Alexander von Humboldt Professorship to bring Raul Fidel Tempone to RWTH Aachen University
Most highly endowed German research award funds professorship with 3.5 million euros.
Italian-Uruguayan Raul Fidel Tempone will take up an Alexander von Humboldt professorship at RWTH Aachen beginning October 1, 2018. The 47-year-old currently teaches and performs research in mathematics at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. Tempone is considered an expert in the numerics of uncertainty quantification.
This modern field of applied mathematics focuses on quantifying the uncertainties in computational predictions involving natural and technical processes, which arise for instance from unknown parameters in the simulation model and data measurement errors. This field is crucial for simulation-based decision-making in numerous applications, such as the management of water resources or the optimization of energy systems with large components of wind and solar power sources.
The Federal Ministry of Education and Research funds the Alexander von Humboldt professorships within the framework of the “International Research Fund for Germany.” With a value of 5 million euros, these professorships are the most highly endowed research awards in Germany. Candidates are nominated by the respective university. The candidate must work abroad and be internationally recognized as a leader in their field. An interdisciplinary committee appointed by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation selects the recipients. The program aims to sustainably strengthen the international competitiveness of Germany as a place to conduct research. The award finances the professorship for the first five years. The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation will provide 3.5 million euros to cover Tempone’s research and teaching at RWTH Aachen.
“We are delighted to recruit yet another top-level researcher with the help of an Alexander von Humboldt professorship. Earlier this year, we succeeded in bringing the Dutch computer scientist Wil van der Aalst to RWTH Aachen. Both professors will play an instrumental role in the University’s advancement,” said RWTH Rector Ernst Schmachtenberg.
Raul Fidel Tempone studied mathematical engineering at Universidad de Republica in Montevideo, Uruguay, and completed his doctorate in mathematics at the Royal Institute of Technology, KTH, in Stockholm, Sweden. After holding positions at the University of Texas at Austin in Austin, Florida State University in Tallahassee, and KTH, he took up a professorship for applied mathematics in 2009 at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, KAUST, in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. In 2012, he became the director of the KAUST research initiative on uncertainty quantification.
The ceremony to award the Alexander von Humboldt Professorships will be held in Berlin in 2018.
Source: Press and Communications