ICTP celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Dirac Medal on 10 November 2010 with a day of lectures by past and present medal winners, covering a vast range of topics in theoretical physics • • •

Dirac Medal Turns 25

With its dual mission—to pursue high-quality research, and to nurture science in the developing world—challenged by rapidly evolving geopolitical events, ICTP has developed a five-year strategic plan • • •

Blueprint for the Future

“Science and Development for a Changing World” was the theme of a three-day event hosted by ICTP in November. The high-level gathering of top scientists and policy makers looked at the implications of global change on science and education in the developing world • • •

45 Years and Growing

NEWSn°130

Autumn 2010

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OPENING REMARKS [P-3] | REGIONAL SCIENCE [P-6] | DIRAC MEDALINTERVIEW [P-8] | ICTP PRIZE 2010 [P-12] | NEW BODIES ELECTRIC [P-14] |MEDICINE IN AFRICA [P-15] | OPENEYA [P-17]

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CENTREFOLD

NEWS from ICTP 130

ICTP CELEBRATES A MILESTONE WITH A FOCUS ON THE FUTURE

ICTP recently hosted a high-level gathering of top scientists and policy makers to discuss the implications of global change on science and education in the developing world.

The event was titled “ICTP After 45: Science and Development for a Changing World”, and ran from 8 to 10 November 2010.

Nobel Prize winners, government ministers, and leaders of development agencies from developed and developing countries joined in an international dialogue to determine new, effective strategies for scientific research and education.

Speakers included David Gross, Physics Nobel Laureate (2004), and Walter Kohn, Chemistry Nobel Laureate (1998).

As part of the “After 45”event, ICTP celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Dirac Medal. On Wednesday, 10 November, the Centre hosted a day-long series of lectures

by past and present Medallists, covering a vast range of topics in theoretical physics.

This issue of News from ICTP showcases highlights from the three-day event. For multimedia resources, including videos of speeches and participant interviews as well as PowerPoint presentations of our Dirac lecturers, please visit the ICTP web site at www.ictp.it/about-ictp/ictp-after-45.aspx

ICTP AFTER 45

45 Years and Growing

+ Physics Nobel Laureate David Gross

+ Chemistry Nobel Laureate Walter Kohn

3

OPENING REMARKSBY ICTP DIRECTOR FERNANDO QUEVEDO

Your Excellencies, distinguished guests, colleagues and friends, Welcome to “ICTP After 45: Science and Development for a Changing World”.The activities during the next three days are, in general terms, a celebration

of science and its relevance to our world. Science plays a unique role among human activities. For its practitioners, it represents our contribution to the world’s culture. Its study brings great satisfaction to all of us who continuously wonder about and want to understand nature.

As a human endeavour, science exercises critical thinking that is needed in all circumstances related to responsible and effective decision making. By its

own nature, science creates a discipline of constant and continuous learning, since in science there is continuous progress and scientists need, and want, to be updated on the latest developments.

Furthermore, even though history is usually presented as if only very few figures

have dominated the big discoveries over the centuries, science is actually a collective activity that requires the participation of many individuals before

ICTP After 45: Science and Development for a Changing World

+ L’Oréal Prize Laureates Zohra Ben Lakhdar,

Nagwa Meguid and Grace Oladunni Olaniyan-Taylor

+ Abdelkrim Aoudia, Minister Henri Dzinotyiweyi

and Francis K.A. Allotey

+ Trieste Mayor Roberto Dipiazza, speaking. Sitting beside him, Adele Pino, Provincial Councillor for

education, and Roberto Molinaro, Regional Councillor for research+ Walter Kohn and Ahmad Salam

ICTP AFTER 45

NEWS from ICTP 130

years has been engaged in a long-term investment on capacity building and promotion of research activities in all corners of the world.

Knowledge-based initiatives in developing countries at present have to be based on the investment that ICTP and a few other institutions have already made over the years to create a critical mass of well trained scientists who can solve all kinds of problems. This is a sustainable model to support the most needy countries in the world. Fortunately, it is a fact that scientific talent is evenly distributed internationally and, given the proper opportunities, young people from all over the world can learn and make important contributions to science and their societies.

The main drawback of this success story may be that ICTP is too small to take full responsibility for this noble mission. Much more needs to be done. Fortunately several initiatives are under way to promote science in the developing world, and the model of ICTP can be used as an example that foreign cooperation, when done properly and aimed in great part at long-term scientific training rather than exclusively short-term direct help, is an efficient sustainable procedure.

great break-throughs happen. This is true now more than ever. Science needs the participation of many individuals working together for a given goal. In this sense, its practice should be a good model for the organization of society overall. Finally, science is a truly international activity; it transcends cultural, religious, national and ethnic differences among its practitioners, unifying in a particular way all mankind.

From a more pragmatic point of view, scientific knowledge clearly determines the development of societies in a way that a country with no scientific development is destined to fail. It is very clear that over the years, the countries that have invested in scientific development are the ones that have profited from economic growth and progress.

Scientific education is needed in an ever-dynamic world in which the challenges dramatically change within a generation or less. Having a strong scientific background permits new generations to adapt to and face new problems. A scientific training involves both solid knowledge of well-established facts and creative thinking. Educating and training the younger generations in scientific fields, whatever the field, corresponds to training problem-solvers who can

use these tools in any job, not only in science. By the nature of scientific activity, the practitioners are trained to confront new problems and use their analytical and computational training to solve them.

This versatility of scientists is not usually recognized by policy makers and development agencies who, by unilaterally deciding which subjects should get funded, truncate the very nature of the scientific practice and do not allow the full body of science to develop in the best possible way. More importantly, many developing countries have not invested in science because it is usually argued that they have more important and urgent needs.

