The Lindau Alumni Association of Pakistan
Detailed Report on the participation in the 57th meeting of
Noble Laureates in Physiology or Medicine with students and
young researchers, 1st-6th July, 2007, Lindau, Germany.
By: Pashtoon Murtaza Kasi
The focus of my report would be to disseminate what I have learnt as a
participant in the meeting and how can my report be of use to future
participants and to the all the young scientists and researchers in
Pakistan in general.
LESSONS LEARNT
“Nobel Prize Winners are humans too”
The first and foremost lesson that I have learnt from the meeting is that the Nobel
Prize winners are ‘humans’ too. This is very important to know because earlier my
image and probably everyone else’s image was that the Nobel Laureates are some
special gifted super humans out of this world; nothing like us. No doubt they are
special in the work they have done, but the important thing is similar greater original
work can also be accomplished by any of the young talent that is around us, even in
the developing world.
Researchers need to have passionate curiosity:
All that we need is as Einstein put it is ‘passionate curiosity’. An anecdote told by one
of the laureates was that he went to meet one of his senior friends who had retired
several years ago. To his surprise, he found him not in his home but the very frail old
scientist was working in his lab. When asked what he was up to, the scientist replied.
“A question has been bothering me; and I have got to know the answer; I have got to
know the answer!”
Probably that is the sort of passionate curiosity we as young scientists require.
“The Road would be long”
The next lesson to be learnt is that the road would be long. There are no shortcuts in
research. All those who had achieved what they had been through patience,
perseverance and hard work. There is no substitute for hard work. No doubt to be a
Nobel Laureate you have to have the lady luck smiling upon you as well, but the
doors of the heaven would only open to those who care to unlock the nature’s
mysteries.
“Your research should be of great interest to you”
The subject and area of research chosen should be of interest to you. As mentioned
by one of the laureates, you should be working in a field that when you wake up in
the morning, you should want to go to work. You cannot spend your precious time
working on things that are of little or no interest to you. You will have to take a lead.
The problem is often young students end up doing research which their supervisor
suggested because they were not able to materialize what they wanted to do. So the
solution is you have to aim high, but at the same time come up with reasonable and
practical ways to go about it. So the idea needs to be practical and doable. It is often
said that there is particular time for a particular discovery. So we need to think ahead
but at the same time come up with practical ways of doing it.
“We need to be open and discuss our ideas freely”
Next, we need to be open and discuss our ideas freely with our fellow researchers.
Often with increasing competition we find people working in isolation. This is a pity.
This is because much greater things can be achieved if we work together for a cause.
One of anecdotes mentioned in the meeting was that if I have one idea and you have
one idea, and if we share with each other our ideas, both of us will have two ideas. So
knowledge unlike other things increases by sharing. We need to establish
collaborations not only with our fellow researchers within our own university, but
also with researchers in other universities in Pakistan and with other
labs/universities throughout the world. One of the laureates mentioned about good
labs in Pakistan that are doing excellent collaborations with other labs in UK and
USA. This is something that needs to be encouraged.
“Discuss your ideas with many individuals”
Another thing that I learnt was that if you have an idea and are interested in it, you
should discuss it with many individuals rather than one or two. I, myself before going
to the meeting had made up my mind to focus on tumor biology and specifically the
role of microbes in treating cancers. For the first few days of the meeting when I
would inquire for comments on the topic, not much discussion was generated. On the
final day, one of the laureates, Dr. Richard Roberts got very interested in this new
area of research and had a discussion with me at the end of the day. This was a huge
source of motivation for me. I would try digging up literature on the topic and see
where it leads to.
“Need to have good mentors”
The role played by a mentor cannot be overemphasized. A good mentor can not only
guide his students but can be a huge source of motivation for his students as well. He
is like a beacon. And we need to establish good practice of mentorship in our country.
Currently, more often than not the supervisors aren’t doing their jobs properly. They
are often more worried about their name when it comes to publication. This is an
area that needs to be worked upon especially in Pakistan.
