The letter addressed to the Azerbaijani scientist on behalf of the Director of the Fields Institute Prof. Dr. Kumar says:
“Dear Professor Efendiev,
We are very pleased to welcome you among the Fields Institute Fellows as a mark of respect for your contributions to the Fields Institute research initiatives. Your achievements in research and service to the mathematics community are as an example to our community and to all mathematical scientists in general.”
As part of the celebrations for its 10th anniversary, the Fields Institute created in 2002 the designation of Fields Institute Fellows and awarded it to a number of people in recognition of outstanding contributions to the Fields Institute and its activities during its first 10 years. Each year, new appointments are made to recognize others who have contributed in a significant way to activities at the Fields Institute and within the Canadian mathematical community.
New Fellows are announced at the Fields Annual General Meeting in June. As Messoud Efendiev was in Azerbaijan at the time of the meeting, he attended online.
Note that the Azerbaijani scientist is one of the few mathematicians in the world with the status of “Dean’s Distinguished Professor”. This status in the United States and Canada is usually held by Nobel Prize laureates and world-renowned scientists with fundamental academic achievements in their respective fields.
In 2018, at the invitation of the University of Toronto (UofT) and the Fields Institute, Messoud Efendiev delivered lectures on mathematical biology at the Department of Mathematical Biology in the status of “Dean’s Distinguished Visiting Professor” for a semester (from January 1 to June 30, 2018). During this period, he led a joint Thematic Program on Emerging Challenges in Mathematical Biology at the University of Toronto (UofT) and the Fields Institute. These universities and research centers usually invite Nobel Prize and Fields Medal winners with the Dean’s Distinguished Visiting Professor status as visiting lecturers.
He was the first Azerbaijani scientist to be awarded the prize established by the famous Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in 1990. This prize is awarded only to foreign scientists under the age of 40.
In 2015 the Azerbaijani scientist was awarded the Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship for Experienced Researchers, reserved for scientists working on a permanent basis at German universities and research centers of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. As a rule, this prize is awarded to experienced scientists over the age of 55. Incidentally, German Nobel Prize 2021 winner Benjamin List was also awarded the Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship for Experienced Researchers.
Messoud Efendiev is currently a James D. Murray Distinguished Professor, the status named after James D. Murray, considered the founder of mathematical biology in the West, and is so far the first scientist in the world to hold this proud status. It was established in 2019 by Canada’s University of Waterloo, one of the world’s leading universities.
Messoud Efendiev is the first and only Azerbaijani scientist invited by the Rector of the University in Istanbul in fraternal Turkey, Prof. Dr. Erol Ozvar (currently President of the Higher Education Council (YÖK)), to this university in the status of “Rektor’s Distinguished Visiting Professor”. He delivers a series of lectures on mathematical biology and mathematical medicine to talented students from various departments at Marmara University.
The Azerbaijani mathematician, who has lived in Germany since 1991, was born on October 21, 1953 in Zagatala District of Azerbaijan. Despite living permanently in Germany for 32 years and working as a professor there, he remains a citizen of Azerbaijan.
He was the first student of Shikhali Gurbanov Secondary School in the city of Zagatala to graduate with a gold medal. After studying for two years at the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics of the Azerbaijan State University (now BSU), he continued his education at the Lomonosov Moscow State University. After moving up to the postgraduate and doctoral studies, he successfully defended his candidate and doctoral theses.
In 1989, he was invited by the University of Maryland to the United States to conduct joint research. After being awarded the Humboldt Prize, he continued his research activities in Germany. To date, he has taught at the Universities of Munich, Stuttgart, Berlin and most of the leading universities in Japan, Europe, Canada and the United States.
A member of the editorial boards of ten leading international journals, he is also Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Biomathematics and Biostatistics. He is the author of eight (8) books in English, published in Japan, Germany, USA, and Switzerland.
The scientist’s book published in 2023 is dedicated to the 100th birthday of Heydar Aliyev, the founder of the modern state of Azerbaijan and the national leader of our people. The book was published in English by Springer, one of the most prestigious publishing houses in the world. Messoud Efendiev’s book will go down in history as the first and only book in field of basic sciences published by Springer, dedicated to 100th birthday of the great leader.
By a decree of President Ilham Aliyev of April 21, 2022 Messoud Efendiev was awarded the honorary title of “Honored Scientist” for his achievements in science and contributions to the development of the Azerbaijani Diaspora.
