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Artificial Intelligence (AI) has revolutionized the scientific discovery process by enabling the combination of data and theory to derive meaningful and accurate models of natural phenomena. One powerful approach to this integration is AI-Descartes, a method that combines logical reasoning with symbolic regression. By leveraging the strengths of both techniques, AI-Descartes allows scientists to derive scientific laws and formulas that are not only empirically accurate but also consistent with prior knowledge expressed through logical axioms.
René Descartes: A Renaissance Man
René Descartes, a prominent figure of the Renaissance, made significant contributions to philosophy, mathematics, and science. He possessed many skills and knowledge, making him a true polymath. Descartes’ philosophy placed great importance on rationality and logical reasoning, which laid the foundation for his famous statement, “I think, therefore I am.”
This idea was instrumental in shaping the notion of a machine mind distinct from its physical form, a key concept in AI.
During the 17th century in France, Descartes played a crucial role in developing artificial intelligence by introducing the concept of dualism. According to Descartes, the mind and body are separate entities that are interconnected. He believed it was possible to mentally separate these “substances,” such as the mind, from the physical body. This idea was instrumental in shaping the notion of a machine mind distinct from its physical form, a key concept in AI.
Descartes also viewed animals as “automata,” or self-moving machines, following predetermined instructions like programmed machines do today. He applied his theories practically by improving clock designs and constructing robot-like machines, effectively bridging the gap between philosophy and technology. This foresight demonstrated his understanding of the potential relationship between humans and machines.
By leveraging the strengths of both techniques, AI-Descartes allows scientists to derive scientific laws and formulas that are not only empirically accurate but also consistent with prior knowledge expressed through logical axioms.
The Power of Symbolic Regression
Artificial neural networks (NN) and statistical regression are commonly used to discover patterns and relationships in data. Neural networks provide “black-box” models focusing on prediction, while regression models require a predetermined functional form and concentrate on parameter fitting.
Symbolic regression (SR) offers a different approach by allowing the functional form to be composed from a given set of operators and calculated from the data. SR models are often more interpretable than NN models and require less data, making them suitable for discovering laws of nature from experimental data.
The Challenge of Model Derivability
While SR can generate models that fit the data, identifying scientifically meaningful models consistent with prior knowledge is the challenge. Previous approaches have focused on balancing accuracy and complexity, but they must guarantee consistency with known background theories.
The problem becomes more complicated when logical axioms are involved, and automated theorem provers need help to generate theorems consistent with experimental data from a set of known assumptions.
Introducing AI-Descartes: Combining Reasoning and Symbolic Regression
AI-Descartes has been developed to address the challenge of derivable scientific discovery. AI-Descartes combines logical reasoning with symbolic regression to enable principled derivations of models of natural phenomena from axiomatic knowledge and experimental data. This approach integrates statistical and symbolic AI techniques to synthesize models that are both data-driven and based on first principles.
The Discovery Process
The AI-Descartes system follows a discovery cycle inspired by Descartes’ scientific method. Rather than starting with hypotheses derived from theory and testing them against data, AI-Descartes generates and assesses them against known background theories. The system consists of two main modules: the symbolic regression (SR) and reasoning modules.
The SR module outputs a set of candidate formulas that fit the data but may not be derivable from the background theory.
The SR module takes as input a set of operators, a grammar, and constraints on the functional form. It uses mixed integer nonlinear programming to find an expression that minimizes the least-square error between the model and the data. The SR module outputs a set of candidate formulas that fit the data but may not be derivable from the background theory.
The reasoning module is responsible for assessing the derivability of the candidate formulas. It takes the background theory and the candidate formulas as input and uses automated theorem provers and deductive reasoning to determine whether a formula is derivable. If a formula is derivable, it is returned as the chosen model for prediction. If none of the candidate formulas are derivable, the reasoning module provides a quality assessment based on the distance between the formulas and the background theory.
Experimental Validation
The AI-Descartes system has been tested on three problems to validate its capabilities.
The first problem involves deriving Kepler’s third law of planetary motion from solar system data and background theory. The system rediscovered Kepler’s third law, demonstrating its ability to extract meaningful formulas from data and logical reasoning.
The second problem focuses on Einstein’s relativistic time-dilation formula. While the system did not recover the formula from the data, it helped identify the formula that best generalizes it. The system could determine the theory that better explains the phenomenon by analyzing the reasoning errors with different sets of axioms.
The third problem involves Langmuir’s adsorption theory, which includes material-dependent coefficients. The system used existential quantification to logically prove one of the extracted formulas by relating the SR-generated models’ coefficients to the background theory coefficients.
Industry Insights
AI-Descartes possesses a distinct advantage when it comes to handling intricate real-world data. While typical models, such as symbolic regression programs, tend to become overwhelmed by the minutiae, attempting to account for every minor alteration, AI-Descartes effortlessly sifts through the chaos.
It is akin to discovering the melody in a noisy room – this AI model hones in on the crucial patterns concealed within the data. The result? Models that are more transparent and dependable avoid excessive analysis and accurately reflect the occurrences within the data.
Tyler Josephson, co-author of the study and an assistant professor at UMBC, clarifies, “In this work, we relied on human experts to formalize the axioms of the background theory in a computer-readable format. If any axioms were missed or incorrect, it would hinder the system’s functionality.”
This implies that the experts translated the fundamental assumptions or principles of the theory into a format that the AI system could comprehend. Any errors during this process could limit the effectiveness of the system. Josephson adds, “In the future, we aim to automate this process, allowing us to expand our exploration to various domains of science and engineering.”
Conclusion
AI-Descartes demonstrates the value of combining logical reasoning with symbolic regression to obtain meaningful models of physical phenomena. By integrating data and theory, AI-Descartes synthesizes models that are both data-driven and based on first principles. This approach could revolutionize the scientific discovery process by accelerating the discovery of models consistent with prior knowledge. AI-Descartes is an accessible and knowledgeable guide, helping researchers uncover meaningful scientific insights from their data.
AI Descartes. (n.d.). AI Descartes: Combining Data and Theory for Derivable Scientific Discovery. Retrieved July 17, 2023, fromhttps://ai-descartes.github.io
Nasreen* sobbed as she told the story of her family. She had lost two of her children to thalassemia. Two of them were lying on the hospital bed in front of her as blood was being transfused into their bodies. Her husband was the sole earner of her family who labored hard to keep the lives of their children safe and provide medication and treatment for their condition. This was my experience at a thalassemia center in the city of Rawalpindi, Pakistan and sadly, Nasreen’s story is not the only one. There are many people experiencing similar pain and difficulties due to a lack of consultation and awareness. The blood disorder of thalassemia occurs around the world and some of its sub-types are extremely lethal.
Thalassemia has a high incidence in Pakistan
The deadly blood disorder
Thalassemia is a genetic disorder i.e. it is a disease which an individual inherits from parents. The number of red blood cells in the body is extremely low which is due to unavailability of the compound hemoglobin, that carries oxygen in the fluids. The mutation in the genetic material i.e. the DNA causes disruption in the normal production of the blood cells leading to anemia. There are several types of thalassemia depending on the number of the mutated genes one receives from one’s parents and it is also proportional to the severity of the disease. The symptoms appear at a very early age.
The hemoglobin molecule is made up of two chains i.e. alpha and beta-globin, both of which can be affected by mutations. If there is one alpha gene missing than the person is a silent carrier and the increased number of missing genes corresponds to the extremity of this disorder. The most extreme cases are: Hydrops fetalis relating to mutation of alpha chains, Beta thalassemia major and Cooley’s anemia relating to mutations in beta chains. The symptoms are decreased blood production, growth of various organs such as the spleen, abnormalities of bones, and growth issues. The only treatment of severe cases is blood transfusions with medications. Some have frequent transfusions in a month especially those exhibiting severe symptoms, and some may have transfusions once in a while.
