST SRSI Program

on the attitude of high school students towards careers in STEM fields,” said SRSI program director Dr. Ghadah Fakieh. “We expect a large majority of the students to feed into the KGSP program and

Saudi Initiatives seeks to develop scientific and academic talent

Paramount to the smooth and efficient running of these pro-

to facilitate the achievement of the core goals of KAUST with a

grams is the ‘Shared Services’ function incorporating Financial,

focus on Saudi Arabian needs and development.

return to KAUST as graduate students, researchers, and faculty.”

SRSI is modeled after the Research

Communications, Events/Logistics, and IT support. Head of

Science Institute (RSI) sponsored

The Department falls under the umbrella of Administration and

Shared Services, Mr. Saham Alhusseini explained, “We are the

by the Center for Excellence

Finance, led by Executive Vice-President, Mr. Nadhmi Al Nasr,

nucleus for a full student services program. Our scholarships

in Education (CEE) and MIT.

who sees the goals of Saudi Initiatives as crucial to fulfilling King

and admissions processes involve multiple global stakeholders,

It was developed as a partner-

Abdullah’s vision of the University. “Saudi Initiatives has proved

necessitating a complex financial and IT operation, includ-

ship between Saudi Aramco, King

to be a focal point for the Saudi community and its interests,

ing a fully automated admissions program and advanced

Abdulaziz and His Companions’

in particular for the students whose education and talent devel-

scholarship management system for students enrolled in our

Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity

opment is critical to the scientific and economic future of this

various initiatives.”

“Mawhiba”, the CEE, and KAUST.

Saudi Graduate Recruitment (SGR) is proac-

The inaugural SRSI session took

tive in identifying, engaging, and supporting the most talented

place in 2011 with 25 participants

Ashry (see below). Dr. Ashry has played a key role in developing

graduate applicants – Saudi and non-Saudi - through targeted

from across Saudi Arabia, and these

and implementing a diverse spectrum of programs and activities

recruitment, outreach, and development strategies. One such

graduates are already making their

geared towards fulfilling the department’s goals. “Our quest is to

strategy involves high-level relationship building with feeder

mark (see sidebar).

draw the finest young minds in the country to KAUST, to invest in

universities, industry partners, and organizations that manage

them, to nurture them, and in so doing to empower and illuminate

Saudi students abroad, to raise awareness of what KAUST has to

the future of Saudi Arabia,” explained Dr. Ashry.

offer future graduates and to solicit nominations for strong appli-

Young Talent Development & Engagement.

cants. In attending and addressing student bodies at graduation

Bhagat spoke to the success of these programs, explain-

ceremonies abroad, KAUST senior leadership has reached out to

ing that “These examples are directly in line with how

In March, Professor Shih

over 4500 pre-graduate students in the UK, USA, and Australia.

Saudi Initiatives is helping to fulfill the mission of KAUST. It is

announced the appointment

Future efforts will target a large pool of Saudi students based in

an honor to be part of a University with such a bold and powerful

of Dr. Najah Ashry as Vice

Asia (Japan and China).

vision and I am impressed with the level of dedication and belief

country,” he commented.

At the helm is Vice President for Saudi Initiatives, Dr. Najah

Overseeing the KGSP and the SRSI is Mr. Heemanshu Bhagat, new to KAUST and head of

President for Saudi Initiatives.

Closer to home, open house days offer potential applicants from

Dr. Ashry joined the University

across the Kingdom a snapshot of academic and community life at

as Assistant Provost for stu-

the University. During the past year, the program has welcomed over

Nayif Al-homoud, a high school

dent Affairs before being

500 visitors from 15 academic and industry partners to the campus.

senior in the Eastern province, is one

promoted in 2010 to Senior

With foresight, the SGR program also addresses specific needs

of the inaugural SRSI graduates, and

Assistant Provost for Graduate Affairs. In 2011, Dr. Najah

and challenges in academic preparedness by coordinating with

a winner of the National Olympiad

was appointed to a new position of Executive Director,

relevant organizations to provide English language support and

for Scientific Innovation. “The SRSI

Saudi Initiatives. “In leading and establishing the impor-

foundation training.

represents one of the main bench-

tant work of Saudi Initiatives, Dr. Ashry has demonstrated

The KAUST

that this team has.”

Gifted Student Program (KGSP) is

marks in my life as a Saudi student

tenacity, judgement, and resilience while developing and

exemplary of the Department’s goal to invest in the Kingdom’s

and citizen,“ said Nayif. “Being a

implementing high quality programs,” said Prof. Shih.

talented youth. “Nurturing the gifted in the Kingdom has been

part of this academic environment and having the opportu-

In accepting the new role, Dr. Ashry said: “As a Saudi, it

the cornerstone of the mission of KAUST ever since its inception“

nity to interact with professionals, doctors, and professors was

is a great honor to be able to contribute to King Abdullah’s

said the KGSP’s program director, Mr. Jamal Alsayyed. “It’s a long

something truly spectacular.” The SRSI opened his eyes to the

transformative vision in this manner and to be entrusted

term investment in the hearts and minds of young talented Saudis

possibility of a future career in science. “After working in the

with such responsibility. Being part of this project’s found-

which ensures KAUST the caliber of graduate student it seeks.”

organometallic catalysis lab and facilitating chemical reactions

ing team has been humbling. With this further step in my

Sponsored in part by the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Higher

myself, I fell in love with chemistry!” he said. “It’s amazing how

career I am privileged, particularly as a female, to have the

Education, the program enables gifted students to complete

there's always room to learn more and discover more through

opportunity to continue to play an active role in the growth

an undergraduate degree at world-renowned universities in

scientific research.”

and advancement of KAUST and Saudi Arabia.” 

the US and UK. The program provides personal advisors for

“Thanks to the SRSI, I gained confidence to challenge myself

each student, and encompasses academic, research, social, and

and go for science and research…and to apply to top universi-

cultural development.

ties,” said Nayif. “SRSI is like a gift, do not waste it!” 

The Department of Saudi Initiatives and its multi-national team support the university’s aims and aspirations in four

This fall, following their graduation from Harvard, University

diverse ways: firstly by seeking out promising Saudi youth and

of Nottingham, and University College, London, the first five

supporting their academic development in a long-term, holistic

KGSP graduates will join KAUST’s graduate program.

In-Kingdom Employment and Development, under the umbrella of Advanced Post-Graduate

way; secondly by helping with workforce development both at KAUST and in-Kingdom; thirdly by advancing the impact of KAUST graduates; and lastly by encouraging social respon-

Saudi Mariam Awlia (KGSP

self-sustainability that has aided greatly in helping me

sibility both within the campus and externally (see graphic).

pilot student) will graduate with

mature into the woman that I am today,” said Mariam.

The Department’s programs are woven into many sectors of

a BSc (Honors) in Biochemistry

“I am forever thankful to KGSP for striving to enhance

KAUST including academia, research, economic development,

from University College London

my scientific skills and life experiences in a way that

and community, where they support and enhance Saudi-focused

(UCL) and will join the KAUST

would never have taken shape if I had not joined the pro-

development and activity. Dr. Ashry and her team work closely

MS program in Bioscience in the

gram,” she commented. “We are all gifted in one way or

with the Provost, the VPs of Education and Research, and

fall.

the other; we just need to harness this gift…and hone it

Graduate Affairs in strategically developing initiatives in line with KAUST’s goals.

“The program has helped me achieve a strong sense of independence and

through a productive channel, and this is what KGSP aims to do.” 

Saudi Initiatives

www.kaust.edu.sa Engagement & Development aims to raise the profile of KAUST graduates of all nationalities and disseminate them to the best job opportunities and top companies throughout the Kingdom.

As a result of the program’s efforts, over 140 of the 445 graduating scholars are currently employed in the Kingdom.

Specialized Enrichment

“By introducing to our employ-

Still in early stages is a system to nurture a new generation of

ers top local and international

highly educated, effectively trained, and globally engaged Saudis

graduates, educated at KAUST

through specialized opportunities and support. One important

and already adjusted to life in

initiative is the ‘Saudi Female Focus,’ which supports female col-

Saudi Arabia, we are making

leges in the Kingdom in creating bridge programs to develop

the workforce in Saudi Arabia

and further empower their graduates. Additional activities in

more diverse and globally com-

this aspect include hosting seminars for women in Science and

petitive,” commented Dr. Ashry.

“There will be an increasing emphasis on

Engineering, women in leadership, and tailoring recruitment efforts to attract top female students in the country.

placing our students in the workplace as

Other active initiatives offer in-Kingdom undergraduate intern-

the student body grows,” said program

ship opportunities at KAUST, and invite in-Kingdom faculty and

lead Mr. Eric Martinez-Fry. “Saudi Arabia

students from partner institutions to participate in seminars and

offers our students fantastic opportu-

workshops on campus. Notably, over 100 in-Kingdom undergrad-

nities, and there is a definite need for

uates participated in WEP this year.

April 2012

5

KAUST SRSI STUDENTS WIN NATIONAL ACCLAIM Nine of the 2011 KAUST SRI Graduates have won a place to represent the Kingdom at this May’s INTEL International Science and Engineering Fair in the US. Our group represents nine of the 36 winners selected from the entire Kingdom’s applicant pool of over 50,000 students from 5,000 schools.

Another Noteworthy Accomplishment At last month’s three-day National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity held in Riyadh, the first place in both the male and female competitions of the scientific research category were won by SRSI graduates. In this category, there were a

Social Responsibility Also still in early stages is a strategic plan to use KAUST’s multi-faceted intellectual capital to benefit the Saudi and global community, helping to promote the reputation of the University, encourage citizenship, and improve the quality of life for all.

VP Dr. Najah Ashry, is “very excited by the social responsibility

total of 19,064 boys and 7,652 girls who submitted work.

The Winners: Our nine winners and their KAUST faculty mentors are:

strategy” of which last year’s flood relief pro-

Abdullah Amazrooa

Effect of Sensors on Flood Detection Prof. Christian Claudel (Shared 5th Place Male)

Dana Abdullatif

Phase Reactions for OrganoCatalysts Prof. Kuo-wei (Andy) Huang (1st Place Female)

Fatimah Al-Ajaji

Flexible Ferroelectric Memory Devices Prof. Husam Alshareef (2nd Place Female)

gram is an example of a response-driven event. She explained that the department aims to develop and integrate programs and infrastructure to

Hanan Al-Ali

Strength Comparison of Nano-Reinforced Tubes Prof. Gilles Lubineau (3rd Place Female)

support a culture of social responsibility at KAUST. This would bridge cultural divides and encourage a sense of community positivity about KAUST, apply the benefits of its intellectual capital to communities outside the University, and promote environmental awareness. “Saudi

Hisham Al-Falih

Development of STM/ATM Probe Tips Prof. Boon Ooi (3rd Place Male)

Initiatives is not always about implementation; in some cases, it is

Photo by by Muhannad Abu-Ghdaib

about coordination or planning,” explained Dr. Ashry.

The vision of Saudi Initiatives is bold and ambitious and will Mexican Ernesto Sandoval

take time to develop and reach full maturity, but it is clear that

graduated from KAUST in 2010

Dr. Ashry and her team are already cultivating and nurturing a

with an MSc in Earth Sciences

pool of exceptional future leaders and decision-makers in the

and Engineering. Now he

realms of science and technology. 

