King abdullah University of science and technology at thuwal, Kingdom of saudi arabia

www.kaust.edu.sa

BeaCOnthe January 2014 / safar - rabi al-awwal 1435

volume 4, issue no. 5

KHALID AL-FALIH, Saudi Aramco President and

CEO, spoke on January 12 at the opening of the

5th annual Winter Enrichment Program (WEP).

In his keynote address to KAUST faculty,

students, staff, and members of the community,

Al-Falih outlined his own and Saudi Aramcos

deep connections with KAUST. He also discussed

the University and Saudi Aramcos roles in

directing science, technology, and innovation to

meet challenges and seize opportunities for the

benefit of the Kingdom and the world.

Al-Falih described his journey with KAUST

from the Universitys conception in 2006, when

he received a call to assist with building a

flagship research university for Saudi Arabia.

Although his initial response was exhilaration,

he remembered asking himself: How do you do

the impossible build a fully-fledged, global

research universityin three years?

However, as he became closely involved

with KAUST, he realized that the University

was not just a construction project, but a gift

an opportunity to construct a cutting-edge

research institution comparable to the worlds

elite universitieslaying the foundation for the

Kingdom of the future.

KAUST is a new institution with a global role

but at the same time it has deep roots in an earlier

era, when our region led the way in progress and

innovation, Al-Falih noted. He described the

impact of the Bayt al-Hikma, the worlds first

great House of Wisdom established more than

a millennium ago in Baghdad, and how its

scientists and researchers work forever changed

the world in which they lived. KAUST, the new

House of Wisdom, has the same mission, he said.

Al-Falih noted Saudi Aramco and KAUST

are leaders in transforming the Kingdom into a

Khalid al-Falih | Continued on p3

GCF | Continued on p2

PREsidEnt JEAn-lou ChAmEAu PARtiCiPAtEs in 7th AnnuAl GlobAl ComPEtitivEnEss FoRum

2014 ) WEP ( . " "

. 2006 . " ...

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SAUDI and international experts, including

KAUST President Jean-Lou Chameau,

gathered at the Global Competitiveness

Forum (GCF) held in Riyadh on January

18-20, 2014. Focusing on the theme of

Bui lding Competi t ive Partnerships ,

the forum convened Saudi government

ministers, international business leaders,

and academics from other top institutions to

discuss global and regional trends in business

competitiveness and the development of a

world class infrastructure in Saudi Arabia.

Participating on a panel focused on fostering

entrepreneurship and catalyzing innovation,

President Chameau shared his thoughts on

enabling the scale-up of successful ideas and

leveraging technology for entrepreneurship.

I believe an integral part of a successful

innovation ecosystem includes the role of

science and technology universities. These

universities not only educate a highly

qualified workforce to support industry, but

also lead innovation and create new industries

themselves, he said.

Research universit ies promote and

leverage the co-existence of curiosity-driven

research and more focused goal-driven

research, which turn scientific discoveries

into products, technologies, and processes,

President Chameau continued. The university

climate for innovation serves as a catalyst for

2

3

The university climate for inno-vation serves as a catalyst for a

parallel supportive environment in the local ecosystem.

-President Chameau

2014 )wep(

Khalid al-Falih highlights KaUst-saUdi araMCO spirit OF innOvatiOn in wep Opening

KeynOte address

innovation is not just a matter of the most powerful electron microscopes or most sophisticated nanotechnology

clean room; its about scientists and researchers collaborating to turn abstract ideas and theories into transformative solutions.

Khalid al-Falih

inside: research 6-7 Community 8news 1-3 Food & Farming 4-5

From left to right: John Quelch, Charles E Wilson Professor of business Administration, harvard; President Chameau; Fadi Ghandour, Founder and Chairman of Aramex; and daniel isenburg, Professor of Entrepreneurship Practice and founding director, babson Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Project.

news2 January 2014 The Beacon

IN JANUARy, the KAUST community celebrated the success of the fifth annual Winter

Enrichment Program (WEP), which brought a host of renowned global thinkers, leaders,

scientists, and even a polar explorer to the campus to deliver presentations and talks about

their work.

Saudi Arabias heritage and diversity were also on display during WEP through a farmers

market at Discovery Square, which showcased many unique Saudi products, and through the

Discover Saudi Arabia: The Hejaz Railway photography exhibition. Both events reminded the

community of the rich history and culture of the country in which we work and live.

On pages 6 and 7 of this issue, papers published in the prestigious journals Small, Nature

Asia Materials, and Genome Biology highlight KAUSTs recent research.

In this issue, join us in celebrating not only the successes of WEP, but also the beginning

of a new and exciting year for research, innovation, and diversity at KAUST.

The Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 5, January 2014. Published by The Communications Department, King Abdullah university of science and technology, Thuwal 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia. Contact Salah Sindi salah.sindi@kaust.edu.sa, or Michelle D'Antoni michelle.dantoni@kaust.edu.sa King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. Printed on partially recycled paper.

