Naturenews by Journal Nature featured Professor V. Narry Kim as one of the"Prize Winners of the Year" on December 17.

They interviewed Robert Langer of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge as this year's winner of the most prizes and added a few more researchers including Professor Kim. Kim was interviewed as the co-winner of the L'Oreal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science, for her work on microRNAs.

The interviews are published as follows:

How did you react when you learned that you had won?
I was in my pyjamas pillow-fighting with my kids when I got a phone call from Professor [G?nter] Blobel, who delivered me the news in a sober but delightful voice. It was the most unexpected phone call that I've ever got.

What does winning the prize say about women researchers in the Asia-Pacific region?
I heard from numerous young students, particularly female students, that they were very much encouraged. In many countries in the Asia-Pacific region, few women make it to independent positions, let alone leadership positions. I have witnessed so many young talents wasted. I hope that my winning the prize will help the Asian-Pacific scientific community to realize that we cannot afford to lose half the talents any longer.

What can be done to help?
The Korean government has made significant efforts to increase the number of women scientists over the past ten years, by urging research institutions to hire more women scientists and allocating separate funding for women researchers. These initiatives have been helpful, but are not sufficient and should be expanded further.

Dec. 29, 2008
SNU PR Office