Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
14 December 2020
Prof Abdon Atangana
Prof Abdon Atangana is known for his work in developing a new fractional operator used to model real-world problems arising in the fields of science, technology, and engineering. He was recently awarded the TWAS Mohammad A. Hamdan Award by The World Academy of Sciences.

Prof Abdon Atangana, Professor of Applied Mathematics in the Institute for Groundwater Studies at the University of the Free State (UFS), was awarded the TWAS Mohammad A. Hamdan Award by The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries.

It is the first time that the TWAS Mohammad A. Hamdan Award was bestowed. According to a statement issued by TWAS, this award is given for outstanding mathematical work carried out by a scientist working and living in Africa or the Arab region. It states that the award can be given for work in pure mathematics, applied mathematics, probability, or statistics. Prof Atangana received the award for his contribution to fractal mathematics and partial differential equations.

Making a difference in society

He is known for his research in developing a new fractional operator, the Atangana-Baleanu operator, which is used to model real-world problems. With this operator, he not only describes the rate at which something will change, but also account for disrupting factors that will help to produce better projections.

His work can be applied to make complicated predictions in the fields of science, technology, and engineering. His models can, for instance, help to predict the spread of infectious diseases among people in a settlement, forecasting the number of people who will be infected each day, the number of people who will recover, and the number of people who will die.

Prof Atangana’s models can also help to advise people drilling for water by predicting how groundwater is flowing in a complex geological formation. These are only two examples of how his work can be applied to make a difference in society.

The award from TWAS is the third prestigious commendation he has received in the past month. He was recently named as one of the top 1% scientists on the global Clarivate Web of Science list. His name also appeared on a global list of leading scientists published by Stanford University in the United States. The list is the result of a study published in PLOS Biology, a peer-reviewed open-access journal.

World’s most accomplished scientists

Honours awarded by TWAS and its partners are among the most prestigious for research in the developing world. They recognise outstanding achievements and contributions to science and acknowledge the best work by scientists from the global South.

TWAS, founded in 1983 by a group of scientists under the leadership of Pakistani physicist and Nobel laureate, Abdus Salam, believes that developing nations – by growing strength in science and engineering – will be able to address challenges such as hunger, disease, and poverty, through their knowledge and skills.

TWAS is represented in 100 countries, and of the more than a thousand elected fellows, 14 are Nobel laureates. Eighty-four percent of these fellows are from developing nations. TWAS fellows are also some of the world’s most accomplished scientists.

News Archive

UFS welcomes Pres Jacob Zuma’s statement about 0% increase in tuition fees for 2016
2015-10-23

The senior leadership of the University of the Free State welcomes the announcement made this afternoon by President Jacob Zuma about a 0% increase in tuition fees for 2016.

“We support the announcement by President Zuma, after consultation with university leaders. This will provide enormous relief for struggling students and their families across the three campuses. We now look forward to the details of how universities will be supported financially to enable this to happen,” says Prof Jansen.

The university leadership commends the vast majority of students for their disciplined behaviour and commitment during this period and hope to build on this momentum to contribute to the further transformation of the university and higher education sector.

The court interdict obtained on 21 October 2015 has been withdrawn. “We would like to take the opportunity to thank the South African Police Service (SAPS) and our own staff for their unwavering support and cooperation during this week, especially those staff who performed essential services,” says Prof Jansen.

Academic and administrative activities will resume on all three campuses of the UFS as from Monday 26 October 2015.

Released by:
Lacea Loader (Director: Communication and Brand Management)
news@ufs.ac.za
+27(0)51 401 3422
+27(0)83 645 2454

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept