Eleven Nobel Prize laureates including scientists and economists have agreed to offer their services to King Saud University (KSU) in Riyadh under a program aimed at strengthening Saudi Arabia's position in the fast developing science and technology sector. The eleven laureates are: Dr. Louis Ignarro (Medicine 1998); Dr. Robert Mundell (Economics 1999); Dr. Gunter Blobel (Medicine 1999); Dr. James Heckman (Economics 2000); Dr. Antony Leggett (Physics 2003); Dr. Finn Kydland (Economics 2004); Dr. David Gross (Physics 2004); Dr. Richard Schrock (Chemistry 2005); Dr. Thomas Schelling (Economics 2005); Dr. Muhammad Yunus (Peace 2006), and Dr. Edmund Phelps (Economics 2006). In a two-page advertisement published in local Arabic newspapers, KSU said its Nobel Laureates Program was aimed at promoting science and technology, boosting research and development, spreading a culture of science and inventions in society and transforming the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia into a knowledge-based economy. Other objectives behind the program, which is the first of its kind in the Arab world, are: Enhancement of the university's research and consultancy capabilities; encouraging teaching staff; students and researchers to make innovations, and allowing students to have interaction with Nobel laureates in order to make use of their knowledge and expertise, according to a report published today by the Jeddah-based Arab News.
