KAIST

NEWS

홈페이지 통합검색

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KOREAN

Bioengineering

KAIST Commencement 2010 was held on February 26, 2010. A total of 2,205 are the newly conferred degree holders: 479 for Ph.D., 988 for Master’s, and 738 for B.S. degrees. Since its foundation in 1971, KAIST has so far produced 38,882 graduates. KAIST held the 2010 graduation ceremony on February 26, 2010 at its newly built place, called “Sports Complex Building.” Approximately 2,500 guests including Minister Byung-Man Ahn, Education, Science and Technology Ministry; Chairman Mun-Sul Jeong, KAIST Board of Trustees; representatives from the KAIST alumni; graduating students; and faculty joined the ceremony to celebrate the commencement. Honorary Doctorates At the ceremony, KAIST has conferred four honorary doctorate degrees in recognition of recipients’ contribution to the advancement of science and technology and development of science and engineering education in Korea and the world. The recipients were Arden L. Bement Jr., Director of US National Science Foundation; Lars Pallesen, President of Technical University of Denmark; Donald C.W. Kim, Chairman of AMKOR A&E, Inc.; and Beang-Ho Kim, Chairman of Seojeon Farm. Graduation Honors: President’s List Dong-Han Kim, majoring in Mathematical Sciences, College of Natural Science, was nominated as President’s List. He received an award for an outstanding academic achievement from the Minister of Education, Science and Technology and gave a gradation speech on behalf of the graduating class. Birthplace of Promising Young Scientists in Korea KAIST has earned a reputation for training the next generation of young scientists in Korea, and its 2010 Commencement has confirmed such fame. Among 479 Ph.D. degree holders, 151 (31%) students are in their 20s. The youngest who has received a doctoral degree is Jin-Ah Lee, graduating from College of Life Science and Bioengineering. Commencing International Students Among international students graduating this year, two students from India received their doctoral degrees in Biological Sciences: Kataru Raghu Prasad and Chaya Mohan. They are a married couple and now both postdoctoral researchers, working at KAIST labs. Wearing academic regalia and standing together to take a picture, the couple said, “We would definitely recommend KAIST to prospective international students because it offers the best education and research facilities comparable to those of any leading universities in the world. With the knowledge and experience acquired from studying at KAIST, we hope to contribute to the development of our country in the future.”
2010.03.04 View 15378
KAIST Research Team Identified Promising New Source to Obtain Stem Cells KAIST Research Team Identified Promising New Source to Obtain Stem Cells A research team at KAIST led by Professor Gou-Young Koh, M.D. and Ph.D., of the Department of Biological Sciences, has found evidence that fat tissue, known as adipose tissue, may be a promising new source of valuable and easy-to-obtain regenerative cells called hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs). HSPCs are adult stem cells that have the ability to generate and develop into many different kinds of cells. They are now used to repair damaged tissues and are being studied for their potential to treat a vast array of chronic and degenerative conditions such as leukemia. Mostly found in bone marrow but with a limited quantity, HSPCs are hard to cultivate in vitro, thus becoming an obstacle to use them for research and therapeutic purposes. Within the adipose tissue is a special cell population known as the stromal vascular fraction (SVF), which share similar properties to those in the bone marrow. Cells in the bone marrow and SVF have the ability to differentiate into several cell types. In addition, both adipose and bone marrow offer similar environments for optimal stem cell growth and reproduction. Given the fact that adipose and bone marrow tissues share similar properties, Dr. Koh and his team conducted a research, injecting granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), a growth hormone used to encourage the development of stem cells, into an adipose tissue of a mouse whose bone marrow is damaged. As a result, the team has found that the SVF derived from adipose tissue contains functional HSPCs capable of generating hematopoietic (blood-forming) cells to repair the damaged bone morrow. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology nominated the KAIST research as one of its sponsoring 21st Century Frontier R&D Programs. Director Dong-Wook Kim of Stem Cell Research Center (SCRS) that oversees the KAIST team expressed a possibility to use the adipose tissue as an alternative source to obtain stem cells for regeneration medicine. Dr. Koh also said, “It’s been a well known method to extract HSPCs from the bone morrow or blood, but it’s the first time to identify adipose tissue, before considered useless, as a new possible supplier for functional and transplantable HSPCs.” The study results have received an important recognition from the academia—the American Society of Hematology published the research as a main article in its official journal, Blood, for the February 4th, 2010 issue, which is the most citied peer-reviewed publication in the field.
2010.02.05 View 13003
2010 New Year Message The State of KAIST in 2009 & 2010: Assessing the Past Year’s Accomplishments and Next Year’s Challenges and Opportunities Nam Pyo Suh President, KAIST January 4, 2010 Summary 2009 was a great year for KAIST, with every member of the KAIST family working to cement KAIST’s position among the world’s leading universities. Faculty, staff and students alike have made unique and important contributions to toward this goal through major advances in research, education, and service. Our work in science, technology, and education will profoundly impact industry and society, in Korea and throughout the world. In addition to achieving major scientific discoveries and developing technologies and processes, our faculty has greatly improved KAIST’s curriculum and pedagogical practices. Many professors have been recognized by many organizations in and outside of Korea in 2009. Our students have contributed to KAIST through their involvement in research and a wide array of extracurricular activities. Our staff has accomplished a seamless merger of ICU and KAIST, in addition to managing a variety of other demanding projects. As a result of all of these contributions, KAIST is a stronger, more dynamic institution today than it was a year ago. In the coming year, KAIST must continue its efforts to become one of the best universities in the world. While building on our previous accomplishments, we will face new challenges. We will have to identify and commence challenging research projects, while continuing to evolve our educational programs. We have several construction projects to complete. And we must continue to expand KAIST’s sphere of influence, collaborating with colleagues around the world. With our dedication to excellence, 2010 will be a productive and intellectually rewarding year. Our past efforts have attracted attention both internationally and domestically. Our progress in education and research has been recognized by international ranking agencies (QS/The London Times) and domestic newspapers. For example, international ranking agency QS listed KAIST 21st in engineering and IT, 39th in sciences, and 69th overall -- from 243th in 2005 and 198th in 2006 – making KAIST the fastest rising university. And domestic newspapers, JoongAng Ilbo and Chosun Ilbo, rated KAIST the top university in Korea. I am personally most grateful to thousands of financial contributors to KAIST, who have enabled us to undertake critical projects, both physical and academic. Thanks to their contributions, KAIST will continue to renovate and innovate in the years to come. Chairman Byung-Ho Kim made the largest gift in 2009, following the important tradition established by Chairman Moon-Sool Chung, Chairman Chong-Moon Lee, Dr. Byiung-Joon Park, Chairman Neil Pappalardo, Professor Geun-Chul Lyu, Chairman Donald C. W. Kim, Dr. Hyung-Kyu Lim, and many others. Their contributions will be remembered for establishing the tradition of philanthropic giving in Korea. KAIST has also been fortunate to receive tremendous support from the Korean government. The government and the National Assembly have enabled KAIST to undertake two ambitious and bold projects: the On-Line Electric Vehicle (OLEV) project and the Mobile Harbor (MH) project. By demonstrating these projects’ success, we hope the government will continue to provide strong support in 2010, as we believe they will yield rich educational, scientific, technological, and economic returns to taxpayers. CY 2009 – A Retrospective Assessment CY 2009 has been a remarkable year for KAIST. We have made great strides in making KAIST into one of the best universities in the world, with a strategy that addresses the most important challenges of the 21st century – in the spheres of energy, environment, water and sustainability (EEWS) – through multi-disciplinary education, research, and technological innovation. The following are the major highlights of the past year (listed in no particular order): Education in 2009 1. Three years ago, KAIST developed educational and research strategies that have continued to evolve and improve. In education, our goals have been to admit the most capable students, to teach synthesis as well as analysis, and to produce graduates who can compete both globally and locally. To achieve the first goal, we have adopted new admissions policies, which have proved effective at bringing some of the best and the brightest minds to KAIST (see 6). Regarding the 2nd goal, freshman students are now required to take the freshman design subject to make them “bi-functional” in both synthesis and analysis. As for the 3rd goal, The Mileage Program continues to broaden the outlook of our undergraduate students. To make our students competitive globally, we have actively recruited international students and faculty and adopted English as the official language of instruction. 