Faheem Hussain (31 July 1942 – 29 September 2009), was a Pakistani theoretical physicist and a professor of physics at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS). A research scientist in the field of superstring theory at the National Center for Physics,[1] Hussain made contributions to the fields of superstring and string theory. He was the first Pakistani physicist to publish a research paper in the field of superstring theory.[2] A social activist and democratic activist, he authored various scientific research papers in peer-reviewed journals.[2]

Faheem Hussain
Born31 July 1942
Yavatmal, Maharashtra, British India (present-day India)
Died29 September 2009(2009-09-29) (aged 67)
Monfalcone, Italy
CitizenshipPakistani
Alma materUniversity of London
Imperial College London
Known forHis work on superstring theory, supersymmetry, and noncommutative geometry
AwardsRoyal Society Award (1968) Spirit of Abdus Salam Award (2016)
Scientific career
FieldsTheoretical physics
InstitutionsNational Center for Physics (NCP)
Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
Quaid-i-Azam University
International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP)
Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH)
European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)
University of Chicago
Institute for Nuclear Studies (INS)
Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron (DESY)
Paul T. Matthews
Other academic advisors
Abdus Salam
Notes
A close friend of physicists Pervez Hoodbhoy, Asad Naqvi, and Riazuddin.

Education and early life

edit

Faheem Hussain was born in Yavatmal, Maharashtra, British India in 1942.[citation needed] His family moved to West Pakistan shortly before the Partition of India on 14 August 1947. He graduated from St. Anthony's High School, Lahore, in 1955 and then enrolled in Forman Christian College.[3][4] After receiving his double BSc(Hons) in Mathematics and Physics from Forman Christian College in 1960, he moved to the Great Britain.[citation needed] There, he attended Chelsea College, London, and completed another B.S. (hons) in physics in 1963. He attended Imperial College, London where physicist Abdus Salam was also teaching. He began working with Abdus Salam's group at the Imperial College. He completed his MSc in physics from Imperial College, London under Abdus Salam, and followed by his PhD in Theoretical physics under the supervision of theoretical particle physicist Paul Matthews in 1966.[5]

Academic career

edit

He taught at Garyounis University, Benghazi, Libya, from 1977 to 1979. In 1985 joined Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron, better known as DESY, in Germany. Prior to this, Hussain moved to Geneva, Switzerland and joined the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). He had also been a visiting professor at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany.[6]

Support for democracy in Pakistan

edit

After the Coup d'état by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Hussain publicly opposed Zia-ul-Haq's Islamization of Pakistan and supported democracy in his country.[7] Hussain left Pakistan in 1989 and joined ICTP at the request of Abdus Salam.[8]

Return to Pakistan

edit

Hussain worked as a senior staff scientist at ICTP from 1990 then took his retirement and returned to Pakistan in 2004.[1][7] There, he joined the physics research institute, the National Center for Physics.[1]

Personal life

edit

Hussain was married to Jane Steinfels Hussain,[6] an American woman, from 1968 to 1986.[citation needed] He later married Sara Monticone Hussain.[6]

Death

edit

Hussain was suffering from prostate cancer and died on 29 September 2009.[6] He was widely respected by his colleagues, collaborators and students, for both his academic brilliance and principled stance on ideals of democracy and freedom of speech.[9]

Bibliography

edit
  • Mathematical Physics by Riazuddin and Faheem Hussain.[10]
  • Mathematical Physics: Proceedings of the 12th Regional Conference, Islamabad, Pakistan, 27 March–1 April 2006, edited by M. Jamil Aslam, Faheem Hussain, and Asghar Qadir.[11]

Research papers

edit
  • Hadrons of arbitrary spin and heavy quark symmetry, by Faheem Hussain, G. Thompson, and J. G. Körner.[12]
  • Interactions and dynamics of D-branes, by Faheem Hussain, Roberto Iengo, Carmen Núñez, and Claudio A. Scrucca.[13]
  • Black hole–D-brane correspondence: An example, by Matteo Bertolini, Pietro Fré, Faheem Hussain, Roberto Iengo, Carmen Núñez, and Claudio A. Scrucca.[14]
  • Closed string radiation from moving D-branes, by Faheem Hussain, Roberto Iengo, Carmen Núñez, and Claudio A. Scrucca.[15]

References

edit
  1. 1 2 3 "Faheem Hussain – Lal Salam! " Red Diary". Reddiarypk.wordpress.com. 6 October 2009. Retrieved 14 December 2010.
  2. 1 2 "Remembering Prof. Faheem Hussain (1942–2009) : ALL THINGS PAKISTAN". Pakistaniat.com. 5 October 2009. Archived from the original on 1 October 2012. Retrieved 14 December 2010.
  3. University, LUMS. "The LUMS SSE Virtual Program Development Team (VPDT)". Archived from the original on 6 August 2012. Retrieved 24 November 2009.
  4. Hoodbhoy, Pervez. "Reckoning Time for HEC". dawa-i-dil. Chowk.com. Retrieved 24 November 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  5. Dutta, Rinku (6 October 2009), Faheem Hussain – Lal Salam!, archived from the original on 27 December 2009, retrieved 24 November 2009
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Obituaries: Faheem Hussain 1942–2009". CERN Courier. CERN. 7 December 2009. Archived from the original on 21 September 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
  7. 1 2 "The News International: Latest News Breaking, Pakistan News". Retrieved 24 November 2009.[dead link]
  8. Khalid, Rasheed (5 October 2009), "Tribute paid to Dr Faheem", The News International, Islamabad, Pakistan
  9. "Remembering an icon". DAWN.COM. 29 October 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  10. Riazuddin; Hussain, Faheem (2000). Mathematical Physics. World Scientific. ISBN 9789810244262.
  11. Aslam, M. Jamil; Hussain, Faheem; Qadir, Asghar (2007). Mathematical Physics: Proceedings of the 12th Regional Conference, Islamabad, Pakistan, 27 March–1 April 2006. World Scientific. ISBN 9789812705914.
  12. Hussain, Faheem; Thompson, G.; Körner, J. G. (1993). "Hadrons of arbitrary spin and heavy quark symmetry". Physics Letters B. 316 (1): 133–138. doi:10.1016/0370-2693(93)90621-J.
  13. Hussain, Faheem; Iengo, Roberto; Núñez, Carmen; Scrucca, Claudio A. (1998). "Interactions and dynamics of D-branes". AIP Conference Proceedings. 419: 436–464. doi:10.1063/1.54700.
  14. Bertolini, Matteo; Fré, Pietro; Hussain, Faheem; Iengo, Roberto; Núñez, Carmen; Scrucca, Claudio A. (1998). "Black hole–D-brane correspondence: An example". Proceedings of Quantum Gravity in the Southern Cone IV.
  15. Hussain, Faheem; Iengo, Roberto; Núñez, Carmen; Scrucca, Claudio A. (1998). "Closed string radiation from moving D-branes". Nuclear Physics B. 517 (1–2): 92–118. doi:10.1016/S0550-3213(98)00047-7.
edit