contents and events... · contents etpl keepsakes pg 52 - 53 scholarship keepsakes pg 54 - 57...

Contents

ETPL keepsakes

Pg 52 - 53

Scholarship

keepsakes

Pg 54 - 57

Corporate

keepsakes

Pg 58 - 59

The Scrapbook

Youth Science

keepsakes

Pg 40 - 43

BMRC keepsakes

Pg 44 - 47

SERC keepsakes

Pg 48 - 51

The Board and

More

A*STAR Board

of Directors

Pg 60 - 61

Biomedical

Sciences

International

Advisory Council

Pg 62 - 63

A*STAR Graduate

Academy

International

Advisory Panel

Pg 64 - 65

About SERC

A*STAR's Science &

Engineering Research

Council

Sam sets forth and

relates to her Kind

of Life

Pg 22 - 31

About Home and

Heart

Tian's Sunday nights

thinking of Home...

Pg 32 - 35

Sam shows and tells

what Home means...

Pg 36 - 39

A*STAR Senior

Management

Pg 66

Directors of

A*STAR's

Research

Institutes

Pg 67

2003-04

Calendar

Memories...

Pg 68 - 77

Special Thanks

It’s been real fun,

Scholars!

Pg 78

Financials

Financial

Statements

Pg 79 - 100

The Journals

About A*STAR's

Chairman

I'm me, says Tian

Pg 4 - 7

Sam says,

"Don't mess

with me!"

Pg 8 - 11

About BMRC

A*STAR's Biomedical

Research Council

Tian keeps track

of his Kind of Life,

scanning the future

Pg 12 - 21

Introduction

Getting to Know You

... and meeting

Sam and Tian

pg 2 - 3

2

Introduction

Getting to Know You,Getting to Know All About You…

ARE you humming that ever-engaging tune? Are you also wondering whywe say “Getting to know you” the reader? Aren’t you supposed to be gettingto know about us? After all, this is A*STAR’s annual report for the financialyear from April 01 2003 to March 31 2004.

Yes, of course, we are going to tell you about A*STAR. To make it morepersonal, we will be telling you about our activities and aspirations throughthe journals of two A*STAR Scholars.

Meet SAM , an Overseas PhD Scholar researching Multimedia Forensicsat Columbia University, New York. Sam is short for Samantha. She hasher own views about what A*STAR Chairman Philip Yeo has been saying:“Woman scientists in Singapore are an advantaged group!” What does sheplan to do about that assertion? Research it, naturally.

Also meet TIAN . (No “Tian, Tian lye” wisecracks, please, because he’s areally cool dude.) He is a National Science Scholar gearing up for hisMaster of Engineering so that he can go on to do a biomedical PhD. Nokidding, a trained engineer morphing into a biomedical scientist. Hisresearch area will be Tissue Engineering, working with skin stem cells.

Are these two guys for real? Mainly “Yes!” with a bit of “No”. They arecomposite characters formulated for the purpose of getting real-lifeinformation across in an appealing manner. But they are based on realpeople, on seven living A*STAR Scholars whose identities will be revealedin page 78.

So read this Yearbook in the same mode in which you would watch adocu-drama. It’s reality told with a bit of dramatic licence. Then, to checkon reality and get more details, visit A*STAR’s website: www.a-star.edu.sg.After getting to know all about us, you may want to apply for an A*STARScholarship. Then we will get to know about you!

SAMA*STAR’s Science &Engineering ResearchCouncil Scholar

3

T IANA*STAR’s

Biomedical Research

Council Scholar

Going for the "ransom note" look. The style to use if

ever I need to send a love note. Not so mushy!

QUOTES

from Chairman

Philip Yeo

“I am a 50% nationalist and 50% internationalist.Must develop and nurture our 50% of Singaporetalent.”

“We have about 2,000 scientists, most of themnon-Singaporean. Barely 400 are Singaporean.Eventually we want 2,500, half Singaporean, halfinternational, and 500 of the total being graduatestudents in our labs. The international scientistsshould be of all colours, from different countries.Only their grey matter is the same colour. Rightnow, with NSS* and OGS* and AGS*, we havemore than 480 Scholars. We’re on track towardshaving about 1,000 Singaporean PhDs by 2010.In addition to our Scholars, there are manystudents who study on Papa and MamaScholarships. So there are enough Singaporekids doing Science. Those who are in NUS* andNTU* can come to us to do their PhD when theygraduate. We have a large-enough talent pool.Getting 1,000 Singaporean PhDs is no problem.”

(*NSS: National Science Scholarships. OGS: OverseasGraduate Scholarships. AGS: A*STAR Graduate Scholarships.NUS: National University of Singapore. NTU: NanyangTechnological University.)

4

TIA

N

I’m me, man!

I want my place

in Biopolis. Not only because

I’m Singaporean, but also

because I’ll make a great

scientist. Competition from

non-Singaporeans?

No worries!

MORE from

the Chairman

Wah lau, don’t

play, play!!!

“In the 2003 A-level batch are many kids with four As, A for

General Paper and three S-papers with distinction. Those who

want to do the PhD wouldn’t want to go into banking or the

Admin Service. They are a different species. For them and

their parents, our Scholarships are very prestigious, the terms

very attractive. We are giving them an eight-year scholarship

with a six-year bond. Most of the other scholars here do three

years for their Bachelor’s, some do one year more for the

Master’s, and still have a six-year bond. This year (2004) we

have 70 kids taking up BS-PhD scholarships under NSS.

Fourteen other talented young people will do the OGS and

nine others the International Fellowship. In addition, 61 are

taking up the AGS. That’s a total of 154 scholars!

“We’ll publish the Chairman’s Honours List every year. It will

be extended. The kids who do well should be recognised. I

was told by some visiting UK Parliamentarians at our Biopolis

that I was promoting elitism. My response: every society needs

an elite, like every train needs a locomotive. The key is to

make sure that the elite feels a sense of responsibility towards

the rest. Endowed with better innate capabilities, you have a

responsibility. And we’re funding you. You have a responsibility

to take care of the rest of society. When the elite is selfish

and self-centred, that’s the worry. So we need to ensure that

our Scholars have a sense of responsibility.”

“Our NSS are of the best quality. That’s why we highlight the

Chairman’s Honours List. Those on the List have a GPA (Grade

Point Average) of 4.0. They are our key Scholars. We want to

focus on such people and grow the group. A GPA of 3.8 is a

very high standard. Most US graduate schools take a GPA of

3.6. We set a high benchmark. Don’t forget, we’re paying a

stipend during their PhD years and also giving them a job

afterwards. So we want to make sure our Scholars are the

best. We tell Scholars who are below GPA 3.6: ‘Sorry,

no PhD’.”

Gee, what a heavy

responsibility!

5

6

From: [email protected]

Subject: de man’s hi standards!

Date:12 May 2004 12:13:14 GMT+08:00

To:[email protected]

Hey, Sam!

Awake? Here in the eastern US of A, I still can’t get used to this ‘sg’ server’s

Singapore time. Afternoon back home, not yet midnight here. Too early for

bed…

Never mind that. Have you been reading all those quotes from A*STAR’s

Chairman? On the website. If you have, you would have noticed that he

keeps saying “the key is talent” and “we need a diversity of talent”. He

seems obsessed that way.

He also states more than once that high standards have been set for A*

Scholars. I remember being wowed by the NSS propaganda, so I joined

the queue. Got in. Happy, cool and all that! Otherwise might never have

met you, Sam. : )

Chairman says: “Scholars who are below GPA 3.6: ‘Sorry, no PhD’.” Gotta

make sure I’m ahead in the queue.

Good night. tian


Subject: Re: de man’s hi standards!

Date: 12 May 2004 12:46:53 GMT+08:00


_______________________________________________________

Tian... Here you don’t want to say “join the queue”,

unless you want to come across real geeky. Say “join

the line”…

To get to go on to PhD, it’s not just a matter of physically

rushing to the head of the line. Being first with an

application to the Scholarship guys don’t count.Sure, I’ve been reading the Chairman. Have also been

listening to him on various occasions. Take note of

what he says. He’s got this quirky, jerky manner of

speech. But he’s serious! Check out more of his

thoughts (attachment). Be a research leader, Tian!

Good night… SamAttachment:

7

A*Chairman, he

says. . .

On Diversity of Talent: “We have to compete, so we makeSingapore the Global Talent Hub in Asia that is English-speaking.Our competitors are the USA, UK, Canada, Australia/New Zealand.When we recruit foreign scientists, diversity of talent is veryimportant. Search the whole world for English-speaking peopleinterested in coming here. We should not care whether they arefrom Ukraine or Canada or Latvia. But no monolingual Mandarin,Tamil, Hindi. I visited a lab at Scripps Research Institute in LaJolla, California. The Professor is Greek Cypriot. His lab hasAustralians, Germans, Koreans, Japanese, Indians, Chinese,Czech. It’s totally international.”

On Assimilation of Talent: “Assimilation starts when they areyoung. I asked this girl who came from Swatow and joined oneof our schools in Sec 3: ‘How was your first year in Singapore?’‘I had a tough time, my English was poor,’ she said. Now she hasscored A for GP. There is a boy who volunteered for NationalService and became an infantry officer. The key for us is to bringin assimilable people. So our labs must be diversified in theirscientific talent and must also be English-speaking.”

A Winning Organisation!

On Winning over the Winners: “The brightest young people wantto join a winning organisation. Once you have a reputation forbeing good, people will join you. It’s more than pay. It’s the factthat you’re among the best. Why do top UK and US universitiesattract excellent students? Not because those universities givemore pay or more allowances, but because the bright youngstersknow they can be among the best in their domains. The key istalent. Plus the ability to train the talented. I tell our talent: ‘I’minterviewing you, because I want you to be a future researchleader. I’m not giving you a scholarship so that you can be a test-tube cleaner’. I know they can’t all be leaders, but the majoritywill be leaders.”

SAM

8Must ch

eck this out!

Would love to have

the Chairman

proven 100% accu

rate. . .

A* Chairman Philip Y

eo, he says

“When our Scholars finish their PhD/postdoc, they’re 28, 29. You

ask them to get married and have their first baby at 30? That’s

crazy! Childcare benefits are given to women up to age 30; they

should be given up to at least 35. If you are having a child after

35, there are worries about Down’s syndrome. I’m interested in

this predicament, because half our Scholars are female. I have to

fight for them. Singapore has a good gene pool. But Singaporeans

are getting married later. We have to find other ways of enlarging

and diversifying our gene pool.

“Some 20% of our NSS are foreign students. They have studied in

Singapore schools and are Permanent Residents who want to

become Singaporeans. A girl I interviewed – she‘s from Swatow –

speaks perfect Teochew, but now her English is typically

Singaporean. She scored all As and got accepted by the top schools

in the US. These are the bright kids we want to attract to our

secondary schools. They will enlarge our talent pool. In sufficient

numbers, they will make up for the shortfall in the number of

Singaporean babies.”

“In Singapore, the girls and women are more than equal. They

don’t have to do National Service. That means they finish their

education ahead of the men. The females get scholarships. Where

else in Asia do females have such advantages? In some Asian

countries, there are very few woman scientists. Woman lab

technicians, yes, many.”

9

There they go again. . .- Girls wanna have funand an inspiring career.Marriage can wait, man. . .

More power to her!

Don’t you agree,

Chairman?

Looking forward to that,Chairman. . .

“When I meet woman scientists overseas, non-Singaporeans, I emphasise thisto them: ‘Come and do your research in Singapore. If you have children, you canemploy a maid whose pay is subsidised by tax deductions.’ Where else can theyenjoy that?”

“I’m making efforts to include more ladies on our top panel of Scientific Advisers.So far there are two women in Singapore’s Biomedical Sciences InternationalAdvisory Council (IAC). We’re adding one more, making it three. Eventuallyat least one-third of the IAC members should be woman scientists. They arerole models for our female Scholars.”

“I tell our female Scholars: ‘You’ll be away for eight years.

I don’t care who you come back with — pink, blue, yellow,

green. Just make sure that he’s got a brain. As far as I’m

concerned, if our girls come back with foreign spouses who

are as smart as they are, why not?”

“Now which scholarship interviewer would be concerned with suchan issue? It’s a real concern for me. Have a career and great science,of course. But also have a life outside the lab! A few of the girls I wasinterviewing were horrified. Why wasn’t I asking about grades? Thoseissues have been taken care of elsewhere in the selection process.I’m more interested in the critical intangibles, the stuff of character.The other day I was asking three girls in separate interviews whatkind of man would interest them. One said she would like someonekeen on the Sciences. The second one said she would be too busystudying. The third one said it did not matter what he was like, ‘I’llretrain the guy!’ She actually said that!”


