STUDENTS Muhammad Haris Danial Mohd Anwar, Amir Fariq Anuar and Nur Fatihah Athira Muhamad are confident Malaysia can produce a Nobel Laureate — eventually.

The trio of fifth formers from Kolej Yayasan Saad Melaka were crowned the National Science Challenge 2013 champion when the grand final was held in Kuala Lumpur last November and are possibly among the country’s hope for Nobel recognition one day.

Their reward was to witness the Nobel Prize giving ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden last December, which was led by Academy of Sciences Malaysia Fellow Prof Dr Yang Farina Abdul Aziz.

Nur Fatihah Athira said it would take “research that’s truly amazing and beneficial to mankind” if we are to get the Nobel prize by the year 2020. “Students don’t have the proper resources to conduct our own experiments and we don’t have enough exposure to generate ideas and see how we can change the world around us,” she said.

Nobel prizes are awarded for work done over a long period of time, Amir Fariq noted, adding that we have Nobel standard researchers who probably “haven’t been recognised yet”.

He said if we are to produce Nobel-worthy students, the way science is taught here needs to be re-looked.

“Secondary school students are more interested in the arts and business because we don’t make science interesting.

“We need more interactive, hands-on classes to make it fun and exciting,” he said.

Muhammad Haris Danial, however, believes that our professors and scientists are getting more advanced in their studies.

“Malaysia is capable of producing a Nobel laureate but to achieve that by the year 2020, local talents need to be based overseas where they can work with great minds associated with Nobel-quality research,” he said, while calling for a mindset change among Malaysians.

“Schools and students think only bright kids can study and succeed in science but not all Nobel Laureates were successful in their secondary school years — they only did well after leaving school.

“This shows that everyone deserves a chance to study science because who knows what they can achieve one day,” he pointed out.

Describing the opportunity to meet the 2013 Nobel Laureates as nerve wrecking initially, they agreed that the exposure was invaluable and inspiring.

“Everyone at the Nobel Laureate reception were professors and doctorate holders but here we were — a bunch of 16-year-old secondary school students.

“We felt dumb but surprisingly, the laureates were nice and down-to-earth.

“Nobel Prize Laureate in Chemistry Michael Levitt even told us not to call him professor.

“He told us to always be nice to people and take smart chances,” Nur Fatihah Athira shared.

Feeling “insignificant”, Amir Fariq was a bundle of nerves but felt very blessed.

“We got to learn from the best. They shared their life experiences and lessons learnt in the journey to get to where they are now.

“I asked Nobel Prize Laureate in Physiology or Medicine Randy Schekman what advice he has for a boy who really loves science and he told me to always keep at it. As a boy, he would obsess over a microscope in his room and in college, he would skip classes to go into the labs and just have fun with science.

“He said that as long as you love something, don’t ‘over-think’, just do it.

“I was immensely happy to be in the same room with them and just took whatever I could from the experience,” he said.

Like his mates, Muhammad Haris Danial was soon at ease when he saw how humble the Laureates were.

Although attending the Nobel lectures earlier left him a little dazed, the reception presented the opportunity for him to glean some “really good advice about what I want to do with my life.”

“Nobel Prize Laureate in Physiology or Medicine James Rothman told me to follow my heart and made me think about what I really want and not be influenced by what others think I should do. He really changed my perspective of things.

“My parents are encouraging me to do medicine because my brother is studying to be a doctor but I’m now seriously considering a career in engineering,” he shared.

n The National Science Challenge 2013 was jointly-organised by the Academy of Sciences Malaysia, ExxonMobil Subsidiaries Malaysia, Education Ministry, Young Scientists Network and Universiti Putra Malaysia. The prize for the nationwide competition was a 12-day trip to Stockholm, Sweden. The trip included visits to museums and attending Nobel lectures, the official Nobel Prize reception for recipients and the award presentation ceremony.