Leaving A Mark: My Mathematics Genealogy

A few months ago, I updated my Mathematics Genealogy page. It was finally updated about two weeks ago and I publicised the page on my FB wall. Some might ask why have I not updated this earlier. Mainly procrastination but before this, I was still wondering whether I will be taking any more students; I was contemplating to get another job even after retirement to help me pay bills. This seems very unlikely now.

Note that the list only contains PhD students who are directly under my main supervision. For completeness, I list down MSc students who are under my main supervision:

• Toh Sing Poh, "Cosmic Crystallography: CCP-Index of Thurston Manifold" (2002)
• Abubaker Ahmed Mohammed Siddig, "Mathematica Packages for Solving Schrodinger Equation with One-Dimensional Rectangular Potentials" (2003)
• Aslam Abdullah, "Extending Bianchi's Classification of Homogeneous Three-Manifolds" (2006)
• Ch'ng Han Siong, "Accelerating Cosmologies with Extended Product Spaces" (2006)
• Nurisya Mohd Shah, "Energy Eigenequation Expansion for a Particle in Singly Punctured Two-Torus and Triply Punctured Two-Sphere Systems" (2008)
• Mazlinda Zainy, "The Discrete Phase Space for 3-Qubit and 2-Qutrit Systems Based on Galois Field" (2009)
• Siti Nurul Ain Hj Zaiton, "Qutrits and Lie Algebraic Structure on Tensor Product of SU(3)" (2010)
• Mojtaba Aliakbarzadeh,  "Generating Mutually Unbiased Bases and Discrete Wigner Function for Three-Qubit System" (2011)
• Lam Shi Xiang, "A Network Structural Analysis of Malaysian Stock Market with Edge Density Constraint" (2013)
• Wong Wen Wei, "Geometry of Two-Qubit System and Hopf Fibration" (2013)
• Ahmad Hazazi Ahamad Sumadi, "Canonical Group Quantisation on One-Dimensional Complex Projective Space" (2015)
• Syed Nasrullah Ali Qazi, "Two Fluid Scenario for Dark Energy Models in a Bianchi Type I Universe" (2015)
• Choong Pak Shen, "Characterizing Two- and Three-Qubit Entanglement by Their Tensors" (2016)
• Nor Syazana Shamsuddin, "Maass Cusp Form on Asymmetric Hyperbolic Torus" (2017)
• Zurita Ismail, "Structure of Co-Authorship Network in UPM Journal Publication Database From 2007-2010" (2019)
• Siti Aqilah Muhammad Rasat, "The Role of Compositionality in Constructing Complementary Classical Structures Within Qubit Systems" (2021)
• Ahmad Aqwa Rosli, "Pictures of Processes With Abelian Rotation Symmetry" (2023)

Additional note: It is funny that I missed one of the MSc students in my latest CV. Also, the last MSc student graduated after my official retirement (end of 2022).

In total, I have 10 PhD students and 17 MSc students under my direct supervision. I have not included those students under my co-supervision, despite that there is room for adding second or third advisors in the Mathematical Genealogy page. This is mainly because supervisory committee is simply the necessary requirement of the Graduate School. The intended purpose of a supervisory committee is actually good in ideal contexts, but practically, its role may break down when expertise of members of the committee have very little in overlap. This is particularly true for theoretical physics where we have difficulty in finding supervisory committee members and thus most of the other members have little knowledge of theoretical ideas (likewise, I have very little knowledge on experimental techniques). Of course, there are cases where such supervisory committee actually work. Note that in my case, there are a few of my co-supervised students for which I did actively advising them. Even in my retirement, I still give advices to 'students'; the latest was a staff who is supposed to join UPM Physics Department soon (was surprised by his visit to my home before Ramadhan). Thus, it is best that I exclude the co-supervised students altogether (some do not even fit in mathematics research).

Some may ask about the number of students under my supervision, why that many. Indeed, I felt the same way, but if I compare myself with my colleagues in other fields, the number is pretty averageBut for a theorist, the number seems to be above average. At an early stage, I thought I should avoid taking PhD students given my little experience. I thought to myself, it is better for students to have the PhD research experience abroad where the community is larger. Thus, I begin to take quite a substantial number of MSc students particularly in areas that I would like to experiment on. Note however, my first graduate student was actually a PhD student from Algeria (whose MSc was in nuclear physics), but it was related to the work I do in PhD. More PhD students follow thereafter, (including those who did their MSc with me, even though I forewarned them that staying put with a single supervisor tend to give limited research experience and that they might like to venture elsewhere). I also ventured PhD research in cosmology and quantum field theory, which are not my main research areas. In these cases, I often insist having external supervisors from abroad who have more experience in the area than me.  