Working under the umbrella of a tripartite agreement between the Italian government, the IAEA and UNESCO, ICTP for more than 45

+ Fernando Quevedo making his opening remarks at the “After 45” event

+ Sheung Tsun Tsou and Jia-Er Chen,

ICTP Council member

5

“AFTER 45” EVENT SETS STAGEFOR FUTURE DIRECTIONS

ICTP launched its three-day, international science and policy conference “ICTP After 45: Science and Development for a Changing World” by announcing a new, five-year strategy aimed at helping the Centre to better adapt to rapidly developing geo-political and technological changes.

“This strategy is really a vision for the future of ICTP,” said Director Fernando Quevedo, explaining that full implementation of the plan depends on more funding for the Centre.

The strategy, which was developed by ICTP scientists, extends the Centre’s scientific activities in value and range, as well as geographical extent, while

reinforcing the necessary resources, and developing the required outreach techniques. Although broad, it has five specific priorities:• establish a formal PhD programme as a natural extension of the current Diploma programme;• establish regional centres of excellence in

developing countries;• strengthen existing research sections and add new ones, particularly in energy

and sustainability, quantitative biology and computing sciences;• develop improved internet-based techniques and new e-learning methods to

further supplement and replace the traditional classroom;• create a new Institute Advancement Office that would seek new funding and

support opportunities.

ICTP Announces New Strategy

5-YEARSTRATEGY

See the centrefold for a more detailed look at the strategy. The plan is also available on the ICTP website at: www.ictp.it/media/110086/ictpstratplan.pdf.

The strategy announcement was followed by an awards ceremony for this year’s Dirac Medal winners Nicola Cabibbo (posthumously) and Ennackal Chandy George Sudarshan. Nobel Laureates David Gross and Walter Kohn presented the awards to Cabibbo’s family and Sudarshan.

Gross later delivered a keynote speech on “The Future of Science”, which focussed on the importance of basic science for all countries. “Basic science is at the heart of ICTP, and is in incredibly good shape, because there are so many fascinating questions that we are on the verge of answering,” he said.

A second keynote speech by Jacob Palis, president of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS), focussed on “The Importance of Science for Developing Countries”.

“The poorest countries generate less than one percent of science articles in peer-reviewed journals, but account for one-fourth of the world’s population. We need to continue efforts to shrink this gap between scientifically capable countries and scientifically lagging ones by designing special activities, instruments and initiatives to deal with this very difficult problem to reach Least Developed Countries,” said Palis.

NEWS from ICTP 130

DAY 2 OF “AFTER 45” CONFERENCE FOCUSSES ON REGIONAL SCIENCE ISSUES IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD

Lack of mobility, inadequate equipment and human resources, brain drain: these are some of the many challenges faced by scientists in developing countries, and were among the many topics of discussion during the second day’s programme of “ICTP After 45: Science and Development for a Changing World”.

The theme of the day, “Science within a Changing Geopolitical Framework”, brought together ministers, policy makers and high-level scientists from four world regions—Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the Balkans, and Latin America and the Caribbean—to showcase regional success stories as well as challenges regarding science and mathematics education in developing countries.

Jean-Pierre Ezin, commissioner for human resources, science and technology for the African Union, chaired the African regional session, which spotlighted the difficulties in mobility for scientists on the continent as well as an inequality in university equipment and human resources.

Session speakers recommended that ICTP could help by holding localized schools in Africa and by emphasizing regional cooperation in its programmes. The session rapporteur was Romain Murenzi, Director of the AAAS Center for Science, Technology and Sustainable Development.

The Asia session, chaired by former ICTP Director Katepalli R. Sreenivasan,

REGIONAL SCIENCE

ICTP “An Open Windowto the World Scientifi c Community”

+ Session on science in Africa. From left: Francis K.A. Allotey, Thomas Auf der Heyde, Jean-Pierre Ezin,

Abdelaziz Benjouad and Jane Mubanga Chinkusu

spotlighted the different levels of development in Asia, which need different solutions. “The key word for this region is cooperation,” said session rapporteur Sheung Tsun Tsou of the University of Oxford’s Mathematical Institute.

In Eastern Europe and the Balkans, the key word is transformation, according to session rapporteur Yanko Yanev of the IAEA. Session chair Rexhep Meidani, former President of Albania, oversaw presentations from Georgia, Romania, Serbia and Turkey. Representatives from the European Physical Society, the Central European Initiative, and UNESCO also joined the session. “ICTP is an open window to the world scientific community,” said Yanev.

Latin America and the Caribbean were characterized by that session’s speakers as a region with disparities in levels of research. While Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Mexico have attained relatively high research standards, other countries, such as Guatemala, lack investment and infrastructure. The level of basic education in the region needs to be improved, and brain drain is a problem, with researchers’ concerns about the region’s economic and political stability keeping them abroad, said session rapporteur Leticia Cugliandolo, director of Les Houches Physics School. Former ICTP Director Miguel Virasoro chaired the session.

7

CENTRE CELEBRATES WITH DAY OF LECTURES IN HONOUR OF PRESTIGIOUS PHYSICS PRIZE

ICTP celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Dirac Medal on 10 November 2010 with a day of lectures by past and present medal winners, covering a vast range of topics in theoretical physics. The celebration coincided with UNESCO’s World Science Day.