2. KAIST has tried to instill a sense of responsibility in our students. To this end, we have asked them to complete their prescribed degree programs within the allotted time. While we emphasize academic achievements, we also believe that health and physical exercise are also important. Therefore, we are constructing a new athletics facility to strengthen our students’ mental fortitude by augmenting it with active participation in sports and through physical exercise. 3. To re-focus our educational and research programs, we have re-organized KAIST into six Colleges and created three new academic departments. The six colleges are: College of Natural Science, College of Engineering, College of Information Science and Technology, College of Life Science and Bioengineering, College of Business, and College of Cultural Science. Four new academic units created in 2009 are the Department of Knowledge and Service Engineering in the College of Information Science and Technology, the Department of Ocean Systems and Graduate School of EEWS in the College of Engineering, and the Graduate School of Nano-Science and Technology in the College of Natural Science. 4. KAIST has also initiated new graduate-level educational programs in a number of fields -- ocean systems, nano-science and technology, EEWS, knowledge and service engineering, intellectual property, science and technology journalism, and Ph.D. education for medical doctors (MDs). We also have received strong support for the WCU programs in a number of fields from the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST). 5. In addition, we have strengthened our programs in systems and design in order to change the nature of engineering education and the intellectual perspective of the freshman at KAIST. Colleagues who have taught the freshman design course attest that it has achieved its educational goal -- Professors Kate Thompson and Taesik Lee have done a great job making it successful. We have also launched many new programs, including the Renaissance Ph.D. Program under the direction of Professor Dong-Yul Yang. Also, KAIST has two new masters of science (MS) programs – MS in Intellectual Property and MS in Science Journalism – under the leadership of Dean Kwang Hyung Lee. Professor Chul-Ho Kim will direct the MS in IP Program and Dean Kwang Hyung Lee will direct the MS in Science Journalism. 6. KAIST is committed to seeking and admitting talented students. In 2009, we initiated a new process for selecting and admitting the most qualified undergraduate students from normal high schools, in addition to continuing the interview-based admissions process introduced two years ago. Under the new process, the principal of each normal high school (there are roughly 1,300 in Korea) was asked to recommend one student for KAIST. After a preliminary screening by the Admissions Office, followed by an interview at the KAIST campus, 150 students were admitted from this group. (These newly admitted students have been given the opportunity to make up for any deficiencies in mathematics, physics and chemistry by taking on-line KAIST courses. Dean Kwang Hyung Lee created the experimental Bridge Program this year, with over 130 high school students subscribing to complete the final semester of high school education. Mid-term examination results indicated that these students are thriving at KAIST.) This new admissions process supplements the process successfully introduced two years ago, in which students are admitted based on interviews and high school grades only – a change that has proved of great interest to other universities in Korea. Using this process, KAIST will admit an additional 850 students from the Science High Schools, the Korea Science Academy, and normal high schools. The composition of the incoming 1,000-student freshman class is consistent with the goals established in the Five Year Plan. 7. KAIST has signed several agreements with universities and research institutes abroad for student exchanges, dual degree programs, and post-doctoral studies. In 2009, international students from 72 countries studied at KAIST. KAIST has also sponsored two recent Ph.D.s as post-doctoral fellows at the NASA Ames Research Center, California, United States. 8. In December 2009, as a part of the UAE-Korea agreement, KAIST agreed to collaborate with the Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research (KUSTAR), the leading scientific and technological university in Abu Dhabi. Under this program, KAIST will aid KUSTAR with its educational and research programs in a number of fields. There will be an exchange of personnel and research collaboration, in addition to curricula development, establishment of laboratories, and infrastructure strengthening. This program is expected to last about ten years with a major review in five years. Research in 2009 1. KAIST has developed a research strategy that will help it become a leader in the fields of science and technology. This strategy consists of a two-pronged approach: (a) encourage and support Faculty-Initiated Individual Research (FIIR) and (b) undertake concentrated, multidisciplinary, system-scale projects in a few select areas. The most important means of supporting FIIR has been KAIST’s Fellowship, HRHR , and EEWS Programs. To balance FIIR projects, KAIST has supported multi-disciplinary group research through the KAIST Institutes (KI) and also the EEWS Program. 2. KAIST has also provided start-up funds to new faculty members for equipment and other scholarly activities (rather than using the funds to support graduate students, since many of our incoming students are provided with fellowships). 3. In basic research, our professors and students have made important advances in sciences (e.g., mathematics, biology, chemistry, and physics). In technological innovation, KAIST has developed many new processes and technologies (e.g., applied biochemistry, biochemical processing, robotics, On-Line Electric Vehicle (OLEV), Mobile Harbor (MH), semiconductor processing, IC design, electronic packaging, fuel cells, optics, propulsion, complex systems, ship insulation, nanotechnology, and many others). These research contributions will gain international recognition as their results become better known and widely used. 4. To promote research collaboration between KAIST and leading European universities, the Office of External Affairs organized a trip to Europe. Five professors, Dean Yong-Taek Im, two students, and I visited four leading European universities – Technical University of Denmark, Delft University of Science and Technology, RWTH Aachen University, and Ecole Polytechnic/ ParisTech. On this trip, Professors Jie-Oh Lee and Yong-Mahn Han presented their work in biological chemistry and stem-cell research, respectively, and Professors Joong-Myeon Bae, Kyung-Cheol Choi, and Otfried Cheong presented their work on fuel cells, displays, and combinatorial geometry, respectively. These visits clearly indicated that KAIST is at the forefront of science and technology. 5. The OLEV and MH Projects are large, multi-disciplinary R&D projects specially funded through the 2009 Supplementary Budget. The goal of the OLEV Project, headed by Professor Dong-Ho Cho, is to eliminate internal combustion engines in order to lower CO2 levels in the earth’s atmosphere and to also help Korea reduce its imports of fossil fuels. Many professors and research staff members (Professors Chun-Taek Rim, Joung-Ho Kim, In-Soo Suh, Yong-Hoon Jeong, Hang-Ki Lee, and others) have worked on this project. A company named OLEV&E Company was established by the KAIST Development Foundation to attract industry involvement and accelerate the commercialization process as stipulated by the government as part of the 2009 Supplementary Budget. CEO Chung-Goo Lee, the former CEO of Hyundai Motors, is heading this commercialization effort. KAIST has developed OLEV buses and cars that draw electric power and recharge a small battery system from underground cables without any mechanical contact to power electric motors. The efficiency of power transmission is over 72% and the electromagnetic force (EMF) is well below specifications. This system is being installed in Seoul Grand Park. We have filed for many patents. 6. The goal of the Mobile Harbor project is to create “moving harbors” that can load and unload containers to and from large container ships and deliver them to small as well as large harbors -- the central goal being to eliminate the need for large, deep-water harbors by making “mobile harbors” that can go out to ships moored in deep waters. The team headed by Professor Byung-Man Kwak has demonstrated the viability of the original technology. Many professors – Professors Yun-Sik Park, Jun-Ho Oh, Gyung-Jin Park, Taesik Lee, Soon-Heung Han, Soo-Hyun Kim, and others -- have contributed to this project. The CEO of the Mobile Harbor Corporation, Daniel C. S. Ahn, and his team directed the design of two large mobile harbors, which will be submitted for certification for commercial use. We have many patents filed. (It should be noted that initially, the OLEV and MH projects were supported by the EEWS project, the HRHR Initiatives, and KI.) 7. The EEWS has funded 24 projects related to 10 critical topics in EEWS: Solar Energy, Photosynthesis and Carbon Capture & Storage, Fuel Cell, Bio Fuel, Battery and Green Car, Safe Nuclear Energy, Enhancing Energy Efficiency, Environment Monitoring and Recovery, Sustainable Manufacturing and Building, and EEWS Strategies. 