The symptoms of Thalassemia appear at a very early age.
Addressing Thalassemia in Pakistan
As mentioned in the
beginning, I got to experience the environment at a thalassemia center and
noted some important points regarding the occurrence of this disease in this
region of the world. One of the main reasons why the incidence is higher is
because of cousin marriages. These marriages have been a tradition for a very
long time and seemingly there aren’t any problems with it as such. But in
certain areas, there are families that have genes for deadly disorders like
thalassemia. The establishment of a relationship between such individuals may
result in a doomed household. According to my observation, most of the patients
had the disease in their family and certain couples had all their kids affected
because both parents were the carriers of this disease. This shows that lack of
awareness and education leads to a terrible situation.
For longtime survival it is necessary that it is addressed at the very beginning and treatment should be started after immediate diagnosis. Pakistan Thalassemia Welfare Society was developed by experts and qualified doctors from around the country in this regard. It is under the direct management of the Ministry of Health, Government of Pakistan. There has been the establishment of different centers for blood transfusion, most of which aim to offer treatment for free or subsidized rates. The Society is also a recognized member of Thalassemia International Federation, Cyprus and keeps itself updated about the latest and ongoing research in this mentioned health sector. Pakistan Thalassemia Welfare Society is also registered with the Pakistan Science Foundation and works with the help of donations and funds from their members and other philanthropists throughout the country. It also works to raise awareness about the disease and provide counseling to the people. Every month, different donors from colleges, universities, Pakistan Red Crescent Society, and the Armed Forces Institute of Transfusion help to provide required blood to patients.
Many transfusion centers have been established across the country
These days not only the
government has started to take steps to address the issue, but private groups
are also diving in to provide their help and support. Many transfusion centers
have been established across the country as mentioned and some of them do more
than just providing blood. They also provide counseling to families of affected
individuals and assist in marriages by genetic testing. Many programs have been
introduced to make the people more aware of the ways through which they can
combat this issue and save the lives of their families. In many cases,
counseling encourages people to seek proper guidance for their future decisions
and to avoid troublesome circumstances.
Issues during treatment
There are various issues that
patients may face while seeking treatment. The most common is the lack of
availability of blood. Often, patients are not able to find donors at blood
transfusion centers and they must undergo a great deal of trouble to get one.
This especially happens during the months of summer when the most generous
blood donor group i.e. the students is not available. There are also many side
effects of the treatment such as the buildup of iron in body fluids after repeated
transfusions which is dangerous in high amounts to the vital organs of the body
like the heart, liver, etc. Again, therapies and medications are required to
lower and stabilize iron concentrations.
There are various ongoing
efforts that address to control this disease and provide support to the
patients. Not only do such individuals need medical support but they also
require emotional assistance. Their lifespan depends on the quality of
treatment and the severity of the disease. In the West, many thalassemia
patients have lived a long life but unfortunately, in Pakistan, the lifespan of
such beings isn’t very extended and there is a need to put in more effort at
research and medical level to develop efficient therapies and treatments.
*Note: Names have been changed to main confidentiality.
The curiosity to solve the world’s mystery is essential for humans to understand themselves and find the purpose of their existence. An exciting way to do that is to search for life beyond Earth.
Saturn is the sixth planet in the distance from the Sun and the second-largest planet in our solar system; it is also well-known for its most spectacular rings. Just like the Earth, Saturn has its own set of moons orbiting around it, and one of such moons has grabbed the scientists’ attention as it could potentially host life!
The uncanny similarity of the existence of phosphorus in bone broths and water-spraying plumes of Enceladus is what is called a “chef’s kiss”.
Life on Enceladus
The building blocks of life and water are carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur. Saturn’s icy ocean moon, Enceladus, is thought to have liquid water oceans beneath its frozen shell. Cassini spacecraft had collected and analyzed samples from this moon, which, after decades of research, proved to have the existence of organic material on Enceladus.
The search for extraterrestrial life in our solar system became more exciting when a team of scientists, including Southwest Research Institute’s Dr Christopher Gleinin 2020 discovered new evidence that the subsurface ocean of Saturn’s moon Enceladus contains a fundamental building block for life. “Using data from NASA’s Cassini mission, the team directly detected phosphorus in the form of phosphates originating from the moon’s ice-covered global ocean.” (Postberg et al., 2023)(qtd.in SWRI)
Phosphorus — A key component of Life
Phosphorus is the second most abundant mineral in the body, second to calcium. About 85% of the body’s phosphorus is stored in the bones and teeth of humans and animals as phosphates and in their DNA, RNA and cell membranes (Avenue et al., 2022). It is also a vital component of food in nutrients and minerals. Phosphorus is globally consumed in a variety of foods like beef or legumes and dishes made of bone broths, such as Siri Paye across Pakistan and South Asia.
Siri paya is a traditional Pakistani stew made with the head and feet of an animal (typically goat, cow, or lamb), called Siri and paya in Urdu, respectively. It is a typical breakfast meal in the country. The bones are slow-cooked in boiling water with added spices for 4-6 hours. This bone broth is considered nutritious and is enjoyed in the winter among the Pakistani community (Siri et al.). When served with bone marrow, Siri Paye is called “Nalli Siri Paye”, the most delectable version of this dish.
What does Siri Paye have to do with Enceladus?
The revelation of understanding the connection between phosphorus in the human diet and the plumes of Enceladus helps bridge gaps in our understanding of the universe. Bone broth of a Chinese dish called ‘sweet-sour-spareribs’ is also cooked similarly to Siri Paye. A study was conducted by scientists at Oregon State College, Corvallis, to detect how much nutrition this Chinese dish can provide, such as calcium and phosphorus. (Hoh et al., 1934)
The presence of calcium and phosphorus was analyzed before and after cooking, which showed a generous presence of phosphorus at 0.384 gm (Hoh et al., 1934). Similarly, bone marrow is also enjoyed in a variety of dishes. Studies on the nutritional value of bone marrow suggest that “one tablespoon (14 grams) of raw caribou bone marrow provides 1% Phosphorus of the RDI.(Hassan et al., 2012).These studies help reveal its presence in our diets.
This uncanny similarity of the existence of phosphorus in bone broths and water-spraying plumes of Enceladus is what is called a “chef’s kiss”. Life on Earth is just as complex yet simple as we seek it in the universe to be. Such analogies between Earth and other habitable planets or moons can help us take steps further into Astrobiology.
Credits: Cassini Imaging Team/SSI/JPL/ SWRFreie Universität Berlin.
Dr Glein is a leading expert in extraterrestrial oceanography; his team found that phosphate concentrations are at least 100 times higher in the moon’s plume-forming ocean waters than in Earth’s oceans” (qtd.in SWRI). They analyzed a class of salt-rich ice grains with Cassini’s Cosmic Dust Analyzer, which showed the presence of sodium phosphates. The team’s observational results and laboratory analogue experiments suggest that phosphorus is readily available in Enceladus’ ocean as phosphates (Postberg et al., 2023).
This breakthrough discovery for astrobiology can lead studies in the search for life beyond Earth. Glein believes “the next step is to return to Enceladus to see if the habitable ocean is actually inhabited”.(Postberg et al., 2023). If that is the case, Pakistani food enthusiasts must keep a keen eye on Enceladus to someday enjoy extra-terrestrial Siri Paye.
