They say that "the apple never falls far from the tree", and that was Haifa Khaled Al-Bassam.

She grew up in the city of Khobar, in a family that loved science and excelled in engineering. She witnessed many people in her life who proved their presence in society and benefited the country with their scientific and practical excellence. She was influenced by them and became who she is now.

Nominated by a committee at ISEF2011 Los Angeles to speak with a group of Nobel Prize-winning scientists  Nominated by a committee at ISEF2011 Los Angeles to speak with a group of Nobel Prize-winning scientists  Nominated by her school to participate in a summer program held at UCLA for young leaders "People to People Leadership Summit". Winner of first place in the Arab world in the 2011 Intel Arab Science Competition - Social and Behavioral Sciences category - with the project Caution! Sit Right, and third place in the grand prize in the same competition. She also won first place in the Kingdom in the National Olympiad for Talent and Creativity with the same project, and qualified to participate in the 2010 ISEF held in San Jose, and the 2011 ISEF held in Los Angeles. 

In addition, she won the same project at the Eastern Province level in the Science Competition at Prince Mohammad bin Fahd University with a project, and she also qualified with it at the regional level in the Prince Turki Competition for Distinguished Student in the Scientific Projects category.

As for her project, A Friendly Bag For Your Back, she won second place at the Kingdom level in the Mawhiba Science and Engineering Fair, and qualified to participate in the 2009 Reno ISEF.

A person's environment reflects his personality!

Haifa owes a lot to her school. From kindergarten to high school, the teaching method was based on nurturing curiosity, raising questions, motivation, and most importantly, providing opportunities. Having a creative, close person gives a person the motivation and ambition to succeed and excel. She also believes strongly in the role of role models in the life of every creative person. Having a creative, close person gives a person the motivation and ambition to succeed and excel, and the belief that nothing is impossible.

Haifa believed that a person’s surroundings reflect his personality, and that a person who is surrounded by creative people will undoubtedly be creative..! They do not necessarily have to be family members, but also friends.. All of Haifa’s innovative projects were the result of collective efforts with her friends, during which their dreams and wishes for a light bag that does not hurt the back.. and a healthy pillow were transformed into real products..!

Haifa Al Bassam's innovations:

1) A Friendly Bag For Your Back 

Haifa worked on this project in collaboration with her colleagues Asma Al-Sihati and Nouf Al-Manea in 2009. It is a development of school bags, with the aim of reducing back pain and diseases resulting from carrying heavy school bags.

Haifa says: The biggest problem they faced as students was the weight of the bags, so she and her friends thought of a way to help control the weight of the bag, which is to invent a very light scale (weighing no more than 5 kg) that contains an electronic device for entering data, and to place the scale at the bottom of the bag, so that the student can enter his weight and height easily, and thus the weight that he can carry is calculated for him without harming his back according to a well-studied medical equation, and if the weight of the bag exceeds the maximum allowed for a person to carry, it alerts him.

2) Caution! Sit Right

This innovation is a medical pillow that aims to remind the user of the healthy sitting position to reduce back pain. Haifa says that she worked on this project with her friends Amna Al-Sihati and Taima Hezam, believing that the simplicity of sitting can sometimes blind the person sitting to its unhealthy effects. She confirms that studies have proven that back diseases Lumbago and Dorsalgia are among the most common diseases that humanity complains about, according to the American Back Diseases Association. Accordingly, Haifa and her team designed, coordinated and tested a pillow that guides the user to the healthy sitting position with the aim of reducing the effects of these diseases.

This pillow helps reduce stress, thus increasing satisfaction and self-confidence while sitting for work or study. It also identifies three different sitting positions, while sensors alert the user if he is sitting with his back hunched or leaning backwards, through different alarms for each session, and a green light lights up for the healthy session.

Haifa.. aspires to be a role model for all the people she has known in her life.. just as she was influenced by them!