Rabat – Moroccan scientists Farida Fassi and Rajaa Cherkaoui El Moursili have both featured in the 2023 AD Scientific Index.
The index placed Morocco’s Cherkaoui El Moursili 152 out of 1,087 scientists in a global ranking.
Al Moursili, a professor of nuclear physics at the Faculty of Science at Mohammed V University secured a score of 215 placing her in the 2023 ranking.
The scientist received her PhD in Nuclear Physics at the University Joseph Fourier in Grenoble, France. In addition to her achievements at Mohammed V University, the professor also served as the head of the laboratory of nuclear physics.
In 2015, Cherkaoui received the L’Oreal UNESCO award for Women in Science.
Through her experience across several positions in the nuclear field, the professor also won the first prize for her scientific publications on the second day of scientific research and innovation at Mohammed V University in 2017.
The index also featured Morocco’s Farida Fassi, who was ranked at 160 with a score of 214.
Like Cherkaoui, Fassi is a professor at the Mohammed V University in Rabat in the Faculty of Science.
The professor obtained a Master of Science degree in Nuclear and Particle Physics, as well as a PhD in Particle Physics from the University of Valencia in Spain.
Fassi, who is the co-founder of the African Strategy for Fundamental and Applied Physics, was then granted a postdoc to extend her research from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC).
In 2007, the professor secured a research position at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) and contributed to the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment. The CMS experiment is one of the largest international scientific collaborations.
In 2021, Fassi told Morocco World News that from a young age her parents helped and supported her scientific and mathematical abilities.
Speaking about her love for physics, the scientist told MWN that the field “reveals the mathematical beauty of the universe at scales ranging from subatomic to cosmological.”
She emphasized that she is confident that she would be a “valuable asset to convince the community of the importance of physics for economic development.”
Positioned at the top of the AD Scientific Index is HJ Kim from South Korea with a score of 330. Followed by US scientists Ronald C Kessler and Joann E Manson from Harvard University, who ranked second and third, respectively.
Robert Langer from Massachusetts Institute of Technology ranked fourth followed by Harvard’s Eric Lander and Graham Colditz from Washington University Saint Louis.