Subject: alert, alert, foreign postdocs!

Date: 14 May 2004 10:13:14 GMT+08:00


Hey, Sam!

You’re doing your PhD and then your postdoc. Have you seen A*STAR’s

international flyer welcoming foreign Postdoctoral Fellows to Singapore?

See attachment if you haven’t. Tell me what you think, OK?

Too early to wish you ‘good night’. tian

Lack of diversity is often a problem.

I ’ve learnt that now that I ’ve lived abroad. . .

10


Subject: Re: alert, alert, foreign postdocs!

Date:14 May 2004 10:31:59 GMT+08:00

To:[email protected], Tian… I have not seen the flyer. Have been expecting it,

though.

You know Chairman has this Little Book of Talent that he and his

senior guys carry with them on their overseas trips. They want to

keep in touch with us, especially you younger ones, the NSS. “Our

job is to keep in touch with our Scholars,” he said in last year’s

Yearbook. Did you see that?So they meet us whenever they’re in town. We get free food. Some

yummy, some OK only. We also get to meet fellow Scholars in the

‘neighbourhood’ we don’t normally interact with. You know, so near

and yet so far.The Chairman said at one of those meetings (words to this effect,

jotted down soon after the lunch): “We send our Scholars to many

places outside Singapore. That’s essential. The other thing I’m doing

is attracting foreign PhDs to come and work in Singapore. We offer

them work back home, our home, for two or three years as postdocs.

It’s not employment, it’s training — and networking for our own people

as well. The foreign postdocs work in our labs, together with our

people. They add to the diversity we must have.”I look forward to the continuing interaction with and

networking with good scientists from all over the world…

It’s not too early for me, so ‘good night’... Sam

11

12

From:[email protected]

Subject:the future, OUR future

Date:16 May 2004 12:41:13 GMT+08:00


Hey, Sam!

Good news from home!

Remember that shocker from Chairman Philip Yeo? He said something

like A*STAR can't guarantee us Scholars a future, or even a career.

Horrors!!! Spoilt our lunch with him. It's all up to us, the man said. But

what's my future, man? I wanna know. Your future, too, Sam!

See attachment for the good news. :) Good night. tian

Pages from the journalof Tian, A*STAR’sBiomedical ResearchCouncil Scholar

Mum’s

favo

urite s

ong

Que s

era, s

era

Whateve

r will

be, w

ill be

The f

uture

’s no

t

ours

to se

e

ps Dad’s favouritestar is still Doris

Day! Doris who?

TIA

N

13

BMRC Boss says...

BMRC Executive Director, Associate Professor Kong Hwai

Loong told some journalists the other day (got transcript

from my Inside Source):

"There's a great future ahead for our Scholars. Right now we

depend a great deal on help from foreign talent. That is a

necessary thing. I support the recruitment of foreign talent

from diverse sources. It is very important to achieve Chairman's

goal of getting the 50/50 balance, pro-local, pro-foreign. We're

beginning to achieve that, slowly. With the returning Scholars,

that is definitely possible.

"What that means is that the Scholars have very valuable, very

exciting jobs waiting for them. We have a broad spectrum of

biomedical opportunities for them. The returning Scholars will

be carefully mentored. We push them along their careers as

quickly as their potential allows. And we don't just hope, we

fully expect some of them to take over the leadership at the

highest levels of the research institutes in years to come."

14


Subject:Re: the future, OUR future

Date:16 May 2004 12:57:39 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Tian...

I wasn't horrified by what the Chairman said. It was a

reality check for us. But I'm glad that you're reassured by

the news from home. I'm convinced that we have a great

future with A*, but with one proviso: barring major economic

and other disasters.Good night. Don't stay up all night again. Not good for

your health and alertness. Sam...

15

THOUGHT: Wow, we'll have our own CSI!

NOTES: 2 Big Deals @ BMRC

1. Close Encounters of the Right Kind between basic scientists and

clinician scientists.

Prof Kong said: "We can take pride in saying, with the completion of Biopolis,

that our basic science capability is quite solid now. We are very competent

in many domains of basic biomedical science. But that in itself is not the

endgame. Our endgame is to translate that into improvement of human

health. We will take full advantage of that translation process for commercial

exploitation where appropriate. Reaching out to the clinical community is

absolutely essential."

NOTES: BMRC taking three initiatives:

(1) Setting up the Centre for Molecular Medicine. Announced in October

2003. Officially launched in January 2004. CMM housed temporarily in

Biopolis. Eventually it will be moved to Kent Ridge. Its first programme:

regenerative medicine (using stem cells to replace damaged tissues).

(2) Launching the BMRC-NMRC National Grant Call on May 03 2004.

(NMRC = Health Ministry's National Medical Research Council.) First time

two Research Councils under two Ministries working together to launch

joint grant call. (The other is the Trade and Industry Ministry.) More money

for research community outside A*STAR.

(3) Launching the Clinician Scientist Investigatorship second half of 2004.

That's CSI! It will have two schemes: a Senior scheme that will pay, over

five years, the salaries of senior doctors who are also researchers; and a

Junior scheme that will give three years' support, including research money,

to up-and-coming doctor-researchers.

THOUGHT: No aliens and music from Outer Space with

this. But it sure sounds like pushing the limits!

16

THOUGHT: Ms Ong my General Paper teacher at JC would

be so proud of me now. No longer multisyllabic phobic!

2. Going into Project Omnipotent and sorting out (gulp air) Intercellular

Communication.

NOTES: Something BMRC wants to emphasise this year – a Bioimaging

Programme. To coordinate and enlarge the Bioimaging work now being done

in pockets in Singapore. Bioimaging uses advanced imaging and computational

tools to show us – visually – biomedical processes and disease states. That

visual input provides a lot of information. It allows us to make science less

deductive and more directly observational. Bioimaging has a spectrum ranging

from molecular imaging - being able to see actual molecular structures –

through a middle range which is animal imaging. Those two processes likely

to take place in Biopolis. The other end of the spectrum is clinical imaging,

done in hospitals. BMRC plans to support that through funding.

Bioimaging brings together different disciplines with total disregard for

boundaries: doctors, biomedical scientists, engineers, physical scientists and

chemists. Even astronomers, if they were available, would be useful contributors

in this effort. Why astronomers? Because of their expertise in checking out

signals in the universe. Astronomers use signal strength and computational

algorithm to decide which signal is from a planet and which is just noise.

So they are very good at sorting out all the background noises and identifying

the key target. In biomedicine we pick up a lot of mixed signals from inside

the cell and those passed between cells, but researchers and clinicians are

interested only in particular entities. Bioimaging allows us to zero in . It's in

all fields of medicine and it's omnipotent!"

17


Subject:can die one!

Date:19 May 2004 12:05:35 GMT+08:00


Hey, Sam!

Did you realise that the day of reckoning has finally dawned for the

first batch of National Science Scholars? No more dithering. No more

"maybe this, maybe that" and no more "no worries, can decide later,

lah, got time, what". It's time to make the career choice! :(

BMRC's ED sent a message to the BS-PhD pioneers who are moving

on from the Bachelor's this month to graduate school in September.

He says that it's an important milestone. I can tell you it's also a scary

fork in the road.

Prof Kong says: "On the personal level, having slogged through three

years, you have to ask yourselves whether you are prepared to go

for the PhD. My advice to you starts with the conceptual: graduate

studies are quite different from Bachelor's. For a Bachelor degree,

you attend classes in a big group, you feel a sense of belonging to

a cohort, you move together, you more or less move along with the

tide. But PhD studies are very much individualistic. It's the pursuit of

excellence in the specific domain you've chosen. Your PhD project

must address a new question that nobody has an answer to at this

time. Because you are at that pinnacle level, at that cutting-edge

level, you are by definition solitary in the pursuit. That's why it is very

important for the student to have a change in mindset, to become far

more self-motivated and very clear about the desired future."

Self-motivated: no problem. Clear about the desired future: getting

clearer, but reassurance now and then needed. I know that, from now

on, it depends a lot on just two people. Previously we had a bunch

of tutors. The two guys I will have to entrust myself to are the PhD

supervisor here and a mentor back home. The mentor, Prof Kong

says, will link the Scholar back to Biopolis. "When you are in the lab

by yourself, you may lose your bearings, wondering why you're here

in the first place," the ED says, "unless you have a good supervisor

and a good mentor." Gotta get the right ones! Or can die one.

Has it been like that for you, Sam? Good night, sweet dreams. tian

18


Subject:Re: can die one!

Date:19 May 2004 12:27:27 GMT+08:00

To:[email protected]... That's your idea of a "good night, sweet dreams" message? It's not

exactly bedtime reading, you know. OK, answering your question... Yes,

it has been as you anticipate. It's not that scary once you've hitched your

wagon to A*. It is working out very well for me.You know, the kids taking up National Science Scholarships must be aware

of the tough reality of scientific research. They must not allow themselves

to be seduced by just the glamour of those sexy A* Scholarship ads. And

don't be dazzled by success in getting the NSS, or in making it to the

Chairman's Honours List. (Really hope you make that this year, Tian!)

Don't stay up all night again. Good zzzz... Sam

I hope so, too!

19

NOTE: BIG milestones for BMRC!

The ED says: "An even bigger milestone with our Scholars is this, we're beginning

to see a few PhDs and postdoc fellows who have finished their studies overseas.

They were funded by us midway through their studies and they are beginning

to come back. Now we have a handful of them. Next year maybe two or three

dozen. After the massive exercise of sending people out, we are getting the

flowback."

THOUGHT: Prof Kong wonders whether guys like

Sam can integrate into the framework of research

at Biopolis. He calls it "the key question": how do

we bring people, who have spent a number of

years overseas, back into our cultural fabric of

Singapore and the micro-fabric of Biopolis? He says:

"So connectivity with our Scholars, meeting their

expectations is an important exercise. That is why

our Scholarship unit, the Council and A*STAR HR

have to work hand-in-hand to fully realise the

potential of our Scholars."

Feeling right royal, reading that!!!

20

THOUGHT: What would my primary school teacher say now, I wonder.

NOTE: Its time has come! 1 + 1 = 3, yes, yes, yes

NOTES: Assoc Prof Kong, BMRC Executive Director, is also A*STAR's Deputy

Managing Director (Integrative Sciences).

The 1 + 1 = 3 Man says it again: "I want to use Bioimaging as a platform to

really bring BMRC and the Science & Engineering Research Council together.

The boundary between them now is arbitrary and artificial, as I indicated in an

editorial in EXPLOSION. Many of our scientists in SERC – for example, those

in microelectronics – have all the computational and electronic capabilities that

are needed for Bioimaging."

It's time for a Joint BMRC-SERC Workshop

A* will hold a Joint BMRC-SERC Workshop. All the 12 research institutes will

present their work with the objective of answering the question: how our work

may be of interest to people from other RIs, especially those from the other

Council? "I want to wear my DMD Integrative Sciences hat and integrate the

work of the two Councils," says Prof Kong.

Moving into largescale coordinated science!

A*STAR's past year has seen the maturation of human capital. The other very

important development is the move into largescale coordinated science – the

Joint Workshop, the joint National Grant Call, the Clinician Scientist

Investigatorship. Instead of just projects, A* is going macro, moving towards

largescale coordinated science. That calls for quite a different skill set

altogether.

21

THOUGHT: Wouldbe lovely if Sam andI could work closelytogether in the samelab one day soon!

Bioimaging is interdisciplinary, integrative and innovative. The ancient definition

of 'bioimaging': the use of the microscope, first utilised hundreds of years

ago. In the last 10 to 20 years, Bioimaging has exploded into a completely

different sphere. In many of the clinical trials now, the US Food and Drug

Administration is increasingly saying: Do not just tell us that you suspect this

or you suspect that; we want images to prove it. So imaging has become an

important surrogate endpoint in clinical studies. In the past, medicine relied

a great deal on deduction. You observed this phenomenon, therefore you

deduced that the truth was this. But now you can actually see what's going

on at molecular level.

A*STAR's advisers in Bioimaging are Sir George Radda and his Oxford colleague

Professor Kieran Clarke. They use MRI to image the hearts of mice. A mouse

heart is the size of a peanut, 1.0cm across. It beats at 600 times a minute.

Those guys can image that, beat by beat – at that speed! "Bioimaging is a

field that Singapore is well poised to take advantage of, because of our strong

engineering sciences," says Prof Kong.


Subject:same lab one day?