THE BEACON Editorial

GCF | Continued from p1

a parallel supportive environment in the local ecosystem. At KAUST, we strive to engage in

the larger, more influential and impactful innovation network.

To date, KAUSTs pathway for the commercialization of emerging technologies has

resulted in over 300 patents filed and the launch of six startups. Current projects

include novel solutions relating to solar energy, crowd management, air purification,

and clean water.

KAUST is one of the regions first research universities to build an integrated economic

development and technology commercialization program designed around the principles of

open innovation. This commitment to the development of entrepreneurial and innovative

activities that promote industry collaboration goes hand-in-hand with the vision of GCF,

stated President Chameau.

For the first time since its inception, GCF also included a platform to highlight investment

opportunities in the Kingdom. The Invest in Saudi exhibition showcased an information-

sharing marketplace for potential investors in Saudi Arabia, furthering the development of

successful international trade partnerships

Founded in 2006 by the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), GCF is

a platform to promote dialogue about the positive impact organizational and national

competitiveness can have on local, regional, and global economic and social development.

It has grown into one of the largest and important annual gatherings in the region for

generating real solutions to contemporary global challenges.

) (

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. 2006 )SAGIA( .

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:

KaUst, sagia, KaCst, and eMaar sign agreeMent tO sUppOrt entrepreneUrs

AN AGREEMENT to encourage scientific and high-tech entrepreneurs was signed by KAUST, Saudi

Arabian Investment Authority (SAGIA), King Abdullah City for Science and Technology (KACST),

and Emaar on January 19.

This quadrilateral agreement, which was signed on the sidelines of the Seventh Global Competitiveness Forum held in Riyadh, is intended to pave the way for collaborative efforts to

develop and support technical innovation and entrepreneurship across the Kingdom.

is the Brain a QUantUM COMpUter? leCtUre exaMines Brain FUnCtiOn and COnsCiOUsness

DR. ALEKSANDAR Radovanovic, Research Scientist at KAUSTs Computational Bioscience Research

Center (CBRC) and founder of the Quantum Computing Initiative (QCI), presented a talk on quantum

computational modeling of the brain on January 12.

The QCI is an open and informal group that began in the CBRC in 2012. Group members have

an interest in following and contributing to the area of quantum computing. Anyone from the

KAUST community is welcome to join.

Dr. Radovanovics lecture, entitled Quantum Computational Model of a Brain: Is the Brain

a Quantum Computer?, examined whether a synergy of biology, mathematics, quantum

mechanics, and computer science has the possibility of bringing us closer to understanding

how the brain really functions. In the lecture, he presented theories on mechanisms of brain

functioning from a multidisciplinary angle, adding complexity to existing models of the brain.

I started the QCI with the aim of introducing the topic to the KAUST research community,

says Dr. Radovanovic. Quantum computing is not a simple advancement from classical

computing; it is instead a new way of approaching and solving problems a new way of

thinking. It will allow us to not only solve difficult tasks, but will also open up exciting areas

of research and insights into many fields of science and engineering.

For more information, visit the QCI website at www.cbrc.kaust.edu.sa/qci

Clean COMBUstiOn wOrKshOp and Center Opening

THE CLEAN Combustion Research Center (CCRC) will host a workshop from February 17-19, gathering

global experts in the area of clean combustion science and technology to showcase current state-of-the-art

research in the combustion field. The conference coincides with the official opening of the CCRC, with its

entire laboratory facilities commissioned for operation. The CCRC is based on the interdisciplinary nature

of combustion research, with expertise in experiments, modeling, chemistry, and physics, and thus the

conference is structured in a similar manner.

The conference covers the latest developments in underlying physical and chemical phenomena

affecting flame structure, emissions formation, autoignition, and engine operation, as well as numerical

simulations for modeling combustion chemistry and physics using high performance computing

resources. Growing research areas of the CCRC will also be covered during the conference, including

advanced engine research, flame synthesis of nano-materials, utilization of low-grade fuels, next

generation gas turbines, advanced diagnostics techniques, and high-pressure turbulent combustion.

Visit http://ccrc.kaust.edu.sa for details.

Center FOr UnCertainty QUantiFiCatiOn wOrKshOp exaMines advanCes in Field

KAUST Associate Professor of Applied Mathematics and Computation Science Raul Tempone and Omar

Knio, Deputy Director of the KAUST Strategic Research Initiative in the SRI Center for Uncertainty

Quantification in Computational Science & Engineering (SRI UQ Center), hosted a workshop focusing on

Advances in Uncertainty Quantification Methods, Algorithms, and Applications (UQAW 2014) at the

University from January 6-10.

Topics discussed at the workshop included uncertainty quantification methods and algorithms, their

verification and validation, and their application to problems in computation science and engineering.

A number of visiting professors from international universities also attended the workshop to give

presentations.

The SRI UQ Centers mission is to advance state-of-the-art research in uncertainty quantification and

verification and validation methods, software, and algorithms. Its work also focuses on high-impact

research applications, including green wireless communications, complex multi-scale electromagnetic

systems, and reactive computational fluid dynamics.