If one looks at my supervisor (RS Ward) mathematics genealogy page, it seems that I have contributed quite a significant fraction to his (30) descendants.

I have my own reasoning for having the number of students that I have, but I will do a different post for this reason.

Now, if one looks at the picture above, the supervisor of my supervisor is Roger Penrose. I have already felt blessed to note this lineage that includes greats like Penrose even before he won the Nobel Prize. In fact, I was indeed already feeling blessed to have Richard Ward of the Atiyah-Ward transform fame. When I had him as my supervisor, I did not even know that Roger Penrose was his supervisor until very much later on, but I do know that his research involved twistors as a mathematical tool. Having these two intellectuals as part of my academic lineage is already something great to have, but I was told (by Tawfik; I did not check beforehand) later on that this lineage goes even back to Isaac Newton and Galileo! Here I write down my academic ancestors:

• Richard Ward
• Roger Penrose
• John Arthur Todd
• Henry Frederick Baker
• Arthur Cayley
• William Hopkins
• Adam Sedgwick
• Thomas Postlewaite
• Stephen Wisson
• Walter Taylor
• Robert Smith
• Roger Cotes
• Isaac Newton
• Isaac Barrow
• Vincenzo Viviani
• Galileo Galilei
• Ostilio Ricci
• Niccolo Fontana Tartaglia

What is the point of highlighting all these? For me, it is just a matter of recognising the blessings one has. I hope my own students feel the same way too. It is not something to really take pride in since having a great lineage does not necessarily entail one is great. Only doing/establishing a good academic work will determine one's stature and it is not for ourselves to judge or say whether we are doing great (or not). The words of Prof. Lamberto Rondini are always on my mind: (paraphrasing) it is not easy to leave one's mark even in one's own narrow field, let alone for the bigger field of science. My own words to my junior colleague quite recently (without the intent of being derogatory): all of us are trying leave a mark in science internationally (or locally), always on the look out for fresh ideas that are of importance to the (relevant) community. If we are lucky, we will stumble onto one or two works with lasting impact but otherwise we are in the fold of many (average) scientists trying to do something worthwhile or useful.

As a side note, I do dream to have scientific work that have lasting impact in quantum sciences, mathematical sciences particularly those with geometrical and topological ideas. Most of the time, international scientists tend to be more appreciative of such effort in comparison to local ones. Time will tell if any of the things that we do, has some form of impact.

Tea Pot Incident

Warning: This post should be read with an open mind. Otherwise, one can dismiss it as it is written with an enigmatic mood.

Last Monday, a glass teapot from which we often had tea from, 'exploded' while it was left to dry near the kitchen cabinet. The teapot can be seen below with my youngest son.

At the time, the teapot has been left to dry (for sometime) in the place shown below. This shelf is embedded in the kitchen cabinet, elevated just slightly above the head level.

At the time, my other half was there nearby. As she turned her back to this drying shelf, the glass teapot 'exploded' into tiny pieces. If she had not turned, tiny glass pieces would have been blown into her face. Thank God, she did not get hurt by the 'explosion'. Tiny pieces of glass did go into our food, which was on the stove (not lit up and it was more than a metre away). We had to throw away all the food thereafter.

Why the 'explosion'? If I were to put my scientist cap on, the most likely explanation would be thermal stresses in the glass that may be just waiting its time to release the stress. Note that the teapot had no hot water in it and it was washed and left on the shelf for sometime. So in a way, there was no immediate cause that could have explained the matter.

Nevertheless, it was rather mysterious that it happened so. Alongside with other 'mysterious' events happening in our (personal) lives, I felt rather disturbed about them. Whenever such things happened (and also when I don't feel right about myself), I started to recite the long Surah Al-Baqarah as it is recommended for us to do so. The recitation itself normally takes more than two hours altogether and I often break the recitation into several parts. It can be exhausting (perhaps not being used to it).

