MinJun Kim, associate professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics at Drexel University, was selected as a Brain Pool Fellow by the Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, a program designed to attract renowned scientists and engineers to develop innovative technologies in Korea.
The Brain Pool was first introduced in 1996 to provide financial and logistical support to overseas scientists and engineers to collaborate with researchers at universities and research and development institutes in the Republic of Korea.
Each year, the ministry invites a group of scientists and engineers from key areas such as, physics, chemistry, mechanics, aerospace, information technology, biosciences and atomic energy to conduct research within Korea. The ministry hopes the Brain Pool program can fortify Korea’s competitiveness in an increasingly globalized and informatized world.
“The Brain Pool program is a prime window of globalization of Korean Science and Technology, and to enhance the scientific and technological exchange among scientists and engineers in Korea and abroad. Korea is a country that is still young, but dynamically advancing in R&D. This program is designed to accelerate the global networking in R&D,” said Chae Yung-bog, president of the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies.
Kim, an expert in microbiorobotics and bionanotechnology, will spend the summer of 2013 working at the Korean Institute of Science and Technology to advance microrobotics for minimally invasive surgical procedures.
Kim currently oversees the Bacterial Actuation, Sensing and Transport Laboratory at Drexel. He holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering from Brown University, a master of science in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas and a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering from Yonsei University in Korea. Prior to joining Drexel, Kim was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Rowland Institute at Harvard University.