“Failures and bad grades shouldn’t discourage you”
Another interesting thing that I would like to share with the readers, a question
which came up in the panel discussions was that how were the laureates as students
early in their careers? The answers were very diverse. Some were average, some
above average and some exceptional; so bad grades early on shouldn’t discourage
you as a researcher. Some of the laureates peaked later when they found the area
that interested them. So you need to identify your area of interest as a first priority.
And it is never too late to change your field. One of the laureates made a change very
late in his career, and that change later on won him the Nobel Prize. Added to this,
failures should not discourage you. As mentioned by one the laureates, it is not
possible to not have failed in research; people who haven’t failed, haven’t tried
anything new. Rather failures should be lessons and a motivating tool for you. One
way of making research failures a learning tool and minimizing them is to have good
controls. Bo having good controls you can see what exactly went wrong and what you
can do to rectify the problem.
“Need to be a rebellion at times”
Another interesting feature about many a laureates was that they often were rebels.
People who cared to think differently. So if idea doesn’t conform to the current
thinking and dogmas, there is no need to get disappointed or discouraged but you
should go ahead and find answers to the questions you have.
“Areas that young researchers might want to focus on”
Some of the areas that some of the laureates suggested for young researchers to
work on were:
(1) Biochemistry: Even after all that is known about the subject, biochemistry will
continue to produce major breakthroughs.
(2) World of microbes: Microbiology: Day after day the microorganisms of the world
continue to amaze us. There is still much to be known, especially these days there has
been new interest in the normal flora and what exactly their role is. Recently it was
suggested that Helicobacter Pylori, the organism associated with stomach ulcers, has
also been found to be associated with Asthma. So everyday we are learning
something new.
(3) Bioinformatics: There is so much information available that the need of the hour
is how to assimilate and put this information together. We need to develop new
software and design better and more efficient databases.
(4) Cancer research: This is an area that would not die out so soon. Newer
mechanisms and newer drug targets are being discovered every other day. However,
as suggested by one of the laureates, we also need to work on diagnostics as much as
we are working on therapeutics. Much of the research that is going on is how to cure
stage IV i.e. cancer that has disseminated. However, we need to develop ways of
detecting cancers early, because surgery followed by chemotherapy or radiotherapy
can cure a lot of cancers if detected early. We need to develop ways as to how these
can reach the population in general. (5) Tuberculosis: Drug resistant strains are
emerging. Here I would like to point out that when tuberculosis was on decline in the
west, funding for research in TB stopped because it was considered that the disease
was no longer their problem. So we as scientists/researchers of the developing world
need to identify our problems and come up with solutions ourselves. With journals
and grants now also made available through the efforts of Higher Education
Commission (HEC), Pakistan, there is no reason why we should lag behind in the area
of research.
“We need to identify and work on our own problems”
(5) Public Health: One of our professors back at my university, the Aga Khan
University, used to say that we as clinicians and scientists of the developing countries
would have to take up the role of advocacy as well. There aren’t many public health
specialists in the country fighting for the cause, so we need to equip and educate
ourselves with the dynamics of public health and health policy and planning as well.
This is very important since many of the decision makers in the country aren’t
educated with respect to public health and we would have to educate ourselves so
that we can fight for the cause better. Also rightly pointed by one of the laureates in
the panel discussion was that we are currently working on problems that are
affecting 3% of the world and not addressing properly the problems affecting the
97%. These problems are ones to which some solutions are available and newer
innovative ones also need to be developed. For example, the major killer still of
children is diarrhea. Malaria still is killing thousands of individuals each year. We
need to bridge this gap as well and be thoughtful of choosing an area of research that
would be of benefit to the majority of mankind as well.
(6) Others: Genetics, immunology, nanotechnology and other basic sciences were also
discussed to have great scope in the future.
“The importance of interdisciplinary research”
The research conducted needs to be interdisciplinary. This word came up so many
times and almost every laureate emphasized the importance of doing research in
teams and with people of other disciplines. Often, this is of great help as people of
other disciplines can add a new angle and give you greater insight on your topic.