I will not be apologetic about the matter. Indeed for muslim, we do accept the 'unseen world', which includes the realm of the beings of djinn. The only problem is that there will be a grey area between being overly superstitious and understanding it in the Qur'anic way. In the Qur'an, there is a chapter called Surah Jinn (Surah 72) and scattered in other places, the word djinn is mentioned 201 times (one can also consult https://www.qurananalysis.com/). So when it comes to the unseen world, we can only rely on what the scriptures and prophetic traditions have revealed. May Allah protect us from all forms of fitnah.

Family 'Eid Gathering

My other half and sons came back from Segamat on late Thursday evening. While waiting, do the usual chores and warmed up food that was left for us (me and my son) to eat. I also kept up reading the Qur'an to strengthen our spirits, particularly in places that are left empty. When they arrived (after a long drive), they noticed that one of our cats is missing i.e. Stephanie (the oldest in the house at present). Note the name was given due to its white appearance and when it was still a baby, it looks like Stuart Little but since it is a she, I gave her the name Stephanie instead. She was the only survivor from parvovirus infection. Apparently she was hiding under our sofa and she seemed to have lost control of her physical motion. Stephanie has grown close to my eldest son and we (my other half and eldest son) decided to send her to the vet the next morning and she was warded for observation.

Late Friday evening, my third son arrived from JB and the whole family was together again. We planned to have the family 'Eid group photo the next day. Here are the photos.

Right after the photo session, we went out to visit my brother-in-law who was in Labu at her father-in-law's place. Essentially that was our small 'Eid gathering. Tonight, my third son went back to his place since he will be at work tomorrow. My second son will return to JB tomorrow morning, hopefully after we sent our youngest back to UniKL-MFI in Bangi.

Last 10 Days of Ramadhan and Shawwal 1445

Today is already the second day of Shawwal 1445 and we have not quite celebrate 'Eid with the whole family, particularly our second son is working during 'Eid. Let me back track to the last ten days of Ramadhan 1445 when we were supposed to amplify our efforts in doing our night prayers.

Like past Ramadhans, fatigue tend to set in during the final days. Me in particular, had bad spells of bad back that I had to take pain killers. When I'm unwell, I tend to pray tarawih at home while my other half and sons go the Masjid Hussain.

Also, what adds to the fatigue is our routine of sending our son to UniKL MFI after Fajr in order to avoid the jam at Bandar Sri Putra-Southville stretch.

Not sure if we will still do this after 'Eid. Despite having paid for the hostel, it seems that he has to share with five other students in a dormitory like room. He is still hoping to get a better room (yet to have a positive answer).

When 'Eid was approaching, we had planned to go back to Segamat either on the last or second last day of Ramadhan. We had to cancel this idea on the scheduled day due to some personal problem. We decided that we will spend the night of 'Eid announcement and the 'Eid morning together.

We went to the nearby surau for our 'Eid prayers. Thereafter my other half and sons travel to Segamat to spend 'Eid with her sisters and brothers, while I stayed back in Seremban to ensure my third son has company at home. 

It seems that they have a good time in Segamat and here are some pics.

Tomorrow, God willing, my second son will come home from JB and the whole family will be back together for our small private 'Eid gathering.

Shying Away and Seeking Forgiveness

There are many times in my life, I 'saw' people trying to avoid interacting with me, often through their body language or other indications. My knee-jerk reaction will be to shy away from them. Before, many of these came from higher-ranked officers or privileged people, and in these cases I consider myself as probably not good enough to be in their company. Others can be 'seen' with looks for despise, for which I would question what have I done wrong; I will make it a point then, of avoiding them as much as I can. In some cases they can also come from students or close acquaintances themselves; probably I have done something wrong or to their dislike or maybe they just want their personal space.

In this blessed month of Ramadhan, I can only hope for forgiveness and try to be better myself. Whatever trials one is going through, they can only be very minor to those who are in Ghazza, and one should be thankful for not being tried beyond our capabilities.

اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي

“O Allah, You are Forgiving and love forgiveness, so forgive me” or “O Allah, You are Pardoning and love to pardon, so pardon me.”

First Half Ramadhan Reflections

I thought I should update my blog since we have already reached the second half of Ramadhan. We started Ramadhan on Tuesday, 12 March.

Our youngest son has started his industrial training at UniKL Malaysia-France Institute just one day before Ramadhan. He has applied for accommodation there but at the moment (during Ramadhan), we decided that he should stay with us for his own convenience (iftar and sahur meals). He will moved there after Eid, God willing. Currently, me and my other half will send him to UniKL after Fajr and later in the evening, my eldest son will fetch him.