8. A number of the KAIST Institutes (KI) have been gaining momentum. The KI for IT Convergence, which has a great number of faculty members from many disciplines, is conducting joint research projects. The KI for Design of Complex Systems has developed complex insulations systems for special-purpose large vessels. There are many other achievements that will be noted in a more expanded report. Merger We have successfully merged ICU and KAIST to forge stronger programs in IT. This strengthened group at KAIST has initiated new research and education in IT. We also accepted the operational responsibility for the Korea Science Academy to foster creative and intelligent high school graduates, especially those interested in science and engineering. Construction of New Buildings and Facilities We are constructing several new buildings: the Chunghi and BJ Park KI Building for multidisciplinary research; the Pappalardo Medical Center; the Sports Complex; the International Center; an apartment complex for international faculty; and dormitories for students. We have also renovated many buildings (e.g., the student dining facilities). In addition to the seven new buildings under construction now, we will be building several new buildings: the Kim Byung-Ho IT building, the Second Chung Moon-Soul Building for Brain science and Engineering, and an Animal Facility. Construction will begin soon. Faculty 1. As of December 2009, KAIST has 548 tenure-track professors and 322 non-tenure track professors. Of these, 39 are international faculty (including 20 Korean-Americans) and 34 are female. Our goal is to increase our international and female faculty to 20% each. 2. KAIST has appointed 56 outstanding new faculty members, including 15 international and 8 female members. The quality of these faculty members is exceptionally high. The search committees and department heads should be commended for an excellent recruiting job. 3. We have a truly outstanding faculty. Many members are known nationally and internationally for their contributions, and continue to receive awards for their work. Many of the young professors who recently joined KAIST are among the most outstanding scholars in their respective fields, showing much promise for KAIST’s future. Students 1. In 2009, KAIST had 3,766 undergraduate students and 5,029 graduate students (2,456 MS candidates and 2,573 Ph.D. candidates). We have 289 more undergraduate students than we should have had, as these students have not completed all the requirements for their undergraduate degrees within the standard time frame. It is important that our students learn to complete their studies within the time allocated for their degrees, and for that matter, for any task. In order to encourage our graduate students to complete their formal academic training as soon as possible and assume long-term career paths, we have imposed a time limit for their tenure as graduate students. 2. To encourage students to finish their undergraduate studies in four years, we have instituted a tuition system that requires all students, regardless of GPA, to pay full tuition if they do not finish their undergraduate degrees within that time frame. MS students and Ph.D. students who do not finish their degree in two and five years, respectively, are also required to pay partial or full tuition. The Pappalardo Medical Center With the financial support of Chairman and Mrs. Neil Pappalardo, we are constructing the Pappalardo Medical Center. The purpose of the Pappalardo Medical Center is to provide primary care to KAIST family members -- students, staff, professors and their families. The Pappalardo Medical Center will be increasingly important as we have more members of the KAIST family who do not speak Korean. Thanks to the efforts of Professor Ook-Joon Yoo, Dean for the Graduate School for MD/PhD Program and the Director of the Center for Bio-Medical Research, the Pappalardo Medical Center will be dedicated in May 2010. Professor Yoo will soon be hiring medical and support staff for the medical center. Meetings, Conferences, and Workshops KAIST hosted many conferences and workshops in 2009, including the Second International Presidents Forum (IPF) and the International Workshop on EEWS. Hosting such events has served many important functions – increasing global visibility, teaching best practices, creating inter-personal connections, fostering financial support, and building good will throughout the world. In Recognition of the Special Support of Government Most of the new programs in education, research, and infrastructure construction described above have received strong budgetary support from the government. The top leaders of the Korean government have given us opportunities to explore bold new concepts in science and technology through the General Appropriation of the Budget and the special Supplementary Funding of 2009. We are grateful for their support. I am personally grateful to President M.B. Lee for his support of the OLEV and the Mobile Harbor Projects. Awards and Achievements of the Faculty Our colleagues have received many awards as follows: - Professor Jung Woong RA is the recipient of the Korean Engineer Award. - Professor Seong Hwan CHO won the Best Thesis Award from IEEE Transaction on Circuits & Systems. - Professor Chang Hee LEE was elected as IEEE Fellow. - Professor Seung Hyup YOO was awarded an Outstanding Poster Award at the 9th International Meeting on Information Display. - Professor Kyung Cheol CHOI received Outstanding Poster Award at the 9th International Meeting on Information Display - Professor Joung Ho KIM received Best Student Paper Award at the 18th Electrical Performance of Electronic Packaging and Systems. - Professor Gun Woo MOON was awarded the Best Paper Prize at 2nd International Telecommunication Energy Conference. - Professor Kwang Jo KIM received an Award from the President of Korea for his service in Information Security. - Professor Kyu Young WHANG was elected as ACM Fellow. - Professor Dong Man LEE received the Distinguished Service Award from Korea Internet & Security Agency. - Professor Dong Jun KIM is the recipient of Microsoft Young Professorship Award. - Professor Sung Eui YOON received the Distinguished Paper Award from Pacific Graphics Society. - Professor Jae Hyuk HUH received the Distinguished Paper Award from Pacific Graphics Society. - Professor Sue Bok MOON won the Female Scientist Award from Amore Pacific. - Professor Byoung Kyu CHOI was awarded the Order of Merit for Science Technology (Ungbi Medal) as well as the Korean Engineer Award. - Professor Ha Yong SHIN received Gahun Academic Award from Gahun Foundation for Science and Technology. - Professor Hark HWANG is the recipient of Young Scientist Prize of the International Conference on IML 2009 and Symposium on GT/CM 2009. - Professor Myung Suk KIM won the Korea Robot Award from the Minister of Knowledge Economy. - Professor Sang Min BAE received Good Design Award. - Professor Youn Kyung LIM is the recipient of Microsoft Young Professorship Award. - Professor Hyeon Jeong SUK was awarded the Best Thesis Award of International Journal of Sensibility Engineering. - Professor Sung-Chul SHIN was awarded the National Academy Sciences Award of 2009 by the National Academy of Sciences, Republic of Korea. - Professor Wonho CHOE was awarded KSTAR Merit Award of 2009 by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. - Professor Kee Joo CHANG was named as the Fellow of 2009 by the American Physics Society. - Professor Sangil OUM was awarded TJ Park Bessemer Science Scholarship. - Professor Suh-Hyun CHOI was awarded Amore-Pacific Frontier Award. - Professor Jinhyun PARK was awarded Sangsan Young Mathematician Award. - Professor Hyotcherl IHEE was awarded Distinguished Lectureship Award by the Chemical Society of Japan. - Professor Juhyoun KWAK was awarded Q.Won Choi Academic Award by the Korean Chemical Society. - Professor Ryong RYOO was awarded Creative Knowledge Awards by KISTI. - Professor Changyoung IM was awarded the Order of Service Merit, Red Stripes, from the government. - Professor Tae Gwan PARK was awarded the Clemson Award from the Society for Biomaterials, USA, the highest honor in biomaterials research field in the world. - Professor Tae Gwan PARK was also awarded the first Creative Knowledge Award from the KISTI, selected as one of most highly cited six Korean scientists for the past 10 years. - Prof. Chulhee CHOI was awarded the Minister Prize for Excellence in University-Industry Cooperation from MEST, Korea (2009. 11. 5); Selected as one of the 60 best researchers in 2009 by the National Research Foundation, Korea. - Prof. Jung Kyoon CHOI was awarded the TJ Park Bessemer Science Fellowship (Junior Faculty). - Prof. Jong Chul YE was awarded the Best paper award, Korea Society of Human brain mapping conference (2009); A Winner of Recon Challenge, Data Sampling and Image Reconstruction, ISMRM Workshop Series (2009. 