Zewail receives Nobel prize
Egypt, Science, 12/11/1999

The 1999 Nobel chemistry laureate Ahmed Zewail, who received yesterday in Stockholm the award for his work in laser field, said that such award expresses the ingenuity of science and compared the revolution he has pioneered in atoms and molecules to the scientific advances of ancient Egyptians in the area of time measurement.

Addressing an award presentation ceremony attended by the Swedish King Carl XVI Justav, Zewail said he had been born and received education in Egypt and unlocked some scientific mysteries in the US.

Zewail has won the prestigious prize for pioneering the use of rapid-fire laser flashes that illuminate the motion of atoms in a molecule. He told the big ceremony that had the Nobel prize been launched before 6,000 years when civilization unfolded in ancient Egypt or at least 2,000 years ago when the Alexandria library was the hub of knowledge, Egypt would have reaped many of such awards.

In his address, Zewail hoped that the prize would motivate the new generations in the developing nations to realize that they could help in the advancement of science and technology. "Science has no homeland or age," he asserted.

Zewail was awarded the chemistry prize for research that makes it possible to watch atoms in slow motion during incredibly fast reactions. Zewail is the first Egyptian, Arab and African to take one of the Nobel science awards since presentations stated in 1901.

Nobel chemistry laureate Ahmed Zewail recollected when he left Egypt in 1969 he did not have any idea what the term laser means. "I decided to start in this interesting field," said Zewail in an interview with the Egyptian TV early Friday.

Zewail said he started his research in the American University studying the time unit until 1980. Since that date through 1987 "our searches made a breakthrough and we managed to make a wide leap in this science where we succeeded in sighting the atoms' motion which was conducive to the discovery of the femtosecond," added Zewail.

He pointed out that his research papers will help treat many cases of cancer, infertility, senility and will likely slash the production cost. On the rules according to which the Sweden Academy nominate the laureate, Zewail said it has its own meticulous criteria where it examines in a scrutinized way their achievements and curriculum vitae.

"In the field of science and medicine, the academy does not rely on the recommendations of the political establishments but rather on the reports of the relevant scientists and specialized experts who judge the nominees," added Zewail.

"Egypt is now enjoying a prospering economy, according to foreign reports, and this caters for the proper atmosphere for scientific research reminiscent of the beginning of China and Taiwan," said Zewail in his interview with the Egyptian TV.

"What remains now is an integrated scientific base and interaction among the specialists as well as respect for time value," said Zewail. The Nobel laureate said the reasons behind his concept of a specialized scientific university in Egypt is to establish specialized technological foundations at international levels and to publish scientific researches as US, India and Germany do.

"Such illuminating foundation's existence in Egypt is a must," said Zewail, adding that it should select the best mentalities in Egypt and the Arab world and its teaching staff have to be accurately chosen.

"Such a foundation will in this way become a center for hatching 'the ideal scientist' who would in turn teach the following generations of students and consequently the achievements of the university would serve the technological industries in the country," remarked Zewail.

Previous Stories:
  Egyptian scientist wins Nobel Prize for chemistry   (10/12/1999)
  70 Egyptian experts in nuclear science work at universities all over the world   (6/7/1999)
  Egyptian union to honor Egypt's next Nobel laureate?   (10/4/1997)

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