Karl Sigmund

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Karl Sigmund is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Vienna and one of the pioneers of evolutionary dynamics

Contents

[edit] Career

  • Born on July 26th, 1945, in Gars am Kamp in Lower Austria,
  • School in the Lycée Francais de Vienne.
  • 1963 - 1968, studied at the Institute of Mathematics at the University of Vienna, and obtained Ph.D. under the supervision of Leopold Schmetterer.
  • 1968 - 1973. Postdoc years at Manchester (68-69), the Institut des Hautes Etudes in Bures sur Yvette near Paris (69-70), the Hebrew University in Jerusalem (1970-71), the University of Vienna (1971-72) and the Austrian Academy of Science (1972-73). In 1972 got habilitation.
  • 1973 Appointed C3-professor at the University of Göttingen
  • 1974 full professor at the Institute of Mathematics in Vienna. Main scientific interest during these years was in ergodic theory and dynamical systems. From 1977 on, became increasingly interested in different fields of biomathematics, and collaborated with Peter Schuster and Josef Hofbauer on mathematical ecology, chemical kinetics and population genetics, but especially on the new field of evolutionary game dynamics and replicator equations. Together with Martin A. Nowak, Christoph Hauert and Hannelore Brandt, he worked on game dynamical approaches to questions related with the evolution of cooperation in biological and human populations.
  • Since 1984, also works as a part time scientist at the Institute for Applied Systems Theory (IIASA) in Laxenburg.

[edit] Honours and recognition

  • Head of the Institute of Mathematics in Vienna (1983 to 1985)
  • Managing editor of the Monatshefte für Mathematik (1991 to 2001)
  • Vice-President (1995 to 1997) and President (1997 to 2001), Austrian Mathematical Society.
  • Many plenary lectures, for instance at the International Congress of Mathematicians 1998.
  • Corresponding Member (1996) and, full member (1999) of the Austrian Academy of Science.
  • Member of the Leopoldina. 2003

[edit] Other Details

During the last decade, he became increasingly interested in the history of mathematics and in particular, the Vienna Circle: I co-edited the mathematical works of Hans Hahn and Karl Menger and organised in 2001 an exhibition on the exodus of Austrian mathematicians fleeing the Nazis and in 2006 an exhibition on Kurt Gödel. From 2003 to 2005 he was vice-president of the Austrian Science Fund FWF.

Married since 1974 to the author and historian Anna Maria Sigmund. One son, Willi, born 1984.

[edit] Publications

  • 133 Scientific papers including 18 in Nature
  • 11 Edited Volumes
  • 25 Essays
  • 5 Co-authored books
  • Games of Life (1994) Oxford UP, reprinted in Penguin. Translations in German, Hungarian, Japanese

[edit] Sources

his homepage