University of Primorska Faculty of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Information Technologies
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Friday, 10 December 2021 Dr. István Kovács and Dr. Vita Poštuvan awarded with the prestigious Zois Award and Certificate of Recognition

On Friday, 10 December 2021, this year's Zois Awards and Recognitions were officially delivered to researchers who have made an important contribution to the development of scientific research in the country. We are happy and honoured to announce that two of UP professors and researchers are among this year recipients: Prof. István Kovács, PhD received the Zois Award for outstanding scientific achievements in the field of algebraic graph theory, while Assoc. Prof. Vita Poštuvan, PhD was awarded the Zois Certificate of Recognition in the field of suicidology and mental health.

This year's ceremony took place at Cankarjev dom in Ljubljana, with a broadcast on the second program of RTV SLO. You can watch it at rtvslo.si.

After receiving his doctorate in mathematics from the University of Széged in Hungary, Prof. István Kovács, PhD started researching at the University of Primorska, first as a postdoctoral researcher and then as a higher education teacher and researcher. His research work is focused on algebraic graph theory, which is essential for the normal functioning of high-tech society in the 21st century. Without it and all related cryptographic solutions to various communication efficiency and security issues, there would be no e-banking or e-commerce, no smartphones, no everyday use of the internet. In his researches, conducted with more than 40 scientists from around the world, he works on solving key issues of algebraic graph theory and connects them with other areas of mathematics, ie. theories of permutation groups, associative schemes, characters, and finite geometries.

Assoc. Prof. Vita Poštuvan, PhD is an internationally recognized researcher in the field of psychology, suicidology and mental health. In particular, she studies suicidal behaviour and identifies particularly vulnerable groups (such as adolescents) for suicide, as well as problems with coping with the consequences of suicide among relatives and professionals who deal with suicide in their work. Her findings have made an important contribution to understanding the risks of suicidal behaviour and to developing methods for researching them, thereby reducing suicide. The results of her research significantly contribute to the development of science and profession in Slovenia and abroad.

Among this year's recipients of the Zois Awards and Recognitions, we would like to mention also Prof. Stanislav Gobec, PhD, recipient of the Zois Award for Outstanding Achievement in Basic and Applied Research in Pharmacy, who is leading a basic project co-funded by the Slovenian Research Agency, in which UP FAMNIT researchers are currently participating.

The full list of this year’s recipients is available here.

We congratulate all recipients of the highest national awards for scientific achievements!

 

 

Zois Awards and recognitions were awarded to the following researchers of the University of Primorska:

  • Lara Lusa – Zois Certificate of Recognition for scientific achievements, namely for scientific achievements in the development of the methodology of medical statistics (2020),
  • Enes Pasalic – Zois Award for outstanding scientific achievements in the field of cryptography (2019),
  • Andreja Kutnar – Zois Certificate of Recognition for important achievements in scientific research work in the field of wood science (2018),
  • Martin Milanič – Zois Certificate of Recognition for important scientific achievements in the field of discrete mathematics (2017),
  • Tomaž Pisanski – Zois Award for outstanding achievements in scientific research in the field of discrete mathematics and its applications (2015),
  • Dušanka Janežič – Zois Award for outstanding achievements in mathematics and natural sciences (2013),
  • Štefko Miklavič – Zois Certificate of Recognition for important scientific achievements in the field of mathematics (2012),
  • Štefan Bojnec – Zois Certificate of Recognition for important scientific achievements in the field of economics (2008).
  • Maja Čemžar – Zois Certificate of Recognition for important achievements in the field of experimental oncology,
  • Dragan Marušič – Zois Award for outstanding scientific achievements in the field of graph theory and algebra (2002).

UP Famnit researchers have received Zois awards and Certificates of Recognition for the fifth year in a row, this year even two.