ICTP’s Dirac Medal, first awarded in 1985, is given in honour of P.A.M. Dirac, one of the greatest physicists of the 20th century and a staunch friend of the Centre. It is awarded annually to scientists who have made significant contributions to theoretical physics. Many Dirac medallists have gone on to win even more prestigious prizes, including the Nobel Prize, the Wolf Prize, and the

Fields Medal.Earlier in the week, during the opening

ceremony of its “After 45”event, ICTP held an awards ceremony for this year’s Dirac Medal winners Nicola Cabibbo (posthumously) and Ennackal Chandy George Sudarshan. Nobel Laureates David Gross and

Walter Kohn presented the awards to Cabibbo’s widow and Sudarshan.Please see an interview with Sudarshan on the next page.The Dirac lectures were captured by ICTP’s OpenEyA automated recording

system and can be viewed online at:www.ictp.tv/eya/ICTPafter45.php?day=10.

Several speakers supplemented their talks with PowerPoint presentations; those are also available online at: www.ictp.it/about-ictp/ictp-after-45/dirac-lectures.aspx

ICTP‘s Dirac Medal Turns 25

+ Dirac medallists with ICTP Diploma students

ICTP DIRAC MEDAL

ICTP’s Dirac Medal 25th AnniversaryProgramme

E.C.G. Sudarshan (University of Texas at Austin, USA): Half a century of physics: problems and solutions

Roman Jackiw (MIT, USA): Fractional charge, Majorana fermions: the physics of isolated zero modes

Helen Quinn (SLAC, USA): Scale hierarchies in gauge theories and beyond

John Iliopoulos (Ecole Normale Supérieure, France): New physics at the LHC

Giorgio Parisi (Rome “La Sapienza”, Italy): Theoretical progresses in off-equilibrium behaviour

John H. Schwarz (Caltech, USA): Superconformal fi eld theories

Michael B. Green (Lucasian Professor, University of Cambridge, UK): Connections between string theory and perturbative supersymmetric quantum fi eld theory

Sergio Ferrara (CERN, Switzerland and UCLA, USA): Black holes and supergravity

Joseph Polchinski (UC Santa Barbara, USA): Holography and unifi cation

Cumrun Vafa (Harvard, USA): Strings and geometry

Stephen L. Adler (IAS, Princeton, USA): Localizing numerical integration by 2p subdivisions in p dimensions

Vladimir E. Zakharov (University of Arizona, USA): Some physical applications of weak turbulent theory

Roberto Car (Princeton, USA): Quantum mechanics in a glass of water

Michele Parrinello (ETH, Zurich): The phase diagram of Sodium or using a sledgehammer to crack a nut

NEWS from ICTP 130

very interested in higher symmetry of relativistic equations. When Salam was here ICTP was like a beehive, humming with everybody talking and doing things.

Of course, my exposure to the Centre now is only through its meetings, and they are not as inspiring as doing research.

What do you remember about ICTP founding Director Abdus Salam?

I knew him from before he came to ICTP. He was in Lahore for a time. Then afterwards he used to come to Rochester when I was there. He was a very charming, very interesting person, but when I came here he was so busy with all the things that were going on and he also had two young collaborators he was working with all the time.

What was it like for you training to be a scientist in India?

When I was at TIFR [Tata Institute of Fundamental Research], the institute had one theorist and everybody else was doing some experiments, and that one theorist was Homi Bhabha, and to see Bhabha was a major achievement because he was so busy.

It was difficult to find anyone to collaborate with or do things. Now things have changed, the institute has come of age; there are so many

AN INTERVIEW WITH ICTP’S 2010 DIRAC MEDALLISTE.C. GEORGE SUDARSHAN

Indian-American physicist Ennackal Chandy George Sudarshan was a recipient of the 2010 ICTP Dirac Medal. He attended the “After 45” event to collect the award and gave a lecture on his work during ICTP’s ceremony celebrating 25 years of the Dirac Medal.

Sudarshan’s important contributions to theoretical physics include the discovery (with Robert Marshak) of the V-A theory of weak interactions, which opened the way to the full in the field of quantum optics, including the Optical Equivalence Theorem, which provides the foundation upon which the investigations of the manifestly quantum or non-classical

character of the electromagnetic field are based.

Sudarshan, a physics professor at the University of Texas at Austin, found a few minutes to discuss science and Abdus Salam with News from ICTP.

What have you been working on most recently?

Recently I have been peripherally interested in quantum computing, because with quantum computing there are no computer manufacturers, it is just a matter of assembling a sufficient number of elements for the thing, and I had done some work on stochastic processes in quantum mechanics.

I have also been particularly interested in measurement theory, where there is a philosophical question to be answered: How can a classical apparatus measure a quantum system? This is the real question, and von Neumann did not do anything about it. Some years ago I wrote a series of papers saying how you could do this and illustrating it by some experiments that worked, but I don’t think that many people have appreciated it, because they always say “von Neumann had done it,” and I respond, “What did he do?” He made a pronouncement but that is not what is needed; what is needed is the physical procedure. With the advent of quantum computing many of these things are much more seriously involved.

Describe your experiences with ICTP.

In the very beginning when I came, Abdus Salam was here and he was

DIRAC MEDAL 2010

On Quantum Computingand Measurement Theory

9

specialists there, and some Dirac medallists also.

How can developing countries nurture physics students in their countries?

One thing is to house them in some place that is nice, supply them with food and blankets and so on, and then say “You do your thing”. Here is the blackboard, here are papers, do what you want. Sooner or later the people will do it, but you cannot make sure that everybody will do it, but if you have somebody with ideas about new developments, and he would talk about what his own experience is, then people will follow. Also, when I was at TIFR there was no graduate school, you went there and you imbibed things from the atmosphere, and there was no prospect of a degree from there, because that was

not the idea, it was fundamental research and therefore you have to do it from the ground up.

How can a centre like ICTP help?

ICTP helps by inviting people and giving them associateships for some time, so they get the chance to come here again and again. Scientists can stay here for two months, then return home, and then do research either at their home institutes or they can return to ICTP again and get recharged. That is very good. My wife was an associate here for many years.