References:
Avenue, 677 Huntington, Boston, & Ma 02115. (2022, March 2). Phosphorus. The Nutrition Source. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/phosphorus/
Hassan, A. A., Sandanger, T. M., & Brustad, M. (2012). Level of selected nutrients in meat, liver, tallow and bone marrow from semi-domesticated reindeer (Rangifer t. Tarandus L.). International Journal of Circumpolar Health, 71, 10.3402/ijch.v71i0.17997. https://doi.org/10.3402/ijch.v71i0.17997
Hoh, P.-W., Williams, J. C., & Pease, C. S. (1934). Possible Sources of Calcium and Phosphorus in the Chinese Diet: I. The Determination of Calcium and Phosphorus in a Typical Chinese Dish Containing Meat and Bone. The Journal of Nutrition, 7(5), 535–546. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/7.5.535
Institute, S. R. (n.d.). Key building block for life found at Saturn’s moon Enceladus. Retrieved 3 August 2023, from https://phys.org/news/2023-06-key-block-life-saturn-moon.html
Postberg, F., Sekine, Y., Klenner, F., Glein, C. R., Zou, Z., Abel, B., Furuya, K., Hillier, J. K., Khawaja, N., Kempf, S., Noelle, L., Saito, T., Schmidt, J., Shibuya, T., Srama, R., & Tan, S. (2023). Detection of phosphates originating from Enceladus’s ocean. Nature, 618(7965), 7965. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-05987-9
Siri Paye: The Breakfast Of Champions. (n.d.). Slurp. Retrieved 3 August 2023, from https://www.slurrp.com/article/siri-paye-the-breakfast-of-champions-1659549954356
“We often don’t get the credit for doing something that’s actually of value to society.”
This story of meeting and listening to someone so famous yet humble is quite an experience. I remember that day well.
It was a quiet and pleasant afternoon in 2018 when I was in Germany for higher studies. I was sitting in my department’s waiting area with a few classmates. Recent lectures were pretty brain-scratching, and I thought some relaxation was much needed. My classmates and I just got out of a scientific writing course lecture and were waiting for lunchtime. I was scrolling down my phone, looking at recent news, updates, and social media, when one of my friends asked, “Did you complete your cosmology exercises?”
I came back to my senses, “No! It was pretty hard.” I looked at him. “I am thinking of having a group session with some other classmates. You may join as well.”
We were talking when another classmate came over to us. “Are you guys going to attend the guest lecture due today?” She asked.
“Who is it?” I looked at her.
“It’s the lady who discovered pulsars.”
“Oh my God! Really? Jocelyn Bell?”
Believe it or not, I jumped off the chair with these exact expressions. The next moment, I ran towards the nearby research centre where she would present her talk.
In the lecture hall, there she was – Jocelyn Bell, giving lectures on how she became a distinguished woman in science. Answering many questions and narrating her story, I learned that women face much discrimination in technical fields.
Jocelyn’s Early Life
Dame Susan Jocelyn Bell Burnell, born on July 15 1943, is an astrophysicist from Northern Ireland. She was a postgraduate student and discovered pulsars in 1967.
She grew up in Lurgan, Northern Ireland, where she went to the Preparatory Department of Lurgan College and studied science despite the beliefs that boys and girls who studied technical subjects were supposed to learn cooking and cross-stitching. She completed her secondary education in 1961 from The Mount School, a Quaker girl’s boarding school in York, England. She received her Bachelor’s science degree in natural philosophy from Glasgow University in 1965, and then in 1969, she got her PhD from New Hall, Cambridge.
Jocelyn Bell grew up in Lurgan, Northern Ireland, where she went to the Preparatory Department of Lurgan College.
In Cambridge, she, with Antony Hewish and others, constructed an interplanetary scintillation array to study quasars. The Interplanetary Scintillation Array is a radio telescope built in 1967 at the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory in Cambridge, England, and was run by the Cavendish Astrophysics Group. The instrument’s initial area was 16,000 m2 or around 4 acres. It was expanded in 1978 to 9 acres and renovated in 1989.
Her Story
Her words echoed in the hall, “It was pretty tough because, at that time, it was a tradition that when a woman entered the lecture halls, all the men whistled, stamped, catcalled, and banged the desks. These were wooden lecture theatres, so you could easily make a lot of noise.
As the only female in the class, I had to face that. I learned to control and manage my blushing. At least when faced with that, I no longer blushed. I walked in still-faced and took my seat.”
I was surprised when I learnt how women are discriminated against in every field of life, yet I was impressed how Burnell stood her ground in the world of men. A world where women were discouraged from studying technical and tactical fields and forced to work on cooking and embroidery. There is no shame in women learning cooking and stitching, nor should there be a boundary created for them not to choose science fields.
She added, “It is true that there is a lot of hard work, and it took two years to build the radio telescope. For two years, she was working outdoors in all kinds of weather. Very healthy! But also a lot of work. In Britain, the Ph.D. program is three years, so two-thirds of my program was on building the equipment. We did not do the building full-time.
Typically, you would work in the mornings to build the equipment. There would be afternoon classes, lectures, discussions, or other work. It was quite a good mix. Healthy outdoor work in the morning and indoor intellectual creation in the afternoon. For some people like me, it was quite a lot of manual work. For other people, it is perhaps more pencil and paperwork, or these days, computer work. So, there is variety. Quite often, when you are training as a researcher, there is quite a lot of monotonous stuff.”
A world where women were discouraged from studying technical and tactical fields and forced to work on cooking and embroidery. There is no shame in women learning cooking and stitching, nor should there be a boundary created for them not to choose science fields.
Jocelyn’s Career and Research
At Cambridge with Antony Hewish, in 1967, Bell Burnell was trying to find more quasars, but they needed a new radio telescope. With her five colleagues, Burnell made a new radio telescope, was the first to operate it, and found new data for hundreds of quasars.
On August 6, 1967, Burnell received strange data on her readouts, which she couldn’t recognize, so she labelled it with a question mark and moved on. But the data kept coming from a specific part of the sky, lodged in Burnell’s mind. It seemed like a bit of scruff data, a series of rapid impulses coming at 1.3 seconds, appearing too fast to be coming from a star. The data didn’t seem to go from the quasars they were looking for, but it was coming regularly from the same patch of sky, which drove their curiosity.
In those days, they didn’t have computers or screens to monitor real-time data. The data was printed on long horizontal sheets of paper, and people had to analyze it by the eye. During her guest lecture, she told us she was so curious about this new signal that she had to study 3-kilometre-long papers daily. We think life is hard for us today, but going through 3 km long paper is just. I can’t imagine the hassle!
Bell and her advisor, Hewish, jokingly named this scruff of data as “little green men.” Both of them were convinced that the signal was artificial or that it could be alien signals.
However, she started to get the same type of signals from another place, then from third and fourth place. It was unusual because neither aliens’ signals could reach them from four different places in the sky, nor could it be some strange artificial interference. It was a strange mystery to them; one cannot be ignored. Later, the objects were identified as pulsars, rapidly spinning neutron stars sending pulses in their direction.
In February 1968, they published a paper explaining the mysterious signals named pulsars. 1974, Hewish and his collaborator Sir Martin Ryle were awarded a Nobel prize for this discovery. Unfortunately, Bell Burnell was not included in it, which remains controversial.
The critical discovery of pulsars will always be associated with Jocelyn Bell. Her narrative motivates everyone who aspires to make their mark in the scientific community, not only for women but everyone else. Jocelyn symbolizes what makes a great scientist—unwavering determination, a dedication to meticulous observation, and a courageous exploration of the unexplored.
