BEIJING - Dr. Bai Chunli took office on Tuesday as the president of the Academy of Science for the Developing World (TWAS), becoming the first Chinese national heading the organization.

Dr. Bai Chunli, president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was elected president of TWAS in September 2012 to replace 72-year-old Brazilian Jacob Palis.

Bai is a leading scientist in China's nanotechnology study, especially in scanning tunneling microscopy, since the 1980s.

TWAS, formerly the Third World Academy of Science until 2004 and currently the Academy of Science for the Developing World, was founded in 1983 in Trieste, Italy to promote scientific excellence and sustainable development in developing countries. It has recruited more than 1,000 academicians from 92 countries and regions.