Islam, Jamal Nazrul
Islam, Jamal Nazrul (1939-2013) eminent scientist, Professor Emeritus, a Bangladeshi mathematical physicist and cosmologist. He was born in Jhenidah, on 24 February 1939. His father, Khan Bahadur Sirajul Islam, was a sub-judge in British India, and his mother, Rahat Ara Begum, was an enthusiastic writer and singer.
Jamal Nazrul Islam obtained BSc (Hons.) from St. Xavier's College under Calcutta University. He received his second BSc Honors from Cambridge University in Functional Mathematics and Theoretical Physics in 1959. He completed his M.Sc in 1960. He successfully completed the most challenging examination, Mathematical Tripos from Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1968, Islam obtained his PhD in applied mathematics and theoretical physics from Trinity College, after completing the final part of the Tripos (Part III) with distinction,
He worked at the University of Maryland, USA, as Post Doctoral Fellow (1963-1965) and at the University of Cambridge (1965-1966). He also worked at the Cambridge Institute of Theoretical Astronomy (1967-1971), California Institute of Technology (1971-1972), and then at the Department of Astronomy, University of Washington (1972-1973) as a Senior Research Associate. Later, he joined London King’s College as Lecturer in Applied Mathematics (1973-1974). He also worked at the Science Research Council, University College, Cardiff, as a Fellow from 1975 to 1978. In 1978, as a faculty, he joined the City University of London and worked until he permanently returned to Chittagong in 1984. During this time, he also worked as a visiting scientist at the Institute of Advanced Studies, Princeton, USA. After his return, he joined the Department of Mathematics at Chittagong University and served as Professor (1984-1989). In 1989, he founded the Research Center for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (RCMPS) and served as Director till his death. In 2006, he became the Emeritus Professor at the University of Chittagong and held the post until his demise.
By profession, Dr. Islam was a theoretical physicist, and his research fields included relativity, cosmology, and quantum theory. He published over 50 scientific articles, several books, and popular articles in Bengali. In 1983, a book published by Cambridge University Press titled The Ultimate Fate of the Universe was acclaimed worldwide. It was translated into Japanese, French, Portuguese, and Yugoslav languages. Several other books were also translated into Spanish, German, Dutch, and Italian language. Three of them are world-famous. Universities like Oxford and Cambridge refer to his books. Krishna Bibor (Black Hole), published by the Bangla Academy, is his most famous book in Bengali. Other noteworthy books are ‘The Mother Tongue, Scientific Research and Other Articles’, and ‘Art, Literature, and Society’.
Islam received the Gold Medal of the Bangladesh Academy of Sciences for Physical Sciences (Senior Group) in 1985 and the National Science and Technology Medal in 1998, and the Medal Lecture award from Accademia Nazionale delle Scienze. In 2000, he was awarded with the Ekushey Padake by the Government of Bangladesh. In 2011, he received the Razzaq-Shamsun Lifetime Achievement Award in Physics from Dhaka University in recognition of his contribution to Science, particularly in Physics.
Dr. Islam was a Fellow of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, Royal Astronomical Society, Bangladesh Academy of Sciences (1983), Third World Academy of Science (1985), Islamic Academy of Sciences, and Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
At the age of 74, he passed away on 16 March 2013 in a private hospital in Chittagong. [Yearul Kabir]
