26 Filipinos Named as Part of the Top 2% Scientists in the World

Pinoy pride, are we right?
26 Filipino scientists were just listed in Stanford University’s 2024 “World’s Top 2% Scientists” list. The National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) congratulated all 26 of its members and awardees on their Facebook page.
The caption of their post read, “The Stanford List compiles the names of the Top 2% most cited researchers/scientists globally across different fields annually. These individuals’ rankings are determined using the C-score metric created by John Ioannidis, a statistician at Stanford University.”
Among those listed were National Scientists Carmencita Padilla and Bienvenido Juliano, NAST Academicians Jose Cruz Jr., Antonio Miguel Dans, Glenn Gregorio, Jurgenne Primavera, Raymond Girard Tan, and Allan Bernardo. Scroll down for the full list.
What is This List and What Makes It Important?
The Elsevier Data Repository explains that this list shows the scientists who made the biggest impact in their respective fields. It has also become a useful tool to determine the global scientific leaders across a broad range of fields and disciplines.
Becoming a part of such a prestigious list definitely means great things: global recognition, a boost in your reputation, increased funding and collaborations, and more engagements at international conferences – and there's probably more!

How Are the Scientists Chosen for This List?
The list is based on Scopus data and a number of key metrics, which can be understood like this:
- C-score: A score based on various bibliometric factors, such as total number of citations, H-index, and number of citations (with and without self-citations).
- Field and Sub-Percentiles: All scientists are categorized into 22 fields and 176 sub-fields. Only those in the top 2% of their sub-field are considered for the list.
- Career-long vs. Single-year: The rankings are available in both career-long and single-year performance, which gives an insight to the remarkable achievements made recently and over the years.
Here are the 26 Filipino Scientists Who Made the List and their Contributions:
NAST Members:
- National Scientist Carmencita D. Padilla: Forming the basis of The Newborn Screening Act of 2004 (R.A. 9288)
- National Scientist Bienvenido O. Juliano (†): Co-authored over 370 papers on Rice Chemistry
- Academician Jose B. Cruz Jr.: Substantial contributions to Electrical Engineering
- Academician Antonio Miguel S. Dans: Contributions to Clinical Epidemiology, among many others
- Academician Glenn B. Gregorio: Genetics and Breeding for Salinity Tolerance, and Related Abiotic Stresses in Rice
- Academician Jurgenne H. Primavera: Contributions to the Aquaculture of Marine Shrimp, the Science-based Utilization and Conservation of Mangroves, and to Studies on the Critically Important Beach Forest Ecosystem
- Academician Raymond Girard R. Tan: Research contributions in Process Systems Engineering and Process Integration
- Academician Allan B.I. Bernardo: Contributions in Systematically Applying the Cognitive Psychological Approach to Studying Different Aspects of the Philippine Educational Experience
Corresponding Members:
- Corresponding Member Ramon B. Gustilo: Contributions to the Classification and Treatment of Open Fractures
- Corresponding Member Michael D. Purugganan: Contributions in Plant Genomics and Plant Evolutionary Biology
- Corresponding Member Rigoberto C. Advincula: Contributions to Polymer Chemistry, Nanotechnology and Materials that are useful for applications as sensors, improved displays, solar cells and bio-implants
- Corresponding Member Josefino C. Comiso: Established Warming trends in the Artic, the rapid decline in the Artic Sea ice over, and important inputs in the highly acclaimed IPCC-2007 report
- Corresponding Member Carlito B. Lebrilla: Pioneered the development of glycomic tools for health and diseases
- Corresponding Member Enrique M. Ostrea: Pioneered work on the detection of fetal exposure to drugs, tobacco, smoke, alcohol, and environmental toxicants by Meconium analysis
- Corresponding Member Baldomero M. Olivera: Significant achievements in understanding the complex nature of the neurotoxic venoms of marine snails at the physical, biochemical and molecular levels
- Corresponding Member Eduardo A. Padlan: Outstanding contributions and accomplishments in Biophysics, specifically the elucidation of the 3D structure of hemoglobin and anti-bodies in relation to their evolution and function
NAST Awardees:
- Dr. John Jamir Benzon R. Aruta: Contributions in the field of Psychology of Environmental Sustainability and Climate Change in the PH, Mental health and well-being of vulnerable populations, and cross-cultural research on psychological functions during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Dr. Kathleen B. Aviso: Contributions to Environmental research using Mathematical methods
- Dr. Jayeel S. Cornelio: newly appointed Director IV of the Science Education Institute - Department of Science and Technology, specializing in youth, generational change, and the intersection of religion and public life
- Dr. Alonzo A. Gabriel (†): Contributions in Microbiology and Hygiene, specialized in Food Processing, Microbiological Food Safety, and Traditional and Novel Food Technologies
- Dr. Mary Ann D. Lansang: Pioneering efforts in the field of Clinical Epidemiology, leading to the establishment of the UP-PGH Clinical Epidemiology Unit
- Dr. Marie Carmela M. Lapitan: Contributions in the field of Urology
- Dr. Paul Gideon D. Lasco: Contributions in Medical Anthropology and Public Health Research
- Dr. Lanndon A. Ocampo: Contributions in the field of Engineering, with research interests including multi-attribute decision-making, problem structuring, and uncertainty modelling
- Dr. Ourlad Alzeus G. Tantengco: Contributions to Molecular Biology, with expertise in cellular and molecular research related to pregnancy and parnutrition
- Dr. Aristotle T. Ubando: Contributions in the field of Mechanical Engineering, specifically in algal systems and biorefineries
Get the latest curated content with The Beat Asia's newsletters. Sign up now for a weekly dose of the best stories, events, and deals delivered straight to your inbox. Don't miss out! Click here to subscribe.