Chiang Mai Journal of Science

Paper Type 

Title 

Author 

Email 

I consider myself fortunate to have been involved in many activities in my career as a scientist, including : Teaching, Research, Educational Research, Administration, Peer Review, Journal Editing, Organizing Conferences, and International Activities. There are few careers that allow you to do what you enjoy and enjoy what you do, like science does. Teaching and research may be considered as the core activities of a university lecturer. All of us at university teach students, whether it be at undergraduate or graduate level. Some departments undoubtedly have a heavy teaching load, and much of a staff memberís time may be taken up with teaching, since this involves not only giving lectures and laboratory supervision but also preparations for teaching and marking of reports and examinations. So, teaching and research are often regarded as competing activities, but in fact they should reinforce each other. Teaching involves the dissemination of knowledge and the development of understanding, attitudes and skills in the student. However, research is the gathering of new knowledge and, as such, can provide the knowledge for teachers to use in future. In addition, the process of research itself is an excellent way of teaching students, especially at graduate level, since it stimulates the student to analyze and collate information, plan experiments and be creative. Research also keeps staff upto-date, brings new ideas, and keeps the mind active, all of which can enhance the studentís learning experience. Research also increases the knowledge base of the world, which enables the human race to advance. But research should be of international quality, and publication in international journals assures high quality and worldwide accessibility. One can also do research on teaching. Years ago, Dr. Bhinyo Panijpan and I found that our M.Sc. graduates, after becoming staff at provincial universities, often stopped doing research due to a lack of equipment. So we considered what research could be done with simple equipment, but could be published at international level. One area was the design of new laboratory experiments for students that required little or no equipment

[1]. Other aspects included writing simple explanations for phenomena which were so new that they had not yet reached the            
       textbooks
[2], or discussing conceptual errors common to several textbooks
[3]. We managed to publish several papers in educational journals such as Journal of Chemical Education,  Biochemical Education, or in
      the high impact journal, Trends in Biochemical Sciences. Later work reviewed the status of biochemistry and the content of                 biochemistry courses in Thailand
[4]. Our work was a hobby and, in retrospect, we were amateurs, but the fact that we could publish in good journals shows that
       where there is a will to do research, there is a way to succeed.

I have also played various administrative roles, such as Head of Department, Associate Dean of the Faculty of Science, and VicePresident for International Relations at Mahidol University. This has undoubtedly taken time from research and teaching, but it has also provided opportunities to assume academic leadership, develop managerial skills, and understand how universities work. However, I always continued to teach and do research at the same time as administration, since it is very difficult to revive research once you have stopped. One activity that all scientists engage in is peer review, which may be in the form of reviews of papers submitted for publication, or evaluations of grant applications and academic positions. Knowledgeable, unbiased and timely evaluation by peers forms the central basis of the scientific system, not just in Thailand but throughout the world. This is often a tedious and time-consuming duty, but each must try to help out, because if people refuse to make peer reviews, the scientific system would just break down. Many scientists are also involved with scientific societies. Interaction between scientists is essential, since it creates a synergy of ideas to propel scientific advancement. I was involved with the Biochemical Section of the Science Society of Thailand, as Chairman between 1982 and 1984, and as an Adviser ever since. In addition, I was Editor of the Journal of the Science Society of Thailand from 1985 to 1987 and of the renamed journal ScienceAsia from 2001 to the present time. This journal has just celebrated thirty years of operation [5], and is considered by the Thailand Research Fund and the National Science and  Technology Development Agency as an international journal published in Thailand. ScienceAsia is covered by various international databases, such as PubMed and CAPlus, and is being considered for inclusion by the Science Citation Index. However, the journal also accepts papers in niche areas of particular relevance to Thailand, which help us to understand local problems, but do not provide sufficient novel concepts to be publishable in overseas journals, particularly those with high impact factors. ScienceAsia has become more international and presently some 15-20% of papers have overseas corresponding authors [5]. Equally gratifying is that, in the last two years, papers have been submitted by corresponding authors from 20 universities throughout Thailand, as well as from 4 government ministries and agencies [5]. Such wide acceptance by the academic community is only possible because the journal is published by an independent organization, rather than being affiliated to a particular university. Finally, the international aspects of science are something that I value highly. For this reason, I have been involved in several international organizations which promote cooperation between scientists of different nations. Most notably, I served as President of the Federation of Asian and Oceanian Biochemists (FAOB) between 1990 and 1992 [6], which provided me with much experience in interacting with individuals and societies from 17 territories. In addition, I have played various roles in other organizations, such as the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB), the Third World Academy of Science (TWAS), the Asia-Pacific International Molecular Biology Network (AIMBN), and the Asian-Oceanian Human Proteome Organization (AOHUPO).
International organizations allow scientists throughout the world or from particular regions to interact and form networks. They engage in various activities, including arranging international meetings, such as congresses, symposia, and workshops, where members from different countries gather to exchange their experience and expertise. I was involved in organizing three such international meetings and realize how important they are for opening up our local science to the international community as well as in developing contacts for research and other cooperation. Another goal shared by most organizations is the encouragement and development of young scientists who are the future of each and every nation, for example by providing Travel Fellowships [7]. This is particularly important in Thailand, since we still have too few researchers compared to many other countries [8]. But more than that, international cooperation provides opportunities to make friendships that transcend the barriers of nationality, race, culture, religion and politics. It helps us to understand how, despite such differences, science brings us all together, because we share common goals in pursuing knowledge for the benefit of mankind. Finally, the astute reader will notice that I have referenced some of my papers in this article. This is to make the point that, as scientists, we must publish in peer-reviewed journals, especially at international level, because this is the only way to show our achievements in research. The articles listed here indicate that many other academic activities, in addition to research, can lead to publications in international journals, some with impact factors as high as 7.0 or even 15.0. I am fortunate to have been involved in such varied academic activities. Science has been fun for me, and I hope that you will make it fun for yourself too.

REFERENCES
[1] Svasti J., A Simple Laboratory Experiment in Biochemistry : The Activation and Inactivation of Sulphydryl and Aspartate Proteases, Biochem. Educ., 1980; 8: 11-15.
[2] Svasti J., Automated Amino Acid Analysis Comes of Age : But Textbooks Errors Persist, Trends in Biochem. Sci., 1980;  5 (January): VIII- IX.
[3] Svasti J. and Panijpan B., SDS-Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis : A Simple Explanation of Why It Works, J. Chem. Educ., 1977; 54: 560-562.
[4] Svasti J. and Surarit R., Biochemical Education in Thailand: Past, Present and Future, Biochem. Educ., 1997; 19: 129-135.
[5] Svasti J., Thirty Years of ScienceAsia : Journal of the Science and Society of Thailand, ScienceAsia, 2005; 31: 1-3.
[6] Svasti J., Federation of Asian and Oceanian Biochemists : Where Now After Twenty Years?, Trends in Biochem. Sci., 1992; 17: 53- 55.
[7] Svasti J., My Experience as an IUB Travel Fellow, IUBMB Life, 2005(in press).
[8] Svasti J., Bioscience and Its Impact on Developing Countries : A Thai Perspective, EMBO Rep., 2001; 2: 648-650.

Start & End Page 

Received Date 

Revised Date 

Accepted Date 

Full Text 

Keyword 

Volume 

DOI 

SDGs