A Brief History of the Mathematics
Department of Boğaziçi University Until 2000
By
Alp Eden (2013)
The roots of the
current department can be traced back to the days of Robert College in the late
1950s. With the founding of the Yüksek Okul in 1957 and the recognition of a
University Status, the need for higher level mathematics courses have become
more pressing. In 1959 the College of Sciences and Languages was formed and an
independent mathematics department came into existence.
Before 1970, there were
few degree granting Mathematics Departments in Turkey. The first was
established in İstanbul University in 1933, the second one in Ankara University
in 1948 and the third one was in the Middle East Technical University that
started in early 1960’s. During these
early Robert College days Cahit Arf, Ferruh Şemin and Fikret Kortel all taught
in the newly formed mathematics department and contributed to a program
consisting of 7 required and 9 elective courses in mathematics. They all held
full-time positions in İstanbul University as well. Despite this strong
faculty, there were only four graduates of the Mathematics department before
1971. In the same period, Chemistry had 52 and Physics had 19 graduates. In
1960s the department mainly functioned as a service department for the
engineering students of the college.
In 1965, Cahit Arf has
left for Princeton University and concurrently the program of the department
was transformed into a more flexible format, consisting of only 3 required
calculus courses and an additional 10 mathematics electives. In order to meet
the demand of the service courses the department had to rely on part-time
faculty members from other universities as well as from other departments in
Robert College not all of whom had a PhD degree in Mathematics.
The constant flux of
members with relatively short tenure was a common theme in the 60’s. The
department had usually a handful of faculty members, coming either as a
Fullbright scholar or through the support of the AID funds. A partial list of
visiting scholars at the time is furnished below. These faculty members worked
in the mathematics department serving
both the needs of the high school as well as of the University. Although
department enjoyed an ever renewing faculty with degrees from the top
Universities of USA, their brief tenures did not allow them to have a lasting
impact. This impressive list contained graduates of Chicago, UC Berkeley and
MIT among others. Joyce Shana’a became the last chairwoman of the Robert
College period that ended in 1971.
The vision of a
mathematics department mainly serving as a service department was deeply rooted
in its formation. Out of the 13 faculty members that were hired before 1970
only 2 remained more than 5 years: Fikret Kortel and Nicholas Alter, the later
also headed the first computer center that was formed in the university. Formation Years:
The official change
from Robert College to Boğaziçi University in 1972 did not have an immediate
effect in the curriculum of the Mathematics Department. The program was still
loosely defined in the early 70’s. Only few from the graduates in those early
years chose an academic career in mathematics such as Ayşe Soysal, Haluk
Arıtürk, Semih Koray and Ali Erhan Özlük.
In 1972 Julian Crowell
became the chair of the department, the first with a long tenure and managed to
attract other mathematicians to the department. Out of the 43 faculty new members
hired during 1970’s 21 stayed more than 5 years. With the influx of the new
faculty members, the department’s undergraduate program was further developed
and a Masters degree in Applied Mathematics has been instituted. Atilla Aşkar,
a graduate of the Civil Engineering Department of Princeton University who
joined the department in 1972 was instrumental in developing the program in
Applied Mathematics. The first two to receive Masters degree were Peren Semi
and Adnan İlerici in 1976. Peren Semi also served as an Instructor in the
Department for 25 years teaching the calculus courses mainly for the Business
Administration students.
Late 70’s witnessed the
completion of the first PhD degrees from the department; Mehmet Can (advisor:
Atilla Aşkar), Kadir Ahre and Semih Koray (advisor: John Selden). Both Kadir
Ahre and Mehmet Can joined the faculty of Istanbul Technical University, Kadir
Ahre was also a part time instructor in the department in 1980’s. Semih Koray
started working in the Mathematics Department of Middle East Technical
University (1981-1992). Another development during this period was the institution of the junior college (otherwise known as “önlisans” program) in Mathematics. It was a three year program giving an associate degree and allowing its graduates to teach mathematics in secondary schools. The departments in the junior college had their own faculty members:
JUNIOR COLLEGE IN MATH
(1974-1981)
Ömür Akyüz, Fikret
Kortel, Ayşe Şahinyılmaz (BS 1974, İU), Ender Şamikoğlu (BS 1965 İU), İsak
Behar (1974-1979), Abdülkadir Akif Özdeğer (1974-1976) Out of the 85 students that were registered to the junior college in 1974, only 37 have finally graduated. Successful graduates were given the chance of completing the four year program in mathematics. Unfortunately, the depletion of AID funds obliged the American professors to seek employment elsewhere in the late 1970’s, leaving behind a department with a heavy service load and a budding undergraduate and graduate program. In spite of these conditions the late 70’s was a period of growth and consolidation for the department. Fikret Kortel who being the chairman at the time had to find a solution to this challenging problem. As it happened many times in the past, part-time faculty members from other departments and even from other universities came to help. A list of these faculty members is given below.
