King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
BEACON
at Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
February 2012 / Rabi Al-Awaal 1433 Volume 2, Issue No. 6
the
Winter Enrichment Program (WEP) wrap up
2012 turn to pages 4 – 5
www.kaust.edu.sa
Professor Pierre Magistretti
Professor Pierre Magistretti, newly
arrived
Dean
of
Chemical and Life Sciences and Engineering, looks to bring his knowledge, expertise and leadership to consolidate the rich environment of the division so allowing the academic community to further flourish. In his thirty years in academia, he has repeatedly drawn people and projects together by listening carefully to the scientists undertaking the research, and then providing the vector that aligns the various particles in a spirit of collaboration across disci-
Dropping Ballast and Embracing the Spirit of Adventure
plines, ensuring coherence and
“The unknown is part of life,” said physician-scientist-adventurer Bertrand
the first man to enter the Earth's stratosphere after successfully ascending
direction. Attracted to KAUST by
Piccard, the man who set the world record for balloon flight, during his key-
16,000 feet.
both the people and the resources
note lecture for the 2012 Winter Enrichment Program (WEP). “Ballooning
that this young institution offers,
is a beautiful metaphor, because in a balloon, like in life, we go very well
Dean Magistretti sees a unique
in unforeseen directions… but as long as we fight horizontally against life,
and important opportunity to
against the winds, against what is happening to us, life is a nightmare.”
unite technology with the life
Moving from this metaphor to give some pragmatic advice, Piccard, a mem-
sciences to promote “engineer-
ber of the first two-person team to circumnavigate the earth non-stop in
ing-inspired biology” in line
a hot-air balloon in 1999, counseled, “In the balloon, it is easy. When we
with King Abdullah’s vision for
drop ballast, we climb. I think life should be exactly like this,” he continued,
a knowledge-based economy in
“Throw overboard the ballast, the habits, certainties, convictions, paradigms,
Saudi Arabia. Dean Magistretti’s
and dogmas… and embrace a pioneering spirit.”
arrival is part of the ongoing aca-
Piccard explained that he had realized that the traditional definitions of
demic restructuring underway
"exploration" and "pioneer" were now defunct. “I thought, what was left in
under the leadership of Provost
the world for pioneers to explore? What could we do for adventure? The last
MAGISTRETTI | Continued on p. 3
millennium had been great for exploration. Humanity had conquered the
The creator of Tintin, Hergé, used Auguste Piccard as his inspiration for the character of Professor Calculus.
North Pole, the South Pole, the Mariana Trench, Mount Everest, space, and the Moon. Everything had been conquered. I came to the conclusion that there
His father, Jacques, was an oceanographer who developed underwater vehi-
is nothing left to conquer, but there is much left to explore and achieve. We
cles vital to the study of ocean currents, and holds the world record jointly with
now have to think in terms of pioneering and adventuring for sustainability
Don Walsh for the deepest underwater dive. In 1960, the two used a submers-
and better quality of life," said Piccard, who believes that the individuals who
ible, developed by Auguste Piccard, to travel seven miles beneath the Pacific
successfully demonstrate the energy potential of clean technologies such as
Ocean to explore the Mariana Trench – the deepest undersea area in the world.
solar power, wind power and biofuel, will define the future.
Continuing this legacy, Bertrand Piccard announced the Solar Impulse pro-
Piccard comes from a family of adventurous, record-breaking engineers and
ject in 2003. In collaboration with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology,
scientists. In the 1930s, his grandfather Auguste, a peer of Albert Einstein and
Lausanne (EPFL), Piccard’s team designed and engineered a plane powered
friend of Marie Curie, made modern aviation a reality through his invention
solely by the sun and after eight years of grueling modeling, simulation, and
of the pressurized air cabin and stratospheric balloon. In 1931, he became
testing, completed the first overnight manned-flight. PICCARD | Continued on p. 2
“ Magic” materials to separate oil and water INSIDE:
News 1–3
The recent crude oil spills off the coast of New Zealand and in
Prof. Wang's group, describe how they turned household mate-
the Gulf of Mexico highlighted just how primitive our methods
rials including textiles and sponge, into something that could
for separating oil and water continue to be and the need there
effectively separate oil and water. Considered by the NPG editor
is for novel technology to help prevent the environmental dis-
as making a significant contribution to the field, the extraordi-
asters that result from such accidents.
nary thing about their functionalized materials is that they can
In a recently accepted paper in NPG Asia Materials, a journal
reverse their oil attraction or repulsion on demand, which makes
from the Nature Publishing Group (NPG), Peng Wang, Assistant
them selective and re-generable materials for oil-related applica-
Professor of Environmental Sciences and Engineering in Water
tions. The KAUST Technology Transfer & Innovation (TTI) Office
Desalination and Reuse Center (WDRC) together with Lianbin
has already protected these newly discovered scientific concepts
Zhang (first author) and Zhonghai Zhang, both postdocs in
under a US patent. PENG WANG | Continued on p. 2
Winter Enrichment Program 4–5
Electrical Engineering 6–7
Community 8