Participating in the signing (from left to right) was Fahd bin Abdul mohsen Al-Rasheed, CEo and managing director of Emaar; Abdullatif Al-othman, Governor and Chairman of sAGiA; mohammed bin ibrahim Al-suwaiyel, President of KACst; and KAust President Chameau.

news 3January 2014www.kaust.edu.sa

THE HEJAz Railway, an impressive feat of

engineering from the early 20th century made

famous in the 1962 movie Lawrence of Arabia,

was the subject of the Winter Enrichment

Programs (WEP) second annual Discover Saudi

Arabia photography exhibition.

The exhibition, organized by Laurence Hapiot,

KAUST research consultant and archaeologist,

and Marie-Laure Boulot, WEP Manager, opened

on January 20 in the Engineering Science Hall.

It followed on last years Discover Saudi Arabia:

Archaeological and Historical Heritage exhibition,

which focused on cultural heritage sites across

the Kingdom.

The previous exhibition showcased Saudi

Arabias cultural diversity and was very well

received in the community, explained Hapiot.

This year, we decided to focus specifically on the

Hejaz Railway, a topic that is closely linked to the

history of the Kingdom. Everybody has images of

it from movies and history books, so we wanted

to show it to the community.

The Hejaz Railway project began in 1900 under

Sultan Abdulhamid II, who ruled the declining

Ottoman Empire from 1876-1909. It was designed

to facilitate a faster and easier journey for pilgrims

to the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah.

After an arduous eight years of construction

challenges through some of the worlds most

desolate territory, the railway was officially

inaugurated in Madinah on September 1, 1908.

The line extended from Damascus to Madinah,

but never reached Makkah, as it was severely

damaged during the World War I Arab Revolt

against the Turks.

Hapiot and a team of several photographers

and history enthusiasts from KAUST, including

staff, students, and other community members,

journeyed to different areas of the abandoned

railway line that crosses Saudi Arabias western

Hejaz region to take the exhibitions photos.

This was about bringing people who have a

talent with photography and who are interested

in the history of the Kingdom on a journey to

discover different sites, explained Damian

San Roman Alerigi, PhD student in the KAUST

Photonics Lab and director of photography for the

exhibition. Sometimes when people are living

here, they dont have time to look up and see the

skyline or learn about the rich history. We wanted

to show it to them.

We were very happy to see more of Saudi

Arabia, Hapiot said. We didnt realize how many

fascinating things there are in the Kingdom. There

is always more to discover.

The exhibition ran from January 20-27. Both

the Hejaz Railway exhibition and the WEP 2013

exhibition are available for display at other official

KAUST events. Please contact Hapiot at laurence.

hapiot@kaust.edu.sa for more information.

ITS ONLy when the will to win

becomes bigger than the constant

fear of losing that we can go

out there and do extraordinary

things, said Mike Horn during

his WEP keynote lecture. The

South African-born Swiss explorer

and eco adventurer is world-

renowned for having been the first

human being to complete a solo

and un-motorized 18-month journey around the Equator, which he

completed in 2000. Two years later, Horn set out on a pioneering

expedition to circumnavigate the Arctic Circle on foot, boat, and

ski kite in over 27 months as chronicled in the film Arktos The

Internal Journey of Mike Horn.

Horn presented captivating images and videos to a packed

auditorium of another exploit he accomplished in 2006 with fellow

adventurer, Norwegian arctic explorer Brge Ousland. They became

the first men to trek unaided to the North Pole during the Arctic

winter months of complete darkness. The audience was able to

admire the first ever picture of a sunrise from the North Pole. He also

shared harrowing accounts of being raided by polar bears and the

duo almost being engulfed in the frigid Arctic Sea.

Horns philosophy is that the vast majority of people on earth only

live at 10 % of their capabilities. Human beings live in a comfort

zone, and we think that this is what success means. Success is to be

able to create your comfort zone, and in this comfort zone you have

your car, your TV, your family, your friends, and your circle. you turn

in circles. Its like a fish in a pond a little bit; and thats what your

comfort zone is. But life is lived outside the comfort zone. Nobody

said that you cant create a comfort zone beyond your immediate

comfort zone."

While Horn advocates for everyone to push beyond their comfort

zones in order to reach their full potential, he does acknowledge that

one does not wake up one day and become an adventurer. I think

that we all have a certain DNA that makes us who we are and to be

able to discover this at a very young age, as I did, obviously helps me

to build a career in professional exploration, he expounds.

But one rule of thumb he learned from his father and which he

believes applies to everyone is: "If your dreams dont scare you

theyre not big enough."

disCOver saUdi araBia: the heJaz railway exhiBitiOn displays KingdOMs riCh histOry

Khalid al-Falih | Continued from p1

FaCing Fear and MOving FOrward

100 " : ." . " . "

. "

.

knowledge-based economy. Both have a common thread

of impactful research, technology, and talent, which are

necessary to spur economic growth and diversification,

create jobs, and address challenges facing Saudi Arabia

and the world.

