TopDoc - Simo Mthethwa
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Dr Simo Mthethwa: Lecturer at University of KwaZulu-Natal, Founder Mthethwamatics, Assupol Museum of Heroes Award, 100 South African Shining Stars, MiET Hero Award. #Mthethwamatics #TOPology #PerfectCompactifications #FramesAndLocales
“Life is mostly about the unknown, go find it!”
His Research: Simo’s maths research focuses on topology (he is TopDoc after all), which in maths is objects that keep their shape when twisted, crumpled or stretched but not when torn. A donut is a great example and there are some really cool objects such as a Klein bottle and knots that topologists study, but their knots don’t have loose ends! Topology, is the most recent branch of pure maths to be discovered. While algebra and geometry were developed thousands of years ago topology wasn’t developed until the 1800s. Topology is interesting to mathematicians as it can be used to understand some fundamental relationships of numbers and number sets. It's used in a variety of fields of math as well as in physics, specifically string theory.
Simo’s research is focused on the compactification of frames. Frames are essentially a series of mathematical formulas that can describe a shape. Compacting something means making something smaller. So Simo's work is focused on how to simplify these maths formulas and then studying what this says about these formulas and their relationships. High level maths is complex! But then you can't expect to run until you first learn to crawl.
His Hero: Évariste Galois, a French mathematician who developed what is know today as "Galois Theory", sadly died when he was only 20 years old.
His path to where he is now: Growing up in Empangeni, KZN, maths and numbers was just something that he got. Hear him speak about here. He went on to UKZN where he completed his undergraduate in Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, his Honours and Masters in Pure Mathematics studying Group Theory and his PhD in Pure Mathematics.
What are his days like: ongoing research - lots of reading, and thinking, with the occasional computer coding; teaching university maths students; supervision of the honours and masters students that work with him; and running Mthethwamatics - his awesome maths outreach programme.
What do you need besides Curiosity, Creativity, Hardwork, Communication? Consistency (that little bit every day just keeps on adding up) and imagination
Connect: Facebook (best) but also on other social media
Funda ngesiZulu
uDkt Simo Mthethwa: Ufundisa enyuvesi yaKwaZulu Natal. Ungumsunguli we-Mthethwamatics , umqubuli wendondo we-Assupol Museum of Heroes Award, 100 South African Shining Stars, MiET Hero Award. #Mthethwamatics #TOPology #PerfectCompactifications #FramesAndLocales
Ucwaningo lwakhe: Ucwaningo luka-Simo lwezibalo lugxile kwi-topology. I-topology uhlobo lwezibalo olubandakanya ama-shape akwazi ukubuyela esimeni ebikwisona emva kokufonyozwa noma kokunwetshwa kodwa hhayi uma ihleshuliwe noma idatshuliwe. I-Donut iyisibonelo esihle salama-shape. Kukhona namanye amaningi awacwaningayo. I-Topology inguhlobo olusha lwezibalo ososayensi abalutholile futhi kusakuningi abangakufunda ngalo. Ezinye izinhlobo zezibalo ezinjenge-Algebra ne-Geometry kade zatholwa futhi sekuningi esikwaziyo ngakho, kanti i-Topology kusakuningi esingakwazi ngayo. Yingakho sinososayensi abafana naye u-TopDoc abazosiza ukuthi sithole konke esingakwazi.
Ucwaningo lwakhe lwe-Topology uligxilise ekuthenini ufuna ukukwazi ukuthi angenza kanjani ama-shape afanayo abizwa ngama-frames. Ama-Frames angamafomula ezibalo asetshenziswa ukuchaza isimo sokuthi i-shape yakheke kanjani. Umsebenzi ka-Simo wukuthi athathe zonke lezizinto azitholile azichaze ngendlela abantu abazokwazi ukuqonda ngayo.
Iqhawe lakhe: U-Évariste Galois, ongusosayenzi wezibalo wase-France nguyena abukela kuyena ngenxa yokuthi wafika nendlela yakhe yokuxazulula izinkinga zezibalo elula. Ngebhadi lososayensi wasishiya emhlabeni eneminyaka angamashumi amabili.
Indlela ayihambile kuze kufike manje: Wakhulela Empangeni, KwaZulu Natal, izibalo nezinamba kwakuyinto ashesha wayithola futhi wayithanda. Wafunda imfundo yebanga eliphakeme eNyuvesi yaKwaZulu Natal okulapho athola khona iziqu zakhe zokuqala zezibalo kanye nezempyutha. Waphinde wathola iziqu zeHonours nezeMasters efundela iPure Mathematics kwi Group Theory wase ethola iziqu zobuDokotela kwiPure Mathematics.
Uhlelo lwezinsuku zakhe: Ucwaningo oluqhubekayo - ukufunda nokucabanga, ngibuye ngithinte kwi coding, ngifundise enyuvesi uhlelo lwezibalo, ngibhekelele abafundi abenza izuqu zabo engisebenza nabo ngiphinde ngiphathe iMthethwamatics, okunguhlelo oluthokozisa kakhulu lwezibalo.
Yikuphi okunye okudingayo ngaphandle kwelukuluku, ukusebenza kanzima, ukuxhumana kanye nobuhlakani?
Ukungaguquguquki ( enza okusemandleni nsuku zonke, kugcine kuhlanganisa okukhulu) kanye nemicabango enamaphupho amahle!
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