Listening to the awe-inspiring story of Jocelyn Bell by herself was a fantastic experience. The last thing, or the best advice for scientists or aspiring scientists, I received from her was:
“Always look for anomalies. No wonder what lies in there!”
I know what you’re thinking: Is there even a question of modern Medicine’s superiority? This is a well-settled debate—a moot point to most of us. We have entered and acclimated to an era of modernity in almost all our lives, and Medicine is the first. Since Pasteur ended the theory of spontaneous generation nearly two centuries ago, traditional Medicine has all but died out except in the most remote parts of the world.
But in a world of modern Medicine’s hegemony, there now exist pockets of darkness that few of us can deny. Around us, we are witnessing a change in attitude towards this complete dependency on modern Medicine to solve our aches. The recent rise in the popularity of herbal and organic Medicine attests to this.
What does “Traditional Medicine” really refer to?
Traditional Medicine is a term that encompasses a vast number of medical disciplines and arts. It varies in shape, form and methodology from place to place. Its diversity in the cures for a particular disorder, the source of the medication and even the philosophy behind the practice lends traditional Medicine so much of its success.
You see, the traditional Medicine of one locality can be wildly different from another and still manage to achieve the same rate of recovery in its patients as the other. This is mainly because local diseases are best treated with local resources. If nightshade populates a particular locality, its cures abound in the same region, and the ecosystem would have collapsed a while ago.
With such a broad definition of traditional Medicine, it includes any medicinal arts practised in all parts of the world, relying strictly on plant or animal-based organic Medicine. This means herbal, Hippocratic-greek, ancient Chinese and Indian or ayurvedic Medicine are all considered traditional medicinal practices.
Antidepressants can aggravate suicidal tendencies in an individual along with insomnia.
Defining “Modern Medicine”
Modern Medicine is characterized by a focus on isolating substances that are considered to help alleviate disease symptoms. This intense pursuit of extracting the miracle drug from seemingly impure sources has dominated the field of Modern Medicine. If a plant or animal tissue is found to have a substance that produces positive results in battling symptoms, the set goal is to separate the desired substance and discard the rest.
Prednisone depression or psychosis if used for more extended periods
Why this approach is problematic?
You may be asking this question: If it has worked for a century and a half without any hiccups, why challenge it now? The correct answer is that there have been hiccups and quite a lot of them. Let’s look at them together.
Unwanted Side-effects
This is the most commonly known issue with modern Medicine. There is barely a drug out there that does not produce some side effect in its consumer, whether noticeable or not. Almost all drugs in the modern pharmacist’s arsenal, from the ones we use daily and freely to those only employed under exceptional circumstances, produce some degree of changes that are not originally intended.
Sometimes, these changes are harmless on a biological level, like drowsiness caused by muscle relaxers. However, more often than not, the side effects are concerning, like weight loss caused by corticosteroids or skin rashes caused by amoxicillin. In both cases, the medication used is relatively common, with amoxicillin even being available over the counter in most places.
Antibiotic Resistance
Staying on the topic of unwanted side effects, antibiotic resistance is perhaps the worst nightmare of anyone familiar with pharmacology. In short, antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria develop an innate resistance to a particular antibiotic that had previously managed to eliminate them.
Bacteria divide very quickly and evolve with each successive generation. So, it doesn’t take long for the surviving bacteria to grow to withstand the usual antibiotic dosage. As expected, the bacterial infection returns, more robust and unaffected by the previous antibiotic dosage. The patient administers a higher dosage but fails to complete the antibiotic course again because of early success.
The cycle repeats until the bacterial strain becomes virtually immune to the drug. In a short time, this has created a population of bacterium that is impossible to fight off with the usual or even lethal doses of medication. Unless a new antibiotic can be found, the rogue bacteria can threaten to wipe off the entire population that is vulnerable to its infection.
The easy availability of high-potency antibiotics worldwide, sometimes without even the need for a prescription, is only accelerating this process.
Effects on mental health
Modern Medicine is in no way holistic the way traditional Medicine was. In a race to administer the purest form of a drug, modern Medicine throws the normal metabolism wildly out of control. It’s like trying to eat the pizza sauce without the pizza or drinking pure vinegar instead of salt and vinegar chips; it is not a pleasant experience.
The drugs are present in an entire lattice-work of substances, working in harmony at their source, a plant or an animal. In their natural state, the medications are strictly regulated in production and operation. Not so when a drug’s pure and isolated form is introduced into a body. The result is a series of damaging developments around the body, most noticeably in the brain.
While specific medication is known to make people less sociable, drugs like antidepressants can aggravate suicidal tendencies in an individual, along with insomnia and even sexual dysfunction. Corticosteroids like prednisone, used in treating asthma or allergies, can cause anxiety and hypomania in its early days and cause depression or psychosis if used for extended periods.
Big Pharma
The sad reality of today’s world is that almost all life-saving and innovative drug technology is owned by a handful of giant capitalist conglomerates, which use this privilege to extort the most profits and influence worldwide. The most prominent example of this is Insulin, the patent for which was sold for just $1 a hundred years ago in an attempt to make this life-saving drug available for everyone.
The past few years of the COVID-19 pandemic saw the behemoths of the pharmaceutical world, affectionately termed the “Big Pharma”, including well-known names like Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), use the crisis to their advantage and rake in billions of dollars in revenue.
As countries worldwide struggled to cope with the viral infection raging inside their borders, the COVID-19 vaccines were used as leverage to gain influence and political clout.
Failure as a complete science
Every doctor and pharmacist will admit that most of today’s medication is aimed at treating the symptoms of a disease and not the disease itself. Painkillers form a considerable part of this group. In hospitals and clinics worldwide, a patient is administered doses upon doses of antipyretics to reduce his fever(symptom). Still, the root cause of the fever is addressed much later due to a lack of understanding of fevers as a defence mechanism.
Such practices inevitably lead to high tolerance towards everyday drugs in the patient.
Such practices inevitably lead to high tolerance towards everyday drugs in the patient. This manifests in varying degrees of addiction and over-reliance on medication for the patient to function. Absence of the medicines from the patient’s routine causes withdrawal symptoms such as mood swings, depression, nausea and fatigue.
Conclusion
While it is true that traditional Medicine relied heavily on the practitioner’s intuition and less on inflexible rules, which may have contributed to its perception as a pseudo-science, it was also much gentler towards the patient’s health and more holistic in its approach.
Unlike modern Medicine, which tends to focus on the disease at a micro level, in traditional Medicine, the diagnosis is made at a macro scale, considering the patient’s mental and physical state in the context of his social and spiritual character. In this way, traditional Medicine is aware of the “bigger picture”, while modern Medicine arrives at that conclusion after much back-and-forth.
This litany is not controversial against modern Medicine as a science. Indeed, it is much more of a science than traditional Medicine claims to be. Instead, it should be looked upon as an enumeration of concurrent issues that are plaguing modern Medicine. Modern Medicine can learn something from its predecessor in almost all aspects listed.
A more cohesive approach towards medication that builds upon both medicinal crafts is the need of the hour, one where the singular intensity of Modern Medicine is applied towards battling the causes of a disease rather than the symptoms. One where the drugs are not as isolated from their naturally occurring forms and are administered about the patient’s holistic health and not just a singled-out organ.
Historically, the male-dominant culture prevailed in almost every educational field. That is why we have only a handful of female names in various fields. Stats and studies have been conducted extensively to highlight women’s challenges, fears and barriers in displaying prominent positions.
Several studies suggest that this is about more than just their contribution. Nevertheless, women are mostly underrated owing to their extraordinary participation in educational and academic perspectives and business, STEM fields, and social and political pursuits.