1); Invited Guest Editor for Special Issue of “Compressed Sensing Signal Processing,” Journal of Korea Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineer (KIEE). - Prof. Young-Ho CHO was awarded the Grand Prize for Pre-CEO (DAEDEOK INNOPOLIS). - Prof. Jaeseung JEONG was awarded the "2009 Young Global Leaders" selected by World Economic Forum (a.k.a. Davos Forum). - Prof. Dongsup KIM was awarded the best performance in the SH3 section of the DREAM4 Peptide Recognition Prediction challenge. - Prof. Hee-Seok LEE, Ji-Young YOON and Se-Hee HAN received Best Paper Award, the Knowledge Management Society of Korea. - Prof. Tong-Suk KIM and Byoung-Kyu MIN (student) received the 3rd Financial News & KAFA Doctoral Student Dissertation Award. - Professor Kwang-Woo PARK received Best Bank Management/ Investment Bank Award, Shinhan Bank & KAFA (Korean American Finance Association). - Prof. Byung-Tae LEE and Chang-Woo SUH (student) received Excellence Paper Award, The Korea Society of Management Information Systems 2009. - Prof. Su-Jin LEE received Best paper award (CM Division Best Empirical/Theoretical Paper Award), the Academy of Management Conference 2009. - Prof. Steven JORDAN was awarded 1st place prize for the best paper award at the 2009 FMA Asian Conference, the CFA institute. - Prof. Seung-Kyu RHEE received Excellence paper award, The Korea Production and Operation Management Society. - Prof. Young-Gul KIM (7th), In-Goo HAN (12th) and Jae-Kyu LEE (19th) were ranked as High Impact IS Papers and Researchers in the Pacific Asia Region, AIS(Association for Information Systems). - Prof. Jae-Min JUNG named as Best translator, The Korea Association for Broadcasting & Telecommunication Studies (KABS). Gifts and Donations from Generous KAIST Supporters KAIST has been extremely fortunate to receive generous financial support from many leaders, alumni, friends, and supporters. In just a few years, the number of donors has increased from a few hundred to over 3,000. In 2009, KAIST received major gifts from supporters: Chairman and Mrs. Byung-Ho Kim donated 30 billion won, Chairman and Mrs. Donald C.W. Kim of Hawaii donated US$1 million, Chairman Hui-Yul Bae of Japan provided a 1 billion won gift, alumnus Dr. Hyung-Kyu Im, President of Samsung, gave a second gift of 200 million won, and the family of Seung-Yul Chung donated 100 million won. There have also been many generous donors too numerous to list. As we look ahead at fundraising goals, KAIST is still in need of 20 billion won to support its Sports Complex, after a generous donation of 5.6 billion won from Woori Bank and POSCO. Board of Directors The Board of Directors (BoD) is the governing body of KAIST. It sets the policies, approves appointments and the budget, and selects and appoints the President of KAIST. The support of the Board is essential in planning and executing KAIST programs. The new chairman of the BoD is Dr. Moon-Soul Chung, the Board’s longest serving member. In 2009, joining the esteemed group, many outstanding leaders joined as new board members. New members include Mr. Donald C.W. Kim, the former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Hawaii and CEO of AMKOR A&E; Dr. Chong-Moon Lee, the Chairman of Ambex; Dr Byiung-Jun Park, the Founder and former CEO of MTL, Inc.; Dr. Geun-Chul Lyu, Professor Emeritus at Moscow Technological University; Attorney Joo-Myung Whang, the former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of ICU. New Appointments in the Administration Professor Minho Kang, a professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, has been appointed as the Vice President in charge of the newly established IT Convergence Campus. We have two new academic deans. Professor Dong Won Kim has been appointed Dean of the College of Cultural Science. Dean Kim, who received his Ph.D. from Harvard University, is a specialist in the history of science. He succeeded Dean Young-Hae Noh, who did an outstanding job leading the College for three years. Professor Ravi Kumar is the new Dean for the College of Business, succeeding Professor Byung-Hoon Ahn, who was the original founder of the College of Business in Seoul campus. Dean Kumar has a Ph.D. from Northwestern University and was formerly an Associate Dean at the University of Southern California. Professor Do Kyung Kim, a professor of materials science, is now the Dean of Admissions, a newly created position. Professor Dong-Ho Cho is the Director of the OLEV project. He is also the Director of KI for IT Convergence and the KT Chair Professor of Electrical Engineering. Dr. Chung-Goo Lee has assumed the position of the CEO of the OLEV&E Company, which has the task of commercializing On-Line Electric Vehicles. He also has an appointment as a KAIST Distinguished Professor of Practice. Professor Byung Man Kwak of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, is the Director of the Mobile Harbor project. Dr. Daniel Choong-Seung Ahn was appointed to be the CEO of the Mobile Harbor Company, a unit set-up for the commercialization of Mobile Harbors. He also has an appointment as a KAIST Distinguished Professor of Practice. A number of our colleagues assumed new functions for KAIST as well. They are as follows: Professor Han, In-Goo – Senior Associate Dean, College of Business Professor Kim, Bo-Won – Dean, KAIST Graduate School of Management Professor Kim, Young-Gul – Associate Dean, College of Business Professor Yang, Tae-Yong – Dean, Graduate School of Innovation and Technology Management Professor Park, Chul-Soon – Head, Department of Information Communication Engineering Professor Yoon, Wan-Chul – Head, Department of Knowledge Service Engineering, Professor Lee, Duk-Joo – Head, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics Professor Kang Jeung-Koo – Head, Graduate School of EEWS Professor Shin, Joong-Hoon – Head, Graduate School of NanoScience and Technology Professor Joong-Myeon Bae – Director, KAIST Institute for Eco∙Energy Professor Kim, Chul-Ho – Head, Intellectual Property Program CY 2010 – Challenges and Opportunities In 2010, we must continue to pursue the ultimate goal of making KAIST one of the best S&T universities in the world. This goal can be achieved through effective education and research. KAIST must offer educational programs that produce future leaders. The basic research done at KAIST should shape the future development of human knowledge and society, and the technologies developed at KAIST should be innovative enough to solve important problems in the 21st century. The plans of our colleges, departments, and KIs are attached in the Appendix. We should refine and modify them in 2010 with the ultimate goals of KAIST in mind. Education in 2010 and beyond In 2010, we should continue to improve our educational programs. We should further strengthen the Renaissance Ph.D. Program to be sure that KAIST produces engineers and scholars with advanced degrees, who can deal with both the design and analysis of complex systems. At the same time, we should strengthen undergraduate subjects that deal with design, following the successful development of the freshman design subject. We should review our curricula to be sure that it is more codified, streamlined and simplified to make learning more effective and productive. It might benefit some students if we can teach them the essences of their chosen fields while providing enough flexibility for broad educational experiences and independent learning. Developing new subjects (or courses) is intellectually and physically demanding. Yet it is a necessary function of leading universities. We should recognize our major innovative contributions to education just as we do our innovative research. Our students should finish their degrees within a reasonable period of time. Staying in school longer than necessary is a waste of both human talent and financial resources. Our students will find their true innate capabilities when they leave KAIST and pursue their careers. No one benefits by unnecessarily prolonging formal education. Certainly, the taxpayers should not be asked to bear the financial burden when a student is lax in fulfilling his or her share in the educational process. KAIST should develop new educational materials, methods, aids and tools. The distance learning/teaching program – the Bridge Program initiated by Dean Kwang Hyung Lee to teach the high school students admitted to KAIST before they actually enroll at KAIST – is a good example of how modern IT can be used to increase the effectiveness and productivity of education. Research – Basic Research Basic research in science and engineering is the intellectual sustenance of research universities. Most basic research is often initiated and executed by individual professors, researchers, and students. They come up with ideas and seek answers to the problems posed. In addition to pursuing independent individual research, we must foster multi-disciplinary research at the interface between disciplines where rich intellectual issues and questions lie. KAIST as a leading research university must support the multi-disciplinary research conducted by a group of researchers from many disciplines. To achieve this goal, the KAIST Institutes (KIs) are providing both intellectual leadership and major new facilities. At this time, there are eight (8) KIs. They are concerned with energy, IT, nano-science, bio-science, environment, water, materials, and design. A new building is being constructed to better accommodate these activities. We must constantly seek new ideas and problems that can yield rich intellectual dividends. Among the new multi-disciplinary subjects are brain research and high resolution MRIs. Research -- Technology Innovation At the opposite end of the research spectrum from basic research is technology innovation. A couple of major examples of technology innovation we have undertaken recently are the “on-line electric vehicle” and the “mobile harbor” projects. Another example is the new process of converting natural bio-products into polymers, which was the invention of Dean Sang-Yup Lee. We need to constantly probe new areas and problems that are ready for major technological innovations. We have been asking how we can reduce the CO2 generation by jet engines and save 20% of the fuel consumed by current commercial airliners. While we have come up with a couple of ideas, nothing concrete had been developed. (Recently, other research has disclosed that a way of improving fuel efficiency of jet engines is to uncouple the speed of the fan from the compressor in turbojets. This