BioVision Alexandria Conference Opens at the Library
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Biotechnology starts at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina
World class social and scientific leaders started an international conference on biotechnology at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina today to thrash out controversial issues related to the implications of the life science revolution in today"s world. The BioVision Alexandria 2004 Conference was opened by Egyptian Prime Minister Atef Ebeid who appealed to the global scientific community to deliver applicable solutions for facing future challenges in fields of biotechnology. In his statement before the conference Dr. Ebeid outlined his main concerns as the issues of bio- safety, success in establishing partnerships between universities, farmers and industries as well as success in managing national programs for the transfer of biotechnology.
The inauguration session also included speeches by Ibrahim Badran, Former Minister of Health in Egypt, Mohamed Hassan, Executive Director of the Third World Academy of Sciences, as well as Koji Omi, Former Minister for Science and Technology Policy in Japan.
The first day of the conference was "Nobel Laureates Day", hosting four chemistry Nobel laureates from France, Egypt, Japan and the U.S.A. Under the title "Highlights of the Biochemical Revolution", French Nobel laureate Jean-Marie Lehn talked about "Supra-molecular Chemistry: Some Contributions to Life Sciences". Ahmed Zewail, Nobel laureate in Chemistry 1999, talked about "BioVision at the Interface".
"The New Life Sciences: Implication in Civil Society" was the theme under which Nobel laureate Ryoji Noyori gave a presentation entitled "Asymmetric Catalysis: Roles in Biomedical Science and Technology". Sherwood Rowland, Nobel laureate in Chemistry 1995, discussed "The Changing Atmosphere in 2004".
A round-table discussion on Nobel views and perceptions took place in the afternoon. The discussion was moderated by Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.