“The research that we do should be ethically and morally sound”
Along with this, the research that we do should be ethically and morally sound.
Increasingly, fraud is something which has crept into research as well. This is
something which need not be said but it is something which has become increasingly
important. Therefore, we as scientists/researchers should not forget that we owe are
answerable to the society for our actions and shouldn’t practice wrong doings in
research.
“There is no formula for the Nobel Prize”
After all the lessons, the final but an important lesson is you cannot and you don’t
have to aim for the Nobel Prize. This was a very common question that what should I
do to win a Nobel Prize. There is no formula to this glory. But as mentioned
previously, there is a need for scientists to do good and original research.
In summary: our objective should be: To do good, original and ethically sound
research that is of great benefit to mankind. And that is what Alfred Nobel wanted as
well, to award individuals who had done work of greatest benefit to the mankind.
Acknowledgements:
Thank you once again to Prof. Dr. N.M. Butt, Mr. Waqar Butt, Pakistan
Atomic Energy Commission, Higher Education Commission and
Pakistan Science Foundation for giving us the opportunity to represent
Pakistan at such a prestigious forum. Special thanks again to our
academic ambassadors, Prof. Dr. N.M. Butt and Mr. Waqar Butt, who
made sure that our experience at the Lindau Meeting was very fruitful
and who were a constant source of inspiration and guidance for us. We
are deeply indebted.
We are also deeply indebted to the Lindau Council and the President of
the council for the excellent arrangements and the care provided to us.
The meeting couldn’t have been better organized.
It was also very thoughtful of the American delegation to invite us over
to dinner on one of the days of the Lindau meeting.
Thanks are also due to my 6 other fellow participants without whom the
experience would not have been as good as it was.
Noble Laureates in Physiology or Medicine with students and
young researchers, 1st-6th July, 2007, Lindau, Germany.
By: Pashtoon Murtaza Kasi
The focus of my report would be to disseminate what I have learnt as a
participant in the meeting and how can my report be of use to future
participants and to the all the young scientists and researchers in
Pakistan in general.
LESSONS LEARNT
“Nobel Prize Winners are humans too”
The first and foremost lesson that I have learnt from the meeting is that the Nobel
Prize winners are ‘humans’ too. This is very important to know because earlier my
image and probably everyone else’s image was that the Nobel Laureates are some
special gifted super humans out of this world; nothing like us. No doubt they are
special in the work they have done, but the important thing is similar greater original
work can also be accomplished by any of the young talent that is around us, even in
the developing world.
Researchers need to have passionate curiosity:
All that we need is as Einstein put it is ‘passionate curiosity’. An anecdote told by one
of the laureates was that he went to meet one of his senior friends who had retired
several years ago. To his surprise, he found him not in his home but the very frail old
scientist was working in his lab. When asked what he was up to, the scientist replied.
“A question has been bothering me; and I have got to know the answer; I have got to
know the answer!”
Probably that is the sort of passionate curiosity we as young scientists require.
“The Road would be long”
The next lesson to be learnt is that the road would be long. There are no shortcuts in
research. All those who had achieved what they had been through patience,
perseverance and hard work. There is no substitute for hard work. No doubt to be a
Nobel Laureate you have to have the lady luck smiling upon you as well, but the
doors of the heaven would only open to those who care to unlock the nature’s
mysteries.
“Your research should be of great interest to you”
The subject and area of research chosen should be of interest to you. As mentioned
by one of the laureates, you should be working in a field that when you wake up in
the morning, you should want to go to work. You cannot spend your precious time
working on things that are of little or no interest to you. You will have to take a lead.
The problem is often young students end up doing research which their supervisor
suggested because they were not able to materialize what they wanted to do. So the
solution is you have to aim high, but at the same time come up with reasonable and
practical ways to go about it. So the idea needs to be practical and doable. It is often
said that there is particular time for a particular discovery. So we need to think ahead
but at the same time come up with practical ways of doing it.
“We need to be open and discuss our ideas freely”
Next, we need to be open and discuss our ideas freely with our fellow researchers.
Often with increasing competition we find people working in isolation. This is a pity.
This is because much greater things can be achieved if we work together for a cause.
One of anecdotes mentioned in the meeting was that if I have one idea and you have
one idea, and if we share with each other our ideas, both of us will have two ideas. So
knowledge unlike other things increases by sharing. We need to establish
collaborations not only with our fellow researchers within our own university, but
also with researchers in other universities in Pakistan and with other
labs/universities throughout the world. One of the laureates mentioned about good
labs in Pakistan that are doing excellent collaborations with other labs in UK and
USA. This is something that needs to be encouraged.
“Discuss your ideas with many individuals”
Another thing that I learnt was that if you have an idea and are interested in it, you
should discuss it with many individuals rather than one or two. I, myself before going
to the meeting had made up my mind to focus on tumor biology and specifically the
role of microbes in treating cancers. For the first few days of the meeting when I
would inquire for comments on the topic, not much discussion was generated. On the
final day, one of the laureates, Dr. Richard Roberts got very interested in this new
area of research and had a discussion with me at the end of the day. This was a huge
source of motivation for me. I would try digging up literature on the topic and see
where it leads to.
“Need to have good mentors”
The role played by a mentor cannot be overemphasized. A good mentor can not only
guide his students but can be a huge source of motivation for his students as well. He
is like a beacon. And we need to establish good practice of mentorship in our country.
Currently, more often than not the supervisors aren’t doing their jobs properly. They
are often more worried about their name when it comes to publication. This is an
area that needs to be worked upon especially in Pakistan.
“Failures and bad grades shouldn’t discourage you”
Another interesting thing that I would like to share with the readers, a question
which came up in the panel discussions was that how were the laureates as students
early in their careers? The answers were very diverse. Some were average, some
above average and some exceptional; so bad grades early on shouldn’t discourage
you as a researcher. Some of the laureates peaked later when they found the area
that interested them. So you need to identify your area of interest as a first priority.
And it is never too late to change your field. One of the laureates made a change very
late in his career, and that change later on won him the Nobel Prize. Added to this,
failures should not discourage you. As mentioned by one the laureates, it is not
possible to not have failed in research; people who haven’t failed, haven’t tried
anything new. Rather failures should be lessons and a motivating tool for you. One
way of making research failures a learning tool and minimizing them is to have good
controls. Bo having good controls you can see what exactly went wrong and what you
can do to rectify the problem.
“Need to be a rebellion at times”
Another interesting feature about many a laureates was that they often were rebels.
People who cared to think differently. So if idea doesn’t conform to the current
thinking and dogmas, there is no need to get disappointed or discouraged but you
should go ahead and find answers to the questions you have.
“Areas that young researchers might want to focus on”
Some of the areas that some of the laureates suggested for young researchers to
work on were:
(1) Biochemistry: Even after all that is known about the subject, biochemistry will
continue to produce major breakthroughs.
(2) World of microbes: Microbiology: Day after day the microorganisms of the world
continue to amaze us. There is still much to be known, especially these days there has
been new interest in the normal flora and what exactly their role is. Recently it was
suggested that Helicobacter Pylori, the organism associated with stomach ulcers, has
also been found to be associated with Asthma. So everyday we are learning
something new.
(3) Bioinformatics: There is so much information available that the need of the hour
is how to assimilate and put this information together. We need to develop new
software and design better and more efficient databases.
(4) Cancer research: This is an area that would not die out so soon. Newer
mechanisms and newer drug targets are being discovered every other day. However,
as suggested by one of the laureates, we also need to work on diagnostics as much as
we are working on therapeutics. Much of the research that is going on is how to cure
stage IV i.e. cancer that has disseminated. However, we need to develop ways of
detecting cancers early, because surgery followed by chemotherapy or radiotherapy
can cure a lot of cancers if detected early. We need to develop ways as to how these
can reach the population in general. (5) Tuberculosis: Drug resistant strains are
emerging. Here I would like to point out that when tuberculosis was on decline in the
west, funding for research in TB stopped because it was considered that the disease
was no longer their problem. So we as scientists/researchers of the developing world
need to identify our problems and come up with solutions ourselves. With journals
and grants now also made available through the efforts of Higher Education
Commission (HEC), Pakistan, there is no reason why we should lag behind in the area
of research.
