American University of Beirut

​​​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​AUB has gained some prominence in the international scientific arena through the many activities and contributions of the Center for Advanced Mathematical Sciences, including its scientific publications, international conferences, workshops and seminars, and summer programs. CAMS is seeking to encourage more AUB faculty members to play an active role in its research foci and in organizing activities at the center.​ For this reason, it is introducing some changes in the center’s governance, with the key changes summarized as follows:
 

• The appointment of CAMS fellows will be based on a submitted proposal targeting research or scholarly activities and including specific deliverables and a time line.
• A CAMS Steering Committee will be formed.
• Chaired by the director of CAMS, the Steering Committee will have the following functions:
• To assist the director in the review and ranking process of proposals submitted by faculty members to join CAMS as fellows;
  
• To prepare, review, and propose to the director quality scholarly activities that can be conducted or sponsored by CAMS;
• To assist in identifying funding resources to support CAMS activities, in promoting activities conducted by and at CAMS, and in engaging relevant and interested AUB departments in participating in the work of the center;
• To advise the director on academic, personnel, and any other matters at his/her request. 

In addition to its fellows, CAMS has Associate Scholars, who conduct research in related fields such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, civil engineering, electrical and communications engineering, biomedical engineering, and business and management.

CAMS associates use the research and computing facilities of the center, participate in its scientific programs, and shape research directions to be undertaken at CAMS. In the course of their research work, they interact with AUB faculty and students, and typically give seminars and workshops.

Director of CAMS

Dr. Jihad Touma is a Professor of Physics at the American University of Beirut. His work in Astrophysical Dynamics has brought to light​: the chaotic rotation of Mars; a mechanism driving large scale volcanism on Earth and Venus (touching on mass extinction on Earth, and resurfacing of Venus); the early resonant forcing of the lunar orbit (solving a then thirty year old puzzle); chaos in the orbital architecture of extrasolar planets; a process for the doubling of stellar black hole nuclei, and more recently, instabilities in multi-planet systems in binaries. With Hassan Al-Assaad, he co-founded EQLIM (www.eqlim.com​), a data analytics startup harvesting geopolitical events with which he hopes to revisit the "statistics of deadly quarrels".

Extension at CAMS: 4390
Email Address: jt00@aub.edu.lb

International Advisory Committee​

​The International Advisory Committee of CAMS is an external committee made up of eminent scholars and scientists appointed by the president of the University. The purpose of the committee is to oversee the activities of CAMS; to assist it in planning; and to evaluate, on an annual basis, the center’s success in meeting its objectives with recommendations. Members of the Committee may also provide help in securing continued external funding for CAMS in accordance with the University’s fundraising policy. The provost of AUB is an ex-officio member of the committee who acts as its vice-chair and secretary.

​Members of t​he International Advisory Committee are:

• ​​​​​​Claire Voisin (College de France)
• Cumrun Vafa (Harvard University)
• Frances Kirwan (Oxford University)
• Jihad Touma (Director of CAMS, American University of Beirut)
• Mikhael Balabane (University of Paris)
• Madhu Sudan (Harvard University)
• Nassif Ghoussoub (University of British Columbia)
• Nicolas Khuri (The Rockefeller University)
• Peter Glynn (Stanford University)
  
• Scott Tremaine​ (Institute of Advanced Study/University of Toronto)
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Steering Committee​

CAMS director is assisted by an internal Steering Committee composed of eight senior AUB faculty members and one member from the Lebanese University who are appointed by the provost for terms of two years, renewable. The committee assists in the review and ranking of scientific proposals submitted by faculty members seeking to join CAMS as fellows. It prepares, reviews, and proposes to the director quality scholarly activities that can be conducted or sponsored by CAMS. It assists in promoting activities conducted by and at CAMS, and in engaging relevant and interested AUB departments in participating in the work of the center. The committee also advises the director on academic, personnel, and any other matters at his/her request.

The members of the Steering Committee are:

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• AUB members
  • ​Amer Mouawad (Department of Computer Science)
  • Fadi Zaraket (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering)
  • Florian Bertrand (Department of Mathematics)
  • Leonid Klushin (Department of Physics)
  • Maya Abou Zeid (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering)
  • Stefano Monni (Department of Mathematics)
  • Victor Araman (Decision Science, Olayan School of Business
• Non-AUB member
  • Ayman Kachmar (Department of Mathematics, Lebanese University)
    

Associates

In addition to its fellows, CAMS has Associate Scholars, who conduct research in related fields such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, civil engineering, electrical and communications engineering, biomedical engineering, and business and management.

CAMS associates use the research and computing facilities of the center, participate in its scientific programs, and shape research directions to be undertaken at CAMS. In the course of their research work, they interact with AUB faculty and students, and typically give seminars and workshops.

• Bassam Fayad (CNRS, Institut de Mathématiques de Jussieu-Paris Rive Gauche, France)
• Khalil Bitar (American University of Beirut, Lebanon)
• Mikhael Balabanne (University Paris 13, France)
• Mina Abdel Malek (Alexandria University, Egypt)
• Nabil Nassif (American University of Beirut, Lebanon)
• Nassif Ghoussoub (Banff International Research Station, Canada)​
• Raafat Talhouk (Lebanese University, Lebanon)
  

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Fellows

The appointment of CAMS fellows is based on a submitted proposal through the Fellowship Program targeting Faculty members who are pursuing fundamental research in the Mathematical Sciences, at AUB and/or other universities in Lebanon.

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