+ E.C. George Sudarshan

Dirac Medallists2010 Nicola Cabibbo, E.C. George Sudarshan2009 Roberto Car, Michele Parrinello2008 Juan Martin Maldacena, Joseph Polchinski, Cumrun Vafa2007 John Iliopoulos, Luciano Maiani2006 Peter Zoller2005 Sir Samuel F. Edwards, Patrick A. Lee2004 James D. Bjorken, Curtis G. Callan2003 Robert H. Kraichnan, Vladimir E. Zakharov2002 Alan Guth, Andrei Linde, Paul Steinhardt2001 John J. Hopfi eld2000 Howard Georgi, Jogesh Pati, Helen Quinn1999 Giorgio Parisi1998 Stephen L. Adler, Roman Jackiw1997 Peter Goddard, David Olive1996 Tullio Regge, Martinus J.G. Veltman1995 Michael Berry1994 Frank Wilczek1993 Sergio Ferrara, Daniel Z. Freedman, Peter van Nieuwenhuizen1992 Nikolai N. Bogolubov, Yakov G. Sinai1991 Jeffrey Goldstone, Stanley Mandelstam1990 Sidney R. Coleman, Ludwig D. Faddeev1989 Michael B. Green, John H. Schwarz1988 Efi m S. Fradkin, David J. Gross1987 Bryce DeWitt, Bruno Zumino1986 Yoichiro Nambu, Alexander Polyakov1985 Edward Witten, Yakov Zeldovich

NEWS from ICTP 130

MAIN GOALS INCLUDE EXPANDED RESEARCH SECTIONS, A NEW PHD PROGRAMME, AND REGIONAL CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE

ICTP has a dual mission: to pursue high quality research, and to nurture science in the developing world. However, these ongoing objectives continually have to adapt to an evolving geopolitical situation: as nations mature scientifically, others in the developing world still require support and assistance. At the same time, scientific priorities are in a continual state of flux as fresh horizons emerge and new research techniques become available.

This plan is only a guideline. Given the many limitations of funds, space, personnel and other resources, it is difficult to visualize how all these activities

can be achieved within five years. Also, unforeseen new opportunities may emerge and prove more promising than those presented here.

Nevertheless, it is important to have a vision and to identify clear goals in order to move forward. The points presented here are

the results of consultations with many scientists inside and outside ICTP. The local scientists contributed very much after two days of brainstorming sessions and several small committee reports.

The main goalsThis five-year plan adds fresh impetus to ICTP’s dual mission. It extends the Centre’s scientific activities in value and range, as well as geographical extent, while reinforcing the necessary resources, and developing the required outreach techniques. Although broad, it has five specific priorities:

1. ICTP science would be enriched by a formal PhD programme as a natural extension of the current Diploma Programme.Initiating a PhD programme at ICTP is a priority of the new directorship. Although a natural extension of the existing Diploma Programme, it will not be limited to diploma students. It will also be open to other highly qualified students from the developing world, including those from countries (Argentina, India, etc.) whose students are currently not accepted for the Diploma Programme as adequate education at this level already exists in their countries. This could be implemented in association with other institutions such as the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), the United Nations

STRATEGIC PLAN

ICTP Strategic Plan 2010-2014

University (UNU), etc. This would be complemented by new diploma programmes in applied mathematics and other new research areas (see below).

ICTP would also expand the STEP programme, coordinating with other institutions in the developed world that could partner to participate in this sandwich PhD.

2. The reach of ICTP’s science would be extended by establishing regional centres of excellence in developing countries. This would be coordinated by an enhanced Office of External Activities by complementing its main activities (affiliated centres, networks, conferences, visitors) with a new major activity focussing on the creation of ICTP branch institutes.

These could be multidisciplinary and/or specialized. Ideally, all should be regional so as to underline the international nature of ICTP’s work. Funding should be sought through ICTP and local sources.

3. The range of ICTP’s science would be increased by strengthening existing research sections and adding new ones, particularly in energy, quantitative biology and computing sciences.

3a. Energy and Sustainability. This proposed new research section would concentrate on the different sources of energy and their impact

11

in the developing world. This topical subject area fits very well with the current activities of the Earth System Physics and Condensed Matter Physics sections and complements them in a natural way, in particular, the computational modelling of different materials relevant for energy conversion and storage. The hope is that such research could be implemented in collaboration with other local and national institutions, in particular SISSA, as well as with UNU (as a World Institute of Renewable Energy). This topic is important for developing countries that have special needs for energy use and production. The research would focus on renewable energy sources, but would not exclude other sources. Possible synergies with the IAEA and with other local institutions with experimental programmes that could complement our theoretical activities will be investigated.

3b. Quantitative Biology. This refers to the understanding of biological processes from data and quantitative analysis, computational and/or mathematical. Theoretical physics and mathematical methods are playing an increasing role in biological systems. In particular, the large volumes of data becoming available from sequencing of species require quantitative techniques more familiar to physicists and mathematicians than to biologists.

This work could be implemented in collaboration with the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Trieste.

Quantitative Biology is important for the developing world because of its relevance for epidemics, genetic diseases, cancer, etc.

3c. Computing Sciences.The systematic study of algorithmic

processes that create, describe, and transform information and its applications in computing systems is an ever-growing field that somehow now mirrors the role that theoretical physics used to play 45 years ago when ICTP was founded. It has direct impact on society as a whole, and can be implemented in developing countries through improved access to computers via the Internet. It is directly related to development and has important financial implications.

This activity could be considered as a natural extension of the mathematics group to more applied areas. Expanding the scope of this new group to include quantum computing could also link with current research interests at ICTP and the University of Trieste.

4. ICTP would play a leading role in developing improved internet-based techniques and new e-learning methods to further supplement and replace the traditional classroom.