shows that we have been probing the right questions.) There are many other topics we could consider. We need major innovations in generating, handling, and using hydrogen. We also need new innovations in energy storage such as more efficient, lightweight batteries that can store and discharge electric energy at a much faster rate. We also need to develop medical diagnostic tools and systems for various heath related problems. To encourage creative thinking and technology innovation, KAIST has been supporting HRHR (High Risk/ High Return) projects. We also have the EEWS funding to come up with major solutions for problems related to EEWS. KAIST faculty, staff and students should be encouraged to identify major problems that require technological innovations. New KIs In 2010, KAIST Institutes will consolidate, improve, and expand many of the programs we have initiated in 2009. We also hope to launch new multi-disciplinary units – the KAIST Institute for Theoretical Studies and the KAIST Institute for Brain Research. We should also consider closing down some of the existing KIs if they are no longer needed. Globalization of KAIST Education Other countries have approached us about transplanting our educational programs to their countries. This is in recognition of the fact that Korea’s rapid growth during the past three decades is in large part due to Korea’s high educational standards and strong universities. Our new initiative with KUSTAR of Abu Dhabi should set an important milestone in expanding the global activities of KAIST and encouraging its growth. Graduation Exercise In February 2010, we are looking forward to holding graduation exercises in the new Sports Complex. This project was partially funded by Woori Bank and POSCO. This will surely reduce the anxiety level of Dean Kyung-Wook Paik, who is in charge of the graduation exercise, as in the past the Committee for Graduation Ceremony had to monitor the weather, as the ceremonies were held in KAIST’s outdoor amphitheater. We were fortunate that the weather cooperated the last few years, and we were pleased that President M.B. Lee delivered a memorable graduation address that was warmly received by our graduates and guests. Construction In May 2010, we will dedicate four new buildings, in addition to the Sports Complex: the Chunghi and BJ Park KI Building, the Pappalardo Medical Center, and the International Center. We are hoping that we will soon have a major donor for the Sports Complex as well. We will also complete the new apartment complex for international faculty and two dormitories for students in 2010. These buildings will help in reduce the pressure for accommodation for faculty and students. In 2010, KAIST will build several new buildings to accommodate new research and educational programs. We will build the Chung Moon-Soul Building II for Brain research and education, the Kim Byung-Ho IT Building, Animal Facility, and a new Natural Science Building. These buildings should be ready for occupancy in 2011. The new Kim Byung-Ho IT Convergence Center should incorporate futuristic IT technologies. Several of our old buildings were built more than 20 years ago. They are in urgent need of complete remodeling and renovation. We are hoping to convince the government that these buildings should be completely renovated to reduce the endless repair costs that are currently being incurred to maintain the minimal functions of the buildings. The cost of the renovation is estimated to be 80 billion won. Academic Programs by Colleges and Departments Departments, colleges and programs have developed their own plans for 2010, which are attached to this report. These plans will be refined in 2010 once we have a firm budget from the government. Finance and Budget In the past, without a full-time CFO, KAIST’s sizable finances were challenging to administer. On January 1, 2010, Mr. Cho, Koog-Jun, with his deep experience in finance and banking, will become the first CFO of KAIST. He will oversee all aspects of finance, including the budget, outsourcing, and expenses associated with major projects. A major concern for KAIST is the future of its government support. KAIST’s budget increased during the past three years because of the special funding of special projects such as the Globalization Project, the EEWS program, the WCU program, the OLEV Project, and the MH Project. However, KAIST’s base budget has not increased at a rate commensurate with its successful educational and research programs. In order to achieve its goals, KAIST must receive substantial increases in its base budget in the future. Issues Related to Faculty Our Five-Year Plan was based on the idea that the number of KAIST’s tenure-track faculty would grow to about 700, so that KAIST can be competitive with the best universities in the world. In the past three years, 150 new professors joined our faculty. Even with the merger of ICU and KAIST, we now have only about 550 tenure-track faculty members, far short of where we should be. During the next 10 years, about 34% of the faculty will retire, and in 15 years, about 54% of the faculty will retire. This high retirement number is a result of the faculty’s skewed age distribution, caused by the merger of relatively new institutions, i.e., KAIS, KIT, and ICU. To overcome the problems associated with this loss of faculty, we must do the following two things: (a) extend the retirement age of some key faculty members and (b) add many more young professors and eminent scholars to the ranks of our faculty. Our current thinking is that we should extend the retirement age of about 15% of our faculty members to age 70, but careful planning is necessary to implement such a policy. Sejong City In January 2009 (well before the current controversy surrounding the relocation of the government), KAIST and the government signed an MOU, which stipulates that KAIST will purchase 490 thousand Pyung of land in Sejong City. Our plan is to establish a Research Hospital, the College of Life Science and Bioengineering, the Graduate School of Public Policy for Science and Technology, Research Centers for Green Technologies (OLEV, MH, and EEWS), an Apartment Complex for Faculty and Staff (for purchase), and a Convention Center for International Conferences. The government agency in charge of developing the city will be installing OLEV bus lines in the city. The land we have agreed to purchase is adjacent to the widest section of Guem Gang River. It is a prime piece of real estate. KAIST will be able to establish a beautiful campus there, where our students and faculty can enjoy nature while pursuing scholarly and educational activities. K-12 Education As we recruit more faculty and staff from abroad, secondary education for their children will become an issue that must be addressed. Because an acceptable agreement with a local international school could not be arranged, we have decided to establish a K-12 school on the ICC campus. We hope to incorporate the school in 2010 and to begin to teach in 2011. Our K-12 school will be similar to the one started by Handong University. We wish everyone a Happy New Year!
2010.01.07 View 23059
Prof. Lee"s Team Succeeds in Producing Plastics Without Use of Fossil Fuels A team of scientists led by Prof. Sang-Yup Lee of the Department of Biological Sciences at KAIST have succeeded in producing the polymers used for everyday plastics through bioengineering, rather than through the use of fossil fuel based chemicals, the university authorities said on Tuesday (Nov. 24). This groundbreaking research, which may now allow for the production of environmentally conscious plastics, has been published in two papers in the journal Biotechnology and Bioengineering. Polymers are molecules found in everyday life in the form of plastics and rubbers. The team consisted of scientists from KAIST and Korean chemical company LG Chem focused their research on polylactic acid (PLA), a bio-based polymer which holds the key to producing plastics through natural and renewable resources. "The polyesters and other polymers we use everyday are mostly derived from fossil oils made through the refinery or chemical process," said Lee. "The idea of producing polymers from renewable biomass has attracted much attention due to the increasing concerns of environmental problems and the limited nature of fossil resources. PLA is considered a good alternative to petroleum based plastics as it is both biodegradable and has a low toxicity to humans." Until now PLA has been produced in a two-step fermentation and chemical process of polymerization, which is both complex and expensive. Now, through the use of a metabolically engineered strain of E.coli, the team has developed a one-stage process which produces polylactic acid and its copolymers through direct fermentation. This makes the renewable production of PLA and lactate-containing copolymers cheaper and more commercially viable. "By developing a strategy which combines metabolic engineering and enzyme engineering, we"ve developed an efficient bio-based one-step production process for PLA and its copolymers," said Lee. "This means that a developed E. coli strain is now capable of efficiently producing unnatural polymers, through a one-step fermentation process," This combined approach of systems-level metabolic engineering and enzyme engineering now allows for the production of polymer and polyester based products through direct microbial fermentation of renewable resources. "Global warming and other environmental problems are urging us to develop sustainable processes based on renewable resources," concluded Lee. "This new strategy should be generally useful for developing other engineered organisms capable of producing various unnatural polymers by direct fermentation from renewable resources".