Porifera Identification in the Red Sea Prof. Timothy Ravasi (Shared 5th Place Male)

Mohammed Al-Sharif

works as a geophysicist at the Advanced Research Center

Six years ago Abdullah Kanee

(EXPEC ARC) at Saudi Aramco,

was a high school student liv-

Dhahran. “It is a great pleasure

ing on a sheep farm in the tiny

to work for the ‘Dream Team’

village of Tendaha, in the Asir

of Geophysics…and to be able

region of Saudi Arabia. Today, he

to do so in and for Saudi Arabia,” said Ernesto. He believes

is well on his way to becoming a

that he has been well equipped for professional life in the

Harvard graduate, with a BSc in

Kingdom: “KAUST prepares each one of their students to deal

Chemical and Physical Biology.

with multi-cultural, interdisciplinary teams in the best possi-

In Grade 11 Abdullah was nominated by “Mawhiba” to

ble way.” Ernesto is positive about his experience working in

attend the prestigious Research Science Institute (RSI) at

Saudi Arabia so far. “These are exciting times, particularly for

MIT. He went on to be accepted into the KGSP program

the oil industry,” said Ernesto, “and the challenges that we face

and began his undergraduate studies at Harvard in 2008.

on a daily basis are definitely satisfying my expectations.” 

Mohammed Al-Johani

Silver Nanospheres for Use in Solar Cells Prof. Osman Bakr (Shared 4th Place Male)

Nayif Al-Homoud

Synthesis of Palladium Carbene Complexes Prof. Jorg Eppinger (1st Place Male)

Sara Marie

Electrical Impedance Method on Fruit Freshness Prof. Khaled Salama (4th Place Female)

“My life has been touched in the most positive way by “Mawhiba” and the KGSP, and this support has impacted

retaining top talent. Our focus is on keeping talent in Kingdom,

the direction my life has taken in a way I will always be

in order to create a ‘brain-gain’ environment.”

thankful for,” commented Abdullah.

Dr. Ashry believes that by leveraging our graduates into the

“The development of a world class research institution

Kingdom’s economy, “we are ultimately leveraging our own

in my country is a great source of pride for me,” said

investment in their education. By doing so we are creating

Abdullah. He plans to return to Saudi Arabia and further

ambassadors for the country, enlightening and displaying the

his studies at KAUST, which represents to him “a powerful

role of KAUST as an economic catalyst throughout the Kingdom.”

investment in both Saudi Arabia and the world.”  Saudi Initiatives team celebrate Dr. Ashry’s new appointment as VP.

6

Research

April 2012

The Beacon

KAUST research on show during 2012 IAC session.

IAC SALUTEs STUDENT AND POSTDOC RESEARCH IN February, 64 students and postdocs selected by their Deans

KAUST-UCSB-NSF workshop sees a bright future for l.e.d.s

presented posters on their research to the KAUST commu-

The light bulb remains one of mankind’s most useful and

nity and, in a special session, to members of the President’s

transformative innovations, but there are major concerns

International Advisory Council (IAC).

that incandescent bulbs generate more heat than light. In fact, only 2-4% of the electricity they require provides illumination while the rest simply produces unwanted heat.

In mid-February the University brought together renowned scientists and engineers in an international KAUST-UCSB-NSF workshop on solid-state lighting.

Distinguished speakers included Professor Shuji Nakamura (UCSB), the inventor of the blue laser and blueProfessor Karen Holbrook, Senior Vice President for

white-green light emitting diodes (LEDs), who received

Research, Innovation and Global Affairs at the University

the world's most significant technology award, the €1m

of South Florida and a long-standing member of the

Millennium Technology Prize in 2006, as well as an Emmy

President's IAC studies SABIC postdoc Issam Gereige’s poster.

Award in Las Vegas for his contribution to lighting tech-

She remarked, "the students and postdocs who presented post-

nology in the movie industry.

ers were very impressive. Not only could they answer questions

'Solid state lighting', in the form of LEDs, can signifi-

very well, but they also had a clear sense of where their research is

cantly reduce the generation of greenhouse gases and the

going. The success of the students in their research is critical to their

next generation of LED lighting – based on ‘GaN technol-

own futures as well as important to the future of KAUST." Issam

ogy’ - is even more promising.

Professor Sir Richard Friend, chairman of the President's

Gereige, postdoc in the Solar and Alternative Energy Engineering

President Choon Fong Shih said research in solid-state

IAC and Cavendish Professor of Physics at the University of

Research Center, recalled, “It was a great opportunity for our IAC

lighting - which is led on campus by Professor Boon Ooi

Cambridge, speaks with postdoc Nathan Collier about his work.

visitors to learn about the wide range of applications being devel-

- is a “powerful example of the University’s mission to

“The poster session,” Professor Friend noted, “was the highpoint

oped by students and researchers from across the University.”

develop sustainable approaches to environmental chal-

of this year's IAC meeting. The quality of the work of the stu-

lenges … with the potential to bring substantial economic

dents and postdocs blew the IAC away.” Nathan Collier, postdoc

and environmental benefits. It meets the aspirations of our

in PSE, said, "the poster session was a nice time to discuss ongo-

founder King Abdullah and his vision for a graduate sci-

ing work at KAUST with those from outside our community. It

ence and technology university ‘in service of the Kingdom

was also a nice opportunity to provide feedback about our expe-

and the wider world’."

riences at this institution. I feel it is critical for IAC members

The President's message was warmly endorsed by Prince

to have the opportunity to interact with students, post-doctoral

Dr. Turki Saud Mohammad Al Saud, the Vice President

fellows, and others who are directly affected by their decisions.”

for Research Initiatives at King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). In the opening keynote address, Prince Turki told delegates that such projects were critical "in establishing Saudi Arabia as a knowledge-based economy, and ensuring that research, innovation, and Computer Science PhD student Enas Yunis describes her work on computer visualization of massive datasets to a captivated

entrepreneurship are an integral element of the Kingdom's future development.” 

audience. “This was my first poster session ever,” commented Yunis. “It was exciting to witness both community and IAC members’ interest in my work. I value the importance of this event and KAUST students and postdocs gather during the 2012 IAC poster session.

appreciate the opportunity to present my work and discuss it with a wide audience.” 

KAUST, UCSB, and NSF delegates at the workshop on solid-state lighting.

Research

www.kaust.edu.sa

INNOVATION IGNITED: 2012 SEED FUND

7

completely new business models, became hugely successful and are

high quality digital content at minimal cost to create photo-realistic

household names today. He described the Business Model Canvas,

interactive displays. Not everyone is able to travel the world as so

which he devised as an aid for entrepreneurs to keep track of the

many of the KAUST community have been privileged to do, but this

many aspects of beginning a start up. He encouraged the Seed

technology could open up new experiences for many in the future.

Fund winners saying, “entrepreneurship is not just about creating

iDivers: Michael Berumen

the best canvas and having the best idea. It’s realizing that putting

How much easier it would be to track a giant moray eel cruising

these ideas together is only the first step…it’s a series of guesses.”

Dr. Steve Cutchin: Seed Fund Winner.

April 2012

around a reef if you could record its exact location on an iPhone

President Choon Fong Shih, who was instrumental in get-

that could be used underwater. And just imagine how communi-

ting the Seed Fund off the ground, presented the awards to the

cation could be enhanced between divers if you could send text

winners, explaining that, “our Seed Fund Program is a vital com-

messages while exploring the depths. How many times have you

ponent of KAUST’s mission to catalyze Economic Development

used your smartphone to help you find your way when in an

in the Kingdom. We know we have many talented scientists and

unfamiliar place? Such tasks are trivial for most of us who have

engineers, and this program aims to spark their innate entrepre-

personal digital devices constantly at hand. Professor Michael

neurial flair. I congratulate all of the finalists."

Berumen from the Red Sea Research Center is very familiar with

Envirola: Rimantas Kodzius

the frustrations that result because these devices can't be used

Encompassing energy, environmental health, underwater tech-

Heavy metal contamination of the environment can be hazard-

underwater. But simply encasing them is inadequate; they need

nology, and 3D experience, this year’s winning Seed Fund projects

ous to health and regulations are being imposed globally to limit

to also be fully functional. The iDivers project addresses these

show the breadth and diversity of entrepreneurial aspiration at the

the concentration of these metals in drinking water, industrial

challenges by providing the first hardware and software solution

University. At the Gala Dinner and Award Ceremony on March 14

effluents, etc. Traditionally, testing for heavy metals is an expen-

to enable the full functionality of touchpad devices during div-

Ms. Lama Naseer, Head of the KAUST Seed Fund, explained that the

sive and time-consuming process, but Dr. Rimantus Kodzius’ idea

ing activities. An initial suite of underwater-specific applications

fund “was launched with the bold goal of moving promising ideas

could change this. He has developed a portable, low-cost heavy

will be developed to provide access to reference materials (such

forward by nurturing winners with both pragmatic guidance and

metals detection instrument that can accurately assess the presence

as digital fish ID books), automatic dive logging, communication,

financial support … looking to the future economic rewards that

of heavy metals on site using a small sample of soil, water, etc. Dr.

navigation, data recording, and interactive tracking solutions.

such ideas can bring to the Kingdom on line with the vision of the

Kodzius is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Electrical Engineering where

University’s founder, King Abdullah.”

he develops various sensors in microfluidic chips for chemical and

For solar panels to work in desert conditions, there must be an

biological detection. Originally from Lithuania, he came to KAUST

effective waterless way to remove the airborne dust that rapidly

in 2010 from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

collects on panels between cleans, and dramatically lowers their

This year, for the first time, Citibank has sponsored half the cost of the Seed Fund awards. “This is an exciting time for Entrepreneurship

Nomadd: Georg Eitelhuber

MuseTech: Steve Cutchin

efficiency. German/Australian Georg Eitelhuber, a Mechanical

who spoke of the need to increase the impact of KAUST technologies

Imagine the thrill for a physically challenged individual - unable

Engineer and current grade 11/12 physics teacher at the KAUST

in the marketplace “by bridging the gap between idea, implemen-

to travel - of experiencing firsthand some of the wonders of the

Schools, has been inspired to solve this problem. For the last

tation, and company formation.” He went on to introduce Mustafa

world! Consider how the experience of a 3D visit to a remote location

18 months he has been developing and improving a dust abate-

Nabulsi, a co-founder of Acadox, a KAUST start up which won

could serve to engage students of history, or visitors to a museum.

ment system that effectively and reliably meets the cleaning

Seed Fund support in 2010. Mustafa encouraged the new winners,

The MuseTech technology being developed by Dr. Steve Cutchin of

needs of desert-based solar installations in a cost-effective and

explaining that their team had learned much during the process and

the KAUST Visualization Core Lab would allow museum visitors to

environmentally responsible manner. NOMADD is a NO water,

valued the expert advice provided by the Seed Fund team.

in this region,” said Mr. Oleg Kaganovich, New Ventures Director,

be transported to far off destinations: Made’in Saleh or the Valley of

Mechanical Automated Dusting Device that works by using an

Keynote speaker Alexander Osterwalder recalled several busi-

the Kings for example. Dr. Cutchin is developing a specially con-

innovative brush configuration and delivery system to remove all

nesses including Xerox and Google which, by embracing

structed patented capture device that uses rapid acquisition of very

debris without scratches. It has a patent pending. 

