Staff Reporter
A researcher with the University of the Free State (UFS)’s Institute of Groundwater Studies, Professor Abdon Atangana, has been named among the top one percent of outstanding scientists in the world.
Atangana, 35, made it to the prestigious Clarivate Web of Science List 2020 for his groundbreaking work in mathematics and other related fields.
The Clarivate Web of Science List brings together an elite group of scientists recognised for their exceptional research influence through the production of multiple highly cited papers in the top one percent of citations in the Web of Science index.
Less than 6 200 or 0.1 percent of the world’s researchers enjoy this international recognition.
About 10 scientists from South Africa were selected and Atangana is the only mathematician.
“I think this is a clear indication of novelty,” Atangana told The Free Stater.
“This is confirmation that I have tried something new and it worked.”
“The recognition is very important, but I didn’t do it for myself. I did it for Africa,” he added.
“What I care for is for a child from Africa to look at my work one day and say they can also do it because it was done by an African.”
Atangana, originally from Cameroon, becomes the second African mathematician to be on the Clarivate Web of Science List and the first black mathematician in the world to claim the accolade.
“I actually didn’t expect to be included on the list although I have been getting a lot of researchers citing my work,” he said.
“You are normally considered for the Clarivate Web of Science List if your work is frequently cited by peers for at least 10 years.
“I am quite happy they considered my name much earlier, but again, it’s not for me. It’s for Africa.”
In a statement, the UFS said Atangana has been included on the illustrious list owing to his cross-fields contribution, which includes mathematics and applications in real-world problems.
“This is quite remarkable, given that he has only been an academic researcher for seven years,” the university said.
Atangana received acknowledgement for his work in mathematics in 2019 and moved to the cross-fields category in 2020.
According to the UFS, he is known for his work in developing a new fractional operator that is used to model real-world problems arising in the fields of science, technology and engineering.
The university said an article in the Alexandria Engineering Journal described the use of Atangana-Baleanu operators as a diverse and flourishing discipline.
Atangana is now the editor of more than 20 top-tier journals of applied mathematics and mathematics.
At some of the journals, he was the first African to be selected as editor.
Some of the publications he edits include: the American Institute of Mathematical Sciences Journal, the European Physical Journal Plus, the Chaos, Solitons & Fractals Journal, the Results in Physics Journal, the Journal of Thermal Science and the Fractals: A Complex Geometry, Patterns, and Scaling in Nature and Society Journal.
He has also been approached by the Fractal and Fractional Journal to join the editorial board as sectional editor-in-chief.