Date:23 May 2004 12:14:55 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Hey, Sam!Hope you're still awake. I so look forward to your responses

that it's impossible to go to sleep without seeing your reply first.

You must have heard about Integrative Sciences and Bioimaging.

Think we can work together in the same lab one day? :p

Won't say "good night" yet. Reply if you're still awake. tian

22

Pages from the journal of

Sam, A*STAR’s Science &

Engineering Research

Council Scholar

Emerson says:

"Hitch your wagon to a star. Let us

not fag in paltry works which serve

our pot and bag alone."


Subject:Re: same lab one day?

Date:

24 May 2004 06:44:18 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Tian... Sorry I couldn't reply last night. Hope you got to sleep.

Why not? There's more than a good chance... You can't have

Integrative Sciences without a combination of Physical scientists

and Biomed types. You yourself are moving from Mechanical

Engineering to Tissue Engineering. That's an integrated discipline.

You can regard yourself as Engineering's gift to Biomedicine. (But

don't even think of claiming you're God's gift to women!)

Take care... [email protected] on 23 May 2004 12:14:55

GMT+08:00:Hey, Sam!

Hope you're still awake. I so look forward to your responses that

it's impossible to go to sleep without seeing your reply first.

You must have heard about Integrative Sciences and Bioimaging.

Think we can work together in the same lab one day? :p

Won't say "good night" yet. Reply if you're still awake. tian

Ah, Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), m

y

favourite Philosopher! What he means, I re

ad,

is that "all of us need high ideals, a

commanding sense of purpose, great

ambitions". Th

at's why I hitched on to A*STAR.

Instead of getting hitched before my PhD.

SAM

23

From:

[email protected]

Subject:Re: Re: Re: same lab one day?

Date:

24 May 2004 11:28:19 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Tian...

My area of research is Multimedia Forensics. As you know,

it's very easy now to manipulate digital images. The problem

I am focusing on is finding ways to detect malicious digital

image manipulation or image forgeries, such as on a photo

montage, assuming that the digital watermarking technology

is not available. An infamous image forgery incident in the

US recently was the composite image of John Kerry, the

Presidential candidate potential, and Jane Fonda, the

actress and one-time anti-war activist.

You bet. There are lots of cross-discipline applications for

such detection capabilities. I also hear that SERC is focusing

on initiatives to get scientists from different disciplines to

work together.

I'll say good night now... Sam

From:

[email protected]

Subject:Re: Re: same lab one day?

Date:

24 May 2004 10:44:18 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Hey, Sam!A plain 'sorry' isn't going to cut it, as they say here

n America. I waited and waited and waited for your

reply last night. No sleep! But no worries. I'm cool.

When you've completed your PhD, will you

be going into Integrative Sciences, you think?

Still early. Reply tonight, OK? tian

24

Lament: Will miss Singapore Arts

Festival again. Sigh...

Drool: Will make the Durian

season. Cheers! (Don't mean the

Durians on the Bay.)

No Big Deal: Missing the Great

Singapore Sale. It's OK.

SERC Morsels: Bite into 'em!

Professor Chong Tow Chong, SERC's

Executive Director shared with us the

Council's three main thrusts this

year: Human Capital development,

Intellectual Capital development and

Industrial Capital development.

25

Human Capital

So cute! Prof Chong said he was told to sell koyok, to attract students

to SERC Scholarships. He was and still is Executive Director of the

Data Storage Institute. He also took charge of SERC from late-2003.

This is what he told us: "A*STAR's Chairman said I needed to sell my

own koyok. 'You have to talk to the students to interest them in your

area,' he said. So SERC's key executives went into a one-day retreat.

How do we reach out not only to first-degree holders but also to JCstudents? The key, we concluded, was in working with A*GA (A*STAR

Graduate Academy) and intensifying talks to students."

Ah, so, this is how they psycho people!

Prof Chong also said: "We want to highlight the fact that we have

39 Singaporean PhDs joining our population! We have no problems

getting scientists from China, India and other countries. But we need

more Singaporeans."

Yes, we keep hearing that. I wonder how our fellow-scientists who are not Singaporeans feel about that.Hope they don't feel hurt. A* is going for a 50-50mix of Singaporeans and foreigners. Must help toreinforce this message!

More from Prof Chong: "SERC's challenge: How to get more JC studentsinterested in doing PhDs in the Physical Sciences and Engineering?The Biomedical Sciences, being new to Singapore, have been getting

a lot of publicity and generating much interest. So we tell the students:

'Yes, BMS is the new area, but Singapore still needs the Physical

Sciences and Engineering. We cannot afford to neglect those domains'."

And we won't. Happily, Prof Chong was also able to report:"This year we have selected 33 NSS Scholars, compared to 23 lastyear. Our NSS Scholars have very good grades,too." High five!

26

More SERC Morsels: Yes, bite into 'em!

(Continuing...) Prof Chong shared with us SERC's three main thrusts

this year: Human Capital development, Intellectual Capital development

and Industrial Capital development.

Intellectual Capital

So leading-edge, exciting, modelling after DARPA! According to Prof

Chong, SERC used to be mainly a funding agency in its collaboration

with the universities. A funding agency normally does not cultivate

a close relationship with the outside research community. The approach

was entirely bottom-up. Professors submitted their research proposals

and SERC looked at the areas, sent the proposals for review, and

if OK funded them. The proposals covered wide-ranging fields, like

Physics, Chemistry, Materials, Civil Engineering, Mechanical

Engineering. The wide range was quite difficult to handle.

Can see the problem: so many areas, so which onesto emphasise with public funding?

Last financial year SERC introduced a new way of funding the

universities. Instead of just one grant call, it streamed the exercise

into two types of grants. One of them is the Investigator-led Proposal.

Pretty much the same as before, still bottom-up. The other is a

directed grant call, the Thematic Strategic Research Programme.

It's 'Thematic' because SERC is defining the area. "We studied a

few overseas models," Prof Chong said, "now we more or less follow

the DARPA approach. (That's Defense Advanced Research Projects

Agency in the US). We sent the concept to the research community,

inviting proposals for topics. The result was quite a surprise! We got

lots of interesting proposals, over 80. We convened a local panel,

"Hold fast to dreams for if dreams

go, life is a barren field covered

with snow. Hold fast to dreams for

if dreams die, life is a broken

winged bird that cannot fly."

– Source Unknown

27

Nanoflower

mainly from the universities, with only two SERC officers serving as

secretariat. We classified the 80-plus topics under eight themes.

For each theme we conducted a two-day workshop. The eight

workshops were held over three months. At each workshop there was

a panel of overseas experts. Altogether more than 1,000 participated

in the theme workshops. They were quite exciting for the research

community."

Bet they were! I would have volunteered to be agofer at those workshops...

After the workshops, each theme was evaluated. Should we proceed?Among the criteria was this very important consideration: Can we getthe best out of it for Singapore? The intellectual property that comes

from publicly funded research counts a lot. Using this approach,

A* is seeding knowledge generation. The knowledge will form the

core competencies of the research institutes. Maybe not now, but in

three to five years, according to Prof Chong. SERC selected four

themes that it is funding in a big way. "With those projects, we will

also be getting people from different disciplines to work together,"

he said.

So many opportunities and facilities - and alsofunds! At international seminars and conferences,we scientists in Singapore are envied for thosereasons.

The four themes are Nanoelectronics, Ultra-wide Band

and pervasive computing (a la Matrix?), Integrated

Manufacturing and Service Systems (applying

information technology in manufacturing) and

Polymer and Molecular Electronics and

Devices (using substrates for specific display

purposes).

Wow, as the ED says, it's allvery exciting! Can't wait tostart work back home...

28


Subject:Mouth-watering...

Date:

26 May 2004 12:28:00 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Hey, Sam!Did you get the delicious plate of chilli crab I sent earlier

today? ;)OK, lah, it was in jpeg format. Not dripping wet and messy

with mouth-watering smell. Will treat you to a real 3-D chilli

crab back home.Enjoy! tian

29


Subject:Re: Re: Mouth-watering...

Date:26 May 2004 12:47:09 GMT+08:00


Hey, Sam!Will happily read the attachment right now.

Really sweet dreams. tian


Subject:Re: Mouth-watering...

Date:26 May 2004 12:45:19 GMT+08:00


Thanks, Tian... For the pic and the promise of a treat. I love

chilli crab, man!

Talking about mouth-watering... Wow, so much is happening

at A*. I love it here in New York, but I often wish I were

home and in the action... But, when I'm home, I'll be longing

to be out here again... Must always travel, I promise myself.

You Biomed guys are always saying you want your research

to benefit humanity. Read about some initiatives at SERC

to help the smaller Singapore companies. That way we help

to boost the economy for the betterment of society. See

attachment for some wholesome bedtime reading.

Sweet dreams... and "hold fast to your dreams for if dreams

die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly"... Sam

30

They call it the 'SERC Inc. Approach'A collaboration between two SERCresearch institutes and an industrialcompany: the Institute of Microelectronicsand the Institute for Infocomm Researchworked with Toppan Electronics Co(Singapore) Pte Ltd, a wholly ownedsubsidiary of Toppan Printing. Theirinvention: an original RFID chip Tesstar

(trademark pending) and peripheraldevices. Applications will include entryand exit control systems.

Industrial Capital Development

Professor Chong Tow Chong, SERC's Executive Director told us:

"SERC launched the GET-Up* Scheme last year (to help boost the global

competitiveness of local technology-intensive companies, the Growing Enterprises).

We made cold calls to like 450 small and medium-sized enterprises. Since January

2004, we have made some changes to our approach. We now look at the totality

of an industry, not just the SMEs. They are only a part of the value-chain. Most

SMEs here are not doing their own thing. They are supporting bigger industries.

The big manufacturers are the MNCs like Hitachi, HP, Philips and Seagate.

They employ a lot of people. They need strong supporting industries."

Obviously GET-Up is still key. But by visiting the big companies first, we get to

know their needs. We also learn from them the new projects that they are bringing

into Singapore. Prof Chong cited the example of smaller form factor hard drives

for the iPod. (Love the never-

ending music!) "The SMEs that have been

supporting the MNCs with the bigger form factor will have to go down to the smaller

form factor," he said, "and that is not just a matter of shrinking the size. There are

lots of other issues. So we'd better prepare the supporting industries so that they

can continue to support and service the manufacturers."

Another plus:some MNCs go so far as to hand over lists of their suppliers, the

local enterprises. SERC's approach to the SMEs can be more focused. Its reps

can say: "We're here, because your customer thinks we can help you". That opens

doors!

Prof Chong also told us that SERC is repositioning its research institutes: "The

thinking started last year. We are beginning to implement plans this year. SERC

is a matured Council. By 2005 the Physical Sciences and Engineering research

in Singapore would have had 15 years of public funding. It is time to review and

reposition. We want to ensure continuing value in return for the funding."

And also much value-add! The Scholars

are beginning to

come home.

(*GET-Up: Growing Enterprises with Technology Upgrading Programme)

31

Looking ahead to Fusionpolis

By the end of 2005 or early 2006, this

state-of-the-art, stylishly designed building

will house SERC HQ and some of the

Council's research institutes. Fusionpolis

will be very close to Biopolis. Very much like

Biopolis, it will house both public research

laboratories and private sector facilities. A

fusion of IT, communications and media,

and also of people's visions, ideas, initiatives

and endeavours.

HOM

E

Hey, Sam!

Sunday nights I always think of home. Don’t know why. Tonight it’s extrasensoryextension thinking. Thoughts of parents and siblings and Dad’s signaturedish (Penang laksa, Singapore style) led on to thoughts of Biopolis backhome and then to you here in the States. Almost added “…with me”. Butyou’re in Columbia, I’m in MIT. As you said, “so near and yet so far”.

When I was being interviewed by the Chairman for the NSS, I asked himwhere I would come back to. I knew what I would come back to: life as ascientist, researching in both the Physical Sciences and Biomedical Sciences.My kind of life! But where would I be working? Chairman said: “Biopolis, ofcourse! It will be ready long before you finish your PhD.”

Sure enough, Biopolis was up and running when I went home last winter.You know that A* brings NSS guys home every year, summer or December,to keep us grounded in Singapore and to work in the labs. What a treat, this“home leave”! We’re the envy of most other scholars. Because of these tripshome and the fact that ours is the highest-level scholarship — all the wayfrom first degree to PhD.

In Biopolis one day, I ran into the Big Man himself. He was giving a bunchof A-level kids an exclusive Chairman’s tour. “Come join us,” he called outto me. The kids were NSS applicants. They must have been taken aback,getting a VIP tour before the Chairman’s grilling. Hope the sightseeingrelaxed them. I would have preferred the tour after that all-important interview.