“We need to identify and work on our own problems”
(5) Public Health: One of our professors back at my university, the Aga Khan
University, used to say that we as clinicians and scientists of the developing countries
would have to take up the role of advocacy as well. There aren’t many public health
specialists in the country fighting for the cause, so we need to equip and educate
ourselves with the dynamics of public health and health policy and planning as well.
This is very important since many of the decision makers in the country aren’t
educated with respect to public health and we would have to educate ourselves so
that we can fight for the cause better. Also rightly pointed by one of the laureates in
the panel discussion was that we are currently working on problems that are
affecting 3% of the world and not addressing properly the problems affecting the
97%. These problems are ones to which some solutions are available and newer
innovative ones also need to be developed. For example, the major killer still of
children is diarrhea. Malaria still is killing thousands of individuals each year. We
need to bridge this gap as well and be thoughtful of choosing an area of research that
would be of benefit to the majority of mankind as well.
(6) Others: Genetics, immunology, nanotechnology and other basic sciences were also
discussed to have great scope in the future.
“The importance of interdisciplinary research”
The research conducted needs to be interdisciplinary. This word came up so many
times and almost every laureate emphasized the importance of doing research in
teams and with people of other disciplines. Often, this is of great help as people of
other disciplines can add a new angle and give you greater insight on your topic.
“The research that we do should be ethically and morally sound”
Along with this, the research that we do should be ethically and morally sound.
Increasingly, fraud is something which has crept into research as well. This is
something which need not be said but it is something which has become increasingly
important. Therefore, we as scientists/researchers should not forget that we owe are
answerable to the society for our actions and shouldn’t practice wrong doings in
research.
“There is no formula for the Nobel Prize”
After all the lessons, the final but an important lesson is you cannot and you don’t
have to aim for the Nobel Prize. This was a very common question that what should I
do to win a Nobel Prize. There is no formula to this glory. But as mentioned
previously, there is a need for scientists to do good and original research.
In summary: our objective should be: To do good, original and ethically sound
research that is of great benefit to mankind. And that is what Alfred Nobel wanted as
well, to award individuals who had done work of greatest benefit to the mankind.
Acknowledgements:
Thank you once again to Prof. Dr. N.M. Butt, Mr. Waqar Butt, Pakistan
Atomic Energy Commission, Higher Education Commission and
Pakistan Science Foundation for giving us the opportunity to represent
Pakistan at such a prestigious forum. Special thanks again to our
academic ambassadors, Prof. Dr. N.M. Butt and Mr. Waqar Butt, who
made sure that our experience at the Lindau Meeting was very fruitful
and who were a constant source of inspiration and guidance for us. We
are deeply indebted.
We are also deeply indebted to the Lindau Council and the President of
the council for the excellent arrangements and the care provided to us.
The meeting couldn’t have been better organized.
It was also very thoughtful of the American delegation to invite us over
to dinner on one of the days of the Lindau meeting.
Thanks are also due to my 6 other fellow participants without whom the
experience would not have been as good as it was.
If you have any comments or queries,
please feel free to contact us:
editor@promotingresearch.com
please feel free to contact us:
editor@promotingresearch.com
To continue that positive and useful interaction and
exchange of ideas, a forum has also been made. Hopefully it
would be a platform for generating good discussions and
staying in touch with fellow students/scientists from around
the world. International Participants are also invited to
become members and share their experiences and ideas and
participate actively in the discussions.
Meetings of Young Scientists with Nobel Laureates
http://lindaualumni.blogspot.com/
exchange of ideas, a forum has also been made. Hopefully it
would be a platform for generating good discussions and
staying in touch with fellow students/scientists from around
the world. International Participants are also invited to
become members and share their experiences and ideas and
participate actively in the discussions.
Meetings of Young Scientists with Nobel Laureates
http://lindaualumni.blogspot.com/
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