NEW PEAK IN NMR TECHNOLOGY

determining the structure of a key protein involved using NMR.

By making this technology open-source, not only will it be

Protein examination is crucial to the understanding of drug func-

available to the scientific community, but also Prof. Gao and his

tion and by looking at a drug's capacity to bind to various mutants

colleagues hope to receive feedback from users worldwide in order

of HIV protease, for example, its function for the treatment of HIV

to further their ongoing work.

can be better understood. The faster interpretation of protein NMRs

Prof. Gao works closely with his core lab colleagues includ-

Prof. Xin Gao and PhD student Ahmad Abbas

will facilitate our understanding of the many diseases in which

ing Dr. Xixiang Zhang and Xianrong Guo in the Imaging and

XIN Gao, Assistant Professor of Computer Science, his PhD student,

altered protein structure plays a role.

Chraracterization Core Laboratory that was key to Prof Gao’s deci-

Ahmad Abbas, and fellow researchers at Xiamen University in

Traditionally, amino-acid sequences have been examined using

sion to leave his position at Carnegie Mellon. With access to ten

China and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, have

X-ray crystallography, but few functional proteins can be crys-

NMRs, he continues to look at methodologies to design algorithms

worked together to make available to the international scientific

tallized. The alternative is NMR spectroscopy, which is based on

to accelerate the discovery processes of biologists by more efficient

community their open source program that facilitates the easier

the pipeline that consists of peak picking, resonance assignment,

analysis of the mass of data in the field.

interpretation of in vivo three-dimensional protein structures.

nuclear Overhauser effect (NOE) assignment, and structure calcu-

A computer scientist working in biology, Prof. Gao main-

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) data to determine protein

lation steps. Peak picking has been the greatest challenge. A good

tains strong interdisciplinary relationships with Profs. Vladimir

three-dimensional structures in vivo is a powerful tool for protein

peak picking method must not only de-noise the spectra with-

Bajic and Timothy Ravasi from the Computational Bioscience

examination, but the methods used to process the spectra infor-

out removing weak signals, but also sensitively identify peaks

Center as well as with Assistant Professor Antoine Vigneron

mation are time-consuming and require expert knowledge. The

including overlapping and weak ones, and select true peaks from

from Geometric Modeling and Scientific Visualization Center

automation of the peak detection method, WaVPeak, is described

a mixed set of true and false ones. Furthermore, great precision is

and computer science colleagues Associate Professor Panos

in the Bioinformatics paper, for which Prof. Gao is correspond-

required, as it will influence all the following steps.

Kalnis and Xianglang Zhang.

ing author: http://bioinformatics.oxfordjournals.org/content/

In contrast to the existing methods, WaVPeak smooths the entire

What particularly excites Prof. Gao is the unique oppor-

spectrum, maintaining its shape rather than eliminating data points

tunity KAUST provides to control the data collection quality

Why would academic researchers or biotechnologists want to

and so allowing weak peaks to be detected. WaVPeak looks at the

at the beginning of the NMR structure determination pipe-

look so closely at protein structures? Just last fall, researchers in

strength of a signal, and in addition estimates the actual volume

line and interactively collaborate with the experimentalists to

North America provided information that could one day lead to

under candidate peaks, providing a much better approximation of

develop high-throughput pipelines to study protein structures

a treatment for the degenerative brain disorder, Parkinson’s, by

the importance of a signal.

and dynamics. 

early/2012/02/10/bioinformatics.bts078.abstract

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DAYS SPARK CONTACT

A poster display was particularly successful and reflected the and the PI of the Sensing, Magnetism, and Microsystems Group. depth and breadth of the work currently underway in EE where

Experts from Austria, Canada, Hong Kong, and the USA joined

51 students are studying for master’s degrees and a further 52 for KAUST faculty to address the scientific community working on PhDs. The 43 posters were judged by the keynote speakers, includ- integrated devices for biological and medical applications utilizing ing Dr. Noriaki Horiuchi from Nature Photonics and Dr. Tso-Ping the benefits of micro- or nano-technology. At least 10 faculty mem-

THE Electrical Engineering (EE) days at KAUST achieved Ma from Yale University. John Volakis Director of the ElectroScience bers at KAUST are working in this highly interdisciplinary field, and the aims of introducing the research work in EE to both the KAUST Laboratory at Ohio State University, said that he was “amazed by are actively collaborating in projects within KAUST as well as with community and the visiting international speakers; familiarizing the research being done at a university in Saudi Arabia. It is multi- external partners. The event helped to further such collaborations EE colleagues and others with the level of research currently in disciplinary and will have an international impact." progress in prominent EE labs worldwide; and increasing the vis-

and created novel ideas for new projects. In addition, it promoted

An International Workshop on Biomedical Micro contact between experts from academia and industry and provided

ibility of a subject that is making a significant impact in many and Nano Devices was held at KAUST in late February organ- insight into the most recent developments in this field to KAUST areas including health and lifestyle.

ized by Jürgen Kosel, Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering students as well as visitors from KAU, KFUPM, and KSU. 

8

Community

April 2012

The Beacon

Photo by Luca Passone and Yveline Pailles

POLAR EXPEDITION ENCAPSULATES CLIMATE CONCERNS

Scott Herrington at Neko Harbour, Antarctica

This photo is a combined effort between Luca Passone, a PhD

As I maneuvered the plane closer to

student in Earth Sciences and Engineering, and Yveline Pailles,

KAUST Yveline took the picture. Seeing

an MS student in Bioscience.

our campus rise between the incredible

“On the 15th of March we flew from Rabigh airport head-

colors of the sea and desert made us feel

photo of the month

ing south, passing by King Abdullah Economic City. As we

very lucky to call KAUST our home”, writes

tracked the coast, we began to spot the familiar sites of the

Passone. Keep them coming! Email your photos to thebeacon@

Beacon, the research centres, and the island football pitches.

kaust.edu.sa. 

“This is by far my biggest adventure,” said Scott Herrington, a teacher in the KAUST secondary school, shortly before leaving for Antarctica at the end of February. Herrington joined an expedition with the polar explorer and environmental activist Robert Swan to raise awareness about the world’s last unspoiled wilderness and to bring his experiences back to the KAUST School.

Herrington returned from the 15-day expedition more enthusiastic than ever, inspired by the phenomenal wildlife and his varied travelling companions. The focus of the

ACCOLADE

expedition was on leadership and sustainability, introduced

Professor Ingo Pinnau, Director of the Advanced Membrane and Porous Materials Research

travelled a lot. He has been to the Himalayas, the jungles of

Center has recently been elected Vice-President of the North American Membrane Society

South America, and parts of Asia, Australia, and North America.

(NAMS). He will serve as NAMS President in 2013/2014. The mission of the 600-member

But nothing has compared to camping on the ice under the

strong NAMS is to serve the synthetic membrane community by fostering the development

polar sky and being pummeled by high waves through the

and dissemination of knowledge in membrane science and technology, and by promoting the

almost 1,000km Drake Passage on the journey south.

through a combination of lectures and outdoor activities.

Born in Calgary, Western Canada, Herrington has always

worldwide collaborative efforts of researchers, technologists and end-users. NAMS offers travel

The secondary and elementary students in the KAUST

awards for students and post-docs to attend membrane-related conferences. For more informa-

schools have been eagerly studying Antarctica this past win-

tion please visit the NAMS website - http://www.membranes.org 

ter, with interactive sessions, exhibitions, and public speeches, including a visit from Robert Swan to the school. While studying Antarctica and environmental issues, the children have

My University

had a chance to reflect on their daily habits such as using plastic bags and bottles, or leaving lights on. Herrington currently works as the Middle Years Program (MYP) Coordinator

Prof. Hala Aljawahri

future applications such as transparent solar cells or invis-

at the KAUST School. He wants to spread the Antarctica mes-

“This is like living a dream,” says

ible cell phones.

sage through the entire network of 8,000 IB schools. “To me,

visiting Assistant Professor Hala

Born in Makkah, Prof. Aljawhari became interested in physics

the trip has a strong connection to my daily efforts as a

Aljawhari about her opportunity to

in high school. Her curiosity and ambition took her all the way

spend an academic year at KAUST.

to Lancaster University, U.K., where she completed her PhD in

In honor of their Antarctic studies the students have pre-

Currently on sabbatical leave from

Condensed Matter Physics in 1999. She is married and has four

pared a time capsule that will be sealed in a ceremony this

King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah,

children between ages 7 and 19.

month. Individual tubes from secondary students and staff

teacher and as an individual,” says Herrington.

According to Prof. Aljawhari, KAUST is a unique university in

contain photos, artwork, small artifacts, and digital greet-

Husam Alshareef’s groups and is working on developing a

the Kingdom. Facilities in both the group labs and the Core lab

ings. The capsule will be opened in 2041, the same year that

metal oxide material that could be a base for transparent

are extensive and accessible. Ideas can be shared and discussed

the current treaty protecting Antarctica runs out. “The project

thin-film transistors. These oxide materials are cheaper than

with top professors and researchers from all over the world. She

is an invitation to think about the future,” says Herrington.

silicon and they could give better performance with a total-

hopes to collaborate with KAUST after she leaves and to con-

“Antarctica belongs to no one but all should learn more about

ly transparent look. This could lead to many imaginative

tinue the research in this field. 

it. I think we need one place that’s not wrecked.”

she has joined one of Professor

Read more about 2041, Robert Swan’s company dedicated REYNALDO BUÑALES

very important.” Buñales enjoys driving the school bus and

“I’m a family man,” says Reynaldo

being greeted by the children every day. He often imagi-

Buñales, a proud KAUST bus driv-

nes that the children on the bus are his children (he has

er, with a smile. Filipino Buñales

two daughters in the Philippines), which makes him even

has been driving one of the school

more vigilant while he’s driving. Buñales feels fortunate to

buses since before KAUST's inaugu-

be working at KAUST, which he considers “a very beauti-

ration. Prior to coming to KAUST,

ful place." When he’s not working, Buñales spends his free

Buñales worked in Dammam for 6

time cooking his favorite Filipino foods and eating with

years where he was trained in fire fighting and CPR. Safety

his friends. He speaks to his family in the Philippines every

is a big concern for Buñales. “My mind is always on the

day and hopes to return there one day and start a small

road,” he says, “because sometimes I have more than 23

poultry farm. 

people [in the bus] and they’re all children, so safety is

to the preservation of Antarctica: www.2041.com 

Scott Herrington leaving Ushuaia, Argentina, with Sahar AlShamrani, the first Saudi woman to go to Antarctica.