Late 1970’s Ali Ülger
came from Hacettepe University and started teaching the undergraduate and
graduate analysis courses, as well as Yavuz Nutku and Rahmi Güven who came from
Middle East Technical University. These faculty members together with Atilla
Aşkar, who all became members of TUBA later on (The Turkish Academy of
Sciences), contributed greatly to the worldwide recognition of the department.
In contrast to a small
number of graduates between 1933 to 1971 (just 4) as mathematics major, this
number has increased to 59 between the years 1971-1981. Moreover, 14 MAs and 3
PhDs have been granted. This period was one of the most active periods of the
department’s history.
Under the New
University Law
After the formation of
the Higher Educational Council (YÖK) that oversees the governance of all the
Turkish Universities, the Faculty of Sciences and Languages have transformed
into the College of Arts and Sciences that consisted of 8 Departments and the
first appointed Dean to the College was Murat Dikmen who replaced Erdal İnönü
in 1982. Murat Dikmen taught in the Mathematics department. With the new
university bylaws, it was a period of adjustments for the departments. The new
Rector and the Dean was appointed from İstanbul Technical University and were
not familiar with the traditions that were deeply rooted in the University.
Out of the 18 faculty
members that have been hired in this period only 6 stayed more than 5
years. Part-time faculty members from
other departments and universities were recruited in order to meet the ever
increasing demand for the service courses. Under these unfavorable circumstances,
the total number of graduate students dropped to a mere four. Yet the
department managed to graduate 103 mathematics majors during this period.
Ahmet
Şimşek (1987, advisor : Atilla Aşkar) was the only PhD recipient in
1980’s. Among the undergraduates
ventured to pursue an academic career in Mathematics were Alp Eden (1981), Mete
Soner (1981), Turgay Kaptanoğlu (1982), Murat Tuncalı (1982), Talin Papazyan
Budak (1984), Ahmet Bakkaloğlu (1985), Tuna Altınel (1989), Ali Mostafazadeh
(1989).
1980’s also witnessed
the transformation of the MS and PhD degrees in Mathematics without an emphasis
on Applied Mathematics and the formation of a new undergraduate concentration
(computational mathematics).
With the new amendments
to the University Law, the faculty members of Boğaziçi University was able to
elect their own Rector in 1992. A period of reconstruction followed. The number
of mathematics graduates have increased more than 3-folds in 1990’s, also the
number of undergraduates that are pursuing an academic career have increased in
numbers. A list of these graduate students and the schools that they continued
their careers in can be found on the departmental web page. In the same period
there were also 44 students getting their masters degrees from the department.
Some of those graduates have later joined to the department as faculty members,
like Fatih Ecevit (1998) and Özlem
Beyarslan (1999).
The recruitment of new
faculty members in 1990’s resembled the period of 1980’s in the sense that out
of the 18 faculty members recruited in this period only 5 remained more than 5
years and most of the others worked less than a year. The visitors during the
same period also stayed at most one year.