5. A new Institute Advancement Office (IAO) would seek new funding and support opportunities.

Other new outreach initiatives outlined in the plan include:• Implement, together with

UNESCO and similar institutions, an office to study the status of scientific development in various developing countries and liaise with local scientists to establish coherent development plans.

• Establish a new programme to support undergraduate students from the least developed countries. This would organize activities such as regional schools, travel to emerging and developed countries for summer training, and encourage students to embark on scientific careers, etc.

• Coordinate with UNESCO and other institutions (CERN, AIMS, Cambridge Millennium Mathematics Institute, etc.) a coherent programme for scientific education for teachers.

• Establish an Experimental Techniques for Training and Development (ExTraD) unit. This would coordinate existing experimental activities at ICTP such as the ARPL (Aeronomy and Radiopropagation Laboratory), the MLab (Multidisciplinary Laboratory), etc., and complement them to provide basic equipment to support some of the annual activities and schools, such as those in optics and electronics.

• Expand the existing TRIL (Training and Research in Italian Laboratories) to TREL (Training and Research in European Laboratories) to distribute researchers from the developing world to European laboratories such as CERN, ESA, ITER, etc.

The full text of ICTP’s Strategic Plan 2010-2014 is available on its website at www.ictp.it/media/110086/ictpstratplan.pdf

NEWS from ICTP 130

man. Sometimes these things have to do with initial conditions: if you have a couple of really good people, then they serve as inspiration for younger people.

You have spent many years in the top US universities, and you are now back in India. What is the difference between doing science in the USA versus in India?

I should first say that the TIFR is a magnificent institution; the theory group is fantastic, for several reasons. Firstly, you have very good

AN INTERVIEW WITH INDIAN STRING THEORIST AND ICTP PRIZE 2010 WINNER SHIRAZ MINWALLA

Shiraz Minwalla, a string theorist at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) in Mumbai, India, is the recipient of the 2010 ICTP Prize.

The Prize recognizes Minwalla’s influential work in string theory. As a researcher and faculty member at Harvard University, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and, most recently, TIFR, he has won numerous fellowships and awards, including an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship, a National Science Foundation Presidential Career Fellowship, and a Swarnajayanti Fellowship from the Government of India. His papers have generated numerous citations. In 2008 he taught a course on “Fluid Dynamics from Gravity” at ICTP; that

same year, Minwalla was elected as a Young Affiliate of The Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS).

Minwalla collected his award during the ICTP “After 45” event, and spoke to News from ICTP while he was here.

In recent years string theory has been used to understand very diverse physical systems, from fluids to quark-gluon plasma. Do you think this will be the future of string theory, to be a tool to address other questions?

I view string theory as a theoretical framework, possibly the most powerful theoretical framework invented by human beings, that has connections to many areas of theoretical physics, quantum field theory, and other such areas. I think that as we improve our understanding of string theory, it will have increasing applications in studying diverse aspects of quantum field theory dynamics, which will then find application in various areas of physics. My hope is that this is not the only use of string theory, however, but that the original motivation for string theory—to find the quantum theory of gravity in the real world, or to find the grand unifying theory—also pans out.

What do you think is the reason behind the Indian community having such a strong string theory group?

That is a good question. The group, however, could be stronger. It is not as strong as the string theory group in the USA. We have Ashoke Sen, one of the best physicists in the world today; he greatly raises our profile, just that one

ICTP PRIZE2010

The Powers ofString Theory

”I view string theory as a theoretical

framework, possibly the most

powerful theoretical framework

invented by human beings”

13

colleagues, but secondly and perhaps even more importantly, the senior people at the institute take care to create an environment that is conducive to doing research. In this it is very similar to the atmosphere at Harvard, where also the senior people are very nurturing, very encouraging, and really give you the space and encouragement to do as well as you can.

What is not as good in India—and this is hard to fix—is the quality of interaction you get. At Harvard, the general level of discussion is higher than at TIFR. For instance, at Harvard I would go to lunch every day and we would always have an interesting conversation on the latest papers on the Internet. That somehow does not happen at TIFR, for various reasons: for instance, there are fewer postdocs of the same level. The second thing is that a place like Harvard, or Princeton, gets a continuous flow of extremely exciting people coming to visit. At any given week at Harvard there would be at least three visitors, each of whom has something completely new to tell you. India is certainly not at the centre of the traffic of physics in that respect. If you are at a place

like Princeton or Harvard, you stay current just by being there; it takes no effort to keep track of everything that is happening in the field.

Would you say that your affiliation with ICTP has contributed to the development of your work?

I would say the contributions of ICTP to me have been indirect, through the previous generation. For all my senior colleagues in India, ICTP was totally crucial. Had it not been that they were already in India and already strong and already in

a position to provide this fantastic environment, that would have greatly impacted me.

As a person who has himself come from a developing country, what do you think is essential for students coming from places like that to reach top level in physics?

I think students need an undergraduate education in which the atmosphere is exciting and which gives them the space to be excited. In my opinion, at the undergraduate level, while it would be great to have totally top researchers teaching you, that is not essential. The undergraduate curriculum for physics is pretty well laid out; it hasn’t changed much in the last 40 years or so, and can be filled in by classic textbooks.

Once you get into the stage where you are supposed to be doing research, at that point you need to be mentored by somebody who has a sense or can put you onto a reasonable research problem. If you have a student in a country where there are not mentors of sufficiently high quality, then these students should go outside.

