(from left to right) Fayçal Djeffal, Konrad Scheffler, Moustafa Youssef received the
2010 TWAS-AAS-Microsoft Award in a ceremony held in Nairobi, Kenya.
On February 26, 2011, three African scientists received the 2010 TWAS-AAS-Microsoft Award in a ceremony held in Nairobi, Kenya. The award, funded by Microsoft Research Connections (opens in new tab), recognizes outstanding research in computer sciences that was conducted by African scientists and has had—or promises to have—an impact on the developing world. The award was established in 2009 as a partnership among Microsoft Research; TWAS, the academy of sciences for the developing world (opens in new tab); and the African Academy of Sciences (opens in new tab) (AAS). This year’s winners, each of whom received a cash prize of €7,000, are:
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Fayçal Djeffal, associate professor in the Department of Electronics, Faculty of Technology, at the University of Batna (opens in new tab) in Batna, Algeria. Djeffal was recognized for his contributions to the development of new approaches to study nanoscale electronic devices and circuits. His research group developed a series of novel soft-computing-based approaches (neural networks, genetic algorithms, particle-swarm computations, neural-space mapping, fuzzy logic, and experts systems) for the modeling of nanoscale electronics devices, now widely employed in many research laboratories.
Konrad Scheffler, associate professor in the Computer Science Division, Department of Mathematical Sciences, Stellenbosch University (opens in new tab), in Matieland, South Africa. Scheffler was honored for his contributions to the fields of bioinformatics and computational biology, particularly the modeling of molecular evolution in HIV and other organisms. His work applies computational techniques and probabilistic modeling to gain insight into the selective forces that drive the evolution of HIV as it adapts to changes in its environment; for example, changes resulting from drugs aimed at suppressing the virus or from the different immune systems of its hosts.
Moustafa Youssef, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (opens in new tab) (E-JUST), in Alexandria, Egypt. Youssef was recognized for his contributions to the fields of mobile and wireless networks, particularly in the design, analysis, and implementation of location determination systems. His work covers different layers of the protocol stack from the physical layer up to the application layer, with specific projects that target location determination systems, sensor networks, protocol modeling and analysis, peer-to-peer systems, network measurements, and security.
The TWAS-AAS-Microsoft Award is open to researchers of any nationality, provided they have resided in Africa for at least two years prior to their nomination. In addition, nominees must have received their most recent degree—either a master’s or a doctorate—within the previous 10 years. The selection of winners is handled by TWAS in collaboration with AAS. As noted above, the award is funded by Microsoft Research Connections, the division of Microsoft Research that drives collaboration with academic researchers and institutions.
Learn More
- The TWAS-AAS-Microsoft Award for Young Scientists (opens in new tab)
- Read about this year’s award winners (opens in new tab)
—Luisa Marie Küppers, EMEA Business Manager, Microsoft Research Connections