Chairs:
Joyce Shana’a (1969-71); Julian Crowell
(1972-1978); Fikret Kortel (1978-1983); Atilla Aşkar (1984-1991); Ayşe Soysal
(1991-1992); Rahmi Güven (1992-1997); Nilgün Işık (1997-1999); Alp Eden
(1999-2001); Betül Tanbay (2001-2004); Ahmet Feyzioğlu (2004-2006);Haluk Oral
(2006-2008);Talin Budak (2008-2010);Nihat Sadık Değer (2010- )
Faculty
1960’s
Cahit Arf (1957-1964) (PhD 1938 U
Göttingen, advisor: Helmut Hasse)
Fikret Kortel (1957-1984) (PhD 1952 IU in
Physics, advisor: Marcel Fouchet)
Ferruh Şemin (1960-1963) (PhD 1944 IU,
advisor: Kerim Erim)
John Freely (1960-1961) (PhD Princeton in
Physics)
Edward Jacobsen (1962-1965) (MS U
Wisconsin);
Lucille (Kathryn Pinette) Zukowski (1966);
Nicholas Alter (1966-1972) (MS 1962 U
Chicago);
John B. Jr. Butler (1966) (Full-bright
Prof, PhD 1954 UC Berkeley, advisor: Frantisek Wolf);
David Merriell (1967) (Full-bright Prof,
PhD 1951 U Chicago, advisor: Abraham Adrian Albert)
John F. Scott-Thomas (1967-1968) (PhD 1962
MIT, advisor: Norman Levinson);
William Stone (1968) (Full-bright Prof,
PhD 1947 Iowa State U);
Harlan Stevens (1968) (PhD 1960 Duke U,
advisor: Leonard Carlitz);
Wendell Lindstrom (1969) (PhD 1953 U
Iowa); Joyce Shana’a (1969-1971) (PhD U Oklahoma)
1970’s
Carl H. Helms (1971-72) (MA 1964
Washington State University);
Richard Rowland (1971);
Mehmet Emin Bozhöyük (1971-1973) (PhD 1972
Princeton U);
Julian Crowell (1972 -1978) (PhD 1966 U
Vanderbilt);
Bernard A. Asner Jr. (1972) (PhD 1968
Northwestern U, advisor: Arthur Wouk);
Atilla Aşkar (1972-1993) (PhD 1969
Princeton in Civil Engineering);
Ratıp Berker (1972-1979) (PhD 1936 U
Lille, advisor: Marie-Joseph Kampé de Fériet);
Şarman Gencay (1972-1981) (PhD 1970 İTÜ in
Nuclear Engineering, advisor: Nejat Aybers);
Emine Rızaoğlu (1972-1976) (PhD 1976 IU in
Physics, advisor: Ahmet Yüksel Özemre);
Çetin Ertek (1972-1973) (PhD 1967 IU in
Physics, advisor: Sait Akpınar);
Orhan İçen (1972-1975) (PhD 1955 U
Gottingen, advisor: Theodor
Schneider)
Neşet Ayırtman (1972-1974) (PhD 1962, IU,
advisor: Cahit Arf);
Peren Semi (1972-1997) (MS 1976 BU);
Kemal Ateşmen (1973-1978) (PhD 1970
Colorado State U);
Alice Arndt (1973-1975) (MS 1965, U North
Carolina);
Hüseyin Abut (1973-1979) (PhD 1972, North
Carolina State U in Electrical Engineering)
H. Murat Çekirge (1974-1977) (PhD 1972
Lehigh University in Applied Mechanics);
Alfred P. Hallstrom (1974-1975) (PhD 1968
Brown);
Thomas Robertson (1974); (MA U Southern
California)
Abdülkadir Akif Özdeğer (1974-1976) (PhD
1968 IU, advisor: Ferruh Şemin)
Charles W. Mullins (1974-1977) (PhD 1966 U
Illinois);
Cem Göknar (1974-1975, 1980-1981) (PhD
1969 Michigan State U in Electrical Engineering);
Annie Selden (1974-1979) (PhD 1973
Clarkson College, advisor: John Selden);
John Selden (1974-1978) (PhD 1963, U
Georgia, advisor: Robert
Paul Hunter);
İsak Behar (1974-1979) (PhD 1974 Faculte
de Sciences, Grenoble)
İrini Dimitriadis (1975-2003) (PhD 1974
BU, advisor: Murat Sertel)
Denis Ragan Floyd (1975-1977) (PhD 1967 U
Washington, advisor: James
Patrick Jans);
Bruce Prekowitz (1975-1976) (PhD 1971
Chicago U, advisor: Irvine Kaplansky);
Alan R. Mitchell (1975-1976) (PhD 1975
Brown U, advisor: Paul Frank Baum);
Ayse Soysal (Kusefoglu) (1976- ) (PhD 1976
U Michigan, advisor: Jack
E. McLaughlin)
M. Tamer Başar (1976 -1980) (PhD 1972
Yale, advisor: Max
Luria Mintz);
Necdet Üçoluk (1976-1981);
Kemal Batova (1976-1985) (BS 1956 IU);
Ayşe Zerrin Göktürk (1977- ) (PhD 1974 U
Helsinki, advisor: Olli
Erkki Lehto);
Yusuf Ünlü (1977-1979) (PhD 1976 U Kansas,
