She is Jumana Abdul Rahim Al-Turkistani, from Jeddah.. From playing with cubes in her early childhood, her journey with experimentation and discovery began, so she discovered many ways to build a house, and conducted many experiments between disassembly and assembly.. When she grew up a little; nothing attracted her to read and follow it as much as the scientific magazine "How Stuff Works?" attracted her. She grew up more and practically began to learn how things work!

A special childhood!

Because she knew what she loved since her childhood, and because she had an aware and educated family that was able to satisfy and enhance her scientific inclinations, Jumana obtained the “Talent Scarf for Excellence” at a very early age, when she was almost twelve years old! This was for her participation in the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity, which was organized by the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity in 2008.

Jumana says: Her participation in the summer programs of the Talent Management Department greatly affected her personality. It taught her how to think about a product, how to develop a business plan to produce it, and how to succeed and innovate!

In middle school, Jumana was able to lead her team to win the second best innovative solution in the world in the First League competition in America. At this age, she also trained elementary and middle school students on robot programming and design in Mawhiba’s summer programs.

Regarding this experience, Jumana said: Her personality has completely changed. She has become more capable of bearing responsibility, making decisions, and expressing opinions. As for her dreams, they have expanded and grown..!

Jumana: The scientist of the future!

Because she has loved discovery since childhood, Jumana wanted to look for a different opportunity, so she decided to take part in scientific research, especially since she had been dreaming of participating in the Intel International Exhibition for four years. Between fear and enthusiasm, terror and desire, ambition and dream, she participated in the scientific research track in the National Olympiad for Scientific Creativity and not only did she win, but she was also classified as one of the best future scientists, according to experts at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF 2012) that was recently held in the United States of America. Successful friends are one of the reasons for the desire for success.. Always keep successful people around you!

Jumana says: “The participation was wonderful and distinctive, as I was able to meet international specialists and trainers, and I also got to know very ambitious students, who filled me with motivation and enthusiasm for further successes. I will never forget my feeling of pride when the Saudi participants raised the Kingdom’s flag in the competition.”

I wasn't alone!

 “ Great successes are the   result of determination, patience and ambition, no doubt, but there are successes that may be greater than our capabilities as simple individuals and as young people at the beginning of the road,” said Jumana, describing her experience with scientific research. She added: “Personally, I was very fortunate to have parents who discovered my talent at an early age and worked hard to satisfy my scientific curiosity, and support me in times of pressure and when needed, especially since the Intel Science Fair preceded the final exams for the second secondary stage, followed by the aptitude tests and achievement tests, which made me live in a state of pressure to some extent, but they were there to always remind me that I am capable and that things will go well.”

“Also, there are many people and entities that supported my project, including consultants and experts at the King Fahd Medical Research Center at King Abdulaziz University, in addition to faculty members at King Abdulaziz University and King Saud University, and consultants from King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. There is no doubt that the first and last credit, after God Almighty, goes to the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity, because it helped qualify us through intensive training workshops at the hands of international experts.”

Jumana Project:

“The Effect of Natural Herb Extracts on the Production of Dengue Fever Virus in Cell Culture”

When the Jeddah floods disaster occurred in 2009, Jumana noticed that stagnant water helped increase the number of infections with the virus, which reached 263 cases. She began reading previous research and found that the number of people infected with the disease around the world reaches 22 thousand people annually, due to the water swamps that help mosquitoes reproduce. Therefore, she invented a method to eliminate the “dengue fever” virus, which is caused by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, by using four types of natural herbal extracts known for their effect on microorganisms.

Jumana said that she took steps to verify the validity of her idea, so she conducted a comprehensive survey and read the latest scientific research findings directly related to the subject, then communicated with consultants and specialists from inside and outside the Kingdom, and then began designing the experiment and then implementing it in stages and steps.

The first Saudi female student to win the Nobel Prize!

Jumana Turkistani is now a preparatory year student at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah.

Yes.. She has grown up a little.. and has reached the age of eighteen.. but she is still practicing the dream and living the desire for another success.. The difference is that her dream has become much bigger.. She dreams of becoming an academic researcher who contributes to developing the country and its economy for the better, and of being the first Saudi student to win the Nobel Prize in the field of technical innovation..