National Science and Math Quiz; Know your quiz mistress

The National Science and Maths Quiz has once again spurred us on to proudly defend the academic prowess of second cycle institutions we all attended.

The PRESECANs, Mfantsipim boy, Opoku Ware and Prempeh guys, have the loudest voices, having secured spots in the semi-finals of the competition.

A pivotal figure who has carried on her shoulder the NSMQ for the past decade as quiz mistress is Dr Elsie A. B. Effah Kaufmann. Her finesses, deep insight into questions she asks and her sense of humour lights up the quiz atmosphere much to the delight of the audience and contestants.

Dr Elsie A. B. Effah Kaufmann, a product of Aburi Girls Senior High School, (too bad they could not progress to make her proud), is a Senior Lecturer and the Foundation Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Ghana. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE), a Master of Science in Engineering (MSE) and a PhD in Bioengineering, all from the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

After her graduate studies she received her postdoctoral training at Rutgers University, USA before joining the University of Ghana in July, 2001.

Dr. Effah Kaufmann was a member of the Planning Committee set up by the Academic Board of the University of Ghana to make proposals for establishing the Faculty of Engineering Sciences and was also a member of the three-person Implementation Committee set up by the Vice Chancellor following the submission and adoption of the Planning Committee’s report.

She was appointed as the first Head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering in 2006 and has served as Head for a number of years (2006-2012, 2014-2016).

Dr. Effah Kaufmann was named University of Ghana’s Best Teacher for the Sciences in 2009. In 2010 she was elected to represent non-professorial academic staff on the highest decision-making body of the University of Ghana, the University Council, a position she held for four years.

In 2011 Dr. Effah Kaufmann was a winner of the prestigious International Women’s Forum Leadership Foundation Fellowship. Dr. Effah Kaufmann’s teaching and research focus on Tissue Engineering, Biomaterials and Application of Biomedical Engineering concepts to the solution of problems in the Ghanaian context.

She is also keenly interested in Science education at all levels

Some of her research works include,
• Design of scaffolds for tissue engineering applications.
• Characterization of natural materials (e.g. cassava fibre).
• Application of Biomedical Engineering concepts to addressing problems in the Ghanaian context: e.g. Use of biomaterials in Ghana, Engineering Design, and
• Engineering Education.

Below are some of her publications

• E.A.B. Effah Kaufmann, P. Ducheyne, I.M. Shapiro, “Evaluation of osteoblast response to porous bioactive glass (45S5) substrates by RT-PCR analysis,” Tissue Engineering 6(1), 19-28 (2000).

• E.A.B. Effah Kaufmann, P. Ducheyne, I.M. Shapiro, “The effect of varying physical properties of porous, surface modified bioactive glass 45S5 on osteoblast proliferation and maturation,” J. Biomed. Mater. Res. 52(4), 783-796 (2000).

• Godfrey A. Mills, Thomas A. Nketia, Isaac A. Oppong, Elsie Effah Kaufmann, “Wireless Digital Stethoscope Using Bluetooth Technology,” International Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, 4(8), 3961-3969 (2012).

• Kathleen H. Sienko, Elsie Effah Kaufmann, Moses Musaazi, Amir Sabet Sarvestani, Samuel Obed, “Obstetrics-Based Clinical Immersion of a Multinational Team of Biomedical Engineering Students in Ghana,” International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 127(2), 218-220 (2014).

• Ibrahim Mohedas, Elsie Effah Kaufmann, Shanna R. Daly, Kathleen H. Sienko, “Ghanaian undergraduate biomedical engineering students’ perceptions of their discipline and career opportunities,” Global Journal of Engineering Education 17(1), 34-41 (2015).

 

Credit: University of Ghana website