Three students will jet off to Germany in June to a meeting with Nobel laureates and fellow science lovers
THREE Wits students have been selected to attend a meeting of Nobel laureates and young scientists in Lindau, Germany later this year.
Tanita Ramburuth-Hurt, Michael Sarkis and Francis Otieno are among 20 young scientists from South Africa chosen to attend the meeting after being nominated by the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf).
The 20 students, all aged 35 and below, were selected from various South African universities and consist of 10 males and 10 females. They will join 580 young scientists from 88 countries and 42 Nobel laureates for the 69th Lindau Nobel laureate Meeting, scheduled for June 30 to July 5. The meeting has been held annually in Lindau since 1951.
Ramburuth-Hurt, who is doing her MSc in Physics, said she was excited about meeting previous female winners of the prize.
“For a long time in this field women have been sidelined and their work has been published without crediting them. So I’m happy that I got this opportunity on merit and it shows that female scientists are on par with male scientists,” the 25-year-old added.
The students will attend a six-day programme which includes a number of lectures and panel discussions, with key topics including cosmology, laser physics and gravitational waves.
Masters student Michael Sarkis was delighted to have been selected and said he would put his best foot forward among his international peers.
“It is very validating for me knowing that South Africans can actually participate in these global meetings. It is more about the human aspect of it all, seeing scientists from around the world,” the 24-year-old said.
Head of the School of Physics Joao Rodrigues congratulated the students on their selection and said it shed a good light on the school.
“For the school, it adds to our standing and reputation. And similarly for the students they can put this on their CVs and it’ll help them in the future. So we are very proud of them.”
Rodrigues added that the department would offer a helping hand to the students financially if they asked for it.
FEATURED IMAGE: The three students will join 580 other young scientists from around the world in Germany. Photo: Provided
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