‫املنارة‬ ‫‪King Abdullah University of Science and Technology‬‬

‫‪at Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia‬‬

‫‪April 2012 / Jumada Al-Awal 1433‬‬ ‫‪Volume 2, Issue No.8‬‬

‫‪www.kaust.edu.sa‬‬

‫يف أحد خمترباتها املجهزة بكل أدوات التوليف والتوصيف‬

‫علماء جامعة امللك عبداهلل يبتكرون مادة‬ ‫فريدة الحتجاز ثاين أكسيد الكربون‬

‫الرسم اإليضاحي ملواضيع‬ ‫اجلامعة يتصدر غالف أشهر‬ ‫املجالت‬

‫منصة مثالية لتحديد وظائف العالقة بني ثاين أكسيد الكربون‬ ‫واالمتصاص‬

‫يبذل العلماء على مستوى‬ ‫العامل جهودا مضنية إلجياد احللول‬ ‫العملية للتخفيف من اآلثار السلبية الناجتة عن‬ ‫إنبعاث الغازات يف اجلو‪ ،‬ويسعى هؤالء العلماء البتكار اآللية اليت ميكن من‬ ‫خالهلا منع حدوث التلوث الناتج عن عملية االحرتاق‪.‬‬ ‫وقام جمموعة من الباحثني من جامعة امللك عبداهلل يف املخترب الذي‬ ‫يقوده الربوفيسور حممد الداوودي لتصميم واكتشاف وتطوير املواد‬ ‫الوظيفية بتصميم مادة فريدة لالمتصاص وهي عبارة عن إطار معدين‬ ‫عضوي حمدد الوظائف ميكن استخدامها الحتجاز ثاين أوكسيد الكربون‬ ‫بطريقة حمسنة بعد عملية االحرتاق‪ .‬وقد مت نشر هذا البحث مؤخرا على‬ ‫غالف مطبوعة “‪ ”Chemical Communications‬اليت تصدرها اجلمعية امللكية‬ ‫للكيمياء ‪http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelandng/2012/cc/‬‬ ‫‪c1cc15962c‬‬ ‫ومن أجل مواجهة التحديات اليت تزيد من عملية الغازات املنبثة يف‬ ‫الغالف اجلوي فإنه يتعني على العلماء العمل على حتسني خواص املواد‬ ‫املوجودة حاليا وهي عملية يتخللها الكثري من الصعوبات عند استخدام‬ ‫مواد احلاالت الصلبة‪ .‬وبناء على ذلك جيب من الناحية العملية بناء مواد‬ ‫بأسلوب كتل البناء الذي يسمح بتصميم وإجياد مواد تتوفر فيها اخلواص‬

‫بنت مكة الشغوفة بالفيزياء‬ ‫تتدرب يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل‬

‫تصف األستاذة املساعدة الزائرة د‪.‬هالة اجلوهري الفرصة اليت أتاحتها‬ ‫هلا جامعة امللك عبدالعزيز يف جدة لقضاء سنة يف جامعة امللك‬ ‫عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية يف إجازة ألغراض الدراسة والتدريب بأنها‬ ‫كاحللم‪ .‬والتحقت هالة بفريق الربوفيسور حسام الشريف وتعمل‬ ‫على تطوير مادة أوكسيد معدين ميكن استخدامها كأساس لغشاء‬ ‫ترانزستور رفيع وشفاف‪ .‬هذه األوكسيدات املعدنية أرخص مثنًا‬ ‫وميكن أن تعطي أداء أفضل مع مظهر شفاف بالكامل‪ .‬وقد يؤدي‬ ‫ذلك إىل تطبيقات مستقبلية باهرة تشمل اخلاليا الشمسية الشفافة أو‬ ‫اهلواتف اجلوالة غري املرئية‪.‬‬

‫املرغوبة واملستهدفة‪.‬‬ ‫واستخدم هذا األسلوب يف إنشاء هذه املادة الفريدة للغرض املحدد‬ ‫املتمثل يف تقصي واستكشاف طرق تؤدي إىل حتسني فعالية عملية احتجاز‬ ‫ثاين أوكسيد الكربون‪ .‬وتسمح كيمياء اإلطار املعدين العضوي األميين بتحديد‬ ‫وظائف املادة من خالل استخدام أيونات رابطة حتتوي على النرتوجني‪ .‬وحسب‬ ‫التوقعات فقد ارتفعت سعة ثاين أوكسيد الكربون بنسبة ‪ %50‬مقارنة باإلطار‬ ‫بدون وظيفة األمينات‪ .‬ويبدو أن وترية العمل مستمرة اآلن لتصميم مواد أكثر‬ ‫فاعلية يف احتجاز ثاين أوكسيد الكربون‪.‬‬ ‫ويتكون هذا الفريق العلمي الذي يتمتع خبربة خاصة يف عمليات توليف‬ ‫وتوصيف ا ٌ‬ ‫ألطر املعدنية العضوية من عدد من علماء جامعة امللك عبداهلل‬ ‫وهم ريان لوبك (املؤلف األول) وهو طالب دكتوراه‪ ،‬وآمي كرينز ويوسف‬ ‫بلمبخوت‪ ،‬فيما يتكون فريق الربوفسور الداوودي من ‪ 15‬عاملا‪ ،‬وهو‪ ،‬أي الفريق‪،‬‬ ‫دوليًا متعدد التخصصات املتداخلة‪.‬‬ ‫ويوضح الطالب لوبك أن األطر املعدنية العضوية هي جمال حبثي متعدد‬ ‫التخصصات حيث أتيحت له الفرصة يف التعامل مع الكيمياء العضوية وغري‬ ‫العضوية كما أشار إىل تعرضه لألساليب التحليلية مثل انكسار األشعة السينية‬ ‫وامتصاص الغازات والتصوير الطيفي‪.‬‬ ‫جتدر اإلشارة إىل أن هذا املخترب قد مت جتهيزه جتهيزا كليا كغريه من‬ ‫خمتربات جامعة امللك عبداهلل حيث مت توفري كل األجهزة الضرورية للقيام‬ ‫بعمليات التوليف والتوصيف‪o .‬‬

‫ولدت “هالة” يف مدينة مكة املكرمة حيث أبدت اهتمامًا‬ ‫كبريًا بدراسة الفيزياء يف املرحلة الثانوية‪ ،‬قبل أن يأخذها‬ ‫فضوهلا وطموحها إىل جامعة النكسرت يف اململكة املتحدة‬ ‫لتنال درجة الدكتوراه يف فيزياء املادة املتكثفة يف العام‬ ‫‪ ..1999‬وهي متزوجة ولديها أربعة أطفال ترتاوح أعمارهم‬ ‫بني السابعة والتاسعة عشرة‪.‬‬ ‫تتميز‬ ‫عبداهلل‬ ‫امللك‬ ‫جامعة‬ ‫أن‬ ‫وترى الدكتورة اجلوهري‬ ‫د‪.‬هالة اجلوهري‬ ‫بالتفرد على نطاق اململكة وأن املرافق يف خمترباتها ضخمة‬ ‫ال عن ذلك‪ ،‬والكالم هلالة‪ ،‬بتبادل األفكار‬ ‫ويسهل الوصول إليها‪ .‬وتتميز اجلامعة فض ً‬ ‫وإمكانية مناقشتها مع كبار األساتذة والباحثني القادمني من خمتلف أرجاء العامل‪ .‬وهي‬ ‫تتطلع إىل التعاون مع جامعة امللك عبداهلل بعد انتهاء فرتة دراستها ومواصلة أحباثها‬ ‫يف هذا املجال‪o .‬‬

‫نشرت جملة “‪ ”ChemComm‬العلمية العاملية‬ ‫الشهرية اليت تصدرها اجلمعية امللكية للكيمياء على‬ ‫غالفها الرسم اإليضاحي للبحث الذي قام به الطالب‬ ‫ريان لوبك وزمياله مع الربوفيسور حممد الداوودي‬ ‫مما أدى إىل انتشار اخلرب يف األوساط العلمية سريعا‬ ‫نظرا لألهمية اليت تتمتع بها هذه املجلة ذائعة الصيت‬ ‫‪http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/article‬‬‫‪landng/2012/cc/c1cc15962c‬‬ ‫وقامت بتصميم الغالف أوجلا زوسالينا كاسيموف‪،‬‬ ‫وهي مصممة الرسم اإليضاحي اليت تعمل يف مكتب‬ ‫خدمات الكتابة األكادميية يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل‪،‬‬ ‫وتقوم بعمل الرسومات اإليضاحية العلمية ملؤلفات‬ ‫أعضاء هيئة التدريس يف اجلامعة‪.‬‬ ‫وتقول كاسيموف إنها اجتمعت يف بداية األمر مع‬ ‫الربوفيسور الداوودي وفريقه لبحث تصميم الغالف‬ ‫وتبادلوا اآلراء حول عدة أفكار وقامت بعمل بعض‬ ‫النماذج‪ ،‬وبعملها هذا أصبحت كاسيموف ممن يعمل‬ ‫يف مهنة كانت قائمة منذ أمد بعيد نظرا الرتباط العلوم‬ ‫والرسومات اإليضاحية ببعضهما منذ القدم‪ ،‬فقد قام‬ ‫سكان الكهوف العصور القدمية برسم مشاهداتهم يف‬ ‫الطبيعة على جدران تلك الكهوف‪.‬‬ ‫أما األمثلة األكثر حداثة للرسامني اإليضاحيني‬ ‫العلميني فتشمل إبن اجلزري‪ ،‬رسام بيت احلكمة الذي‬ ‫قدم رسوماته اإليضاحية للوسائل امليكانيكية اليت‬ ‫وصفها يف مؤلفاته (‪ ،)1260‬وكذلك ليوناردو دافنشي يف‬ ‫رسوماته ثالثية األبعاد لتشريح اجلسم البشري (‪)1515‬‬ ‫ورسومات جاليليو ألوضاع القمر‍‍من خالل مشاهدته‬ ‫بالتلسكوب (‪.)1610‬‬ ‫وتقول كاسيموف‪ :‬إن الصورة توضح ما تعجز عنه‬ ‫الكلمات وهلذا السبب كانت العلوم تستدعي على‬ ‫الدوام اقرتانها بالرسومات ألنها تلفت إنتباه القارئ من‬ ‫الدرجة األوىل‪ .‬وترى أنه بالقدر الذي يكون فيه الرسم‬ ‫النهائي رائعا إال أن الدقة فيه تصبح املكون الضروري‬ ‫إليصال فكرة البحث‪.‬‬ ‫ويبدو أن الرسومات اإليضاحية أصبحت أكثر أهمية‬ ‫مع بزوغ جنم الصحافة اإلليكرتونية على الشبكة‬ ‫العنكبوتية وقد يكون السبب يف ذلك هو ما تتميز به‬ ‫تلك الرسومات من قدرة عالية على نقل وإيصال الفكرة‬ ‫عرب وسط يتميز بسهولة احلصول فيه على املعلومة‪،‬‬ ‫كما أن الرسومات العلمية ال تنقل فقط األفكار‬ ‫شديدة التعقيد ولكنها تركز أيضا على التفاصيل‬ ‫الرئيسية وتؤدي إىل إجياد نقاط توقف بصرية‪o .‬‬

‫تسخري املوهبة ملصلحة اململكة‬

‫املشاركون واملنظمون يف برنامج املعهد السعودي للعلوم‬ ‫البحثية يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل‬

