U of M mathematics professor receives prestigious Sloan Research Fellowship

Contact:

Matt Hodson, University News Service, mjhodson@umn.edu, (612) 625-0552

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (03/12/2012)— Anar Akhmedov, a University of Minnesota mathematics assistant professor in the College of Science and Engineering, has been selected to receive a prestigious Sloan Research Fellowship for 2012-14.

The honor recognizes his research on low dimensional topology and symplectic topology. Akhmedov was among126 U.S. and Canadian researchers selected. He is the only recipient from the University of Minnesota this year.

“I am very honored to receive a Sloan Research Fellowship,” Akhmedov said. “Receiving this honor is an amazing opportunity and great motivation for me. I am grateful to the Sloan Foundation for considering my work and to the University of Minnesota’s School of Mathematics in nominating me for this award.”

Awarded annually since 1955, Sloan Research Fellowships are given to early-career scientists and scholars whose achievements and potential identify them as rising stars, the next generation of scientific leaders. Awards are given in eight scientific fields—chemistry, computer science, economics, mathematics, evolutionary and computational molecular biology, neuroscience, physics, and ocean sciences.

Sloan Research Fellowships are awarded in close cooperation with the scientific community and administered and funded by the Sloan Foundation. To qualify, candidates must first be nominated by their peers and are subsequently selected by an independent panel of senior scholars. Fellows receive $50,000 to be used to further their research.