Ho Chi Minh Prize Laureates

Professor Nguyen Van Dao - the founder of non-linear oscillation school in Vietnam

The year 2000 might be seen as the most memorable year during the 40-year period of creative scientific work with joys and sweat of professor Nguyen Van Dao, a devoted scientist. The State recognised his contributions by awarding him the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Science and Technology for his work 'Non-linear Oscillations of Dynamic Systems.'

The work is the fruit of his labour for many years including 99 articles and scientific reports and eight specialised books published in Vietnam and abroad. The prominent feature of his works is the result of basic research on non-linear oscillating systems, especially vibration of mechanical systems - one of the most important fields of mechanics - with the aim to solve non-linear differential equations describing dynamic processes and finding new effects in the oscillating system. The work comprises of three main parts: interaction between non-linear system, the dynamic absorber effect for non-linear systems and asymptotic method of the theory of non-linear oscillations for non-linear systems of high order and special non-linear systems. The author has created a new scientific research school of non-linear oscillation in Vietnam.

The work is outstanding among modern research in the world, helping promote the development of Vietnamese mechanics to the world level. It has had an important effect on dynamics and oscillation in Vietnam.

Professor Nguyen Van Dao was born on August 10, 1937 in Chi Tien village, Thanh Ba district, Phu Tho province in a revolutionary family. He graduated from the Teacher Training School, majoring in mathematics, in 1957. He used to work as teacher at the Hanoi University of Technology, was vice president and concurrently the secretary general of the National Centre for Scientific Research of Vietnam, director of the Institute of Mechanics. From 1994 to date, he is president of Vietnam National University in Hanoi. He was admitted member of the Academy of Sciences of Czechoslovakia in 1988, member of the Third World Academy of Sciences in 1999 and member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in 2000.

By TRINH VAN QUY