+ Shiraz Minwalla and his colleague at TIFR, Spenta Wadia, ICTP Prize winner in 1995

+ Shiraz Minwalla receiving the ICTP Prize from Michael Green

NEWS from ICTP 130

NEW BODIES ELECTRIC

ICTP hosts workshop on strongly correlated electronic systemsThe electrons in some materials respond powerfully to each other, appearing to attract or align in unexpected ways. Scientists studying these strongly-correlated quantum systems have continued to reinvent the field through discoveries of new materials, such as novel superconductors, new findings through high-precision experiments, and new connections between seemingly disparate theoretical methods. In August, 113 theoreticians and experimentalists gathered at ICTP for the “Workshop on the Principles and Design of Strongly Correlated Electronic Systems”.

“We are fascinated by the emergent properties of quantum matter,” said Rutgers University physicist Piers Coleman, one of the directors of the workshop. “You might think that since we have the equations of quantum mechanics, we should be able to understand what happens when you put electrons and protons and neutrons together. But remarkably, things don’t always behave as we might have expected.”

For instance, strongly correlated electronic systems undergo unusual transitions in their behaviour with changes in pressure, chemical composition, and magnetic field, called “quantum phase transitions”. In such a transition, an insulator can become a superconductor.

As a material approaches a quantum phase transition, the quantum effects become more and more intense, giving rise to correlations that last infinitely long in time and perhaps stretch out to infinitely long distances in space, Coleman said. These transitions are thought to occur at absolute zero but their effects might still be seen at temperatures as high as 1000 K (727 degrees Celsius). In contrast, the well-studied thermal phase transitions affect behaviour only near the critical point.

“The ideas that explained classical critical points can’t be used on quantum critical points,” he added. “We don’t understand why, actually.”

Understanding why is the duty of theorists, who benefit from frequent infusions of experimental data in this field. “There is nothing better than to confront theorists with reality,” Coleman said.

ICTP theoretical physicist Erio Tosatti, another organizer of the workshop, agreed with Coleman. “Given two things equally beautiful, I have a lot more attraction for something that actually exists,” Tosatti said. But experimentalists should not ignore the benefit of theoretical advances, he added.

“You don’t do a meaningful experiment if you have no background in theory,” Tosatti said. “The experimentalists who participate in this conference get ideas for what to measure, what is important and what is not.”

The workshop boasted leading theorists and experimentalists in the field. Laura Greene, a condensed matter physicist from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA, said she enjoyed the broad range of topics covered.

“It’s a giant mosaic,” Greene said. “Everyone is putting their own tiles in. We are starting to see the patterns” •

RESEARCH

ResearchNews Briefs

+ Workshop organizer Andrey Chubukov and workshop speaker

Akira Furusaki

15

NATURE PUBLISHES VOLCANO RESEARCH

ICTP post-doc is lead authorA better way to pinpoint where volcanic eruptions are likely to occur has been published in Nature Geosciences (www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/pdf/ngeo967.pdf). The lead author, Ian Hamling, is a post-doctoral researcher in the Tectonophysics and Earthquake and Volcanic Studies group (TEVOS) of ICTP’s Earth System Physics section.

By studying a rare sequence of 13 magmatic events—where hot molten rock was intruded into a crack between the African and Arabian plates—Hamling and co-authors found that the location of each intrusion was not random, but was linked because each event changed the amount of tension in the Earth’s crust.

The findings will help scientists to more accurately predict where volcanic eruptions could strike and contribute to efforts to limit the damage they can cause.

The ESP-TEVOS group, led by ICTP staff scientist Abdelkrim Aoudia, is using numerical modelling and geophysical and geodetic data to decipher the physics and behaviour of earthquake faults and dormant volcanoes •

IMPROVING MEDICINE IN AFRICA

Scientist from Nigeria wins top ICTP medical physics prizeIn most developing countries, medical digital imaging devices and techniques such as CAT scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are scarce. Knowledge of and training for these advanced medical tools are of utmost importance for the future health of these countries, which is why Nigerian medical physicist Rachel Obed came to ICTP. The Centre’s Training and Research in Italian Laboratories (TRIL) programme, as well as its bi-annual College on Medical Physics, offered the right mix of theory and applied training for her to advance her knowledge of the field.

Her research achievements as a TRIL fellow working with Gianrossano Giannini at the University of Trieste have earned her the top prize at this year’s College on Medical Physics, which was held from 13 September to 1 October at ICTP. The prize, which includes a €500 award, was donated by Ali Binesh, a medical physicist from Iran and a participant in the last two ICTP medical physics colleges, in memory of his father, who was also a medical physicist.

Obed’s TRIL work focussed on an experimental form of radiotherapy known as boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT). The technique uses neutrons to target cancer cells that have concentrations of boron. The idea is to selectively destroy the cancer cells without damaging normal tissues surrounding the cells.

Obed’s work was featured in a video produced by ICTP and presented on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) website: www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Multimedia/Videos/ictp/081110/index.html.

Another TRIL fellow, Ali Asghar Molavi, received a prize from the TRIL programme in recognition of his quality fellowship work at the Medical Physics Department of the Azienda Ospedaliero - Universitaria Ospedali Riuniti in Trieste •

+ Rachel Obed showing the certifi cates of the Ali Binesh Prize and best poster presentation

NEWS from ICTP 130

ICTP CREATES SOUTH AMERICAN INSTITUTE

Partnership with Universidade Estadual Paulista expands Centre’s activities in the SouthICTP and the Institute of Theoretical Physics at the Universidade Estadual Paulista in São Paulo (IFT-UNESP), Brazil have announced the creation of the ICTP-South American Institute for Fundamental Research. Under an agreement signed on 8 November during the opening day of the “ICTP After 45” conference, the two institutes will collaborate to offer theoretical physics education in a number of regional scientific centres of excellence in Central and South America.

“This is a unique opportunity for ICTP to get involved with an institute of such high stature,” said ICTP Director Fernando Quevedo during the signing.

