2017 BH NEUMANN AWARD RECIPIENTS

David was born in England to an Australian mother and a Scottish father.  He was raised in Scotland and attended high school in Edinburgh before undertaking his degree in Logic and Scientific Method with Mathematics.  His initial aim was to become a systems analyst, but some time spent teaching convinced him that this might be where he could best indulge his passion for mathematics and computing.  Although Secondary trained, he soon became convinced of the need to provide a strong mathematical foundation for younger students and is now the co-ordinator of Years 5 and 6 at Churchie in Brisbane.  David has a keen interest in how students develop problem-solving techniques and has written a book on this subject, which has become one of AMT’s best-sellers.  He joined the AIC/CAT committee shortly after its inception and in 2008, took over from David Clark as Treasurer of AIOC and member of The Finance Committee.

Chaitanya attended Melbourne Grammar School and was a member of the 1994 IMO team which competed in Hong Kong.  In 2000 he completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Melbourne with a BE (Hons) in Electrical Engineering and a BSc (Hons) in Mathematics. Since September 2001 he has been a graduate student at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). In 2002 he obtained an MS in Electrical Engineering at Caltech and commenced PhD studies in wireless communication theory.  He now works in the IT industry.  Chaitanya has been a member of the Senior Problems Committee since 2000 and is a regular tutor at the December School of Excellence.

Ian attended Phillip College in the ACT and was a member of the 1987 IMO team which competed in Havana, Cuba.  Whilst studying, Ian worked for both Questacon (The National Science and Technology Centre) and CSIRO’s Double Helix Science Club. In 1997 he completed a PhD in combinatorics at ANU, entitled Permanents, Matchings and Latin Rectangles. Following that he undertook postdoctoral work in graph theory at the University of Melbourne. From Oct 1999 to Feb 2003 he was a junior research fellow at Christ Church, Oxford. He then did a further postdoc at ANU before being appointed Senior Lecturer at Charles Darwin University at the start of 2005. In 2006 he moved to Monash University where he is a QEII Fellow.  He has been a member of the Senior Problems Committee since 2000.