Saudi Aramco currently counts more than 100 KAUST

alumni as employees, and relies on the University as an

important R&D partner. KAUST serves as an example of the

power of collaboration across disciplines and institutions,

stated Al-Falih.

He noted an example of a team of eight KAUST graduates

who are now Saudi Aramco employees. These men and

women from four continents designed and developed a robot

to inspect pipelines and hard-to-reach operational assets like

beams and elevated vessels, Al-Falih explained. The team

members represent the best of both KAUST and Saudi Aramco:

people who use their knowledge of science and technology

to better the world by combining their respective strengths,

expertise, and insights, he said.

This spirit of collaboration is one of KAUSTs main

strengths, Al-Falih said, as innovation is not just a matter of

the most powerful electron microscopes or most sophisticated

nanotechnology clean room; its about scientists and

researchers collaborating to turn abstract ideas and theories

into transformative solutions.

KAUST and its work with academic and industrial partners

are a bridge to an inspirational past, and will be a bridge to

the future, Al-Falih stated. I believe also that [the University]

can bridge human understanding an element that is essential

to the spirit of open collaboration that drives innovation.

:

WEP photographers in action, tracking the ottoman hejaz Railway.

mike horn

Photo Credit: laurence hapiot

FAMILy FARMS are evolving, just like the rest of agriculture,

said Professor Nina Fedoroff, Distinguished Professor and

Director of the Center for Desert Agriculture, in her speech

opening the WEP 2014 Food & Farming theme in recognition

of the United Nations International year of Family Farming.

While Fedoroffs research at KAUST includes work on

domesticating salt-tolerant plants to use as a food source, she

set the stage for the upcoming week by focusing on the bigger

picture problems of food security in a growing and changing

world, and the importance of innovation in agriculture.

Were living on borrowed time, she said, speaking

specifically of our heavy dependence on water from non-

renewable aquifers, but echoing her overall message. The

global population is projected to climb above 9 billion by

2050. With decreased crop yields expected from a hotter

climate and increasing water scarcity, this presents a looming

challenge to humanity.

Meeting this challenge, said Fedoroff, requires a revolution

in thinkingdeveloping new sources of water, land, and

energy for farming, exploring the potential of genetic

engineering, and integrating farming systems to increase

efficiency. There are no magic bullets, she said. We need

to push boundaries.

She closed her talk with a live video Q & A session with

the operators of Lufa Farms, a Canadian company developing

rooftop greenhouses to feed cities from within, and a prime

example of the innovation she has in mind.

Can we feed ten billion people, and do so more sustainably?

she asked. I believe we can.

KaUst FarMers MarKet a sUCCess

January 2014 The BeaconFood & Farming4

Opening OF wep 2014 FOOd and FarMing

"As you can see, we're not meeting that goal," revealed Dr. Terri Raney

during her keynote lecture, speaking of the progress that the United

Nations and its Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) have made

towards the goal made in the 1990s of helping countries cut the number

of undernourished people by half in 2015.

Raney is a senior economist and editor of The State of Food and

Agriculture, the FAO's flagship report, first published in 1947. "However,

we are doing better in proportionate terms as the percentage of

undernourished people is down to 15% compared to 1947 -- when it

was estimated that 50% of the world's population was malnourished,"

added Raney.

Malnutrition is a far more challenging problem today than it was

in 1947. "Back then it was hunger, pure and simple. Now it's more

complex," she explained. The answer to tackling hunger alone is fairly

straightforward: simply produce more food.

The Green Revolution of 1947 did exactly this. An international

initiative to increase agricultural research and introduce high yielding

varieties, the Green Revolution doubled production of basic grains

since the late 1960s, raised farm incomes and reduced food prices for

consumers all over the world, arguably its most important impact.

Undernourishment, micronutrient deficiencies, and obesity all

contribute to what today is referred to as the triple burden of

malnutrition. "What is a really thorny challenge is that these problems

overlap. There are countries, households, and even individuals that suffer

from all three forms of malnutrition," explained Raney. Such a complex

problem requires a complex solution.

There are positive signs, however. One metric that the FAO used to

evaluate success is the rate of adoption of genetically modified (GM)

crops. "Developing countries now exceed industrialized countries in the

total area planted to GM crops," revealed Raney. The greatest benefit is

likely the reduced use of chemical, labor, and energy use.

When asked what was the likelihood of the world reaching food

security by 2050, Raney used the events of 2008, when the cost of basic

grains increased significantly over a very short period of time, to explain

that the world will likely always be at risk of such shock events. However,

with long-term solutions and risk-appropriate policies, she is optimistic

that the agricultural sector should be able to produce sufficient food to

feed our planet's population and protect the most vulnerable.

On the weekend of January 16-18, KAUSTs Discovery Square

came to life amidst the white tents of the Farmers Market,

offering produce and products from Saudi Arabia and beyond.

The selection was diverse, with treats like date maamoul and

Saudi honey complementing organic vegetables and meats

from in-Kingdom farms. Thuwal fisherman sold local fish,

while one stand sold fresh fruit from around Africa and as far

away as the Philippines.

For the more adventurous shopper, Al Turatha Jeddah-

based agricultural companyoffered hair and skin products

made from camel urine, while Honey House, amidst its shelves

of honey, tea, myrrh oil, and incense burners, housed a display

of live bees.

dr. terri raney- Feeding 9 BilliOn peOple sUstainaBly

The WEP 2014 Food & Farming lecture series came

to a close with a talk by Dr. Mark Tester, Professor of

Bioscience at KAUST, echoing the message of many of the

weeks speakers in calling for advancement in agriculture.

The challenges are significant, and I think the need for

innovation is great, he said.

Tester bolstered the weeks previous talks with some staggering

numbers. With current technologies, global food production

is increasing at an average of 32 million tonnes of food per

year, but to feed the worlds projected population of 9 billion in

2050, he said, will require a 38% higher annual increase in food

production per year, starting now.

Here as KAUST, we have the opportunity to make fundamental

scientific discoveries which can then drive innovation, he said.

This discovery and delivery can be used to address problems of

relevance to the Kingdom, the region, and the world.

While many of the distinguished speakers for WEP 2014

were acquainting themselves with the campus, Dr. Michael

Purugganan, Professor of Genomics and Biology, and Dean of

Science at New york University, was searching Jeddah's busy

markets for date fruit. "I'm interested in how evolution works,"

he said, "particularly how humans and plants are coevolving."

In his keynote lecture, "The Origins of Crop Species,"

Purugganan offered insights on how recent advances in genome

sequencing and data processing are giving scientists a better

understanding of how our modern crops came to be. The date

fruit he collected in Jeddah represent just one of many domestic

plant types whose evolution he hopes to understand. "We think

that by looking at the past, there are some lessons we might be

able to learn about how to feed the world," he said.

UndErstandinG domEstiCatEd Plants

Domesticated plants make for an ideal study of evolution. They

evolved recently, they're subjected to intense selection pressures year

after year, and in many cases there's an archeological record from the

first dates of domestication through to the present. In Purugganan's

view, the adaptation of plants to human farms (and of humans to eat

these plants) is much the same as the natural interactions between

plant and animal species that have evolved to cooperate. Flowers feed

bees, for instance, and in turn bees pollinate flowers.

Purugganan is using statistical analysis to identify which sites on

domestic plant genomes have been important in adapting to various

aspects of domestication. He hopes that this understanding will help

plant breeders and geneticists in adapting our crops to a changing

planet. "There are a lot of challenges we face in order to be able to feed

a hungry world," he said. "Plant genomics is one part of the possible

solutions."

January 2014www.kaust.edu.sa 5Food & Farming

disCOvering new BOtaniCal heights

dr. MiChael pUrUgganan - the Origins OF CrOp speCies

Lack of vitamin A is one of the worlds biggest and most

severe health problems, said Dr. Ingo Potrykus, co-inventor of

Golden Rice, in his keynote lecture on the potentially life-saving

technology. The social and economic costs are astronomic.

Golden Ricea genetically modified crop engineered to deliver

adequate vitamin A to hundreds of millions of people in the

developing worldhas been stalled for over a decade due to the

difficulties in obtaining permits for the use of genetically modified

organisms, or GMOs.

thE imPortanCE oF Vitamin a

A study published by the World Health Organization in 1992

estimates that between 1.3 and 2.5 million children die every

year because their diets, which often consist of rice and little else,

lack an adequate source of vitamin A. An additional 250,000 to

500,000 children go blind each year for the same reason. Despite

humanitarian efforts to provide vitamin-A-rich capsules to

supplement the diets of those in need, the situation today remains

dire. The problem stems from the fact that rice, the staple crop of

over half of the worlds population, lacks vitamin A almost entirely.

In the early 1990s Potrykus, together with Peter Beyer of the

University of Freiburg, decided that through the application of the

latest finds in genomics they could introduce vitamin A to the rice

kernel, thus turning the problem of rice itself into a solution. After

years of research exploring multiple options, in 1999 they found

what they were looking for: Golden Rice. By splicing a small section

of daffodil DNA into the rice plants genome, they enabled rice

kernels to produce beta carotenethe naturally occurring precursor

to vitamin A that gives carrots, pumpkins, and yams their orange

color. In the rice, the beta carotene gave each grain a distinctive

golden hue.

thE aCCEPtanCE oF GoldEn riCE

The entire technology is the seed, said Potrykus. Unlike most

other genetically modified plants, Golden Rice was developed as a

humanitarian project, with the intention of distributing the crops to

farmers and allowing them to grow and breed it as they would with

normal rice, and in the process, saving countless millions of lives.

But without the financial support of a large private company,

Golden Rice has run into difficulties in clearing the regulatory hurdles

set up for any new GMO. Steps towards obtaining the approvals to

distribute Golden Rice have already increased the development costs

of the project tenfold. More importantly, Potrykus said, with every

year that Golden Rice is kept from farmers fields, more and more

people around the world suffer the effects of vitamin A deficiency.

What is disappointing is that for none of these requirements

is there scientific justification, he said. The data from the

trials is clear.

But Potrykus is hopeful. Golden Rice is currently undergoing

large scale, carefully monitored human trials in the Philippines. He

anticipates that positive results from these trials could eventually

soften regulations and silence opponents to the project. I think this

has a future, he said.

The challenges are significant, and I think the need for innovation is great.

-Prof. Mark Tester

dr. ingO pOtryKUs - gOlden riCe

glOBal FOOd seCUrity an OppOrtUnity FOr innOvatiOn

dr. michael Purugganan

mark tester, Professor of bioscience

The KAUST Auditorium lobby had several dozen new residents on display for the WEP

2014 Food and Farming lecture series: fruit bearing and otherwise edible fruit-bearing

plants like basil, pansies, Saudi cabbage, and tomatoes, each protruding from its own

string-wrapped moss ball.

The plants were the product of a Winter Enrichment Program workshop on the practice

of kokedama (Japanese for moss ball), wherein plants are removed from soil, placed in

a mud ball, and surrounded by moss. While the technique dates back several centuries,

it has only recently gained popularity outside of Japan, with florists and hobbyists

stringing up the mossy orbs to create stunning botanical displays.

Natalya Ayers and Fiona Inglis, founders of the UK-based floral company Pyrus, led

KAUST community members in the workshop. Reactions were positive, they said, and

one KAUST K-12 teacher even plans to introduce the technique to her students. Were

anticipating a kokedama epidemic on campus, they added.

PhD student Galo Torres Sevilla and former PhD student Justine

Mink (class of 2013) from Professor Muhammad Mustafa Hussains

Integrated Nanotechnology Lab published papers in two outstanding

journals in December 2013.

Torres Sevillas KAUST masters degree thesis (Flexible and Semi-

Transparent Thermoelectric Energy Harvesters from Low Cost Bulk

Silicon (100)) was published in the journal Small (DOI: 10.1002/

smll.201301025). The paper, which appeared as the issues frontispiece,

describes research into a regenerative process to fabricate a flexible

silicon-based thermoelectric generator. Reviewers of Torres Sevillas

work remarked it was novel and impressivethe technique is highly

cost-effective.

After joining the University in 2011 as a masters degree student,

Torres Sevilla has continued on towards his PhD in Prof. Hussains

lab. He has published six journal and 10 conference papers, including

five first-authored papers, and is expected to graduate in 2015.

Minks first-authored paper (Energy Harvesting from Organic

Liquids in Micro-Sized Microbial Fuel Cells) was accepted to Nature

Asia Materials (DOI: 10.1038/am.2014.1). Mink and Prof. Hussains

teams work produced a micro-sized (75 mL) microbial fuel cell (MFC)

with a graphene anode and an air cathode fueled by human saliva.

The MFC produced higher current densities (1190 A/m3)

compared to any previously produced air cathode micro-sized

MFC. It also generated 40 times more power than previously found

possible with the use of a carbon cloth anode. Reviewers of Minks

work commented that it was an interesting comparative study

of various anode materials in a simple structure for microbial

fuel cellsThe contentis relevant to the emerging field of bio-

integrated electronics.

Mink joined KAUST in 2009 as a founding class masters degree

student, continuing on to complete her PhD at the University.

She has first-authored five journal papers, with two appearing as

cover pieces. She is now working for the Dow Chemical Company

as a researcher.

research6 The BeaconJanuary 2014

FOrMer and CUrrent KaUst integrated nanOteChnOlOgy laB stUdents pUBlish in prestigiOUs JOUrnals

prOFessOr hadJiChristidis naMed tO the pOlyMer CheMistry advisOry BOard

aCColadE

Prof. Nikos Hadjichristidis was recently named to the

Polymer Chemistry advisory board. Polymer Chemistry is

a peer-reviewed high impact journal (factor 5.231) that

publishes advances in polymer chemistry, encompassing

all aspects of synthetic and biological macromolecules

and related emerging areas.

Prof. Hadjichristidis, Professor of Chemical Science

in the KAUST Catalysis Center, has previously served

as a member of the editorial board of Macromolecules,

and is currently an editorial board member of Journal

of Polymer Science: Polymer Chemistry, Progress in

Polymer Science, and European Polymer Journal.

Phd student Galo torres sevillas masters degree thesis appears as the frontispiece for the december 2013 issue of the prestigious journal small.

Have you been checking The Lens?The Lens is the Universitys official blog , providing a one-stop shop for news, announcements, links, and contacts. Available to ALL in the community (faculty, students, employees, and spouses) without a login,

it can be accessed by anyone through the KAUST network.