2009.11.30 View 15410
Prof. Sang-Yup Lee Founding Member of Board of Editors of mBop Prof. Sang-Yup Lee of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at KAIST has been appointed as one of the founding board of editors of the mBio which will be launched next year, the university reported on Friday (Nov. 20). mBio is the American Society for Microbiology"s first all-online, open access journal which will be launched in next May. According to the mBio website, the journal"s scope "will reflect the enormity of the microbial world, a highly interconnected biosphere where microbes interact with living and non-living matter to produce outcomes that range from symbiosis to pathogenesis, energy acquisition and conversion, climate change, geologic change, food and drug production, and even animal behavioral change." Prof. Lee, LG Chem Chair Professor, is currently the Dean of the College of Life Science and Bioengineering and director of the Center for Systems and Synthetic Biotechnology. He received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Seoul National Univeristy in Korea and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Northwestern University. As of September 2009, he has published 298 journal papers and has more than 440 patents either registered or applied. Also, he has published 47 books/book chapters, "Systems Biology and Biotechnology of Escherichia Coli" being the latest. His research interests are systems biology and biotechnology, industrial biotechnology, metabolic engineering, synthetic biology and nanobiotechnology. In particular, he has pioneered systems metabolic engineering, which integrates systems biology with metabolic engineering, for the development of micropoganisms possessing superior properties for industrial applications.
2009.11.20 View 12888
Prof. Lee"s Team Pioneers Biotechnological Production of Chemical Using Renewable Materials A research team led by Prof. Sang-Yup Lee of the Bio and Brain Engineering Department at KAIST has succeeded in engineering the bacterium E. coli to produce the industrial chemical putrescine, university authorities said on Monday (Aug. 31). Putrescine, a four carbon chain diamine, is an important platform chemical with a wide range of applications for the pharmaceutical, agrochemical and chemical industries. It is currently used to synthesize nylon-4,6, a widely used engineering plastic. The research result, published in the Biotechnology and Bioengineering journal, proviDrdes a renewable alternative to the traditional process using fossil fuels. Currently the production of putrescine on an industrial scale relies on chemical synthesis, which requires non-renewable petrochemicals and expensive catalyst systems. This process is highly toxic and flammable with potentially severe repercussions for both the environment and human health. "For the first time we have developed a metabolically engineered E. coli strain that efficiently produces putrescine," said Professor Lee. "The development of a bio-refinery for chemicals and materials is very important in a world where dependency on fossil fuels is an increasing concern." The team developed a strain of E.coli capable of producing putrescine through metabolic engineering. This is where a cell"s metabolic and regulatory networks are enhanced in order to increase production of a needed material. First the team weakened or deleted competing metabolic pathways within the E. coli strain before deleting pathways which cause putrescine degradation. They also amplified the crucial enzyme Spec C, which converts the chemical ornithine into putrescine. Finally the putrescine exporter, which allows excretion of intracellularly made putrescine, was engineered while a global regulator was engineered to further increase the concentration of putrescine. The final result of this process was an engineered E.coli strain which produced 24.2 g of putrescine per litre. However, as it was believed that putrescine is toxic to microorganisms the team had to study putrescine tolerance in E.coli before it could be engineered to overproduce the chemical to the levels needed for industrial production. The results revealed that E. coli can tolerate at least 0.5 M of putrescine, which is tenfold higher than the usual concentration in the cell. This level of tolerance was an important surprise as it means that E. coli can be engineered to overproduce putrescine to industrially competitive levels. "The previously expected toxicity of putrescine may explain why its microbial production has been overlooked," said Lee. "Now a metabolically engineered E. coli strain has been developed which is capable of efficiently producing putrescine using renewable methods to an industrial level. This metabolic engineering framework should be useful for developing metabolically engineered microorganisms for the efficient production of other chemicals from renewable resources," he added.
2009.09.01 View 14887
KAIST College of Life Sciences and Bioengineering Signs MOU with Harvard KAIST’s College of Life Sciences and Bioengineering recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Harvard University’s Center for Brain Science on July 20, which will allow for joint research and exchange in researchers between the two institutions. Headed by Director Kenneth Blum, Harvard’s Center for Brain Science leads the world in brain-related research. The new MOU will allow for research cooperation, exchanges of professors, researchers, and students, joint usage of infrastructure and research materials, and finally, sharing of research assignments. The Dean of the College of Life Sciences and Bioengineering Sang Yup Lee, who concerted efforts to form the MOU said, “This agreement will bring together two of the world’s leading brain-related research teams, and I hope that combining their expertise will bring great advances in brain science and engineering. KAIST’s College of Life Science and Bioengineering, which is known for its creative interdisciplinary research, is producing exemplary research results in the field of brain science from its Biological Sciences and Bio and Brain Engineering departments. In addition to cooperation with Harvard, KAIST has also formed partnerships with Emory University, Japan’s RIKEN Brain Institute, and Germany’s Max Planck Institute. Not only does it have a worldwide network pertaining to brain research, but KAIST has also engaged in cooperative research with prominent domestic institutions such as, Asan Medical Center, the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science, and the SK Corporation. Through these connections, KAIST has managed to lead in mutually cooperative brain interdisciplinary research.
2009.08.10 View 17002
Monthly Chosun Publishes In-Depth Interview with KAIST President Monthly Chosun Publishes In-Depth Interview with KAIST President The Monthly Chosun published by Chosun Ilbo, one of the major newspapers in Korea, carried an in-depth interview with Nam-Pyo Suh, President of KAIST, in its April 2009 issue. Following is a translation of the article. ‘There’s No Good Golf Player among Famous MIT Professors’ By Kim Sung-dong and Lee Keun-pyung Biographical Note: Born in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, in 1936. Moved to the United States in 1954. Graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), earned M.S. from MIT, and Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University. Served with MIT as professor of mechanical engineering and chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Worked for four years as assistant director for engineering, the U.S. National Foundation of Science, from 1984. Appointed as president of KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) in July 2006. Concurrently serves as director of the Presidential New Growth Engine Search Group. Dr. Suh has some 60 international patents to his name. In Korea, KAIST President Suh Nam-pyo raised the torch of university reform. Since he took office at KAIST in July 2006, he initiated reform measures one after another. At the state-run university where all students were tuition-free, the new president required students to pay tuition in accordance with their academic records. For the faculty, he offered various incentives to stimulate competition and implemented a strict tenure screening system. The waves of reform starting from KAIST spread to the whole university community in Korea. In 2007, he shocked the professors’ society by dropping 15, or more than a third of applicants, in tenure screening. The action broke the common concept of life employment in Korean universities. This year, he rang an alarm bell to Korean society as a whole. For the 2010 academic year, the KAIST President announced an admission formula which denied any advantage of students who take the costly private teaching. KAIST will ask the principa1s of 1,000 high schools across the country to recommend one senior student each, select 300 from them through screening by admission officers, and finally admit 150 students or 16 to 18 of the total freshmen enrollment through meticulous interviews by professors. He declared that the university from 2010 would not consider the scores from the nationwide mathematics and science tests, which have turned into a major item for university entrance screening. In-depth interview will be conducted in a way no one can prepare for it by taking courses at “hagwon” or private institutes. It was a bold measure to free students from the shackles of private teaching. Following the lead of KAIST, other universities decided to change their admission systems so that preparations at hagwon would be of little help in going to universities of choice. The Monthly Chosun interviewed Dr. Suh on March 6, the day after KAIST announced its 2010 admission plan. Monthly Chosun: The KAIST admission plan for 2010 that you announced yesterday can be the starting point of suppressing private teaching business in Korea. Suh: It was a little too late. Private teaching is a big problem for the nation. It is a big problem that a half of the entire education cost in this nation goes to private teaching market. MC: Many parents send their children overseas to escape from private teaching. Suh: Recently I visited the University of Queensland of Australia. There I learned that some 7,000 Korean students were in the small university town. It was almost the same number as the entire KAIST enrollment. About 20 percent of University of Queensland students are from outside the country, giving the university a large income. Korean students form the largest group among the international students. They must have had many reasons to go there, but if the money spent on overseas study is used wisely here, the education environment in Korea would be greatly improved. Correcting such problems will take