Gabriela Frajtag is the only Brazilian to recognized in a competition that discusses the intersection between quantum physics and biology.
A recent graduate of the Ilum School of Science, 20-year-old Gabriela Frajtag won an international award in a scientific article competition with participants from six continents addressing one of the most challenging issues in contemporary science: the intersection between quantum physics and biology. In December 2025, Gabriela obtained her undergraduate degree in science and technology from Ilum, the educational arm of the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM).
She was the only Brazilian to win an award in the contest, which was promoted by the Foundational Questions Institute (FQxI), in partnership with the Paradox Science Institute with support from the D’Or Institute for Research and Education’s Pioneer Science initiative. This competition included 97 contributions from academics, scientists, students and professionals in various areas. Eight participants won prizes, with Gabriela receiving the Special Undergraduate Award worth US$ 3,000, for authors who were still completing their undergraduate degree at the time they submitted their articles.
Her essay, “The Quantum of Biology: History and Future,” analyzes the emergence of quantum biology, key historical milestones, and future challenges for the field, and offers reflections on the minimal use of quantum resources in living systems. The judges considered this contribution outstanding, for both its scientific quality and clear communication with non-specialized readers.
The interdisciplinary nature of the course offered by the Ilum School of Science has played a central role in Gabriela’s trajectory. “Ilum served to introduce interdisciplinarity very early, allowing me to get into these very new fields. Everything I was able to experience and learn during my undergraduate course happened because I was in the very interdisciplinary environment that it is Ilum,” she noted.
During her undergraduate training, Gabriela distinguished herself in other academic and scientific initiatives: she won a scholarship spot in the Estudar Foundation’s Líderes Estudar program, participated in the Israel’s Kupcinet-Getz International Program led by Ada Yonath, winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and was also recognized at her graduation as an outstanding student at Ilum. These experiences helped her approach emerging themes like quantum biology, which she later explored more deeply in her award-winning article.
“International recognition reinforces [the Ilum School of Science’s] educational proposal, which focuses on solid, integrated scientific training to address contemporary challenges. Gabriela’s achievement highlights the potential of young researchers trained in an environment that encourages dialog between different knowledge areas,” said Ilum director Adalberto Fazzio.
The international competition is one of a series of initiatives by FQxI to encourage deep, innovative reflections on fundamental issues in science, bringing together both experienced researchers and new voices from the global scientific community. Previous FQxI competitions have included contributions from Nobel Prize winners, with awards granted to winners from a variety of areas, from people interested in science in general as well as acclaimed scientists and authors. FQxI has prominent members such as the Nobel Prize-winning theoretical physicist Frank Wilczek, Carlo Rovelli (author of Seven Brief Lessons on Physics), and Sabine Hossenfelder (author of Existential Physics: A Scientist’s Answer to Life’s Biggest Questions).
About the Foundational Questions Institute
Founded in 2006 by Professor Max Tegmark and Professor Anthony Aguirre, the Foundational Questions Institute (FQxI) is an independent grant-making agency and think-tank which provides support for blue skies research in the physical sciences. This initiative includes prominent members such as Nobel Prize-winning theoretical physicist Frank Wilczek. FQxI has awarded over US$ 29 million in grants to researchers around the globe to work on issues ranging from the origin of the arrow of time in quantum gravity to the nature of consciousness.
About IDOR Pioneer Science
Pioneer Science is an independent initiative by the D’Or Institute for Research and Education to intensify disruptive scientific discovery in Brazil. This non-profit project will invest R$ 500 million in cutting-edge research over the next ten years. Founded and funded by the Moll family (owners of the D’Or Group), this initiative invests in promising and groundbreaking research, particularly at the intersection between biomedical and health sciences and exact sciences. www.cienciapioneira.org
About the Ilum School of Science
Ilum offers a free undergraduate degree program that utilizes an interdisciplinary approach to train scientists and professionals in science and technology. With an innovative educational model, the three-year full-time bachelor program offers courses that connect life sciences, materials science, data science, artificial intelligence, and the humanities in order to prepare researchers to work in an ethical and collaborative manner in the search for solutions to the global challenges of the twenty-first century. The Ilum School of Science is funded by the Brazilian Ministry of Education (MEC) and is part of the Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) in Campinas, São Paulo, a social organization overseen by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MCTI). Ilum's educational mission offers early contact with experimental activities, in teaching labs at the school as well as at CNPEM, in projects carried out together with researchers.
About CNPEM
The Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) is home to a state-of-the-art, multi-user and multidisciplinary scientific environment and works on different fronts within the Brazilian National System for Science, Technology and Innovation. A social organization overseen by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MCTI), CNPEM is driven by research that impacts the areas of health, energy, renewable materials, and sustainability. It is responsible for Sirius, the largest assembly of scientific equipment constructed in the country, and is currently constructing Project Orion, a laboratory complex for advanced pathogen research. Highly specialized science and engineering teams, sophisticated infrastructure open to the scientific community, strategic lines of investigation, innovative projects involving the productive sector, and training for researchers and students are the pillars of this institution that is unique in Brazil and able to serve as a bridge between knowledge and innovation. CNPEM’s research and development activities are carried out through its four National Laboratories: Synchrotron Light (LNLS), Biosciences (LNBio), Nanotechnology (LNNano), Biorenewables (LNBR), as well as its Technology Unit (DAT) and the Ilum School of Science — an undergraduate program in Science and Technology supported by the Ministry of Education (MEC).
