President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday awarded the Presidential Science Prize to three Academia Sinica academicians, who warned about a lack of research talent and expressed hope that medical research will improve in Taiwan.
One of the winners, Lee Yuan-pern (李遠鵬), is renowned for his research using free radical spectroscopy, a tool for studying the effect of global warming and air pollution, said Academia Sinica President James Liao (廖俊智), chairman of the prize’s steering committee.
The falling number of students pursuing doctoral degrees should be regarded as a serious social problem, as a shortage of researchers would affect the nation’s global competitiveness, Lee said.
Photo: Chien Hui-ju, Taipei Times
The government should encourage young people to be involved in basic science research and urge academics to work together on advanced research projects, instead of working alone, he said.
Lee is a younger brother of chemistry Nobel laureate Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲), who also attended yesterday’s ceremony.
Prize winner Chen Yuan-tsong (陳垣崇) — a former director of Academia Sinica’s Institute of Biomedical Sciences — is known for developing treatments for glycogen storage disease and Pompe disease, Liao said.
Chen has made significant contributions to Taiwan’s biomedicine industry, and the story of how he developed a drug for Pompe disease was adapted in the 2010 film Extraordinary Measures, Tsai said.
Chen was wronged, Tsai said, referring to accusations of trying to profiteer from a biotech company established by his family.
The Shilin District Prosecutors’ Office in 2011 declared Chen could not be charged.
Asked about his expectations regarding biomedical development in Taiwan, Chen said he is lucky to have succeeded in developing new drugs when the success rate is estimated to be one in 5,000.
While Taiwan has established quality medical services, it should move on to develop preventive and precision medicine, he added.
The other winner, Wei Fu-chan (魏福全), was the nation’s first research surgeon named an Academia Sinica academician in 2012.
Surgeons are finally recognized for their basic and clinical research abilities, instead of merely their surgery techniques, Wei said.
A world leader in microsurgery, Wei has performed many difficult surgeries on cancer patients or physically impaired people, Liao said.
Apart from promoting universal healthcare, Taiwan should make a concerted effort to bolster potentially promising areas to claim a leading role in global medicine, Wei said, adding that surgery and precision medicine could be highlighted.
Established in 2001, the nation’s most prestigious scientific research award is presented once every two years at the Presidential Office in Taipei.
Winners receive NT$2 million (US$65,527) each.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
ANOTHER OPTION: The 13-year-old, whose residency status was revoked for holding a Chinese passport, could still apply for residency on humanitarian grounds, the government said The Executive Yuan has rejected an appeal from a 13-year-old Chinese student surnamed Lu (陸), whose permanent residency was revoked after immigration officers discovered he held a Chinese passport. Lu in December 2023 applied to settle in Taiwan to be with his mother, surnamed Lin (林), who is a Taiwan resident, an appeal decision released this month by the Executive Yuan showed. Lin settled in Taiwan after marrying a Taiwanese man in 2003, but the two divorced in 2011, and after marrying a Chinese man, she had Lu, the Executive Yuan’s appeals committee said. Lu’s application was approved in December 2024, and in
RSS