The Palestinian Conference on Modern Trends in Mathematics and Physics was held at Birzeit University, Birzeit, Palestine from July 28 to 30, 2008. This was the first major event organized by the UNESCO Chair in Mathematics and Theoretical Physics established last year at Birzeit University.  More than 70 Palestinian scientists and graduate students, as well as about 25 foreign scientists attended this conference. The talks were divided evenly between Physics and Mathematics. There were twenty invited talks, of which 16 were given by the foreign visitors. In addition, there were twenty contributed talks, mostly by local scientists and graduate students. Talks were held daily from 9:00 am till 6:30 pm. The sessions and various breaks were marked by lively discussions. The participation of graduate students in these discussions was particularly strong.

The Conference Opening Session was attended by the Palestinian Minister of Education and Higher Education. It was followed by the keynote talk in Mathematics given by Professor Jim Cushing (University of Arizona) on “Population Dynamics: a Bifurcation Theory Approach”. The keynote speaker on the second day was Sir Michael Berry (Bristol University) who gave a talk about “Tsunami Asymptotics”. The second day also included an Open Discussion Session that was moderated by members of the European Committee for a Center of Excellence in Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at Birzeit University. This committee includes a representative of the PEACE program. This session discussed the prospects for establishing this Center that will serve the needs of Palestinian Society. The idea of establishing this Center was the main motive for establishing the UNESCO Chair and the subsequent organization of the present conference.

The Conference was held with financial support from UNESCO and Birzeit University. Additional support was provided by the European Physical Society and German Technical Cooperation (GTZ). The Palestine Academy for Science and Technology will cover the cost of publication of the proceedings.

Further information will appear soon and will be updated continuously at the conference website:

http://www.birzeit.edu/mathphysconference/

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