Hope you see this soon and reply soonest. tian

TIA

N

From: [email protected]: my kind of lifeDate: 30 May 2004 10:06:29 GMT+08:00To: [email protected]

Pages from the journal of Tian,

A*STAR’s Biomedical

Research Council Scholar.

32

Finally,

we’re home

!

…Chairman Philip Yeo exclaims when asked

about Biopolis. It has been home to A*STAR

since its official launch on October 29 2003.

A*STAR’s home will be complete when Biopolis’

other half Fusionpolis is built and ready for

SERC research institutes to move in. Now all the

BMRC RIs are in Biopolis together with A* HQ

and BMRC’s and SERC’s command centres.


Subject: Re: my kind of life

Date:30 May 2004 11:01:19 GMT+08:00


Tian… Your father can cook? Penang laksa? That’s not a simple

preparation. I’m impressed. But I’m suspicious about the “Singapore

style”. What’s that? Our fellow Scholars from Malaysia always laugh when

we say “Singapore laksa”. They claim the lemak* laksa is either Johor or

Melaka, not ‘Singapore’.I think I know why Chairman took the trouble to show the kids around

Biopolis. It’s the world’s first integrated, purpose-built biomedical research

hub. Overall, imagine the impact on the kids… Become an A* scientist

and work in a special environment…Kids apart, I’m told that Biopolis has been getting some high-powered

visitors from many countries. Eminent scientists among them, Nobel

laureates included. An American professor told me after he returned from

a visit to Singapore: “Your A*STAR Chairman says: ‘People now know us

for our Science’. He’s right, increasingly so. Singapore will earn its place

among the world’s scientific nations.”That’s branding by word of mouth, Tian, the best kind. Biopolis is the icon

of this happy development. When Fusionpolis is ready, the icon will be

doubly prominent.This reply soon enough for you? Don’t get too demanding… Sam

(*Lemak is a Malay word that describes the creaminess of soup and gravy cooked with

coconut milk.)

33

34


Subject:Re: Re: my kind of life

Date:30 May 2004 11:11:33 GMT+08:00

To:

[email protected]

Hey, Sam!

Yes, I'm pretty excited about Biopolis. Wonder how it w

ill have

developed/matured by the time I eventually head back. One of my

professors told me about her visit to the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s

new Biochemistry building. She was impressed by the well thought out

layout. They sought suggestions and advice from the researchers working

there. Must have been the same for Biopolis, and now for Fusionpolis.

We scientists must continue to communicate our needs.

The other thing that I’m thinking about tonight is the focus of our research

efforts in Singapore. Current economic considerations favour certain

types of research. I hope that in time to come, a more open and diversified

approach may become feasible. Having established niches in certain

fields, a more open and diversified approach will really engage our

generation with our broad research interests. You know what, that kind

of approach is likely to propel Singapore's research thrust into fresh

arenas. It will strengthen synergy across disciplines. Intensify integration.

Your thoughts, Sam? tian


Subject: Re: Re: Re: my kind of life

Date: 30 May 2004 11:31:59 GMT+08:00

To: [email protected]

35

This is very important.Ultimately, Biomedical researcherswant to see their work developinto clinically applicable products.That process is definitely noteasy. But that’s exactly one ofthe factors that motivate me -to see my research progressfrom the lab to the public.

24/03/04 (23/03 in Boston):

The 8th meeting of the

Biomedical Sciences

International Advisory Council

strongly endorses Singapore's

efforts to further integrate basic

and clinical sciences.

Tian… It sure is a breadth-and-depth kind of night for you. You feeling good?

No temperature? (Joke…)

The buildings will be well taken care of, I’m sure. Remember what Chairman

keeps telling us: The enduring investment is in developing two-legged talent.

Infrastructure can come and go.

Have you seen A*STAR’s calendar of events during the last financial year? It

covers such a broad spectrum. Some of the RIs’ research achievements are

highlighted. A specially notable one is the discovery of the mutation of the

SARS virus. That certainly had/has important implications for the world. :)

Another notable entry is about A*STAR and Spring Singapore’s joint Operation

& Technology Roadmapping to help local companies with guidance and money.

A friend who interned at Intel Research told me that Intel strives really hard to

get new ideas and new technology. That’s a roadmap to follow!

What I also find encouraging is the wide range of activities targeted at children

and young adults. To get them excited about science through hands-on

experiments, aviation, even toys. :)

Bringing Science to the public is definitely not an easy thing to do. When

colleagues and I discuss research ideas, very often we can’t get what each

other means exactly. Sometimes, when too many mathematical equations are

involved, everyone is lost! A* guys seem to have got their Science Communication

right. We must volunteer to help when we’re home.

Having stimulated the kids’ passion for Science, what’s next beyond scholarships,

mentorships and leadership roles? I believe that there is another vital task for

A*: encourage the kids to listen to their heartstrings, to find out what truly

inspires and challenges them, and to spurn the compulsion to go with the tide

too much. That’s a longwinded way of saying I agree with you, Tian. A more

open and diversified approach to scientific research should be our next pinnacle.

Let’s dream about that, Tian, and help make our dream come true… Sam

SAM

36


Subject: Re: hey, did you get that?

Date: 30 May 2004 12:07:47 GMT+08:00


Tian… Good for you. Don’t forget our date with chilli crab back home…

Sam 37


Subject: hey, did you get that?

Date:30 May 2004 12:00:00 GMT+08:00


Yes, Sam!

It’s a beautiful dream. Here’s to our life together in Science (well, you

know what I mean)! :POur Chairman!!! First he tells us over lunch: “Some of you still ask me

‘What is my career?’ That’s a sad question. There’s no career here. We

train you. The rest is up to you. They get shocked when they hear that.”

Then the Chairman says that A* Scholars don’t have to worry about

looking for a job. Their jobs are here waiting for them. But the first two

years they’re on probation. Make it or go. Some of us have no problems

with probation. Instead we feel that our future is locked in by the six-year

bond. His response: “By the time you’ve finished your bond, you’re barely

35 years old. At 35, you’re fully educated, fully trained, you’re highly

marketable!” True, too! :))Chairman says that the obsession with certainty is very dangerous. His

points: You’ve got the brains, you’ve got the talent, the world is at your

feet. Just because you’ve done the PhD doesn’t mean you have to be

a scientist. Some of you may not want to be a scientist. So what? Leakage

is good. The Government is prepared to release talent. When all our

1,000 Scholars have come back by 2010, and if half quit for the private

sector, good! Bad if they quit Singapore and go overseas! If some of our

Scholars become Cabinet ministers 15 years from now, why not? Or

Permanent Secretaries, or bankers, or whatever, why not? “If you’re smart

enough, you’ll know what to do,” the man says. But I want to be a great

scientist! Then, maybe later, start my own leading-edge biotech company.

In partnership with you, maybe…Get it? I don’t feel insecure anymore. Thanks, Sam! tian

What Home means to me:

Home is… where postdocs and other Scholars

return to after their years abroad. As a postdoc

I’ll still be young at 32, 33. We need to venture

overseas, to sample different experiences.

Science is an apprenticeship. I know that when

I work in a lab, I work for a professor. What are

her credentials, or his? Who else are working

in her lab? The postdoc experience is for us to

network. Networking is about a diversity of

people. Chairman says: “Our postdocs should

not go back to the same school. Look for another

lab. They should not go to a lab where everybody

goes. Go where no ordinary man or woman

will go.”

Home is… where scientific talent is valued andpotential recognised. Singapore wants tocompete globally, so a PhD education is anecessity, not a luxury. That’s why A*STAR wantsto educate 1,000 PhDs. It keeps sending thatmessage to the kids and their parents. That’swhy it advertises big in the newspapers,highlighting some of the Scholars and theChairman’s Honours List. “All our Scholars’names are on our website,” Chairman likes tosay. “The beauty of it is that most of our Scholarscome from lower and middle-income families!”


38

What Home means to me:Home is… where we welcome talented newcitizens. I’m reassured that A*STAR Scholars whoare non-Singaporeans have been through ourschool system. They’ve grown up here. They gotthe NSS on condition that they becomeSingaporeans. They must have at least appliedfor Permanent Residence before they can starton their BSc studies. Then they must apply forcitizenship before starting on their PhD.”


Home is… where we anchorour value system. “Bring ourScholars home frequently.Make sure they continue to feelthat Singapore is their home.Help them develop an enduringsense of social responsibility.”Guess who said that. I agreewholeheartedly.


Home is… where a valedictorian speaks

her mind. So happy to hear 2004 A*

Scholar Zhu Yuan say at the Scholarships

Award Ceremony: “I feel very privileged

to have made friends with so many similar

minded people this year … We dance, we

sing, we are IT-savvy and — as our parents

will most likely agree — we don’t stay

home all that much. The New Age scientist

is resourceful, intelligent and lives life to

the fullest.”

39

40

A*STAR's Youth Science Programme has an enduring equation:

Youth + Strong Science Interest & Knowledge = Science Working for

Us. The generators of Strong Science Interest & Knowledge include

the National Science Talent Search and Singapore Science & Engineering

Fair, the Great Science Challenge, Student and Teacher Attachments

at research institutes, National Junior Robotics Competition, Science

in the Mall, Discover Flight and Sci-Fi Movie Festival.

44

A*STAR's Biomedical Research Council is happy to report that

Singapore has had an exciting year building up many domains

of basic biomedical science. BMRC is gearing up to translate

that into improvement of human health. Hence, one of its

priorities is reaching out to the clinical community.

48

SERC

I. Technological Achievements

A new 8-inch wafer full of Micro DNA

Extraction Chips

Data Storage Institute’s 3.5nm Femto

Slider Technology

Winner of 2003 Singapore Innovation Award

A*STAR's Science & Engineering Research Council has been stimulating

and supporting R&D in Singapore industry for close to 15 years. The

fruits of this collaboration include award-winning

research and applications.

Successful, expanding

science-driven businesses

are among the tangibles.

The major intangible is

maturation of Science &

Engineering as both a

passion and a way of life.

49

Nanoelectronics

Polymer & Molecular Electronics & Devices:

Printed Organic Transistors

Ultra-Wide Band:

Intelligent Assisted Environment

for the Elderly, with Networked Sensor

II. Thematic Strategic Research Programme

Integrated Manufacturing

& Service Systems:

Reconfigurable Manufacturing

System

50

Institute of Materials Research & Engineering

(IMRE) signs MOU with Eastgate

III. Industry Collaborations

Scientist clears up spots in an OLED display

IMRE’s OrganicLED developed with Innoled/ Eastgate

Setsco Services working with Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology’s Optical System

for Inspecting Inclusions in Toughened Glass Panels

Microscopic view of nickel sulphide

in toughened glass panelInclusion detected by optical system Checking toughened glass panel in a

commercial building using the portable

device developed by SIMTech

Institute of Microelectronics and

Institute for Infocomm Research work with

Toppan Electronics on an original RFID chip

51

Technology for Enterprise Capability

Upgrading (T-Up) – to enable local

enterprises to access R&D talent

through secondment of research

institute staff

Co-Development – to share resources with

Growing Enterprises

Technical Advisory – to extend the technical

expertise of SERC’s senior research staff

Operation & Technology Roadmapping (OTR) –

to help local companies improve technology

management

Growing Enterprises with Technology Upgrade (GET-Up)

– to boost global competitiveness of local technology-

intensive enterprises

IV. GET-Up

ETPL

Kit for Detection of

malaria parasites’ DNA

in the blood of patient.

"I'm pleased that Veredus is deve

loping

this Malaria PCR-diagnostic kit

commercially and hope that this

kit will be an effective tool in th

e global

fight against Malaria infecti

on."

– Dr Jill M Tham from IMCB*,

one of the key inventors

Helping Local

Biomedical Start-up

in developi

ng new produ

cts

52

"...one of the factors that

motivate me — to see my

research progress from the

lab to the public."

You are doing use-inspired, innovative research. Is it in a

Biomedical or a Physical Sciences/Engineering domain?

No matter. Your discovery or invention needs to go from the lab

out into the market. Out there the transformation takes place.

The product of your mind becomes products that people can

use. A*STAR's Exploit Technologies (ETPL) helps bring

Mind to Market.

Tian

ExploitTechnologies

Veredus Laboratories Pte Ltd

is a privately held medical diagnostics

research company engaged

in the development,

commercialisation and

manufacture of diagnostic

assays for tropical

infectious diseases. It has

licensed the Malaria

Diagnostic Kit through

ETPL.

