EASYUNI Ultimate University Guide 2013 July Issue | Page 64

Interview Industry

economic growth annually and the emergence of the EPPS
under New Economic Area (NKEAs).
In the bioeconomy sector, the solicited total jobs created
by 2020 are at approximately 42,000 covering BioNexus
companies, Eastern Corridor Economic Region (ECER),
Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER), Iskandar,
BioXcell, etc. In the nanotechnology sector roadmap,
about 9,500 S&T workers are needed for R&D activities
and commerciali sation. Most careers will be in electrical/
electronics, oil & gas, medical, palm oil and greater KL.
* Source: S&T Human Capital Strategic Planning 2020 (2012)

What are the three most important pieces of advice you
would like to give someone entering the science sector?
1. Develop global “scienti?c thinking”
The 21st century is dubbed as the scienti?c century. In
Harvard Professor’s Howard Garner book, 5 Minds for the
Future, there are ?ve thinking sets that need to be employed
to endure this century:
Synthesising Mind: Scientists can relate scienti?c
?ndings to global challenges like climate change, poverty
and political unrest.
Disciplined Mind: Motivated individuals create excellence
in science and innovation by being passionate about daily
drill, study, practice and mastery of their ?elds.
Creating Mind: Scientists with creating capacity and
creative spark will be able to offer new solutions to
emerging issues such as ageing.

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Respectful Mind: Scientists should be able to work in
a diverse team that comes from different culture, ?elds
and organisations to achieve common goals. Examples of
big, multinational scienti?c endeavour are Higgs boson
discovery at CERN and the International Space Station.
Ethical Mind: Scientists must gear objectives and means
of their research towards achieving sustainability and
greater good in the 3Ps (People, Planet and Pro?t).
2. Network
Expand networking with not only local scientists but also with
international counterparts via participation in international
fora and research collaboration.
According to Thomas Reuters’ data, only 40% of tier-1
scienti?c articles coming from Malaysia are produced with
international partners.
These articles pose higher impact to the world’s scienti?c
initiatives, averaging at 0.6 point compared to articles that
have no international collaborators at 0.4 point.
3. Engage with the Masses
Scientists should be cognisant of the socio-economic
happenings in the community, both national and global.
Scientists must approach the policy-makers and industry
to understand the public and market demand well.
[ASM plays a major role in engaging public and policy makers
with science: national science, public lectures, technology
updates].