AMS bestows high honors to Drs. Babuska and Engquist

The American Mathematical Society (AMS) has awarded two of its highest honors to ICES faculty Ivo M. Babuska and Bjorn Engquist.

The AMS' highly coveted lifetime achievement award was bestowed on ICES Senior Scientist Babuska.

Engquist was awarded the George David Birkhoff Prize in Applied Mathematics distinguished in its selection by the membership of both the AMS and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

Dr. Babuska, professor of aerospace engineering and engineering mechanics and professor of mathematics, holds the Robert B. Trull Chair in Engineering. Presented annually by the American Mathematical Society, the Leroy P. Steele Prize for Lifetime Achievement is one of the highest distinctions in mathematics. Presented annually by the AMS, the Leroy P. Steele Prize for Lifetime Achievement is one of the highest distinctions in mathematics.

Babuska is honored "for his many pioneering advances in the numerical solution of partial differential equations over the last half century." The prize citation goes on to say: "In his work on finite element methods, Babuska has developed and applied mathematics in profound ways to develop, analyze, and validate algorithms which are crucial for computational science and engineering. In so doing, he has helped to define that field, and has had a great impact on the modern world. A constant characteristic of Babuska's work is the combination of deep and imaginative mathematical analysis with a constant concern for the practical implications of his work for engineering applications."

An exceptionally productive author, collaborator, and mentor, Babuska has published over 350 refereed journal articles and 26 books, has had nearly 150 co-authors, and has advised 40 Ph.D. students.

The citation concludes: "Ivo M. Babuska is among the foremost numerical analysts of all time and a unique leader in applied mathematics. His many contributions have had a lasting impact on mathematics, engineering, science, and industry."

Bjorn Engquist was awarded the 2012 George David Birkhoff Prize in Applied Mathematics jointly from AMS and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

Dr. Engquist, an ICES core faculty member and professor of mathematics, holds the Computational and Applied Mathematics Chair I, and directs the ICES Center for Numerical Analysis.

The Birkhoff Prize is awarded every three years for outstanding contributions to applied mathematics in the highest and broadest sense.

The two prestigious organizations honored Engquist "for his contributions to a wide range of powerful computational methods over more than three decades," the prize citation says. His work blends mathematical analysis, modeling, and computation, and has led to numerical tools with enormous impact across a broad range of applications, including aerodynamics, acoustics, electromagnetism, computational fluid mechanics, and computational geoscience."