time. MC: How long will it take to end private teaching in Korea? Suh: Korea decides everything with examination. During the Joseon Kingdom, there was the Gwageo system, which is equivalent to the bureaucratic recruitment examination of today. Some pass the state test during the senior year at university, which means that they only prepared for the examination while attending university. Things will change, but it will take time. There are people who take advantage of the present situation. We should judge the desirability of a present system by examining whether it fits the basic purpose of education. I can’t insist that the admission system we announced yesterday is the best, but at the moment it is the most desirable alternative. After 10 or 20 years when society will have changed, there may be different judgment. MC: Do you mean KAIST’s 2010 admission plan is necessary for a change, even if not the best? Suh: Yes. Without such an experiment, there will be no change. I should admit that it may be unreasonable to ask every high school to recommend just one student, although some schools are twice, three times bigger than others. MC: Don’t you think gaps in the academic level between schools should be considered? Suh: If we consider such factors too, the process will be too complicated. Anyway, we are to select 150 out of 1,000 and we are offering them chances which were absolutely unavailable in the past. We give them a chance and it is up to the students to be able to catch it or not. Opportunities should be offered equally to students from rural areas or from poor families. MC: What about possible favoritism in the course of recommendation? Suh: We may be cheated once but never again. If a high school principal fails to recommend a good student, it will leave a bad record in our database. At present, the database shows students from which science high school are doing well and those from which high school are negligent in study. MC: You have database for science high schools and other special-purpose schools but not one for general high schools? Suh: We will soon have the database for general high schools. We will be interviewing teachers too and the results will also be stored in the database. If recommended students from certain high schools prove unfit for study at KAIST, we will not accept students from those schools. MC: You are not to give advantage to high scorers from nationwide mathematics and science contests. But we should recognize that such examinations stimulate students to study harder. Suh: Science high schools in Korea maintain high standards of education. But everything deteriorates if it is left to go on in the same direction for a long time. Each system needs to be reviewed and corrected if any defect is found. The admission system we are going to implement will have to be corrected some time. MC: What is the most desirable human character in your view as KAIST president? Suh: People quite incorrectly believe that man learns everything from school. It is impossible because the world changes constantly and new knowledge is created in every minute. Education aims to produce persons who can identify problems, who can establish goals, who think and learn by themselves. We at KAIST aim to produce the best people in the world of science and technology. When the best people lead, others follow. People who are accustomed to one-way teaching under professors can do well in the second position in a group but not as the leader. In the science and technology community, some people are able to identify problems and address them while some others do well only when they are put into a certain course of action. The Korean education system should try to produce more people of the former category. KAIST wants to find and educate this kind of people. MC: You mean creative leaders? Suh: Yes. There are fewer people who can lead than those who follow. KAIST attracts good students, has good facilities and good teachers, so we can produce creative leaders. In recruiting professors, we spot some attractive candidates whose resumes boast of degrees from prestigious universities and fine career experiences. But some are found unqualified through interviews. A good professor is one who can drive students to study by themselves with creative ideas of guidance. Finding such professors is not easy, but we are making progress. MC: Have you found any drawbacks in screening students mainly through interviews? Suh: Three professors interview 40 to 50 applicants in three days, 14 hours a day. By the afternoon of the third day, they are quite tired and find it extremely difficult to make a choice because students are mostly of high standards. Initially, they rather easily pick up the top group and the bottom group, and then they come to the hard phase of choosing from among those who are not much different from each other. It could be just a matter of luck sometimes. MC: From your long teaching experience in the United States, what problems do you find in the examination systems in Korea? Suh: When questions are difficult, they may have plural correct answers. The professor could have wanted to test how students think. In Korea, examiners demand testees to produce just one correct answer. There are many different ways to go to Busan from Seoul. We should teach students how to think by themselves. At KAIST, we teach freshmen students design as a compulsory course. In design class, students are given varied questions with varied answers and they are taught how to find good solutions. Perhaps, KAIST is the only university in the world that has the design course for freshmen. MC: Design sounds like something related to fashion in search of beauty. What is the concept of design taught in KAIST? Suh: Design was the first thing I did at KAIST for its reform. When I came to KAIST, I set the goal of making it the best S&T university in the world. I drew up nine action plans for the goal and each plan has various practical tasks. My colleagues at the university are each given a task and I oversee how they fulfill their responsibilities. As professors and staff members develop their own ways of performing their tasks, an operation system is designed at KAIST. It must be more or less same with the mass media. Who should do what task and assume responsibilities under what process, this is the system design. MC: Then the national reconstruction project is a big design. Suh: A nation needs a good design to be prosperous. The president should be a good designer. MC: KAIST formally merged with the Information and Communications University (ICU) a few days ago. What is the expected effect of the merger of the two state-run universities? Suh: The primary merit is that the merger created critical mass that provides the momentum for self-sustaining and further growth which requires certain size. In the area of information technology, KAIST has about 90 professors and ICU has 46 while our competitor universities have an IT faculty of 200 or so. We need some 50 more professors to be really competitive in the area of information technology. MIT has 100 professors in the faculty of biology while KAIST has a little more than 20. To improve the situation, I proposed to the Korea Research Institute of Biology and Bioengineering (KRIBB) which is located next to KAIST to conduct joint research. But there were people who opposed it, and I still don’t know why they opposed it. MC: Was it a joint research, not merger that you proposed to the KRIBB? Suh: At first, we proposed three options: merger, joint research and individual-level exchanges. But nothing happened despite the great advantage of adjoining locations. In the Daedeok Science Complex, there are too many small research institutes and critical mass is hard to achieve. They are so much specialized that only experts in the same field mingle among themselves and make little contact with people of other scientific fields. Without contact with outsiders, no great new ideas can be produced. I am not a mathematician, nor a physicist but a mechanical engineer. Yet, I believe when biologists and physicists collaborate with engineers, when they seek a fusion of their capabilities, better results can be achieved. MC: Is it the reason why KAIST established the College of Cultural Science? Suh: Yes. The idea is to put science and technology into culture and culture into science and technology. Some want to put science into culture while others insist that culture should be put into science and there is tension between the two opinions. But this kind of tension is a good thing because it is a creative tension which can produce good ideas. MC: But the president should make a final decision. Suh: I take part in the process but decision is to be made by professors and departments concerned. I am not an expert although I offer my own ideas. MC: Do professors follow you when you make a point? Suh: I don’t like people to follow me right away. The university will not do well if all professors just follow what the president says. I want professors to make a decision after considering my suggestion. KAIST has a department-centered operation system. Department chairs are the real boss. This system has resulted in tenured professors in their thirties and professors in their fifties without tenure. MC: It is likely that the tenure screening has caused dissatisfactions from faculty members. Suh: Yes. Whoever passed the tenure screening believe we have the best system and those who failed believe that the system is worst. MC: President Lee Myung-bak attended the 2009 commencement ceremony. Have you had any opportunities to establish personal relationship? Suh: No. I met him for the first time when he visited Daejeon as a presidential candidate. People here suggested that I discuss with him national investment in science and technology but I declined. There was too much pressure because KAIST budget would be directly affected, and the vice president made presentation. I have met President Lee a few times through the National Science Commission. In conversations with the president, I found common thinking between us. He agreed to me when I spoke about developing electric cars and the mobile harbor, but officials at government ministries do not understand me. MC: Did you accept the directorship of the New Growth Engine Search Group at the request of President Lee? Suh: The Knowledge and Economy Ministry asked me to take the post. Through this public service, I have been acquainted with many people who have helped me a lot. I don’t know if I made any contribution to the Group but I am sure I benefited a lot from it. MC: What contribution do you think KAIST can make to the development of new growth engine industry? Suh: Most important is developing original technologies. Institutions like KAIST should be able to develop