Posted: December 12, 2008

Most influential Korean scientists named

(Nanowerk News) Four scientists are responsible for the most influential papers in Korea over the past decade -- Profs. Kim Soo-bong and Hyun Taek-hwan of Seoul National University, Kim Ki-moon of Pohang University of Science and Technology, and Kwon Young-joon of Yonsei University.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology on Thursday said an analysis by the Korea Science Foundation of the most-quoted top 1 percent theses of the Korean scientists found that SNU Prof. Kim Soo-bong's paper on neutrinos, the basic particles in the universe, has been cited 1,967 times among Korean scientists' theses over the last decade. Kim elaborated on changes in neutrino types in the thesis, which he co-authored with U.S. and Japanese teams in 1998.
The thesis has been quoted most frequently in the particle physics sector and is said to be a candidate for a Nobel prize.
A paper written in 2006 by Kwon Young-joon, a professor of physics at Yonsei University, ranked second among theses co-authored with foreign researchers. It has been quoted 1,387 times.
A thesis on nano-porous materials by Prof. Kim Ki-moon of POSTECH, which was published in the journal Nature in 2000, ranked first among papers with primary Korean authors and was cited 914 times. The citation frequency of his thesis is expected to exceed the 1,000 mark this year.
In terms of the number of papers published, Hyun Taek-hwan, a professor of biochemical engineering at SNU, cuts an outstanding figure. He has continued to develop new nanomaterials that could be used in medical, and information and communication sectors, publishing as many as five of the most-cited top 0.1-percent theses.
SNU has ranked first with 278 most-cited papers over the past decade, followed by Yonsei University (142), POSTECH (112), Korea University (109), and Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (102).
Source: Chosunilbo