Visit http://thelens.kaust.edu.sa to find:

Announcements | Upcoming events | News about KAUSTComprehensive list of University links | Useful contact information

register FOr liBrary training

throughout the spring 2014 semester, the university library will host several training classes designed to help the KAust researchers get the most from the librarys wide array of information resources and to aid students in achieving success with their studies.

KAust specialists will present the following classes: Effective literature search Web of science (science citation database) scopus (science citation database) business source Complete (business database) Pubmed and biosis Previews scifinder & Reaxys Abi/inform Complete (business database) mathscinet and siAm ACm digital library Endnote (citation management software) more Citations for Your Research with KAust digital Archive

to register for a class, please visit libguides.kaust.edu.sa/libtraining. Classes are open to all members of the KAust community.

Unlike animals, plants cannot run away from adverse

environmental conditions like high temperatures, drought,

or high soil salinity, says Liming Xiong, Associate Professor

of Bioscience.

Because of this, plants have developed sophisticated

mechanisms to deal with stress. One way they do this is to

activate the expression of many stress-responsive genes whose

products can increase plant tolerance to stress. Manipulating the

expression of these genes is the major method currently used to

engineer plant stress tolerance, he explains.

Prof. Xiong notes that there are some disadvantages to

overexpressing stress-responsive genes. The major drawback is

that overexpression often compromises plant performance under

normal conditions, making the technology much less attractive,

he says. He and a team of KAUST research scientists realized

there is a need to develop alternative methods for engineering

or breeding stress-tolerant crop plants.

In a paper recently published in Genome Biology (http://

genomebiology.com/2014/15/1/R1), Prof. Xiong and his team

examined the overexpression of a single gene, SAD1, in the

model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This gene is not a stress-

responsive gene per se, but is related to splicing, a process

whereby non protein-encoding nucleotides are removed from

messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA), Prof. Xiong says. The

splicing process produces mature mRNA that is used as a

template for protein synthesis (see The Beacon, October 2013).

The team discovered that overexpression of SAD1 can improve

plant tolerance to stress, probably by improved processing of

stress-responsive transcripts.

SAD1 encodes a protein called LSm5, explains Prof. Xiong.

LSm5 and other LSm proteins form a doughnut-shaped ring

complex that encircles mRNA molecules. This complex is thought

to function in several processes, including mRNA splicing.

Prof. Xiong and his team isolated a sad1 Arabidopsis mutant

that is highly sensitive to drought and salt stress. Using this

mutant, they found SAD1 can modulate the accuracy and

efficiency of pre-mRNA splicing.

This discovery was surprising because SAD1 is one of the

seven components of the doughnut-shaped ring structure,

he states. One might think it is not possible to regulate the

function of the complex by overexpressing only one component,

but we propose this process drives the formation of the complex,

resulting in enhanced splicing efficiency. Prof. Xiong and his

team call this the dynamic model of splicing regulation.

The team also discovered that overexpressing SAD1 increases

Arabidopsis salt tolerance. Overexpressing SAD1 does not

change the expression level of any stress-responsive genes

it instead promotes the accurate and efficient processing of

the stress-responsive gene transcripts, Prof. Xiong explains.

We expect that regulating the splicing efficiency does not

affect plant growth, but functions to significantly improve

stress tolerance. This is because stress induces a large increase

in the expression of stress-responsive genes whose processing

is often impaired by stressful conditions.

The researchers point out that the benefits of increasing

salt tolerance by the overexpression of SAD1 are

moderate, and thus SAD1 may not be the best candidate

for engineering crop stress tolerance, says Prof. Xiong.

However, he notes that his teams work with SAD1 provides

a proof-of-concept study that exhibits the importance of

enhancing splicing efficiency in plant stress tolerance.

The study shows that it is possible to enhance plant stress

tolerance by controlling the quality of gene products instead

of the quantity of the products.

Because of the teams work in this area, the researchers now

know what the HAPPY (Heat-and-Aridity-Proof Productive

yield) genes look like, and are beginning work to isolate the

HAPPY genes to test their effectiveness in enhancing plant

stress tolerance, Prof. Xiong says.

research 7www.kaust.edu.sa January 2014

BOOst tO eMerging teChnOlOgy in data stOrage RESEARCHERS from the National University of Singapore, in

collaboration with KAUST Professor Aurelien Manchon, have made

new observations that challenge the fundamental understanding

of current theories of spin-orbit torque. These findings were

published online in Physical Review Letters on December 9 (http://

link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.246602).

The important questions that arise from the peculiar

symmetry of the torque poses thrilling questions about the

physics at stake, said Prof. Manchon, commenting on their

observations of a strong torque component that should simply

not be present. Prof. Manchon first published about the smart

design of spin-orbit torque in Physical Review Letters in 2012 (as

covered in the September 2012 issue of The Beacon).

This observation is of significant importance, especially as

it relates to the next generation of MRAM (Magnetoresistive

Random Access Memory) technology which provides high

bit density and low power consumption. Essentially, their

observations demonstrate that a sizable spin-orbit torque can

be observed in thick multilayer systems, enabling a greater

flexibility in the structural design of a device.

