NAST honors new academicians, outstanding scientists

MANILA, Philippines - The National Academy of Science and Technology, Philippines (NAST PHL), the highest recognition and advisory body to the government and science community on matters related to science and technology, is holding its two-day 36th Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) until today at the Philippine International Convention Center with the theme “Infrastructure, Information, and Innovation (I³) for National Development, Competitiveness, and Resiliency.”

Part of the two-day program is the investiture of new academicians and the recognition ceremonies for the various NAST awards: Outstanding Young Scientists, NAST Environmental Science Award, TWAS Prize for Young Scientists in the Philippines, NAST Talent Search for Young Scientists, Outstanding Books and Monographs, Outstanding Scientific Papers, and Best Scientific Poster Award.

The new academicians and NAST awardees for 2014 are the following:

• New academy members: An academician is an individual who has earned a doctoral degree in any field of the sciences in an accredited university and has demonstrated and earned distinction in independent research or significant innovative achievement in the basic and applied sciences, including agricultural, engineering, and medical sciences, mathematics and the social sciences as manifested by his published works in recognized scientific and technical journals; Provided, that in highly meritorious and extremely exceptional cases, the foregoing doctoral degree requirement may be waived. Membership to the academy is by peer recognition.

— Academician Porfirio Alexander Aliño, Ph.D. (Marine Chemical Ecology)

— Academician Remigio Olveda, M.D. (Infectious and Tropical Medicine)

• Outstanding Young Scientist Award: This is given to young Filipino scientists (must not be 41 years old within January to December in the year of the award) who have made significant contributions to science and technology.

— Glenn SP. Banaguas, Masteral (Environmental Management)

— Rommel Sulabo, Ph.D. (Animal Science)

— Ian Kendrich Fontanilla, Ph.D. (Genetics)

— Karl Marx Quiazon, Ph.D. (Aquatic Biosciences)

— May Lim, Ph.D. (Physics)

— Richard Lemence, Ph.D. (Mathematics)

— Jessie Pascual Bitog, Ph.D. (Agricultural and Rural Systems)

— Rhoda Leron, Ph.D. (Chemical Engineering)

— Paolo Antonio Silva, M.D. (Opthalmology)

— John Mark Velasco, M.D. (Public Health)

— Geoffrey Ducanes, Ph.D. (Economics)

— Analyn Salvador-Amores, Ph.D. (Social and Cultural Anthropology)

• NAST Environmental Science Award: The NAST-Hugh Greenwood Environmental Science Award is intended to recognize outstanding scientific and technological research works that contribute to environmental protection and conservation.

— Damasa Magcale-Macandog, Ph.D. (Botany), Grand Prize

— Annie Melinda Paz-Alberto, Ph.D. (Botany), Special Citation

— Maria Victoria Espaldon, Ph.D. (Geography), Special Citation

• Third World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) Prize for Young Scientists in the Philippines: This is an award given to an outstanding young Filipino scientist by NAST and TWAS. He or she must be less than 40 years old on the day of the awarding during the National Science and Technology Week (July 10).

— Thomas Edison dela Cruz, Dr. Rer. Nat (Mycology)

— Ian Kendrich Fontanilla, Ph.D. (Genetics)

• NAST Talent Search for Young Scientist. This is a project of the academy that encourages young people (must not be more than 35 years old within January to December in the year of the award) to pursue a career in science.

— Angel Encarnacion, Dr. of Marine Science

• Outstanding Books/ Monographs Award: These awards are given annually for such books and/or monographs published in the Philippines or elsewhere by Filipino authors or co-authors within five years preceding the award.

— Benchmarking the Livestock and Poultry Industries: A Cross Country Analysis of the Philippines and Four Other Southeast Asian Countries (by Leonardo Gonzales, Rolando Dy, Marie Annette Galvez-Dacul, Alphonsus Gonzales, Ditas Macabasco, Senen Reyes, and Florence Mojica-Sevilla)

— DNA Barcoding Livestock and Poultry Breeds and Strains: Going Beyond Taxonomic Classifications (by Orville Bondoc)

— Glaucoma Handbook (by Mario Aquino, Mario Aquino Jr., Rommel Bautista, Aragon Belza, Alejandro Chung, Maria Hannah Pia de Guzman, Maria Margarita Lat-Luna, Jose Ma. Martinez, Ernesto Pangalangan, Don Vincent Salud, and Joseph Anthony Tumbocon)

— Atlas of Philippine Dermatology (by Clarita Maaño, Ma. Lorna Frez, Adolfo Bormate Jr., Eileen Liesl Cubillan, Belen Dofitas, Evelyn Gonzaga, Marie Eleanore Nicolas, Georgina Pastofirde, Francisca DC. Roa, and Cynthia Tan)

— 2012/2013 Philippine Human Development Report: Geography and Human Development (by Toby Monsod, Marina Fe Durano, and Emmanuel de Dios)

— Maalwang Buhay: Family, Overseas Migration, and Cultures of Relatedness in Barangay Paraiso (by Filomeno Aguilar Jr. with John, Estanley Peñalosa, Tania Belen, Liwanag, Resto Cruz I, and Jimmy Melendrez)

• Outstanding Scientific Papers: Given annually for such paper published in Philippine scientific or technical journals within five years preceding the award.

— Tier I testing of Cry1Ab protein on Micraspis (Fab.) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and evaluation of its functional response to different prey types (by Edwin Alcantara)

— Vitellogenin induction and gonad abnormalities in male common carp (Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus) introduced to Laguna de Bay, Philippines (by Michelle Grace Paraso and Severino Capitan)

— Improving the validity and robustness of a Harmful Algal Bloom model through genetic algorithm-based optimization (by Arjay Cayetano, Aletta Yñiguez, Cesar Villanoy, Laura David, Josephine Dianne Deauna, Eileen Peñaflor, Joseph Dominic Palermo, Garry Benico, and Rhodora Azanza)

— Morphological and molecular characterization of some HAB-forming dinoflagellates from Philippine waters (by Deo Florence Onda, Garry Benico, Arielle Sulit, Paul Lorenzo Gaite, Rhodora Azanza, and Arturo Lluisma)

— Opacity of P(MMA-MAA)-PMMA composite latex system with varying MAA concentration (by Gilbert Yu, Jerry Cy, and Erwin Enriquez)

— On bravais colorings associated with periodic and non-periodic crystals (by Ma. Louise Antonette delas Peñas and Enrico Paolo Bugarin)

— Random walks in the different sectoral submarkets of the Philippine Stock Exchange amid modernization (by Cesar Rufino)

— Spill-over effects of rural industrialization on community transformation (by Maria Ana Quimbo, Linda Penalba, and Merlyne Paunlagui)

• Best Scientific Poster Award: This aims to encourage students, researchers, and the science community to stimulate them to do research.

Winners will be announced today.