Leading ladies of the Lab

The gender gap is increasingly being bridged in the science world, as testified by the achievements of successful female science personalities,

Source: Bangkok Post
* Published: 19/12/2009 at 12:00 AM
* Newspaper section: Muse

You can't really blame it on Albert Einstein, but Big Al's unique look - crazy hair and strong facial expressions - has somewhat shaped the image of modern mad scientists in popular culture. Think of a scientist, and many people will think of someone eccentric and nerdy with messy hair like Einstein's, or tall, waif-ish with perfectly waxed and combed hair plus thick glasses - and all male. Of course we have the magnificent Marie Curie, but her discerning, stern face certainly is not among the first you'd think of when being asked to picture a scientist.

Asst Prof Dr Anongnat Somwangthanaroj (centre), from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University.

Now, take a look at these four women - recipients of this year's L'Oreal for Women in Science fellowship. Recognised for their scientific work, they are nothing like Robin Williams in Flubber or Eddie Murphy in The Nutty Professor. They are young, attractive and successful women who happen to have a strong passion for science.

The fellowship programme is a collaboration between L'Oreal Thailand and the Secretariat of the National Commission for Unesco, offering four fellowships per year to female scientists and researchers aged between 25 and 40.

Dr Nitsara Karoonuthaisiri from the National Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Assoc Prof Dr Artiwan Shotipruk from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Asst Prof Dr Anongnat Somwangthanaroj from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, and Asst Prof Dr Joongjai Panpranot from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, are this year's recipients of the award that recognises and honours Thai women who play a vital role in the development in science.

Assoc Prof Dr Artiwan Shotipruk from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University.

For them, science seemed to come naturally at an early age. Dr Anongnat recalled that she was inspired when, in Grade 8, she was assigned to translate a story about the life of Thomas Alva Edison for her English class. "This was how I first got to know about this great inventor. I thought it would be great if I could one day develop things that benefit society like he did," said Dr Anongnat.

True to her inspiration, her award-winning research project, entitled "Development of PLA/Clay Nanocomposites in Film Packaging Applications", is helping society environmentally. "Waste is an important global problem and one that grows with every passing day, especially plastic waste. It can lie around for 400 to 500 years without degrading. This made me choose to develop biodegradable plastics by adding nano clay," explained Dr Anongnat, adding that these plastics will biodegrade in two or three months after disposal.

For Dr Joongjai, her passion for science started at an even younger age. Her mother was also a scientist, so when she was a small girl, she was playing with a toy no other children played with - a microscope. "Since I was very little, I'd been playing with my mother's microscope to see how our hair, insects, dust, etc. looked at such a high magnification and I had lots of fun."

Her interest might be on little things, but there is nothing little about her award-winning research project, "Synthesis of Nanoparticles for Use as Catalyst Materials", which helps chemical reactions proceed faster under milder conditions by synthesizing a "catalyst". "Discoveries in catalysis have had tremendous industrial significance. Catalysts have been employed in a myriad of applications ranging from the production of fertiliser, fuels, food, pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals and petrochemicals to the protection of our environment from the harmful side products of commerce," she explained.

Dr Nitsara, who won an award for her research project "Microarray technology applications in research and development in Thailand", also said that she has been attracted to maths and science since she was young. Her scientific soul shone brightly as a student - she received the Bonilla Medal for finishing first in her chemical engineering class and was selected to be a member of the Tau Beta Pi National Engineering Honour Society in the US. Later, she furthered her studies at Stanford University where she completed her MS-PhD. Her thesis won the Excellent Thesis Award from the National Research Council of Thailand.

She returned to Thailand after completing her PhD, and she was met with some challenges. Having spent over 10 years in the US, it was not easy for her to take a new role in a new environment. "Switching from studying to working, from speaking English to Thai, from the luxuries of scientific supplies to limited resources could dishearten a 26-year-old recent graduate like me," said Dr Nitsara, now 31.

Despite that challenge, she worked hard and headed the Microarray Laboratory in 2007. Her research might sound like something irrelevant to most people's daily life, but this field of study is crucial to the Thai economy. "Our laboratory employs DNA microarray in research on the black tiger shrimp, which is an economically important animal contributing to the success of Thai aquaculture exports. However, the industry is facing various problems around outbreaks of disease, slow growth and poor reproductive maturation of breeders in captivity," she explained.

Dr Artiwan's research also focuses on helping Thailand's agriculture. Her project, titled "Extraction of Biologically Active Compounds from Thai Herbal Plants by Sub- and Supercritical Fluid Extraction", explores supercritical fluid technology, which is friendly to the environment and not toxic to human beings, making it a sustainable means for conversion of Thailand's agricultural resources to high value products.

Their success stories clearly prove that girls too can be good at maths and science, in spite of the stereotype that girls are only good at languages. According to Sduppin Kamnuanthip, L'Oreal Thailand's corporate communication and public relations director, more than half of L'Oreal's researchers today are women, reflecting the vital role of women in driving the continued advancement of scientific knowledge in the company. Not only in this company, but female scientists worldwide are gaining more acceptance and recognition today. "Only 15 women in total have been awarded the Nobel Prize in science disciplines between 1901 and 2009. Among those women, there are three this year. It's a good sign," said Dr Anongnat.

However, it is not an easy path. All of them confessed to having gone through rough times before, but through vehemence and positive thinking, they overcame their hardships. Dr Anongnat's thesis adviser left the university two and a half years into her graduate studies and she had to start over again. Frustrated as she was, she turned it around and saw it as a good chance to learn new things. "The new project that I worked on for my PhD that time is what I master in today. Anything that happens to our life always has a good side." She also quoted Thomas Alva Edison, "A diamond is a piece of coal that stuck to the job."

Don't let their star-studded curriculum vitae label them as nerds or geeks. Outside the lab, these women enjoy simple hobbies. Dr Atiwan loves to read, cook and bake in her spare time, while Dr Anongnat loves art. She even confessed she likes chick flicks like Legally Blonde and loves to read Totto-chan. Dr Joongjai proclaims herself a full-time mother for her young daughter. Science is in fact something very natural and not complicated.

"Science is logical. Though it can often be perceived as very difficult, once you understand the concept of it, you are almost done - the rest is just trivial details. Science can be very cool and extremely fun if you open your heart to it," concluded Dr Nitsara.