The Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (SB RAS) voted on September 12 to confer an honorary doctorate on Dr. Samuel Yin, chairman of the Ruentex Group. It is the highest honor the SB RAS bestows on non-Russian nationals of notable achievements, and it was the first time they presented this award to technology experts from Asia.
Dr. Yin has long been committed to promoting research on construction technology. He has won international recognition for his innovations in systematic precast concrete technology and in the construction of seismic resistant & isolated buildings. In addition, he has made great contributions to the sustainability of the planet in the areas of energy efficient buildings, circular economy, and in terms of using green energy for cement production, and of reducing the amount of cement and steels required to improve the seismic capacity of a structure. This high honor came in the form of the SB RAS’s appreciation for the significant differences Dr. Yin’s has made to earthquake prevention and safety.
Apart from Dr. Yin, four outstanding scholars with different expertise also received an honorary doctoral degree from the SB RAS: Prof. Badarchiin Biaambaa (agricultural science), academician of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Vladimir Vitalievich Azarenko (agricultural science), academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Prof. Henrikh Fyolk (physics) from Germany, and Miao Yijun (mechanics), distinguished professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan.
Set up by the government, the RAS is a huge institute headquartered in Moscow, with three branches operating independently in different locations: the Siberian Branch, the Far East Branch and the Ural Branch. Founded in 1957, the administrative center of the Siberian Branch is situated in Novosibirsk and comprises 9 science centers, 75 research organizations and nearly 9,000 researchers. To increase the collaborations on technological research between Taiwan and Siberia, in 2007, the Ministry of Science and Technology in Taiwan signed a contract with the Siberia Branch to support bilateral research projects and further interactions between both sides.
An engineering wizard with more than 500 patents under his belt, Dr. Yin is not only a successful entrepreneur in Taiwan, but also an altruistic philanthropist and educator. He founded the Tang Prize Foundation in 2012 to foreground the wisdom needed in order to tackle issues confronting humanity in the 21st century. The prize consists of four award categories, namely Sustainable Development, Biopharmaceutical Science, Sinology and Rule of Law, with the prize money of NT$50 million awarded to winners in each category. Established in Taiwan and inaugurated in 2014, the Tang Prize is aimed to have a global reach, encouraging the world's top talents to work together for the betterment of human civilization. Awarded biannually, the prizes have been accepted by 19 winners from all over the world. In 2020, the fourth Tang Prize award year, the foundation will follow the standard procedure and announce the winners on a daily basis from June 18 to 21, while the Tang Prize week will ensue in September when the awards ceremony takes place on the 25.
