[caption id="attachment_150042" align="alignleft" width="257"] Prof. Sir James Fraser Stoddart[/caption]
Saudi Gazette report
RIYADH — Nobel laureate and King Faisal International Prize winner Prof. Sir James Fraser Stoddart has called for enhancing international cooperation in chemistry with Saudi scientists and scientific organizations.
Prof. Stoddart, who won the King Faisal International Prize for Chemistry in 2007 and Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2016, made the statement during a meeting with Prince Dr. Turki Bin Saud Bin Muhammad, president of King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), and Dr. Abdulaziz Alsebail, secretary general of King Faisal International Prize.
Prof. Stoddart was in Riyadh to deliver a special lecture organized at KACST, where he shed light on his groundbreaking work on mechanical bond.
“As one of the most prestigious awards in the world, the King Faisal International Prize makes use of every opportunity to share knowledge and experiences with experts in various fields. The discussions with Prof. Stoddart highlight our efforts to constantly work together with scientists and researchers from all over the world to encourage initiatives that enrich human knowledge and contribute to the development of mankind,” said Dr. Alsebail.
A world authority in mechanical chemistry and nanoscience, Prof. Stoddart created a new promising field of chemistry by introducing mechanical bonds into chemical compounds for which he was honored with the King Faisal International Prize. Nine years later, he won the Nobel Prize “for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.”
Prof. Stoddart has published more than 770 papers and delivered over 700 invited lectures worldwide, and is one of the most highly cited chemists in the world. Prof. Stoddart is a Fellow of the Royal Society of London, as well as many international science academies. In 2006, he received the Albert Einstein World Award and at the turn of 2007, he was named Knight Bachelor by Queen Elizabeth.
The King Faisal International Prize has so far honored 13 scientists from the field of chemistry. Of these, three, including Prof. Stoddart, have gone on to win the Nobel Prize.
The King Faisal International Prize, which was first won by a scientist from the field of chemistry in 1990, has built its reputation as a global award that identifies major scientific breakthroughs years ahead of their recognition by other prestigious awards. With its high benchmarks in the selection process, the renowned award is currently reviewing nominations for its 40th session.