‫تستهدف إدارة املبادرات السعودية يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل للعلوم‬ ‫والتقنية تطوير املواهب العلمية واألكادميية السعودية وتسعى إىل‬ ‫حتقيق األهداف الرئيسية للجامعة والعمل على تنميتها وتطويرها مع‬ ‫الرتكيز على احتياجات اململكة‪.‬‬ ‫وتتبع هذه اإلدارة من ناحية التنظيم للشؤون اإلدارية واملالية اليت‬ ‫يرأسها نائب الرئيس التنفيذي املهندس نظمي النصر الذي ينظر‬ ‫إىل أهداف املبادرات السعودية كأداة ضرورية للوفاء برؤية مؤسس‬ ‫اجلامعة خادم احلرمني الشريفني امللك عبد اهلل بن عبدالعزيز‬ ‫–حفظه اهلل ‪ -‬وحتقيقها حيث يعلق قائال إن املبادرات السعودية‬ ‫أثبتت مبا ال يدع جماال ألي شك أنها حجر الزاوية لتطوير املجتمع‬ ‫السعودي وحتقيق مصاحله وال سيما للطالب الذين يعد تعليمهم‬ ‫وتطوير مواهبهم مسألة يف غاية األهمية ملستقبل اململكة العلمي‬ ‫واإلقتصادي‪.‬‬ ‫وتقود الدكتورة جناح عشري جهود املبادرات السعودية باجلامعة‬ ‫حيث لعبت دورا رئيسيا وكبريا يف تطوير وتنفيذ عدد كبري من‬ ‫الربامج واألنشطة املوجهة لتحقيق اهداف اإلدارة‪ ،‬وتشري الدكتورة‬ ‫عشري إىل أن اهلدف الذي تصبو إليه هو اجتذاب أفضل العقول الشابة‬ ‫يف شهر مارس املاضي أعلن‬ ‫الرئيس شي تعيني الدكتورة‬ ‫جناح عشري يف وظيفة نائب‬ ‫رئيس اجلامعة للمبادرات‬ ‫السعودية‪ .‬وكانت الدكتورة‬ ‫عشري قد التحقت جبامعة‬ ‫امللك عبداهلل يف منصب وكيل‬ ‫مساعد لشؤن الطالب قبل أن‬ ‫تتم ترقيتها يف العام ‪ 2010‬إىل وظيفة الوكيل األعلى املساعد‬ ‫لشؤون اخلرجيني‪ .‬ويف العام ‪ ،2011‬عينت الدكتورة عشري على‬ ‫وظيفتها اجلديدة كمدير تنفيذي للمبادرات السعودية‪ .‬ويقول‬ ‫الربوفسور شي إن الدكتورة جناح أثبتت يف وظيفتها اجلديدة‬ ‫احلكمة واملثابرة واإلصرار واملرونة يف تطويرها وتنفيذها‬ ‫الربامج العالية اجلودة‪.‬‬ ‫وعند توليها منصبها اجلديد قالت الدكتورة جناح عشري‬ ‫إنها كمواطنة سعودية تفتخر بتشريفها خلدمة جامعة امللك‬ ‫عبداهلل واإلسهام يف حتقيق رؤية خادم احلرمني الشريفني‬ ‫امللك عبداهلل بن عبدالعزيز بهذه الصفة ومبا أوكل إليها‬ ‫من مسؤليات‪ ،‬كما انها كأحد أعضاء الفريق املؤسس‬ ‫للمشروع تدرك ما نالته وخاصة كإمرأة سعودية بإتاحة الفرصة‬ ‫هلا لالستمرار يف لعب دور نشط يف منو وتقدم اجلامعة‬ ‫واملشروعات اليت ختدم تقدم اململكة‪o .‬‬ ‫يف اململكة لاللتحاق جبامعة امللك عبداهلل والعمل على استثمارها‬ ‫ورعايتها مما يؤدي إىل تعزيز رؤية املستقبل يف اململكة‪.‬‬ ‫وتدعم إدارة املبادرات السعودية وفريقها من املوظفني متعددي‬ ‫اجلنسيات أهداف اجلامعة وتطلعاتها بالعديد من الطرق نذكر منها‪:‬‬ ‫أوال البحث عن الشباب السعودي الواعد والعمل على دعم تطويرهم‬ ‫األكادميي بطريقة شاملة طويلة األجل‪ .‬وثانيا من خالل تطوير القوى‬ ‫العاملة يف اجلامعة وعلى نطاق اململكة‪ .‬وثالثا بزيادة التأثري اإلجيايب‬ ‫خلرجيي اجلامعة داخل اململكة وخارجها‪ .‬وأخريا بتشجيع املسؤولية‬ ‫اإلجتماعية داخل احلرم اجلامعي وخارجه (أنظر الرسم رقم ‪.)1‬‬ ‫وتتداخل برامج اإلدارة مع العديد من قطاعات اجلامعة‪ ،‬مبا يف ذلك‬ ‫الشأن األكادميي واألحباث والتطوير االقتصادي واالجتماعي حيث‬ ‫تقوم اإلدارة بدعم وحتسني عمليات تطوير األنشطة اليت تركز على‬ ‫الطابع السعودي‪.‬‬ ‫وتعمل الدكتورة عشري وفريقها بالتعاون الوثيق مع وكيل اجلامعة‬ ‫ونائب الرئيس للتعليم واألحباث وقسم شؤون اخلرجيني من أجل‬ ‫صياغة مبادرات اإلدارة بصورة اسرتاتيجية تنسجم مع األهداف‬ ‫املرسومة للجامعة‪.‬‬ ‫وتشمل العناصر ذات األهمية القصوى لإلدارة السلسة والفعالة‬

‫هلذه الربامج قسم “اخلدمات املشرتكة” ‪ ،‬وهي يف جوهرها عبارة‬ ‫عن مكتب إدارات أكادميية يتوىل اإلشراف على اجلوانب املالية‬ ‫واإلتصاالت واملناسبات‪/‬املهام اللوجستية واملساندة من قبل تقنية‬ ‫املعلومات‪.‬‬ ‫سهام احلسيين ‪ ،‬رئيس قسم اخلدمات املشرتكة ‪ ،‬هذه‬ ‫السيد‬ ‫ويشرح‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫املهام قائال “حنن نشكل النواة لربنامج متكامل خلدمة الطالب‪.‬‬ ‫فعمليات املنح والقبول لدينا تنطوي على العديد من املصاحل مما‬ ‫يتطلب القيام بعمليات مالية وتقنية معلومات متشعبة ومعقدة‪ ،‬مبا‬ ‫يف ذلك برنامج قبول آىل بالكامل ونظام متطور إلدارة املنح للطالب‬ ‫املسجلني يف خمتلف مبادراتنا”‪.‬‬ ‫استقطاب اخلرجيني السعوديني‪ :‬تعمل اإلدارة بفاعلية من‬ ‫أجل التعرف على اخلرجيني السعوديني املوهوبني واستقطابهم‬ ‫ومساندتهم من خالل اسرتاتيجيات االستقطاب املستهدف‪ .‬وتنطوي‬ ‫إحدى هذه االسرتاتيجيات على بناء العالقات على أعلى املستويات‬ ‫مع اجلامعات املحلية والشركاء الصناعيني واجلهات اليت تدير شؤون‬ ‫السعوديني يف اخلارج بهدف رفع الوعي مبا توفره اجلامعة من فرص‬ ‫خلرجيي املستقبل والقيام بعمل الرتشيحات ملن يستويف الشروط من‬ ‫املرشحني‪ .‬ومن خالل احلضور وااللتقاء بالطالب يف احتفاالت التخرج‬ ‫يف اخلارج إستطاعت قيادة اجلامعة العليا التواصل مع ‪ 4500‬طالب‬ ‫قبيل خترجهم يف اململكة املتحدة والواليات املتحدة واسرتاليا‪.‬‬ ‫وهناك املزيد من اجلهود اليت تبذل الستهداف جمموعة كبرية من‬ ‫الطالب السعوديني يف آسيا (اليابان والصني)‪.‬‬ ‫ويف داخل اململكة يتم عقد ملتقيات مفتوحة للمرشحني من مجيع‬ ‫مناطق اململكة يتم خالهلا عرض ملحة عن احلياة األكادميية يف‬ ‫اجلامعة وجمتمعها‪ .‬وقد استقبل الربنامج يف احلرم اجلامعي خالل‬ ‫العام املاضي أكثر من ‪ 500‬زائر من ‪ 15‬جهة من شركاء اجلامعة‬ ‫األكادمييني والصناعيني‪.‬‬ ‫ويتوىل الربنامج كذلك معاجلة االحتياجات والتحديات املتعلقة‬ ‫باجلاهزية األكادميية من خالل التنسيق مع اجلهات ذات العالقة‬ ‫لتأمني املساندة فيما يتعلق باللغة اإلجنليزية والتدريب األساسي‪.‬‬ ‫برنامج جامعة امللك عبداهلل للطالب املوهوبني‪:‬‬ ‫يعد هذا الربنامج منوذجا هلدف اإلدارة املتمثل يف االستثمار يف‬ ‫شباب اململكة املوهوبني‪ .‬ويقول األستاذ مجال السيد‪ ،‬مدير برنامج‬ ‫الطلبة املوهوبني‪ ،‬إن رعاية املوهوبني ظلت متثل حجر الزاوية‬ ‫يف رسالة جامعة امللك عبداهلل منذ إنشائها ويعد الربنامج مبثابة‬ ‫استثمار طويل األجل يف الشباب املوهوبني حبيث يضمن حصول‬ ‫اجلامعة على النوعية املطلوبة من اخلرجيني‪.‬‬ ‫مرمي أوليا فتاة سعودية من أوائل‬ ‫طالبات الربنامج وستتخرج بدرجة‬ ‫بكالوريوس علوم (مرتبة الشرف)‬ ‫يف الكيمياء احليوية من كلية‬ ‫لندن اجلامعية وستلتحق بربنامج‬ ‫جامعة امللك عبداهلل لنيل‬ ‫درجة ماجستري علوم يف العلوم‬ ‫البيولوجية يف فصل اخلريف‪.‬‬ ‫وتؤكد أن الربنامج ساعدها كثريا‬ ‫يف اإلحساس باالستقاللية واإلنضباط الشخصي املستمر مما ساعدها‬ ‫كثريا يف اتساع مداركها وبالتايل وصوهلا إىل ما هي عليه اليوم من‬ ‫مستوى تأهيل عايل‪.‬‬ ‫حسن‬ ‫وتقول مرمي إنها تشعر دائما باالمتنان للربنامج الذي ّ‬ ‫مهاراتها العلمية وجتاربها احلياتية بصورة تعتقد انها لن تتحقق‬ ‫على اإلطالق لو مل تكن قد التحقت بالربنامج‪ .‬وتستطرد قائلة‬ ‫إننا مجيعا موهوبون بصورة أو أخرى وكل ما حنتاج إليه هو‬ ‫تسخري هذه املوهبة وصقلها من خالل القنوات املنتجة وهذا‬ ‫هو على وجه التحديد هدف برنامج الطالب املوهوبني يف جامعة‬ ‫امللك عبداهلل‪o .‬‬