*Institute

of Mole

cula

r and

Cel

l Bio

log

y

Kit for Detection of

malaria parasites’ DNA

in the blood of patient.

“I am extremely pleased to see ourteam’s years of hardwork, perspiration andinspiration yielding commercial dividends

through Exploit’s licensing efforts. I look forwardto future partnerships with Exploit in protectingand commercialising our new inventions.”

– Dr Gan Leong Ming

Team:

Dr Gan Leong Ming, Mr Han Ming, Dr Liu Zhaolin,

Molecular & Performance Material Cluster,

Institute of Materials Research and Engineering

GasHub Power Pte Ltdis the pioneering fuelcell company in Singapore.It licensed IMRE’s fuel cellmembrane technologythrough ETPL to developcustomised fuel cellsfor global commercial andindustrial product integration.

53

ETPLHelping

local companies

pioneer new product

s

54

The A*STAR Graduate Academy (A*GA) and its Scholars flash past

one milestone after another! July 21 2004 sees three momentous

milestones: the first A*STAR Scholarships Ceremony held at Biopolis,

the first batch of A*STAR Imperial PhD Scholars receiving their

awards, the launch of an online Singapore Researchers Database.

The Scholars venture beyond lecture halls and laboratories to the

outdoors and extracurricular adventure.

High achievements deserve real recognition.

A*STAR's Managing Director's Office and

its Corporate Planning & Administration

Division make sure that we acknowledge

and salute those in Singapore who

live and work on the cutting edge

of Science.

58

60

A*ST

AR Bo

ard of

Dire

ctors

Team Captain

Team Captain

Team Captain

61

Connect the nine dots

with four straight lines

without taking pen or

pencil off the paper.

(Front row, 4th from left)

Team Captain

Mr Philip YeoChairman, A*STAR

Chairman, SERC

(Front row, 3rd from left)

Prof Tan Chorh ChuanDeputy Chairman, A*STAR

Deputy Chairman, BMRC

Deputy President and Provost,

National University of Singapore

(Front row, 5th from left)

Dr Sydney BrennerChairman, BMRC

Distinguished Professor,

The Salk Institute for Biological Studies

(Front row, 2nd from left)

Mr Boon Swan FooManaging Director, A*STAR

Second Deputy Chairman, SERC

Executive Chairman, Exploit Technologies Pte Ltd

(Front row, extreme right)

Dr Frank DouglasExecutive Vice President for Drug Innovation & Approval,

Aventis Pharma AG

(Front row, extreme left)

Lord Ronald OxburghDeputy Chairman, SERC

Chairman, House of Lords Select Committee on Science

and Technology

Non-executive Chairman, “Shell” Transport and

Trading Company

(2nd row, from left)

Dr Jeffrey M. LeidenPresident and Chief Operating Officer,

Pharmaceutical Products Group, Abbott Laboratories

Mr Sukeichi MikiChief Technology Officer and Senior Managing Director,

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co Ltd

Dr Tadataka YamadaChairman, Research & Development, GlaxoSmithKline

Prof Dennis RobersonVice Provost (New Initiatives) and Director, Institute of

Business and Interprofessional Studies, Illinois Institute

of Technology

Prof Hiroyuki YoshikawaPresident, National Institute of Advanced Industrial

Science & Technology, Japan

Mr Katsuaki TsurushimaCorporate Senior Executive Vice President and

Chief Technology Officer, Sony Corporation

Dr Thomas ConnellySenior Vice President and Chief Science & Technology

Officer, DuPont

(3rd row, from left)

Prof Shih Choon FongPresident, National University of Singapore

Prof Su GuaningPresident, Nanyang Technological University

Mr Peter HoPermanent Secretary, Ministry of Defence

Mr Ko Kheng HwaManaging Director, Economic Development Board

Mr Chan Yeng KitDeputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Education

Mr Ravi MenonDeputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Finance

63

1 Sir Richard SykesChairman, BMS IACRector, Imperial College London (UK)

2 Dr Sydney BrennerCo-Chairman, BMS IACBoard Member, A*StarChairman, BMRCDistinguished Professor,The Salk Institute for Biological Studies (USA)

3 Dr David BaltimorePresident, California Institute of Technology(USA)

4 Dr Samuel BarondesDirector, Center for Neurobiology and Psychiatry,University of California, San Francisco (USA)

5 Dr John BellRegius, Chair of Medicine , University of Oxford(UK)

6 Dr Alan BernsteinPresident, Canadian Institutes of HealthResearch (Canada)

7 Dr Stanley N. CohenKwoh-Ting Li Professor of Genetics andProfessor of Medicine, Stanford University(USA)

8 Dr Suzanne CoryDirector, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute ofMedical Research (Australia)

9 Dr Leland HartwellPresident & Director, Fred Hutchinson CancerResearch Center (USA)

10 Dr David I. Hirsh Johnson(Emeritus Member)Professor of Biochemistry and MolecularBiophysics, Columbia University (USA)

11 Dr Philippe KourilskyDirector, Institut Pasteur (France)

12 Dr Richard LernerPresident, The Scripps Research Institute (USA)

13 Dr Susan LindquistDirector, Whitehead Institute for BiomedicalResearch (USA)

Biomedical Sciences International Advisory Council(BMS IAC)

14 Dr Paul A. MarksPresident Emeritus, Memorial Sloan-KetteringCancer Center (USA)

15 Dr John MendelsohnPresident, The University of Texas M.D.Anderson Cancer Center (USA)

16 Dr Alan Munro(Emeritus Member)Former Master of Christ's College,University of Cambridge (UK)

17 Sir Keith PetersRegius Professor of Physic,School of Clinical Medicine,University of Cambridge (UK)

18 Sir George RaddaEmeritus Professor of Molecular Cardiology,University Laboratory of Physiology CardiacScience Centre, University of Oxford (UK)

19 Dr John ShineExecutive Director, Garvan Institute of MedicalResearch (Australia)

20Dr Axel UllrichDirector, Molecular Biology, Max-Planck-Institutefor Biochemistry (Germany)

21 Dr Hans WigzellDirector, Centre for Medical Innovations,Karolinska Institute (Sweden)

(Joining the Biomedical Sciences InternationalAdvisory Council on 1 Sept 2004)

22 Dr Harriet Wallberg-HenrikssonPresident, Karolinska Institute (Sweden)

23 Dr Peter GrussPresident, Max Planck Society (Germany)

24 Dr John ReedPresident & CEO, The Burnham Institute (USA)

64

12

3 6

8

7

5

4

Standing behind the members of the A*GA

International Advisory Panel are

some members of A*STAR’s Senior Management

and (at extreme right) Prof Barry Halliwell

of the NUS Graduate School.

1 Sir Keith Peters

Chairman

President of the Academy of Medical Sciences

Regius Professor of Physic, and Head of the School of Clinical Medicine,

University of Cambridge (UK)

A*STAR Graduate Academy (A*GA)International Advisory Panel

2 Prof Alice S. HuangDeputy Chairman

Senior Councilor for External Relations, and Faculty Associate in Biology,

California Institute of Technology (USA)

3 Prof Judith L. SwainArthur L. Bloomfield Professor,

Chair, Department of Medicine,

Stanford University (USA)

4 Prof William McGinnis

Department of Biology,

University of California, San Diego (USA)

7 Prof Charles F. Zukoski

Lycan Professor and Vice Chancellor,

Chemical Engineering,

University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign (USA)

6 Prof Colin R

ussell Hopkin

s

Department of Biological Studies,

Imperial College, London (UK)

5 Prof Chris J. LeaverSibthorpian Professor of Plant Sciences and

Head of Department,

University of Oxford (UK)

8 Prof Roberto PecceiProfessor of Biology, Vice Chancellor for Research,

University of California, Los Angeles (USA)

65

A*STAR Senior Management

66Hitch your wagon to a star

Dr Sydney BrennerChairman, BMRC

Distinguished Professor,

The Salk Institute for Biological Studies

Mr Boon Swan FooManaging Director, A*STAR

Second Deputy Chairman, SERC

Executive Chairman,

Exploit Technologies Pte Ltd Assoc Prof Kong Hwai LoongExecutive Director,

Biomedical Research Council

Deputy Managing Director,

Integrative Sciences

Prof Tan Chorh ChuanDeputy Chairman, A*STAR

Deputy Chairman, BMRC

Deputy President and Provost,


Mr Teoh Yong SeaDeputy Managing Director, A*STAR

Corporate Planning and Administration Division

Prof Lam Khin YongExecutive Director,

A*STAR Graduate Academy

Mr Philip YeoChairman, A*STAR

Chairman, SERC

Prof Chong Tow ChongExecutive Director,

Science & Engineering Research Council

67

Research Institute Directors

Prof Chua Soo Jin Prof Hong Wan Jin

Prof Miranda YapProf Lawrence Wong

DrTan Khen Sang

Assoc ProfLim Khiang Wee Prof Edison Liu

Assoc Prof Lee HeowPueh

Prof ChongTow Chong

Prof Jackie Ying

Dr Keith Carpenter

Dr Keith CarpenterExecutive Director,

Institute of Chemical and Engineering

Sciences

Prof Chong Tow ChongExecutive Director,

Data Storage Institute

Prof Chua Soo JinDeputy Executive Director,

Institute of Materials Research and

Engineering

Prof Hong Wan JinDeputy Director,

Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology

Assoc Prof Lee HeowPuehActing Executive Director,

Institute of High Performance Computing

Assoc Prof Lim Khiang WeeExecutive Director,

Singapore Institute of Manufacturing

Technology

Prof Edison LiuExecutive Director,

Genome Institute of Singapore

Dr Santosh K.MishraExecutive Director,

Bioinformatics Institute

Dr Tan Khen SangExecutive Director,

Institute of Microelectronics

Prof Lawrence WongExecutive Director,

Institute for Infocomm Research

Prof Miranda YapExecutive Director,

Bioprocessing Technology Institute

Prof Jackie YingExecutive Director,

Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology

Memories2003-04

68

April 08: Gaze into “The Mind’s Eye” and

see how the brain perceives. Stroll down

the “Corridor of Science News” and get

informed as well as challenged. These

new permanent exhibitions at the

Singapore Science Centre are opened by

Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister of State

(National Development).

May 09: The world hears from Singapore

scientists that the SARS virus has mutated

within three months. The scientists are

from A*STAR’s Genome Institute of

Singapore, Singapore General Hospital and

National University of Singapore.

May 29: Local enterprises get directions

to growth via technology. There is also

money to help them on their way. A*STAR

and Spring Singapore jointly offer

Operation and Technology Roadmapping

to individual companies.

April

May

June

July 2003 June 28: Dr Susanto Rahardja and

Mr Yu Rongshan are from A*STAR’s

Institute for Infocomm Research.

They win the Tan Kah Kee Young

Inventors’ Gold Award. This is only

the fourth Gold medal given out in

17 years and the first one in six

years.

July 14: A*STAR awards more

than 100 National Science

Scholarships and A*STAR Graduate

Scholarships. Additionally, five

young medical doctors receive

Biomedical Research Fellowships.

These five are the pioneer batch.

The Guest-of-Honour:

Dr Ng Eng Hen, Acting Minister

for Manpower and Minister of State

(Education).

July 17: Roche Diagnostics starts

distribution of a fast and accurate

SARS test. It uses primers developed

by the Genome Institute of

Singapore. The primers are based

on unmutated parts of the SARS

genetic code.

August 14: Unveiling 36 toys that

demonstrate scientific principles and

embody originality and innovation. All

made by primary schoolchildren for the

Sony Creative Science Award. A

hundred schools sent in over 1,300

entries. Dr Ng Eng Hen, Acting Minister

for Manpower and Minister of State

(Education) gives away the prizes.

August 23: Ernest Chong Kai Fong of

Raffles Junior College wins the

prestigious top prize in the National

Science Talent Search. The prize comes

with a National Science Scholarship up

to PhD level and S$10,000 study grant.

Mak Mun Thye of Victoria JC wins the

Merit Award. Lam Yan Choi of RJC

and Yi Li of Hwa Chong JC win

Commendation Awards.

Mr Chan Soo Sen, Minister of

State (Education and Community

Development & Sports) presents

the awards.

69

August 02: The Singapore Science &

Engineering Fair opens with 148 projects

from 24 secondary schools and pre-

university institutions. Previous year’s

entries: 112. The Fair is held in conjunction

with the National Science Talent Search.

July 31: A*STAR’s Biomedical Research

Council launches its BMRC Symposia

Series. The objective: creation of focused

research communities. The first

Symposium: “Genomics, Microarrays &

Population Genetics”.

