Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences

Physics department interior

Torkaman Library

The Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences (IASBS) (Persian: مرکز تحصیلات تکمیلی در علوم پایه زنجان) is an advanced research center and graduate-level degree-granting institution in Zanjan, Iran. It was founded in 1991 by Prof. Yousef Sobouti, who was the director of the institute until 2010. After that Dr.Rasoul Khodabakhsh was the director till February 2014, and Dr. HamidReza Mohammadi Khalesifard has filled the position since then.

IASBS offers advanced degrees (Masters and above) in Mathematics, Physics, Geophysics, Biophysics and Chemistry. As of 2008, the mathematics department offers Master of Science degrees in Computer Science with concentration on Artificial Intelligence(esp. Multi Agent Systems and Computational Geometry) and Graph & Algorithms.

The university runs two undergraduate programs in Information Technology, one of which is a joint program with Heriot-Watt University of the United Kingdom. The latter, lectured and examined in English language, involves passing modules in both universities at the same time and each student is registered both at IASBS and Heriot-Watt University (i.e. successful students receive a degree from each university). ^[1]

The library of the university began in 1993 as a small part of the physics department. It moved to a new building about 16 years later. The new library was opened in 2007 and named Torkaman Library after its donor. The library keeps over 20,000 books, 6,500 of which are in Persian, and the other 13,500 are in English and other languages.^[2]

In May 2002, Zanjan ICT incubator established by Dr. Jalil Khavandkar in the IASBS for development of technology and business. He followed this by establishing Zanjan Science and Technology Park in June 2009. These two foundations are of the most successful techno-centers in Iran.

Commentary

Zanjan, a city with a population of 300,000, 350 km to the north-west of Tehran, was chosen for the Institute for Advances Studies in Basic Sciences, (IASBS). The location was far enough from Tehran to not be affected by the distractions of the city but close enough to pursue the many ensuing official and budgetary problems in Tehran.

Now, after ten years, IASBS has physics education at M.Sc. and Ph.D. levels, and mathematics and chemistry at M.Sc. level. There will soon be education at Ph.D. level in the latter two departments. IASBS has 33 full-time faculty and some part-time members. Ten years after its creation, its 33 faculty members and 22 Ph.D. students are able to produce one paper every 3–4 days in international journals and has been announced as a center of excellence in physics by the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology.

The IASBS is a degree-granting institution with Master's and Doctoral programs only. Since September 2000, however, it has started a new program in physics for a group of distinguished high school graduates. The program, a first attempt at the national level, will train these select group of students over a period of seven years, granting them a Ph.D. degree in physics.

According to its articles of association, the Board of Trustees of the Institute consists of the Minister of Science, Research and Technology, the Head of the Planning and Budget Organization, the Director of the Institute, and four eminent scientific and cultural personalities of the country.

The director of the Institute, selected out of outstanding scientific figures in the country, in cooperation with the Scientific Council of the Institute, directs the Institute towards its goals.

The International Advisory Council of the Institute is composed of a host of scholars and scientists. The late Professor Abdus Salam was a member of this council. Members of the Council assist the Institute in delineating its general themes of research, establishing new disciplines, attracting prominent researchers and evaluating its scientific achievements.

The International Advisory Council

• Mohammad Abdus Salam, The Abdus Salam International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Italy
• Asim Orhan Barut, University of Colorado, USA
• Nasser Peyghambarian, University of Arizona, USA
• Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, University of Chicago, USA
• Govind Swarup, Inter-University Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), India
• Seifallah Randjbar-Daemi, The Abdus Salam ICTP, Italy
• Mehran Kardar, MIT, USA
• John Clark, Washington University, USA
• Sang-Soo Lee, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea
• Bahram Mashhoon, University of Missouri, USA
• Mudumbai S. Narasimhan, The Abdus Salam ICTP, Italy
• Cumrun Vafa, Harvard University, USA
• E. Van den Heuvel, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Honors and awards

• Yousef Sobouti (Physics): First place of the Khwarizmi International Award in basic sciences (1999). Medal Lecture, in Physical Sciences, The Third World Academy of Sciences, TWAS (2000). Selected member of Iranian Science and Culture Hall of Fame, Unforgettable Faces (2001)
• Babak Karimi (Chemistry): First place of the Khwarizmi Young Award in basic sciences (1999). Distinguished researcher elected by Iranian ministry of sciences, research and technology (2003). Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship (2004)
• Ramin Golestanian (Physics): First place of the Khwarizmi Young Award in basic sciences (2000). Distinguished researcher elected by Iranian ministry of sciences, research and technology (2001). Frederic Joliot Visiting Chair at Ecole Superieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles (ESPCI) in Paris (2000)
• Arashmid Nahal (Physics): ICO/ICTP Gallieno Denardo Award (2001)
• Mehdi Khakian (Physics): First place of the Khwarizmi International Award in basic sciences (2006)
• Mohammad Rafiee (Chemistry): First place the Khwarizmi Young Award in basic sciences (2008)
• Alireza Qaiumzadeh (Physics): Second place of the Khwarizmi Young Award in basic sciences (2009)
• Saifollah Rasouli (Physics): ICO/ICTP Gallieno Denardo Award (2009)
• Mohammad Mahdi Najafpour (Chemistry): First place of the Khwarizmi Young Award in basic sciences (2010)
• Ali Ghorbanzadeh Moghaddam (Physics): Second place of the Khwarizmi Young Award in basic sciences (2010)
• Mohammad Taghi Tavassoly (Physics): The ICO Galileo Galilei Award (2010) for lifelong effort in optics education in Iran dedicated by the International Commission for Optics (ICO)

See also

• University of Zanjan
• Zanjan University of Medical Sciences
• Islamic Azad University of Zanjan
• Institute for Studies in Theoretical Physics and Mathematics (IPM)
• Higher Education in Iran
• List of universities in Iran

References

1. ↑ http://iasbs.ac.ir/archives/pages.php?ef=fa&page=n_fullstory.php&NewsIDn=918
2. ↑ اطلاعات کلی, IASBS, December 16, 2009

Coordinates: 36°42′19″N 48°30′24″E / 36.70528°N 48.50667°E / 36.70528; 48.50667