‫وترعى وزارة التعليم العاىل هذا الربنامج من خالل متويلها له بشكل‬ ‫جزئي مما يتيح للطالب والطالبات املوهوبني الفرصة الستكمال‬ ‫دراستهم لنيل الدرجة اجلامعية األوىل يف جامعات حتظى بالشهرة‬ ‫العاملية يف الواليات املتحدة واململكة املتحدة‪ .‬ويوفر الربنامج‬ ‫مشرفني أكادمييني للطالب ملتابعة عمليات التطوير األكادميية‬ ‫والبحثية واإلجتماعية والثقافية لكل طالب وطالبة‪.‬‬ ‫وسينضم أول مخسة خرجيني من برنامج رعاية املوهوبني هذا اخلريف‬ ‫بعد خترجهم من جامعات هارفارد ونوتنجهام وكلية لندن اجلامعية‬ ‫إلكمال دراساتهم العليا جبامعة امللك عبد اهلل للعلوم والتقنية‪.‬‬ ‫املعهد السعودي للعلوم البحثية‪:‬‬ ‫ميكن الطالب املوهوبني يف‬ ‫هذا املعهد هو عبارة عن برنامج صيفي ّ‬ ‫املرحلة الثانوية من خمتلف مناطق اململكة من القيام بأحباث على‬ ‫املستوى اجلامعي حتت إشراف أساتذة اجلامعة‪ .‬ويقوم طالب املعهد‬ ‫بزيارة اجلامعة ملدة ستة أسابيع أثناء فصل الصيف للمشاركة يف برنامج‬ ‫مركز يشمل املحاضرات األكادميية واإلشراف البحثي وممارسة الكتابة‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫العلمية بصورة مكثفة مع الرتكيز على النظريات واألحباث املتقدمة يف‬ ‫ويشكل الربنامج خطوة‬ ‫جماالت العلوم والتقنية واهلندسة والرياضيات‪.‬‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫أساسية يف اهلدف األمسى املتمثل يف رعاية املوهوبني من العلماء‬ ‫الشباب ليصبحوا علماء املستقبل وباحثيه وقادته يف اململكة‪.‬‬ ‫وتقول مديرة الربنامج الدكتورة غادة فقيه‪ :‬إنه من املتوقع أن يكون‬ ‫له التأثري الكبري على طرق تفكري طالب املرحلة الثانوية جتاه الوظائف‬ ‫واحلياة العملية يف جماالت العلوم والتقنية واهلندسة والرياضيات‪،‬‬ ‫مؤكدة قدرة الربنامج على اجتذاب أعداد كبرية من الطالب الطالبات‬

‫نايف احلمود هو طالب ثانوية‬ ‫عامة يف املنطقة الشرقية وأحد‬ ‫الطالب األوائل يف الربنامج والفائز‬ ‫جبائزة أوملبياد االبتكار العلمي‬ ‫الوطين‪ .‬ويقول نايف إن املعهد‬ ‫ميثل أحد املرجعيات الرئيسية‬ ‫يف حياته كطالب ومواطن سعودي‬ ‫وكان من املدهش أن تتاح له‬ ‫الفرصة ليكون جزءا من البيئة األكادميية للتفاعل مع األساتذة‬ ‫واملهنيني وقد ساعده على فتح اآلفاق امامه لإلخنراط مستقبال‬ ‫يف جماالت العلوم ‪ .‬ولفت اىل إنه بعد أن عمل يف خمترب التحفيز‬ ‫بالوسائط الكيميائية العضوية املعدنية وقام بنفسه بعمل التفاعالت‬ ‫الكيميائية فقد زاد ذلك من شغفه مبادة الكيمياء وقال إن ما‬ ‫يدهشه بالفعل أن الفرص تكون متاحة دائما لتعلم املزيد واكتشاف‬ ‫املزيد من خالل األحباث العلمية‪.‬‬ ‫وأضاف نايف إنه بفضل هذا الربنامج اكتسب الثقة يف حتدي نفسه‬ ‫واختيار العلوم واألحباث والتقدم لاللتحاق بأعرق اجلامعات‪ ،‬واختتم‬ ‫قائال إن الربنامج هدية وجيب املحافظة عليه‪o .‬‬ ‫مث عودتهم إىل جامعة امللك عبداهلل كخرجيني وباحثني وأعضاء يف هيئة‬ ‫التدريس‪.‬‬ ‫ومت تصميم املعهد السعودي للعلوم البحثية على غرار منوذج‬ ‫معهد العلوم البحثية الذي يرعاه مركز التميز يف التعليم ومعهد‬ ‫ماساتشوستس للتقنية وقد مت تطويره كشراكة بني أرامكو السعودية‬ ‫ومؤسسة امللك عبدالعزيز ورجالة لرعاية املوهوبني (موهبة) ومركز‬ ‫التميز يف التعليم مبعهد ماساتشوستس للتقنية وجامعة امللك‬ ‫عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية‪.‬‬ ‫ومت إفتتاح املعهد يف عام ‪ 2011‬بالتحاق ‪ 25‬مشاركا من مجيع مناطق‬ ‫اململكة وقد بدأوا بالفعل يف ترك بصماتهم الواضحة‪.‬‬ ‫ويشرف على هذه الربامج السيد هيمانشو بهاجات‪ ،‬الذي إنضم مؤخرا‬ ‫إىل اجلامعة رئيسا لقسم تطوير وإشراك املواهب الشابة‪ .‬وحتدث‬ ‫بهاجات عن النجاح الذي حالف هذه الربامج حيث أوضح أن هذه‬ ‫األمثلة تنسجم متاما يف الكيفية اليت تساعد بها املبادرات السعودية‬ ‫يف حتقيق رسالة اجلامعة وأهدافها وأنه لشرف عظيم أن يكون جزءا من‬ ‫جامعة تتمتع برؤية بهذه اجلرأة والقوة‪ ،‬كما أعرب عن إعجابه باميان‬ ‫فريقه بأهمية تلك الربامج‪.‬‬

‫املسؤولية االجتماعية والعامة‪.‬‬ ‫التوظيف والتطوير داخل اململكة‪:‬‬ ‫يندرج هذا املجهود حتت مظلة التوظيف والتطوير املتقدم للخرجيني‬ ‫على مستوى الدراسات ما بعد اجلامعية‪ .‬ويهدف‬ ‫الربنامج إىل رفع الوعي‬ ‫باخلصائص اليت متيز‬ ‫خرجيي اجلامعة‬ ‫عامة وتوزيعهم على‬ ‫كربيات الشركات‬ ‫يف اململكة للحصول‬ ‫على أفضل الفرص‬ ‫الوظيفية‪.‬‬ ‫وتعلق الدكتورة عشري قائلة إننا‬ ‫نسعى من خالل تعريف أصحاب‬ ‫العمل بأفضل اخلرجييني‬ ‫املحليني والعامليني اللذين‬ ‫تلقوا تعليمهم يف جامعة امللك‬

‫تصوير مهند أبو غضيب‬

‫خترج املكسيكي إيرنستو‬ ‫ساندوفال من جامعة امللك‬ ‫عبداهلل يف العام ‪ 2010‬بدرجة‬ ‫ماجستري يف علوم األرض‬ ‫واهلندسة ويعمل اليوم‬ ‫كجيوفيزيائي يف مركز األحباث‬ ‫املتقدمة (إكسبك) يف أرامكو‬ ‫السعودية‪ ،‬الظهران‪ .‬ويقول‬ ‫إيرنستو إن من دواعي سروره‬ ‫أن يعمل مع فريق األحالم‬ ‫من اجليوفيزيائيني وأن‬ ‫يتمكن من القيام بذلك على وجه التحديد يف اململكة العربية‬ ‫السعودية‪ ،‬كما أنه يعتقد بأنه قد مت إعداده إعدادا جيدا‬ ‫للحياة املهنية يف اململكة‪ .‬ويقول إن جامعة امللك عبداهلل‬ ‫تعد كل واحد من طالبها للتعامل مع الفرق متعددة الثقافات‬ ‫والتخصصات بأفضل الطرق املمكنة‪ .‬ويرى إيرنستو أن جتربته‬ ‫املتعلقة بالعمل يف اململكة إجيابية حىت اآلن‪ .‬ويستطرد قائال‬ ‫أن هذه األوقات أوقات تتميز باإلثارة وخاصة لصناعة الزيت وأن‬ ‫التحديات اليت تواجههم كل يوم ترضي تطلعاته بكل تأكيد‪o .‬‬

‫عبداهلل وتأقلموا على احلياة يف السعودية إىل جعل القوة العاملة‬ ‫السعودية أكثر تنوعا وأقوى منافسة على املستوى العاملي‪.‬‬ ‫ويقول رئيس الربنامج إيريك مارتينز‪ -‬فراي إنه سيكون هناك تركيز‬ ‫متزايد على وضع الطالب يف مواقع العمل مع اضطراد النمو يف اعداد‬ ‫الطالب‪ ،‬ويؤكد أن اململكة تعرض على الطالب فرصا مدهشة وأن‬ ‫هناك حاجة مؤكدة لالحتفاظ بأفضل املواهب وأن الرتكيز سيكون‬ ‫على االحتفاظ بهذه املواهب داخل اململكة من أجل إجياد بيئة ذات‬ ‫عقول عبقرية‪.‬‬

