Ann. Henri Poincaré 4, Suppl. 2 (2003) S977 – S982
c Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel, 2003
1424-0637/03/02S977-6
DOI 10.1007/s00023-003-0977-z
Annales Henri Poincaré
The African Institute for Mathematical Sciences
Neil Turok
Abstract. I briefly review the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences project,
a new educational centre now being established in Cape Town, South Africa with
the goal of strengthening scientific and technological capacity across the African
continent.
1 What is AIMS?
The African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) is an exciting new initiative involving African and international Universities, to establish a new centre for
postgraduate teaching and research in Cape Town, South Africa. It will initially
focus on a unique, intensive nine-month postgraduate course developing research
skills as well as providing an overview of many of the most exciting areas of mathematical science.
The course will lead to a Postgraduate Diploma in the Mathematical Sciences, formally accredited by the three partner South African Universities and
endorsed by the Faculty of Mathematics of the University of Cambridge. Recently,
the Universities of Orsay and Oxford have joined the project as partners. The
AIMS institute will be formally opened in September 2003.
The AIMS project has received enthusiastic support from the international
academic community. Outstanding African and international scientists and educators have volunteered to teach at AIMS, ensuring a course of the highest international quality. 30 students have been recruited for the first year of the course from
15 African countries, from Algeria to Zimbabwe. Our intention is for the AIMS
course to serve as a stepping stone to careers in research, education, industry or
government. The pan-African character of the student body and the international
mix of lecturers will offer unique opportunities for building friendships across cultural and national boundaries, contributing positively to bridging the North-South
divide. AIMS graduates will remain in contact long after they have completed the
course, providing a powerful network working together for African progress.
AIMS will be located in Muizenberg, Cape Town, in a beautiful building
(formerly an 80-room art-deco style hotel) which has been donated to the project.
Students and visiting lecturers will be housed within the building, allowing for
maximal interaction in an informal and collegiate setting. AIMS will also house a
computer laboratory, a library and excellent teaching facilities.
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The Institute will be located in the twin white buildings at the left of this picture
Muizenberg is an area of outstanding natural beauty within a half-hour drive
of each of the local Universities and Cape Town international airport. There is a
direct train service to the centre of Cape Town. Several important museums, a
theater and tertiary educational colleges further enhance the setting.The beach on
False Bay, 50 yards from AIMS, is one of the finest in the Cape.
2 The AIMS Course
The AIMS curriculum will provide both a strong foundation in mathematical and
computing research skills, and an overview of cutting edge developments in the
mathematical sciences.
Skills courses will include:
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The Art of Scientific Approximation
Mathematical Problem Solving
Probability and Statistics
Mathematical Modeling
Methods of Mathematical Physics
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Review courses will when possible be given in tandem by overseas lecturers and local academics. They will cover some of the most exciting areas of science today, with mathematics as a unifying thread. Topics include Fluid mechanics, Quantum physics, Epidemiology, Astronomy and astrophysics, Fundamental
physics, Modeling of biological systems, Complex systems, Numerical analysis, Applications of complex variables, Geometry and topology, Financial mathematics.
The teaching style will be highly interactive and responsive to the students’
needs. As a rule, students will study only one subject at a time for two or three
weeks, with morning lectures and related afternoon problem solving and computing
sessions. Additional lectures may be held in the evenings.
The goal will be to develop well-rounded scientists, with creative problemsolving skills and a strong grounding in generally applicable mathematical and
computational methods. A course of such breadth is unique worldwide, offering
students an exposure to a range of sciences and allowing them to make an informed
choice as to their future scientific speciality.
3 AIMS Structure and Funding
The AIMS Board of Directors includes representatives of the partner Universities:
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Prof.
Prof.
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Prof.
Prof.
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Jan van Bever Donker, University of the Western Cape,
Fritz Hahne, University of Stellenbosch,
Keith Moffatt, University of Cambridge,
Daya Reddy, University of Cape Town,
Graham Richards, University of Oxford,
Vincent Rivasseau, University of Orsay,
Neil Turok, University of Cambridge.
There is also an Advisory Board of African academics chaired by Prof. Hans
Eggers, and we are developing a list of AIMS representatives across Africa.
AIMS is made possible by funding from:
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The Gatsby Charitable Foundation, UK.
The Vodafone Group Foundation, UK.
The Vodacom Foundation, South Africa.
Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, South Africa.
Cambridge University Press.
The David and Elaine Potter Charitable Foundation
The Daniel Iagolnitzer Foundation and the Foundation la Ferthé, under aegis
of the Foundation de France
The University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate
The Ford Foundation
Seardel Investment Corporation
The University of Stellenbosch
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Over US$1.5 million has been secured for the project so far, of a total of $2.0
million required for the first three years of operation. Further details including
a list of lecturer volunteers, student application forms, details of the first years
course and other materials may be found on the AIMS web-site:
http://www.aimsforafrica.org
4 What Supporters say. . .
John Samuel, Chief Executive, The Nelson Mandela Foundation:
“We have been informed of the proposed African Institute for Mathematical
Sciences (AIMS) and find it one of the most important projects presented to us.