At the moment, Prof. Manchon's team is actively

working on two novel mechanisms that could enhance

our understanding and control of spin-orbit torques. These

advancements in data storage can potentially be applied

to improve the user experience in consumer electronics,

including personal computers and mobile devices such as

laptops and mobile phones.

plant stress tOleranCe: a happy ending with a sad gene

model plant Arabidopsis thaliana on display in the KAust labs.

Photo Credit: liming Xiong

A cultural extravaganza celebrating Jeddahs historical

sites and traditions took place in the citys old Balad area

from January 16 - 25.

The first of its kind, the Jeddah Heritage Festival featured

plenty of cultural and entertainment programs based on Hijazi

heritage. Thousands of visitors took part in the ten-day event

that filled the streets of Al-Balad with vibrant sights, sounds, and

aromas. During the event, visitors could explore streets lined with

traditional craftsmen, cobblers, and locksmiths, as well as sample

favorite foods from various street vendors.

The festival was organized by the Saudi Commission for

Tourism and Antiquities and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce

and Industry under the support of Makkah Emir Prince Mishal

Bin Abdullah.

January 2014 Community8 The Beacon

Joanna nassar

PhD student Joanna Nassar came to

KAUST from the American University of

Beirut (Lebanon), where she completed

her bachelors degree in Physics. She was

attracted to attend KAUST because its

the first university in the Middle East to offer such high

levels of technological innovation and such broad research

opportunities for science and engineering students, she says.

Joanna recently completed her masters degree in

Electrical Engineering at KAUST, graduating in December

2013. KAUST has given me the opportunity to work in the

Core Labs and other facilities with state-of-the-art research

equipment, she explains. This has allowed me to carry

out nanofabrication, an exciting experience that has helped

me move a step closer towards my dream of working in one

of the largest semiconductor manufacturing companies in

the world.

After graduating, Joanna decided to remain at KAUST to

complete her PhD in the Integrated Nanotechnology Lab

with Professor Muhammad Mustafa Hussain. For her PhD

project, she will work on investigating and fabricating SiGe

nanotube field effect transistors (SiGe nanotube FETs). These

devices have a new architecture and, along with the choice

of material used, will allow enhanced device performance

with lower power consumption, Joanna says.

Joanna feels that KAUST is a great environment for people

to pursue their dreams. Everywhere at KAUST, you meet

people who have the same passion and enthusiasm about

science as you do, she says. This makes the University a

perfect environment for working, learning, and mingling

with people from all over the world.

rindra ramli

Rindra Ramli is part of the University Library

team, helping to ensure that tens of thousands

of online resources are available to the KAUST

community. As Access and Digital Services

Specialist, he helps manage subscriptions to

electronic journals, electronic books, and databases. I liaise with

the publishers and also help address any user queries, says Rindra.

Additionally, I study the behavioral patterns of our users with

regards to using our resources. This helps me to understand and

improve our users experience in searching for information.

Rindra also provides awareness and training for knowledge

management and collaborative learning. During the librarys

upcoming spring 2014 training sessions, Rindra will offer tutorials

in EndNote software.

A part of the KAUST family since 2009, Rindra explains that

when he first received the offer to work here, he didnt hesitate

to accept. I love to take on challenges and at the same time meet

new people from all walks of life, he explains. Prior to joining

KAUST, he was working at Li Ka Shing Library at the Singapore

Management University.

Working at the University has also given Rindra

many opportunities to advance his career. One of the

highlights of my career at this moment is being given

the chance to write and present my research papers in

international and regional conferences in the field of

librarianship, he notes.

KAUST is a very unique environment in which to work,

live, and study, says Rindra. Here, my family and I have the

opportunity to learn more about other cultures and lifestyles.

We also appreciate the pristine beaches and unpolluted air

away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

Jeddah heritage Festival

My University

Three hundred and forty-one runners, joggers, and walkers, and at least one dog, took part in the WEP

2014 five kilometer run on January 17.

While postdoctoral fellow John Pearmans winning time of 17:20 and other top performances were

impressive, many participants were out simply for the fun of it.

The thing I like best about the event is the atmosphere, said Maha Khalil, a PhD student in KAUSTs

Coral Reef Ecology Lab. Nearby, Cabby Tennis, Assistant Principal at KAUST Secondary School, boasted

to friends that his dog Chop was the first dog across the finish for the fifth consecutive year.

2014 WEP 5K WinnErs Men

1st Place: John Pearman

2nd Place: Rasmus Houborg

3rd Place: Rodain Skinner

Women

1st Place: Katie O'Brien

2nd Place: Josie OReilly

3rd Place: Rebecca Somerville

AnnuAl WEP 5K Fun Run

Juniors (Under 16)

1st Place: August Houborg

2nd Place: Colin Herrington

3rd Place: Max Somerville

Veterans (Over 45)

1st Place: Chris Cassell

2nd Place: Garth Tissington

3rd Place: Hallak Khaled