Aug 2003

September 6 - 11: Some 3,500

students in 740 teams venture into

the “Bermuda Triangle” in the

National Junior Robotics Competition.

It comprises two missions with a

maritime theme. This annual event

is the largest robotics contest in

the world.

September 18 - 21: Fort Canning

Green is the venue of the Singapore

Sci-Fi Movies Festival: MinorityReport, Terminator 1 and 2,

The Iron Giant, X-Men 2,

Jimmy Neutron. Sideshows include

exploding hydrogen bubbles and

water-propelled rocket.

September 2 & 3: This is the 100th

year of powered flight. A*STAR and ST

Aerospace bring aviation science to 210

secondary 3 students at a Discover

Flight Workshop. Held at the Air Force

School in Paya Lebar. Discoveries

include a Youth Flying Club presentation

and Air Force Museum visit.

September 5: Genelabs Diagnostics

and A*STAR’S Institute of Molecular

and Cell Biology present their user-

friendly antibody-based tests for SARS:

a 15-minute quick test and an enzyme-

linked immunosorbent assay test.

September 5 - 30: science.03continues the tradition of an exciting

and informative month of science for

students, professionals and the general

public. It offers 107 activities. Launched

by Mr Chan Soo Sen, Minister of State

(Education and Community Development

& Sports) at Suntec City. Highlights

include X-periment!, a three-day

science carnival.

Sep 2003

70

October 27: BMRC and the US-

based Juvenile Diabetes Research

Foundation International sign an

agreement to jointly establish a

S$5.2 million (US$3 million) funding

programme to support stem cell

research in Singapore.

October 28: US-based Johns Hopkins

Medicine (JHM) and A*STAR

announce the establishment of the

Johns Hopkins Medicine Division of

Biomedical Science in Singapore. This

is the first JHM division outside Johns

Hopkins’ home base in Baltimore,

Maryland. It will have 12 full-time

faculty members to lead research

and training.

September 25: 13 passionate research

scientists and engineers receive national

recognition for their outstanding

contributions to the development of

science and technology in Singapore.

Guest-of-honour at the National Science

and Technology Awards dinner is

RDM (NS) Teo Chee Hean, Minister

for Defence.

October 15: Japanese-owned Toppan

Electronics Co (Singapore) Pte Ltd works

with A*STAR’s Institute of

Microelectronics and Institute for

Infocomm Research to develop an original

RFID chip andperipheraldevices. It is

called Tesstar, an excellent example

of how global companies can come to

Singapore to develop products

and solutions.

October 27: President S R Nathan

presents to Dr Sydney Brenner the

Honorary Citizenship Medallion,

Singapore’s newly inaugurated highest

award for foreigners. Dr Brenner is a

Nobel laureate and Singapore’s Scientific

Guru.

Oct 2003

71

72

October 29: Deputy Prime Minister Tony

Tan launches Biopolis, the world’s first

integrated, purpose-built biomedical

research hub. Dr Tan is also the

Coordinating Minister for Security and

Defence, and Chairman of Singapore’s

Life Sciences Ministerial Committee.

Biopolis is home to A*STAR headquarters,

BMRC’s five research institutes and the

Economic Development Board’s Biomedical

Sciences Group. Together they form a

specialised biomedical community with

private-sector research laboratories.

October 31: The 7th

meeting of the

Biomedical Sciences International Advisory

Council endorses BMRC’s initiative in

establishing the Centre for Molecular

Medicine. The Centre will stimulate and

strengthen translational research.

October 28 - 30: “Stem Cells: From

Bench to Bedside” is the theme of

Singapore’s inaugural International

Stem Cell Conference organised by

BMRC. More than 500 scientists

and clinicians come from all over

the world.

73

November 01: The National Grid Pilot

Platform is phase 1 of a Singapore

cyber-infrastructure to link up computing

resources. Launched by BG (NS)

George Yeo, Minister for Trade and

Industry. A*STAR is one of the

Platform partners.

November 11: GasHub Power Pte Ltd

signs a Research Collaboration

Agreement with A*STAR’s Institute of

Materials Research and Engineering.

They will develop prototype fuel cells.

GasHub is a leading local gas

engineering and gas piping company.

November 20: Sun Microsystems

announces the establishment of the

Sun-GIS Centre of Excellence in

Digital Biology. The Genome Institute

of Singapore joins Sun’s community

of research institutions doing

groundbreaking research in

computational biology.

November 28: The Biomedical

Research Council Symposium on Liver

Research is the second in BMRC’s

series for medical specialists and

laboratory scientists. The meeting

reviews cutting-edge work by a large

number of liver research groups in

Singapore.

Nov 2003

December 29: Nature Structural &Molecular Biology online reports that

Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology

scientists have gained a fundamental

insight: how proteins are transported

within cells. This is a process essential

for many cellular functions. IMCB’s paper

is in the journal’s January 2004 edition.

January 05: BMRC and the US-based

Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

International jointly invite applications for

grants in stem cell research. Public and

private sector research organisations

are eligible.

January 08: More than

200 students from nine

tertiary institutions and

four secondary schools

display their programming

skills in Wireless Java Jam

2004. Ten out of 97

applications win top prizes,

like for Best Creative Idea

and Best Commercial

Value.

December 02: A*STAR Graduate

Academy holds its first Scholars'

Symposium to showcase a sample of its

Scholars' research work. Presentations

cover topics ranging from the Biomedical

Sciences to the Physical Sciences/

Engineering.

December 15: …And the top prize at the

prestigious British House of Commons

2003 Reception for Younger Engineers

goes to Cleo Choong Swee Neo! She is

an A*STAR Overseas PhD Graduate

Scholar at Oxford, researching bone tissue

engineering.

Dec 2003

Jan 2004

74

February 19 & 20: A*STAR fields

all 12 research institutes, Exploit

Technologies and A*STAR Graduate

Academy at the NUS Career Fair.

The theme of A*STAR’s booth: “Align

Yourself with a Stellar Network”.

Unique among the 56 participating

organisations were A*STAR’s “Meet

Our Scientist” sessions.

February 24 - 29: Four A*STAR

research institutes put up exhibits in

the Research Innovation

section of the

Singapore Pavilion at

Asian Aerospace 2004.

They are the Institute for

Infocomm Research,

Institute of High

Performance Computing,

Institute of Materials

Research and Engineering,

and Singapore Institute of

Manufacturing Technology.

February 19: BMRC and the Economic

Development Board’s Biomedical Sciences

Group hold a joint media briefing.

They report that Singapore’s Biomedical

Sciences initiatives are on track to

meet targets.

February 18: Coming up in the March

2004 edition of Nature Structural &Molecular Biology: the Institute of

Molecular and Cell Biology’s paper

on successful mapping of the atomic

structure of a protein. This protein is

crucial to a cell’s ability to read signals

correctly and weed out aberrant

genetic instructions.

Feb 2004

75

march 2004March 05: The zebrafish has a starring

role in the Biomedical Research Council

Symposium on “From Developmental

Biology to Human Diseases”.

Presentations include a review of

developmental biology work on the

tiny fish.

March 10:

The Singapore Institute of

Manufacturing Technology and three

publicly-listed industry partners launch

a Consortium to upgrade technology

capabilities for the automotive industry.

Primary objective: boost local

enterprises’ ability to produce high-

value vehicle components. The industry

partners are AEI Corporation Ltd, Metal

Component Engineering Ltd and

Seksun Corporation Ltd.

March 10: The Great ScienceChallenge is a combination of TheAmazing Race and Singapore’sBrainiest Kid in format. The seven-

part weekly Challenge is a televised

science quiz on Channel 5. Weekly,

three secondary 3 students from each

of four schools exercise their scientific

knowledge and skills in outdoor and

indoor segments.

March 12 - 14: Simple hands-on

science experiments and other

activities go out to the public at Bishan

Junction 8 Atrium. A*STAR’s Sciencein the Mall is an extension of

X-periment! the science carnival.

It will reach out two to three times

a year.

76

March 17 - 19: FIRST Robotics in the

US is “the Super Bowl of Engineering”.

FIRST Robotics Singapore, like its

originator, is For Inspiration and

Recognition of Science and Technology.

Five companies and nine institutions

volunteer their time and resources to

inspire student-engineers about

mathematics, science and technology.

Their inaugural competition attracts 27

teams from 26 educational institutions.

Professional engineers and scientists

mentor students in the teams.

March 23 (22/03 in Boston, USA): The

Singapore Biomedical Sciences Seminar

in Boston showcases Singapore’s

capabilities in drug discovery and

development, clinical trials and

biopharmaceutical manufacturing. It

provides a platform for exploring

partnership possibilities in Singapore

for American biomedical companies

and venture capitalists.

77

March 23 (22/03 in Boston): The A*STAR

Graduate Academy International Advisory

Panel holds its inaugural meeting in

Boston. Yet another highpoint of the day:

the launch of the A*STAR-Imperial

Partnership PhD Programme. The AIP is

a partnership with Imperial College

London. Under the AIP, students doing

research in an A*STAR institute in

Singapore can earn an Imperial College

London PhD. They may then go to Imperial

for a research attachment.

March 24 (23/03 in Boston): The 8th

meeting of the Biomedical Sciences

International Advisory Council strongly

endorses Singapore’s efforts to further

integrate basic and clinical sciences.

Ng Tian-TsongNational Science Scholarship

(Overseas PhD)

Electrical Engineering

(Image and Signal

Processing)

Columbia University,

USA

Lim XinhongNational Science Scholarship

(BS-PhD)

Molecular and Cell Biology

University of Wisconsin-

Madison, USA

Lin ShaoweiNational Science Scholarship

(BS-PhD)

Mathematics

Stanford University, USA

Ng Kee WoeiA*STAR Graduate Scholarship

(NUS PhD)

PhD (Tissue Engineering)


Vivian Poon Yi NuoNational Science Scholarship

(BS-PhD)

Biochemistry

University of Wisconsin-Madison,

USA

Quek Su YingNational Science Scholarship

(Overseas PhD)

Applied Mathematics

Harvard University, USA

YOU have gotten to know Sam and Tian, the composite stars of thisA*STAR Yearbook.

Now meet the real-life A*STAR Scholars who helped us breathe lifeinto Sam and Tian. These imaginative Seven shared their visions,their hopes, their likes and dislikes, their experiences and theirversion of street cred. The last is also an essential. Because a scholarneeds to be scholarship wise like we all need to be street wise.

Thank you...

Anwesha DeyNational Science Scholarship

(Overseas PhD)

PhD (Biochemistry)

Howard Hughes Medical

Institute, University of Maryland,

USA

It has been re

al fun

working with y

ou guys!

78

Thanks, Scholars!

ContentsContents

Auditors’ Report Pg 80

Income and Expenditure Statements Pg 81

Balance Sheets Pg 82

Statements ofChanges in Equity Pg 83

Cash Flow Statements Pg 84

Notes to theFinancial Statements Pg 85

80

We have audited the financial statements of Agency for Science, Technology and Research (“the Agency”) for the financial year ended 31 March 2004 set out on pages 81 to 100. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Agency’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audit.

