Assistant Professor Omer Angel has been awarded the 2010 André-Aisenstadt Prize, which recognizes outstanding achievement by a young Canadian mathematician in pure or applied mathematics.
Angel was cited for his research in probability theory, on percolation, random walks and random spatial processes, work with applications to other areas of mathematics, physics and even biology.
“This marks the sixth time in the last decade that a UBC mathematician has been recognized with the prize,” notes Professor Rachel Kuske, head of UBC’s Department of Mathematics. “It’s a strong testament to the University’s research strength in this area, and a great indicator for the department's future.”
The Centre de recherches mathématiques (CRM) at the University of Montreal awards the prize, which consists of a $3,000 award and a medal.
Angel won a gold medal in the 1993 International Math Olympiad, and obtained his PhD from the prestigious Weizmann Institute for Science in 2003. His more recent work has investigated the statistics of a random sorting network, allowing Angel and colleagues to make the remarkable conjecture that a typical short (random) path between objects on a lattice stays close to a geodesic.
The prize will be awarded at a ceremony to be held in April 2010 in Montreal.