advisor: Jack
Ray Porter);
Haluk Arıtürk (1977-1980) (PhD 1975 Johns
Hopkins U, advisor: Jun-Ichi Igusa);
Şermin Atacık (1977-1981) (PhD 1977 Temple
U, advisor: Louis
Raymon);
Halit Temel Belek (1978-1984) (PhD 1977 U
of Surrey in Mechanical Engineering);
Cengiz Aydın (1978-1979) (PhD 1976 İTÜ);
Ali Başak Karatay (1978-1983) (PhD 1999 U
of Syracuse in Logic);
Ali Ülger (1978-1996) (PhD 1976 U
Besançon, advisor: Alain
Bensoussan);
Rahmi Güven (1978-1981, 1989-2005) (PhD
1976 METU, advisor: Yavuz Nutku);
Yavuz Nutku (1979-1989) (PhD 1969 Chicago
U, advisor: Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar);
1980’s
Yomtov Garti (1980-1984), (PhD 1939 IU,
advisor: Richard von Mises);
Tom Brown (1980-1981) (PhD 1964 Washington
U, advisor: Earl Edwin Lazerson);
Birsen Karpak
(1981-1982) (DBA,
1974 IU);
Alsan Meriç (1981-1982) (PhD 1973
Carnegie-Mellon in Mechanical Engineering);
Tunç Aldemir (1981-1982) (PhD 1978 U of
Illinois at Chicago in Nuclear Engineering);
Murat Dikmen (1982-1988) (PhD 1959 İTÜ,
advisor: Mustafa İnan);
Ali Erhan Özlük (1982-1987) (PhD 1982 U
Michigan, advisor: Hugh
Lowell Montgomery);
Nilgün Işık (1982- ) (PhD 1980 Sheffield
U, advisor: John Pym);
Mehmet Kaytaz (1982-1983) (PhD 1978,
Nothingam U in Economics);
K. Gediz Akdeniz (1982-1984) (Ph. D. 1967,
IU in Physics, advisor: Ahmet Yüksel Özemre);
Jacques Alev (1984-1985) (PhD
advisor: Marie-Paule Malliavin);
Can Fuat Delale (1984-1990) (PhD 1983
Brown U);
Ercüment Ortaçgil (1985-2011) (PhD 1985
John Hopkins U, advisor: Bernard
Shiffman);
Hans Beumee (1986);
Kadir Ahre (1978-1979, 1986-1987) (PhD
1979 BU, advisor: John Selden);
Ahmet Şimşek (1987) (PhD 1987 BU, advisor:
Atilla Aşkar);
Ahmet Feyzioğlu (1987- ) (PhD 1987
Johannes Gutenberg U, advisor: Bertram
Huppert);
Betul Tanbay (1989- ) (PhD 1989 UC
Berkeley, advisor: Robert Solovay);
1990’s
Talin Budak (1990- )
(PhD 1990 Sheffield U, advisor: John Pym)
Haluk Oral
(1990-2010) ( PhD 1989 Simon Fraser, advisor: Chris
D. Godsil)
A. Feyyaz Güvençer (1991) (MS 1984 BU in
Computer Engineering);
Alp Eden (1992- )
(PhD 1989 Indiana U, advisor: Ciprian Foias)
Gulnihal Yucel (1994-
) ( MS 1994 Bilkent U)
Yilmaz Akyildiz
(1994-2007) ( PhD 1976 UC Berkeley, advisor: Alan
David Weinstein )
Visitors (at least for
a semester)
Jack Goldberg (1970, 1982, 1998); John
Sydney Pym (1986-1988, 2003-2005); Robert Gwyn Owens (1990-1993); Asaf
G. Gadjiev
(1992-1997);
Collin Christopher (1993-1995); Brian Pilz (1993-1994);
Mikhail I. Ostrovskii (1998); Gerald J. Wuchter
(1998); Patrick Lambert (1999); Richard Sharpe (1999); Renat N. Gumerov (1999);
Valery Grikurov (1999); Halil Mete Soner (1999); Asuman Güven Aksoy (2000-2001);
Arif Mardin (2005-2006); Harry I. Miller (2006-2007); Flavio Alessandro
(2009)
Part-time Faculty from
other Departments / Universities Vural Altın; Ali Fuat Balkanay; Haluk Beker; Hilmi Demiray ;Yağmur Denizhan; Saadet Erbay; Avadis Hacınlıyan; Ersin Karabudak ; Jak Kornflit ; Hülya Şenkon; Zeynep Tlabar; First Undergraduates: 1968 Ali Yalman; 1971 Haluk Arıtürk, Ayşe Soysal ; 1972 Semih Koray ; 1973 Egberg Ammicht (NJIT) First PhD Degrees: 1979 Kadir Ahre; 1980 Semih Koray; 1981 Mehmet Can First MS Degrees: 1976 Peren Semi, Adnan İlerici; 1977 Ayşe Mine Kuban (Dalfes), Semih Koray; 1978 Mehmet Can, Hulusi Özoklav, Peren Semi, Levent Soysal, Hayriye İnci Ergene (Şeker) ; 1979 Gürol Irzık, Muammer Baykal ; 1980 Ercüment Ortaçgil ; 1981 Haluk Oral, Alemdar Demirel, Fehmi Yavuztürk |
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