We conducted our audit in accordance with Singapore Standards on Auditing. Those Standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by the management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

In our opinion,

(a) the accompanying financial statements of the Agency are properly drawn up in accordance with the provisions of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research Act (“the Act”) and Singapore Financial Reporting Standards so as to give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Agency as at 31 March 2004, the results and changes in the reserves and the cash flows of the Agency for the financial year then ended; and

(b) the accounting and other records have been properly kept, including records of assets of the Agency whether purchased, donated or otherwise, in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

During the course of our audit, nothing came to our notice that caused us to believe that the receipt, expenditure and investment of monies and the acquisition and disposal of assets by the Agency during the year have not been made in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

PricewaterhouseCoopersCertified Public AccountantsSingapore

Auditors’ReportOn the financial statements of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research

81

Income and Expenditure StatementsFor the financial year ended 31 March 2004

Note 20042004 2003 $$ $

RevenueRevenue

Licensing income 3 275,0275,0922 -

Other income 3 3,3,1988 12,339

278,290278,290 12,339

Less:Less:

Depreciation 702,449702,449 496,239

Other operating expenses 7,726,9777,726,977 6,37 1,485

Staff costs 4 11,538,48711,538,487 13,546,0 14

Total operating expensesTotal operating expenses 19,967,91319,967,913 20,4 13,738

Deficit from operationsDeficit from operations 5 (19,689,623(19,689,623) (20,401,399)

Finance income – net 6 52,10652,106 31,494

Deficit before grantDeficit before grant (19,637,517)(19,637,517) (20,369,905)

Operating grants 7 18,648,32018,648,320 2 1,677,060

Development grants 8 5,27 11 225,958

Deferred capital grants amortised 9 899,500899,500 552,391

Government grants incomeGovernment grants income 19,553,019,553,0911 22,455,409

(Deficit)/surplus for the financial year(Deficit)/surplus for the financial year (84,426)(84,426) 2,085,504

PHILIP YEO BOON SWAN FOO

Chairman Managing Director

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements. Auditors’ Report – Page 80

82

Note 20042004 2003 $$ $

ASSETSASSETSCurrent assetsCurrent assetsCash and cash equivalents 10 15,015,02 1 ,390,390 15,025,356Other current assets 11 372,727372,727 90 1,320

15,315,394,94,1 11 1 77 15,926,676

Non-current assetsNon-current assetsFixed assets 12 5,608,3255,608,325 1, 1 77, 145

Total assetsTotal assets 2 1 ,002,442,002,442 1 7,103,821

LIABILITIESLIABILITIESCurrent liabilitiesCurrent liabilitiesCurrent payables 13 6,6,7 10,7050,705 6,3 15,137Grants received in advance 8 689,565689,565 2,194,836Finance lease liabilities 14 4 1 ,938,938 28,253Singapore Inc Scholarship provision 15 469,354469,354 370,887

7,9 1 1,562,562 8,909,1 13

Non-current liabilitiesNon-current liabilitiesFinance lease liabilities 14 -- 47,501Singapore Inc Scholarship provision 15 1 ,2 1 1 ,1 7 11 614,252

1 ,2 1 1 ,1 7 11 661 ,753

Total liabilitiesTotal liabilities 9, 122,73322,733 9,570,866

NET ASSETSNET ASSETS 1 1 ,879,709,879,709 7,532,955

RESERVESRESERVESCapital account 16 34,82934,829 34,829Accumulated surplus 6,236,5556,236,555 6,320,981

TOTAL RESERVESTOTAL RESERVES 6, 27 1 ,384,384 6,355,810

Deferred capital grant 9 5,608,3255,608,325 1 , 1 77 ,145

1 1 ,879,709,879,709 7,532,955

Research and DevelopmentResearch and Development Fund Account Fund Account 17 344,237,975344,237,975 313,606,430

PHILIP YEO BOON SWAN FOOChairman Managing Director

Balance SheetsAs at 31 March 2004


83

Capital Accumulated account surplus Total $ $ $

Balance at 1 April 2003Balance at 1 April 2003 34,829 6,320,981 6,355,810

Recognised deficit for

the financial year - (84,426) (84,426)

Balance at 31 March 2004Balance at 31 March 2004 34,829 6,236,555 6,271,384

Balance at 1 April 2002Balance at 1 April 2002 34,829 4,235,477 4,270,306

Recognised surplus for

the financial year - 2,085,504 2,085,504

Balance at 31 March 2003Balance at 31 March 2003 34,829 6,320,981 6,355,810

Statements of Changes in EquityFor the financial year ended 31 March 2004


84

Note 20042004 2003 $$ $

Cash flows from operating activitiesCash flows from operating activities (Deficit)/surplus for the year (84,426)(84,426) 2,085,504

Adjustments for: Depreciation 702,449702,449 496,239 Development grants amortised (5(5,27 1 )) (225,958) Deferred capital grants amortised (899,500)(899,500) (552,391) Loss on disposal of fixed assets 173,529173,529 2,779 Interest income (54,644)(54,644) (39,075) Interest expense 2,5382,538 7,581

Operating cash flow before working capital changes (165,325)(165,325) 1,774,679

Other current assets 528,593528,593 1,180,381Current payables 395,568395,568 246,625Singapore Inc Scholarship provision 69695,3865,386 58, 1 1 7

Cash generated from operating Cash generated from operating activitiesactivities 1,454,2221,454,222 3,259,802

Interest received 54,64454,644 39,559Interest paid (2,(2,538)538) (7,58 1)

Net cash from operating activities 1,501,506,36,32828 3,291,780

Cash flows from investing acCash flows from investing activitiestivitiesPayments for the purchase of fixed assets (5,330,680)(5,330,680) (427,446)Proceeds from disposal of fixed assets 2323,522,522 53,373

Net cash used in investing activitiesNet cash used in investing activities (5,30(5,307,157,158)8) (374,073)

Cash flows from financing acCash flows from financing activitiestivitiesFinance lease liabilities (33,(33,8 16)6) 75,754Deferred capital grants received 3,330,6803,330,680 388,240Grants received in advance 500500,000,000 2,460,000

Net cash from financing activitiesNet cash from financing activities 3,73,796,8646,864 2,923,994

Net (decrease)/increase in cash aNet (decrease)/increase in cash andnd cash equivalents cash equivalents (3,966)(3,966) 5,84 1,701Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the financial year 1515,025,356,025,356 9,183,655

Cash and cash equivalents at thCash and cash equivalents at the ende end of the financial year of the financial year 10 15,015,02 1,3901,390 15,025,356

Cash Flow StatementsFor the financial year ended 31 March 2004


85

1. Corporation information1. Corporation information

The National Science & Technology Board was established on 11 January 1991

under the provisions of the National Science & Technology Board Act, 1990.

With effect from 1 January 2002, the National Science & Technology Board Act

was renamed to the Agency for Science, Technology and Research Act.

The Agency manages the Research and Development Fund received from the

government with a mission of fostering world-class scientific research and talent

so as to create a vibrant knowledge-based economy. Two Research Councils

– Biomedical Research Council and Science & Engineering Research Council

were established to support, promote and advance research.

To compete globally and to advance Singapore’s economic transformation, three

key focus areas have been identified. They are: to strategise public research to

integrate with industry clusters; train human capital for research and industry,

and create, own and exploit intellectual capital. These are essential in the pursuit

of knowledge for the prosperity of Singapore.

The office is located at: 20 Biopolis Way, #07-01 Centros, Singapore 138668.

2. Summary of significant accounting policies2. Summary of significant accounting policies

(a) Effect of changes in Singapore Companies Legislation

Pursuant to Finance Circular Minute No. M44/2003 on Accounting Standards

for Statutory Boards, with effect from financial year commencing on or after

1 April 2003, Statutory Boards are required to prepare and present their

statutory accounts in accordance with Singapore Financial Reporting Standards

(“FRS”). Hence, these financial statements, including the comparative figures,

have been prepared in accordance with FRS.

Notes to the Financial StatementsFor the financial year ended 31 March 2004

86

2. Summary of significant accounting policies (continued)2. Summary of significant accounting policies (continued)

(a) Effect of changes in Singapore Companies Legislation (continued)

Previously, the Agency prepared statutory accounts in accordance with Singapore

Statements of Accounting Standard. The adoption of FRS does not have

material impact on the accounting policies and figures presented in the statutory

accounts for financial year ended 31 March 2003.

(b) Basis of preparation

These financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost

convention. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with Singapore

Financial Reporting Standards requires the use of estimates and assumptions

that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of

contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the

reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the financial year. Although

these estimates are based on management’s best knowledge of current event

and actions, actual results may ultimately differ from those estimates.

(c) Revenue recognition

Licensing income and interest income are recognised on accrual basis.

(d) Government grants

Government grants for the establishment of the Agency or for the purchase of

non-depreciable assets are taken to the Capital Account.

Government grants for the purchase of depreciable assets are taken to the

Deferred Capital Grants account. Deferred capital grants are recognised in

the Income and Expenditure Statement over the periods necessary to match

the depreciation of the assets financed with the related grants. On disposal of

the fixed assets, the balance of the related grants is recognised in the Income

and Expenditure Statement to match the net book value of the fixed assets

disposed.


87

Government grants for development projects are taken to the development

grant account initially. They are taken to the deferred capital grants account

upon utilisation of grants if the assets are capitalised or to the Income and

Expenditure Statement if the assets are written off in the year of purchase.

Government grants to meet the Agency’s current year’s operating expenses are

recognised as income in the current year.

(e) Trust and Agency Funds

Trust and agency funds are set up to account for monies held in trust for the

Government. Income and expenditure of these funds are taken direct to the

funds and the net assets relating to these funds are shown as a separate line

item in the Balance Sheet.

Trust and agency funds are accounted for on an accrual basis. Grants utilised

are taken up upon receipt of grant requests from grantees which have been

approved.

(f) Fixed assets

Fixed assets are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. The cost of an

asset comprises its purchase price and any directly attributable costs of bringing

the asset to working condition for its intended use. Expenditure for additions,

improvements and renewals are capitalised and expenditure for maintenance

and repairs are charged to the Income and Expenditure Statement. When assets

are sold or retired, their cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from

the financial statements and any gain or loss resulting from their disposal is

included in the Income and Expenditure Statement.

88

2. Summary of significant accounting policies (continued)2. Summary of significant accounting policies (continued)

(f) Fixed assets (continued)

Depreciation is calculated on a straight-line basis to write off the cost of

fixed assets over their expected useful lives. The estimated useful lives are

as follows:

Furniture, fixtures and equipment 5 - 10 years

Computer equipment 3 years

Motor vehicles 10 years

Where an indication of impairment exists, the carrying amount of the assets is

assessed and written down immediately to its recoverable amount.

(g) Leases

Leases of fixed assets where the Agency has assumed substantially all the

risks and rewards of ownership are classified as finance leases. Finance leases

are capitalised at the inception of the lease at the lower of the fair value of

the leased property or the present value of the minimum lease payments. Each

lease payment is allocated between the liability and finance charges so as to

achieve a constant rate on the finance balance outstanding. The corresponding

rental obligations, net of finance charges, are included in other long-term

payables. The interest element of the finance cost is charged to the Income and

Expenditure Statement over the lease period. The fixed assets acquired under

finance leases are depreciated over the shorter of the useful life of the asset or

the lease term.

Leases where a significant portion of the risks and rewards of ownership are

retained by the lessor are classified as operating leases. Payments made under

operating leases are charged to the Income and Expenditure Statement on a

straight-line basis over the period of the lease.

When an operating lease is terminated before the lease period has expired, any

payment required to be made to the lessor by way of penalty is recognised as an

expense in the period in which termination takes place.


89

(h) Provisions

Provisions are recognised when the Agency has a present legal or constructive

obligation as a result of past events, it is probable that an outflow of resources

will be required to settle the obligation, and a reliable estimate of the amount can

be made.

(i) Employee benefits

Employee leave entitlement

Employee entitlements to annual leave are recognised when they accrue to

employees. A provision is made for the estimated liability for annual leave as a

result of services rendered by employees up to the balance sheet date.

3. Revenue3. Revenue 20042004 2003

$$ $

Licensing income 275,092275,092 -

Other income 3,3,19898 12,339

278,290278,290 1 2,339

Interest income (note 6) 54,64454,644 39,075

332,934332,934 5 1,4 14

90

4. Staff costs4. Staff costs

20042004 2003

$$ $

Wages and salaries 9,883,4899,883,489 1 2,204, 1 14

Employer’s contribution to Central

Provident Fund 1,334,3941,334,394 1,076,484

Other staff costs 320,604320,604 265,4 16

1 1,538,4871,538,487 13,546,0 14

20042004 2003

Number of employees at the end of

the financial year 132132 137

Included in 2004 staff costs is a write back of past years’ provisions amounting

to $1,920,000.

5. Deficit from operations5. Deficit from operations

The following items have been included in arriving at deficit from operations:

20042004 2003 $$ $

Charging: Depreciation (note 12)

- Furniture, fixture and equipment 363,369363,369 1 19,842

- Computer equipment 279,096279,096 315,587

- Motor vehicles 59,98459,984 60,8 10

Loss on disposal of fixed assets 173,529173,529 2,779

Rental expense – operating lease 2,379,2962,379,296 1,872,387


91

6. Finance income - net6. Finance income - net 20042004 2003 $$ $

Interest income

- Fixed deposits 54,64454,644 39,075

Interest expense

- Finance lease (2,538)(2,538) (7,58 1)

5252, 10606 3 1,494

7. Operating grants7. Operating grants 20042004 2003 $$ $

Operating grants received

during the year 2 1,979,0001,979,000 22,065,300

Transfer to deferred capital grants

(note 9) (3,330,680)(3,330,680) (388,240)

18,648,32018,648,320 21,677,060

Total operating grants received

and utilised since establishment 69,920,750 47,94 1,750

The Agency’s operating grants are received directly from the Government

with effect from financial year ended 31 March 2002. Prior to 1 April 2001, the

Agency’s operating grant was funded from the Research and Development

Grant.