The new institute, which will be based at IFT-UNESP, will offer training and research at graduate and post-doctoral levels. In particular, it is meant to support research in those South American countries where theoretical physics research is not yet well developed. Activities will be modelled on those of ICTP and will include annual schools, courses, workshops and conferences, as well as an active visiting scientists programme •

GUGLIELMO MARCONI ICT WIRELESS LABORATORY INAUGURATED

ICTP campus houses the wireless laboratoryAn ICT wireless laboratory, named after Italian inventor and physics Nobel Laureate Guglielmo Marconi, was inaugurated on 23 November by ICTP Director Fernando Quevedo and Hamadoun Touré, Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

The laboratory will provide a boost to ICTP’s training programmes on wireless communications technologies. These programmes, conducted by ICTP’s Aeronomy and Radiopropagation Laboratory (ARPL) have been providing the much-needed support in wireless technology education to students and researchers from developing countries.

The training programmes offered by ARPL have been seeing an increasing number of applicants over the past few years, said ARPL’s Head Sandro Radicella.

During the remarks at the inauguration, Touré said that the event served to restate ITU’s commitment to work with ICTP. Talking about the new facility and the support it would lend to students from developing countries he said, “Investing in the human brain is the best investment we can make” •

ICTPNews Briefs

NEWS

+ UNESP Vice-Rector Julio Cesar Durigan and Fernando Quevedo

+ Hamadoun Touré speaking at the opening of the Marconi Laboratory

17

ICTP’S OPENEYA EARNS INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

Automated recording system’s “potential applicability in the developing world” citedICTP’s automated recording system “openEyA” (an acronym for “Enhance your Audience”), has received an honourable mention in the education category of the Stockholm Challenge, an international awards programme that promotes the use of ICT tools and technologies for the development of people and society.

The award citation reads:“openEyA is good, interesting and useful technology. It facilitates the classroom work. To have an automated lecture

recording system is rather appealing in many contexts. This project seems to alleviate the most time-consuming post-production editing stress of video production. It is nice that it is open source framework which should help to sustain it. Thus openEyA has potential applicability in the developing world. We see a good future for this technology.”

OpenEyA is an innovative automated audio/video/slide recording system, developed to archive and share scientific lectures and talks carried out using digital presentations (PPT, PDF, animations, etc.) and especially traditional chalkboards found in classrooms.

For more information about the openEyA system developed in-house by the Science Dissemination Unit, visit the website at: www.openeya.org •

ICTP DIPLOMAS AWARDED

Students complete rigorous, pre-doctoral study programmeIn August 2010, 37 students from developing countries earned ICTP diplomas in physics or mathematics by completing coursework in the Centre’s year-long Diploma Programme. As a result, more than half of them have earned places at competitive universities in Europe, the USA, and elsewhere.

“It was one of the best years of my life; I have learned a lot during this year. People from the Third World frequently don’t have the opportunities to learn very technical things, and ICTP is giving us that chance,” said Alejandro Cabo from Cuba, who completed studies in high energy physics.

Cecilia Nyamwandha of Kenya echoed Cabo’s sentiments. “For me it’s been an interesting experience. Here, you’re doing so much in a very short time, so it makes it more intense, but actually it’s a good thing,” she said. Nyamwandha,

who studied Earth system physics, will begin doctoral studies in September at the University of Memphis in Tennessee, USA.

The Diploma Programme comprises four specialized fields, reflecting ICTP’s core research activities: high energy physics, condensed matter physics, Earth system physics, and mathematics.

Of this year’s Diploma students, 25 were from Africa, 17 from Asia, 3 from Latin America, and 1 from Eastern Europe. Eight students studied high energy physics, 10 studied condensed matter physics, 10 pursued studies in Earth system physics,

and 9 pursued mathematics diplomas. Twenty-one of the Diploma students have been admitted to universities in Europe, the USA, Canada and Africa and will begin their studies this autumn.

ICTP also supports a Diploma Programme in basic physics, designed for students from sub-Saharan Africa, that provides an intense and comprehensive revision of advanced undergraduate-level physics. Nine students completed the programme this year, of whom six will join the full Diploma Programme and one will participate in ICTP’s Training and Research in Italian Laboratories (TRIL) programme.

For more details about the ICTP Diploma Programme, visit the website at: diploma.ictp.it •

NEWS from ICTP 130

ICTP, IAEA LAUNCH SCHOOL OF NUCLEAR ENERGY MANAGEMENT

Comprehensive training on peaceful use of nuclear technology offeredICTP and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) collaborated to train young professionals from developing countries in management techniques for nuclear technology.

The First ICTP-IAEA School of Nuclear Energy Management, held in Trieste, ran from 8 to 26 November.The purpose of the capacity-building school was to build future leadership in managing nuclear energy programmes,

particularly in countries that are new IAEA member states and that seek to develop nuclear power or other nuclear applications.

As the demand for nuclear technology increases—for applications ranging from energy production to medicine—so does the need for a greatly expanded global cadre of nuclear professionals. The school directly addressed that need.

Over the course of the programme, participants gained awareness of the most recent developments in nuclear energy, as well as of the IAEA’s broad international perspective on issues related to the peaceful use of nuclear technology.

The course also drew on ICTP’s expertise in advanced studies in material science, which are critical for the development of safer, more economic and proliferation-free power reactors. ICTP also models seismic risks and environmental impacts of extreme climatic events, important in planning the development of nuclear infrastructure •

TWAS HONOURS ICTP DIRECTOR

Quevedo elected as Associate FellowICTP Director Fernando Quevedo has been elected as an Associate Fellow of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World (TWAS), during its general meeting in Hyderabad, India.

