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CSIR biophotonics researcher, Dr Patience Mthunzi, OMB, has been named as one of the 20 ‘Youngest Power Women in Africa 2012’ by Forbes Magazine. These are women who wield enormous influence in African business, technology, policy and media.
“I feel so honoured and humbled for being one of the three South Africans to have made it onto this list,” commented Mthunzi.
In April 2012, Mthunzi was honoured by President Jacob Zuma with the Order of Mapungubwe in Bronze (OMB) for her local and international contribution in biophotonics. She is the first biophotonics PhD graduate in South Africa.
“Some people call me a hybrid because my undergraduate qualification and my Master’s are in biology, followed by a PhD in physics, but I see myself as just a scientist. My peers in laser research are mostly physicists and from that perspective my biology background is slightly unusual, but it has equipped me perfectly for the job,” she concluded.
News contributed by Mzimasi Gcukumana , CSIR Strategic Communication
11 December 2012
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