92

8. Grants received in advance8. Grants received in advance 20042004 2003 $$ $

Development grant (note 8(a)) 689,565689,565 694,836

Infrastructure grant (note 8(b)) -- 1,500,000

689,565689,565 2,194,836

(a) Development grant 20042004 2003 $$ $

Balance at 1 April 694,836694,836 -

Grant received during the year -- 960,000


(note 9) -- (39,206)

Transfer to income and expenditure

statement (5,2(5,27 1)1) (225,958)

Balance at 31 March 689,565689,565 694,836

Total development grants received

and utilised since establishment 270,435270,435 265, 164

(b) Infrastructure grant 20042004 2003 $$ $

Balance at 1 April 1,500,0001,500,000 -

Grant received during the year 500,000500,000 1,500,000


(note 9) (2,000,000)(2,000,000) -

Balance at 31 March -- 1,500,000

Total infrastructure grants received and

utilised since establishment 2,000,0002,000,000 -


93

9. Deferred capital grants9. Deferred capital grants 20042004 2003 $$ $

Balance at 1 April 1, 177, 1455 1,302,090

Transfer from development grant

(note 8(a)) -- 39,206

Transfer from infrastructure grant

(note 8(b)) 2,000,0002,000,000 -

Transfer from operating grant (note 7) 3,330,6803,330,680 388,240

Transfer to income and expenditure

statement (899,500)(899,500) (552,391)

Balance at 31 March 5,608,325 5,608,325 1,177, 145

This does not include grants given for the establishment of the Agency which

are taken to the capital account.

10. Cash and cash equivalents10. Cash and cash equivalents 20042004 2003 $$ $

Cash and bank balances 4,793,2794,793,279 2,525,356

Fixed deposits with banks 10,2280,228, 1 1 11 12,500,000

15,05,02 1,390,390 15,025,356

Included in cash and bank balances is an amount of $ 12,791 (2003: $12,759)

held in trust on behalf for third parties.

The fixed deposits placed with banks mature on varying dates within one

month (2002: one month) from the financial year end. The effective interest

rates of these deposits range from 0.3% to 0.75% (2002: 0.5625% to 0.5628%)

per annum.

For the purposes of the cash flow statement, the year-end cash and cash

equivalents comprise the following: 20042004 2003 $$ $

Cash and bank balances (as above) 15,05,02 1,390,390 15,025,356

94

11. Other current assets11. Other current assets 20042004 2003 $$ $

Other debtors 189,095189,095 1 14,314

Due from companies funded through the Agency

- non-trade 158,879158,879 578,255

Deposits 7,383383 202,946

Interest receivable 12,5242,524 1,040

Prepayments 4,8464,846 4,765

372,727372,727 90 1,320

12. Fixed assets12. Fixed assets Furniture, Assets fixtures and Computers Motor under equipment equipment vehicles construction Total $ $ $ $ $

Cost At 1 April 2003 2,664,468 1,832,827 704,319 - 5,201,614

Additions 4,594,236 561,963 - 174,481 5,330,680

Disposals (2,325,04 1) (92,393) - - (2,417,434)

At 31 March 2004 4,933,663 2,302,397 704,319 174,481 8,1 14,860

Accumulated depreciation At 1 April 2003 2,27 1,568 1,496,422 256,479 - 4,024,469

Charge for the year 363,369 279,096 59,984 - 702,449

Disposals (2,127,990) (92,393) - - (2,220,383)

At 31 March 2004 506,947 1,683,1 25 316,463 - 2,506,535

Net book value Net book value At 31 March 2004 4,426, At 31 March 2004 4,426,7 16 6 6 19,272 9,272 387,856 7,856 174,4,48 1 5,608,3251 5,608,325

Net book value At 31 March 2003 392,900 336,405 447,840 - 1, 177, 145

The carrying amount of fixed assets under finance leases at 31 March 2004

amounted to $69,322 (2003: $90,715).


95

13. Current payables13. Current payables 20042004 2003 $$ $

Accrued expenses 5,4665,466, 16767 5,687,137

Public Service 21 (PS21) provision 94,65894,658 1 16,562

Other creditors 1,149,8801,149,880 51 1,438

6,6,710,7050,705 6,315,137

PS21 provision refers to a provision set up by the Agency for the implementation

of projects which will lead to organisational efficiency and excellence.

14. Finance lease liabilities14. Finance lease liabilities 20042004 2003 $$ $

Minimum lease payments due:

Not later than 1 year 4747, 10404 33,634

Later than 1 year but not later than 5 years -- 50,620

4747, 10404 84,254

Less: Future finance charges (5,166)(5,166) (8,500)

Present value of finance lease liabilities 41,9381,938 75,754

The present value of finance lease liabilities is as follows:

20042004 2003 $$ $

Not later than 1 year 41,9381,938 28,253

Later than 1 year but not later than 5 years -- 47,501

41,9381,938 75,754

The effective interest rates of the finance lease liabilities range from 8.028% to

8.135% (2002: 8.028% to 8.135%) per annum.

96

15. Singapore Inc Scholarship Provision15. Singapore Inc Scholarship Provision

The Singapore Inc Scholarship Programme (“SISP”) was established in

January 1997, with the aim of developing a pool of future talented leaders

to meet Singapore’s economic and industry development objectives.

20042004 2003 $$ $

Within one year 469,354469,354 370,887

After one year 1 ,1 , 2 1 1 , 1711 , 171 614,252

1,680,5251,680,525 985,139

Movements in Singapore Inc Scholarship provision are as follows:

20042004 2003 $$ $

At beginning of the financial year 985,139985,139 927,022

Provision made during the financial year 778,250778,250 231,238

Utilised during the financial year (82,864)(82,864) (173, 12 1 )

At end of the financial year 1,680,5251,680,525 985,139

16. Capital account16. Capital account

The Capital account comprises capital fund and net assets transferred from the

Science Council of Singapore on 11 January 1991.


97

17. Research and Development Fund Account17. Research and Development Fund Account

The Agency manages grants from the Government to provide financial assistance

for research and development activities undertaken by research institutes and

other public organisations.

20042004 2003 $$ $

Balance at 1 April 313,606,430313,606,430 124,839,903

Amount received during the year 793,5793,531,6461,646 669,340,425

Interest from banks and research

institutes 1,608,205 1,608,205 2,553,971

1,1081,108,746,2746,2811 796,734,299

Less: R&D grants utilised

- Research institutes (384,203,577)(384,203,577) (331,533,221)

- Public sector research funding (96,429,(96,429,718)18) (122,661,143)

- Human capital (17,794,349)7,794,349) (10,6 12,024)

- Infrastructure (224,867,957)(224,867,957) (6,130,937)

- Others (41,1,2 12,705)2,705) (12,190,544)

R&D grants utilised (764,508,306)(764,508,306) (483,127,869)

Balance at 31 March 344,237,975344,237,975 313,606,430

Total Government Research and

Development Funds received and

utilised since establishment 5,375,651,9745,375,651,974 4,611,143,668

Included in the R&D grants utilised for research institutes is an amount of

$6,684,000 (2003: nil) for expenses relating to senior management of

research institutes.

98

17. Research and Development Fund Account (continued)17. Research and Development Fund Account (continued)

20042004 2003 $$ $

Consisting of:Consisting of:

Current assets Current assets

Cash and bank balances 29,531,90029,531,900 24,325,609

Fixed deposits with banks 320,792320,792,52 11 285,000,000

Receivable 29,29,821,7491,749 130,303,910

Other current assets 29,420,54229,420,542 588,540

409,566,409,566,7 122 440,218,059

Non-current assetsNon-current assets

Long-term loan 2,436,9882,436,988 3,464,505

Total assetsTotal assets 4 12,003,70012,003,700 443,682,564

Current liabilitiesCurrent liabilities

Current payables (67(67, 765765,725)725) (76,134)

Short-term loan -- (130,000,000)

(67(67, 765765,725)725) (130,076,134)

Total liabilitiesTotal liabilities (67(67, 765765,725)725) (130,076,134)

Net assetsNet assets 344,237,975344,237,975 313,606,430

The fixed deposits placed with banks mature on varying dates within one

month (2003: six months) from the financial year end. The effective interest

rates of these deposits range from 0.4375% to 0.5% (2003: 0.6251% to 0.6875%)

per annum.

The long-term loan is unsecured, non-interest bearing and not repayable within

the next 12 months.


99

18. Commitments18. Commitments

(a) Capital commitments

Capital expenditure contracted for at the balance sheet date but not recognised

in the financial statements is as follows:

2004 2003 $ $

Furniture, fixtures and equipment 377377, 167167 -

(b) Operating lease commitments

The Agency leases office units under a lease agreement that is non-cancellable

within a year. Future lease payments with initial or remaining terms of one year

are as follows:

2004 2003 $ $

Not later than 1 year -- 522,533

19. Financial risk management objectives and policies19. Financial risk management objectives and policies

The main risks arising from the Agency’s financial instruments are interest

rate risk, liquidity risk, foreign currency risk and credit risk. The Agency

reviews and agrees policies for managing each of these risks and they are

summarised below:

(i) Interest rate risk

Surplus funds in the Agency are placed on deposits with reputable financial

institutions. Therefore, the exposure of the Agency to interest rate risk

relates primarily to interest income on bank deposits.

100

19. Financial risk management objectives and policies (continued)19. Financial risk management objectives and policies (continued)

(ii) Liquidity risk

Liquidity risk arises in the general funding of the Agency’s operating

activities. It includes the risks of not being able to fund operating activities

in a timely manner. To manage liquidity risk, the Agency maintains

sufficient cash with reputable financial institutions, which are readily

available to fund its operating activities and meet financial obligations as

and when they are due.

(iii) Foreign currency risk

As at the balance sheet date, the Agency’s currency exposures are

insignificant.

(iv) Credit risk

The carrying amounts of other current assets and cash and cash equivalents

represent the Agency’s maximum exposure to credit risk. No other financial

assets carry a significant exposure to credit risk.

20. Fair value20. Fair value

The carrying amounts of the following financial assets and financial liabilities

approximate their fair values: cash and cash equivalents, other current assets,

current payables, finance lease liabilities, Singapore Inc Scholarship provision

and grants received in advance.

21. Authorisation of financial statements21. Authorisation of financial statements

These financial statements were authorised for issue by the Agency on

18 June 2004.


Auditors’ Report – Page 80

ASTAR Final Cover-OK 03/09/2004 07:20 PM Page 4

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C M Y CM MY CY CMY K

Published byAgency for Science, Technology and ResearchCorporate Communications Department

Acknowledgements

Editorial Consultant:Peter HL Lim

Design & Production:Citigate Su Yeang Design Pte Ltd

Photo and Image Credits:P.2 – Images from Ng Kee WoeiP.5 – Tissue Engineering Images from Ng Kee WoeiP.14 – ‘Unraveling the SARS Coronavirus’

by Bernett Lee Teck Kwong, Images of Science 2003P.16 – ‘Human vs Diseases – War Zone in the Micro Universe’

by Poh Ming Li, Images of Science 2003P.17 – ‘Artistic Harmony’ by Steven Raynaldi Noorli,

Images of Science 2003P.19 – ‘Human Engineering’ by Chia Yuen Che, Images of Science 2003P.28 – ‘The People Behind Science’

by Bernett Lee Teck Kwong, Images of Science 2003P.28 – Image of chilli crab, Singapore Tourism BoardP.37 – Image of food street, Singapore Tourism BoardP.52 – Image of Malaria Parasites, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, Atlanta, USAP.59 – ‘Dr World of Science’ by Grace Kartika Kusmawan,

Images of Science 2002P.59 – ‘Science is Fun’ by Lesley Wong, Images of Science 2002P.62 – ‘Know Your Alphabets’ by Lim Hsin Le, Images of Science 2002

Article Credits:P.28 – The Straits Times, 11 March 2004P.29 – The Business Times, 20 August 2003P.44 – TODAY, 28 October 2003P.45 – The Straits Times, 28 October 2003P.45 – The Straits Times, 28 October 2003P.46 – The Straits Times, 30 October 2003P.57 – The Straits Times, 30 December 2003P.58 – The Straits Times, 26 September 2003P.68 – The Straits Times, 30 June 2003P.69 – The Straits Times, 18 July 2003P.72 – The Straits Times, 29 October 2003P.73 – The Straits Times, 13 December 2003P.73 – The Computer Times, 5 November 2003P.74 – TODAY, 14 January 2004P.76 – The Business Times, 11 March 2004P.77 – TODAY, 13 March 2004

ASTAR Final Cover-OK 03/09/2004 07:20 PM Page 1

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