Andrew Smith, Photography Editor
Helen Jacobs
Today, we feature the nominee for the coveted Gleaner Honour Award in the category of science and technology.
When Professor Helen Marjorie Jacobs was informed that she had been nominated for The Gleaner Honour Award 2007 for science and technology for her contribution to the field of Chemistry, her initial response was a combination of shock and apprehension at being thrust into the limelight.
Not what you might expect from the Professor of organic chemistry at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, who has moulded young scientists in the region for more than 20 years. That initial response, however, masks her desire and passion to promote science as an intrinsic part of Jamaica's development.
Helen Jacobs (nee Parkins) began her love affair with chemistry at St. Hugh's High School in the 1960s. She fondly reflects on her coming of age in the 60s, saying that a "more idealistic ethos" existed during this time, and so, in pursuit of a career, she and many of her peers "chose a subject as opposed to a profession". The subject she chose was chemistry, drawn to the lure of organic chemistry because of its "complexity of structures and its relevance to everyday life."
Since that time at St. Hugh's, she has left her mark. She notes with pride that she has received all of her degrees at UWI. These include a first class honours B.Sc. (Special) in chemistry, completed in 1974. Four years later, she received her Ph.D. in organic chemistry, her thesis being on "Constituents of Jamaican Amyris species". This has formed the basis of her work since then, which targets the biological screening of endemic Jamaican plants and involves the isolation and examination of the structural composition of the plants. The aim of this is to determine the plants' level of bioactivity, and has applications in medicine, agriculture and industry.
Peripatetic Professor
During the nine years between receiving her Ph.D. and starting to lecture at the UWI in 1987, Dr. Jacobs worked extensively in the hemisphere. She was a post-doctoral fellow at the State University of New York in the United States for a year, where she focused on synthetic organic chemistry. The next year she was produce chemist with Grenada's Ministry of Agriculture, where she was involved in the identification, food analysis and evaluation of agricultural surplus, waste and by-products as potential components of indigenous animal feed.
From 1980 to 1983, she was a post-doctoral associate at the University of British Columbia at Vancouver, Canada, where she again worked in synthetic organic chemistry. While there, Dr. Jacobs was involved in (among other things) using forest by-products as biological pest controls. She then returned to the Caribbean, and for four years she was director of the M.Sc. programme in natural products chemistry, senior lecturer at the University of Guyana, and visiting professor at the University of Toronto.
This Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) funded project was aimed at establishing a self-sustaining centre for natural products chemistry at the University of Guyana and for training chemists up to the M.Sc. level. Dr. Jacobs was responsible for the academic programme, administration of the centre and supervising research projects.
In 1987, she returned to UWI as a lecturer, then was appointed senior lecturer in 1996 and professor in 2002. During this time, she instituted a research programme that involves the extraction, isolation, analysis and applying spectroscopic techniques on endemic Jamaican plants. This programme examines "families and genera of plants with structurally interesting and biologically active compounds". Professor Jacobs says this research has found unprecedented structures and skeletons in these plants, and some exhibit bioactivity.
Biological screening programmes
Dr. Helen Jacobs, professor of organic chemistry at the University of the West Indies, Mona, and recipient of The Gleaner Honour Award 2007 for science and technology for her contribution to the field of chemistry.photos by Andrew Smith/Photography Editor
The results of this work have been fed into biological screening programmes for diseases such as TB around the world, including Germany and the United States.
Professor Jacobs also emphasises the need for knowledge acquired by Jamaicans that can be gained by studying their own flora. She says that the intrinsic academic interest is necessary, adding, it is "the best way of training chemists".
The training of scientists and its application of science to Jamaica's development is a subject that Professor Jacobs is passionate about. She believes that investment in science is important, asking, "How else can we foster economic growth if not by producing goods and services whereby we can earn our keep?"
Another shortfall identified by Professor Jacobs is that there is very little science-based economic activity outside of the bauxite industry. She calls for "direct foreign investment in manufacturing and pharmaceuticals to drive science enterprise" in Jamaica. She says that there are possible applications of science in agriculture, bio-extraction, pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals (high value compounds such as flavourings and food additives).
She says tha the "science curriculum in high school and GSAT is wonderful on paper" there are a number of factors mitigating against the proper application of science to the development in Jamaica. She says the best way to make science attractive to students is by effective teaching. Making science attractive is necessary so that potential scientists can be drawn from all across the society. Yet, she laments that the most qualified graduates do not go into teaching because they are not being paid enough.
This is in stark contrast to the rest of the Caribbean, says Professor Jacobs, who believes that Jamaica ranks below Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago in terms of science education. Generally speaking, she says Barbadians are better educated, with higher rates of literacy and numeracy. This foundation enables them to better grasp scientific concepts. Professor Jacobs believes that Trinidad and Tobago have invested the economic gains acquired through their petroleum industry into their education system.
Future of Science
Professor Jacobs believes that if we are to apply science to Jamaica's development process, then a strong political will is required. She says that the initiatives are present, but "dollars and cents" are needed.
She also laments that there are not many role models for potential scientists to follow in their footsteps. Successful chemists and agriculturists are not highlighted, and so, many Jamaican youngsters do not yearn to pursue the sciences as a career option, except as doctors and engineers. Hopefully, the work of Professor Helen Marjorie Jacobs will be able to provide such an example and inspiration to young scientists.
Organic chemistry explained
According to Wikipedia, organic chemistry is a specific discipline within chemistry, which involves the scientific study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and preparation (by synthesis or by other means) of chemical compounds consisting primarily of carbon and hydrogen, which may contain any number of other elements, including nitrogen, oxygen, halogens as well as phosphorus, silicon and sulfur.
