Two KFU professors are among the winners of the academic contest held by the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia.

The two distinguished individuals are Iskander Kalimullin (Department of Algebra and Mathematical Logic) and Igor Konnov (Department of System Analysis and IT).

Only 18 of the 124 applicants were selected by the panel. The winners will receive federal funding for their research work. They will implement their personal roadmaps aimed to improve mathematical education in Russian universities. The duration of this program and the funding is 5 years (2016 - 2020).

Dr. Konnov confessed that his decision to participate was spontaneous. The more pleasant was the outcome when only 18 contestants turned up as winners – contrary to Dr. Konnov's expectations who thought the number will be actually higher.

Unlike the case with most of the triumphant educators, his research area is non-classical – mathematical models and methods for systems with complex behavior. They are the systems where elements have a degree of autonomy and can have their own “agenda”, such as some telecommunication systems where users have a choice of preferences and services. He continues to work on these problems.

Dr. Kalimullin has several spheres of interest on his mind. He plans to conduct seminars and courses on mathematical logic, theory of algorithms and theoretical programming. The plans include creating electronic education modules on algebra and mathematical logic.