Seed's inaugural edition of the State of Science explores the current scientific landscape and its emergent hotspots—along with the motivations and ambitions of the individuals charting its future.
Read more Seed State of Science 2008
- Next: Mianyang, China
- Previous: Jena, Germany
- Emergent Science City
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Samira Ibrahim Islam
- Age: 50s
- Occupation: Head of Drug Monitoring Unit, King Fahd Medical Research Center at King Abdulaziz University Hospital
- Why I Do Science: I've chosen science as my career because this is my passion. Since I was young I have been eager to explore everything—insects, plants, how people could reach the moon. When I was growing up, no women could be employed in Saudi Arabia: Formal primary schooling for girls and university education for women started only in 1960 and 1973, respectively. But I had dreams of helping my people, especially the women. My parents, too, were determined that we get educated, so my father sent me and my sisters abroad for proper schooling and university education. Today I work as an educator and researcher, promoting women's welfare and spreading awareness of drug addiction and drug safety. And although my country is still totally dependent on imported drugs—and has neither control nor proper screening for adverse reactions—my ultimate goal is to turn my drug-monitoring unit into one of the World Health Organization's focal points for drug safety, like Uppsala in Sweden.
- Person I'd Most Like to Meet: Bill Gates
- Scientist I'd Most Like to Meet: Marie Curie
- When I Was Little, I Wanted to Be: A boy, because I witnessed how my brothers were treated.
- What's on My Nightstand: The Holy Quran
- Population: 3,855,912
- GDP Per Capita (PPP): $23,200
- Type of Government: Monarchy
Gender segregation is the law in Saudi Arabia, where women who aspire to higher education must be taught by closed-circuit television, sequestered from their male professors. But this will change for some with the 2009 opening of the King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST). The university, being built on the coast 80 kilometers north of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia's second largest city, will meet a growing demand: As Saudi women have gravitated toward scientific and technical disciplines in recent years, companies have increased their hiring of female researchers. In a city already known as the liberal bastion of Saudi Arabia, the university will also bring a thoroughly Western touch, with the mixed-gender science courses all taught in English.
How Kaust's Endowment Stacks Up
King Abdullah bankrolled KAUST with a $10 billion gift, instantly making it the sixth-richest university in the world. It took Harvard, which has the world's largest endowment at more than $35 billion, 350-plus years to accumulate $10 billion.
Higher education is not the only area of scientific growth. This summer, high school girls participated in a month-long workshop on green technology and sustainable design. At the end of the "Natural Treasures" program, the girls—whose proposals included a natural mosquito repellant extracted from the Neem tree and a method for purifying and reusing Jeddah's sewer water—were taught how to register their inventions for patents. Also this year, Jeddah announced plans to build a new nanotechnology center, financed with $3.2 million from King Abdullah. As Saudi Arabia transitions from a petroleum-based country to one based on research and innovation, the scientific culture now taking root in Jeddah will be one to emulate. —Abbie Morgan
Emergent Science City: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Posted November 20, 2008
Originally appeared in Seed 19