Uk S Royal Society Welcomes First Malaysian Based Scientist

---

 A scientific consultant at MPOB, Ravigadevi Sambanthamurthi joins the ranks of luminaries such as Stephen Hawking, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein.
Ravigadevi Sambanthamurthi obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry and microbiology from Universiti Malaya in 1979, and a PhD in biochemistry from University College London in 1983. (Akademi Sains pic)PETALING JAYA: The Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of sciences, has welcomed Ravigadevi Sambanthamurthi – its first Malaysian-based scientist – to its ranks
In a statement today, the academy said this year’s cohort of researchers includes trailblazers across a wide range of fields, from artificial intelligence and electron microscopy to global health and neuroscience.
They include a public health expert working to prevent HIV in young women, and a Nobel Prize winner whose team created the transformative AI model AlphaFold.
Royal Society president Adrian Smith said their achievements “represent the very best of scientific endeavour, from basic discovery to research with real-world impact across health, technology and policy”.
A Petaling Jaya resident born in Johor Bahru in 1955, Ravigadevi will celebrate her 70th birthday in London this year, just two days after her induction into the Royal Society on July 11.
I will have the distinct honour of signing the Royal Society Charter Book, a historic ledger bearing the signatures of scientific giants over the past three centuries, including Isaac Newton,” she told FMT.
Now a scientific consultant at the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), Ravigadevi obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry and microbiology from Universiti Malaya in 1979, and a PhD in biochemistry from University College London in 1983.
Besides her role with MPOB, she is the head of the biological, agricultural and environmental sciences at the Academy of Sciences Malaysia and a member of the Malaysian Invention and Design Foundation’s board of trustees, among others.
Ravigadevi refused to take the full credit for her recognition, calling it a “shared honour with the exceptional team I had the privilege of leading at MPOB”.
“True scientific advancement rarely happens in isolation; our breakthroughs were a product of seamless collaboration with international partners and a profound, shared commitment to ensuring scientific discovery serves humanity and the planet,” she said.
The academy said those in this year’s intake have been elected from countries including Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, China and Switzerland.
“The fellows and foreign members join the ranks of Stephen Hawking, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Lise Meitner, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar and Dorothy Hodgkin,” it said. - FMT

---