‫وتلفت الدكتورة جناح النظر إىل أنه من خالل دمج اخلرجيني يف‬ ‫االقتصاد السعودي فإن اجلامعة تقوم يف نهاية املطاف باالستفادة من‬ ‫استثماراتها يف تعليم اخلرجيني اجلامعيني والدراسات العليا مما يتيح‬ ‫للجامعة توفري سفراء عنها يقومون باستعراض دورها كوسيط تفاعل‬ ‫اقتصادي يف مجيع أحناء اململكة‪.‬‬ ‫ونتيجة جلهود الربنامج مت توظيف أكثر من ‪ 140‬من العلماء‬ ‫اخلرجيني حىت اآلن داخل اململكة من أصل ‪ 445‬خرجيا‪.‬‬ ‫اإلثراء املتخصص‪:‬‬ ‫ال يزال هذا الربنامج يف مراحله املبكرة‬ ‫ويهدف إىل رعاية جيل جديد من السعوديني‬ ‫رفيعي التعليم والتدريب الفعال القادرين على‬ ‫اإلسهام عامليا من خالل الفرص التخصصية‬ ‫واملساندة‪ .‬وتتمثل إحدى هذه املبادرات يف‬ ‫“الرتكيز على املرأة السعودية” واليت تدعم كليات‬ ‫البنات يف اململكة يف إجياد برامج جسور لتطوير ومتكني خرجياتها‪.‬‬ ‫وتشمل النشاطات اإلضافية يف هذا اجلانب استضافة الندوات املتعلقة‬ ‫مبساهمات املرأة يف جماالت العلوم واهلندسة ويف مواقع القيادة‬ ‫وتصميم جهود التوظيف حسب الطلب بهدف اجتذاب الطالبات‬ ‫األوائل يف اململكة‪.‬‬ ‫وتعرض إحدى املبادرات النشطة‬ ‫األخرى فرص تدريب داخل‬ ‫اململكة يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل‬ ‫حيث تدعو هذه املبادرة هيئات‬ ‫التدريس والطالب يف املؤسسات‬ ‫املشاركة من داخل اململكة‬ ‫لإلشرتاك يف الندوات وورش العمل‬ ‫اليت تقام يف احلرم اجلامعي‪ .‬وقد‬ ‫شارك أكثر من ‪ 100‬طالب من داخل‬ ‫اململكة يف برنامج اإلثراء الشتوي‬ ‫هذا العام‪.‬‬ ‫املسؤولية االجتماعية‪:‬‬ ‫ما زالت اخلطة االسرتاتيجية لإلستفادة من‬ ‫الرأمسال الفكري يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل لتسخريه‬ ‫ملنفعة املجتمع السعودي والعاملي يف مراحلها‬ ‫املبكرة‪ .‬وتهدف هذه اخلطة إىل املساعدة يف تشجيع‬ ‫املواطنة وحتسني نوعية احلياة للجميع‪.‬‬ ‫هذا وتتطلع الدكتورة عشري لقيام اجلامعة بدور ريادي فيما‬ ‫يتعلق باسرتاتيجية املسؤولية اإلجتماعية كما حدث يف برنامج إعانة‬ ‫منكويب السيول قبل عامني حيث شكل هذا احلدث منوذجًا الستجابة‬ ‫اجلامعة السريعة ملسؤولياتها يف هذا املجال‪.‬‬ ‫وتقول الدكتورة عشري إن اإلدارة تستهدف تطوير وتكامل الربامج والبىن‬ ‫التحتية ملساندة ثقافة املسؤولية االجتماعية يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل مما‬ ‫يؤدي إىل بناء اجلسور بني الفوارق الثقافية وتشجيع اإلحساس مبساهمة‬ ‫اجلامعة باجلوانب اإلجيابية للمسئولية اإلجتماعية‪ ،‬مع تطبيق منافع رأمسال‬ ‫اجلامعة الفكري على املجتمعات خارج اجلامعة باإلضافة إىل تعزيز جوانب‬ ‫الوعي البيئي‪ .‬وتوضح الدكتورة عشري الفكرة قائلة إن املبادرات السعودية‬ ‫ال تنحصر فقط بالتنفيذ بل تصل يف بعض احلاالت إىل التنسيق والتخطيط‪.‬‬ ‫وخالصة القول إن رؤية املبادرات السعودية تتميز باجلرأة والطموح الذي‬ ‫ال حتده حدود سيستغرق وقتا حىت يتطور الربنامج ويصل مرحلة النضج‬ ‫فإن من الواضح أن الدكتورة عشري وفريقها قد شرعوا‬ ‫الكامل‪ .‬ومع ذلك ّ‬ ‫فعال يف جتهيز ورعاية جمموعة من قادة املستقبل ومتخذي القرارات‬ ‫االستثنائيني يف جماالت العلوم والتقنية‪o .‬‬

‫الفائزون جبوائز األوملبياد‬

‫طالب املعهد السعودي للعلوم‬ ‫البحثية حيصدون جوائز‬ ‫املنافسات الوطنية‬

‫حظي تسعة من خرجيي املعهد يف العام ‪ 2011‬بفرصة لتمثيل‬ ‫اململكة يف العديد من مهرجانات ومسابقات إنتل الدولية‬ ‫للعلوم والتقنية يف الواليات املتحدة‪ .‬ومتثل جمموعتنا تسعة‬ ‫من الفائزين البالغ عددهم ‪ 36‬ممن مت اختيارهم من‬ ‫املتقدمني من مجيع مناطق اململكة البالغ عددهم االمجايل‬ ‫‪ 50000‬طالب من ‪ 5000‬مدرسة‪.‬‬

‫إجناز باهر آخر‬

‫يف األوملبياد الوطين لالبتكارات العلمية الذي انتظم الشهر‬ ‫املاضي يف مدينة الرياض‪ ،‬فاز باملرتبة األوىل يف املنافسات‬ ‫الرجالية والنسائية من فئة األحباث العلمية خرجيون من املعهد‬ ‫السعودي للعلوم البحثية‪ .‬ونافس يف هذه الفئة ما جمموعه‬ ‫‪19064‬طالبا و‪ 7652‬طالبة ممن قدموا ابتكاراتهم للمنافسة‪.‬‬

‫والفائزون التسعة وأساتذتهم يف‬ ‫جامعة امللك عبداهلل هم‪:‬‬ ‫عبداهلل املزروع‬

‫تأثري أجهزة اإلحساس يف اكتشاف السيول‬

‫الربوفيسور كرستيان كلوديل‬

‫(املرتبة اخلامسة مشرتك يف فئة الطالب)‬

‫دانا عبداللطيف‬

‫التفاعالت املرحلية يف وسائط التحفيز الكيميائي العضوية‬ ‫الربوفيسور كوو‪-‬ويي (أندي) هوانق‬

‫(الفائزة باملرتبة األوىل يف فئة الطالبات)‬

‫فاطمة العجاجي‬

‫أجهزة الذاكرة املعدنية الكهربائية املرنة‬

‫الربوفيسور حسام الشريف‬

‫(الفائزة باملرتبة الثانية يف فئة الطالبات)‬

‫حنان العلى‬

‫مقارنة القوة يف األنابيب املعززة بتقنية النانو‬ ‫الربوفيسور قيلز لوبينو‬

‫(الفائزة باملرتبة الثالثة يف فئة الطالبات)‬

‫هشام الفاحل‬

‫تطوير نهايات سرب إس يت إم‪/‬أ يت إم‬

‫الربوفيسور بوون أووي‬

‫(املرتبة الثالثة يف فئة الطالب)‬

‫حممد اجلهين‬

‫بوربفريا ‪ -‬التعرف يف البحر األمحر‬

‫الربوفيسور تيموثي رافاسي‬

‫(املرتبة اخلامسة يف فئة الطالب)‬

‫حممد الشريف‬ ‫قبل ست سنوات كان عبداهلل كاين‬ ‫طالبا يف املدرسة الثانوية ويعيش‬ ‫يف مزرعة لألغنام يف قرية تندحة‬ ‫يف منطقة عسري السعودية‪ .‬واليوم‬ ‫ميضي بعزمية وإصرار ليصبح أحد‬ ‫خرجيي جامعة هارفارد بدرجة‬ ‫بكالوريوس علوم يف بيولوجيا‬ ‫الكيمياء والفيزياء‪ .‬وعندما كان يف‬ ‫الصف الثاين الثانوي رشحه برنامج‬ ‫“موهبة” لإللتحاق مبعهد علوم األحباث يف معهد ماساشوستس‬ ‫للتقنية‪ .‬وتوالت جناحات عبداهلل ليتم قبوله يف برنامج جامعة‬ ‫امللك عبداهلل لرعاية الطالب املوهوبني وبدأ دراسته اجلامعية يف‬ ‫هارفارد يف العام ‪.2008‬‬ ‫ويقول عبداهلل إن حياته تغريت كثريا بشكل إجيايب بفعل برنامج‬ ‫“موهبة” وبرنامج رعاية الطالب املوهوبني وكان لكل هذه‬ ‫املساندة التأثري الكبري يف تغيري التوجه الذي حدث يف حياته‬ ‫بطريقة سيظل ممتنا هلا على الدوام‪.‬‬ ‫ويستطرد عبداهلل قائال إن تطوير مؤسسة حبثية ذات مواصفات‬ ‫عاملية يف بلده هو مبثابة مصدر فخر له‪ .‬ويعتزم عبداهلل العودة إىل‬ ‫اململكة ومواصلة دراسته يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل اليت يعتربها‬ ‫استثمارا فعاال يصب يف مصلحة اململكة والعامل أمجع‪o .‬‬

‫كرويات الفضة بتقنية النانو لإلستخدام يف‬

‫اخلاليا الشمسية‬

‫الربوفيسور عثمان بكر‬

‫(املرتبة الرابعة يف فئة الطالب)‬

‫نايف احلمود‬

‫تصنيع مركبات الباديوم كاربني‬ ‫الربوفيسور جورق إيبنجر‬

‫(الفائز باملرتبة األوىل فئة الطالب)‬

‫سارة املري‬

‫طرق املقاومة الكهربائية لإلحتفاظ بالفواكة طازجة‬

‫الربوفيسور خالد سالمة‬

‫(الفائزة باملرتبة الرابعة يف فئة الطالبات)‬

‫فريق املبادرات السعودية حيتفل بالدكتورة جناح عشري بعد‬ ‫تعيينها يف منصب نائب الرئيس‬

‫تصوير لوكا باسوين وإيفلني بايلز‪.‬‬

‫د‪ .‬فرجينيا أونكفر حمررة أكادمييي اجلامعة‪..‬‬

‫هذه الصورة إلتقطها طالب الدكتوراة يف قسم علوم األرض واهلندسة‬ ‫لوكا باسوين بالتعاون مع طالبة املاجستري يف العلوم البيولوجية وإيفلني‬ ‫بايلز‪.‬‬ ‫ويروي لوكا باسو قصة هذه الصورة بأنه أثناء الطريان يف منتصف‬ ‫شهر مارس املاضي من مطار رابغ بإجتاه اجلنوب مرورا مبدينة امللك‬ ‫عبداهلل اإلقتصادية وأثناء متابعتهم للساحل بدأوا مبشاهدة املواقع‬ ‫املألوفة لديهم فشاهدا منارة اجلامعة ومراكز األحباث وميدان كرة‬

‫علماء وخمرتعون يف‬ ‫ورشة عمل نظمتها‬ ‫اجلامعة حول اإلضاءة‬

‫صورة‬ ‫الشهر‬

‫القدم‪ ،‬وأثناء املتابعة من الطائرة بالقرب‬ ‫من اجلامعة عندها قامت زميلته إفلني بالتقاط‬ ‫الصورة‪ .‬وذكر الطالب لوكا بأن مشاهدة احلرم اجلامعي وسط األلوان‬ ‫املدهشة للبحر والصحراء جعلهم يشعرون بأنهم حمظوظون للغاية‬ ‫ألنهم يعيشون بداخله‪.‬‬ ‫ملن يرغب يف إرسال الصور يرجى التواصل عرب الربيد اإللكرتوين‪:‬‬ ‫‪thebeacon@kaust.edu.sa‬‬

‫املشاركون يف ورشة العمل‬

‫يظل املصباح الكهربائي أحد أهم االكتشافات اإلنسانية ذات الفائدة‬ ‫الكبرية والتأثري يف حياة الناس إال أن هناك العديد من املسائل املثرية‬ ‫للقلق بالنسبة للمصباح املتوهج الذي يولد حرارة أكثر مما ينتج من‬ ‫إضاءة‪ ،‬وأن الطاقة الكهربائية اليت حيتاجها هذا النوع من املصابيح‬ ‫لكي تضئ ترتاوح ما بني ‪ 2‬و ‪ % 4‬بينما بقية الطاقة املبددة ال تنتج‬ ‫سوى حرارة غري مرغوب فيها‪.‬‬ ‫ويف شهر فرباير املاضي اجتمع عدد من العلماء واملهندسني يف ورشة عمل‬ ‫دولية حول اإلضاءة نظمتها جامعة امللك عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية بالتعاون‬ ‫مع جامعة جنوب كاليفورنيا يف سانتا باربرا واهليئة الوطنية للعلوم‪.‬‬ ‫وضمت القائمة املتميزة للمتحدثني الربوفيسور شوجي ناكامورا من‬ ‫جامعة جنوب كاليفورنيا يف سانتا باربرا وهو خمرتع الليزر األزرق‬ ‫والدايودات الباعثة لإلضاءة الزرقاء‪-‬البيضاء‪-‬اخلضراء‪ ،‬ونال جائزة‬ ‫التقنية األكثر أهمية يف العامل وهي جائزة تقنية األلفية يف العام ‪2006‬‬ ‫ومبلغها مليون يورو‪ ،‬كما حصد جائزة إميي يف الس فيجاس نظري‬ ‫إسهاماته يف تقنية اإلضاءة يف صناعة السينما‪.‬‬ ‫واإلضاءة صلبة احلالة يف شكل هذه الدايودات ميكن أن ختفض بقدر‬ ‫هائل توليد الغازات املسببة الرتفاع درجة حرارة األرض‪ ،‬بل إن اجليل‬

