WORLD-RENOWNED algebraist Efim Zelmanov received an appointment certificate from Xue Qikun, president of the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) last September to officially become a chair professor of the university.
去年九月，世界著名数学大师埃菲·杰曼诺夫（Efim Zelmanov）从南方科技大学校长薛其坤手中接过聘任证书，正式成为南方科技大学（以下简称南科大）讲席教授。
In 2019, Zelmanov was a visiting professor at SUSTech and appointed founding director of the SUSTech International Center for Mathematics, also known as the Shenzhen International Center for Mathematics.
2019年， 杰曼诺夫受邀在南科大建立深圳国际数学中心 （杰曼诺夫数学中心）（以下简称数学中心），出任该中心的创始主任。
Efim Zelmanov displays the appointment certificate he received from SUSTech in an interview with Shenzhen Daily in April.
The Russian American is known for his work on combinatorial problems in Jordan algebra and group theory, and was awarded the Fields Medal in 1994 for the solution on the restricted Burnside problem.
杰曼诺夫是俄罗斯裔美国数学家，早期研究约当（Jordan）代数。杰曼诺夫解决了整个20世纪群论中最根本、最困难的问题即限制Burnside问题，并因此荣获菲尔兹奖（1994年）。
In recent years, Zelmanov has devoted his time to hiring top talents and researchers around the world to the mathematics center as well as inviting them to attend international academic conferences at SUSTech and other exchange programs.
近年来，杰曼诺夫致力于为数学中心招聘世界各地的顶尖人才和研究人员，并邀请他们参加南科大举办的国际学术会议和其他交流项目。
Zelmanov won the first Guangdong Friendship Award this March for his remarkable contributions to the province’s development and international exchanges.
今年三月，杰曼诺夫获首届“广东省友谊奖”，以表彰他对广东省发展和国际交流的卓越贡献。
Friendship Award, honor and hope
“The Guangdong Friendship Award, like an outstretched hand of friendship, means a lot to me. I am working in Guangdong, which means I am welcome, and being a friend of Guangdong Province is great. I am hopeful for fruitful work in the future because I have been here for only a year. We have planned a lot of work in the future session, so I have great hopes to achieve something here,” Zelmanov told Shenzhen Daily.
“广东友谊奖就像一只伸出的友谊之手，对我来说意义重大。我在广东工作，这意味着我在这里受到欢迎，能成为广东省的朋友，我感到十分荣幸。我对今后卓有成效的工作抱有希望，因为我在这里只待了一年。我们计划了很多未来工作，所以我非常希望在这里取得一些成就。”杰曼诺夫告诉英文《深圳日报》记者。
The Guangdong Friendship Award, established by the provincial government in 2022, recognized 49 nationals from 23 countries for their outstanding contributions to the province’s development and international exchanges.
“广东省友谊奖”是广东省政府为表彰在广东经济社会发展和对外交往中作出突出贡献的外籍人士而设立的荣誉奖项。2022年首次开展评选，共有来自23个国家的49位外国专家和国际友人获奖。
Zelmanov talks with SUSTech students at a class in this undated file photo.
Zelmanov said they will engage in more international cooperation and organize conferences to increase the center’s international influence in the future.
杰曼诺夫表示，数学中心将参与更多的国际合作，并组织国际会议，增加数学中心的国际影响力。
Talent is future of center
Since the center was established, Zelmanov has brought many distinguished international scholars to SUSTech. “You will hear all kinds of speeches, all the same if you go to the Silicon Valley. Our center is very international with a very multicultural atmosphere. We expect the center will be flooded with visitors and I hope some of these visitors and scholars will decide to stay,” he said.
自数学中心成立以来，杰曼诺夫为南科大引进了许多杰出的国际学者。“你可以听到各种各样的演讲，这和你去硅谷的体验是一样的。我们数学中心非常国际化，拥有非常多元的文化氛围。我们预计数学中心将迎来很多访问学者，我希望其中一些学者会决定留下来。”杰曼诺夫说。
Zelmanov valued the role of talents who, he said, are the future of the mathematics center. “We have to bring the best people when we do hiring. It is important to attract talents to our center,” he said.