During the first half Ramadhan, I have been reflecting on two recent major events. The first is the Covid-19 pandemic. The disease had many lives loss (over 7 million according to this site). At the time, they were already predicting the forthcoming economic slowdown problems, which are still affecting us to this day. The next event is the horrible Ghazza conflict and genocide, which is going on for more than 170 days. Being a Muslim, I wondered what God is preparing us for.

By now, the death toll is more than 32,000 with unknown number buried under the rubble and more from the extreme famine. Currently the UNSC has demanded a ceasefire (with US abstaining) but with the occupying state's defiance, things are pretty uncertain where will this decision leads to. In any case, the fact that the genocide has gone this far is already mind-boggling. Because of this, I've been watching many videos on the conflict, in an attempt to understand it, more than I would want to. I also wanted to understand the mentality of those committing the genocide and watched some videos, some are too repulsive for me to watch in full. I also wanted to watch the documentary Isra3lism and temporarily it was put on YouTube but it was taken off a few hours later, probably due to copyright (only got to see the first ten minutes, paused it and later realised it was taken off).

There is also the wish to understand the mentality of those who supported the genocide. In a way, the prevailing Islamophobia (often promoted by the mainstream media) lends a platform to justify their support. I remembered having gone to Kentucky and on the day I was flying home, I tried to find a corner spot (out of everyone's way) at the airport, to do my prayers. Thereafter, the airport made the announcement of an orange alert. That was perhaps the first time I was perceived as a (possible) terrorist. At other times, I was probably viewed mostly as an inferior being with some medieval values. To get a glimpse of how some perceive muslims, just read the comments of the video of Timothy Winter (Abdul Hakim Murrad) at the Royal Institute. Of course, such perception is not limited to Muslims. So a broader platform is probably the colonialist mentality. I don't really want to go reading or watching on this subject but the unjust reality demands one to be at least aware of such mentality. In this regard, I would like to point to this video by Dr. Fatima Abdurrahman on 'telescopes' to get an idea on what this is all about (warning: it is about three hours and contain words that would have Steve Rogers say 'language').

Back at home, Islamophobic elements tend to get convoluted also with racial overtones and distrust deeply embedded within our society. The recent socks issue comes to mind. Hopefully this will die down and Ramadhan will get the wiser side of us.

Marching In

Yesterday, we had two weddings to go to. The one realised is the wedding of the youngest son of my eldest step brother in Klang (the other, we could not get back in time). The wedding was held in Laman Mazmida. My third son Izhar, who came back the night before, drove us there. The app he used showed there was a huge jam on the highway due to an accident. We took the Gamuda Cove exit and went through oil palm plantation roads (plenty of high bumps) to get there. Here are some photos that my brother shared late last night.

He also told me that Dato' Mohandass came and asked about me. Dato' Mohandass is my primary school mate in Sekolah Kebangsaan Sultan Yussuf (SYS). 

I was there from Standard 3 (or Year 3) during the time of Pn Machado. Before that, I was in Methodist English School (MES) in Tanjung Malim (I have very little memories of my time there - I have vague memories of friends named Razman and Jamaliyah). For SYS, besides Dato' Mohandass, I remembered Chang Seit Kim (a close friend whose father is also a close friend of my late father), Saiful Yazzan and Rosli Dawam (I think). being a person of lower social intelligence (there, you have it; poke fun if you like), I did not keep in contact many of them. Sometimes I do envy those who are very sociable and kept contact with past friends. Perhaps this is why I get to be easily forgotten too. I'm no snob and I'll be happy to meet friends from the past and recall all the nice memories. I guess I take the attitude of a traveller in a temporary world, taking life as it comes, not much of looking back.

Currently, I take more heed of what is going on right now. My youngest son, in the weeks to come, will go for his industrial training in UniKL. Particular worry now is his place of stay during the training. He has started to practice driving,

Elsewhere on the web, I've been listening to the interview of Kenneth O'Keefe (see here and here). Updating myself with the flour massacre. I still looked into discussions on philosophy in FB but perhaps with less interest. I still think, what we are lacking now are those who are well-proficient in sophisticated maths and perhaps this is where I can help. Much can be said but certainly much more to be done.