‫القادم منها والذي يقوم على أساس “تقنية جاليوم نايرتيد” هو الذي‬ ‫يؤمل عليه بشكل كبري يف هذا املجال‪.‬‬ ‫ويقول رئيس جامعة امللك عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية الربوفيسور تشون‬ ‫فونغ شي‪ :‬إن هذا النوع من اإلضاءة والذي يشرف عليه يف اجلامعة‬ ‫الربوفيسور بوون أووي‪ ،‬هو مبثابة مثال قوي لرسالة اجلامعة املتعلقة‬ ‫بتطوير األساليب واحللول املستدامة للتحديات البيئية‪ ،‬مقرونة‬ ‫باحتماالت وفرص حتقيق منافع اقتصادية وبيئية ضخمة‪ .‬وأضاف إنها‬ ‫تليب تطلعات املؤسس خادم احلرمني الشريفني امللك عبداهلل بن‬ ‫عبدالعزيز ورؤيته جلامعة دراسات عليا يف العلوم والتقنية خلدمة‬ ‫اململكة والعامل أمجع‪.‬‬ ‫ولقيت كلمة رئيس اجلامعة الرتحيب والتأييد من نائب الرئيس‬ ‫ملبادرات األحباث يف مدينة امللك عبدالعزيز للعلوم والتقنية الدكتور‬ ‫األمري تركي بن سعود بن حممد آل سعود‪ .‬ففي حديثه االفتتاحي ذكر‬ ‫األمري تركي للوفود أن مثل هذه املشاريع تعد حيوية وضرورية لرتسيخ‬ ‫اقتصاد اململكة القائم على أسس املعرفة وضمان أن تكون متطلبات‬ ‫األحباث واالبتكار والروح التجارية اجلريئة عناصر جوهرية يف التطوير‬ ‫املستقبلي للمملكة‪o .‬‬

‫الربنامج جيسد التطوير االقتصادي للمملكة‬ ‫ويعكس رؤية امللك للجامعة‬

‫اإلحساس بانتقاهلم إىل مواقع نائية‪ .‬وجاء الطالب جورج إيتلهوبر رابعًا‬ ‫البتكاره جهاز (نوماد) وهو عبارة عن جهاز ميكانيكي آيل منخفض‬ ‫التكاليف إلزالة الغبار بدون ماء يستخدم لتنظيف املنشآت الشمسية‬ ‫يف الصحراء‪.‬‬ ‫وهنأ رئيس اجلامعة‪ ،‬الربوفسور تشون فونغ شي الفائزين قائال‪ :‬إن‬ ‫برنامج صندوق البذور يشكل مكونا حيويا يف رسالة اجلامعة اليت تهدف‬ ‫إىل جتسيد التطوير االقتصادي يف اململكة العربية السعودية ويعكس‬ ‫رؤية خادم احلرمني الشريفني امللك عبداهلل بن عبدالعزيز للجامعة‪،‬‬ ‫مؤكدا أن جامعة امللك عبداهلل تزخر بالكثري من العلماء واملهندسني‬ ‫املوهوبني وأن هذا الربنامج يهدف إىل إشعال روح االبتكار‪.‬‬ ‫حضر االحتفال عدد من كبار قادة اجلامعة‪ ،‬وموظفي اجلامعة‪ ،‬وأعضاء‬ ‫هيئة التدريس باإلضافة إىل رجال األعمال املحليني وممثلني عن برنامج‬ ‫التعاون الصناعي يف اجلامعة‪.‬‬ ‫وبرنامج البذور يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل هو عبارة عن آلية لتمويل‬ ‫عملية تطوير املنتجات لدفع األفكار الواعدة يف اجتاهها الصحيح مبا‬ ‫ويعد صندوق البذور‬ ‫يؤدي يف النهاية إىل إنتاج أعمال جتارية جديدة‪ُ .‬‬ ‫جزءًا من جمموعة املشاريع اجلريئة اجلديدة‪o .‬‬ ‫للمزيد من املعلومات‪:‬‬ ‫برنامج صندوق البذور ‪http://newventures.kaust.edu.sa/seed-fund‬‬

‫أربعة طالب يبتكرون أجهزة مهمة‬ ‫ويفوزون جبوائز صندوق البذور‬ ‫حققت أربعة مشاريع مبتكرة الفوز يف اجلوالت اليت أقامها مؤخرا‬ ‫صندوق البذور يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية بتمويل من‬ ‫جمموعة سييت بنك‪.‬‬ ‫و ُأعلنت أمساء الفائزين يف احتفال أقيم يف احلرم اجلامعي يوم األربعاء‬ ‫‪ 14‬مارس ‪ 2012‬وناقش فيه الفائزون منتجاتهم وابتكاراتهم‪ ..‬وفاز كل‬ ‫من الطالب رميانتاس كودزيوس البتكاره جهاز (إنفريوال) وهو عبارة‬ ‫عن جهاز منخفض التكاليف الكتشاف املعادن الثقيلة ويوفر حلوال‬ ‫سهلة االستعمال‪ ،‬كما أن للجهاز قطاع عريض من اخلدمات بدقة‬ ‫عالية‪ .‬والطالب مايكا بريومن البتكاره جهاز (آي دافرز) وهو يعمل‬ ‫على متكني الوظائف الكاملة لألجهزة اليت تعمل باللمس حتت املاء‪.‬‬ ‫أما الفائز الثالث فهو الطالب ستيف كتشن البتكاره جهاز (ميوزتك)‬ ‫وهو عبارة عن بيئة لصورة حقيقية ثالثية األبعاد تتيح لزوار املتحف‬

‫من شعر القرون الوسطى إىل‬ ‫صياغة األحباث العلمية‬

‫قد يبدو من املدهش أن جتد شخصا له شغف بشعر القرون‬ ‫الوسطى يقوم يف الوقت ذاته بصياغة أوراق األحباث األكادميية‬ ‫املتصلة جبميع التخصصات يف جامعة امللك عبداهلل للعلوم‬ ‫والتقنية‪ .‬ومل تتخيل الدكتورة فرجينيا أونكفر ذلك الوضع‬ ‫عندما أمضت سنوات عدة لنيل درجة الدكتوراه يف جامعة والية‬ ‫متشجن لدراسة قصيدة عمرها ‪ 650‬عاما صاغها شعرا وليم‬ ‫الجنالند اإلجنليزي األصل وأحد معاصري جوفري تشوسر أعظم‬ ‫شعراء اللغة اإلجنليزية والذي يوصف بأنه األب الشرعي آلدابها‪.‬‬ ‫وهنا البد من اإلشارة إىل حقيقة واقعة أال وهي أن أي خريج‬ ‫أو عضو يف هيئة تدريس للعلوم اإلنسانية ال بد أن يكون قد‬ ‫بدأ بتعلم أوتعليم كتابة مواضيع اإلنشاء والنظريات املتعلقة‬ ‫بها‪ .‬وقد جنحت أونكفر يف نقل املهارات اليت تعلمتها كدارسة‬ ‫للعصور الوسطى يف جامعة جيمس ماديسون يف والية فرجينيا‬ ‫األمريكية إىل فنون تتصل مبساعدة العلماء يف صياغة مؤلفاتهم‪.‬‬ ‫وتوضح أونكفر أن األساس الذي بنت عليه تدريبها يف كتابة‬ ‫املواضيع اإلنشائية يتألف من أسلوب عمل عوضا عن الرتكيز على‬ ‫منتج الكتابة مؤكدة أن املحرر يلعب دورا رئيسيا يف عملية الكتابة‪.‬‬ ‫وبعد أن قامت بتدريس األدب اإلجنليزي القدمي والكتابة يف‬ ‫جامعة جيمس ماديسون‪ ،‬التحقت فرجينيا بزوجها دوجالس‬ ‫سيجو‪ ،‬أستاذ إدارة املنظمات‪ ،‬يف جامعة هونج كونج للعلوم‬ ‫والتقنية اليت أفتتحت حديثا يف العام ‪ .1994‬وحيث كانت هناك‬ ‫فرص التوظيف للمتخصصني يف العصور الوسطى نادرة ومتباعدة‬ ‫يف هونج كونج‪ ،‬اضطرت التوسع يف حبثها عن وظيفية أكادميية‬ ‫إىل أن التحقت مبكتب إدارة العقود واملنح يف تلك اجلامعة‬ ‫حيث ظلت تعمل هناك ملدة جتاوزت ‪ 14‬عاما يف عروض منح‬ ‫أعضاء هيئة التدريس ومقاالتهم التخصصية‪.‬‬ ‫وكانت أونكفر على ثقة تامة بأن جامعة امللك عبد اهلل للعلوم‬ ‫والتقنية‪ ،‬وكمؤسسة ناشئة ذات تطلعات ال ختتلف كثريا عن‬ ‫تطلعات جامعة هونج كونج يف وضع وعلى أهبة اإلستعداد لتغيري‬ ‫مشهد األحباث يف اململكة‪ .‬وقد أعجبت أونكفر إعجابا شديدا‬ ‫برؤية اجلامعة ومنوذج متويلها املتفرد‪ ،‬فالتحقت بها يف العام‬ ‫‪ 2009‬وتتوىل اآلن مساعدة هيئة التدريس وكبار علماء األحباث يف‬ ‫رواية قصصهم وأعماهلم من خالل األوراق وامللتقيات العلمية‪.‬‬ ‫ويف وصفها لوظيفتها يف اجلامعة‪ ،‬ترى أونكفر بأن هناك جدية يف‬ ‫إمكانية مساهمة األحباث يف أحداث املستقبل وتشعر بالفخر يف‬ ‫متكنها من اإلسهام بقدر ولو قليل يف إنتاج املعرفة‪ .‬وهي تعمل‬ ‫جنبا إىل جنب مع مؤلفي اجلامعة يف مراجعة وحترير أوراقهم اليت‬ ‫يؤلفها ممن يتحدث اللغة اإلجنليزية كلغة أصلية وممن تشكل‬ ‫اإلجنليزية لغتهم الثانية أو الثالثة على حد سواء‪ ،‬وهي ترى أن‬ ‫مجيع الكتاب حيتاجون إىل حمررين وأن املؤلفني اجليدين جدا‬ ‫حيتاجون إىل حمررين بنفس القدر من اجلودة‪ .‬والشك أن علماء‬ ‫اجلامعة جيدون يف الدكتورة أونكفر حمررا متميزا‪o .‬‬

‫د‪.‬كتشن الفائز جبائزة صندوق متويل البذور‬