Despite significant gains in several areas of science and technology, women still do not participate equally in all areas of STEM. According to fields like mathematics, geology and earth sciences, agriculture and horticulture, women are over-represented in biology and the social/psychological sciences. Nevertheless, gaps persist in physics, engineering, and computer science.
Barriers Faced by Women in Leadership Roles
Why do women feel underprivileged during their career development? To answer this, countless authors have highlighted the gendered culture within the institutions as a root cause to serve as the challenging barrier to women’s progress.
Individual Barriers
The career preferences, lifestyle choices and family obligations suggest the lack of participation of women in science fields, mainly because women do not want to work 80 hours per week and spend their lives in the lab.
In the flurry of media attention following this statement, one off-cited book was Women in Science by Xie and Shauman (2003). This heavily researched book discusses and examines several factors and reasons purported to hinder women.
They dismiss several (research productivity, marriage, deficient backgrounds, among others) but show that career paths are affected by constrained choices. Societal constraints and pressures can and do force women to make ―choices that often distract or lead them away from STEM.
Institutional Challenges
Research studies conducted to investigate the cause of lagging women’s leadership suggest that from recruitment and selection to retirement, women struggle to navigate their careers in gender inequality atmospheres. Male dominance also influences daily working practices directly and indirectly.
Moreover, covert and outright discrimination, implicit biases, and sexual harassment are some of the leading issues for women counterparts in institutions.
Lack of Role Models
Innate human psychology demands set footprints and torchbearers to follow. In the case of feminine leadership, the lack of role models and mentors also serves as one of the significant problems in encouraging women to enter technical fields. Most of the time, young girls are not presented with good examples of women in the STEM fields.
Research shows exposure to female STEM – increased positive attitudes, self-efficacy, and connection with the discipline for female college students
A study was conducted to test how the presence or absence of female role models or mentors affects women’s career preferences. Stout and colleagues (2010) showed that exposure to female STEM ―increased positive attitudes, self-efficacy, and connection with the discipline for female college students.
A bulk of literature produced on improving women’s contribution to science emphasises the need for mentors and role models (Pritchard, 2006; AWIS, 1995). When examining the literature on barriers to women in leadership, one sees a remarkably similar theme to what one finds with women and STEM. In the literature contribution “Through the Labyrinth,” Eagly and Carli (2007) discuss what hinders women’s leadership potential and argue that the glass ceiling is no longer a proper analogy.
Women have broken through and are in positions of power; the Forum on Public Policy 4 barrier is not impenetrable. Nor is it transparent. Instead, they propose the idea of a labyrinth: many possible routes and dead ends exist.
Wrong turns and backtracking are likely and familiar, yet there is a successful (though not visible) path to a worthwhile goal—leadership.
How to Overcome the Gender Gap?
Over the years, much research has focused on the causes of this gender gap and possible remedies. As legislation and awareness helped reduce these issues, other problems arose or were drawn into visibility.
Why Women’s Leadership is Significant?
Women are naturally designed to be innovative and diversely experienced; hence, they are more decisive and can carry out multiple tasks quickly. When women are leaders, they bring forth talents, novel ideas and views, producing better solutions.
Recent research documented by Business Insider showed that women are perceived as better and more capable leaders than their male counterparts. Women as executives bring and discover talents, new perspectives, and exemplary unique ideas.
Moreover, women as leaders are considerably more empathetic and tend to create an environment-friendly and growth-oriented atmosphere, providing the nourishing judgment to lead their subordinates. They are well-versed with good collaborative and communication skills. Their ability to pay heed to details comprehending and controlling the contingency or emergency make them efficient leaders, along with their strong-willed aptitude. Their tactical and cognizant capacity in comparison to men makes them terrific mentors.
Creola Katherine Johnson was one of the reputable mathematicians from America
Women Leaders in Science and Technology
The world has witnessed female luminaries’ roles in biological sciences, medical sciences, chemistry, aeronautics and space sciences, IT and commerce. Women entrepreneurs from around the world are leading their respective fields with distinctions.
Creola Katherine Johnson was one of the reputable mathematicians from America whose calculations done for orbital mechanics as a forefront NASA employee were crucial to the success of the USA’s first and subsequent crewed space flights.
Lydia Villa Komaroff is a cellular and molecular biologist whose significant contributions are considered valuable in her respective fields as a scientist and an administrator of the university. During her postdoctoral research, she also served as a team member who discovered insulin using bacterial cells.
Sara Seager is a Canadian-American astronomer and a planetary scientist. She is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor recognised for her work on exoplanets and their atmospheres. She is also the author of two textbooks on these topics. Her contributions have been acknowledged extensively for her research by some leading science magazines: Discover Magazine, Nature, Popular Science, and TIME Magazine.
Dr. Li is the co-director of Stanford’s Human-Centered AI Institute and was the Vice President at Google. She also worked as a Chief Scientist of AI/ML at Google Cloud. ImageNet, a database of over 15 million images used in deep learning and AI, was invented by Dr. Li. She also co-founded AI4ALL, a non-profit project to diversify the role of AI.
Leads from Pakistan
Farzana Aslam is a famous astronomer and physicist. Her areas of expertise are nanotechnology, photon and LASER sciences. Due to her significant contributions in the field of physics, she received a commendation award at the Photon 04 conference organised by the Institute of Physics at Glasgow.
Nergis Mavalvala is a Pakistani-American astrophysicist. She is the Curtis and Kathleen Marble Professor of Astrophysics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she is also the Dean of the university’s School of Science. Mavalvala is recognised for her work on the gravitational wave detection project in (LIGO) Laser Gravitational Wave Observatory. She is also known for her experimental demonstration of macroscopicquantum effects. Owing to her significant contributions in her field, she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2010.
Tasneem Zehra Hussain is also one of the prestigious scientists. She is a famous theoretical physicist from Pakistan and has a physics doctorate. She is the first female string theorist invited as a guest speaker in Pakistan’s schools, colleges and universities.
Azra Quraishi was an eminent and skilled botanist from Pakistan whose expertise included some unique tissue culturing techniques. She also worked on improving the potato production in Pakistan. Due to her significant contribution to agriculture, she was awarded the Borlaug Award (1997) and the Ordre des Palmes académiques (2002). An increase in the potato yield by 5% in Pakistan is one of her well-known achievements.
Women leaders have always set stellar footprints for the generations to come. Women as leaders play a vital role in running any organisation or industry. With their expertise, they can bring forth hidden talents, nurture young minds with healthy judgments, create a peaceful and growing atmosphere and make their organisation a success story.
The documentary “Picture a Scientist” stands out as a potent and moving depiction of the difficulties experienced by women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) in a world that continually seeks innovation and pushes limits. This eye-opening documentary, directed by Ian Cheney and Sharon Shattuck, provides an uncensored look into the lives of female scientists while exposing the often-untold hidden stories. “Picture a Scientist” inspires us to imagine a world where gender equality rules in the scientific community by fusing human experiences, data-driven analysis, and a call to action.
The film is honest in investigating the historically widespread gender discrimination and profoundly established biases that have afflicted the STEM field. The film stresses the enormous discrepancy between the accomplishments of women and the attention they receive through open interviews and personal experiences. It exposes the uncomfortable truth that, despite their innovative work, female scientists still encounter obstacles like unequal pay, limited prospects, and a hostile work environment. The documentary highlights the universality of this issue. It dispels the myth that gender discrimination is a thing of the past by weaving together the experiences of scientists from various backgrounds and areas.