Quevedo, a Guatemalan national, began his tenure as ICTP Director a year ago, coming to the Centre from Cambridge University, UK, where he is a professor of theoretical physics. He is a well-known theoretical particle physicist with wide-ranging research interests in string theory, phenomenology and cosmology. He has worked at such prestigious research institutes as CERN and the Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA.

According to the TWAS web site, the main criterion for election as a TWAS Member is scientific excellence. Only those scientists who have attained the highest international standards and have made significant contributions to the advancement of science can be nominated as Fellows or Associate Fellows.

Associate Fellows are scientists who live and work in developed countries, have made contributions to their fields of science that meet internationally accepted standards of excellence, and, additionally, have distinguished themselves in efforts to promote science in developing countries •

NEWS

19

IN MEMORIAMNicola Cabibbo1935 - 2010ICTP Scientific Council Chair Nicola Cabibbo died on 16 August 2010. A leading theoretical physicist at the University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Cabibbo was actively involved with ICTP for many years, presenting at conferences and helping with the Centre’s strategy as the Italian government’s representative to ICTP beginning in 1995, a member of the ICTP Scientific Council since 1997, and then as its chair since 2006.

Shortly before his death, Cabibbo had been awarded ICTP’s Dirac Medal. At the Dirac award ceremony held during ICTP’s “After 45”event in November, the award was presented to his family, and Luciano Maiani, president of Consiglio

Nazionale delle Ricerche, gave a remembrance speech titled “Universality of the Weak Interactions: Recalling Nicola Cabibbo”.

Maiani recalled, “In 1967 Nicola settled back in Rome where he taught theoretical physics and created a large school with younger colleagues and brilliant students. Like all great minds, he could find simple arguments to explain the most difficult concepts. His students were fascinated by his simplicity, gentle manners and sense of humour. Inspired by Nicola’s physical intuition, mathematical skill and personal

charisma, the Rome school contributed significantly to establishing what is today referred to as the Standard Theory of particle physics.”

“Nicola was one of the best friends ICTP ever had,” said ICTP Director Fernando Quevedo during the ceremony, adding, “Abdus

Salam and he had signed an agreement when Cabibbo was president of INFN to create ICTP’s Multidisciplinary Laboratory. He has been a friend for many years and we are all very thankful for him.”

Mohammad Hossein Sarmadi1953 - 2010Mohammad Hossein Sarmadi, an ICTP researcher, passed away on 9 October 2010 in Trieste. Sarmadi was born in 1953 in Iran, where he also went through his school education.

Sarmadi then studied at the University of Pittsburgh, USA for his undergraduate degree, where he also obtained his PhD in high energy physics in 1982. He was at ICTP for his first post-doctoral position from 1983 to 1985 and subsequently held post-doctoral positions at Rutherford Laboratory in the UK and at CERN, Geneva. He returned to ICTP as a senior research scientist from 1991 to 1997 and later as a senior associate from 2000 to 2006. He also spent some time at the Institute for Studies in Theoretical Physics and Mathematics, Tehran, Iran.

During his research career he wrote several important and influential papers in the area of string theory, for example on Toroidal and Asymmetric Orbifold compactifications of string theory as well as on Bound states of D-branes.

Sarmadi strongly contributed to the ICTP Diploma Programme and supervised several Diploma students over many years.

+ Paola and Andrea Cabibbo + Nicola Cabibbo and Abdus Salam

signing the agreement

on the Microprocessor

(now Multidisciplinary) Laboratory,

ICTP, October 1985IN MEMORIAM

ICTP ON THE WEB: www.ictp.itThe Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) is administered by two United Nations agencies—the United Nations Educational, Scientifi c and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)—under an agreement with the Government of Italy.News from ICTP is a bi-annual publication designed to keep scientists and staff informed on past and future activities at ICTP and initiatives in their home countries. The text may be reproduced freely with due credit to the source.

EditorMary Ann Williams

Scientifi c Editor/Direttore responsabileSandro Scandolo

Managing EditorAnna Triolo

StatisticianGiuliana Gamboz

WritersMisha KidambiOlga Kuchment

PhotosRoberto BarnabàICTP Photo ArchivesTWAS

Layout

Printed byTergeste Grafi ca&Stampa, Trieste

ICTP Public Information Offi ceStrada Costiera, 11I-34151 TriesteItalypio@ictp.itpio.ictp.it

UPCOMING SCIENTIFIC ACTIVITIESFor more details, visit the ICTP web page: www.ictp.it

31 January - 11 FebruaryWinter College on Optics in Imaging Science

21 - 25 FebruaryWorkshop on New Trends in Quantum Dynamics and Quantum Entanglement

28 February - 11 MarchWorkshop on Applications of Wireless Sensor Networks for Environmental Monitoring in Developing Countries,to be followed by Conference on Wireless Sensors Technologies for Environmental Monitoring

28 February - 18 MarchSchool and Conference on Modular Forms and Mock Modular Forms and their Applications in Arithmetic, Geometry and Physics

14 - 18 MarchJoint ICTP-IAEA Workshop on Radiation Resistant Polymers

21 - 25 MarchSchool and Workshop on Market Microstructure: Design, Effi ciency and Statistical Regularities

21 - 26 MarchInternational Conference on the Coordinated Regional Climate Downscaling Experiment – CORDEX

28 March - 5 AprilSpring School on Superstring Theory and Related Topics

4 - 8 AprilJoint ICTP-IAEA School on Advanced Radiotherapy Techniques with Emphasis on Imaging and Treatment Planning

11 - 22 AprilAdvanced School on High Performance and Grid Computing

11 - 22 AprilInternational School on Nuclear Security

27 April - 3 MayMeeting of Modern Science and School Physics: College for School Teachers of Physics in ICTP