French Science Today - Lecture By Prof. Michel Waldschmidt

The Alliance Francaise of Hyderabad is organising two lectures on Mathematics and Statistics, by Prof. Michel Waldschmidt, on 24th & 25th October, at the Birla Science Centre and University of Hyderabad respectively. Today, Prof. Waldschmidt will deliver a lecture on the topic of "Some Recent Results In Mathematics Related To Data Transmission", at the Birla Science Centre.

The so-called "error-detecting codes" and "error-correcting codes" enable identification and correction of the errors caused by noise or other impairments during transmission from the transmitter to the receiver. They are used in compact disks to correct errors caused by scratches, in satellite broadcasting, in digital money transfers, and in telephone connections.

They are useful for improving the reliability of data storage media as well as to correct errors cause when a hard drive fails. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has used many different error-correcting codes for deep-space telecommunications and orbital missions.

Michel Waldschmidt graduated from the University of Nancy in 1968. He obtained his Ph D from the University of Bordeaux I in 1972. He is currently Professor at Paris VI (Université Pierre et Marie Curie), and has been there since 1973. His work deals with number theory: his main interest is with transcendental numbers and Diophantine approximation. He solved several open questions and has more than 150 publications on this field, including a few books.

He received the Médaille Albert Chatelet in 1974, and the Silver Medal of CNRS in 1978. He was awarded the Prix Marquet by the French Academy of Sciences in 1980, and he received the Distinguished Award of the Hardy-Ramanujan Society in 1986. He has had many research students, several of them now being among the best experts in the field.

He was President of the French Mathematical Society (SMF) from 2001 to 2004, and in 2005 he became Vice-President of the CIMPA (International Center of Pure and Applied Mathematics - created 25 years ago under a UNESCO recommendation).

He has been for many years a coordinator of collaborations in mathematics between France and India. He is involved in several international cooperation projects, especially with South-East Asian countries. He is a member of several editorial boards, including the Ramanujan Journal of Mathematics, as well as a member of several international advisory committees, including the selection panel for the 2006 and 2007 SASTRA Ramanujan Prize Committee.

Please contact the Alliance Francaise at 2770-0734/2770-0736 for further details.