One of the film’s strengths is blending personal narratives with hard-hitting statistics. The moving stories of scientists like Dr Raychelle Burks, Dr Nancy Hopkins, and Dr Jane Willenbring, who overcame hardship to carve a niche in their fields, are presented to viewers. Their experiences are set against startling statistics that highlight the underrepresentation of women in STEM leadership roles and the depressing turnover rates of female scientists as their careers advance. These contrasts urge us to work together to address these systemic problems while being a painful reminder that progress has been slow.
The moving stories of scientists like Dr Raychelle Burks, Dr Nancy Hopkins, and Dr Jane Willenbring, who overcame hardship to carve a niche in their fields, are presented to viewers.
Beyond concentrating on the negative, “Picture a Scientist” also highlights the achievements and determination of women who have overcome obstacles. Rosalind Franklin, a chemist, is one of the unsung heroes of science history whose accomplishments were overshadowed by those of her male colleagues.
But the documentary doesn’t only list issues; it also suggests solutions. It presents practical ideas to promote diversity and equality in STEM through powerful interviews and knowledgeable comments. The documentary offers a road map that can spark dramatic change within the scientific community, from instituting unconscious bias training to revising institutional regulations. “Picture a Scientist” exemplifies how collective action may topple the existing power structures that uphold gender inequities by highlighting initiatives like the “MeTooSTEM” campaign, which empowers victims of harassment and discrimination.
“Picture a Scientist” is a success of cinema that vitally highlights the voices of those underrepresented in STEM disciplines.
The skilful direction and storytelling of Ian Cheney and Sharon Shattuck produce a gripping storyline that holds viewers’ attention from beginning to end. The documentary’s emotional impact is increased by the seamless incorporation of interviews, animations, and archival material. The filmmakers’ aptitude for navigating challenging situations with tact and understanding guarantees an accurate portrayal of the experiences of the ladies depicted.
In conclusion, “Picture a Scientist” is a success of cinema that vitally highlights the voices of those who are underrepresented in STEM disciplines. The documentary serves as a catalyst for change by its open depiction of the challenges, triumphs, and goals of women scientists. It motivates viewers to challenge latent prejudices, challenge the status quo, and fight for a more egalitarian scientific environment. We are reminded that the future of STEM is unquestionably brighter when everyone, regardless of gender, is given the chance to grow as we watch the persistence of these women and their unflinching dedication to their subjects.
In systematically pursuing knowledge and innovation, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) is a rich arena of observation, advancement, and technology. Seen as a male-centric discipline, STEM is a transformative domain attracting brilliant minds across the globe to discover and develop scientific wonders. Statistics reveal that women constitute 1/3rd of the workforce in STEM but are still underrepresented. STEM offers many opportunities for women, and it’s time women embrace the promising prospects.
“Women face immense barriers in science and technology. And many developing countries lack the resources to train scientists for the highest academic level,” said Shamika N. Sirimanne, UNCTAD’s director for technology and logistics. In recent decades, women from developing countries have gained momentum, defying all the odds and participating in expanding scientific breakthroughs. Women associated with STEM have unprecedented capabilities and remarkable aptitude to drive the modern world forward.
Menatallah Elserafy
A member of the “Global Young Academy”, a scientist, and a professor, Menatallah Elserafy is a force to be reckoned with. A researcher at the “Centre of Genomics” in Zuwail City of Science and Technology, Egypt, Menatallah’s research focuses on DNA repair mechanisms. Utilizing yeast as a promising candidate to study DNA damage-associated diseases, her work excelled in genetics.
Menatallah Elserafy is a member of “Global Young Academy”
Her series of remarkable achievements include acquiring the “L’Oréal-UNESCO regional fellowship (Egypt)” and a levant for “Women in Science Program” in 2017. In 2019, she was recognized as one of the program’s International Rising Talents for Africa and Arab regions. Her award got her invited to the second IP and Sciences training course for women scientists at the “World Intellectual Property Organization” in 2019.
She attributed the coveted “Zewail City Incentive Award in Scientific Research” (2022) attributing to her remarkable success in the scientific field. She was awarded the CRP-ICGEB Early Career Return Grant, joint ASRT-BA funded by The Egyptian Academy of Scientific Research and Technology and Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA), and the Re-integration grant of the Egyptian Science and Technology Development (STDF).
Moreover, she has played her role as a member of the executive committee at the African Bioimaging Consortium (ABIC). COMSTECH nominated her to attend Germany’s 68th Nobel Laureate Meeting focused on physiology and medicine. Her research has been published in renowned journals, including Cell Press, Nature, and Journal of Cell Biology.
She is associated with the African Academy of Sciences (AAS) and is a member of the Egyptian Young Academy of Sciences (EYAS). Despite facing circumstantial hurdles, such as the unavailability of chemicals and delays in securing funds, her unwavering determination and passion for research enabled her to adopt a multidisciplinary approach and maximize the available resources.
Fresthel Climacosa
Focused on disease control and prevention, Fresthel Climacosa (Philippines) made substantial contributions to the field of STEM. She holds the associate professor position in the Department of Medical Microbiology at the University of the Philippines. Fresthel is the first of its kind graduate of the country’s only dual degree program: Doctor of Medicine –Doctor of Philosophy (MD-PhD) in Molecular Medicine.
Fresthel Climacosa has made substantial contributions to the field of STEM
In 2018, she received both the Dr. Adolfo Belosillo Award for the Most Outstanding MD-PhD Graduate and the DOST-PCHRD’s Most Outstanding MD-PhD Dissertation recognition for her study titled “Development and Characterization of Microbe-binding Peptides for Opsonization of Microbial Contaminants.”.
Under the stewardship of Naoya Ohara from Okayama University, Ms Climacosa researched a recently identified mutation in a tuberculosis strain. This mutation was investigated for its effects on bacteria subjected to anti-tuberculosis medication. The hands-on experience gained through her experiments at Okayama University gave her the skills to initiate a research initiative in the Philippines aimed at disease prevention and control, especially for diseases such as tuberculosis.
At Okayama University, she participated in a summit organized by the Mycobacteria Study Group of Japan, where she engaged with venerated and emerging Japanese researchers, scientists, and scholars focused on mycobacteria. Reflecting on the experience, she highlighted the valuable chance it provided to establish connections with fellow attendees, paving the way for potential research partnerships down the line.
To strengthen her ties with Okayama University, she is venturing into ways she can send Filipino graduates as a part of research programs. Despite the obstacles encountered by women in STEM, she persisted in her efforts and motivated other women to follow suit.
Celestial Awardees of the OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Award
Striving to improve both climate change and food insecurity, these remarkable women have achieved exceptional success in their research endeavours, devising strategies to address the existing uncertainties. The 2022 and 2023 OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Award winners shine bright with their advanced work. Let’s glimpse these brilliant luminaries and their contributions to STEM.
Myriam Mujawamariya
Thriving in climate action and environmental realms, Myriam Mujawamariya, a resilient force, lectures at Rwanda University’s Biology department. She’s a climate change mitigator, analyzing regional factors like soil erosion and tree variations for climate response. Myriam shapes strategies to counter evolving climate impacts in Rwanda, notably through the “Rwanda Tropical Elevation Experiment, Rwanda TREE project,” evaluating tree species’ physiological responses.
Myriam Mujawamariya is a lecturer at Rwanda University’s Biology department
Securing grants (Belgian ARES, Rwanda National Council of Science and Technology, Swedish Sida), she expands biodiversity and environmental conservation awareness through community outreach. As an Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation member and a Research Associate at CoEB, her contributions qualify her for the OWSD-Elsevier Foundation award.
