Taipei, Nov. 22 (CNA) A visiting Russian scientist on Wednesday said the founding of the Tang Prize was "timely," as it honors scientists who make significant contributions in the fields of practical science and engineering.
"Compared with the Nobel Prize that has supported basic science for decades, the Tang Prize focuses more on honoring scientists that make practical contributions in technology and engineering," Russia International Academy of Engineering (IAE) President Boris Vladimirovich Gusev said at a press event in Taipei.
The establishment of the Tang Prize in 2012 is thus seen as "timely," recognizing the contributions of many scientists, he added.
Although the biennial Tang Prize has been awarded only twice since it was established, it is gradually gaining an international reputation, Gusev said.
In particular, it shows "great vision" in honoring those who make contributions in sustainable development, he said.
The Tang Prize (唐獎), established by Samuel Yin (尹衍樑), chairman of the Ruentex Financial Group, is a set of biennial international awards bestowed in four fields, namely sustainable development, biopharmaceutical science, Sinology, and rule of law.
Nomination and selection are conducted by an independent selection committee, with input from Academia Sinica, Taiwan's top research institution.
Gusev, a member of the Tang Prize international advisory board, is in Taiwan for the first ever Taiwan-Russia technology transfer workshop, which was held Wednesday to introduce advanced Russian technology to Taiwanese academics and businesses interested in seeking cooperation.
The event was organized by the Taiwan Chapter of the IAE, which was started in 2009 and had mostly engineers as its founding members.
Since then, it has expanded to include scientists from other fields, Gusev said, adding that the cooperation over the past years has yielded results, especially in the field of green energy.
He said the IAE and several Taiwanese professors have jointly published research papers, which will be used by other countries as a basis for future studies.
Praising the standard of Taiwan's technology, Gusev said that in the future, exchanges between younger generations of scientists from Russia and Taiwan will be helpful to both countries.
(By Joseph Yeh)
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