many original technologies that Korea can sell overseas. The mobile harbor and electric cars are very promising projects in this regard. (The “mobile harbor” being developed by KAIST is a marine transportation system capable of loading and unloading cargo with a ship being at anchor in the sea far from the shore in a situation of congestion. Equipped with a self-propulsion apparatus and a loading/unloading system, the mobile harbor comes to ships far from the land to handle cargoes.) MC: Is the mobile harbor project to receive government support? Suh: We are trying to get government funding for it. Some in the government are in favor while some others are desperately against it for reasons that I don’t know. MC: What about the “online electric car” KAIST developed? Suh: It is a very important project which promises to resolve the problems of high energy cost and air pollution. It is most suitable for cities like Seoul but there are people who oppose its commercial production. MC: President Lee had a test-riding in the online electric car, but government support has not been decided yet. Why? Suh: I can’t understand it. We are seeing a project stalled by the rejection of some section chiefs even though the president endorsed it. These opponents are not scientists. Previously developed electric cars need big batteries while the KAIST model requires a small battery. I am confident that the better product always beats the worse one, the more efficient technology emerges as the winner at the end. MC: When do you think can KAIST overtake MIT where you belonged? Suh: Within 10 years, I believe. Let me tell you this. KAIST established the Department of Marine Systems this year, but MIT has abolished its marine systems department. They only taught how to build ships for a long time so students did not apply and the department has been merged with the mechanical engineering department. At KAIST, we teach mobile harbor as well as shipbuilding at the new marine systems department. We are behind in some areas but we are ahead in many others. I am sure we can overtake MIT in about 10 years. MC: Are donations to the university made smoothly? Suh: We received 70 billion won ($60 million) last year and we are optimistic about attaining the goal of 1 trillion won in donations. MC: What is the most difficult problem in collecting donations? Suh: It is not easy for a man of my age to go about asking people to donate money that they earned in hard way. But it has to be done to operate the university. MC: You are said to be a Korean-born scientist closest to receiving the Nobel Prize. Suh: I am not a scientist but an engineer and I not at all interested in the Nobel Prize or anything like that. If one endeavors to contribute to society with research, prizes come to him. MC: How is the prospect of Korean scientists winning the Nobel Prize? Suh: I am positive. There are many young professors in Korea who are engaged in very interesting research projects. But what is important is globalizing their research efforts, by competing and collaborating with top-notch scientists of the world. MC: How do you compare the cultures and climates of academic communities in the United States and Korea? Suh: Famous U.S. professors I know are real workaholics. They devote themselves to research and are interested in little else. A university develops when it has many such professors. I want to make a point that there are few avid golfers among famous professors at MIT. They have no time to spend on the golf course. I see many good golf players among professors in Korea. MC: Do Korean professors cooperate well among themselves in research? Suh: What I realized first upon returning to Korea was that professors rarely discuss their academic matters in private conversations. They discuss everything but their own research work. This was something I found different from what I had witnessed in the United States where professors openly exchange ideas about their academic fields. What we need in the academic society is opening our hearts about what we are working on and what we have achieved. New ideas evolve in the course of such interactions. I’m inspired these days as I find younger professors gradually show such attitudes. MC: What was the most difficult part in your reform efforts at KAIST? Suh: Persuading people was of course the most difficult part. I explained to professors the purpose of changing the existing system and tried to win their consent on the process to achieve our objectives. But I was not able to persuade them all. Perhaps about half must still believe that the past system is better. The common trait of people is that they judge something is good or bad based on whether they benefit from it or not. MC: You went to the United States in the second year of high school in Seoul. Weren’t you hesitant to decide to come back to Korea after so many years? Suh: It wasn’t an easy decision to pack up and come here. I had many things to do over there, which was the reason why I did not catch previous opportunities to return to Korea. Children and their education were big obstacles in the past. But this time I just made up my mind and now I realize that it was a good decision. MC: Did you believe it was the last opportunity to serve your motherland? Suh: It is too much to say so. I am trying a lot but I don’t know if I am of any help to the country.
2009.04.23 View 14294
KAIST Prof. Park Selected as Winner of Clemson Award Professor Tae-Gwan Park of the Department of Biological Sciences, KAIST, was chosen as the winner of the 2009 Clemson Award for Fundamental Research, university authorities said on Tuesday (April 7). The award is the highest recognition of the Society for Biomaterials, an international organization of more than 3,000 members that promotes research in the field of biomaterials. Prof. Park is cited for his outstanding achievements in interdisciplinary research covering gene transferring, gene therapy and neogenesis. It is rare for a non-U.S. national to win the prize in the 36-year history of the award. The award will be given to Professor Park at the Annual Meeting of the society which will be held in San Antonio, Texas, on April 22.
2009.04.09 View 13149
Prof. Sang-Yup Lee Receives Merck Award for Metabolic Engineering Prof. Sang-Yup Lee of KAIST"s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering has been chosen as the winner of the 2008 Merck Award for Metabol;ic Engineering established by the world"s leading pharmaceutical and chemical company Merck, KAIST officials said Tuesday, Sept. 16. The Distinguished Professor of KAIST and LG Chem Chair Professor will receive the award on Sept. 18 during the 7th Metabolic Engineering convention now underway at Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Prof. Lee will give a commemorative lecture, titled "Systems Metabolic Engineering for Chemicals," at the biannual academic conference. Prof. Lee is the fourth to win the coveted award which is given to the world"s top expert in metabolic engineering with outstanding achievements in the field. Prof. Lee, 44, who graduated from Seoul National University and earned his master"s and doctoral degrees in chemical engineering from Northwestern University of the United States, is now the dean of the College of Life Science and Bioengineering, KAIST. Since 1994, he has served as the head of the Metabolic and Biomolecular Engineering National Research Laboratory, director of the BioProcess Engineering Center, Director of the Bioinformatics Research Center and Co-Director of the Institute for the BioCentury in KAIST. Prof. Lee said he was receiving the Merck award "as a representative of KAIST graduates, students and researchers" who have worked with him at the Metabolic Engineering Lab. He added he was happy to see the outcome of bioengineering development projects supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology over the past years was now being recognized by the world"s leading scientific society with the Merck Award. Metabolic engineering, the art of optimizing genetic and regulatory processes within cells to increase the cell"s production of a certain substance, develops technologies that hold the key to the resolution of the world"s energy, food and environmental problems. The indispensible technology in bioengineering can be applied to the production of biomass to obtain alternative fuel. Prof. Lee has actively participated in publishing such academic periodicals as Biotechnology Journal (as chief editor), Biotechnology and Bioengineering (deputy editor) and Metabolic Engineering (a member of the editorial committee).
2008.09.17 View 15835
Prof. Sang-Yup Lee Co-Editor-in-Chief of Biotechnology Journal Prof. Sang-Yup Lee of KAIST"s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering has been appointed as co-editor-in-chief of Biotechnology Journal published by Wiley-VCH, a German-based leading technical publisher, university authorities said Tuesday, April 15. Launched in January 2006, Biotechnology Journal has covered biological process, brain ailments, biological medicine, protein design and other applied bio-sciences. Starting in May, Lee will be responsible for setting and overseeing editorial direction of the journal along with Prof. Alois Jungbauer of Austria. Professor Lee has been gaining recognition in and outside the country for his research on metabolic engineering. In 2002, he was chosen as one of Asia"s next generation leaders by the World Economic Forum. In 2007, Lee was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world"s largest general scientific society. He is also serving as an editorial member of more than ten international journals including Biotechnology & Bioengineering. Awards and honors include the First Young Scientist"s Award from the President of Korea, the Scientist of the Month Award from the Korean Ministry of Science and Technology, the Best Patent Award from Korean Intellectual Property Office, the Citation Classic Award from ISI, USA, and the First Elmer Gaden Award (1999 Best Paper Award) from Biotechnology and Bioengineering (John Wiley & Sons, USA) at the ACS National meeting.
2008.04.16 View 14401
Prof. Chung Named Winner of 2008 KAIST Scientific Award Professor Chung Jong-Kyeong of the Department of Biological Sciences was named the winner of the 2008 KAIST Scientific Award. The prize was awarded by KAIST President Suh Nam-Pyo during the 37th KAIST anniversary ceremony on Feb. 16. Chung was cited for disclosing the new anti-cancer aspect of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). His papers, published in the science magazine Nature in 2006 and again in 2007, revealed that the protein could be used to treat certain forms of cancer, as well as prevent malignant growths.
2008.02.28 View 13618

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