Abeer Ahmad Qaed Ahmad
Abeer Ahmed, an OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Award recipient (2022) from Al-Saeed University, Yemen, specializes in biological systems. Her impactful work tackles climate change, focusing on green enzymatic processes replacing harmful chemicals. She harnesses microbes for biomedical and environmental benefits, including extracellular vesicles’ potential.
Abeer Ahmed is an OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Award recipient
Abeer’s research delves into microbial applications for enhanced carbon sequestration, soil quality, biomass conversion, and combatting multi-drug-resistant microorganisms. Her findings contribute significant insights.
The award fuels her journey, inspiring confidence and affirming her path. She shares, “During a crucial juncture in my scientific journey, the OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Award provided me with motivation and acknowledgement. This recognition will serve as a driving force, propelling me forward, and will also serve as a source of inspiration for aspiring young individuals who seek guidance from our experiences. The confidence instilled by this award has affirmed my alignment with the correct path, as it demonstrated that I am indeed progressing in the right direction.”
Gawsia Wahidunnessa Chowdhury
With more than seventeen years of experience in her field of study and research, Gawsia Wahidunnessa is a formidable entity. She is engaged in research across six distinct domains, including heavy metal pollution, plastic pollution, fisheries as the source of plastic pollution, conservation education, and ecosystem engineering.
Gawsia Wahidunnessa educates the fishing communities on how they can maximize, reuse, and recycle equipment
Examples of her project endeavours encompass Plastic pollution (Trophic transfer of MPs in the aquatic ecosystems of Sundarbans mangrove ecosystem, Bangladesh), Sustainable fisheries resources, Plastic pollution solution: Gender & ALDFG, Plastic pollution (Fish and Plastics) and National Geographic Society’s Sea to Sources: Ganga Expedition. Her projects link the changes in environmental features and their correlation to climate change.
Apart from this, she educates the fishing communities on how they can maximize, reuse, and recycle equipment such as Nylon fishing nets into value-added products. The awareness and research contribute to environmental well-being and generate income for the residents.
Her awards (Commonwealth Scholarship and a Wildlife Conservation Society Fellowship (conservation education fellowship)) reflect her capabilities in STEM. Apart from her role as a board member for the global conservation group Wild Team, she holds membership in prominent international technical committees, including the Commission on Education and Communication and the Species Survival Commission under the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
She also participated as a team member in the National Geographic Society’s 2019 Ganges Expedition called “Sea to Source.” Currently, she is engrossed in working for threatened species and habitat conservation in Bangladesh.
Heddy Caleron
Heddy Calderon specialized in Astronomy, Space, and Earth Science. Teaching hydrology, hydrogeology, and groundwater modelling, she concentrates on exploring water resource alternatives for at-risk communities in the Central American Dry Corridor. Her work in sustainable water management across Central America has gained popularity. She currently serves as the Director of UNAN-Managua Institute of Geology and Geophysics.
Heddy Calderon specialized in Astronomy, Space, and Earth Sciences
Her research aims to facilitate the millions of people residing in the Central American Dry Corridor who face episodes of cyclic droughts. These droughts pose a potent threat to the region’s food security and socio-economic conditions. To resolve this crisis, her current work targets the groundwater phenomenon and recharging in the area.
She shares her knowledge with her students and educates the communities she interacts with. Communities who have familiarity with the region, the water channels, and the surrounding environment greatly assist her in reaching her goals.
Ashani Ssavinda Ranathunga
Her efforts in converting industrial waste into man-made soil to enrich the ground make her stand out. Her approach to generating productivity from waste, making it environmentally friendly and usable, has made her worthy of the award. Presently, she is a lecturer at the Department of Civil Engineering (University of Moratuwa) and a research associate at Deep Earth Energy Laboratory (Monash University).
Dr Ranathunga is an Associate Member of the Institute of Engineers (Sri Lanka)
She has got everything from carbon dioxide capture, improved extraction of methane from coal beds, and geothermal power to eco-friendly wellbore materials, ground reinforcement for soft terrains, and hydraulic fracturing. She secured numerous accolades (Outstanding Research Performance – Merit Award, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka) and publications.
She is an Associate Member of the Institute of Engineers (Sri Lanka), a member of the International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, the Society of Petroleum Engineers, and the Sri Lankan Geotechnical Society.
Dr Ranathunga expressed, “This award recognizes my contribution to the field of geo-environmental engineering and encourages me to follow my passion and inspire young women in developing countries to take the initiative to work for the advancement of science, irrespective of their circumstances,”
Flor de Mayo Gonzalez Miranda
Dr. González Miranda is an Engineering Sciences major whose research revolves around finding ways a variety of grass reduces landscape occurrence in the vulnerable areas of Guatemala. Her research employs several techniques, such as soil tests and X-ray diffraction. Understanding the grass’s physical and mechanical aspects and properties and connecting it to climate change is an impressive triumph.
Dr. González Miranda is an Engineering Sciences major
She expressed her gratitude for receiving the award, saying, “This award allows me to say that all living organisms are a system that must follow its natural evolution. It also gives me back my voice to tell politicians that corruption takes away human development and pushes the great masses to emigrate. It expresses my urgency to legislate on measures to protect the environment: that these laws are not dead words.”
We must have perseverance and, above all, confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted with something, and that thing must be attained – Marie Curie
During the last two decades, outworking gave way to outsmarting. And now, with more sophisticated tools and methods, things are shifting again. Super-learning skills can make the difference between adapting to an unexpected event or succumbing to it using static and stale approaches. It can turn a limiting career into an infinite one. And it can make or break an entire organization, especially in the face of change.
As the Zen monk and Shunryū Suzuki said: “In the beginner’s mind, there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s, there are few.” In a workplace and world of constant unpredictability, the ability to imagine options is key. Subject matter expertise can still be essential, but only if it goes hand-in-hand with the ability to learn, unlearn, and adapt.
Sania Alam is an education specialist and a businesswoman. She’s CEO of the Futuristic Learning Institute and head of the US National Memory Sports Council and the Pakistan National Memory Sports Council. Born in Pakistan, Alam migrated to the US with her family at a very young age.
For her groundbreaking work in education and super-learning, Alam was awarded the esteemed “Brain of the Year 2023/2024” award by the UK organisation Brain Trust. This recognition places her in the company of luminaries such as Professor Stephen Hawking, astronaut Senator John Glenn, former world chess champion Garry Kasparov and Eugene Roddenberry, the inventor of Star Trek.
Additionally, Alam received the Youth Excellence Award in 2022 from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. In 2021, she was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award from US President Joe Biden and her contributions were recognized by being named in the Pakistani Foreign Minister’s Honours List. She’s also a member of the Prime Minister of Pakistan’s National Youth Council for Youth in policymaking.
Below are a few excerpts from her recent conversation with our Chief Editor, Saadeqa Khan.
Saadeqa: Let us know about your family background and childhood days.
Sania Alam: I am of Pakistani origin; I migrated to the USA when I was very young with my parents and two siblings. My father became a victim of hate crimes against Muslims after 9/11. He was shot and stabbed at his workplace, leaving our family in a severe financial crisis. During this challenging time, a non-profit organization, Express Care, helped the family recover. And this is where life flipped upside down for the better.
Sania Alam was featured on the cover page of Brands Magazine. Photo Futuristic Learning
Saadeqa: Who inspired you to an off-beat career as an educational specialist? What was the motivation behind founding your institution, Futuristic Learning?