杰曼诺夫重视人才的作用。他表示，人才是数学中心的未来。“我们必须招聘最优秀的人才，吸引优秀人才加入我们数学中心很重要。”他说。
Inviting top talents to visit Shenzhen and the university on their own is more persuasive in comparison to just sending invitations. “If you just sit and wait, the best people won’t come. We have to go to them. When top-class researchers and talented people see Shenzhen, maybe they will like it,” Zelmanov said.
在杰曼诺夫看来，相比于只是发出邀请请柬，邀请顶尖人才亲自访问深圳和南科大更具有说服力。“如果你只是坐在这里等待，最好的人才不会朝你走来。我们必须去找他们。当一流的研究人员和有才华的人来到深圳，也许他们会喜欢这里。”杰曼诺夫说。
Great city, great university
In Zelmanov’s opinion, a great city needs a great university.
在杰曼诺夫看来，一流的城市需要一流的大学。
“Shenzhen is a great city and needs a great university. It was a great opportunity for me to try to take part in developing the SUSTech International Center for Mathematics. We will make SUSTech great,” he said.
他说：“深圳是个领先的城市，需要一流的大学。对我来说，这是一个很好的机会，可以尝试参与数学中心的发展。我们会让南科大成为一流的大学。”
Zelmanov left for California after the pandemic started but felt that his heart wasn’t there, so he finally returned to SUSTech last year as a full-time chair professor.
疫情爆发初期，杰曼诺夫曾离开深圳回到加州。但他觉得自己的心不在加州，所以最终决定离开加州，于去年全职加入南科大。
“I could see the great energy that radiates from Shenzhen and SUSTech. You feel the same thing in New York,” Zelmanov said. “Shenzhen is a pleasant city to live in. SUSTech has a beautiful campus. It’s pleasant to work here with all kinds of restaurants and a lot of attractions.”
“我可以看到深圳和南科大散发出一股巨大的能量。在纽约，也有同样的感受。” 杰曼诺夫补充说：“深圳是一个宜居的城市。南科大拥有美丽的校园。在这里有各式各样的餐厅和景点，在这里工作十分愉快。”
Additionally, Zelmanov spoke highly of the city’s efficiency.“We talked to the president of SUSTech and other people, and we discussed some things and then things are done very quickly,” he said.
此外，杰曼诺夫高度赞扬了深圳的高效。“我们碰到的问题，在与南科大校长及相关人员沟通后，都会很快得到了解决，”杰曼诺夫说。
“Shenzhen is also a tech hub, home to great tech companies. That’s a bonus for our center. Students could have internship opportunities in these big companies and might work at these companies after graduation,” Zelmanov added.
“深圳还是一个科技中心，在这里，有很多优秀的科技公司。这对于我们数学中心是一个额外的加持。我们的学生可以在这些大公司获得实习机会，毕业后可能会留在这些公司工作。”杰曼诺夫补充道。
New techs rooted in mathematics
Most people think mathematics is a difficult subject. Zelmanov agreed but said that without rigorous math courses, one cannot move further into engineering or technology. Concepts such as information revolution and artificial intelligence are all rooted in mathematics.
大多数人认为数学是一门困难的学科。杰曼诺夫对此表示同意，但他同时表示，如果没有严格的数学课程，就无法进一步进入工程或技术领域。信息革命和人工智能等概念都植根于数学。
“Mathematics is very important, but particularly now as it affects various aspects of our life. For example, each time you pay with WeChat or withdraw money from an ATM, there is a lot of mathematics involved,” Zelmanov said.
杰曼诺夫说：“数学非常重要，尤其是现在，因为它影响着我们生活的方方面面。例如，每次你用微信支付或从自动取款机取款时，这里都会涉及很多数学。”
“Mathematics is not about memorizing. You have to understand, to see the beauty and harmony. If you don’t see and just remember formulas, it’s a disaster. So, we also work with local high schools to improve teaching mathematics,” Zelmanov added.
杰曼诺夫补充说：“数学不是关于记忆。你必须理解，才能看到它的美丽与和谐。如果你看不到，只记公式，那就是一场灾难。因此，我们还与当地高中合作，提升数学教学。”
