Dr. Vladivoj (Vlado) Valkovic is a Professor Emeritus of Physics at Rice University, Texas, United States. He is also a fellow of the American Physical Society and the Institute of Physics (London, United Kingdom). Throughout his career, he has authored approximately 24 books and contributed to more than 400 scientific and technical articles in high-impact international journals. His research spans a wide range of areas, including nuclear physics, instrumentation, and the applications of nuclear techniques to problems in biology, medicine, environmental research, and trace element analysis. Dr. Vlado served as Head of the Physics, Chemistry, and Instrumentation Laboratory at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, Austria, and as Laboratory Head and Scientific Advisor at the Ruder Boskovic Institute, Zagreb, Croatia. Additionally, he has provided technical assistance to numerous developing countries through his role as an IAEA expert. In 2024, ScholarGPS ranked him among the top 0.5% of scholars worldwide in the research field of Trace Elements, recognizing his significant contributions to the field.