Sania Alam: My journey into this distinctive career was guided by my Ustaad, who introduced me to SuperLearning techniques during childhood. He guided my parents to opt for homeschooling. One of the techniques he taught me was the speed reading technique, which I applied to my high school education. Remarkably, I completed my four-year high school curriculum within a year, achieving high school graduation at the age of 14, for which I gave 106 exams spanning various subjects.
My respected Ustaad shared his vision with me to provide such super-learning techniques to others. I then embarked on a global travel journey to learn directly from renowned Super-Learning and Mental Literacy experts, including luminaries like Tony Buzan, the creator of the Mind Mapping technique, and Dominic O’Brien, an eight-time World Memory Champion.
Witnessing the significant gaps in traditional education systems and the struggle of individuals to adapt to contemporary demands motivated me to establish my institute, Futuristic Learning. The vision was to create a platform empowering individuals with the skills necessary for excelling in the 21st century. This platform harnesses the astounding potential of the human brain to uplift individuals, nations, and the world at large
In the near future, we aim to have our own education system in which 12 years of education can be completed in around three years using super-learning.
Recent Milestone: I am proud to share that I recently had the privilege of training 1,000 officers and cadets at the prestigious Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul. It was an enriching experience to contribute to developing these future leaders.
Extraordinary Achievements: The impact of our courses has been profound, resulting in my students becoming World Memory Champions, World Mind Mapping Champions, and World Speed Reading Champions. Furthermore, my students hold an impressive total of 5 Guinness World Records, all within the realm of memory enhancement.
Witnessing the significant gaps in traditional education systems and the struggle of individuals to adapt to contemporary demands motivated me to establish my institute, Futuristic Learning.
Saadeqa: Have you ever encountered obstacles in your personal and professional life? How do you deal with such situations?
Sania Alam: Challenges are an inherent part of any journey. The distinction lies in how one approaches and overcomes them. One of the most significant challenges I faced was spreading awareness about the importance of super-learning within educational systems.
Convincing authorities that Memory Training, Speed Reading, Mind Mapping, and Stress Management constitute the four pillars of learning— essential for fostering adaptable and forward-thinking individuals—is an ongoing endeavour. Still working on getting these valuable skills adopted as part of the standard educational curriculums.
Sania Alam takes part in the championship as an International Arbiter (Judge). Photo Futuristic Learning
Saadeqa: Let us know about the significance of super learning in today’s age. How does it help youngsters in career growth, especially in business?
Sania Alam: Super-learning, characterized by rapid and efficient knowledge acquisition, holds immense significance in our swiftly evolving world. This skill equips youngsters to keep pace and surge ahead in the face of continuous change and advancement. By embracing super learning techniques, students can save precious time, enhance their intellectual prowess, complete their education more efficiently, and minimize struggles associated with rote learning.
Embracing the practice of asking questions becomes a powerful catalyst for breaking free from these conventional norms. ~Sania Alam
In the context of business, the value of super learning becomes even more evident. This skill becomes indispensable for individuals aiming to excel in an environment defined by dynamic market trends and ever-evolving demands. Rapidly acquiring new skills and the ability to creatively solve complex problems empowers professionals to make informed decisions confidently.
By consistently upgrading their expertise and knowledge, super learners hold a distinctive competitive edge, positioning them as invaluable contributors to the growth and success of any organization. In essence, super-learning transforms individuals into adaptable and forward-thinking assets ready to navigate the complexities of the modern business landscape.
Saadeqa: Pakistan’s educational system sticks to decade-old stereotypes, with little to no scope for questioning and reasoning. How do Questions help in the learning process?
Sania Alam: It’s evident that Pakistan’s educational system often adheres to long-standing stereotypes, where students are expected to absorb information without much room for inquiry and critical examination. In this environment, students are essentially subjected to a passive form of learning, where they unquestioningly accept information, irrespective of its accuracy or relevance in today’s age and time. This approach can inadvertently hinder their ability to discern and evaluate information critically.
Embracing the practice of asking questions becomes a powerful catalyst for breaking free from these conventional norms. It fosters curiosity and nurtures essential skills like critical thinking and cultivating a culture of inquiry. By encouraging students to question, the educational system empowers them to embark on a journey of exploration, experimentation, and independent discovery. This approach not only moulds independent thinkers but also nurtures creative problem solvers, both of which are qualities highly sought after in today’s rapidly evolving world.
Sania giving a speech at Rotary & Rotaract Club of Karachi Kolachi. Image credits: Futuristic Learning
This approach instils in them the confidence to make statements like “Stop, please explain how this is”, fostering a more engaging and interactive learning experience.
To fellow women in business: If you have an idea, grab it and run with it. It could be the next billion-dollar idea that can change the world for the better.
Saadeqa: Super-learning is generally known as efficient, continuous, and rapid learning skills. Would you like to elaborate on the concept for the public?
Sania Alam: Imagine the potential of learning faster, enhancing your thinking capacity, effortlessly retaining information, and reading at lightning speed. These skills save time and energy and enable you to pursue your passions more effectively. Super-learning courses like Mind Mapping, Memory Skills, and Speed Reading unlock your brain’s inherent capabilities.
They teach you to organize information, solve problems, generate creative ideas, memorize seamlessly, and read at a remarkable pace of over 1,000 words per minute. You can achieve remarkable outcomes by harnessing your brain’s potential, which is precisely what our Super-Learning courses offer.
Saadeqa: What is the difference between the knowledge-first approach and the learning-first approach?
Sania Alam: The knowledge-first approach and the learning-first approach are two contrasting educational philosophies that shape the way we educate. The knowledge-first approach prioritizes the conveyance of facts and concepts, often through methods like rote memorization. On the other hand, the learning-first approach is centred around equipping learners with the tools and techniques to engage in self-driven learning. This approach shifts from mere accumulation of information to cultivating essential skills that fuel intellectual growth.
This approach shifts from mere accumulation of information to cultivating essential skills that fuel intellectual growth.
The learning-first approach goes beyond transmitting facts; it encourages students to delve deeper into subjects, encouraging critical thinking, problem-solving, and the ability to synthesize and apply information in diverse contexts. This approach recognizes that the true value of education lies not just in what is taught but in how students can adapt, analyze, and innovate based on their understanding.
In my view, the learning-first approach transforms students into active participants in their educational journey, enabling them to become lifelong learners with the capacity to navigate the complexities of the modern world.
Saadeqa: What are mind mapping courses, and what are the objectives behind initiating such courses in Pakistan?
Sania Alam: Mind Mapping is one of our many courses. It is a versatile visual learning tool that enhances productivity and performance. It excels in managing, organizing, structuring, and recalling extensive information, making it invaluable in our information-driven era. This tool benefits students and corporate executives alike, aiding them in thriving amidst rapid change. Probably the most powerful skill one should have is learning to Mind Map.
Ongoing Endeavors: In addition to the aforementioned achievements, I annually have the honour of training 400 senior officers at the Pakistan Army’s Command and Staff College. Furthermore, I extend my expertise to large corporate entities such as Engro Fertilizers and Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company, enriching their higher management’s learning and development strategies.
Saadeqa: As a leading businesswoman, what would you like to advise fellow women about developing their learning strategy for success?
Sania: To fellow women in business: If you have an idea, grab it and run with it. It could be the next billion-dollar idea that can improve the world. So, believe in yourself and your capabilities. Set clear objectives, persevere through challenges, invest in continuous learning, and seek the mentorship of a Ustaad or an expert. And remember, every setback presents an opportunity for growth, so don’t stop growing.
To Pakistani girls in science: You have boundless potential— ignore stereotypes, pursue your passion, and trust your capabilities. Your contributions are vital for our nation and the world’s progress.