Mr Mandela has repeatedly declared his concern about the advancement of science
teaching and research in South Africa. This initiative is an outstanding instance
of concrete collaboration between leading scientists in the advanced countries and
our own scientists. This Foundation enthusiastically supports AIMS in the name
of the former president Mandela.”
Mosibudi Mangena, Deputy Minister of Education, South Africa:
“Our country and continent badly need a broad, concerted effort to improve the quality, participation and performance of South African and African
researchers and learners in the mathematical sciences. The African Institute for
Mathematical Sciences is destined to become a flagship institution, giving concrete
expression to this need and ensuring that Africa’s contribution to the mathematical
sciences receives the recognition it deserves. The in-service training of mathematics
teachers is indeed a top priority of the Government’s educational transformation
plan, Tirisano - hence my unequivocal support for the establishment of this Institute.”
Professor Chris Brink, Vice-Chancellor, University of Stellenbosch, SA:
“The development of the mathematical sciences is a visionary and costeffective investment in Africa’s future. All credit to the AIMS team.”
Professor Sir Alec Broers, Vice Chancellor, University of Cambridge, UK:
“Africa’s problems are awesome and their solution must be multifactoral. But
there can be no doubt that training in the sciences and technology, based on the
impressive foundations already existing in South Africa, must be one of the keys
to unlocking the continent’s potential and empowering its citizens. This project is
an impressive and well-thought-out approach to a new era for African science and
mathematics.”
Professor George Ellis, former President of the Royal Society of South Africa:
“The economic development of Africa this century is inevitably tied in to its
technological development, which in turn is crucially dependent on high quality
technical and scientific and technical education. The AIMS project can play an
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exciting part in the much needed development of South African and African scientific and technical capacity, vitally needed to support the bold ideas of an African
Renaissance and NEPAD.”
Professor Sir Michael Berry, Physics Department, University of Bristol, UK:
“A brave and exciting project, that will expose some of the brightest people
in Africa to scientific culture at the highest level and thereby help them acquire
the tools to develop desperately-needed fundamental new technologies”
Professor John Ellis, former head, Theory Division, CERN, Geneva, Switzerland:
“Among the keys to Africa’s social and economic progress are the development of its human resources and its participation in advances in science and
technology. The proposed project addresses both these priorities in a well-focused
way that uses and builds on the local resources in the Western Cape, while being
open to other parts of Africa and the rest of the world.”
Professor David Gross, Director, Institute for Theoretical Physics, Santa Barbara,
USA:
“The African Institute for the Mathematical Sciences, by bringing students
in contact with excellent local and foreign scientists in a program that covers
the many of the most exciting areas of modern science, offers an innovative and
creative approach to developing scientific talent in Africa. The potential benefits
for scientific and technological development in Africa are enormous.”
Professor Sir Martin Rees, Astronomer Royal, Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge,
UK:
“This venture, initiated by an outstanding group of committed researchers
and teachers, could be extraordinarily cost-effective in fostering youthful talent
and scientific excellence South Africa and beyond.”
Professor Stephen Hawking, Cambridge, UK:
“This institute will bring Africa to the cutting edge of science.”
Professor Paul Steinhardt, Princeton University, USA:
“By offering a unique, interdisciplinary introduction to topics at the forefronts of science, the African Institute for the Mathematical Sciences will bring
together students and faculty with diverse interests and backgrounds, creating intellectual kinships that will have a long-lasting impact and perhaps will inspire
new breakthroughs. I have no doubt that the young students sharing knowledge
across intellectual and international boundaries will make a profound contribution
to freedom, education and prosperity in Africa.”
Sir John Sulston, former Director, Sanger Institute and winner of the 2002 Nobel
Prize for Medicine:
“The broad dissemination of knowledge, understanding and expertise is a
precondition for reducing global inequity. Disease and famine of the body call for
action so powerfully that it is easy to forget the equal need to alleviate famine of
the mind, without which the future holds no promise.”
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5 Future
AIMS will encourage its alumni to remain in contact, in order to collaboratively
employ their skills, knowledge and contacts to advance education and development
across the continent. AIMS will develop a network of partner institutes across
Africa, encouraging African researchers to teach at AIMS and recruit students onto
their research projects. AIMS will strongly encourage outstanding international
scientists lecturing at AIMS to visit other African educational and research centres.
AIMS is seeking funding to launch a Schools Enrichment Center (AIMS-SEC)
which will be located in the Muizenberg facility. This project is being headed by
Toni Beardon, founder of the NRICH project for web-based mathematics. The
goal is to support schoolteachers by providing web-based and paper materials to
assist mathematics and science learning. There will also be in-service courses for
teachers held during the months when the Diploma course is in recess (June, July
and August).
AIMS will host workshops and long term visitor programs encouraging research collaboration between African and international scientists. A model for
AIMS’s long-term future is the International Center for Theoretical Physics, in
Trieste, Italy.
Neil Turok
Centre for Mathematical Sciences,
University of Cambridge,
Wilberforce Road,
Cambridge CB4 0WA
UK
Email: [email protected]