Pervez Hoodbhoy | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 11, 1950 |
| Nationality | Pakistani |
| Alma mater | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Awards | UNESCO Kalinga Prize (2003) Fulbright Award (1998-99) Faiz Ahmed Faiz Award (1990) Abdus Salam Prize for Mathematics (1984) Baker Award for Electronics (1968) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Nuclear Physics and Particle Physics |
| Institutions | Quaid-e-Azam University |
Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy (Urdu: پرویز ہودبھائی) (born 11 July 1950) is a Pakistani nuclear physicist and he is the Professor of High Energy Physics, and the head of the Physics Department[1] at Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan. He graduated and also received PhD from MIT and continues to do research in Particle physics. He received the Baker Award for Electronics in 1968, and the Abdus Salam Prize for Mathematics in 1984. He has authored various scientific research papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Hoodbhoy is also a prominent environmental and social activist and regularly writes on a wide range of social, cultural and environmental issues. He is the chairman of Mashal, a non-profit organization which publishes Urdu books on women's rights, education, environmental issues, philosophy, and modern thought. He is a staunch opponent of Wahhabist militant Islam in Pakistan and an advocate for democracy in the country.[2]. Dr. Pervez Hoodbhoy is a strong supporter for peaceful use of nuclear technology, non-nuclear proliferation, and nuclear disarmament, criticizing both Pakistan's and India's nuclear weapon program in many national and international forums.
Hoodbhoy gained his Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Electrical Engineering, followed by M.S. in Solid-State Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1973. He went on to obtain a Ph.D. in Nuclear Physics in 1978 from the same institution. Later, he remained a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Washington. He has been a faculty member at the Quaid-e-Azam University since 1973. He is engaged in research on Quantum field theory, Particle Phenomenology, and Supersymmetry in Particle physics. He is a visiting professor at Carnegie Mellon University, MIT, the University of Maryland, College Park, and Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. He also occasionally lectures at various American and European research institutions. He is a sponsor of The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists .[1] He also serves on the International Advisory Council of the Brookings Doha Center.
Apart from his specialist field of research, Hoodbhoy extensively writes and speaks on general topics ranging from science in Islam to education and nuclear disarmament issues around the world.[2] He is author of Islam and Science: Religious Orthodoxy and the Battle for Rationality, that has been translated into 5 languages. His articles on various issues related to science and social issues are often published in international media. Nowadays, Dr. Pervez A. Hoodbhoy is considered one of the prominent Nuclear Physicist in Pakistan.
He is married to Hajra Ahmad, niece of Pakistani journalist-activist Eqbal Ahmad. Both their daughters, Asha and Alia, are graduates of Hampshire College.
He produced a 13-part documentary series in Urdu for Pakistan Television on critical issues in education, and two series aimed at popularizing science. In 2004, he made a documentary film 'Crossing the Lines: Kashmir, Pakistan, India' along with dr. Zia Mian.[3] Documentaries of his are heavily emphasized on the issues of education, public health and scientific revolution in Pakistan. In his documentaries, dr. hoodbhoy heavily critisized Pakistan and India's nuclear weapon program. He also pointed out the seriousness of the Talibanization in Pakistan and its immediate effects on the South Asia. His documentaries also pointed out that Americans and NATO forces in afghanistan didn't help the afghan people's life and there was no reforms in afghanistan's social and public sector instead the insurgency and corruption grew which also destablized Pakistan's western front.
Dr. Pervez Hoodbhoy heavily critisized HEC's Performance. He began criticised HEC after the (forced) resignation of dr. Atta ur Rahman, the performance of HEC is declining and the culture of work is changing in HEC. The process of corruption as been started. Under the leadership of dr. Javaid Laghari's , corruption in HEC has been started. In his article, he said It is absolutely incorrect that HEC has spent or is spending Rs400 million on the purchase of a Van de Graaf Accelerator. HEC is not purchasing any equipment! [4]. He also said " HEC is allocating enormous sums for research. But these are being thrown at half-baked proposals that will add nothing of value to science in Pakistan." Dr. Hoodbhoy also believed that expensive scientific equipment, bought for research, often ends up locked away in campuses. He deeply criticized HEC of spending too much money on the scientific equipments rather than spending money on training of Pakistan's scientists. He also included that 5 MeV tandem Van de Graaf accelerator to be housed at the Riazuddin National Center for Physics, Quaid-e-Azam University. They are useless for cutting edge science research today. They are, at best, museum pieces. He also said that HEC should stop all useless, sometimes fraudulent, research projects and stop encouraging the award of worthless PhD degrees. [5] . He also wrote in his article" Pelletron” accelerator and was installed last month by a team of Americans from the National Electrostatics Corporation that flew in from Wisconsin. But now that it is there and fully operational, nobody – including the current director – has the slightest idea of what research to do with it. Its original proponents are curiously lacking in enthusiasm and are quietly seeking to distance themselves from the project.[6] his article, dr. Hoodbhoy claimed that basic academic values are missing, and there is casual acceptance of abysmal ethical behavior -- cheating, lying, and plagiarism by faculty and students. Resources are wasted on an epic scale. And, the HEC whirlwind is making all of these problems worse. He also advises the HEC that HEC should spend more money to motivate students, trained more teachers and establish more high-standard universities rather than heavily hunding moneys on Particle Accelerators.
He is also the recipient of: